Michelangelo's majestic frescoes on the Sistine Chapel ceiling are up there with the greatest artworks in human history. But hanging around in the long queue to see them is about as much fun as watching paint dry!

From ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Etruscan artifacts to modern art, this sprawling cultural repository spread across two palaces can name-drop luminaries like Giotto, Titian, Caravaggio, Da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo among its immense collection.