Every major city in the world – well, the good ones at least – have at least one museum. These popular tourist destinations house widely diverse and interesting collections and they are a celebration of education , history and culture. The following institutions attract a staggering 53.8 million visitors a year and are globally recognised as outstanding places of learning.

10.Musee d'Orsay, France

The Musee d'Orsay is situated on the left bank of the River Seine in Paris, France, and it was officially opened in 1986. Originally constructed in 1900 as a railway station, Gare D'Orsay soon became unsuitable for the larger trains which were being used for mainline service in 1939. The station was originally planned for demolition before being granted a reprieve and being commissioned for renovation in 1974. Today, the museum holds mostly French art dating from 1848 to 1915, and it includes paintings, sculptures, furniture and photography. It houses the largest collection of impressionist and post-impressionist art pieces in the world, with an extensive collection by Monet, Manet, Seurat, and Van Gogh. The museum annually attracts around 3.6 million visitors per year and has on display over 2,000 paintings and 600 sculptures and other works.

9.Centre Georges Pompidou, France

As one would expect, President Georges Pompidou commissioned this museum which was officially opened in 1977. The centre is split between being a public library and a national art museum, and its design (courtesy of Italian and British architects) was met with some pretty polarising views. One critic commented that it was 'France's own monster, like the one in Loch Ness' and another called it 'love at second sight'. The centre has 5 million visitors – 3.8 million of which are from the museum – and it has several major exhibitions organised each year to keep attendance high. In 2013, it was home to a retrospective Dali display which saw over 7,300 visitors per day – a new record. Currently, the centre has plans to expand through Europe, Asia and Central and South America.

8.National Gallery of Art, North America

The National Gallery of Art (along with its sculptural garden) is situated in Washington DC. First opening in 1937, the museum is open to the public and free of charge. Andrew W. Mellon, an American banker, industrialist and art collector, donated a substantial art collection and funds for its construction. The gallery specialises in paintings, drawings, sculptures, photographs, medals and prints which date from the Middle Ages to the present. Amongst its most spectacular pieces are the largest mobile ever constructed by Calder and Da Vinci's only painting in the Americas. In 1941, the Gallery began its prints collection with 400 donated by private collectors. Between 1943 and 1949, this collection grew rapidly with an additional 22,000 pieces donated by Lessing Rosenwald. Today, it has more than 75,000 prints and continues to add new pieces annually. The National Gallery has around 4.2 million visitors per year and it is the United States second most popular museum.

7.National Palace Museum, Taipei

The National Palace Museum is situated in Taipei, Taiwan. It has a permanent collection of over 1 million pieces of Ancient Chinese artifacts, treasures, inventions and priceless artifacts – making it the largest collection of its kind in the entire world. The collection spans over 15,000 years of history; from the Neolithic age, to the Qing Dynasty, right up into the modern era. The majority of the collection once belonged to the Chinese Emperors and it first began construction in 1964. However, the museum was unable to accommodate its vast collection of 600,000 artifacts and faced repeated renovation and expansion in 1967, 1970, 1984 and 1996. In 2002, a $21 million revamp meant that the museum was partially closed for five years to make it more modern and spacious. Only 1% of the collection is on display at a given time, whilst the rest remains stored in temperature controlled vaults. With continuous rotation of its artifacts, the museum attracts 5.4 million viewers per year.

6.Vatican Museums, Italy

Pope Julius II founded the Vatican Museums within the city's boundaries in the early 16th century. Today, they display works from the exceptionally extensive collection built up by the many Popes throughout the centuries, and this includes some of the most important pieces of Renaissance era art in the world. There are 54 galleries in total, with the most well known being the Sistine Chapel. On the last Sunday of each month, the museum opens for free and it is a common sight to see people lining up to queue for many hours. This has helped contribute to its enormous popularity, seeing upwards of 5 million visitors annually.

审校：大洋彼岸的一条鱼 编辑：凯珊 来源：前十网