In 1891, the Museum of the History of Art was opened in Vienna. Although in fact it existed already in 1889.
Who designed it?
The huge and beautiful building in the Renaissance style immediately became one of the hallmarks of the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The museum, following the example of other similar institutions in Europe, was designed on the basis of royal collections of artworks. The construction was designed and built by the famous architect in Europe Gottfried Semper.
He tried to introduce elements inherent in the Roman Empire into the interior of the buildings, which pleased the Austro-Hungarian emperor, who saw in this an allusion to the continuity of the glory of the Holy Roman Empire.
Where is?
The Vienna Museum of Art is located on Maria Theresa Square , next to a beautiful well-kept park, and there is also a monument to the Empress.
The Habsburgs, starting from the fifteenth century, collected family portraits. In addition, many emperors of this monarchical dynasty bought canvases of the most famous artists of their time. When it became almost nowhere to fit the collections of paintings, Emperor Franz Joseph came up with the idea to build a separate building to store rare works of art. Moreover, to see the paintings of the Renaissance, ancient sculptures and other valuable exhibits collected over the centuries by the Habsburg dynasty, everyone will have the opportunity. For public viewing, paintings became available under Maria Theresa.
Description
The museum building is truly grand. The construction in the form of a triangle is crowned by a magnificent dome with a diameter of sixty meters. Inside, there are ninety-one museum halls, not counting utility rooms. In front of the magnificent and beautiful building there is a large well-groomed lawn, on which shrubs skillfully trimmed in the form of circles, cylinders and the like grow.
They are scattered on the lawn, there is no heap of green spaces, which gives the space in front of the museum a very elegant, elegant look. The large-scale building in itself is admirable, let alone the treasures of art collected in it.
Exhibits
The exhibits were transported to the Vienna Museum of Art History from other Habsburg treasures. So, from the Kunstkamera, located in Prague Castle, some paintings collected by Emperor Rudolf II were transported to Vienna. Priceless paintings became the most picturesque exposition of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
Canvases collected by Archduke Ferdinand II were delivered from Ambras Castle. Leopold Wilhelm, as the governor of the Southern Netherlands, bought paintings at auction in Brussels. And over time, he collected the most extensive and informative collection of paintings by prominent artists - Rubens, Tintoretto, Titian, Van Eyck and others. Famous paintings and other works from many castles, palaces, art galleries belonging to the Habsburgs were brought to the Museum of Art History.
The Austrians were able to preserve their priceless treasures during the First and Second World War. Museum exhibits expropriated in 1918 were transferred to the state. The building of the Museum of the History of Art was especially badly damaged during World War II. However, the inhabitants of Vienna were able to take care of amazing works of art. They prudently removed and hid the priceless treasures of world culture immediately before the outbreak of war. The Museum of Art History in Vienna resumed its work decades after the end of World War II, in 1959.
Ancient artifacts and Egyptian hall
His exhibits are extremely ancient, it is not only paintings of the Renaissance, but also antique works of art, whose age has reached four millennia. For example, a sculpture of the head, which was found during excavations in Giza about a hundred years ago.
It is believed that it was made during the reign of Pharaoh Cheops. By the way, the museum has a vast hall dedicated to Egyptian themes. It is equipped as an ancient Egyptian temple. This hall contains the rarest treasures that have witnessed the era of the pharaohs.
Exhibits of antiquity
Also in the museum are exhibits from antiquity. This is a Roman copy of the sculpture of the head of Aristotle, a copy of the Greek original sculpture "Aphrodite and Eros". The famous bas-relief cameo "Gemma Augustus" made of onyx and many other artistic values of Hellenic and ancient Roman cultures.
Jewelry exhibits
In addition to old paintings, the museum houses samples of renowned masters of jewelry. For example, the work of the Italian genius Benvenuto Cellini. Whose works were very prestigious to present to representatives of the royal dynasties of Europe in the sixteenth century.
One of these works - a salt shaker with the image of Neptune and Ceres - can be seen in one of the halls of the Vienna Museum of Art History. The refined and delicate work of a renowned jeweler is simply priceless. There are also luxurious objects of work of other eminent masters. A bowl of lapis lazuli by Gasparo Mizeroni, a masterpiece of the late sixteenth century.
Ivory artifacts
One of the halls of the museum contains ivory products. Among the many exhibits, the sculpture of Jacob Auer "Apollo and Daphne", dated 1688, is especially notable. Bone carving flourished especially in Vienna, was a fashionable occupation during the reign of Emperor Leopold I.
Therefore, his bust is in this thematic hall. Here is the bust of the young Maria Antoinette, the French queen, decapitated on the scaffold, like most aristocrats, during the revolution.
Art Gallery and Numismatic Hall
Nevertheless, the basis, the core of the Vienna Museum of the History of Art is the art gallery. If you recall all the famous European artists of all time, then half of their work, no doubt, is in this museum. The art gallery has several sections, so to speak. One is dedicated to the works of Flemish artists. Here you can see the immortal canvases of Rubens, van Dyck, Jacob Jordaens. The German section contains the works of Albrecht Dürer, Holbein, Cranach. The Dutch section is represented by paintings by Hals, Terborch, Van Rijn and other famous artists.
Italian contains paintings by Titian, Giorgione, Mantegna, Caravaggio, Rafael Santi. There is also a section dedicated to the artists of England and France.
In addition to all the listed expositions, the museum has a unique numismatic hall. His collection is one of the five best collections in the world. Here are collected the oldest and rarest coins, medals, orders and other insignia.
Museum of Natural History
If you are interested in the most famous museums, then visit the Museum of Natural History. The building is made in the Renaissance style. It looks very harmonious with the Museum of Art History. These two establishments were opened in the same year. The Natural History Museum features natural exhibits belonging to the Habsburg house. This institution has thirty-nine halls in which there are plants and animals that died out a couple of centuries ago. Here are collected more than three million exhibits. Most of them were brought from different parts of the globe. The first floor accommodates an exposition dedicated to all kinds of fauna representatives. Famous exhibits are the skeleton of a diplodocus and a stuffed Steller cow. On the second floor there are geological exhibits. This is a collection of the rarest gems, a collection of minerals, minerals. There are fragments of a meteorite and a tiny figurine of Venus of Willendorf.
Figaro House
What is worth seeing for those who are interested in Vienna (city). There are many attractions here. Tourists who come to Vienna should definitely see the house of musical genius - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was here that the famous composer lived in the period from 1784 to 1787. Here was born the famous opera "The Marriage of Figaro." Therefore, until recently, the townspeople called the house - the House of Figaro. Residents of Vienna did not spare eight million euros for the reconstruction of the building. The house is located in the old part of the city, next to St. Stephen's Cathedral.
Conclusion
Now you know that Vienna (the city whose sights we considered) is quite beautiful and interesting, of course, largely thanks to its museums. Be sure to visit the places described in the article. Believe me, this beauty deserves the attention of every tourist.