Villa Beatrice d'Este takes its name from Beatrice, a member of the Este family, daughter of Azzo VI. On Mount Gemola, there was an ancient hermit monastery, which the Blessed transformed into a convent after her move from Salarola. Here Beatrice lived, from 1221 to 1226, in religious life until her death, and her fame of holiness spread rapidly, generating donations and devotion. In the 16th century, the nuns were transferred to Padua, and the remains of the Blessed were moved to the church of Santa Sofia. After a phase of abandonment, the complex was transferred to private Venetians in 1657 and was transformed into a villa, but still preserving traces of the ancient monastery. Between the 19th and 20th centuries, the area underwent changes, but the restorations of the 1970s and 1980s recovered and enhanced the original structure.
From May 1, 2026, Villa Beatrice d'Este reopened to the public with MUSeuM, the new Museum of the Euganei, a project that weaves memory, landscape, and innovation to offer a contemporary reading of the territory.
Overlooking from the top of Mount Gemola, the restored villa becomes an immersive space where interactive technologies and multimedia content guide the visitor in discovering the figure of the Blessed Beatrice I d'Este and the identity of the Euganean Hills, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. History dialogues with the landscape, artistic heritage meets material culture, while traditions, nature, and culinary excellence find a unified and accessible narrative.
More than a museum, MUSeuM aims to be a center for interpreting the territory, designed to engage diverse audiences and promote the Euganei in a national and international dimension. The opening also inaugurated the celebrations for the eight hundred years since the death of Beatrice d'Este, giving new life to a symbolic place where the past is not simply preserved but reinterpreted through the languages of the present.
