by InTrieste
At the Castello di Miramare, a cliffside Habsburg residence overlooking the Adriatic, a new exhibition is re-examining the intersection of imperial vision and Egyptomania in 19th-century Europe.
Titled “A Sphinx Beckons: Archduke Maximilian and the Egyptian Collections Between Trieste and Vienna,” the show—organized in collaboration with the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna—presents part of the Egyptian collection associated with Archduke Maximilian of Austria, who once conceived of Miramare as both a private retreat and a cultural statement.
Installed in the castle’s former stables, the exhibition traces Maximilian’s ambition to build what he called an “ideal museum,” one intended to elevate art from private possession to public resource. The display runs through Nov. 1, 2026.
Alongside the exhibition, the museum has launched a program of workshops led by Egyptologist Susanna Moser, offering monthly sessions on topics including hieroglyphic writing, religion, magic, burial practices, music, cuisine, and the global history of Egyptian collections. The series is designed for small groups and included with admission.
A parallel summer program for children transforms the site into an educational campus combining archaeology, art-making, and outdoor exploration in the surrounding park, continuing Miramare’s broader effort to position historical scholarship within an accessible public setting.
