grand tour ap art history

Required works of art for AP®︎ Art History

by Smarthistory

Content Area 1

Global prehistory | 30,000–500 b.c.e..

1. Apollo 11 Stones

1. (related) Origins of rock art in Africa

Left wall of the Hall of Bulls, Lascaux II (replica of the original cave, which is closed to the public). Original cave: c. 16,000-14,000 B.C.E., 11 feet 6 inches long

2. Great Hall of the Bulls

3. Camelid sacrum in the shape of a canine

Running Horned Woman, 6,000-4,000 B.C.E., pigment on rock, Tassili n’Ajjer, Algeria

Running Horned Woman "> 4. Running Horned Woman

5. Bushel with ibex motifs

6. Anthropomorphic stele

cong "> 7. Jade cong

8. Stonehenge

9. The Ambum stone

10. Tlatilco female figurine

11. Terra cotta fragment

Content Area 2

Ancient mediterranean | 3,500 b.c.e.–300 c.e..

12. White Temple and its ziggurat

13. Palette of King Narmer

14. Statues of votive figures, from the Square Temple at Eshnunna (modern Tell Asmar, Iraq)

Seated scribe "> 15. Seated scribe

Peace (detail), The Standard of Ur, 2600-2400 B.C.E., shell, red limestone, lapis lazuli, and bitumen (original wood no longer exists), 21.59 x 49.53 x 12 cm (British Museum; photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)"> 16. Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)

17. Great Pyramids (Menkaura, Khafre, Khufu) and Great Sphinx

Pyramid of Khufu, c. 2551-2528 B.C.E. (photo: Dr. Amy Calvert)

17.a. Pyramid of Khufu

17.b. Pyramid of Khafre and the Great Sphinx

17.c. Pyramid of Menkaure

18. King Menkaura and queen

Law Code Stele of King Hammurabi, basalt, Babylonian, 1792-1750 B.C.E. (Musée du Louvre, Paris)

The Code of Hammurabi "> 19. The Code of Hammurabi

View of sphinxes, the first pylon, and the central east-west aisle of Temple of Amon-Re, Karnak in Luxor, Egypt (photo: Mark Fox, CC: BY-NC 2.0)

20. Temple of Amun-Re and the Hypostyle Hall

Mortuary Temple and Large Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut, c. 1479-58 B.C.E., New Kingdom, Egypt

21. Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut

House Altar depicting Akhenaten, Nefertiti and Three of their Daughters, limestone, New Kingdom, Amarna period, 18th dynasty, c.1350 BCE (Ägyptisches Museum/Neues Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin)

Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters "> 22. Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters

23. Tutankhamun’s tomb, innermost coffin

Book of the Dead )"> 24. Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book of the Dead )

Winged human-headed bull (lamassu or shedu), Neo-Assyrian Period, reign of Sargon II (721-705 B.C.E.) Khorsabad, ancient Dur Sharrukin, Assyria, Iraq, gypseous alabaster, 4.20 x 4.36 x 0.97 m, excavated by P.-E. Botta 1843-44 (Musée du Louvre)

25. Lamassu from the citadel of Sargon II, Dur Sharrukin (modern Khorsabad, Iraq)

View of the Athenian Agora from the Acropolis

26. Athenian Agora

Anavysos Kouros, c. 530 B.C.E., marble, 6' 4

Anavysos Kouros "> 27. Anavysos Kouros

Peplos Kore from the Acropolis"> 28. Peplos Kore from the Acropolis

Upper bodies (detail), Sarcophagus of the Spouses, c. 520 B.C.E., Etruscan, painted terracotta, 3 feet 9-1/2 inches x 6 feet 7 inches, found in the Banditaccia necropolis, Cerveteri (Museo Nazionale di Villa Giulia in Rome)

Sarcophagus of the Spouses "> 29. Sarcophagus of the Spouses

apadana ) of Darius and Xerxes"> 30. Audience Hall ( apadana ) of Darius and Xerxes

Capital of a column from the audience hall of the palace of Darius I, Susa, c. 510 B.C.E., Achaemenid, Tell of the Apadana, Susa, Iran (Musée du Louvre, Paris)

30. (related) Capital of a column from the audience hall of the palace of Darius I, Susa

Aplu (Apollo of Veii) bust detail, from the roof of the Portonaccio Temple, Veii, Italy, c. 510-500 B.C.E., painted terra-cotta, 5 feet 11inches high (Museo Nazionale di Villa Giulia, Rome

31. Temple of Minerva (Veii, near Rome, Italy) and sculpture of Apollo, Master sculptor Vulca

Two dancers on the right wall (detail), Tomb of the Triclinium, c. 470 B.C.E., Etruscan chamber tomb, Tarquinia, Italy

Tomb of the Triclinium "> 32. Tomb of the Triclinium

Niobid Painter, Niobid Krater, Attic red-figure calyx-krater, c. 460-50 B.C.E., 54 x 56 cm (Musée du Louvre, Paris)

Niobides Krater "> 33. Niobides Krater

Polykleitos, Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) or The Canon, c. 450-40 B.C.E., ancient Roman marble copy found in Pompeii of the lost bronze original, 211 cm, Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli

Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) , Polykleitos"> 34. Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) , Polykleitos

The Acropolis of Athens viewed from the Hill of the Muses (photo: Carole Raddato, CC BY-SA 2.0)

35. Acropolis

Iktinos and Kallikrates, The Parthenon, 447–432 B.C.E., Athens (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

35.a. The Parthenon

Phidias (?), Sculpture from the east pediment of the Parthenon, marble, c. 448-432 B.C.E. (British Museum, London)

35.a.i. Parthenon sculptures (pediments, metopes and frieze)

35.a.ii. Who owns the Parthenon sculptures?

Plaque of the Ergastines "> 35.a.iii. Plaque of the Ergastines

Iktinos and Kallikrates (sculptural program directed by Phidias), Parthenon, Athens, 447 - 432 B.C.E.

35.a.iv. The Many Lives of the Parthenon

Nike Adjusting Her Sandal (detail), south side of the parapet of the Temple of Athena Nike, Acropolis, Athens, Greece, c. 410 B.C.E., marble, 3' 6

Nike Adjusting Her Sandal from the Temple of Athena Nike"> 35.b. Nike Adjusting Her Sandal from the Temple of Athena Nike

Grave stele of Hegeso, c. 410 B.C.E., marble and paint, from the Dipylon Cemetary, Athens, 5' 2

Grave stele of Hegeso "> 36. Grave stele of Hegeso

Nike (Winged Victory) of Samothrace, Lartos marble (ship) and Parian marble (figure), c. 190 B.C.E. 3.28 m high, Hellenistic Period (Musée du Louvre, Paris)

Winged Victory of Samothrace "> 37. Winged Victory of Samothrace

Athena defeats Alkyoneus (detail), The Pergamon Altar, c. 200-150 B.C.E. (Hellenistic Period), 35.64 x 33.4 meters, marble (Pergamon Museum, Berlin)

38. Great Altar of Zeus and Athena at Pergamon

39. House of the Vettii

Alexander Mosaic from the House of Faun, Pompeii"> 40. Alexander Mosaic from the House of Faun, Pompeii

Apollonius, Boxer at Rest, 1st century B.C.E. (may be a copy of a 4th century sculpture), bronze, Palazzo Massimo, Museo Nazionale Romano

Seated Boxer "> 41. Seated Boxer

Head of a Roman patrician "> 42. Head of a Roman patrician

Veristic male portrait (similar to Head of a Roman Patrician), early 1st Century B.C.E., marble, life size (Vatican Museums, Rome)

42. (related) Veristic male portrait

Augustus of Prima Porta "> 43. Augustus of Prima Porta

The Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater, or Amphitheatrum Flavium), c. 70-80 C.E., Rome

44. Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater)

Apollodorus of Damascus, The Markets of Trajan, 112 C.E. the Militia Tower is visible in the center, rising above the markets (photo: Vašek Vinklát, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

45. Forum of Trajan, Apollodorus of Damascus

45.a. Column of Trajan

46. Pantheon

Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus "> 47. Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus

Content area 3, early europe and colonial americas | 200–1750 c.e..

48. Catacomb of Priscilla

49. Santa Sabina

Vienna Genesis "> 50. Vienna Genesis

The Story of Jacob from the Vienna Genesis - detail

50a. Jacob Wrestling the Angel

Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well, folio 7 recto from the Vienna Genesis, early 6th century - detail

50b. Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well

51. San Vitale

51.a. Empress Theodora, rhetoric, and Byzantine primary sources

52. Hagia Sophia, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus

Theotokos mosaic, 867, apse, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul (detail)

Theotokos mosaic "> 52.a. Theotokos mosaic

Deësis mosaic "> 52.b. Deësis mosaic

52.c. Hagia Sophia as a mosque

53. Merovingian looped fibulae

Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George "> 54. Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George

Lindisfarne Gospels : St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page"> 55. Lindisfarne Gospels : St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page

Hypostyle hall, Great Mosque at Córdoba, Spain, begun 786 and enlarged during the 9th and 10th centuries (photo: wsifrancis, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

56. Great Mosque at Cordoba

Pyxis of al-Mughira, possibly from Madinat al-Zahra, AH 357/ 968 CE, carved ivory with traces of jade, 16cm x 11.8 cm (Musée du Louvre, Paris) (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

57. Pyxis of al-Mughira

Church and Reliquary of Sainte-Foy - detail

58. Church of Sainte-Foy

Bayeux Tapestry "> 59. Bayeux Tapestry

60. Chartres Cathedral

Moralized Bible, France, Paris, c. 1227–34, 37.5 x 26.2 cm, MS M.240, fols. 7v and 8r (The Morgan Library & Museum).

Bibles moralisées "> 61. Dedication Page with Blanche of Castile and King Louis IX of France, Scenes from the Apocalypse from Bibles moralisées

61.a. Moralized Bible (Paris-Oxford-London))

Röttgen Pietà "> 62. Röttgen Pietà

63. Arena (Scrovegni) Chapel, Giotto di Bondone

63.a. Introduction

Giotto, Narrative Cycle, Arena (Scrovegni) Chapel - Kiss of Judas detail

63.b. Fresco cycle

Giotto, Arena (Scrovegni) Chapel, Padua, c. 1305

Lamentation "> 63.c. Lamentation

Giotto, Last Judgment, c. 1305, fresco, 1000 x 840 cm (Arena Chapel, Padua, Italy) (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Last Judgment "> 63.d. Last Judgment

63.e. the arena chapel in virtual reality.

Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)"> 64. Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)

Alhambra (photo: Ajay Suresh, CC BY 2.0)

65. Alhambra

Workshop of Robert Campin, Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece), 1425-28, tempera and oil on panel (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) , Workshop of Robert Campin"> 66. Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) , Workshop of Robert Campin

67. Pazzi Chapel, Filippo Brunelleschi

The Arnolfini Portrait , Jan Van Eyck"> 68. The Arnolfini Portrait , Jan Van Eyck

Jan Van Eyck, Hands (detail), The Arnolfini Portrait, 1434, tempera and oil on oak panel, 82.2 x 60 cm (National Gallery, London)

The Arnolfini Portrait "> 68.a. The question of pregnancy in The Arnolfini Portrait

David , Donatello"> 69. David , Donatello

Leon Battista Alberti, Palazzo Rucellai, c. 1446-51, Florence, Italy (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

70. Palazzo Rucellai, Leon Battista Alberti

Fra Filippo Lippi, Madonna and Child with two Angels, c. 1460-65, tempera on panel, 95 x 63.5 cm (Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence)

Madonna and Child with Two Angels , Fra Filippo Lippi"> 71. Madonna and Child with Two Angels , Fra Filippo Lippi

Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, 1483-85, tempera on panel, 68 x 109 5/8″ (172.5 x 278.5 cm) (Galeria degli Uffizi, Florence)

Birth of Venus , Sandro Botticelli"> 72. Birth of Venus , Sandro Botticelli

Linear perspective thumb - Leonardo Last Supper

Last Supper , Leonardo da Vinci"> 73. Last Supper , Leonardo da Vinci

Adam and Eve , Albrecht Dürer"> 74. Adam and Eve , Albrecht Dürer

Albrecht Dürer, Adam and Eve, 1504, engraving (fourth state), 25.1 x 20 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)-detail

Adam and Eve "> 74.a. More about Adam and Eve

Michelangelo, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, 1508-12, fresco (Vatican, Rome) - detail

75. Sistine Chapel ceiling and altar wall frescos, Michelangelo

75.a. Ceiling frescoes

Michelangelo Buonarroti, Studies for the Libyan Sibyl , detail

75.a.i. Studies for the Libyan Sibyl (recto); Studies for the Libyan Sibyl and a small Sketch for a Seated Figure (verso), Michelangelo

Michelangelo, Last Judgment, Sistine Chapel, altar wall, fresco, 1534–1541 (Vatican City, Rome) (photo: Richard Mortel, CC BY 2.0)

