Museu Calouste Gulbenkian

Lonely Planet review

Chief must-see is the eclectic, brilliant collection of the Museu Calouste Gulbenkian. One of Europe's unsung treasures, this museum, set in a sleek 1960s building, houses more than 6000 pieces (with 1500 on permanent display) spanning major epochs of Western and Eastern art. Idyllic gardens surround the space, and there are bilingual touch-screens with information on some of the museum's most exceptional works.

Within the classical and Oriental collections, the Egyptian Room houses an exquisite 2700-year-old alabaster bowl, a gilded silver mummy mask, small female statuettes (each differently coiffed), and some naturalistic bronze cats. In the adjoining Greek & Roman section are a 2400-year-old Attic vase, luminescent Roman glassware and Hellenic coins with finely carved heads.

Oriental Islamic treasures include some 16th- and 17th-century Turkish faïence glowing with brilliant greens and blues, Persian carpets and 14th-century mosque lamps from Syria, with strikingly sensuous shapes. The Armenian collection features illuminated manuscripts from the 16th to 18th centuries. In the Chinese & Japanese section, huge pieces of 18th-century Chinese porcelain contrast with small neat Japanese writing boxes and lacquered picnic sets of the same era.

Going west, European Art sweeps from medieval ivories and jewel-like manuscripts to 15th- to 19th-century masterpieces. All the big names are here, including Rembrandt (Portrait of an Old Man), Van Dyck and Rubens (including the frantic Loves of the Centaurs ). Particularly lovely is the 15th-century Portrait of a Girl by Ghirlandaio and a white marble Diana by Houdon. Eighteenth- and 19th-century European art doesn't get skimped, with Aubusson tapestries, wonderfully fussy furniture (including items from Versailles), Sèvres porcelain and intricate clocks. Outstanding works include Gainsborough's Mrs Lowndes, two atmospheric La Tour portraits, turbulent Turners, a passionate Spring Kiss by Rodin, several Manets ( Boy Blowing Bubbles ), Monet's ( Still life with Melon) and a pretty Renoir.

The grand finale is the incredible collection of René Lalique glass and jewellery. Here are fabulous, unique fantasies, such as the outrageous, otherworldly Dragonfly, glittering with gold, enamel, moonstones and diamonds.