The art collection built up by the Banco de España since its founding over two hundred years ago is now easier to access: the bank's first heritage website is about to come online. At the same time it is to publish its three-volume Catalogue Raisonné, which lists over 1400 works by almost 500 artists and evidences how the collection has grown since the mid-1980s.

The website seeks to create an online experience that mirrors the essence of an actual visit via a structure of a kind that only a small group of international museums and cultural institutions have so far used. Its simple, elegant design meets all accessibility requirements and the content is compatible with all the different types of device that can be used to view it. The idea is to make the full wealth of the Banco de España Collection available to users everywhere. The collection totals over 4500 works, many of which are featured in the Collection section of the site with individual factsheets that include images and explanatory texts by renowned historians and art critics.

For easier access, the works are grouped into six main categories: Artists, Sculptures, Drawings, Decorative Art, Paintings, Graphic Art and Photography. The contents will be updated continually. The Graphic Art section initially features two stand-out works: the Collection's prints by Francisco de Goya and a set of uniquely striking prints by María Eugenia de Beer. In all, the bank's collection of prints numbers over 3000 and more will be added to the website as they are catalogued. The Decorative Art section features a selection of the bank's collection of timepieces and will be gradually extended to include other one-off works (tapestries, furniture, silverwork, etc.).

Alongside these thematic categories is a broader section called Itineraries, which features rigorous, information-packed thematic journeys through the collection. Three have been posted so far: Face to Face with History, Slow Presence and Notions of Fashion, and more will be added in the coming months. Completing the Collection section is a subsection called Highlights, which features a succession of stand-out works.

The Banco de España Collection portal also has specific sections on Exhibitions and Publications, plus a News section containing news items about the institution. The About Us section provides details of the origins, history and nature of the Collection and of the bank's two iconic buildings in Madrid, which form a valuable part of its heritage.

Along with its thematic content, the site also offers users the chance to subscribe to an alerts service that will message them whenever new content is posted.

PRESENTATION VIDEO