Culture on a Budget
You don’t have to spend a
fortune to see some of
Europe’s greatest museums
Petit Palais, Paris (permanent
collection, free) This Beaux Arts
building—with its impressive col-
umns and crescent-shaped court-
yard—would be extraordinary even
if empty of the 1,300 paintings and
objets d’art on display. Its master-
pieces come from the likes of
Courbet, Monet, and Rodin.
; Don’t miss: The pomme de pin
(“pinecone”) goblet by noted de-
signer René Lalique—the clear glass
prettily shimmers blue (011+33-1-
53434000; en.parisinfo.com).
Palazzo Barberini, Rome (about $7)
Completed in 1632, the palazzo features a stunning collection of Renaissance paintings, including Raphael’s
famous “La Fornarina,” which is
thought to be a portrait of his young
mistress, and Caravaggio’s “Judith
Beheading Holofernes.”
; Don’t miss: The frescoed ceiling,
“Triumph of Divine Providence,”
by Italian artist Pietro da Cortona,
which epitomizes Baroque excess
(011+39-06-32810; galleriaborghese
.it/barberini/en/ einfo.htm).
Sir John Ritblat Gallery, British
Library, London (free) This gallery
showcases some of the world’s most
noted books, maps, and papers, including two 15th-century Gutenberg
Bibles and music manuscripts by Handel and Beethoven. Beatles fans will
love the handwritten lyrics to “
Yesterday,” penned by Sir Paul himself.
; Don’t miss: Magna Carta—the 13th-
century English charter of political
rights is one of the most celebrated
legal documents in English history.
You can put your nose up close to
the protective case to see the scribes’
teeny script; then give your peepers a
rest by taking a look at the other, enlarged portions on display (011+44-
0-870-4441500; www.bl.uk).
National Museum, Copenhagen
(free) This French-rococo–style
mansion once housed Denmark’s
royal family; exhibits trace the Danes
from the Ice Age to today. See Viking
artifacts collected in their raids,
including silver coins and jewelry,
small Thor’s hammers, and runic
stones that commemorate the dead.
; Don’t miss: The 3,400-year-old
“Chariot of the Sun”—gilded on
one side, the tabletop-size bronze
statue depicts a horse pulling the
sun across the sky (011+45-33134411;
nationalmuseet.dk/sw20374.asp).
FRENCH PRIDE The Petit Palais boasts a trove of 45,000 works.
Pergamon Museum, Berlin (about
$11) The city’s most visited museum
(made up of three main departments)
ranks alongside other well-known
European sites when it comes to
classical antiquities and items from
the Near East. Jaw-dropping sights
include ancient architectural structures rebuilt from original stones and
other materials. Among the exhibits
are the indoor Market Gate of Miletus
(constructed in 120 C.E.), a 55-foot-
high example of ancient Roman architecture, and the brilliantly colored
Babylonian Ishtar Gate (constructed
in 575 B.C. E.), a 47-foot-high edifice of
blue-glazed tiles and golden, sculpted dragons and cattle.
; Don’t miss: The namesake Pergamon Altar—the colossal, three-story,
open-air stone altar is originally from
the ancient Greek city of Pergamon.
Now restored, the second-century-
C.E. podium features a 371-foot-long
sculptural frieze (a decorative band)
depicting the battle between the gods
and giants (011+49-030-20905577;
smb.museum). —Laura Daily
