Art lovers must make time for the Gemäldegalerie, one of the world’s premier collections of European painting from the 13th to 18th centuries. This impressive gallery, housed in a striking Neoclassical building on Museum Island, contains masterpieces by virtually every major European artist of that era.
Highlights include:
- Rembrandt Room – An entire room dedicated to Rembrandt’s works including famous portraits like The Man with the Golden Helmet.
- Flemish & Dutch Masters – An unrivaled collection of works by Dutch Golden Age painters like Vermeer, Frans Hals, and Jan Steen.
- Italian Renaissance – Admire Renaissance masterpieces like Raphael’s double portrait The Grooms and Botticelli’s iconic Venus Pudica.
- Caravaggio Gallery – Several dramatically lit works by the Italian Baroque master Caravaggio.
- Burgundian/Netherlandish – An excellent representation of Early Netherlandish painters such as Van Eyck and Memling.
- German Masters – Outstanding pieces by German greats like Albrecht Dürer, Lucas Cranach, and Hans Holbein the Younger.
The compact but extraordinarily rich collection allows you to trace the evolution of European art from the Medieval period through the Renaissance, Baroque, and beyond. Masterpieces are arranged in rooms based on time period and region.
With over 3,000 works on display, the Gemäldegalerie ranks among the great painting museums of the world. Its concentration of masterworks by so many legendary artists makes it an absolute must for art enthusiasts.
