Adjoining Heldenplatz is another impressive square you will definitely want to explore: Maria-Theresien-Platz. You can’t miss it. In the background is the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Emperor Franz Joseph I commissioned the Museum of Art History in 1857 to display some of the Hapsburg’s art. Architect Gottfried Semper finished the palatial Renaissance Revival showcase in 1891. Of course, the collection includes Austrian and European paintings. Unexpected are royal jewels, coins and armor plus artifacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman cultures plus Ephesus, the former grand capital of Asia Minor about 2,000 years ago. Now notice the baby elephant in the foreground. Of all the magnificent sculptures around Vienna, tourists seem most delighted by this playful bronze by Gottfried Kumpf. Many more of the Austrian artist’s animals can be found at Tiergarten Schönbrunn (Vienna Zoo) at the Schönbrunn Palace.
