In London, "no matter who can, during half an hour, to make a turn in British Museum or to the Gallery National..." This principle stated by the director of British Museum, Neil McGregor, is anchored in British reality muséale. The English collections are open free to the public. Not exposures (moreover rather expensive), only collections. To start with those, ancient, of British Museum, first encyclopaedic museum of the world. Its act of creation, in 1753, placed the museum, not under the authority of a ministry as to France, but of a board of directors. Since, the administrators of British, like those of the Gallery National or Tate Gallery, hold their collection "for the good of all, which is anchored in the exemption from payment of the museums".

No the queue. It is not that a beautiful principle, it is a pedagogy. Moreover, in 2001, the exemption from payment, removed a score of years, was restored for the collections of Victoria and Albert Museum (decorative arts), of the museum of Science, the National Museum. To reach the inheritance, including most contemporary, there is thus no queue. One enters as one wants. Sir Nicholas Serota, the director of Tate, supports that "more the collections are free plus the visitors return, and more they are demanding plus we renew our fixings". 4 million visitors in Tate in 2004, is more of the double of the forecasts in 2000.

The exemption from payment, since, extended in Sweden. It is said that it is Lars Nittve, which directed the large London vessel of Tate Modern since its opening in 2000 until 2003, and which, just arrived to Stockholm to carry out to it the reopening of the museum of Modern art (Moderna Museet), proposed the exemption from payment with his Official Authorities. What was accepted. Since the beginning of the year 2005, the admission free spread with 19 Swedish public museums.

Relation with works. In the United States, where the museums are generally deprived, it would be rather about the opposite. Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York, where one kept a long time the policy of "pay what you want", the entry costs from now on 12 dollars (10,2 euros). In Guggenheim and maintaining in MoMA (to read opposite), one passes very close to straightforwardly swindles it. In Prado of Madrid, where the entry was free on presentation of the indentity card, an import duty is charged since 1994. They are not that the figures of frequentation drop there, quite to the contrary, but the perception of the museum and the relation of the visitors to works change. And the recent advertisement of turning to the museum of the Louvre of Da Vinci Codes , filmed version, is not there to reassure.