By Rebecca Jones BBC News

Canova's The Three Graces is among the works featured

The paintings, sculptures and archaeological pieces were acquired with the help of the National Art Collections Fund.

The charity is celebrating its centenary with an exhibition entitled Saved! at the Hayward Gallery.

It features works by Picasso, Mondrian, Rodin and Titian, among others, and opens on 23 October.

The Fund has prevented masterpieces ranging from Antonio Canova's The Three Graces to Picasso's Weeping Woman disappearing from public view or going abroad.

This Velazquez masterpiece is in the exhibition

It has also saved works such as Velazquez's The Rokeby Venus and Michelangelo's chalk sketch of the figure of Adam in the Sistine Chapel.

Since it was set up 100 years ago, the Fund has saved half a million works of art for public museums and galleries.

The most important will now take centre stage at this exhibition - which will focus attention on the role of the Fund.

Some critics have questioned whether its work deprives people abroad of the chance to enjoy some of the world's greatest art treasures.