Paseo del Prado Photo by Ricardo Ricote Rodríguez  Wikimedia

Top 10 Outstanding Facts about Paseo del  Prado


 

Paseo del Prado has been one of the main boulevards in Madrid, Spain which runs North-South between the Plaza de Cibeles and the Plaza del Emperador Carlos V. It also forms the Southern end of the city’s central axis that continues to the north of Cibeles as the Paseo de Recoletos and further north as the Paseo de la Castellana). It enjoys the status of Bien de Interés Cultural (BIC) and is part of a combined UNESCO World Heritage Site with Buen Retiro Park.

The construction of the Prado building began in 1785 when Charles III hired Juan de Villanueva to create a natural science museum. The Napoleonic Wars caused a delay in the building’s construction, but Ferdinand VII oversaw its completion and it was opened to the public as the Royal Museum of Painting in 1819. After Isabella II’s exile, when she added artworks from the royal palaces and the Escorial to the collection, it was renamed the National Museum of the Prado in 1868.

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Here are the Top 10 Outstanding Facts about Paseo del Prado

1. The renowned Bank of Spain, the Naval Museum, and other prestigious institutions have called Paseo del Prado their home

The Paseo del Prado is a well-known artistic boulevard in the heart of Madrid, Spain. It is a particular historic site of interest due to its significance to the culture. Along with numerous other famous organizations, Paseo del Prado is home to the renowned Bank of Spain and Naval Museum.

2. There are 3 museums that are contained in Paseo del Prado

Madrid Paseo Del Prado Museum Facade Ouest photo by rene boulay Wikimedia 

The prestigious Prado Museum, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, and the Reina Sofia Museum are all located on Paseo del Prado. The Prado Museum at Cason del Buen Retiro is home to works by well-known artists from the 19th century, including Diego Velazquez’s Las Meninas and Francisco de Goya’s La Maja vestida and La Maja Desnuda.

European paintings from eight centuries are on display at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum. Guernica by Pablo Picasso is one of the significant 20th-century artworks on display at the Reina Sofia Museum.

3. Paseo del Prado is also known as the Landscape of Light 

Because of its obvious and deep commitment to bridging modernism, culture, science, and nature. Paseo del Prado is sometimes referred to as the Landscape of Light. Paseo de Recoletos, Paseo de la Castellana, the Royal Palace of Madrid, Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Plaza de Atocha, Plaza de Oriente, and Plaza Mayor are some nearby attractions to check out.

4. It shelters several monuments of Historical and Artistic interest

Madrid. Paseo del Prado. Photo by Rubén Vique Wikimedia

A number of historical and artistically significant monuments and enclosures that were built for the Hall of Prado municipal project in the eighteenth century may be found along the Paseo del Prado promenade. For this project, numerous grounds for landscaping and ornamentation were built.

The Villanueva Building, which houses the Prado Museum, the Royal Botanical Gardens, and three sculptured water fountains that Ventura Rodriguez created and which feature the likenesses of Neptune, Cibeles, and Apollo are some of this project’s standout features. 

5. The earliest of Europe’s urban promenades with trees was Paseo del Prado

The first tree-lined urban promenade in Europe was Paseo del Prado. King Philip II created it in the 16th century as a place where all inhabitants, regardless of social level, may enjoy nature inside the city limits.

6. The historical boulevard that connects Glorieta de Carlos and Plaza de Cibeles has a tree that is 100 years old

Paseo del Prado Photo by Ricardo Ricote Rodríguez  Wikimedia

Glorieta de Carlos V and Plaza de Cibeles are linked by this lovely historical avenue that is surrounded by trees that are over a century old. Some of the city’s most renowned cultural institutions, such as the Prado Museum, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, CaixaForum Madrid, and the Royal Botanical Garden. They are located along the broad and central boulevard. Along with El Retiro Park, it was designated a World Heritage Site in  2021.

7. Paseo del Prado was built by Architect Juan de Villanueva in 1785 by the orders of King Charles III

King Charles III included the Buen Retiro gardens in the overall redesign of the city in the late 18th century and opened them to the public on multiple occasions. The development of a group of scientific institutions was a unique element in his new vision for this urban area that was unheard of at the time. The city was made more attractive by this significant endeavor to spread scientific knowledge and educate all inhabitants. Additionally, Charles hired Ventura Rodriguez to create some of the fountains that are still there today, including Apollo, Neptune, and Cibeles.

8. Over 2,300 paintings have been integrated into Paseo del Prado

Since the  Paseo del Prado’s founding, more than 2,300 paintings have been added to the collection, along with numerous sculptures, prints, drawings, and other works of art via bequests, donations, and purchases, which make up the majority of the New Acquisitions.

The bequest of Goya’s Black Paintings by the Barón Emile d’Erlanger in 1881 was particularly significant. Some notable pieces that have recently been added to the collection through purchases include two works by El Greco, Fable and The Flight to Egypt, bought in 1993 and 2001, The Countess of Chinchón by Goya, and Velázquez’s Portrait of the Man Called “The Pope’s Barber,” bought-in 2003.

9. It houses the world’s largest collection of Spanish masterworks, including a collection of Greco-Roman statues

El Greco, Velázquez, Francisco de Goya, and other Spanish masters including José de Ribera and Francisco de Zurbarán have works in the Prado, which has one of the largest collections of their art anywhere in the world. Important pieces by Hironymus Bosch, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Raphael, Tintoretto, Paolo Veronese, Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt, Anthony Van Dyck, Nicolas Poussin, Claude Lorrain, and Antoine Watteau are included in it. A lovely collection of Greco-Roman statues is also housed there.

10. Paseo del Prado was expanded by more than 23500 Square feet and designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Rafael Moneo

Madrid Paseo Del Prado Museum Facade Ouest photo by rene boulay Wikimedia

The neighboring Casón del Buen Retiro, constructed in 1637 as a ballroom for the Buen Retiro Palace, was seized by the Prado in 1971. In 2002, construction on a new wing got underway, and it was finished in 2007. It increased the museum’s space by more than 235,000 square feet and was created by Pritzker Prize–winning architect Rafael Moneo. 

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