From near and afar

During the age of Baroque, the still life became a genre in its own right. Artfully arranged gold and silverware, Venetian glass, oriental fabrics, and fine Chinese porcelain bear witness to the collecting and trading interests of the time. Simon Luttichuys (ascribed to), still life, 1650–1680, oil on canvas.

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

Europe as battlefield

Religious differences triggered the Thirty Years’ War. It was to be the most momentous event of the Baroque era. Mercenaries plundered and murdered; the civilian population suffered hunger and disease. Philips Wouwerman, battle (of Nördlingen), 1665–1668, oil on canvas.

bpk / Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen

New worldview

European expansion gave rise to a growing interest in cartography. The elaborate maps were not only a significant asset for maritime voyages but also – now assembled in valuable atlases – as sought-after collectibles. Pieter Goos, Zee-atlas ofte waterwereld […], Amsterdam, 1676, copperplate, coloured.

Utrecht University Library

Baroque culture of collecting

At no other time was collecting pursued with such intensity. In princely and bourgeois art collections and cabinets of curiosities with their sundry and spectacular objects and works, the knowledge of the world was amassed, presented, explored, and discussed. Cornelis I. de Baellieur, gallery of a collector, around 1640, oil on wood.

Privatsammlung, Dauerleihgabe an LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz-Vienna, Inv.-Nr. G 28 © LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna

Instructive and moving

Ticino-born Giovanni Serodine (1594/1600–1630) was a pioneer of early Baroque sacred art. Lavishly ornamented Baroque churches and religious paintings serve as visual instruments of the Christian faith. Giovanni Serodine, Vergine dei Mercedari, around 1625–1627, oil on.

Pinacoteca cantonale Giovanni Züst, Rancate (Mendrisio), Cantone Ticino, Svizzera (Foto: Roberto Pellegrini)

Histoire du Roi

This tapestry depicts an event during talks in relation to the Treaty of the Pyrenees, and the proposed marriage of Louis XIV and the Spanish Infanta. The hall was designed specially for the meeting. Charles Le Brun, Entrevue de Philippe IV et Louis XIV, Manufacture des Gobelins, Paris, 1668, tapestry (high warp), silk, wool, gold thread.

(Collection du) Mobilier national, Paris, Philippe Sébert

Views of Rome

Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778) produced imposing views of Baroque Rome. Many of its most important monuments, such as the obelisk in Piazza del Popolo, trace back to Domenico Fontana. Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Veduta della Piazza del Popolo, sheet from

ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Graphische Sammlung

Precious items from the Ocean

Going back to the 16th century, magnificently decorated nautilus cups were highly sought-after objects in cabinets of art and curiosities. The nymph poised on the nautilus points to the area of Indo-Pacific as find-place. Nautilus cup, Melchior Maria Müller, Zug, around 1670–1680, mother-of-pearl, silver, gilded in parts.

Swiss National Museum

Exotic Silk

This Swiss-owned, elaborate silk mantua is strikingly decorated with Chinoiseries. The fabric came from the Netherlands where manufacturers specialized in orientally inspired textiles that were exported across Europe. Mantua, 1730–1750, silk.

Swiss National Museum

Spanish court dress

Under Archduchess Maria Anna, the hooped skirt called guardainfante became iconic thanks to the portraits of court painter Diego Velázquez (1599–1660). It developed out of the French and Spanish hooped skirt and testifies to the lively exchange between the two courts. Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez and workshop, Archduchess Maria Anna, queen of Spain, 1652–1653, oil on canvas.

Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, Gemäldegalerie, photo: KHM-Museumsverband

A view of the exhibition.

© Swiss National Museum

A view of the exhibition.

© Swiss National Museum

A view of the exhibition.

© Swiss National Museum

A view of the exhibition.

© Swiss National Museum

A view of the exhibition.

© Swiss National Museum