On this museum tour, you will not only experience the most famous paintings on the museum display, but you will also learn how to look at paintings with a critical eye and distinguish between genius works and mediocre ones.

You will walk through all the rooms of the Museum of Art History, learn the history of its principal objects, and understand why Titian, Rubens and Vermeer are commonly admired. What is it about their paintings? Why is the “Mona Lisa” reason enough to go to the Louvre, and the “Tower of Babel” is reason enough to visit Vienna? The purpose of this tour is to help you figure out where the status of the painting was affected by successful PR, where technical execution played a role, where there is the influence of an aura or cultural tradition, and where there is genuine craftsmanship.

You will learn how the theft of Cellini's “Saliera” affected the value of this work and how restitution proceedings can contribute to the sudden focus on new canvases. You can yourself see if it is easy to make choice between Bruegel's “Tower of Babel” with his “Hunters in the Snow”.

You will apply keys to “reading” works of art, and before you know it, your interest in museum artefacts and works will deepen as you begin to see and understand their true value.