National Gallery

• Location: Trafalgar Square, London

London's National Gallery houses one of the world's greatest collections of Western European art, including more than 2,300 paintings from the mid-thirteenth to early-twentieth centuries. It serves some five million visitors a year.

John J. Angerstein, a British merchant, was an avid collector of art; it was his collection of paintings — including works by Rubens, Raphael, Titian, Rembrandt and J.M.W. Turner — that made up the core exhibit of the National Gallery.

The National Gallery offers free daily tours and lectures, often focusing on specific works of art and the artists. Study days and short courses are also offered by the Gallery.

How to get there:

The National Gallery is open year-round, except January 1 and December 24-25. Hours are from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily, except for Wednesdays, when the gallery closes at 9 p.m. There is no fee for entrance to the National Gallery, though you may need to purchase tickets for some of the special exhibitions.

Audio guides are available at the desk at the front entrance of the gallery. You can choose one of a number of themed tours or a family tour, specially designed for children. Free guided tours run twice daily and four times on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Cameras are not allowed in the gallery, but photographs of many of the paintings are for sale in the gallery's gift shops. Three gift shops — located on level 0 of the Sainsbury Wing, level 2 of the Portico and level 0 of the Main Wing — offer an extensive collection of prints, books, CDs and DVDs, and other gift items. They are open daily until 5:45 p.m. and on Wednesday until 8:45 p.m. There are also places to dine on the premises.

• The National Gallery
• National Portrait Gallery
• Tate Online
• Britain Express

Type: Private - Not-for-Profit
On the web: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk
Employees: 513

This gallery certainly knows its Monet from its Manet. Established in 1824, the National Gallery houses one of the largest and most important art collections in the world, with more than 2,300 works of art residing within the 500,000-sq.-ft. museum. The permanent collection focuses primarily on artists from Western Europe, spanning the medieval period through the 20th century, including da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Monet. It also hosts special exhibitions and offers educational programs. The museum, which is funded through the government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport, welcomes more than four million visitors each year.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending March, 2008:
Sales: $22.3M

Officers:
Chairman: Mark H. Getty
Director: Nicholas Penny
Deputy Head of Finance: Jane Ellis

Competitors:
British Museum
Museum of London