Page 133 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Vienna

MUSEUM AND T OWNHALL QU AR TER  131

The central cupola VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
was designed by
Johannes Benk Practical Information
around 1881. It is Maria-Theresien-Platz, A-1010.
crowned by a bronze Map 3 C1 & 5 A4. Tel 521770.
statue of the Greek Open 9am–9pm Wed, 9am–
god Helios. 6:30pm Thu–Mon. Closed Tue,
1 Jan, 25 Dec. & 7 - =
∑ nhm-wien.ac.at
Transport
% Volkstheater. @ 48A.
v D, 1, 2, 46, 49, 71.
Zigzag Herons
Part of the Birds of the World display,
this pair came from Brazil more than
150 years ago.
Museum Guide
The museum displays cover two floors. To the
right of the entrance on the ground floor are the
rooms devoted to gemstones and mineralogy; to
the left are the rooms housing the displays
First floor that chart the evolution of humans
and also contain the prehistoric
collections. The first floor
is dedicated to the huge
variety of animal life.

Ground floor

Hraschina Iron Meteorite
The museum houses the world’s
oldest and largest collection
of meteorites. This one fell in
Zagreb, Croatia, in 1751.
Maria-Theresien-Platz
This square separating the Kunsthistorisches Museum from the
Naturhistorisches Museum focuses on an 1888 statue of Maria
Theresa (see pp30–31) by
Kaspar von Zumbusch. It
shows the Empress clasping
the Pragmatic Sanction of
1713, which made it possible
for a woman to succeed to the
throne. Below, her generals
are portrayed setting forth
on horseback from four spurs
. Gemstone Bouquet projecting from the base of
A birthday gift in 1764 from the statue, while further back
Maria Theresa to her husband against the plinth stand her
Franz Stephen of Lorraine, this principal nobles and advisors.
piece contains 2,102 diamonds.

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