Monastery of Sant’Anna or the Contesse

MONASTERY OF SANT'ANNA OR THE CONTESSE. HISTORY

The Monastery is also known as “delle Contesse” (‘of the countesses’) because it was originally a dining room reserved for women only. It was founded by Angelina dei Conti di Montegiove e di Marsciano and decorated by Pier Antonio Mezzastris, Feliciano de' Muti and Giovanni di Corraduccio.

After just two years of marriage, Angelina joined the Third Order and moved to Foligno, the city of the Trinci, her relatives. She transformed some houses of the Società della Croce into a monastery and in 1388 the site was already open and preparing to host numerous works of art.

Today, its many frescoes include the four lunettes in the refectory depicting the Wedding at Cana, the Last Supper, Jesus and the Apostles in the House of Martha and Mary, and the kitchen of Martha attributed to Giovanni di Corraduccio, one of the most important artists of the Foligno school.
Until 1798 it also conserved the precious “Madonna of Foligno” by Raphael, subsequently confiscated by the French and taken to the Louvre in Paris.

Want to learn more? Come and visit us in this beautiful little town in the heart of Umbria.