Galleria Estense, Modena, Bezoekersgids & wat te doen in de buurt

The Galleria Estense is the art museum of the Este family, the dukes who ruled Modena for centuries, and it is the city's most important collection of paintings and sculpture. It sits on the top floor of the Palazzo dei Musei in Largo Porta Sant'Agostino, in the historic centre of Modena, and is well worth a stop for anyone interested in Italian Renaissance and Baroque art.

The story behind it

The collection grew out of the Este court at Ferrara, where the family gathered art for generations. When the Este lost Ferrara in 1598 and moved their capital to Modena, they brought their treasures with them. Later dukes kept adding to the collection, buying works and commissioning portraits of themselves from leading artists.

The museum now occupies the Palazzo dei Musei, a large eighteenth-century building that also houses the Biblioteca Estense and the city's civic museums. The gallery is on the upper floor, so the visit begins with a climb and ends among the Este court's favourite painters.

What to look for

• The marble bust of Duke Francesco I d'Este by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, a showpiece of Baroque portrait sculpture, made for the duke who did much to build up the collection.
• The portrait of Francesco I d'Este by Diego Velázquez, painted when the Spanish master visited Modena, which shows the duke in a more intimate, direct style than the sculpture.
• The paintings by Correggio, the great painter from the Emilia region, whose soft light and tender figures are a highlight of the Emilian rooms.
• The Ferrarese Renaissance works by artists such as Cosmè Tura and Dosso Dossi, which recall the court where the Este first built their collection.

Tips for your visit

• Allow about 1 to 2 hours for the gallery, more if you enjoy reading the labels or want to look at the other museums in the same building.
• Check current opening hours and ticket information before you go, as they change through the year.
• The gallery is in the centre of Modena, so it combines easily with a walk to the cathedral and Piazza Grande, both a short stroll away.
• A visit in the morning or the quieter part of the afternoon usually makes the rooms easier to enjoy, and a rainy day is a good excuse to come.

Explore it on a quest

The streets around the Galleria Estense are a pleasure to walk, and a self-guided quest is a good way to see them. You move on foot from place to place, the app tells you about each stop as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle in what is in front of you. Browse the quests in Modena and choose one that suits your time.