Castles · Tour
Judith, The Embrace and The Girl and Death, Read as Austrian Identity
A private tour of the Belvedere with an art historian, built around one question: what the pictures say about who the Austrians thought they were. Skip-the-line tickets are included. Vienna is called the capital of culture, the birthplace of the waltz, the birthplace of psychoanalysis. All of it is true, and the collection at the Belvedere is where those claims can be tested against actual objects. Klimt's golden Judith and The Kiss open the question of why female sexuality became a medical subject in this particular city. Schiele's The Embrace and The Girl and Death carry the unease that helps explain why psychoanalysis started here rather than somewhere else. The palace itself is part of the argument. Its Baroque decoration and its insistence on ancient heroic subjects account for the imperial air the city still trades on. Ferdinand Waldmüller's clear, sunlit paintings sell Viennese cosiness so well that it takes an effort to see the poverty behind them, and that effort is much of what this tour is for. Gilded medieval altarpieces at one end, Klimt's gold at the other, and the flashes of intellect and Viennese humour that come through the darker canvases of Schiele and Kokoschka in between.
What's included
- Skip-the-line Admission Tickets
- Professional Art Historian Guide
Itinerary
The map could not be loaded. Please try again in a moment.
Belvedere, Prinz-Eugen-Straße 27, Wien
Prinz-Eugen-Straße 27 is the address of the whole Belvedere garden and palace complex. The meeting point is in front of the palace that holds the museum, about 100 metres in from the street. Check the map before you set out.
Belvedere Museum
The palace and the collection taken together, since the architecture carries as much of the argument as the paintings. The route goes from the medieval rooms through to the 20th century, Klimt's The Kiss included, with the guide connecting what is on the walls to the city outside them.
Jardines de Belvedere
The tour begins at the entrance to the palace, where the view over the garden to the historic centre is not only a view: the guide explains what the axis was designed to say.
Belvedere, Prinz-Eugen-Straße 27, Wien
Good to know
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Wheelchair accessible
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Show 8 moreShow less
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Please come punctually to the meeting point at the main entrance of the Belvedere Palace (also called the Upper Belvedere where the Museum is located). Your guide will be waiting for you on the right side of the main entrance of the Belvedere Palace (it is at your right if you look at it from the front, it is at your left, if you turn your back to it). If you see a breathtaking view of Vienna, you found the meeting point. If you see the palace but not the city view, then please move to the entrance on the opposite side of the building. Just follow the "Museum entrance" sign. Use the contact details on your confirmation/voucher if you have any questions or have difficulties finding the meeting point or your guide.
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
- You can present either a paper or an electronic voucher for this activity.
- Up to 6 travelers per booking.
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Guiding available in: de, ru, en.
Reviews
Loading reviews…
