About the museum
The story of the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana
The Pinacoteca Ambrosiana in Milan was founded in 1618 by Cardinal Federico Borromeo alongside the Biblioteca Ambrosiana, one of the first public libraries in Europe.
Its paintings include Caravaggio's Basket of Fruit, Raphael's full-size cartoon for The School of Athens and works by Leonardo and his circle.
The collection
Cardinal Federico Borromeo gave the Ambrosiana his collection of paintings, drawings and books to teach young artists. It holds Leonardo's Portrait of a Musician, Caravaggio's Basket of Fruit, Titian, Bruegel the Elder's son Jan Brueghel's flower paintings and Raphael's cartoon for The School of Athens.
The Biblioteca Ambrosiana next door preserves Leonardo's Codex Atlanticus, the largest collection of his drawings and notes, shown in rotation.
At ArtLogia you can order 11 of its paintings as hand-painted reproductions, by 10 artists led by Bramantino, Leonardo da Vinci and Caravaggio.
- paintings to order
- 11
- artists
- 10
- art movements
- 4
- years covered
- 1485–1600
The building
The library and gallery occupy a palace near the Duomo of Milan, built from 1603 by Lelio Buzzi and Francesco Maria Richini, with later additions around its courtyards.
Masterpieces to see
Planning a visit
The library holds Leonardo's Codex Atlanticus, pages of which are shown in rotation.
