Museum of Art and History Geneva

The Musée d'art et d'histoire (French: [myze daʁ e distwaʁ də ʒənɛv]; Museum of Art and History; MAH) is an encyclopedic art museum located in Geneva, Switzerland. Its collection comprises more than 650,000 objects spanning archaeology, applied arts, horology, the holdings of the Art and Archaeology Library, and fine and graphic arts, making it one of the largest museum collections in Switzerland. The museum heads the association for all art and historical museums in the city of Geneva, the Musées d'Art et d'Histoire. The other museums in this group are the Cabinet des Estampes (graphics), the Musée Ariana (porcelain), the Musée Rath (special exhibitions), the Maison Tavel (history of Geneva). History The museum as an institution dates back to 1826 and the Musée des Beaux-Arts , which opened in what is now the Musée Rath . The Musée Académique , whose exhibits covered natural history and archaeology , had also been recently founded (in 1818). The Musée des Beaux-Arts was acquired by the city of Geneva in 1851, which also received the State of Geneva's weapons collection and historical artefacts in 1870. In the second half of the 19th century these various collections were enlarged through donations, making new exhibition rooms necessary. In 1897 the. The building The museum is located in Les Tranchées, in the city centre, on the site of the former fortification ring. It was built by the architect Marc Camoletti between 1903 and 1910, and financed by a bequest from the banker Charles Galland (1816–1901). The building is square, with 60 m (200 ft) sides surrounding an inner courtyard. It has four storeys, with roof lanterns on the top floor, and a total exhibition space of 7,000 m² (75,000 square feet). The façade is decorated with sculptures by Paul Amlehn: an allegory of the arts, depicting.