Covering some 7,000 years of culture, this spectacular museum is among the world’s most important and was opened in 1891 by Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria-Hungary. The museum’s picture gallery contains an extraordinary collection of paintings by European Old Masters including Raphael, Titian, Velázquez and Vermeer and the world’s largest collection of work by Pieter Bꦆruegel t🔯he Elder. In early 2013, its famous Kunstkammer reopened after a decade of renovations, revealing 20 galleries featuring examples of goldsmithing, outstanding sculptures such as the 15th-century Krumau Madonna, magnificent bronze statuettes, delicate ivories and precious stone vessels, as well as valuable clocks, elaborate automatons, scientific instruments and sumptuous game boards.