The National Gallery’s collection of British paintings contains some of the most famous & best-loved pictures in the country: Hogarth’s Marriage A-la-Mode series, Gainsborough’s Mr & Mrs Andrews, The Hay Wain & The Cornfield by Constable & Rain, Steam & Speed & The Fighting Temeraire by Turner. Most of these have been on public view for over a hundred years & have become national icons. In 1824 the National Gallery’s founding collection of thirty-eight works included nine British paintings. By 1897 there were over 500 British works. In that year the Tate Gallery was established as the National Gallery of British Art, whose role was to build & display a representative British collection, & accordingly the majority of works by British artists held in Trafalgar Square have in the intervening years been transferred to Millbank. The National Gallery still makes acquisitions of exceptional interest, the most recent being the tiny but powerful Wall in Naples by Thomas Jones & the life-size portrait of the horse Whistlejacket by George Stubbs. This catalogue discusses the sixty British pictures in the Gallery in two parts: Constable, Gainsborough, Hogarth, Reynolds, Stubbs & Turner star in Part I, with paintings which are either major works or (like Gainsborough’s amiable John Plampin) have remained ‘at home’ in Trafalgar Square because of their enduring popularity. Part II consists of portraits (including three sculpted busts) of collectors or public servants who helped over the years to create the National Gallery as we know it today. While few of these are great works of art, the National Gallery is proud to retain portraits which reflect the characters & careers of the oddly assorted men who shaped its history. The biographies contain lively accounts of men as different from each other as the absentee clergyman & passionate collector, Reverend William Holwell Carr, & the fiery Layard of Nineveh. This beautifully illustrated catalogue, containing full-page colour reproductions & stunning details, reflects recent scholarship & incorporates much new research. It also

Includes:: the results of fresh examination of each work by the National Gallery’s Conservation & Scientific Departments. JUDY EGERTON was formerly Assistant Keeper of the British School at the Tate Gallery. Her previous publications include George Stubbs (1984); Wright of Derby (1990); Making & Meaning: Turner: The Fighting Temeraire (1995), & Hogarth’s Marriage A-la-Mode (1997; reissued 2011 with free DVD, narrated by Alan Bennett).

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This & ' The Procession of the Trojan Horse', also in the Collection, are part of a series of sketches illustrating a famous passage from Virgil's ' Aeneid' (Book 2): The Greeks build a wooden horse, fill it with armed men & leave it outside the enemy c ...

The bull-fighter salutes the crowd after having killed the bull. This may be a depiction of the bull-ring in Madrid, & the figure could be a portrait. It is one of a small number of scenes of this type executed by the artist & probably originates from ...

Create your own bespoke print of Leonardo da Vinci’s The Burlington House Cartoon from our collection. About this painting The Burlington House Cartoon, 1499-1500 © The National Gallery, London This painting joined our collection in 1962 With our custom print service, you can order your own fully customised reproduction from the National Gallery Collection & exhibitions. Choose your own size, print material & frames & have your masterpiece delivered straight to your door. ...

This is one of seven illustrations of the story of Jason from Ovid's ' Metamorphoses' (Book VII), made by Detroy as a series of sketches for cartoons for the Gobelins tapestry works in Paris. This sketch was finished by February 1743. The Gallery has anoth ...

The serpent biting its tail symbolises Eternity. The crowned figure of Janus holds the fleece from which the Three Fates draw out the thread of life. The hooded figure is Demagorgon who receives gifts from Nature, from whose breasts pours forth milk. Seated at the entrance to the cave is the winged figure of Chronos, who represents Time. This painting is one of a group of 10 'modelli', or elaborated oil studies, made in preparation for the fresco projects that Giordano created for the Palazzo Medici Riccardi in Florence. This painting is connected with the ceiling of the Galleria. ...

Create your own bespoke National Gallery art print of Camille Pissarro’s The Côte des Bœufs at L' Hermitage from our collection. About this painting The Côte des Bœufs at L' Hermitage, 1877 © The National Gallery, London This painting joined our collection in 1950 With our custom print service, you can order your own fully customised reproduction from the National Gallery Collection & exhibitions. Choose your own size, print material & frames & have your masterpiece delivered straight to your door. ...

Create your own bespoke print of Georges Seurat’s The Channel of Gravelines, Grand Fort-Philippe from our collection. About this painting The Channel of Gravelines, Grand Fort-Philippe, 1890 © The National Gallery, London This painting joined our collection in 1995 With our custom print service, you can order your own fully customised reproduction from the National Gallery Collection & exhibitions. Choose your own size, print material & frames & have your masterpiece delivered straight to your door. ...

The story depicted in the panel is that of the 4th-century saint, Nicholas of Myra. Under cover of darkness, Saint Nicholas throws three purses of gold through the window of the house of an impoverished nobleman who was faced with the prospect of selling ...

The donor, Tommaso Raimondi (died 1510), was a jurist & a poet. He is seen on the right of the painting, opposite his wife, Doralice Cambiago, on whose clothing the letter 'D' is embroidered. The kneeling boy may be their son Marco. Two other figures ma ...