Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, Art museum in Avenidas Novas, Lisbon, Portugal.
The Calouste Gulbenkian Museum is an art museum in Lisbon housing around 6,000 artworks from ancient times through the 20th century. The collection includes Egyptian artifacts, Persian manuscripts, European paintings by masters like Rembrandt and Monet, French decorative jewelry, and applied arts spanning multiple centuries and continents.
The museum opened in 1969 based on the personal art collection of a wealthy businessman who gathered artworks throughout his lifetime. Following his death, the collection became accessible to the public and has shaped the city's cultural landscape ever since.
The collection reflects one person's deep fascination with art from many cultures and time periods, brought together in a way that shows how different traditions shaped each other. Walking through the galleries, you notice how objects from distant lands and eras are placed beside one another, revealing connections that might otherwise go unseen.
Visiting works best during daylight hours when the gallery lighting is optimal and spaces are not overly crowded. Plan for enough time to explore all sections since the collection is quite large and moving through at a comfortable pace allows you to take everything in.
The collection includes exceptional jewelry by French artist René Lalique, known for his innovative glass techniques that revolutionized decorative arts. These delicate pieces are displayed alongside ancient artifacts and European masterworks, creating an unusual pairing that few visitors anticipate finding together.
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