Paintings in the main hall
Lever's collection of Victorian paintings in the main hall includes key works by Millais, Rossetti, Holman Hunt, Leighton, Burne-Jones, Sargent, Waterhouse and Alma-Tadema.
The most famous pictures in the room are those painted by the Pre-Raphaelites, a group of young artists dissatisfied with the art establishment in Victorian England. They wanted to revolutionise British art by using bright colour, symbols and following the principle of 'truth to nature', basing their subjects on stories and poetry. You can see works by Millais, Rossetti and Holman Hunt on display.
The space is dominated by Frederic Lord Leighton's huge painting The Daphnephoria, which illustrates a procession in honour of the Greek god Apollo.
Other key paintings in the main hall include works by Burne-Jones, Sargent, Waterhouse and Alma Tadema. Small studies by Leighton contrast with The Daphnephoria on the wall opposite.