Last Judgment "> 75.b. Altar wall, Last Judgment

Raphael, School of Athens, fresco, 1509-1511 (Stanza della Segnatura, Papal Palace, Vatican)

School of Athens , Raphael"> 76. School of Athens , Raphael

76.a. Raphael, an introduction

Isenheim Altarpiece , Matthias Grünewald"> 77. Isenheim Altarpiece , Matthias Grünewald

Entombment of Christ , Jacopo da Pontormo"> 78. Entombment of Christ , Jacopo da Pontormo

Lucas Cranach, The Law and the Gospel, c. 1529, oil on wood, 82.2 × 118 cm / 32.4 × 46.5 in (Schlossmuseum, Gotha, Germany)

Allegory of Law and Grace , Lucas Cranach the Elder"> 79. Allegory of Law and Grace , Lucas Cranach the Elder

Venus of Urbino , Titian"> 80. Venus of Urbino , Titian

Codex Mendoza "> 81. Frontispiece of the Codex Mendoza

Il Gesu, ceiling fresco, The Triumph of the Name of Jesus, detail

Triumph of the Name of Jesus ceiling fresco"> 82. Il Gesù, including Triumph of the Name of Jesus ceiling fresco

Hunters in the Snow , Pieter Bruegel the Elder"> 83. Hunters in the Snow , Pieter Bruegel the Elder

84. Mosque of Selim II, Mimar Sinan

Caravaggio, The Calling of St. Matthew- detail

Calling of St. Matthew , Caravaggio"> 85. Calling of St. Matthew , Caravaggio

Peter Paul Rubens, The Presentation of the Portrait of Marie de' Medici-detail

Henri IV Receives the Portrait of of Marie de’Medici , from the Marie de’Medici Cycle, Peter Paul Rubens"> 86. Henri IV Receives the Portrait of of Marie de’Medici , from the Marie de’Medici Cycle, Peter Paul Rubens

Rembrandt van Rijn, Self-Portrait with Saskia- detail

Self-Portrait with Saskia , Rembrandt van Rijn"> 87. Self-Portrait with Saskia , Rembrandt van Rijn

Francesco Borromini, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane - detail

88. San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, Francesco Borromini

Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, 1647-52 (Cornaro Chapel, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome)

Ecstasy of Saint Teresa , Gian Lorenzo Bernini"> 89. Ecstasy of Saint Teresa , Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Master of Calamarca, Archangel with Gun, Asiel Timor Dei, before 1728, oil on canvas and gilding, 160 x 110 cm (Museo Nacional de Arte, La Paz, Bolivia)

Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei , Master of Calamarca"> 90. Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei , Master of Calamarca

Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez, Las Meninas, c. 1656, oil on canvas, 125 1/4 x 108 5/8″ / 318 x 276 cm (Museo Nacional Del Prado, Madrid)

Las Meninas , Diego Velázquez"> 91. Las Meninas , Diego Velázquez

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, 1664 - detail

Woman Holding a Balance , Johannes Vermeer"> 92. Woman Holding a Balance , Johannes Vermeer

Garden-facing windows parallel mirrors in the Galerie des glaces (Hall of Mirrors), Palace of Versailles (image: Wikimedia Commons, Myrabella CC BY-SA 3.0)

93. The Palace at Versailles

Folding Screen (biombo) with the Siege of Belgrade (front) and Hunting Scene (reverse), c. 1697-1701, Mexico, oil on wood, inlaid with mother-of-pearl, 229.9 x 275.8 cm (Brooklyn Museum)

Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene "> 94. Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene

The Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe) , Miguel González"> 95. The Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe) , Miguel González

Virgin of Guadalupe "> 95. (related) Virgin of Guadalupe

Rachel Ruysch, Fruit and Insects, detail

Fruit and Insects , Rachel Ruysch"> 96. Fruit and Insects , Rachel Ruysch

Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo, attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez, c. 1715, oil on canvas (Breamore House, Hampshire, UK)

Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo , attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez"> 97. Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo , attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez

William Hogarth, Marriage a-la-Mode, c. 1743, series of six paintings, oil on canvas, 69.9 x 90.8 cm (The National Gallery, London)

The Tête à Tête , from Marriage a la Mode , William Hogarth"> 98. The Tête à Tête , from Marriage a la Mode , William Hogarth

Content area 4, later europe and americas | 1750–1980 c.e..

Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz , Miguel Cabrera "> 99. Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz , Miguel Cabrera

Joseph Wright of Derby, A Philosopher Giving a Lecture at the Orrery (in which a lamp is put in place of the sun), c. 1763-65, oil on canvas, 4′ 10″ x 6′ 8″ (Derby Museums and Art Gallery, Derby)

A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on the Orrery , Joseph Wright of Derby"> 100. A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on the Orrery , Joseph Wright of Derby

Female figure (detail), Jean-Honoré Fragonard, The Swing, 1767, oil on canvas, 81 x 64.2 cm (Wallace Collection, London; photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The Swing , Jean-Honoré Fragonard"> 101. The Swing , Jean-Honoré Fragonard

102. Monticello, Thomas Jefferson

Jacques-Louis David, Oath of the Horatii, 1784, oil on canvas, 3.3 x 4.25 m, painted in Rome, exhibited at the salon of 1785 (Musée du Louvre)

The Oath of the Horatii , Jacques-Louis David"> 103. The Oath of the Horatii , Jacques-Louis David

George Washington , Jean-Antoine Houdon"> 104. George Washington , Jean-Antoine Houdon

Élisabeth Louise Vigée-LeBrun, Self-Portrait, 1790, detail

Self-Portrait , Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun"> 105. Self-Portrait , Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun

Y no hai remedio (And There’s Nothing to Be Done) , from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) , plate 15, Francesco de Goya"> 106. Y no hai remedio (And There’s Nothing to Be Done) , from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) , plate 15, Francesco de Goya

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, The Grand Odalisque, 1814, oil on canvas (Louvre, Paris; photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

La Grande Odalisque , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres"> 107. La Grande Odalisque , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres

Liberty Leading the People , Eugène Delacroix"> 108. Liberty Leading the People , Eugène Delacroix

The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm) , Thomas Cole"> 109. The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm) , Thomas Cole

Still Life in Studio , Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre"> 110. Still Life in Studio , Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre

Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) , J.M.W. Turner"> 111. Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) , J.M.W. Turner

Charles Barry and A.W.N. Pugin, Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament), 1840-70, London

112. Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament), Charles Barry and A.W.N. Pugin

The Stone Breakers , Gustave Courbet"> 113. The Stone Breakers , Gustave Courbet

Honoré Daumier, Nadar Elevating Photography to the Height of an Art, 1862. Lithograph from Souvenirs d’Artistes, 44.8 × 30.9 cm (National Gallery of Art)

Nadar Raising Photography to the Height of Art , Honoré Daumier"> 114. Nadar Raising Photography to the Height of Art , Honoré Daumier

Édouard Manet, Olympia, 1863, oil on canvas, 130 x 190 cm (Musée d'Orsay, Paris)

Olympia , Édouard Manet"> 115. Olympia , Édouard Manet

The Saint-Lazare Station , Claude Monet"> 116. The Saint-Lazare Station , Claude Monet

The Horse in Motion , Eadweard Muybridge"> 117. The Horse in Motion , Eadweard Muybridge

José María Velasco, The Valley of Mexico from the Santa Isabel Mountain Range (Valle de México desde el cerro de Santa Isabel),1875, oil on canvas, 137.5 x 226 cm (Museo Nacional de Arte, INBA, Mexico City)

The Valley of Mexico from the Hillside of Santa Isabel (El Valle de México desde el Cerro de Santa Isabel) , José María Velasco"> 118. The Valley of Mexico from the Hillside of Santa Isabel (El Valle de México desde el Cerro de Santa Isabel) , José María Velasco

The Burghers of Calais , Auguste Rodin"> 119. The Burghers of Calais , Auguste Rodin

Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night- detail

The Starry Night , Vincent van Gogh"> 120. The Starry Night , Vincent van Gogh

The Coiffure , Mary Cassatt"> 121. The Coiffure , Mary Cassatt

Edvard Munch, The Scream, 1910, tempera on board, 66 x 83 cm (The Munch Museum, Oslo)

The Scream , Edvard Munch"> 122. The Scream , Edvard Munch

Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? , Paul Gauguin"> 123. Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? , Paul Gauguin

124. Carson, Pirie, Scott and Company Building, Louis Sullivan

Mont Sainte-Victoire , Paul Cézanne"> 125. Mont Sainte-Victoire , Paul Cézanne

Detail, Picasso, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon

Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , Pablo Picasso"> 126. Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , Pablo Picasso

Thumbnail, Alfred Stieglitz, The Steerage, 1907, photograph, 33.34 x 26.51 cm (includes black border)

The Steerage , Alfred Stieglitz"> 127. The Steerage , Alfred Stieglitz

The Kiss , Gustav Klimt"> 128. The Kiss , Gustav Klimt

Constantin Brancusi, The Kiss, 1916, limestone, 58.4 x 33.7 x 25.4 cm (Philadelphia Museum of Art) (Photo credit- Steven Zucker)

The Kiss , Constantin Brancusi"> 129. The Kiss , Constantin Brancusi

The Portuguese , Georges Braque"> 130. The Portuguese , Georges Braque

130. related Pablo Picasso and the new language of Cubism

Henri Matisse, Goldfish, 1912, oil on canvas, 146 x 97 cm (Pushkin Museum of Art, Moscow)

Goldfish , Henri Matisse"> 131. Goldfish , Henri Matisse

Vasily Kandinsky, Improvisation 28 (second version), 1912, oil on canvas, 111.4 x 162.1 cm (Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York)

Improvisation 28 (second version) , Vasily Kandinsky"> 132. Improvisation 28 (second version) , Vasily Kandinsky

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Self-Portrait as a Soldier - detail

Self-Portrait As a Soldier , Ernst Ludwig Kirchner"> 133. Self-Portrait As a Soldier , Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Käthe Kollwitz, Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht (Gedenkblatt für Karl Liebknecht), 1919-1920, Woodcut heightened with white and black ink, 37.1 × 51.9 cm (Art Institute of Chicago)

Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht , Käthe Kollwitz"> 134. Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht , Käthe Kollwitz

Le Corbusier, Villa Savoye, Poissy, France, 1929 (photo: Renato Saboya, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

135. Villa Savoye, Le Corbusier

Piet Mondrian, Composition II in Red, Blue, and Yellow, 1930, oil on canvas, 46 x 46 cm (Kunsthaus Zürich)

Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow , Piet Mondrian"> 136. Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow , Piet Mondrian

Varvara Stepanova, The Results of the First Five-Year Plan, 1932 (State Museum of Contemporary Russian History, Moscow)

The Results of the First Five-Year Plan , Varvara Stepanova"> 137. Illustration from The Results of the First Five-Year Plan , Varvara Stepanova

Meret Oppenheim. Object, 1936. Fur-covered cup, saucer, and spoon, cup 4-3/8

Object (Le Déjeuner en fourrure) , Meret Oppenheim"> 138. Object (Le Déjeuner en fourrure) , Meret Oppenheim

Frank Lloyd Wright, Fallingwater (Edgar J. Kaufmann House), 1935-38, Bear Run, Pennsylvania (photo: Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress #LC-DIG-highsm-04261)

139. Fallingwater, Frank Lloyd Wright

Frida Kahlo, The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas), 1939, oil on canvas, 67-11/16 x 67-11/16

The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) , Frida Kahlo"> 140. The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) , Frida Kahlo

The Migration of the Negro, Panel no. 49 , Jacob Lawrence"> 141. The Migration of the Negro, Panel no. 49 , Jacob Lawrence

Wilfredo Lam, The Jungle, 1942-43, gouache on paper mounted on canvas, 94-1/4 x 90-1/2

The Jungle , Wilfredo Lam"> 142. The Jungle , Wilfredo Lam

Diego Rivera, detail with the artist as a young man (lower left), the paintier Frida Kahlo (behind him), and La Catrina (the Skeleton), Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in Alameda Central Park (Sueño de una tarde dominical en la Alameda Central), 1947, 4.8 x 15 m (Museo Mural Diego Rivera, originally, Hotel del Prado, Mexico City)

Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park , Diego Rivera"> 143. Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park , Diego Rivera

Fountain (second version), Marcel Duchamp"> 144. Fountain (second version), Marcel Duchamp

Woman, I , Willem de Kooning"> 145. Woman, I , Willem de Kooning

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Seagram Building, 375 Park Avenue, New York City (1958)

146. Seagram Building, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Philip Johnson

Marilyn Diptych , Andy Warhol"> 147. Marilyn Diptych , Andy Warhol

Inhotim (Brazil) installation, Yayoi Kusama, Narcissus Garden - detail

Narcissus Garden , Yayoi Kusama"> 148. Narcissus Garden , Yayoi Kusama

Helen Frankenthaler, The Bay, 1963, acrylic on canvas, 6' 8-7/8

The Bay , Helen Frankenthaler"> 149. The Bay , Helen Frankenthaler

Claes Oldenburg, Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks, 1969-74, detail

Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks , Claes Oldenburg"> 150. Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks , Claes Oldenburg

Robert Smithson, Spiral Jetty, 1970 (Great Salt Lake, Utah)

Spiral Jetty , Robert Smithson"> 151. Spiral Jetty , Robert Smithson

Robert Venturi, John Rauch, and Denise Scott Brown, House in New Castle County, Delaware, 1978-83 (photo: © Venturi, Scott Brown Collection/The Architectural Archives, University of Pennsylvania/Detail of photo by Matt Wargo)

152. House in New Castle County, Robert Venturi, John Rausch and Denise Scott Brown

Content Area 5

Indigenous americas | 1000 b.c.e.–1980 c.e..

