 The late 18th century saw the nationalisation of royal or princely art collections across mainland Europe . The Bavarian royal collection ( now in the Alte Pinakothek , Munich ) opened to the public in 1779 , that of the Medici in Florence around 1789 ( as the Uffizi Gallery ) , and the Museum Français at the Louvre was formed out of the former French royal collection in 1793 . Great Britain , however , did not emulate the continental model , and the British Royal Collection remains in the sovereign 's possession today . In 1777 the British government had the opportunity to buy an art collection of international stature , when the descendants of Sir Robert Walpole put his collection up for sale . The MP John Wilkes argued for the government to buy this " invaluable treasure " and suggested that it be housed in " a noble gallery ... to be built in the spacious garden of the British Museum " Nothing came of Wilkes 's appeal and 20 years later the collection was bought in its entirety by Catherine the Great ; it is now to be found in the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg . 
