Glasgow Travel Guide

Burrell Collection

Glasgow's top cultural attraction was donated by the shipping magnate Sir William Burrell in 1944. Over his lifetime, Burrell amassed more than 8,000 works of art, 3,000 of which are displayed at any one time. The collection includes hundreds of sculptures, drawings and paintings from the 15th to 20th centuries, some notable medieval European tapestries, as well as artefacts from Arabia and the Orient. The collection is housed in an ugly, purpose-built building set in the sedate surroundings of Pollok Country Park. Within walking distance is Pollok House, which contains a fine collection of Spanish paintings including works by Goya, Murillo and El Greco. The Edwardian house is the ancestral home of the Maxwell family, who donated the house and the collection to the National Trust in 1966.