Kunsthistorisches Museum

Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien

The Habsburg royal collection, with the world's largest collection of Bruegel, Vermeer's The Art of Painting, Raphael and Caravaggio. The domed café is a sight in itself.

The Kunsthistorisches Museum was opened by Emperor Franz Joseph in 1891. It faces the identical Naturhistorisches Museum across Maria-Theresien-Platz. Designed by Semper and Hasenauer, it is the most magnificent museum building on the Ring. Its marble staircase, the spandrel murals painted by the Klimt brothers and the 60-meter-high domed hall are breathtaking. The collection is built on centuries of Habsburg holdings, and the painting gallery is its core. It houses the world's largest collection of Pieter Bruegel the Elder, with 12 paintings including Hunters in the Snow, The Tower of Babel and The Peasant Wedding. It also has Vermeer's The Art of Painting, Raphael's Madonna in the Meadow, Caravaggio's Madonna of the Rosary, Velázquez's portraits of Princess Margaret painted for Habsburg relatives, and the Four Seasons heads by Rubens, Titian, Dürer and Arcimboldo. Other collections include the Egyptian and Near Eastern Museum, the Greek and Roman Museum, the Coin Cabinet and the world-class Kunstkammer, which includes Cellini's gold salt cellar. Admission is about €21, free for those under 19. A combined ticket with the Imperial Treasury costs about €28. Reserve on khm.at. The museum stays open until 21:00 on Thursdays. The café beneath the dome is one of Vienna's most beautiful, and it hosts a 'Dome Dinner' on Thursday evenings. Getting there: take U2 or U3 to Volkstheater station, or trams D, 1, 2 or 71 to Burgring. It's a 5-minute walk from the Hofburg through Heldenplatz. Allow at least 2 hours for the paintings. You can download the 'Top 20' route from the website. The Natural History Museum opposite, with the Venus of Willendorf and the dinosaur halls, is a good choice for families.

Kunsthistorisches Museum

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