By around 1860 the previously haphazard means of acquisition was supplemented by a more systematic approach: a list was drawn up of copies it was thought desirable to acquire and soon plans were drawn up to house them.
In 1864 plans for an international exchange of copies of 'the finest works of art which each country possesses' were drawn up by Henry Cole and the assistance of the Foreign Office was sought to obtain lists of major works in the possession of other European governments.