Imperial Furniture Museum, Furniture museum in Neubau district, Vienna, Austria
The Imperial Furniture Museum (Möbelmuseum Wien), formerly the Hofmobiliendepot, occupies a building erected in 1901 on Mariahilfer Straße 88 as the imperial-royal court furniture depot, with attached workshops and coach houses; its main entrance is at Andreasgasse 7 in the 7th district, Neubau. The collection holds some 160,000 objects, mainly furniture of the Habsburg monarchs, from commodes and imperial thrones to spittoons, alongside Viennese cabinet making and interiors by Adolf Loos, Josef Hoffmann and Otto Wagner.
The museum was established in 1747 when Empress Maria Theresa appointed the first Court Furniture Inspector to oversee the imperial household collection. This institution preserved not only furnishings but also documented changing tastes and artistic evolution across different reigns until modern times.
The collection features works by Viennese designers like Adolf Loos and Josef Hoffmann, who shaped the development of modern furniture design in Austria. Visitors can observe how different design movements evolved and how these creators approached function and form in new ways.
The museum is accessible on foot from central Vienna or by public transport and sits near the Museums Quarter district. Plan to spend at least two to three hours to explore the different sections at a comfortable pace.
The depot's holdings include items that seem odd today, such as the spittoons that were obligatory a hundred years ago, alongside furniture from commodes to imperial thrones. Federal ministers may borrow pieces for their chancellery during their term, and embassies and film companies also draw on the collection.
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