The protagonists of eighteenth-century Veneto

The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries are two centuries of great artistic fortune for Este: the heritage of churches and palaces of the city is enriched with masterpieces realised by the major artists of the era.

Antonio Zanchi (Este 1631 – Venice 1722)
His works are conserved in the Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie, in the palaces of the City Hall and the Reading Room (Gabinetto di Lettura) in Piazza Maggiore and in Palazzo Mocenigo, seat of the National Museum. The Cathedral conserves the altarpiece for the high altar, which was later replaced by that of Tiepolo, while the cycle of the canvases of the church of the Madonna della Salute, for its size and quality, can be considered his masterpiece in the city.

Giulio Carpioni (Venice 1613 – Vicenza 1678)
Frescoed ceilings by Carpioni can be admired in the Venetian Palazzo Mocenigo, current home of the National Museum.

Mattia Bortoloni (Canda 1696 – Milan 1750)
He was among the major fresco artists of the 1700s, together with Crosato and Tiepolo, even holding the primacy of the world’s largest frescoed surface having a unitary subject: the cupola of the sanctuary of Mondovì (6032 square metres). In Este he contributed to the decoration of the gallery of Villa Contareni, called Vigna Contarena, with mythological scenes and allegories.

Giambattista Tiepolo (Venice 1696 – Madrid 1770)
Este conserves of one of Tiepolo’s greatest masterpieces on canvas, the altarpiece depicting “Santa Tecla who intercedes for the liberation of Este from the plague”. It was placed on the high altar of the Cathedral of Santa Tecla on 24 December 1759 and measures 675 x 390 cm.

In the sites that one can visit along this route there are also the works of many other artists of the period, such as Nicola Grassi, Antonio De Pieri, Jacopo Amigoni and Giovanni Scajaro.