National Gallery

Designed by William Henry Playfair, and located right at the heart of Edinburgh, the National first opened its doors to the public in 1859. It houses one of the best collections of both Scottish and international art in the world; from the beginning of the Renaissance up to the start of the 20th century, including works by revered masters such as Raphael, Rembrandt, Monet, Seurat, Goya and Van Gogh.

In front of the gallery lies the Royal Scottish Academy, dedicated to special temporary exhibitions. The two buildings are linked together through a third – the Gardens Entrance – a state-of-the-art space containing a cafe, restaurant, cloakroom, shop, IT gallery and information desk. There is also a lecture theatre and a 'by appointment' research archive and library that holds some 50,000 volumes of books, journals, slides and microfiches, as well as archival material relating to the collections and history of the gallery. Fact fans may also be interested to know that the National  is Edinburgh's second most popular visitor attraction, outranked only by Edinburgh Castle.