The historical ensemble consisting of the Castle, Augusteum and Prinzenpalais houses the collections of the Oldenburg State Museum for Art and Cultural History. The former Grand Ducal collection of paintings formed the basis for today's museum, which was founded in 1921 and opened in the Castle two years later. With a total collection of well over 30,000 paintings, paper art, cultural-history and applied-art objects, the State Museum is one of Northern Germany's most varied museums. Regular major special exhibitions attract national attention and praise.