153. Chavín de Huántar

154. Mesa Verde cliff dwellings

155. Yaxchilán

Lady K'abal Xook pulling a thorned rope through her tongue (detail), Yaxchilán lintel 24, after 709 C.E., Maya, Late Classic period, limestone, 109 x 78 x 6 cm, Mexico © Trustees of the British Museum

155. (related) Yaxchilán Lintels

156. Great Serpent Mound

Templo Mayor (reconstruction), Tenochtitlan, 1375–1520 C.E.

157. Templo Mayor (Main Temple)

157.a. The Coyolxauhqui Stone

157.b. The Calendar Stone

157.c. Olmec-style mask

Feathered headdress, Aztec, reproduction (National Anthropology Museum, Mexico City). Original: early 16th century, quetzal, cotinga, roseate spoonbill, piaya feathers, wood, fibers, amate paper, cotton, gold, and gilded brass, Aztec, Mexico, (World Museum, Vienna)

158. Ruler’s feather headdress (probably of Motecuhzoma II)

159. City of Cusco, including Qorikancha (Inka main temple), Santo Domingo (Spanish colonial convent), and Walls at Saqsa Waman (Sacsayhuaman)

160. Maize cobs

161. City of Machu Picchu

162. All-T’oqapu tunic

Thumbnail Shoulder Bag, 1840-1850, Delaware, Lenni Lenape, cotton, wool, silk, glass beads, tinned iron, brass, bone, 29 1/2 inches high

163. Bandolier bag

Detail, Bandolier Bag, Western Great Lakes, late 19th century, broadcloth, wool, cotton, beads, brass buttons

163.a. What is a bandolier bag?

164. Transformation mask

Attributed to Cotsiogo, Hide Painting of the Sun Dance, c. 1890–1900, Eastern Shoshone (Wind River Reservation, WY), painted elk hide (Indian Arts Research Center, School for Advanced Research, Santa Fe, NM)

165. Painted elk hide, attributed to Cotsiogo (Cadzi Cody)

Maria Martinez, Black-on-black ceramic vessel

166. Black-on-black ceramic vessel, Maria Martínez and Julian Martínez

Content Area 6

Africa | 1100–1980 c.e..

167. Conical tower and circular wall of Great Zimbabwe

A view of the Great Mosque of Djenné, designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988 along with the old town of Djenné, in the central region of Mali.

168. Great Mosque of Djenné

Plaque: Equestrian Oba and Attendants, 1550-1680, Nigeria, Court of Benin, Edo peoples, brass, 49.5 x 41.9 x 11.4 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

169. Wall plaque, from Oba's palace

Detail of Oba, Benin plaque, MFA, Boston

169.a. Benin plaques

170. Sika dwa kofi (Golden Stool)

Ndop (portrait figure) of King Mishe miShyaang maMbul"> 171. Ndop (portrait figure) of King Mishe miShyaang maMbul

Nkisi n'kondi )"> 172. Power figure ( Nkisi n'kondi )

Female (pwo) mask, Chokwe peoples, Democratic Republic of Congo, early 20th century, wood, plant fiber, pigment, copper alloy, 39.1 cm high (Smithsonian National Museum of African Art)

pwo ) mask"> 173. Female ( pwo ) mask

Mblo )"> 174. Portrait mask ( Mblo )

Bundu / Sowei Helmet Mask (Mende peoples)

Bundu mask"> 175. Bundu mask

Ikenga (shrine figure)"> 176. Ikenga (shrine figure)

Lukasa (memory board)"> 177. Lukasa (memory board)

Elephant (Aka) Mask, Kuosi Society, Bamileke Peoples, Grassfields region of Cameroon, 20th century, cloth, beads, raffia, fiber, 146.7 x 52.1 x 29.2 cm (Brooklyn Museum)

178. Aka elephant mask

byeri )"> 179. Reliquary figure ( byeri )

180. Veranda post of enthroned king and senior wife (Opo Ogoga)

Detail, Olowe of Ise, Veranda post, before 1938 (Yoruba people, Nigeria), wood, pigment, 180.3 x 28.6 x 35.6 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City)

180. (related) Olowe of Ise, veranda post

Content area 7, west and central asia | 500 b.c.e.–1980 c.e..

181. Petra, Jordan: Treasury and Great Temple

So-called Treasury (Khazneh), Petra (Jordan), 2nd century C.E., photo: Colin Tsoi, CC BY-ND 2.0)

181.a. Petra and the Treasury

181.b. Petra and the Great Temple

181.c. Petra: UNESCO Siq Project

West niche, c. 6th-7th c C.E., stone, stucco, paint, Bamiyan, Afghanistan, Buddha destroyed 2001 (photo: Carlos Ugarte, CC BY-NC 2.0)

182. Buddha, Bamiyan

The Kaaba, granite masonry, covered with silk curtain and calligraphy in gold and silver-wrapped thread, pre-Islamic monument, rededicated by Muhammad in 631-32 C.E.

183. The Kaaba

Jowo Shakyamuni, Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, Tibet. Yarlung Dynasty, brought to Tibet in 641(?) Gilt metals with semiprecious stones, pearls, and paint; various offerings

184. Jowo Rinpoche, enshrined in the Jokhang Temple

The Dome of the Rock (Qubbat al-Sakhra), Umayyad, stone masonry, wooden roof, decorated with glazed ceramic tile, mosaics, and gilt aluminum and bronze dome, 691-2, with multiple renovations, patron the Caliph Abd al-Malik, Jerusalem (photo: Brian Jeffery Beggerly, CC BY 2.0)

185. Dome of the Rock

186. Great Mosque (Masjid-e Jameh), Isfahan

187. Folio from a Qur’an

Thumb-Mohammed ibn al-Zain, Basin (Baptistère de Saint Louis), c. 1320-40, brass inlaid with silver and gold, 22.2 x 50.2 cm, Egypt or Syria (Musée du Louvre)

Baptistère de Saint Louis ), Mohammed ibn al-Zain"> 188. Basin ( Baptistère de Saint Louis ), Mohammed ibn al-Zain

Bahram Gur Fights the Horned Wolf (painting) - detail

Bahram Gur Fights the Karg , folio from the Great Il-Khanid Shahnama "> 189. Bahram Gur Fights the Karg , folio from the Great Il-Khanid Shahnama

Thumbnail. The Bier of Iskandar (Alexander the Great), folio from the Great Mongol Shahnama (Il-Khanid dynasty, Tabriz, Iran), c. 1330, ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper, 57.6 x 39.7 cm (Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment, F1938.3)

189. related Folio from a Shahnama, The Bier of Iskandar (Alexander the Great)

Sultan Muhammad, attributed, The Court of Kayumars (Safavid: Tabriz, Iran), c. 1524-25, opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper, 45 x 30 cm (Aga Khan Museum, Toronto), produced as part of a Shahnameh for Shah Tahmasp

The Court of Gayumars , folio from Shah Tahmasp’s Shahnama "> 190. The Court of Gayumars , folio from Shah Tahmasp’s Shahnama

190. (related) Making and Mutilating Manuscripts of the Shahnama

Medallion Carpet, “The Ardabil Carpet,” Maqsud of Kashan, Persian: Safavid Dynasty, silk warps and wefts with wool pile (25 million knots, 340 per sq. inch), 1539-40 C.E., Tabriz, Kashan, Isfahan or Kirman, Iran, (now at the Victoria & Albert)

191. The Ardabil Carpet

Content Area 8

South, east, and southeast asia | 300 b.c.e.–1980 c.e..

Great Stupa at Sanchi, 3rd c. BCE - 1st c. CE, Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh (photo: AyushDwivedi1947, CC BY-SA 4.0)

192. Great Stupa at Sanchi

Mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi, Warriors (photo: scottgunn, CC BY-NC 2.0)

193. Terra cotta warriors from mausoleum of the first Qin emperor of China

View from above of Pit 3 of the Tomb complex of the First Emperor (photo: Zossolino, CC BY-SA 4.0)

193. (related) The Tomb of the First Emperor

194. Funeral banner of Lady Dai (Xin Zhui)

194. (related) The Tomb of Lady Dai

Central Vairocana Buddha surrounded on either side by a monk, bodhisattva, heavenly king, a Vajrapani (thunderbolt holder), 673–75 C.E., Tang dynasty, limestone, Luoyang, Henan province, (photo: Kevin Poh, CC BY 2.0)

195. Longmen caves

Crown, Silla kingdom, second half of 5th century, gold and jade, excavated from the north mound of Hwangnam Daechong Tomb, 10 3/4

196. Gold and jade crown

Gold crown and gold belt from the north mound of Hwangnamdaechong Tomb Gold crown and gold belt from the north mound of Hwangnamdaechong Tomb

Daibutsuden (Great Buddha Hall), Todai-ji, Nara, Japan, 743, rebuilt. c. 1700 (photo: author, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

197. Tōdai-ji

Borobudur, Indonesia (photo: Claire André, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

198. Borobudur Temple

Aerial view, Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia, 1116-1150 (photo: Peter Garnhum, CC BY-NC 2.0)

199. Angkor, the temple of Angkor Wat

199. The city of Angkor Thom

Bayon, the most notable temple at Angkor Thom (photo: Dmitry A. Mottl, CC BY-SA 4.0)

199. Bayon Temple

Lakshmana temple, Khajuraho, Chhatarpur District, Madhya Pradesh, India. 954 C.E. (Chandella period), sandstone. (photo: Christopher Voitus, CC BY-SA 3.0)

200. Lakshmana Temple

Travelers among Mountains and Streams , Fan Kuan"> 201. Travelers among Mountains and Streams , Fan Kuan

Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja), c. 11th century, Copper alloy, Chola period, 68.3 x 56.5 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

202. Shiva as Lord of the Dance (Nataraja)

Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace (detail), Illustrated Scrolls of the Events of the Heiji Era (Heiji monogatari emaki) Japanese, Kamakura period, second half of the 13th century, 45.9 x 774.5 x 7.6 cm (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)

Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace "> 203. Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace

204. The David Vases

Detail, Portrait of Sin Sukju (detail), second half of the 15th century, hanging scroll, ink and color on silk, 167 x 109.5 cm, Goryeong Sin Family Collection, Cheongwon, Treasure no. 613.

205. Portrait of Sin Sukju (1417–1475)

Forbidden City, Looking to the Meridian Gate from the north (Imperial Palace Museum) (photo: inkelv112, CC BY-NC 2.0)

206. Forbidden City

207. Ryōan-ji

Emperor on a pedestal (detail), Bichtir, Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings from the

Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings , Bichitr"> 208. Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings , Bichitr

209. Taj Mahal

Ogata Kōrin, Red and White Plum Blossoms, Edo period, 18th century, pair of two-fold screens, color and gold leaf on paper, 156 ×172.2 cm each, National Treasure (MOA Museum in Atami, Japan)

Red and White Plum Blossoms , Ogata Kōrin"> 210. Red and White Plum Blossoms , Ogata Kōrin

Katsushika Hokusai, Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura), also known as The Great Wave, from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei), c. 1830-32, polychrome woodblock print; ink and color on paper, 10 1/8 x 14 15 /16

Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) , also known as The Great Wave , from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji , Katsushika Hokusai"> 211. Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) , also known as The Great Wave , from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji , Katsushika Hokusai

Liu Chunhua, Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan, 1967, oil on canvas

Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan , Liu Chunhua"> 212. Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan , Liu Chunhua

Content area 9, the pacific | 700–1980 c.e..

