Green Vault, Dresden

The Green Vault is a museum in Dresden, Germany that houses Europe's greatest treasure collection. Augustus the Strong of Poland and Saxony created the museum in 1723, and it houses artifacts ranging from Baroque to Classicism. The Green Vault is called after the original chambers' malachite green painted column bases and capitals. It claims to be the world's oldest museum; it is older than the British Museum, which opened in 1759, but the Vatican Museums attribute its establishment to the public presentation of the recently unearthed Laocoön group in 1506.

The Green Vault was totally rebuilt after the destruction of Dresden during WWII. Today, its riches are shown in two exhibitions: the Ancient Green Vault, which is famed for its splendors of the historic treasure chamber as it was in 1733, and the New Green Vault, which concentrates on each individual piece in neutral chambers.

Location: Taschenberg 2, Dresden, Sachsen 01067

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