Without a doubt, the Prado is one of the most famous museums in the world — and one of the most visited. On November 19, 1819, this art institution was inaugurated under the name "Museo Real de Pintura y Escultura" (Royal Museum of Painting and Sculpture). Works from the 19th and 20th centuries departed from the museum in 1971, and today the museum is primarily a home to the great Old Masters.

Spanish art was naturally the focus of attention from the very beginning. Goya's painting "La Maja desnuda" was painted between 1795 and 1800 and was considered scandalous. The Spanish Inquisition took Goya to task and asked him about his clients. His answer remains unknown, but his title as Royal Court Painter was revoked. Today, the painting is a magnet among Prado-goers.

Several works by Goya's compatriot Diego Rodriguez de Silva y Velázquez are also housed in the Prado. The most important and famous is "Las Meninas" ("The Maids of Honor," with an excerpt shown here). The painting, which was created in 1656, went down in art history because it reflected the act of painting itself. Velázquez himself can be seen on the left with a brush.

Today, the Prado's collection includes thousands of pictures. The Spanish focus was expanded, bringing in pictures from the Netherlands, Italy, France, England, and the German-speaking region. One of the most famous is Albrecht Dürer's "Adam and Eve" (1507), painted on wood panels, and shown here after an elaborate restoration.

A showpiece of Italian painting exhibited at the Prado is Sandro Botticelli's "Story of Nastagio Degli Onesti" (with an excerpt shown here). The scene refers to an episode in 14th-century Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio's "The Decameron" and shows a gruesome picture in which a woman is hunted by dogs and men. The painting was painted at the end of the 15th century.

The Spanish museum also boasts numerous iconic Dutch paintings, such as the major work by Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516): "The Garden of Earthly Delights," a triptych oil painting on oak panels. Viewers can immerse themselves in its many details, like this excerpt showing maltreated ears, from the much larger 2.20 x 3.9-meter (7.2 x 12.8-foot) triptych addressing the Christian story of creation.

Those who are interested in antiquity will get their money's worth at the Prado. Dutch painter Peter Paul Rubens likewise spent his life working on depictions of ancient narratives. In the painting "Mercury and Argus" (here, an excerpt) he masterfully depicts how Mercury, messenger of the gods, attacks the guard Argos in order to liberate the nymph Io, who has been transformed into a cow.

The Flemish master Jan Brueghel (1568-1625) is also represented in Madrid with a prominent work. His painting "Peasant Dance for the Archdukes" shows the full mastery of this visionary artist. Brueghels the Elder was considered a master in representing peasant life.