213. Nan Madol

Voyage to the moai of Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

ahu )"> 214. Moai on platform ( ahu )

214.a. Easter Island Moai

Feather cape, probably before 1850 C.E., olona fibre, feather, 68.5 x 45 cm, Hawaii © Trustees of the British Museum

‘Ahu ‘ula (feather cape)"> 215. ‘Ahu ‘ula (feather cape)

216. Staff god

217. Female deity

Mask (Buk), Torres Strait, Mabuiag Island, mid to late 19th century,turtle shell, wood, cassowary feathers, fiber, resin, shell, paint, 21 1/2 inches high (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City)

218. Buk (mask)

219. Hiapo (tapa)

Tamati Waka Nene , Gottfried Lindauer"> 220. Tamati Waka Nene , Gottfried Lindauer

221. Navigation chart

222. Malagan display and mask

Presentation of Fijian mats and tapa cloths to Queen Elizabeth II during the 1953-54 royal tour, silver gelatin print, 16.5 x 22 cm

223. Presentation of Fijian Mats and Tapa Cloths to Queen Elizabeth II

Content Area 10

Global contemporary | 1980 c.e. to present.

Christo and Jeanne-Claude, The Gates, 1979-2005 (view across the pond looking southeast) © 2005 Christo and Jeanne-Claude

The Gates , Christo and Jeanne-Claude"> 224. The Gates , Christo and Jeanne-Claude

Maya Lin, Vietnam Veterans Memorial (detail), 1982, granite, National Mall, Washington, D.C. (photo: Steven Zucker)

225. Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Maya Lin

Horn Players , Jean-Michel Basquiat"> 226. Horn Players , Jean-Michel Basquiat

Song Su-Nam, Summer Trees, 1979, ink on paper, 2 feet 1-5/8 inches high (British Museum) © Song Su-Nam

Summer Trees , Song Su-Nam"> 227. Summer Trees , Song Su-Nam

Magdalena Abakanowicz, Androgyne III, 1985, burlap, resin, wood, nails, and string, 121.9 x 161.3 x 55.9 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Androgyne III , Magdalena Abakanowicz"> 228. Androgyne III , Magdalena Abakanowicz

A Book from the Sky , Xu Bing"> 229. A Book from the Sky , Xu Bing

Jeff Koons, Pink Panther, 1988, glazed porcelain, 104.1 x 52 x 48.2 cm (The Museum of Modern Art, New York) (photo: LP, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Pink Panther , Jeff Koons"> 230. Pink Panther , Jeff Koons

Cindy Sherman, Untitled #228, from the History portraits series, 1990, chromogenic color print, 6' 10 1/16

Untitled #228 , Cindy Sherman"> 231. Untitled #228 , Cindy Sherman

Dancing at the Louvre , from the series The French Collection , part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold"> 232. Dancing at the Louvre , from the series The French Collection , part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold

Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People), 1992, oil paint and mixed media, collage, objects, canvas, 152.4 x 431.8 cm (Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Virginia) © Jaune Quick-to-See Smith

Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) , Jaune Quick-to-See Smith"> 233. Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) , Jaune Quick-to-See Smith

Earth’s Creation , Emily Kame Kngwarreye"> 234. Earth’s Creation , Emily Kame Kngwarreye

Shirin Neshat, Rebellious Silence, Women of Allah series, 1994, B&W RC print & ink, photo by Cynthia Preston ©Shirin Neshat (courtesy Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels)

Rebellious Silence , from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston"> 235. Rebellious Silence , from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston

En la barberia no se llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) , Pepón Osorio"> 236. En la barberia no se llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) , Pepón Osorio

Michel Tuffery, Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000), 1994, flattened cans of corned beef (Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Collection) ©Michael Tuffery

Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000) , Michel Tuffery"> 237. Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000) , Michel Tuffery

Nam June Paik, Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, 1995, fifty-one channel video installation (including one closed-circuit television feed), custom electronics, neon lighting, steel and wood; color, sound, approx. 15 x 40 x 4' (Smithsonian American Art Museum) (© Nam June Paik Estate)

Electronic Superhighway , Nam June Paik"> 238. Electronic Superhighway , Nam June Paik

Bill Viola, The Crossing, 1996, video/sound © Bill Viola (photo: stunned, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The Crossing , Bill Viola"> 239. The Crossing , Bill Viola

Frank Gehry, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, 1993-97, (photo: Ardfern, CC BY-SA 3.0)

240. Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Frank Gehry

Pure Land , Mariko Mori"> 241. Pure Land , Mariko Mori

Kiki Smith, Lying with the Wolf, 2001, ink and pencil on paper 88 x 73 in (Centre Pompidou, Paris) © Kiki Smith

Lying with the Wolf , Kiki Smith"> 242. Lying with the Wolf , Kiki Smith

Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion, 2001, cut paper and projection on wall, 4.3 x 11.3m, (Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg) © Kara Walker

Darkytown Rebellion , Kara Walker"> 243. Darkytown Rebellion , Kara Walker

The Swing (After Fragonard) , Yinka Shonibare"> 244. The Swing (After Fragonard) , Yinka Shonibare

Old Man’s Cloth , El Anatsui"> 245. Old Man’s Cloth , El Anatsui

El Anatsui, Untitled, 2009, repurposed printed aluminum, copper, 256.5 × 284.5 × 27.9 cm as installed (Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington D.C.)

Untitled , El Anatsui"> 245. (related) Untitled , El Anatsui

Stadia II , Julie Mehretu"> 246. Stadia II , Julie Mehretu

Wangechi Mutu, Preying Mantra, 2006, mixed media on mylar (Brooklyn Museum)

Preying Mantra , Wangechi Mutu"> 247. Preying Mantra , Wangechi Mutu

Doris Salcedo, Shibboleth, 2007-08, installation, Tate Modern © Doris Salcedo (photo: henning thomsen, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Shibboleth , Doris Salcedo"> 248. Shibboleth , Doris Salcedo

Zaha Hadid, MAXXI National Museum of XXI Century Arts, 1998-2009 (opened 2010), Via Guido Reni, Rome

249. MAXXI National Museum of XXI Century Arts, Zaha Hadid

Ai Weiwei, Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds), 2010

Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) , Ai Weiwei"> 250. Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) , Ai Weiwei

Apollo 11 Cave Stones c. 25,500–25,300 B.C.E., Namibia (photo: State Museum of Namibia)

Origins of rock art in Africa
Running Horned Woman " aria-label="Link to more about Running Horned Woman "> Running Horned Woman ">4. Running Horned Woman
cong " aria-label="Link to more about Jade cong "> cong ">7. Jade cong

Remains of the Anu Ziggurat, c. 3517–3358 B.C.E., from Uruk (modern Warka) (photo: Geoff Emberling, by permission)

Seated scribe " aria-label="Link to more about Seated scribe "> Seated scribe ">15. Seated scribe
Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)" aria-label="Link to more about Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)"> Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)">16. Standard of Ur from the Royal Tombs at Ur (modern Tell el-Muqayyar, Iraq)
Pyramid of Khufu
Pyramid of Khafre and the Great Sphinx
Pyramid of Menkaure
The Code of Hammurabi " aria-label="Link to more about The Code of Hammurabi "> The Code of Hammurabi ">19. The Code of Hammurabi
Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters " aria-label="Link to more about Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters "> Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters ">22. Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters
Book of the Dead )" aria-label="Link to more about Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book of the Dead )"> Book of the Dead )">24. Last judgment of Hunefer, from his tomb (page from the Book of the Dead )
Anavysos Kouros " aria-label="Link to more about Anavysos Kouros "> Anavysos Kouros ">27. Anavysos Kouros
Peplos Kore from the Acropolis" aria-label="Link to more about Peplos Kore from the Acropolis"> Peplos Kore from the Acropolis">28. Peplos Kore from the Acropolis
Sarcophagus of the Spouses " aria-label="Link to more about Sarcophagus of the Spouses "> Sarcophagus of the Spouses ">29. Sarcophagus of the Spouses
Capital of a column from the audience hall of the palace of Darius I, Susa
Tomb of the Triclinium " aria-label="Link to more about Tomb of the Triclinium "> Tomb of the Triclinium ">32. Tomb of the Triclinium
Niobides Krater " aria-label="Link to more about Niobides Krater "> Niobides Krater ">33. Niobides Krater
Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) , Polykleitos" aria-label="Link to more about Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) , Polykleitos"> Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) , Polykleitos">34. Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer) , Polykleitos
Parthenon sculptures (pediments, metopes and frieze)
Who owns the Parthenon sculptures?
Plaque of the Ergastines , 445–438 B.C.E., Classical Period, fragment from a frieze on the Parthenon, Athens, Greece (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label=" Plaque of the Ergastines "> Plaque of the Ergastines
The Many Lives of the Parthenon
Nike Adjusting Her Sandal , Temple of Athena Nike, c. 410 B.C.E., Classical Period, from the Temple of Athena Nike, Acropolis, Athens, Greece (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Nike Adjusting Her Sandal from the Temple of Athena Nike"> Nike Adjusting Her Sandal from the Temple of Athena Nike
Grave stele of Hegeso " aria-label="Link to more about Grave stele of Hegeso "> Grave stele of Hegeso ">36. Grave stele of Hegeso
Winged Victory of Samothrace " aria-label="Link to more about Winged Victory of Samothrace "> Winged Victory of Samothrace ">37. Winged Victory of Samothrace
Alexander Mosaic from the House of Faun, Pompeii" aria-label="Link to more about Alexander Mosaic from the House of Faun, Pompeii"> Alexander Mosaic from the House of Faun, Pompeii">40. Alexander Mosaic from the House of Faun, Pompeii
Seated Boxer " aria-label="Link to more about Seated Boxer "> Seated Boxer ">41. Seated Boxer
Veristic male portrait
Augustus of Prima Porta " aria-label="Link to more about Augustus of Prima Porta "> Augustus of Prima Porta ">43. Augustus of Prima Porta
Column of Trajan
Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus " aria-label="Link to more about Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus "> Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus ">47. Ludovisi Battle Sarcophagus

Detail of the Cubiculum of the Veiled Woman, Catacomb of Priscilla, late 2nd century–4th century C.E., Late Antique Europe, Rome, Italy

