Wallraf-Richartz-Museum

Lonely Planet review

A famous collection of art from the 13th to the 19th centuries, the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum occupies a postmodern cube designed by Cologne's own OM Ungers. Works are presented chronologically, with the oldest on the 1st floor where standouts include brilliant examples from the Cologne School, known for its distinctive use of colour. Upstairs are Dutch and Flemish artists like Rembrandt and Rubens, Italians such as Canaletto and Spaniards including Murillo.

The 3rd floor focuses on the 19th century with evocative works by Caspar David Friedrich and Lovis Corinth. Thanks to a permanent loan from Swiss collector Gèrard Corboud, there's now also a respectable collection of impressionist paintings, including some by heavyweights Monet and Cézanne.

Come here to admire medieval works by the Cologne Masters, known for their distinctive use of colour. Dutch and Flemish artists like Rembrandt and Rubens are part of the collection, as are Italians such as Canaletto and Spaniards Murillo and Ribera. The exhibit continues with 19th-century romanticists such as Caspar David Friedrich and Lovis Corinth, and impressionists including Monet, Van Gogh and Renoir. A donation by Swiss collector Gèrard Corboud in 2001 greatly expanded the museum's stock of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works.