Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Gulbenkian Museum
—This is the best of Lisbon's 40 museums. It's two miles
north of the city center, but worth the trip for art lovers. Calouste Gulbenkian
(1869-1955), an Armenian oil tycoon, gave Portugal his art collection (or “harem,” as he
called it). His gift was an act of gratitude for the hospitable asylum granted him during
World War II (he lived in Lisbon from 1942 until he died in 1955). The Portuguese con-
sider Gulbenkian—whose billion-dollar estate is still a growing and vital arts foundation
promoting culture in Portugal—an inspirational model of how to be thoughtfully wealthy.
(He made a habit of “tithing for art,” spending 10 percent of his income on things of
beauty.) The foundation often hosts classical music concerts in the museum's auditori-
ums.
Gulbenkian's collection, spanning 5,000 years and housed in a classy modern building,
offers the most purely enjoyable museum experience in Iberia—it's both educational and
just plain beautiful. The museum is cool, uncrowded, gorgeously lit, and easy to grasp,
displaying only a few select and exquisite works from each epoch. Walk through five mil-
lennia of human history, appreciating our ancestors by seeing objects they treasured.
Cost and Hours:
€6, free on Sun; open Tue-Sun 10:00-18:00, closed Mon; good
1.5-hour audioguide-€4, pleasant gardens, good air-conditioned cafeteria, Berna 45, tel.
217-823-000,
www.museu.gulbenkian.pt
.
GettingThere:
From downtown, hop a cab (€6) or take the Metro from Restauradores
to the São Sebastião stop and exit the station following signs to
Avenida de Aguiar
(norte).
Once at street level, walk a long block down Avenida de Aguiar with the massive
El Corte Inglés department store behind you. Just before the roundabout (across from the
funky, pink Spanish embassy on the left), you'll see a small sign pointing right to the
fundação
—the museum entrance is straight ahead through this park, past an office build-
ing, about 100 yards away. (It's also possible to use the Praça de Espanha Metro stop,
which is the same distance from the museum, but the São Sebastião stop will save you
from having to cross several busy streets.)
Nearby:
A fine modern art gallery (CAMJAP) is next door. And Belém is a quick €8
taxi ride away.
(See “Gulbenkian Museum” map,
here
.)
Self-Guided Tour:
From the entrance lobby, there are two wings, covering
roughly pre-1500 and post-1500. Following the museum's layout, you'll see...
Egypt (2,500-500
B.C.
):
Ancient Egyptians, believing that life really began after
death, carved statues to preserve the memory of the deceased, whether it be a prince
(Statue of the Courtier Bes, 664-610
B.C.
, with an inscription calling him “the king's
friend”) or a likeness of the family pet. The cat statue nurses her kittens atop a coffin
