Fodor's Expert Review Pinacoteca Ambrosiana
Cardinal Federico Borromeo, one of Milan's native saints, founded this picture gallery in 1618 with the addition of his personal art collection to a bequest of books to Italy's first public library. The core works of the collection include such treasures as Caravaggio's Basket of Fruit, Raphael's monumental preparatory drawing (known as a "cartoon") for The School of Athens, which hangs in the Vatican, and Leonardo da Vinci's Portrait of a Musician. The highlight for many is Leonardo's Codex Atlanticus, which features thousands of his sketches and drawings.