Vienna Genesis , folio 12v, early 6th century, Early Byzantine Europe" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Jacob Wrestling the Angel"> Jacob Wrestling the Angel
Vienna Genesis , folio 7 recto, early 6th century, Early Byzantine Europe" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well"> Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well
Empress Theodora, rhetoric, and Byzantine primary sources
Theotokos mosaic , 867, Middle Byzantine Europe, apse of the Hagia Sophia, Istanbul (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Theotokos mosaic "> Theotokos mosaic
Deësis (Christ with the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist) , c. 1261, Late Byzantine Europe, at the Hagia Sophia, Istanbul (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Deësis mosaic "> Deësis mosaic
Hagia Sophia as a mosque
Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George " aria-label="Link to more about Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George "> Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George ">54. Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George
Lindisfarne Gospels : St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page" aria-label="Link to more about Lindisfarne Gospels : St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page"> Lindisfarne Gospels : St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page">55. Lindisfarne Gospels : St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page
Bayeux Tapestry " aria-label="Link to more about Bayeux Tapestry "> Bayeux Tapestry ">59. Bayeux Tapestry
Moralized Bible (Paris-Oxford-London))
Röttgen Pietà " aria-label="Link to more about Röttgen Pietà "> Röttgen Pietà ">62. Röttgen Pietà
Introduction
Fresco cycle
Lamentation "> Lamentation
Last Judgment "> Last Judgment
The Arena Chapel in virtual reality
Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)" aria-label="Link to more about Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)"> Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)">64. Golden Haggadah (The Plagues of Egypt, Scenes of Liberation, and Preparation for Passover)
Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) , Workshop of Robert Campin" aria-label="Link to more about Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) , Workshop of Robert Campin"> Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) , Workshop of Robert Campin">66. Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) , Workshop of Robert Campin
The Arnolfini Portrait , 1434, Northern Renaissance (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about The question of pregnancy in The Arnolfini Portrait "> The question of pregnancy in The Arnolfini Portrait
David , Donatello" aria-label="Link to more about David , Donatello"> David , Donatello">69. David , Donatello
Madonna and Child with Two Angels , Fra Filippo Lippi" aria-label="Link to more about Madonna and Child with Two Angels , Fra Filippo Lippi"> Madonna and Child with Two Angels , Fra Filippo Lippi">71. Madonna and Child with Two Angels , Fra Filippo Lippi
Birth of Venus , Sandro Botticelli" aria-label="Link to more about Birth of Venus , Sandro Botticelli"> Birth of Venus , Sandro Botticelli">72. Birth of Venus , Sandro Botticelli
Last Supper , Leonardo da Vinci" aria-label="Link to more about Last Supper , Leonardo da Vinci"> Last Supper , Leonardo da Vinci">73. Last Supper , Leonardo da Vinci
Adam and Eve , 1504, Renaissance, Germany" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about More about Adam and Eve "> More about Adam and Eve
Studies for the Libyan Sibyl (recto); Studies for the Libyan Sibyl and a small Sketch for a Seated Figure (verso), Michelangelo
Last Judgment , 1534–1541, High Renaissance, altar wall, Sistine Chapel, Vatican City, Rome (photo: Richard Mortel, CC BY 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Altar wall, Last Judgment "> Altar wall, Last Judgment
Self Portrait , 1504–05" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Raphael, an introduction"> Raphael, an introduction
Isenheim Altarpiece , Matthias Grünewald" aria-label="Link to more about Isenheim Altarpiece , Matthias Grünewald"> Isenheim Altarpiece , Matthias Grünewald">77. Isenheim Altarpiece , Matthias Grünewald
Entombment of Christ , Jacopo da Pontormo" aria-label="Link to more about Entombment of Christ , Jacopo da Pontormo"> Entombment of Christ , Jacopo da Pontormo">78. Entombment of Christ , Jacopo da Pontormo
Allegory of Law and Grace , Lucas Cranach the Elder" aria-label="Link to more about Allegory of Law and Grace , Lucas Cranach the Elder"> Allegory of Law and Grace , Lucas Cranach the Elder">79. Allegory of Law and Grace , Lucas Cranach the Elder
Venus of Urbino , Titian" aria-label="Link to more about Venus of Urbino , Titian"> Venus of Urbino , Titian">80. Venus of Urbino , Titian
Codex Mendoza " aria-label="Link to more about Frontispiece of the Codex Mendoza "> Codex Mendoza ">81. Frontispiece of the Codex Mendoza
Triumph of the Name of Jesus ceiling fresco" aria-label="Link to more about Il Gesù, including Triumph of the Name of Jesus ceiling fresco"> Triumph of the Name of Jesus ceiling fresco">82. Il Gesù, including Triumph of the Name of Jesus ceiling fresco
Hunters in the Snow , Pieter Bruegel the Elder" aria-label="Link to more about Hunters in the Snow , Pieter Bruegel the Elder"> Hunters in the Snow , Pieter Bruegel the Elder">83. Hunters in the Snow , Pieter Bruegel the Elder
Calling of St. Matthew , Caravaggio" aria-label="Link to more about Calling of St. Matthew , Caravaggio"> Calling of St. Matthew , Caravaggio">85. Calling of St. Matthew , Caravaggio
Henri IV Receives the Portrait of of Marie de’Medici , from the Marie de’Medici Cycle, Peter Paul Rubens" aria-label="Link to more about Henri IV Receives the Portrait of of Marie de’Medici , from the Marie de’Medici Cycle, Peter Paul Rubens"> Henri IV Receives the Portrait of of Marie de’Medici , from the Marie de’Medici Cycle, Peter Paul Rubens">86. Henri IV Receives the Portrait of of Marie de’Medici , from the Marie de’Medici Cycle, Peter Paul Rubens
Self-Portrait with Saskia , Rembrandt van Rijn" aria-label="Link to more about Self-Portrait with Saskia , Rembrandt van Rijn"> Self-Portrait with Saskia , Rembrandt van Rijn">87. Self-Portrait with Saskia , Rembrandt van Rijn
Ecstasy of Saint Teresa , Gian Lorenzo Bernini" aria-label="Link to more about Ecstasy of Saint Teresa , Gian Lorenzo Bernini"> Ecstasy of Saint Teresa , Gian Lorenzo Bernini">89. Ecstasy of Saint Teresa , Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei , Master of Calamarca" aria-label="Link to more about Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei , Master of Calamarca"> Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei , Master of Calamarca">90. Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei , Master of Calamarca
Las Meninas , Diego Velázquez" aria-label="Link to more about Las Meninas , Diego Velázquez"> Las Meninas , Diego Velázquez">91. Las Meninas , Diego Velázquez
Woman Holding a Balance , Johannes Vermeer" aria-label="Link to more about Woman Holding a Balance , Johannes Vermeer"> Woman Holding a Balance , Johannes Vermeer">92. Woman Holding a Balance , Johannes Vermeer
Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene " aria-label="Link to more about Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene "> Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene ">94. Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and hunting scene
Virgin of Guadalupe , late 17th century, New Spain (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Virgin of Guadalupe "> Virgin of Guadalupe
Fruit and Insects , Rachel Ruysch" aria-label="Link to more about Fruit and Insects , Rachel Ruysch"> Fruit and Insects , Rachel Ruysch">96. Fruit and Insects , Rachel Ruysch
Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo , attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez" aria-label="Link to more about Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo , attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez"> Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo , attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez">97. Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo , attributed to Juan Rodríguez Juárez
The Tête à Tête , from Marriage a la Mode , William Hogarth" aria-label="Link to more about The Tête à Tête , from Marriage a la Mode , William Hogarth"> The Tête à Tête , from Marriage a la Mode , William Hogarth">98. The Tête à Tête , from Marriage a la Mode , William Hogarth

Miguel Cabrera, Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (detail), c. 1750, New Spain

Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz , Miguel Cabrera " aria-label="Link to more about Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz , Miguel Cabrera "> Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz , Miguel Cabrera ">99. Portrait of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz , Miguel Cabrera
A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on the Orrery , Joseph Wright of Derby" aria-label="Link to more about A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on the Orrery , Joseph Wright of Derby"> A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on the Orrery , Joseph Wright of Derby">100. A Philosopher Giving a Lecture on the Orrery , Joseph Wright of Derby
The Swing , Jean-Honoré Fragonard" aria-label="Link to more about The Swing , Jean-Honoré Fragonard"> The Swing , Jean-Honoré Fragonard">101. The Swing , Jean-Honoré Fragonard
The Oath of the Horatii , Jacques-Louis David" aria-label="Link to more about The Oath of the Horatii , Jacques-Louis David"> The Oath of the Horatii , Jacques-Louis David">103. The Oath of the Horatii , Jacques-Louis David
George Washington , Jean-Antoine Houdon" aria-label="Link to more about George Washington , Jean-Antoine Houdon"> George Washington , Jean-Antoine Houdon">104. George Washington , Jean-Antoine Houdon
Self-Portrait , Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun" aria-label="Link to more about Self-Portrait , Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun"> Self-Portrait , Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun">105. Self-Portrait , Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun
Y no hai remedio (And There’s Nothing to Be Done) , from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) , plate 15, Francesco de Goya" aria-label="Link to more about Y no hai remedio (And There’s Nothing to Be Done) , from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) , plate 15, Francesco de Goya"> Y no hai remedio (And There’s Nothing to Be Done) , from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) , plate 15, Francesco de Goya">106. Y no hai remedio (And There’s Nothing to Be Done) , from Los Desastres de la Guerra (The Disasters of War) , plate 15, Francesco de Goya
La Grande Odalisque , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres" aria-label="Link to more about La Grande Odalisque , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres"> La Grande Odalisque , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres">107. La Grande Odalisque , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Liberty Leading the People , Eugène Delacroix" aria-label="Link to more about Liberty Leading the People , Eugène Delacroix"> Liberty Leading the People , Eugène Delacroix">108. Liberty Leading the People , Eugène Delacroix
The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm) , Thomas Cole" aria-label="Link to more about The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm) , Thomas Cole"> The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm) , Thomas Cole">109. The Oxbow (View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm) , Thomas Cole
Still Life in Studio , Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre" aria-label="Link to more about Still Life in Studio , Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre"> Still Life in Studio , Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre">110. Still Life in Studio , Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre
Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) , J.M.W. Turner" aria-label="Link to more about Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) , J.M.W. Turner"> Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) , J.M.W. Turner">111. Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) , J.M.W. Turner
The Stone Breakers , Gustave Courbet" aria-label="Link to more about The Stone Breakers , Gustave Courbet"> The Stone Breakers , Gustave Courbet">113. The Stone Breakers , Gustave Courbet
Nadar Raising Photography to the Height of Art , Honoré Daumier" aria-label="Link to more about Nadar Raising Photography to the Height of Art , Honoré Daumier"> Nadar Raising Photography to the Height of Art , Honoré Daumier">114. Nadar Raising Photography to the Height of Art , Honoré Daumier
Olympia , Édouard Manet" aria-label="Link to more about Olympia , Édouard Manet"> Olympia , Édouard Manet">115. Olympia , Édouard Manet
The Saint-Lazare Station , Claude Monet" aria-label="Link to more about The Saint-Lazare Station , Claude Monet"> The Saint-Lazare Station , Claude Monet">116. The Saint-Lazare Station , Claude Monet
The Horse in Motion , Eadweard Muybridge" aria-label="Link to more about The Horse in Motion , Eadweard Muybridge"> The Horse in Motion , Eadweard Muybridge">117. The Horse in Motion , Eadweard Muybridge
The Valley of Mexico from the Hillside of Santa Isabel (El Valle de México desde el Cerro de Santa Isabel) , José María Velasco" aria-label="Link to more about The Valley of Mexico from the Hillside of Santa Isabel (El Valle de México desde el Cerro de Santa Isabel) , José María Velasco"> The Valley of Mexico from the Hillside of Santa Isabel (El Valle de México desde el Cerro de Santa Isabel) , José María Velasco">118. The Valley of Mexico from the Hillside of Santa Isabel (El Valle de México desde el Cerro de Santa Isabel) , José María Velasco
The Burghers of Calais , Auguste Rodin" aria-label="Link to more about The Burghers of Calais , Auguste Rodin"> The Burghers of Calais , Auguste Rodin">119. The Burghers of Calais , Auguste Rodin
The Starry Night , Vincent van Gogh" aria-label="Link to more about The Starry Night , Vincent van Gogh"> The Starry Night , Vincent van Gogh">120. The Starry Night , Vincent van Gogh
The Coiffure , Mary Cassatt" aria-label="Link to more about The Coiffure , Mary Cassatt"> The Coiffure , Mary Cassatt">121. The Coiffure , Mary Cassatt
The Scream , Edvard Munch" aria-label="Link to more about The Scream , Edvard Munch"> The Scream , Edvard Munch">122. The Scream , Edvard Munch
Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? , Paul Gauguin" aria-label="Link to more about Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? , Paul Gauguin"> Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? , Paul Gauguin">123. Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? , Paul Gauguin
Mont Sainte-Victoire , Paul Cézanne" aria-label="Link to more about Mont Sainte-Victoire , Paul Cézanne"> Mont Sainte-Victoire , Paul Cézanne">125. Mont Sainte-Victoire , Paul Cézanne
Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , Pablo Picasso" aria-label="Link to more about Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , Pablo Picasso"> Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , Pablo Picasso">126. Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , Pablo Picasso
The Steerage , Alfred Stieglitz" aria-label="Link to more about The Steerage , Alfred Stieglitz"> The Steerage , Alfred Stieglitz">127. The Steerage , Alfred Stieglitz
The Kiss , Gustav Klimt" aria-label="Link to more about The Kiss , Gustav Klimt"> The Kiss , Gustav Klimt">128. The Kiss , Gustav Klimt
The Kiss , Constantin Brancusi" aria-label="Link to more about The Kiss , Constantin Brancusi"> The Kiss , Constantin Brancusi">129. The Kiss , Constantin Brancusi
The Guitarist , 1910, Cubism (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Pablo Picasso and the new language of Cubism"> Pablo Picasso and the new language of Cubism
Goldfish , Henri Matisse" aria-label="Link to more about Goldfish , Henri Matisse"> Goldfish , Henri Matisse">131. Goldfish , Henri Matisse
Improvisation 28 (second version) , Vasily Kandinsky" aria-label="Link to more about Improvisation 28 (second version) , Vasily Kandinsky"> Improvisation 28 (second version) , Vasily Kandinsky">132. Improvisation 28 (second version) , Vasily Kandinsky
Self-Portrait As a Soldier , Ernst Ludwig Kirchner" aria-label="Link to more about Self-Portrait As a Soldier , Ernst Ludwig Kirchner"> Self-Portrait As a Soldier , Ernst Ludwig Kirchner">133. Self-Portrait As a Soldier , Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht , Käthe Kollwitz" aria-label="Link to more about Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht , Käthe Kollwitz"> Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht , Käthe Kollwitz">134. Memorial Sheet of Karl Liebknecht , Käthe Kollwitz
Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow , Piet Mondrian" aria-label="Link to more about Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow , Piet Mondrian"> Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow , Piet Mondrian">136. Composition with Red, Blue, and Yellow , Piet Mondrian
The Results of the First Five-Year Plan , Varvara Stepanova" aria-label="Link to more about Illustration from The Results of the First Five-Year Plan , Varvara Stepanova"> The Results of the First Five-Year Plan , Varvara Stepanova">137. Illustration from The Results of the First Five-Year Plan , Varvara Stepanova
Object (Le Déjeuner en fourrure) , Meret Oppenheim" aria-label="Link to more about Object (Le Déjeuner en fourrure) , Meret Oppenheim"> Object (Le Déjeuner en fourrure) , Meret Oppenheim">138. Object (Le Déjeuner en fourrure) , Meret Oppenheim
The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) , Frida Kahlo" aria-label="Link to more about The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) , Frida Kahlo"> The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) , Frida Kahlo">140. The Two Fridas (Las dos Fridas) , Frida Kahlo
The Migration of the Negro, Panel no. 49 , Jacob Lawrence" aria-label="Link to more about The Migration of the Negro, Panel no. 49 , Jacob Lawrence"> The Migration of the Negro, Panel no. 49 , Jacob Lawrence">141. The Migration of the Negro, Panel no. 49 , Jacob Lawrence
The Jungle , Wilfredo Lam" aria-label="Link to more about The Jungle , Wilfredo Lam"> The Jungle , Wilfredo Lam">142. The Jungle , Wilfredo Lam
Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park , Diego Rivera" aria-label="Link to more about Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park , Diego Rivera"> Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park , Diego Rivera">143. Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park , Diego Rivera
Fountain (second version), Marcel Duchamp" aria-label="Link to more about Fountain (second version), Marcel Duchamp"> Fountain (second version), Marcel Duchamp">144. Fountain (second version), Marcel Duchamp
Woman, I , Willem de Kooning" aria-label="Link to more about Woman, I , Willem de Kooning"> Woman, I , Willem de Kooning">145. Woman, I , Willem de Kooning
Marilyn Diptych , Andy Warhol" aria-label="Link to more about Marilyn Diptych , Andy Warhol"> Marilyn Diptych , Andy Warhol">147. Marilyn Diptych , Andy Warhol
Narcissus Garden , Yayoi Kusama" aria-label="Link to more about Narcissus Garden , Yayoi Kusama"> Narcissus Garden , Yayoi Kusama">148. Narcissus Garden , Yayoi Kusama
The Bay , Helen Frankenthaler" aria-label="Link to more about The Bay , Helen Frankenthaler"> The Bay , Helen Frankenthaler">149. The Bay , Helen Frankenthaler
Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks , Claes Oldenburg" aria-label="Link to more about Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks , Claes Oldenburg"> Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks , Claes Oldenburg">150. Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks , Claes Oldenburg
Spiral Jetty , Robert Smithson" aria-label="Link to more about Spiral Jetty , Robert Smithson"> Spiral Jetty , Robert Smithson">151. Spiral Jetty , Robert Smithson

