The Germanisches National Museum in Nuremberg is Germany’s largest museum of cultural history and the National Museum of the Federal Republic. The museum was founded by Hans Freiherr von und zu Aufseß in 1852 with the intention of collecting and displaying exhibits relating to German culture and history; this is an ethos that the museum continues to follow today. The collections of art and artefacts span pre-history to the present day and include an extensive array of prints, paintings, bronzes, textiles, woodwork, ceramics, costumes and manuscripts. One of the museum’s highlights is its collection of Medieval Icons and Renaissance paintings.