Sant'Antonio in Polesine

Sant'Antonio in Polesine is a Catholic monastic complex of the Order of Saint Benedict nuns located in Ferrara, Italy and dedicated to Anthony the Great.

[1] Beatrice II d’Este, daughter of marquis Azzo Novello and a Benedictine nun, received the monastery from her father as a gift for her community.

On the right is Storie della Passione—and a central chapel with frescoes of multiple periods, including an Annunciazione of Domenico Panetti (15th century) and a ceiling with 16th-century grotesques.

The presence of pagan images in an ecclesiastical setting, bears witness to the close ties between the monastery and the court, where such decorations were fashionable in the late 1600s.

[1] There is also a sculpted and gilt altarpiece depicting the Flagellazione by Nicolò Roselli (16th century).