The Yale Center for British Art opened its doors to the public in 1977. It houses the most comprehensive collection of British paintings, prints, drawings, rare books, and sculpture outside Great Britain. Given to Yale University by Paul Mellon, the Centrer’s resources illustrate British life and culture from the 16th century to the present. The collection surveys the development of British art, life and thought from the Elizabethan period onwards. There is a special emphasis on works from the period between the birth of Hogarth (1697) and the death of Turner (1851).