National Gallery

National Gallery

The National Gallery (The National Gallery), also translated as the National Picture Gallery, is an art museum located on the north side of Trafalgar Square in central London, England. It was established in 1824. The gallery houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings from the 13th to the 19th century. Since the collection belongs to the British public, the museum is open to the public free of charge, although some special exhibitions may occasionally charge an admission fee.

The works in the National Gallery mainly date from 1260 to 1900. The National Gallery is divided into four wings — east, west, north, and south — and exhibits artworks in chronological order. The early Renaissance period features Leonardo da Vinci’s famous charcoal sketch, The Virgin and Child with St Anne and St John the Baptist. The height of the Renaissance includes paintings from Italy and Germany. The period between 1600 and 1700 features works from the Netherlands, Italy, France, and Spain.

Famous artworks in the National Gallery include: Jan van Eyck’s The Arnolfini Portrait; Sandro Botticelli’s Venus and Mars; Leonardo da Vinci’s The Virgin of the Rocks and The Virgin and Child with St Anne and St John the Baptist; Diego Velázquez’s The Rokeby Venus; Paolo Uccello’s Niccolò Mauruzi da Tolentino at the Battle of San Romano, one of the three panels from The Battle of San Romano; Michelangelo’s The Entombment; and Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers — a vase with fifteen sunflowers, among others.

The National Gallery

Reason to visit: One of the UK's premier art museums

Continent: Europe

Country/Region: Britain

Province/State: Greater London

City: London