Museums have a history of both wonder and controversy. But where did it all begin? Scroll on, and use click-and-drag, to see and virtually explore some of the world's oldest buildings dedicated to the collection and exhibition of art and artefacts. 

The Capitoline Museum, or Musei Capitolini, is very probably the world’s oldest museum. Located in Rome, just a stone’s throw from the Colosseum, the museum houses a fantastic collection of classical art and archaeology. The history of the  museum dates right back to 1471 when Pope Sixtus IV donated a number of important ancient bronzes to the people of Rome.

The collection was placed on Capitoline Hill, close to the location of the current museum. In 1734, The museum was officially opened to the public, making it the first place in the world specifically designed as a location for common people to enjoy art.  

Located just a short walk from the Capitoline Museum, The Vatican is the second-oldest museum in the world. The museum can trace its roots back to 1506 when Pope Julius II purchased the iconic sculpture Laocoön and His Sons and placed it on public display.    

As well as the inaugural sculpture (which is still on display in the museum) visitors can enjoy a number of other priceless artworks including The School of Athens, by Raphael, The Last Judgement, by Michelangelo and Caravaggio’s Entombment of Christ. Around 25,000 people visit the museum every day, making it one of the most popular galleries in the world.

The Royal Armouries has been admitting visitors to view its extraordinary collection since 1592. In 1660, the attraction opened to the general public, allowing locals to see exhibitions specifically designed to showcase the power and splendor of the English monarchy. 

Today, the museum’s collection focuses on arms and amour, with around 70,000 pieces on display. These artefacts date from antiquity to the present day, giving visitors a fascinating glimpse into the evolution of warfare and weapons engineering. 

In 1661, the University of Basel and the City of Basel clubbed together to buy the Amerbach Cabinet, a fantastic collection of artworks, many by famous German painter Hans Holbein. In 1671, the collection was made open to the public and, in 1823, it was joined with the previously private works held in the Faesch Museum.

The collection in the Kunstmuseum covers an incredible breadth of history, with works dating from the 15th century to the present day. This impressive span gives visitors a unique insight into the development of art and artistic movements and makes for a fascinating day out.

Our next museum can be found in one of the world’s oldest and most renowned places of learning, Oxford, England. The Ashmolean is the University of Oxford’s museum of art and archaeology. Founded in 1683, its collection stretches from pre-history to the present day.

Free to visit, the Ashmolean is a fantastic resource for anyone interested in the history of art and archaeology. If you can't travel to Oxford in person, the museum has recently made over 200,000 object records available to browse or search in their online collection.

Inspired by nature

People have told stories about dragons for thousands of years, but what inspired the tales of these remarkable creatures?

Step into our gallery of mythical beasts, and discover their tangled connections with the natural world.

'Probably the most famous of all magical beasts, dragons are among the most difficult to hide. The female is generally larger and more aggressive than the male, though neither should be approached by any but highly skilled and trained wizards. Dragon hide, blood, heart, liver and horn all have highly magical properties, but dragon eggs are defined as Class A Non-Tradeable Goods. There are ten breeds of dragon, though these have been known to interbreed on occasion, producing rare hybrids.'
– Newt Scamander, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them™

Olivia Lomenech Gill produced the artwork for an illustrated edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them™.

Where possible, Lomenech Gill based the beasts on real animals, using museum collections as inspiration. This included a visit to the Natural History Museum in London.

While she used lizards as a reference for dragons, Lomenech Gill was also influenced by another iconic dragon: Smaug of J R R Tolkien's The Hobbit.

In the Harry Potter™ film series, a dragon skeleton is seen hanging from the ceiling of the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom at Hogwarts™.

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

Its skull has spines, spikes and sharp teeth, which are typical features of many of the dragon breeds that appear in the wizarding world created by J K Rowling.

Tales of dragons and other mythical reptiles may have started with sightings of enormous snakes and the discovery of dinosaur bones.

