Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga

Description:

• The hallowed institution that is the National Museum of Ancient Art occupies a 17th-century palace and houses Portugal's national art collection. Inaugurated in 1884, floorspace was extended in 1940 over the site of the old Carmelite Convento de Santo Alberto. The convent's 16th-century chapel is the only surviving feature of the original building and is integrated into the museum. European and Asian art is well represented and notable pieces include Hieronymus Bosch's triptych The Temptation of St Antony and Albrecht Dürer's St Jerome. Two outstanding 16th-century screens depicting Portugal's commercial relationship with Japan exemplify Namban art. French gold and silverware, Italian objets d'art, Flemish tapestries, Chinese porcelain and Indian decorative furniture number among other treasures on show. A must-see is the Adoration of St Vincent, a polyptych attributed to Nuno Gonçalves between 1460 and 1470, generally regarded as the most important painting of 15th'century Portuguese art. © NileGuide2011
• © NileGuide2012