Art-lovers' Oxford tour: half day

Oxford's dreaming spires have inspired and delighted lovers of beauty for centuries. Walking round the ancient city reveals some of the best architecture in Britain, stretching back a thousand years. And behind the doors of many of the colleges lie exceptional works of art, both painted and in stained glass, that are waiting to be discovered. This half-day tour will take you on a journey through Oxford's art, architecture and culture, all placed in their historical context. You will step inside stunning ancient buildings, encounter medieval and Victorian stained glass, discover what inspired authors and poets such as Lewis Carroll, JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis, decipher codes in stone, learn the difference between a gargoyle and a grotesque, and visit particular treasures in the Ashmolean museum's collection of Renaissance and Pre-Raphaelite art. If you love art and you love history, this tour is for you!

The itinerary will depend on what time of day the tour takes place and which colleges are open. A sample itinerary for an afternoon tour is below: - Merton college - the oldest college to still have its original buildings. Admire the medieval architecture, stone carvings and extraordinary chapel with its ancient stained glass - St Mary the Virgin Church - stunning fourteenth century spire and beautiful, highly controversial (at the time) seventeeth-century porch - University College - rare Flemish stained glass and romantic memorial to the poet Shelley - Radcliffe Square - Oxford's famous architectural centrepiece contains multiple important university and college buildings - Bodleian library and entry into the Divinity School with its incredible decorated ceiling - Turl Street - gargoyles, grotesques and a riddle in stone - Oxford Union library - jaw-dropping Pre-Raphaelite murals and William Morris ceiling - world-famous paintings by Ucello, Millais and Pissarro in the Ashmolean