Maria-Theresien-Platz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Maria-Theresien-Platz of Vienna is a large square (Platz) joining the Ringstraße (Vienna's giant, round, central street) with the Museumsquartier, a museum of modern arts located in the former Imperial Stables. Facing each other from the sides of the square are two identical buildings, the Naturhistoriches Museum - Natural History Museum, and the Kunsthistoriches Museum - the Art History Museum. These two buildings are identical, save for the statuary on their façades. The Naturhistorisches' façade has statues depicting personifications of the various continents known to Austrian science at the time - Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas, while the Kunsthistoriches façade features famous European artists - such as the Dutch Bruegel, among others.
The two museums and the square adjoining them were built in 1819, and in the centre of the square is a large statue depicting Empress Marie-Theresa of Austro-Hungaria, namesake of the square. The square and the two museums of 1819 are worthwhile and enjoyable attractions for tourists - the Museumsquartier in the former Imperial Stables shows up to date contemporary works that are sometimes controversial, and the older museums are much more enjoyable and culturally enriching if you are hard on time.
The Kunsthistorisches Museum has a magnificent collection. There are some very famous works by the Northern European masters, such as Bruegel's Tower of Babel, as well as an extensive collection of ancient world art. The Egyptian collection (Aegyptisches Sammlung) houses some fascinating mummefied forms, stone carvings and the tomb of an Egyptian prince that was transported to Vienna and reassembled for Emperor Franz Joseph. On the stairwell's roof are some wonderful frescoes by famous Austrian artist Gustav Klimt.
The Naturhistoriches Museum has wonderful displays of butterflies and other insects, and an extensive preserved and stuffed animal collection - the most poignant examples of which include a Przewalskii's horse, a baby Javanese rhinoceros and a case of dodo remains. Also notable is the museum's famous Mikrotheater, showing slides of microscopic organisms, its two spider crabs which were sent to Emperor Franz Joseph of Austro-Hungaria by the Japanese Emperor as a gift, and the first ever human depiction of an underwater scene made from life observation, and the diving bell from which it was made. On the stairwell you can see paintings of Emperor Franz Joseph, Empress Maria-Theresa and her stuffed pet lap dog, a miniature hound.
