Vienna: Upper Belvedere … the Building

Vorgartenstrasse is the closest metro station to the river cruise docks at Handelskai. Hopping on the U1 line from there, a 10-minute ride and a ½-mile walk at the other end brought us to this afternoon’s planned destination — Belvedere Palace. Our pre-purchased timed-entry tickets were for 1:00p, but a smile and a thank you got us through the ticket checkpoint half an hour early.

Belvedere Palace actually consists of two palaces … known as Upper and Lower … simply due to the location of each within the extensive grounds. Between the two is a lovely garden … I’m sure even more so in the spring and summer when the colorful flowers are in bloom.

The Baroque style palace was commissioned in the 18th century by Prince Eugene of Savoy as a summer residence. Following his death, Empress Maria Theresa acquired the complex and converted the Upper Belvedere into a venue where the imperial art collection was exhibited. One might say that thus was born a public museum that continues to display amazing art to this day.

We began our visit at the Upper Belvedere. We were there primarily to see Klimt’s “Kiss.” But there was so much more. As well, the building itself had some amazing architectural details. So much so that, this footprint will focus on some of them.Read more