Liechtenstein Museum

Liechtenstein Museum
Established March 29, 2004
Location Vienna, Austria
Website http://www.liechtensteinmuseum.at/en

The Liechtenstein Museum in Vienna, Austria contains much of the art collections of its owners, the Princely Family of Liechtenstein, rulers of the principality of Liechtenstein. They include important European works of art, forming one of the world's leading private art collections. Its highlight used to be Leonardo's portrait of Ginevra de' Benci.

The museum, which was open to the public until the Anschluss of 1938, had various locations, including the Liechtenstein Garden Palace in the IX District Alsergrund, Vienna, and the Liechtenstein City Palace in Bankgasse, Vienna. It was reopened on 29 March 2004 and, after battling with low visitor numbers, was closed for regular visiting by the public in November 2011. According to the official website, "the highlights of the princely collections can be viewed exclusively as part of an event package or a pre-booked guided tour".[1]

Objects from the collections have been sent on touring exhibitions to museums in other countries, especially the United States. In particular displays are regularly mounted at the Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein in Vaduz, which is otherwise a gallery for a modern collection donated to the state of Liechtenstein by the ruling family. Other works from the collection fill the palaces and residences of the Princely Family in Liechtenstein and Austria.

A catalogue of the artists (with short biographies) featured in the Gallery at the time of Prince Joseph Wenzel was compiled by Vicenzo Fanti in 1767.[2]

Liechtenstein Garden Palace

Liechtenstein Garden Palace painted in 1759 by Canaletto

The Gartenpalais was built by Prince Johann Adam Andreas von Liechtenstein, who commissioned its design and construction from Domenico Egidio Rossi; the shell was finished in 1700.[3] Painted decor in the Palais was contributed by Marcantonio Franceschini, Antonio Bellucci, Andrea Pozzo and Johann Michael Rottmayr. Sculpture came from Giovanni Giuliani and his studio, and stucco from the stuccator Santino Bussi.

Artworks (Selection)

Notes

  1. http://www.palaisliechtenstein.com/en/guided-tours.html
  2. delle vite de Pittori, Scultori, e d'altri Artefici le di cui famose opere formano la prescrita celebre galleria di sua altezza Giuseppe Wenceslao Principe Regnate della Casa di Lichtenstein
  3. The history of the construction is in Günter Passavant, Studien über Domenico Egidio Rossi und seine bauküstlerische Tätigheit innerhalb des süddeutschen und österreichischen Barok(Karlsruhe: Braun) 1967:109-23.

External links

Media related to Liechtenstein Museum at Wikimedia Commons

Coordinates: 48°13′21″N 16°21′34″E / 48.22250°N 16.35944°E / 48.22250; 16.35944

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