List of artworks in the Gonzaga collection

The Gonzagas were inspired by the wunderkammer style of collecting practised by the princes of Bavaria, with Isabella d'Este in particular creating a noted private 'studiolo'.

They set an example for other European courts, particularly in their patronage of contemporary artists, whilst their collecting increased the international profile of Mantua, a relatively small state.

It reached its peak under Vincenzo I Gonzaga and his son Ferdinando, before the family's decline led to major losses from the collection, such as the long negotiations from 1625 onwards with Charles I of Great Britain, mediated by two members of the Whitehall Group – the Flemish art dealer Daniel Nys and Nicholas Lanier, Master of the King's Music.

Its works are now split between museums and private collections across the world, as shown by the 2002–2003 exhibition Gonzaga.

As well as paintings, the collection also included decorative work in gold and precious stones such as the Gonzaga Cameo along with natural history specimens or 'mirabilia'.