Chavín de Huántar, 900–200 B.C.E., Peru (photo: Sharon odb, CC BY-SA 3.0)

Yaxchilán Lintels
The Coyolxauhqui Stone
The Calendar Stone
Olmec-style mask
What is a bandolier bag?

Conical Tower, Great Zimbabwe, c. 1000–1400 C.E., Shona people, Southeastern Zimbabwe (photo: Mandy, CC BY 2.0)

Benin plaques
Ndop (portrait figure) of King Mishe miShyaang maMbul" aria-label="Link to more about Ndop (portrait figure) of King Mishe miShyaang maMbul"> Ndop (portrait figure) of King Mishe miShyaang maMbul">171. Ndop (portrait figure) of King Mishe miShyaang maMbul
Nkisi n'kondi )" aria-label="Link to more about Power figure ( Nkisi n'kondi )"> Nkisi n'kondi )">172. Power figure ( Nkisi n'kondi )
pwo ) mask" aria-label="Link to more about Female ( pwo ) mask"> pwo ) mask">173. Female ( pwo ) mask
Mblo )" aria-label="Link to more about Portrait mask ( Mblo )"> Mblo )">174. Portrait mask ( Mblo )
Bundu mask" aria-label="Link to more about Bundu mask"> Bundu mask">175. Bundu mask
Ikenga (shrine figure)" aria-label="Link to more about Ikenga (shrine figure)"> Ikenga (shrine figure)">176. Ikenga (shrine figure)
Lukasa (memory board)" aria-label="Link to more about Lukasa (memory board)"> Lukasa (memory board)">177. Lukasa (memory board)
byeri )" aria-label="Link to more about Reliquary figure ( byeri )"> byeri )">179. Reliquary figure ( byeri )
Olowe of Ise, veranda post

Tombs at Petra (Jordan), c. 400 B.C.E–100 C.E., Nabataean (photo: Dennis Jarvis, CC BY-SA 2.0)

Petra and the Treasury
Petra and the Great Temple
Petra: UNESCO Siq Project
Baptistère de Saint Louis ), Mohammed ibn al-Zain" aria-label="Link to more about Basin ( Baptistère de Saint Louis ), Mohammed ibn al-Zain"> Baptistère de Saint Louis ), Mohammed ibn al-Zain">188. Basin ( Baptistère de Saint Louis ), Mohammed ibn al-Zain
Folio from a Shahnama, The Bier of Iskandar (Alexander the Great)
Making and Mutilating Manuscripts of the Shahnama

Great Stupa at Sanchi, 3rd century B.C.E.–1st century C.E., Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh, India (photo: AyushDwivedi1947, CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Tomb of the First Emperor
The Tomb of Lady Dai
Gold crown and gold belt from the north mound of Hwangnamdaechong Tomb
The city of Angkor Thom
Bayon Temple
Travelers among Mountains and Streams , Fan Kuan" aria-label="Link to more about Travelers among Mountains and Streams , Fan Kuan"> Travelers among Mountains and Streams , Fan Kuan">201. Travelers among Mountains and Streams , Fan Kuan
Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace " aria-label="Link to more about Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace "> Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace ">203. Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace
Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings , Bichitr" aria-label="Link to more about Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings , Bichitr"> Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings , Bichitr">208. Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings , Bichitr
Red and White Plum Blossoms , Ogata Kōrin" aria-label="Link to more about Red and White Plum Blossoms , Ogata Kōrin"> Red and White Plum Blossoms , Ogata Kōrin">210. Red and White Plum Blossoms , Ogata Kōrin
Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) , also known as The Great Wave , from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji , Katsushika Hokusai" aria-label="Link to more about Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) , also known as The Great Wave , from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji , Katsushika Hokusai"> Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) , also known as The Great Wave , from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji , Katsushika Hokusai">211. Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) , also known as The Great Wave , from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji , Katsushika Hokusai
Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan , Liu Chunhua" aria-label="Link to more about Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan , Liu Chunhua"> Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan , Liu Chunhua">212. Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan , Liu Chunhua

Nan Madol, 13th-17th century C.E., Pohnpei, The Federated States of Micronesia (photo: CT Snow, CC BY 2.0)

Hoa Hakananai’a (‘lost or stolen friend’), Moai (ancestor figure), c. 1200 C.E., likely made in Rano Kao, Easter Island (Rapa Nui), found in the ceremonial center Orongo © Trustees of the British Museum" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Easter Island Moai"> Easter Island Moai
‘Ahu ‘ula (feather cape)" aria-label="Link to more about ‘Ahu ‘ula (feather cape)"> ‘Ahu ‘ula (feather cape)">215. ‘Ahu ‘ula (feather cape)
Tamati Waka Nene , Gottfried Lindauer" aria-label="Link to more about Tamati Waka Nene , Gottfried Lindauer"> Tamati Waka Nene , Gottfried Lindauer">220. Tamati Waka Nene , Gottfried Lindauer

The Gates , Christo and Jeanne-Claude" aria-label="Link to more about The Gates , Christo and Jeanne-Claude"> The Gates , Christo and Jeanne-Claude">224. The Gates , Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Horn Players , Jean-Michel Basquiat" aria-label="Link to more about Horn Players , Jean-Michel Basquiat"> Horn Players , Jean-Michel Basquiat">226. Horn Players , Jean-Michel Basquiat
Summer Trees , Song Su-Nam" aria-label="Link to more about Summer Trees , Song Su-Nam"> Summer Trees , Song Su-Nam">227. Summer Trees , Song Su-Nam
Androgyne III , Magdalena Abakanowicz" aria-label="Link to more about Androgyne III , Magdalena Abakanowicz"> Androgyne III , Magdalena Abakanowicz">228. Androgyne III , Magdalena Abakanowicz
A Book from the Sky , Xu Bing" aria-label="Link to more about A Book from the Sky , Xu Bing"> A Book from the Sky , Xu Bing">229. A Book from the Sky , Xu Bing
Pink Panther , Jeff Koons" aria-label="Link to more about Pink Panther , Jeff Koons"> Pink Panther , Jeff Koons">230. Pink Panther , Jeff Koons
Untitled #228 , Cindy Sherman" aria-label="Link to more about Untitled #228 , Cindy Sherman"> Untitled #228 , Cindy Sherman">231. Untitled #228 , Cindy Sherman
Dancing at the Louvre , from the series The French Collection , part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold" aria-label="Link to more about Dancing at the Louvre , from the series The French Collection , part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold"> Dancing at the Louvre , from the series The French Collection , part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold">232. Dancing at the Louvre , from the series The French Collection , part 1; #1, Faith Ringgold
Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) , Jaune Quick-to-See Smith" aria-label="Link to more about Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) , Jaune Quick-to-See Smith"> Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) , Jaune Quick-to-See Smith">233. Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) , Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
Earth’s Creation , Emily Kame Kngwarreye" aria-label="Link to more about Earth’s Creation , Emily Kame Kngwarreye"> Earth’s Creation , Emily Kame Kngwarreye">234. Earth’s Creation , Emily Kame Kngwarreye
Rebellious Silence , from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston" aria-label="Link to more about Rebellious Silence , from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston"> Rebellious Silence , from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston">235. Rebellious Silence , from the Women of Allah series, Shirin Neshat (artist); photo by Cynthia Preston
En la barberia no se llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) , Pepón Osorio" aria-label="Link to more about En la barberia no se llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) , Pepón Osorio"> En la barberia no se llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) , Pepón Osorio">236. En la barberia no se llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) , Pepón Osorio
Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000) , Michel Tuffery" aria-label="Link to more about Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000) , Michel Tuffery"> Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000) , Michel Tuffery">237. Pisupo Lua Afe (Corned Beef 2000) , Michel Tuffery
Electronic Superhighway , Nam June Paik" aria-label="Link to more about Electronic Superhighway , Nam June Paik"> Electronic Superhighway , Nam June Paik">238. Electronic Superhighway , Nam June Paik
The Crossing , Bill Viola" aria-label="Link to more about The Crossing , Bill Viola"> The Crossing , Bill Viola">239. The Crossing , Bill Viola
Pure Land , Mariko Mori" aria-label="Link to more about Pure Land , Mariko Mori"> Pure Land , Mariko Mori">241. Pure Land , Mariko Mori
Lying with the Wolf , Kiki Smith" aria-label="Link to more about Lying with the Wolf , Kiki Smith"> Lying with the Wolf , Kiki Smith">242. Lying with the Wolf , Kiki Smith
Darkytown Rebellion , Kara Walker" aria-label="Link to more about Darkytown Rebellion , Kara Walker"> Darkytown Rebellion , Kara Walker">243. Darkytown Rebellion , Kara Walker
The Swing (After Fragonard) , Yinka Shonibare" aria-label="Link to more about The Swing (After Fragonard) , Yinka Shonibare"> The Swing (After Fragonard) , Yinka Shonibare">244. The Swing (After Fragonard) , Yinka Shonibare
Untitled , 2009 (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)" target="_blank" aria-label="Link to more about Untitled , El Anatsui"> Untitled , El Anatsui
Stadia II , Julie Mehretu" aria-label="Link to more about Stadia II , Julie Mehretu"> Stadia II , Julie Mehretu">246. Stadia II , Julie Mehretu
Preying Mantra , Wangechi Mutu" aria-label="Link to more about Preying Mantra , Wangechi Mutu"> Preying Mantra , Wangechi Mutu">247. Preying Mantra , Wangechi Mutu
Shibboleth , Doris Salcedo" aria-label="Link to more about Shibboleth , Doris Salcedo"> Shibboleth , Doris Salcedo">248. Shibboleth , Doris Salcedo
Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) , Ai Weiwei" aria-label="Link to more about Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) , Ai Weiwei"> Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) , Ai Weiwei">250. Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) , Ai Weiwei

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Library News Online

American Artists and the Legacy of the Grand Tour, 1880-1960

June 15 – august 26, 2017.

In a historical sense, the Grand Tour was a seventeenth- to eighteenth-century phenomenon in which the young, usually male and aristocratic, members of English and Northern European families visited great cities and societies of the European continent. It was an educational trip, meant largely for cultural exposure and refinement. Art was central to this travel in a number of ways, from visiting masterpieces of painting and architecture, to commissioning portraits, buying art to bring home, and engaging an artist for the journey who would paint the sublime beauty of each destination. This exhibition explores a time from approximately 1880 to 1960 when American artists endeavored to follow in the footsteps of this tradition and trek to Europe for a variety of reasons: study and opportunities to exhibit, illustration on commission, war, and leisure. At the center of their journeys was also the goal of education, for themselves through the process of travel and study and for others through the skills, cultural enlightenment, and artwork they would bring home. The works included in the exhibition represent a range of media, from printmaking to painting, and the work documents the architecture, scenery, and people of Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Greece, England, and France as the artists saw them.

American Artists and the Legacy of the Grand Tour, 1880–1960 is organized by the Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery and curated by Margaret F. M. Walker, assistant curator, with support provided by the Fine Arts Gallery Gift Fund and the Sullivan Art Collection Fund.

