Opened in 1927, the National Museum and Gallery is part of one of the finest collections of civic buildings in Europe. Its contents are unique amongst British museums in its range of art and science displays, and while it is a long way from London, you would be wrong to think that its collection was in any way minor. These treasures mirror the cosmopolitan character of Cardiff from a time when the city was one of the world's richest cities, combining strong Welsh and international themes.
For me, the two most interesting parts of the museum are the impressive Evolution of Wales gallery that tells a global tale of creation and change from the perspective of Wales since the beginning of the Earth, and the spectacular gallery of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings by some of the most famous painters of the time...
The Evolution of Wales gallery starts by setting the scene of how our planet works, the gallery shows the processes that have driven our planet throughout its 4,600 million years of history. The gallery charts the movement of the landmass that makes up Wales, starting in the Cambrian era over 500 million years ago, when Wales was situated just six degrees from the South Pole, working right through the geological periods plotting Wales' progress across the Earth to where it is now.
Many works of art by some of the world's preeminent painters hang in this gallery. These include works of art such as 'A Calm' by Van Chappelle, 'La Parisienne' by Renoir, and 'Rain: Auvers' by Van Gogh. There are no less than six (!) paintings by Monet, as well as paintings by Cezanne, Pisarro, Manet, Sisley, Rubens, Bacon, and Lowry, to name a fraction. The gallery is also well-appointed with sculptures, most notably several by Rodin (including 'The Kiss') and one by Epstein.
Other important exhibits include galleries on ceramics, minerals, Welsh natural history, man and the environment, archaeology and numismatics.
There is plenty to see here, and best of all - all of Wales's national museums are FREE!