This museum's 'Western Art' wing houses Kyiv's most impressive collection of European paintings, with Bosch, Velázquez and Rubens among the many masters represented. The 19th-century house alone is worth the price of admission, with its frescoed ceilings and intricately carved woodwork. The separate 'Eastern Art' wing, in an equally stunning mansion (1878), has Buddhist, Chinese and Islamic art.
The 'Western Art' wing is packed with priceless antique furniture, ancient Greek sculptures, porcelain ceramics and dazzling paintings, such as a version of Hieronymus Bosch's Temptation of St Anthony. The museum's climax is on the top floor: four rare religious icons from the 6th and 7th centuries. Even if icons aren't your thing, it's hard not to be moved by these primitive Byzantine treasures.
