THE home of a remarkable work of art from the master of the original 'selfie' has been recognised for its exceptional dedication to the 'visitor experience'.

The self portrait of Dutch Old Master Rembrandt, valued at £30-million, has pride of place in its own special exhibition room at Buckland Abbey in Buckland Monachorum.

Last week Buckland Abbey was recognised for its exceptional work in the field of improving visitor experience at the property through its Rembrandt exhibition.

The 2015 Visitor Experience Award for 'research and understanding' was presented for the abbey's remarkable research that led to the discovery of a self-portrait by Rembrandt in its collection and its re-display and accompanying exhibition.

James Breslin, the house visitor experience manager who collected the award, said: 'It's a fantastic recognition of the hard work to create the amazing display by the team. It was great to share with a large gathering of National Trust properties at which Buckland Abbey was recognised and placed for being outstanding in its field.'

One Trip Advisor review said 'the Rembrandt self-portrait is beautifully displayed and it was very illuminating to hear how the painting came to be authenticated'.

After the awards, Tony Berry, visitor experience director, stated: 'I'm constantly amazed and bowled over by the imagination and ingenuity of the great people at our places and the quality of their ideas and work.'

The self portrait was scientifically verified as a genuine original and will belong to the abbey, the former home of Sir Francis Drake, in perpetuity.

It is the most valuable painting in the National Trust's collection of 13,500 works of art and is now taking pride of place in Buckland Abbey.

The painting, created in 1635, was given to the trust in 2010.

The painting, which originally stood in the Georgian dining room of Buckland Abbey, was gifted to the trust when Edna Lady Samuel of Wych Cross died in 2008.

The special exhibition was revealed to the public on June 13 and still proves popular to the many visitors.