There are about 2,200 other paintings in this museum, many of them instantly recognizable and among the most treasured works of art anywhere. The institution was founded in 1824, when George IV and a connoisseur named Sir George Beaumont persuaded a reluctant government to spend £57,000 to acquire part of the philanthropist John Julius Angerstein's collection. These 38 paintings, including works by Raphael, Rembrandt, Titian, and Rubens, were augmented by 16 of Sir George's own and exhibited in Angerstein's Pall Mall residence until 1838, when William Wilkins's building was completed. By the end of the century, enthusiastic directors and generous patrons had turned the National Gallery into one of the world's foremost collections, with works from painters of the Italian Renaissance and earlier, from the Flemish and Dutch masters, the Spanish school, and of course the English tradition, including Hogarth, Gainsborough, Stubbs, and Constable.
The modern extension of the gallery, the Sainsbury Wing, designed by American architect Robert Venturi, houses the early Renaissance collection. The gallery is really too overwhelming to absorb in a single viewing. It is wise to acquaint yourself with the layout and plot a route in advance. The Micro Gallery, a computer information center in the Sainsbury Wing, might be the place to start. You can access in-depth information on any work here, choose your favorites, and print out a free personal tour map that marks the paintings you most want to see. Careful, though -- you could spend hours in here scrolling through this colorful if pixelized history of art.
The following is a list of 10 of the most familiar works, to jog your memory, whet your appetite, and offer a starting point for your own exploration. The first five are in the Sainsbury Wing. In chronological order: (1) Van Eyck (circa 1395-1441), The Arnolfini Portrait. A solemn couple holds hands, the fish-eye mirror behind them mysteriously illuminating what can't be seen from the front view. (2) Uccello (1397-1475), The Battle of San Romano. In a work commissioned by the Medici family, the Florentine commander on a rearing white war-horse leads armored knights into battle against the Sienese. (3) Bellini (circa 1430-1516), The Doge Leonardo Loredan. The artist captured the Venetian doge's beatific expression (and snail-shell "buttons") at the beginning of his 20 years in office. (4) Botticelli (1445-1510), Venus and Mars. Mars sleeps, exhausted by the love goddess, oblivious to the lance wielded by mischievous putti and the buzzing of wasps. (5) Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), The Virgin and Child. This haunting black chalk cartoon is partly famous for having been attacked at gunpoint, and it now gets extra protection behind glass and screens. (6) Caravaggio (1573-1610), The Supper at Emmaus. A cinematically lighted, freshly resurrected Christ blesses bread in an astonishingly domestic vision from the master of chiaroscuro. (7) Velázquez (1599-1660), The Toilet of Venus.The Rokeby Venus, named for its previous home in Yorkshire, has the most famously beautiful back in any gallery. She's the only surviving female nude by Velázquez. (8) Constable (1776-1837), The Hay Wain. Rendered overfamiliar by too many greeting cards, this is the definitive image of golden-age rural England. (9) Turner (1775-1851), The Fighting Téméraire. Most of the collection's other Turners were moved to the Tate Britain; the final voyage of the great French battleship into a livid, hazy sunset stayed here. (10) Seurat (1859-91), Bathers at Asnières. This static summer day's idyll is one of the pointillist extraordinaire's best-known works.
Glaring omissions from the above include some of the most popular pictures in the gallery, by Piero della Francesca, Titian, Holbein, Bosch, Brueghel, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Canaletto, Claude, Tiepolo, Gainsborough, Ingres, Monet, Renoir, and van Gogh. You can't miss the two most spectacular works on view -- due to their mammoth size -- Sebastiano del Piombo's Sermon on the Mount and Stubbs's stunning Whistlejacket. These great paintings aren't the only thing glowing in the rooms of the National Gallery -- thanks to government patronage and lottery monies, salons here now gleam with stunning brocades and opulent silks. Rubens's Samson and Delilah has never looked better.
The collection of Dutch 17th-century paintings is one of the greatest in the world, and pieces by Hals, Hooch, Ruisdel, Hobbema, and Cuyp are shown in renewed natural light and gracious surroundings. There is also a program of temporary themed exhibitions where key works are loaned from other galleries of world renown. If you visit during the school vacations, there are special programs and trails for children that are not to be missed. Check the information desk, or Web site, for details. COST: Free; charge for special exhibitions. Tube: Charing Cross or Leicester Sq.
