National Museum of Ancient Art
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga that is located in Lisbon is the most important art museum in Portugal as well as being among the most important in Europe.
The MNAA was founded in 1884 to display the collections of the Portuguese Royal Family and the National Academy of Fine Arts. It is housed in the Palácio Alvor-Pombal, a former residence of the 1st Marquis of Pombal which was expanded when it was converted into a museum. The museum's collection spans more than a millennium of art from Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas and includes notable artworks by Hieronymus Bosch, Raphael, Hans Holbein the Elder, Francisco de Zurbarán, Albrecht Dürer, Domingos Sequeira, and Giambattista Tiepolo, among numerous others.
Painting
- European
The European painting section of the museum is significant and is represented by Jacob Adriaensz Backer, Bartolomé Bermejo, Triptych of the Temptation of St. Anthony by Hieronymus Bosch, Pieter Brueghel the Younger, David Gerard, Saint Jerome in His Study by Albrecht Dürer, Lucas Cranach, Piero della Francesca, Jan Gossaert, Hans Holbein the Elder, Pieter de Hooch, Adriaen Isenbrandt, Quentin Metsys, Hans Memling, Antonis Mor, Joachim Patinir, Jan Provost, Raphael, José Ribera, Andrea del Sarto, David Teniers the Younger, Tintoretto, Anthony van Dyck, Diego Velázquez, David Vinckeboons, Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom, Francisco de Zurbarán, François Boucher, Nicolas Poussin and others.
- Portuguese
Perhaps the most famous work in the museum is the Saint Vincent Panels, which date from before 1470 and are attributed to Nuno Gonçalves, court painter of King Afonso V. Though the history of the polyptych remains enshrouded in mystery, the six large panels have been argued to portray people from all levels of late medieval Portuguese society venerating Saint Vincent, in what would be one of the first group portraits in European art. There are 60 figures on the panels.
The museum also has important works by early 16th-century painters active in Portugal, such as, Jorge Afonso, Vasco Fernandes, Garcia Fernandes, Francisco de Holanda, Cristóvão Lopes, Gregório Lopes, Cristovão de Figueiredo, Francisco Henriques, and others.
Painting from the 17th through the early 19th centuries is well represented by works that include those of Josefa de Óbidos, Vieira Portuense, and Domingos Sequeira.
