The Bowes Museum houses a first class collection of fine and decorative arts from 1400-1875 in a French style Chateau off the small market town of Barnard Castle in County Durham. Built by John Bowes, the illegitimate son of the Earl of Strathmore and his French wife Josephine, Countess of Montalbo, to house their art collection in the 1870s, this French museum on British soil was opened to the public in 1892. The Bowes Museum today houses a diverse collection of furniture, ceramics, textiles, painting and archaeological finds from across Britain, France and the rest of Europe, including El Greco, Goya, Turner, Canaletto, Chantilly porcelain, English decorative art and French 18th century furniture.