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18th Century Grand Tour of Europe

The Travels of European Twenty-Somethings

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M.A., Geography, California State University - Northridge
B.A., Geography, University of California - Davis

The French Revolution marked the end of a spectacular period of travel and enlightenment for European youth, particularly from England. Young English elites of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries often spent two to four years touring around Europe in an effort to broaden their horizons and learn about language , architecture , geography, and culture in an experience known as the Grand Tour.

The Grand Tour, which didn't come to an end until the close of the eighteenth century, began in the sixteenth century and gained popularity during the seventeenth century. Read to find out what started this event and what the typical Tour entailed.

Origins of the Grand Tour

Privileged young graduates of sixteenth-century Europe pioneered a trend wherein they traveled across the continent in search of art and cultural experiences upon their graduation. This practice, which grew to be wildly popular, became known as the Grand Tour, a term introduced by Richard Lassels in his 1670 book Voyage to Italy . Specialty guidebooks, tour guides, and other aspects of the tourist industry were developed during this time to meet the needs of wealthy 20-something male and female travelers and their tutors as they explored the European continent.

These young, classically-educated Tourists were affluent enough to fund multiple years abroad for themselves and they took full advantage of this. They carried letters of reference and introduction with them as they departed from southern England in order to communicate with and learn from people they met in other countries. Some Tourists sought to continue their education and broaden their horizons while abroad, some were just after fun and leisurely travels, but most desired a combination of both.

Navigating Europe

A typical journey through Europe was long and winding with many stops along the way. London was commonly used as a starting point and the Tour was usually kicked off with a difficult trip across the English Channel.

Crossing the English Channel

The most common route across the English Channel, La Manche, was made from Dover to Calais, France—this is now the path of the Channel Tunnel. A trip from Dover across the Channel to Calais and finally into Paris customarily took three days. After all, crossing the wide channel was and is not easy. Seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Tourists risked seasickness, illness, and even shipwreck on this first leg of travel.

Compulsory Stops

Grand Tourists were primarily interested in visiting cities that were considered major centers of culture at the time, so Paris, Rome, and Venice were not to be missed. Florence and Naples were also popular destinations but were regarded as more optional than the aforementioned cities.

The average Grand Tourist traveled from city to city, usually spending weeks in smaller cities and up to several months in the three major ones. Paris, France was the most popular stop of the Grand Tour for its cultural, architectural, and political influence. It was also popular because most young British elite already spoke French, a prominent language in classical literature and other studies, and travel through and to this city was relatively easy. For many English citizens, Paris was the most impressive place visited.

Getting to Italy

From Paris, many Tourists proceeded across the Alps or took a boat on the Mediterranean Sea to get to Italy, another essential stopping point. For those who made their way across the Alps, Turin was the first Italian city they'd come to and some remained here while others simply passed through on their way to Rome or Venice.

Rome was initially the southernmost point of travel. However, when excavations of Herculaneum (1738) and Pompeii (1748) began, these two sites were added as major destinations on the Grand Tour.

Features of the Grand Tour

The vast majority of Tourists took part in similar activities during their exploration with art at the center of it all. Once a Tourist arrived at a destination, they would seek housing and settle in for anywhere from weeks to months, even years. Though certainly not an overly trying experience for most, the Grand Tour presented a unique set of challenges for travelers to overcome.

While the original purpose of the Grand Tour was educational, a great deal of time was spent on much more frivolous pursuits. Among these were drinking, gambling, and intimate encounters—some Tourists regarded their travels as an opportunity to indulge in promiscuity with little consequence. Journals and sketches that were supposed to be completed during the Tour were left blank more often than not.

Visiting French and Italian royalty as well as British diplomats was a common recreation during the Tour. The young men and women that participated wanted to return home with stories to tell and meeting famous or otherwise influential people made for great stories.

The study and collection of art became almost a nonoptional engagement for Grand Tourists. Many returned home with bounties of paintings, antiques, and handmade items from various countries. Those that could afford to purchase lavish souvenirs did so in the extreme.

Arriving in Paris, one of the first destinations for most, a Tourist would usually rent an apartment for several weeks or months. Day trips from Paris to the French countryside or to Versailles (the home of the French monarchy) were common for less wealthy travelers that couldn't pay for longer outings.

The homes of envoys were often utilized as hotels and food pantries. This annoyed envoys but there wasn't much they could do about such inconveniences caused by their citizens. Nice apartments tended to be accessible only in major cities, with harsh and dirty inns the only options in smaller ones.

Trials and Challenges

A Tourist would not carry much money on their person during their expeditions due to the risk of highway robberies. Instead, letters of credit from reputable London banks were presented at major cities of the Grand Tour in order to make purchases. In this way, tourists spent a great deal of money abroad.

Because these expenditures were made outside of England and therefore did not bolster England's economy, some English politicians were very much against the institution of the Grand Tour and did not approve of this rite of passage. This played minimally into the average person's decision to travel.

Returning to England

Upon returning to England, tourists were meant to be ready to assume the responsibilities of an aristocrat. The Grand Tour was ultimately worthwhile as it has been credited with spurring dramatic developments in British architecture and culture, but many viewed it as a waste of time during this period because many Tourists did not come home more mature than when they had left.

The French Revolution in 1789 halted the Grand Tour—in the early nineteenth century, railroads forever changed the face of tourism and foreign travel.

Burk, Kathleen. "The Grand Tour of Europe". Gresham College, 6 Apr. 2005.
Knowles, Rachel. “The Grand Tour.” Regency History , 30 Apr. 2013.
Sorabella, Jean. “The Grand Tour.” Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History , The Met Museum, Oct. 2003.
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What was the Grand Tour?

Find out about the travel phenomenon that became popular amongst the young nobility of England

Art, antiquity and architecture: the Grand Tour provided an opportunity to discover the cultural wonders of Europe and beyond.

Popular throughout the 18th century, this extended journey was seen as a rite of passage for mainly young, aristocratic English men.

As well as marvelling at artistic masterpieces, Grand Tourists brought back souvenirs to commemorate and display their journeys at home.

One exceptional example forms the subject of a new exhibition at the National Maritime Museum. Canaletto’s Venice Revisited brings together 24 of Canaletto’s Venetian views, commissioned in 1731 by Lord John Russell following his visit to Venice.

Find out more about this travel phenomenon – and uncover its rich cultural legacy.

Canaletto's Venice Revisited

The origins of the Grand Tour

The development of the Grand Tour dates back to the 16th century.

One of the earliest Grand Tourists was the architect Inigo Jones , who embarked on a tour of Italy in 1613-14 with his patron Thomas Howard, 14th Earl of Arundel.

Jones visited cities such as Parma, Venice and Rome. However, it was Naples that proved the high point of his travels.

Jones was particularly fascinated by the San Paolo Maggiore, describing the church as “one of the best things that I have ever seen.”

Jones’s time in Italy shaped his architectural style. In 1616, Jones was commissioned to design the Queen’s House in Greenwich for Queen Anne of Denmark , the wife of King James I. Completed in around 1636, the house was the first classical building in England.

The expression ‘Grand Tour’ itself comes from 17th century travel writer and Roman Catholic priest Richard Lassels, who used it in his guidebook The Voyage of Italy, published in 1670.

By the 18th century, the Grand Tour had reached its zenith. Despite Anglo-French wars in 1689-97 and 1702-13, this was a time of relative stability in Europe, which made travelling across the continent easier.

The Grand Tour route

For young English aristocrats, embarking on the Grand Tour was seen as an important rite of passage.

Accompanied by a tutor, a Grand Tourist’s route typically involved taking a ship across the English Channel before travelling in a carriage through France, stopping at Paris and other major cities.

Italy was also a popular destination thanks to the art and architecture of places such as Venice, Florence, Rome, Milan and Naples. More adventurous travellers ventured to Sicily or even sailed across to Greece. The average Grand Tour lasted for at least a year.

As Katherine Gazzard, Curator of Art at Royal Museums Greenwich explains, this extended journey marked the culmination of a Grand Tourist’s education.

“The Grand Tourists would have received an education that was grounded in the Classics,” she says. “During their travels to the continent, they would have seen classical ruins and read Latin and Greek texts. The Grand Tour was also an opportunity to take in more recent culture, such as Renaissance paintings, and see contemporary artists at work.”

As well as educational opportunities, the Grand Tour was linked with independence. Places such as Venice were popular with pleasure seekers, boasting gambling houses and occasions for drinking and partying.

“On the Grand Tour, there’s a sense that travellers are gaining some of their independence and having a lesson in the ways of the world,” Gazzard explains. “For visitors to Venice, there were opportunities to behave beyond the social norms, with the masquerade and the carnival.”

Art and the Grand Tour

Bound up with the idea of independence was the need to collect souvenirs, which the Grand Tourists could display in their homes.

“The ownership of property was tied to status, so creating a material legacy was really important for the Grand Tourists in order to solidify their social standing amongst their peers,” says Gazzard. “They were looking to spend money and buy mementos to prove they went on the trip.”

The works of artists such as those of the 18th century view painter Giovanni Antonio Canal (known as Canaletto ) were especially popular with Grand Tourists. Prized for their detail, Canaletto’s artworks captured the landmarks and scenes of everyday Venetian life, from festive scenes to bustling traffic on the Grand Canal .

In 1731, Lord John Russell, the future 4th Duke of Bedford, commissioned Canaletto to create 24 Venetian views following his visit to the city.

Lord John Russell is known to have paid at least £188 for the set – over five times the annual earnings of a skilled tradesperson at the time.

“Canaletto’s work was portable and collectible,” says Gazzard. “He adopted a smaller size for his canvases so they could be rolled up and shipped easily.”

These detailed works, now part of the world famous collection at Woburn Abbey, form the centrepiece of Canaletto’s Venice Revisited at the National Maritime Museum .

Who was Canaletto?

The legacy of the Grand Tour

The start of the French Revolution in 1789 marked the end of the Grand Tour. However, its legacy is still keenly felt.

The desire to explore and learn about different places and cultures through travel continues to endure. The legacy of the Grand Tour can also be seen in the artworks and objects that adorn the walls of stately homes and museums, and the many cultural influences that travellers brought back to Britain.

Canaletto's Venice Revisited

Main image: The Piazza San Marco looking towards the Basilica San Marco and the Campanile by Canaletto . From the Woburn Abbey Collection . Canaletto painting in body copy: Regatta on Grand Canal by Canaletto From the Woburn Abbey Collection

The Grand Tour

Opening Fanfare, The Grand Tour. Photograph by Stephanie Berger

«In celebration of the New European Paintings Galleries, 1250–1800 , the Museum hosted two special evenings of concerts on September 17 and 18. Music and art came together to illuminate the time period represented by the galleries, creating a resonant cultural experience.» The Grand Tour offered four distinct programs performed in the galleries by leading early music ensembles, with audiences seated right beside works of art. There were so many transcendent moments—and so many revelations. While enjoying the sights and sounds of sixteenth-century Venice or eighteenth-century France, audiences were also able to understand how this music was actually performed, appreciated, and observed in its time. Join us for future programs!

Details of the Program

Gallery 601—Baroque Painting in Italy Performers: Quicksilver (violins, harpsichord, theorbo, guitar)

Quicksilver in Gallery 601. Photograph by Stephanie Berger

In this gallery, the painting Marcantonio Pasqualini (1614–1691) Crowned by Apollo by Andrea Sacchi celebrates a famed male soprano who performed in operas, in the Sistine Choir, and in private solo performances.

Andrea Sacchi (Italian, ca. 1599–1661). Marcantonio Pasqualini (1614–1691) Crowned by Apollo , ca 1641. Oil on Canvas; 96 x 76 1/2 in. (243.8 x 194.3 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, Enid A. Haupt Gift and Gwynne Andrews Fund, 1981 (1981.317)

The painting depicts Pasqualini as he is championed by Apollo, the god of music. Pasqualini is seen playing the upright harpsichord (Clavicytherium), and the bagpipes appear beside Marsyas, a reference to the musical battle between Apollo and Marsyas—a story resulting in the hierarchy of instruments (string above wind).

In the seventeenth century, stile moderno (explored in this Grand Tour program) utilized specific instruments for their sound or for their ability to provide the continuo part. The continuo part is the bass line of the score, played by one or more instruments simultaneously. Continuo parts were played by bowed bass (baroque cello, violin), or bassoon, or by instruments that can play chords (harpsichord, organ, lute, theorbo, and harp). Sonatas composed for multiple instruments were performed by smaller chamber groups and during church services.

Gallery 634—Dutch Paintings in the Altman Collection Performers: Dark Horse Consort (cornetto, sackbut)

Dark Horse Consort in Gallery 634. Photograph by Stephanie Berger

While the program of music selected for this setting honored the early Netherlandish composers of the 1500s, the works on view date to nearly a century later, the age of Rembrandt and Hals. The piety of the Netherlands during the seventeenth century put certain limits on musical expression, and any music heard in the Calvinist Republic would have been within a religious setting. Having been previously forbidden, organ music was slowly reintroduced beginning in the mid-1600s and reintegrated into services, and churches became the cornerstone of "concerts." The cornetto (a wooden pipe covered by leather) and sackbut (much like a trumpet, but featuring a telescoping slide so as to vary and control length, and a narrower bell) regularly accompanied choral music. These church concerts were thought to keep people out of the inns and taverns and curb scuffles and dissention. Ah, the power of music!