Dragons sit alongside real animals such as giraffes and rhinos in this 360-year-old book of natural history, The History of Four-Footed Beasts and Serpents by Edward Topsell, published in 1658.

Dragons are described as a type of serpent, and the book includes several varieties from across the globe. Some slither on their bellies like snakes, while others have legs and wings.

'There be some Dragons which have wings and no feete, some again have both feete and wings, and some neither feete nor wings.'
– Edward Topsell, 1658

Dragons also sit alongside real animals such as lions and zebras in this encyclopaedia of the world's animals, Theatrum Universale Omnium Animalium, by Johannes Jonstonus.

Originally published in the 1650s, it shows several varieties of dragon from across the globe. Some slither on their bellies like snakes, while others have legs, wings and horns.

The legend of the lindwurm

In 1335 a skull like this one was found near the city of Klagenfurt, Austria. People had never seen anything like it before. They thought it came from a two-legged flying dragon, known as the Lindwurm, which was rumoured to have terrorised locals.

Scientists later found that the skull belonged to a long-extinct woolly rhinoceros. Woolly rhinoceroses lived in Europe and Asia from 500,000 to 14,000 years ago, during the Ice Age.

Giant snakes

Indian rock pythons can grow up to 6.7 metres (22 feet) long. Perhaps they might have inspired tales of the snake-like dragons of India described by Roman author Pliny the Elder 2,000 years ago.

Pliny writes of these dragons crushing elephants to death. While no snake has ever been documented taking down an animal that big, Indian rock pythons can constrict and kill prey as large as antelope.

'The dragon is of so enormous a size, as easily to envelop the elephants with its folds and encircle them in its coils. The contest is equally fatal to both.'
– Pliny the Elder, 77 CE

Chinese dragon

Could this little alligator have inspired stories of great Chinese dragons? Ancient texts describe Chinese dragons digging burrows, breathing out rain clouds and sleeping in pools during winter.

Similarly, Chinese alligators hibernate underground, and in spring steam rises from their nostrils as they bellow to attract a mate.

At the peak of the 700-metre tall Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro stands Christ the Redeemer, an art-deco monument to Christianity, recognised around the world as an icon of the city, and the nation of Brazil itself.

The statue was constructed between 1922 and 1931 by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa and French engineer Albert Caquot. The face of Christ was designed and sculptured by the Romanian artist Gheorghe Leonida. In total, the statue is 30 metres tall and weighs 635 tonnes.

Nearly two million tourists make the journey from Rio de Janeiro up the Corcovado mountain, to marvel at the statue. A few more even make the the final ascent, up to the very top of the statue itself. It's not an official pilgrimage, but to many faithful it may feel like one.

Many designs were considered for the statue, but this was chosen as 'symbol of peace'. Christ stands, ready to embrace with open arms anyone who approaches. Though its no coincidence that this pose also resembles a Christian crucifix.

On a clear day, standing at the base of the statue, you can see the whole Guanabara Bay, from Rio de Janeiro to Duque de Caxias, and across to the eastern shore cities of Niterói and São Gonçalo. It's hard not to feel like you're on top of the world. Click and drag to view.

But you can go a little higher, inside the statue is a staircase that leads all the way to the top. Not far now…

From a distance, you might think the statue was made from solid stone, but it's actually lightweight reinforced concrete. Here, we're looking along one of the hollow arms, and you can see where the wooden moulds were fitted, and separate concrete blocks joined together.

We're standing on the shoulders of Christ. Just a little higher to go…

Here we are… is there any other view like it?

The crown of thorns that rings Christ's head may be symbolic, but also serves a practical purpose - as a lightning rod. Lightning has struck the statue on numerous occasions, sometimes damaging parts of the structure.

From all the way up here, you can see how the statue is faced with fragments of soapstone, chosen for its durability.

This iconic structure has inspired many copies and homages across the globe, from the to Cristo del Pacífico in neighbouring Peru, to the Christ of Vũng Tàu in Vietnam. But there's nothing quite like the original.