Vienna: The Chamber of Art

The Museum of Art History in Vienna (Kunsthistoriches Museum, Wien) is one of the largest and most important institutions of its kind. The holdings are divided into five collections:

** The Egyptian and Near Eastern Collection

 

** The Greek and Roman Collection

 

** The Chamber of Art

 

** Paintings

 

** Coins and Medallions

A general introduction to the museum and its collections was published (in several languages) in 2007. Here is a link to the English edition: The Museum of Art History in Vienna.

The Chamber of Art (Die Kunstkammer), which holds about 2,200 amazing and exquisite objects, was closed for renovation for several years, but in the beginning of 2013 it was finally opened again. In order to celebrate the long awaited opening of this department the museum has produced a small book, which presents more than one hundred objects from this collection. The book – written by Konrad Schlegel and edited by Sabine Haag - is published (in several languages) by the German publisher C.H. Beck and the British publisher Scala.

The author (Konrad Schlegel) is Scientific Consultant for the Chamber of Art in Vienna, while the editor (Sabine Haag) is Director General of the Museum of Art History.

Sabine Haag is also the editor of Masterpieces in the Collection of Greek and Roman Antiquities: A Brief Guide to the Kunsthistorisches Museum (271 pages) published by KHM in 2012.
 

The book about the Chamber of Art is divided into ten sections. The first section written by Sabine Haag presents the history of the Chamber of Art. The remaining nine sections written by Konrad Schlegel presents a broad selection of the works in the collection. Each object is shown in a colour photo and described in a brief text. For reasons of space I can only mention a few examples here:

* Page 14 – An ivory panel which shows St. Gregory with scribes

* Page 31 – A marble panel which shows a poet singing a song to his beloved

* Page 34 – A bronze statue which shows Bellerophon and Pegasus (the winged horse)

* Page 42 – A portrait of King Charles the 5th

* Page 43 – A portrait of Queen Maria of Hungary

* Pages 46-47 – The Saliera of Benvenuto Cellini

* Page 88 – A table machine in the form of a ship

* Pages 111-112 – A statue (made of ivory) which shows King Joseph I as Victor over the Horror of War

* Page 122 – A portrait of Marie Antoinette

* Page 123 – A mosaic which shows Emperor Joseph II with his younger brother, Pietro Leopoldo, the Grand Duke of Tuscany and future Emperor Leopold II.

The Saliera (salt cellar) mentioned above was created by Benvenuto Cellini in Paris 1540-1543. It is probably the most important object in the colletion. A picture of this item is placed on the front cover of the book. The text does not mention the amazing story of the theft and recovery of this precious item. Therefore I will add a brief summary here:

In 2003 the Saliera was stolen from the museum. In 2006 it was recovered and returned to the museum. Fortunately, it was still intact.

For more details about this case see for instance BBC News Online, 22 January 2006, and Richard Bernstein, New York Times, 26 January 2006.

If you wish to visit the Museum of Art History, you should book your ticket online before you go there. When you book your ticket, you can also select a timeslot during which you can enter the Chamber of Art. You can only enter the Chamber of Art if you have a ticket which shows the appropriate timeslot.

If you come to the museum and buy a ticket on the spot, you may also be able to visit the Chamber of Art, but you may have to wait a while until you can enter this part of the museum. Only a limited number of visitors are allowed to enter this area every 20 minutes. Once you are inside, you may stay as long as you like (although you will of course have to leave when the museum is going to close).

The Museum of Art History is a world-class museum, and now when the Chamber of Art is open again, you will also be able to enjoy and study the objects in this department. There is much more to see in the collection than you can see in this book. There are about 2,200 objects in the collection, and only about one hundred are presented in the book. But the book is a great introduction to the collection. You may use it to prepare a visit to the museum. After a visit the book will be a wonderful souvenir.
 

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Konrad Schlegel (author) and Sabine Haag (editor),

Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna: The Kunstkammer,

C. H. Beck & Scala, 2013, 128 pages

 

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