The Thinker, the famous bronze statue by Auguste Rodin was yesterday packed up at its home, the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, as it departs for a display in London next week.

The Thinker, the famous bronze statue by Auguste Rodin was yesterday packed up at its home, the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, as it departs for a display in London next week.

Le Penseur, as it is otherwise known, was created by Rodin from 1880??81 and was part of the famous gift to the city by Sir William Burrell in 1944.

The museum, which can now tour objects abroad after a change in the rules governing its collections earlier this year, will display a series of works - including pieces by Bellini, Rembrandt, Degas, Cezanne and Whistler - at Bonhams auction house in London's New Bond Street.

The show, which will run from December 15 to January 9, is a prelude to a major international tour.

The Burrell museum, in Glasgow's Pollok Park, is in need of major repairs and is set to close for four years between 2016 and 2020 for a £40 million revamp.

The London show will feature more than 45 objects from the collection, including Bellini's Madonna and Child, a Rembrandt self portrait and items of furniture, tapestry and porcelain.

Bonhams was chosen not only for its central location in London but also because Sir William Burrell bought many of the collection's treasures at auction.