Gottfried Semper and Karl von Hasenauer designed the Kunsthistorisches Museum for the Ringstraße, on Maria-Theresien-Platz. Construction ran from 1871 to 1891, and Emperor Franz Joseph I opened it around 1891. The article describes the facades as Renaissance Revival.
The building is rectangular, with symmetrical sandstone facades, large arched windows and an octagonal dome 200 feet (60 m) high. The Natural History Museum, built at the same time to a similar design, stands directly across the square. The interiors are decorated with marble, stucco, gold leaf and murals.
The grand staircase carries paintings by Gustav Klimt, Ernst Klimt, Franz Matsch, Hans Makart and Mihály Munkácsy. The Kunstkammer rooms were renovated and expanded, reopening in 2013. Cellini's Saliera was stolen from the museum on May 11, 2003, and recovered on January 21, 2006, near Zwettl.
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