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The article focuses on British and American travel writings which describe the authors' experiences visiting the Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain during the second half of the nineteenth century. The author focuses on accounts of art written by middle class travelers who undertook their journeys in an effort to expand their cultural education. Other subjects considered include trends in the exhibition of art during the 19th century, art education, women's education and social roles, museum travel, and 17th century Spanish painter Diego Velázquez.

The article examines the role played by the Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain, regarding the cognitive consolidation of the country's national culture by promoting the Spanish School of art notion. It argues that the need for a concept of a Spanish School was related to the development of Prado into a museum that represents a centralized and bordered Spanish nation. It notes that the notion of a Spanish School was already perceived despite rejections in the nineteenth century.