Rooms as they were
A home, not a gallery.
Anap Nogueira — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Fred Mesquita — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Xandi — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ana Mercedes Gauna — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Elaine Marinho Fotografia — CC BY-SA 4.0
On the shore of the Rodrigo de Freitas lagoon stands the house where the collector Eva Klabin (1903-1991) lived for more than thirty years. Born in São Paulo to a family of Lithuanian immigrants, whose father co-founded one of Brazil's biggest paper companies, she bought the house with her husband in 1952, one of the first built around the newly landscaped lagoon, and began collecting there. In 1990 she set up the foundation that keeps her collection, one of the largest of classical art in any Brazilian museum: more than 2,000 works spanning about 5,000 years, from Ancient Egypt to Impressionism, including European paintings, furniture, silver, Chinese porcelain and objets d'art. What makes it special is that the pieces still sit in the rooms as their owner arranged them, so visitors feel like guests in a home rather than in a museum. Visits are guided at set times; in July 2026 they ran Wednesday to Sunday between 14:00 and 18:00, one tour an hour, so check the programme before going.
A home, not a gallery.
Paintings and furniture.
On the Lagoa shore.
Avenida Epitácio Pessoa 2480, Lagoa, Rio de Janeiro
Rodrigo de Freitas LagoonRodrigo de Freitas Lagoon sits in the Lagoa district of Rio's South Zone, behind16 minutes walk4.9
Copacabana BeachCopacabana is Rio's most famous beach, a curve of white sand about four kilometr17 minutes walk4.6
Ipanema BeachIpanema is Rio's stylish beach, between the Arpoador rock and Leblon, made world17 minutes walk4.8
Fort CopacabanaFort Copacabana stands on the headland at the southern end of Copacabana beach, 20 minutes walk4.7
ArpoadorArpoador is a rocky outcrop and small beach between Ipanema and Copacabana in Ri22 minutes walk4.7On a guided visit at set times, which in July 2026 ran Wednesday to Sunday between 14:00 and 18:00; check the current programme.