Villa Arca del Santo and the Oratory of Sant’Antonio Abate
Anguillara Veneta (PD)
The Villa Arca del Santo of Anguillara Veneta and the adjoining Oratory of Sant’Antonio date back to 1660 and were built at the behest of the Veneranda Arca di Sant’Antonio, the institution that has administered the assets of Padua’s Basilica since 1396 and of which Anguillara was an external possession.
The intent was to create an elegant and spacious monastery near the Taglio bridge, in order to give a permanent home to the friars who oversaw the agricultural work. It is not a coincidence then, that the complex is structured according to the typical style of the buildings of the Venetian countryside, thus featuring a residential part and a “barchessa”, which is a building used for rural work.
In the last forty years, the selling of the complex and a series of unlucky events had led the Oratory to a progressive deterioration and loss of precious furnishings, which were stolen by unknown people and returned to the Veneranda Arca only in 2009, following investigations promoted by Veneto’s Artistic Heritage Office.
The Oratory – which had been hit by arson in 2001, causing the collapse of the roof – can be visited again today thanks to the important restoration works promoted by FAI (Italy’s national trust), which collected 7,670 signatures in 2010 during the 5th census of the “Luoghi del Cuore” (Places of the Heart)
Address: via Santo 14, Anguillara Veneta (PD)
Open to the public by reservation
Info: Comune di Anguillara Veneta +39 049 5387001
