MUNICH.- In 2011 the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen is marking the Alte Pinakothek’s 175th anniversary with a wide range of events. Opened to the public on 16 October, 1836, Leo von Klenze’s seminal museum building today still provides the architectural framework for collections of paintings assembled in Munich around 1800 by various branches of the Wittelsbach dynasty, together with King Ludwig I’s later acquisitions. A series of exhibitions during the jubilee year focuses on the history of the museum and its collection which is among the most important in the world. To launch this series, from mid March the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen welcomed a hugely important guest, Johannes Vermeer’s “Woman Holding a Balance”. This masterpiece, now held in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, once formed part of the exquisite private collection amassed by the first king of Bavaria, Max I J