The Alte Pinakothek

The collection of the Alte Pinakothek, one of the most important in the world, comprises over 700 works of art from the fourteenth to the eighteenth centuries. Such milestones of European painting provide a unique overview of the development of the European pictorial tradition from the Middle Ages, over the Renaissance and the Baroque to the end of the Rococo period. Encounter works by Dürer, Raphael, Leonardo, Titian, El Greco, Rubens, Rembrandt, Boucher and by their contemporaries!

Built in Classicist style between 1826 and 1836 by Leo von Klenze on behalf of the King of Bavaria, the building at the time set new and pioneering standards for European museum architecture.

In addition to the permanent exhibition of outstanding paintings from the golden age of German, Flemish, Dutch, French, Italian and Spanish painting, temporary special exhibitions, guided tours and events are open to visitors.

Architecture

The Pinakothek (today: Alte Pinakothek) was commissioned by King Ludwig I (1786-1868) and opened in 1836. Architect Leo von Klenze (1784-1864) used skylights to illuminate the exhibition spaces. It turned the gallery into a model for other museum buildings of the time. The Alte Pinakothek suffered considerable damage during WWII, but Hans Döllgast (1891-1974) managed to rebuild the gallery from 1957. The missing parts of the façade were replaced by unplastered brickwork. Thus the "wounds" in the façade remained visible. Döllgast thus contributed to the architecture of the "Wiederaufbau" (Germany’s post-war recovery).

The Alte Pinakothek is affiliated to the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen (Bavarian State Paintings Collections).

• The objects of the "Alte Pinakothek" available in bavarikon