PINACOTECA AMBROSIANA
An incredible library and art gallery, Botticelli, Titian, Caravaggio and Leonardo da Vinci compete for the attention of visitors.
Between via Torino and Piazza del Duomo lies this museum, too little known for the treasures it exhibits. One of the oldest and richest libraries in Europe (almost 1 million volumes and 40,000 manuscripts), it houses an astonishing collection of drawings, including extracts from Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Atlanticus (1478-1518). This incredible collection of annotated sketches by the great artist comprises 119 sheets, displayed in rotation in groups of twenty. It includes some of his most daring inventions, such as the bicycle and the flying machine, as well as countless drawings on anatomy, bird flight and astronomy. The Pinacoteca, housed in a former palace belonging to the Borromeo family, was built up from the private collection of Federico Borromeo (1618), cardinal of Milan famous for his charity during the plague of 1630. On the1st floor, it houses remarkable works by artists such as Botticelli(La Madonna del Padiglione), Leonardo da Vinci(The Musician), Raphael (the breathtaking sketch for theSchool of Athens - the finished work is in the Vatican, but its draft is just as accomplished), Caravaggio's only surviving still life(The FruitBasket ) and Titian(The Adoration of the Magi). Lombard art from the 16th to the 19th centuries is also well represented. For the curious, the Pinacoteca also houses a lock of Lucretia Borgia's hair.
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