Just a stone’s throw from the Golden Gate Bridge, nestled amidst the greenery of Lincoln Park and with a splendid view of the Pacific Ocean, we find a majestic Beaux-Arts building characterized by its long colonnade: it is the California Palace of the Legion of Honor, one of San Francisco‘s two fine arts museums. The other, the De Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, is not far away.
Contents
Legion of Honor Museum History
The California Palace of the Legion of Honor is one of San Francisco’s most prestigious museums, with artwork spanning more than 4 millennia of human history. It was built with the idea of commemorating Californian soldiers who died during World War I thanks to the efforts of Alma Spreckels.
She fell in love with the French pavilion at the Panama Pacific International Exposition in 1915. The pavilion was a replica of the Palais de la Légion d’Honneur in Paris. Alma Spreckels and her husband, tycoon Adolph B. Spreckels, decided to dedicate a new art museum to the city and construct a building in French Neoclassical style reminiscent of the Parisian Palais de la Légion d’Honneur.
Architect George Applegarth combined the design that copied the palace with the most modern technology and engineering knowledge of the time. The war delayed the plans, but nonetheless, the museum was opened in 1924. At that point, the dedication to the many young men who had died in the very recent war was almost a no brainer.
Given the museum’s growing importance and notoriety, its area was almost doubled in 1995 by creating six new galleries around the glass pyramid in the courtyard and adding various study areas in the museum’s sections. The renovations also improved the building’s earthquake-resistance and safety features.
The museum’s motto? “We are motivated to move forward knowing that our community needs the comfort and inspiration of art more than ever. We will continue to illuminate the past, talk about the present and shape the future.” Forward-looking words are reflected in the wealth of the number of works shown and their importance.
Directions
San Francisco’s Legion of Honor is located in Lincoln Park at 100 34th Avenue.
If you are driving, you will be pleased to know that the museum has free parking in front of the facility and that there are also some free parking spaces on the north side of the building.
If you reach the museum by public transportation you are entitled to a $2 discount on the cost of your ticket. You can take:
- the number 18 bus, which leaves you in front of the museum
- the number 1 bus: get off at the 33rd Avenue/Clement Street stop. It will take you less than 10 minutes to walk through the park to reach the museum
- the number 38 bus: get off at the 33rd Avenue/Geary Street stop. It will take you about 11 minutes walk to reach the museum entrance.
Some other information that may be helpful to you:
Opening Hours and Tickets
The California Palace of the Legion of Honor is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:30 am to 5:15 pm. Last admission is one hour before closing. On Mondays, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day, the museum is closed. In conjunction with special events, opening hours may vary.
Tickets cost:
- $15 for adults
- $12 for those over 65
- $6 for students
Admission to the museum is free for children and young people under 17.
The ticket also includes admission on the same day to the De Young Museum at 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive in Golden Gate Park, also in San Francisco. A chance to visit two fascinating museums on the same day.
If you reach the museum by public transportation (Muni, BART, Caltrain) show your ticket at the ticket counter and get a $2 discount on the cost of admission.
Special exhibitions or temporary displays of artwork on loan to the museum may be charged an additional fee to the standard ticket cost.
On the first Tuesday of the month, admission is free for everyone, and every Saturday is free for San Francisco Bay Area residents.
Purchase tickets for the museum
Legion of Honor Museum Artworks
The location itself is worth a visit: stroll through Lincoln Park, climb its steps and reach the museum and then enjoy the sea breeze and ocean views. But the California Palace of the Legion of Honor holds more than 4,000 years of history inside: from Egyptian mummies and Greek and Roman artifacts to marvelous paintings by leading 20th-century artists.
The major collections within the museum are:
- European Paintings: the many galleries house a selection of more than 800 paintings belonging to the museum, and painted by European artists from 1300 to 1900. Beato Angelico, Georges de la Tour, Rubens, Anthony van Dick, Rembrandt, Monet, and Manet are just a few of the better known names present.
- Ancient Art: the heart of this section has belonged to the museum since its inception, thanks to the desire of de Young and Spreckels. The collection of artifacts from Ancient Egypt, Greek, Roman, and Middle Eastern civilizations is located in the Hall of Antiquities and the Mummy Room in Gallery 1.
- European Decorative Art: sixteenth-century Spanish ceilings, seventeenth-century Florentine walls, seventeenth-century altars and furniture, as well as three perfectly recreated salons and a splendid collection of antique porcelain and ceramics.
- European Sculpture: the sculpture The Thinker by master Auguste Rodin has become the symbol of the museum. But in addition to the extensive collection of works by Rodin, in this section you will also find some masterpieces by Della Robbia, Cellini, Giambologna, Clodion, Houdon, and Maillol.
- Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts: over 90,000 paper works are part of the foundation’s collection, which are exhibited on a rotating basis between the two fine arts museums.
- Photography: the two museums alternate their most significant photographic works in their collections between each other.
In addition to the permanent and temporary collections, if you are a film lover this museum is certainly worth a visit because it was chosen by the master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock for many scenes in his very famous film Vertigo – The Woman Who Lived Twice.
Where to Stay in the Area
The museum is located inside Lincoln Park in northwest San Francisco. You are in the Richmond District between the Golden Gate Park neighborhood to the south and the Presidio to the north. So like all big city parks, I recommend avoiding going there at night, but both this and other nearby neighborhoods have many great accommodations for your stay in San Francisco. For an overview of the best neighborhoods for overnight stays in the city, I recommend reading our guide by clicking on the button below:
