Francis, who, as early as 1535 lived in Schifanoia, had a summer residence built where he could spend his leisure hours, thus reviving the tradition of court “delights.”

In fact, the plan of the Palazzina was centered on a large central hall that served as a passing hallway, which was overlooked by the side rooms and the tripartite loggia, open to the garden. The building, consisting of a single floor, was enriched by refined fresco decorations from the workshop of Sebastiano Filippi known as Bastianino, a leading figure in Ferrara painting in the second half of the 16th century. Finally the garden was embellished by the large loggia known as the “loggia of the orange trees,” used as a theater and, in winter, as a cedar house for sheltering the most delicate plants and citrus trees.
In 1578 the mansion was bequeathed to Marfisa, Francesco’s daughter, who inhabited it until his death in 1608, preserving it in its spaces and animating it even when Ferrara returned under papal rule in 1598. Upon his death, a phase of slow but continuous decline began, which was only halted in 1861 when the City Council purchased the building and began its restoration in 1909.

Coordinated by engineer Savonuzzi, the work was completed in 1938 with the inauguration of the museum itinerary designed by Nino Barbantini. Savonuzzi and Barbantini’s intervention was extremely respectful of the building’s structure, and the pictorial restoration of the vaults was conducted with the intention of not distorting the sense of the original decorations. The layout and furnishings also helped to recreate the atmosphere of a Renaissance stately home.