Designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel, the Altes Museum (Old Museum) was opened in 1830 as the first museum on Museum Island. At that time, the striking neoclassical façade structured by Ionic columns, expansive foyer and attractive rotunda were quite exceptional for a public building.
Today, after refurbishment, the museum is home to a permanent exhibition showcasing the arts and sculpture from classical antiquity, from ancient Greece to the Roman Empire, including portrait busts of Caesar and Cleopatra. An especial highlight is the collection of Etruscan art, the largest outside Italy.
