Belvedere, Vienna

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There are those who have visited the Upper Belvedere museum before March 2006 and have seen the Klimt's and those who came later and will not see them.
You might have read about the case "Republic of Austria v. Altmann."
In January 2006 an arbitration tribunal in Austria decided in favour of Mrs. Altmann and her fellow heirs, awarding them the five paintings. In addition to "Adele Bloch-Bauer I" from 1907 they include a second portrait of Adele (Bloch-Bauer II), from 1911, and three landscapes: "Beechwood" (1903), "Apple Tree I" (circa 1911) and "Houses in Unterach on Lake Atter" (1916).
These Klimts are no more at the Belvedere but are in the USA.
The masterpiece "Adele Bloch-Bauer I" was sold to the Neue Galerie in New York of Ronald Lauder for a reported US $135 million.
The 4 others were sold by Christie's New York on November 8th, 2006 to private collectors at prices between 30 and 88 million USD.

The Austrian government received wide criticism for its failure to have secured a deal with Maria Altmann.
Fortunately, the Upper Belvedere has other Klimt's (a.o. "The Kiss") and many good paintings from the 19th and 20th century.
And for those who don't like paintings the architecture of the Belvedere, the terraces, the gardens and the ornamental pond are so nice that one might forget the Klimt's.

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WARNING: The so nice ornamental pond, surrounded by flower beds, in front of the Upper Belvedere palace (photo 2) is undergoing works. No water, no flowers in 2010. The "Sanierung" works should be finished in 2011.
The terraces going down to the Lower Belvedere have undergone works, the fountains have been cleaned but the flowers were largely missing on our visit (oct. 2010).
Note that when you walk down the terraces the exit is on the right by the portico of the Lower Belvedere palace (free toilets inside) on the Ringstrasse.

Open: Upper Belvedere daily 10 to 18 h.
Lower Belvedere, Orangery daily 10 to 18 h, Wednesday 10 to 21 h.

Price : Upper Belvedere Permanent Collection € 9.50 .
With Vienna Card: € 8 .
Seniors (from age 60): € 7.50 .
Students (up to age 27): € 7 .
Children (up to age 19): free .

The Belvedere is a baroque palace complex built by Prince Eugene of Savoy in the 18th century. Later on, the complex was sold to Empress Maria Theresa who first named the palace "Belvedere". Since World War I, the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere (Austrian Gallery museum) is housed in the Belvedere.

The art collection includes masterpieces from the Middle Ages and Baroque until the 21st century, focusing on Austrian painters from the Fin de Siècle and the Art Nouveau period. The best known artists on display are Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele.

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As if Schönbrunn and the Hofburg are not already enough, another palace complex requests your attention. The Belvedere palaces and gardens are just outside the old inner city centre and also worth a morning or afternoon visit. The complex is built against a hill and has a higher and lower palace, in between are the beautiful gardens invite for a walk around. During this strawl one can find out why the Belvedere holds this name. Belvedere means "beautiful view" and indeed, from the palace gardens (and the terrace in front of the higher palace) one sees far over the Austrian capitol.

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Belvedere Palace (constructed in the Baroque/Rococo style) was built for Prince Eugene of Savoy as a summer residence. It was one of the major tourists locations, which we wanted to visit. As luck would have it, there weren't many people there, so we had a quiet stroll around the grounds (could also be that it was late in the afternoon on a Sunday).

There are actually two palaces on the Belvedere grounds which house museums featuring Austrian paintings...in the lower palace the "Österreichisches Barockmuseum" (Austrian Museum of Baroque Art) displays Austrian Art of the 18th century, while in the upper palace you can view Austrian painting collections from the 19th and 20th century.

There is no charge to enter the grounds, but there is a fee for going into the museums. So take a look at the website below for detailed information.

The Upper Belvedere Palace was originally built as a summer residence by Prince Eugene of Savoy. It now houses a museum of 19th and 20th century art, with an emphasis on Austrian artists. In addition to its fine art collection, the Upper Belevedere Palace also offers visitors a nice view of Vienna because of its hilltop location.

The Belvedere Palace complex (consisting of the Upper and Lower Belvedere Palaces) was built by Prince Eugene of Savoy as a summer residence. The two palaces are now art museums. The Lower Belvedere Palace is a museum of medieval and baroque art.

The Osterreichische Galerie Belvedere is a fantastic and important collection that spans the Middle Ages up to the present day. Set in the beautiful summer Belvedere Palace which Prince Eugene of Savoy had built in the 16th century, it is the home to the famous Gustav Klimt painting The Kiss.

There are two main parts of the palace, the Upper Belvedere and Lower Belvedere. They are both two separate palace buildings on either side of a Baroque garden.

The Upper Belvedere houses the collection of the 19th and 20th centuries, namely works by artists like Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka, Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, etc.

The Lower Belvedere contains the Musem of Medieval Art and the Baroque Museum. Besides the paintings, the Lower Belvedere has impressive rooms, like the Marble Room, Marble Gallery, the Gold Cabinet, and the Hall of Grotesques.

While I enjoyed the collections of Klimt and Schiele, I personally preferred the collections at the Lower Belvedere. Call me a romantic at heart, but I thought the medieval and baroque collections, as well as the rooms and halls there were more impressive and the imagery more grandiose.

OPENING HOURS:
Tuesday to Sunday: 10 am - 6 pm
Entrance: till 5.30 pm
Closed on Monday

ADMISSION
€ 7.50
Various discounts available for groups, senior citizens, child, etc

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Quite a lovely palace with exquisite landscaping (although it could have used a soccer pitch), the artwork inside was awesome. Works by Klimpt (The Kiss) and Egon Schiele as well as many impressionist, local and classical artists. It was a wonderful way to start my exploration of Vienna. There are some wonderful paintings by the Viennese painter Biedermeier. The downside is that no photographs are allowed inside.

Built by Prince Eugene of Savoy in the 18th Century as the summer residence.

Open daily from 10 AM to 6 PM, on Weds to 9 PM. The combined ticket price is 13.50E, or for just the upper or lower, 9.50E.