In many paintings of this time period, the instrument acts as a barometer of social standing. The upper class is represented alongside a string instrument like the lute, viola da gamba and virginal, while the lower classes are seen with wind instruments such as bagpipes.

Gallery 607—Venetian Sixteenth-Century Painting Performers: Tenet (soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone voices; theorbo)

Tenet in Gallery 607. Photograph by Stephanie Berger

In the early sixteenth century, solo voices accompanied by instruments become fashionable. Madrigals were often performed by gentlemen, as music was an important and distinctive discipline among the upper class and especially the educated man. These performances were a highlight of private banquets and informal gatherings hosted by the elite. Musical concerts were also a regular accompaniment to more elaborate parties. These events could include a full day of festivities with hunting and full-length comedies containing musical interludes.

Entering the 1600s, the theorbo gained popularity, and it became more in style for a singer to be accompanied by the theorbo or guitar (rather than the lute). Instruments like the lute and theorbo often serve as a symbol of love, and it is no wonder—the instruments seem to instantly create a gentle intimacy—although, the theorbo does give off a deeper, bass volume.

Titian and Workshop (Italian, ca. 1485/90?–1576). Venus and the Lute Player , ca. 1565–70. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Munsey Fund, 1936 (36.29)

This gallery has some of the most striking representations of love, art, and music. Here, the convergence of romance and attraction in art usually manifests itself in the form of the goddess Venus, a favorite subject of Titian. When truly observing his paintings we see a whole love story unfold, one in which there is a thread linking the beauty of music (sound) to physical beauty (sight). Many art historians have theorized that these paintings are a statement on perceiving beauty, while others consider that an overly philosophical analysis and say the paintings are purely decorative, even a bit suggestive. The answer may be a little of both. In Titian's paintings and depictions of Venus alone we see her as both a paragon of love, possessing a mature reserve, and in other instances a figure of sexuality and provocativeness.

Gallery 615—History, Portraits, and Genre in Eighteenth-Century France Perfomer: Jory Vinikour (harpsichord)

Jory Vinikour in Gallery 615. Photograph by Stephanie Berger

A harpsichordist held a prominent place in the opulent French courts of the late seventeenth and eighteenth century. A court harpsichordist or music director composed music for the king's entertainment and daily church masses. During the reign of King Louis XIV (1643–1715), a work was often performed each morning in the Royal Chapel.

Outside of the court, and especially in the declining years of King Louis XIV, the theaters were bustling with wit. Lightheartedness prevailed on the stage. The courtiers ran off to urban Paris at night to delight in theater, opera, and ballet, slinking back to Versailles in the early morning hours. These public theaters were one of the only places where different social classes could mix and mingle, as ticket prices were the only barrier to entry and keeper of the social structure. Audiences developed an increasing taste for opera-ballets at theaters like the Royal Academy of Music in the 1700s. They craved slim plots, elegant scenery and costuming, and themes of absolute pleasure rather than staunch heroes.

Comedic theater found its way into seasonal fairs, and what began as a lower class form of diversion soon attracted the upper classes. Theater at these fairs traditionally sampled well-known opera tunes (think vaudevilles), but later became more sophisticated as it cultivated a courtier clientele. This is mainly due to a relaxation on the monopolies of the opera houses of the time. However, fairs remained the stomping grounds of comedic favorites such as Pierrot, Harlequin, and Puchinello.

After the death of King Louis XIV, public balls were inaugurated at the opera. At these extravagant events there was a sense of social leveling as guests were asked to arrive masked. The price of a ticket was the same for everyone and the costume mask became a great equalizer in the world of entertainment.

Related Links Concerts and Performances New European Paintings Galleries

Meryl Cates

Meryl Cates is a senior publicist in the Communications Department.

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The History Hit Miscellany of Facts, Figures and Fascinating Finds

What Was the Grand Tour of Europe?

Lucy Davidson

26 jan 2022, @lucejuiceluce.

In the 18th century, a ‘Grand Tour’ became a rite of passage for wealthy young men. Essentially an elaborate form of finishing school, the tradition saw aristocrats travel across Europe to take in Greek and Roman history, language and literature, art, architecture and antiquity, while a paid ‘cicerone’ acted as both a chaperone and teacher.

Grand Tours were particularly popular amongst the British from 1764-1796, owing to the swathes of travellers and painters who flocked to Europe, the large number of export licenses granted to the British from Rome and a general period of peace and prosperity in Europe.

However, this wasn’t forever: Grand Tours waned in popularity from the 1870s with the advent of accessible rail and steamship travel and the popularity of Thomas Cook’s affordable ‘Cook’s Tour’, which made mass tourism possible and traditional Grand Tours less fashionable.

Here’s the history of the Grand Tour of Europe.

Who went on the Grand Tour?

In his 1670 guidebook The Voyage of Italy , Catholic priest and travel writer Richard Lassells coined the term ‘Grand Tour’ to describe young lords travelling abroad to learn about art, culture and history. The primary demographic of Grand Tour travellers changed little over the years, though primarily upper-class men of sufficient means and rank embarked upon the journey when they had ‘come of age’ at around 21.

‘Goethe in the Roman Campagna’ by Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein. Rome 1787.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Grand Tours also became fashionable for women who might be accompanied by a spinster aunt as a chaperone. Novels such as E. M. Forster’s A Room With a View reflected the role of the Grand Tour as an important part of a woman’s education and entrance into elite society.

Increasing wealth, stability and political importance led to a more broad church of characters undertaking the journey. Prolonged trips were also taken by artists, designers, collectors, art trade agents and large numbers of the educated public.

What was the route?

The Grand Tour could last anything from several months to many years, depending on an individual’s interests and finances, and tended to shift across generations. The average British tourist would start in Dover before crossing the English Channel to Ostend in Belgium or Le Havre and Calais in France. From there the traveller (and if wealthy enough, group of servants) would hire a French-speaking guide before renting or acquiring a coach that could be both sold on or disassembled. Alternatively, they would take the riverboat as far as the Alps or up the Seine to Paris .

Map of grand tour taken by William Thomas Beckford in 1780.

From Paris, travellers would normally cross the Alps – the particularly wealthy would be carried in a chair – with the aim of reaching festivals such as the Carnival in Venice or Holy Week in Rome. From there, Lucca, Florence, Siena and Rome or Naples were popular, as were Venice, Verona, Mantua, Bologna, Modena, Parma, Milan, Turin and Mont Cenis.

What did people do on the Grand Tour?

A Grand Tour was both an educational trip and an indulgent holiday. The primary attraction of the tour lay in its exposure of the cultural legacy of classical antiquity and the Renaissance, such as the excavations at Herculaneum and Pompeii, as well as the chance to enter fashionable and aristocratic European society.

Johann Zoffany: The Gore Family with George, third Earl Cowper, c. 1775.

In addition, many accounts wrote of the sexual freedom that came with being on the continent and away from society at home. Travel abroad also provided the only opportunity to view certain works of art and potentially the only chance to hear certain music.

The antiques market also thrived as lots of Britons, in particular, took priceless antiquities from abroad back with them, or commissioned copies to be made. One of the most famous of these collectors was the 2nd Earl of Petworth, who gathered or commissioned some 200 paintings and 70 statues and busts – mainly copies of Greek originals or Greco-Roman pieces – between 1750 and 1760.

It was also fashionable to have your portrait painted towards the end of the trip. Pompeo Batoni painted over 175 portraits of travellers in Rome during the 18th century.

Others would also undertake formal study in universities, or write detailed diaries or accounts of their experiences. One of the most famous of these accounts is that of US author and humourist Mark Twain, whose satirical account of his Grand Tour in Innocents Abroad became both his best selling work in his own lifetime and one of the best-selling travel books of the age.

Why did the popularity of the Grand Tour decline?

A Thomas Cook flyer from 1922 advertising cruises down the Nile. This mode of tourism has been immortalised in works such as Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie.

The popularity of the Grand Tour declined for a number of reasons. The Napoleonic Wars from 1803-1815 marked the end of the heyday of the Grand Tour, since the conflict made travel difficult at best and dangerous at worst.

The Grand Tour finally came to an end with the advent of accessible rail and steamship travel as a result of Thomas Cook’s ‘Cook’s Tour’, a byword of early mass tourism, which started in the 1870s. Cook first made mass tourism popular in Italy, with his train tickets allowing travel over a number of days and destinations. He also introduced travel-specific currencies and coupons which could be exchanged at hotels, banks and ticket agencies which made travelling easier and also stabilised the new Italian currency, the lira.

As a result of the sudden potential for mass tourism, the Grand Tour’s heyday as a rare experience reserved for the wealthy came to a close.

Can you go on a Grand Tour today?

Echoes of the Grand Tour exist today in a variety of forms. For a budget, multi-destination travel experience, interrailing is your best bet; much like Thomas Cook’s early train tickets, travel is permitted along many routes and tickets are valid for a certain number of days or stops.

For a more upmarket experience, cruising is a popular choice, transporting tourists to a number of different destinations where you can disembark to enjoy the local culture and cuisine.

Though the days of wealthy nobles enjoying exclusive travel around continental Europe and dancing with European royalty might be over, the cultural and artistic imprint of a bygone Grand Tour era is very much alive.

To plan your own Grand Tour of Europe, take a look at History Hit’s guides to the most unmissable heritage sites in Paris , Austria and, of course, Italy .

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The story of the trip to the Valley of the Temples

Valley of the temples.

Grand Tour Valley of the Temples

Following the emotional wave provoked by the first sensational discoveries at Pompeii and Herculaneum in the mid-eighteenth century, a growing number of travellers from Europe came to Italy to admire the vestiges of the past. Thanks to the sensitivity of the Bourbon kings, the cities buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD were brought back to the light, along with their beautiful paintings, images of a world that was believed to have disappeared forever. The Grand Tour, the journey to discover ancient Italian sites, was a real cultural movement, which developed alongside the emergence of neoclassicism in literature and art. Antiquity dictated tastes and became an inescapable model of beauty and harmony. The offspring of the noble European families used this trip to complete their education, sometimes dangerous and exhausting, which could last for years. Certainly an experience full of emotion, in the name of learning and knowledge on the one hand, and in the name of escapism and delight on the other. Sicily was one of the preferred destinations, drawing visitors with the irresistible charm of its ruins. Sicilian monumental heritage also offered the unique opportunity to encounter Greek civilisation without having to face a dangerous trip to Greece, then under Turkish rule. Many travellers filled notebooks with their experiences of contact with antiquity, and sometimes accompanied their impressions with illustrations. Art students, engravers and painters offer valuable evidence through their 'ancient visions' of Italian artistic sites.

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. View of the Agrigento countryside.

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. Temple of Juno

G.M. Pancrazi, Antiquities of Sicily, Naples 1751-1752. Temple of Juno

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. Temple of Asclepius

Pancrazi, Giuseppe Maria. Antiquities of Sicily, Naples 1751-1752. Hypogea

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. Temple of Castor and Pollux

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784 Temple of Olympian Zeus

The Grand Tour in Agrigento

On the Sicilian journey, a stop in Agrigento, at the time still called Girgenti, was a must, earning enthusiastic praise from visitors, who dedicated wonderful paintings to Agrigentine monuments. In particular, the Olympieion with its telamons aroused great curiosity among the travellers, impressed by the size of the ruins of one of the largest temples. Among the images dedicated to Akragas those illustrating the work by the Parisian abbot Richard de Saint Non (1785), and those of the Voyage pittoresque (1787) by Jean Pierre Louis Laurent Houel, painter to the King of France, are particularly striking. The ruined temples are depicted in a lush landscape, often populated by shepherds with their goats. The monuments of ancient Akragas are portrayed with clear and decisive strokes by the engraver Salvatore Ettore, who illustrated the volumes of the Theatine Giuseppe Maria Pancratii in 1751.

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. Temple of the Giants of Agrigento

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784. The Oratory of Phalaris

G.M. Pancrazi, Antiquities of Sicily, Naples 1751-1752. Temple of Ceres

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784. Temple of Castor and Pollux

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784

Andrea Pigonati, Present State of Ancient Sicilian Monuments, Naples 1767. Tomb of Theron.

In his Italian Journey (1817), the German poet recounts his sentimental journey made between 1786 and 1788, and describes his intellectual rebirth in contact with history. He enthused about the valley in the spring dawn light: I've never seen in my entire life such a splendour of spring as this morning at sunrise... From the window we see the vast and gentle slope around the ancient city of gardens and vineyards; under the thick green a few traces of the great and populous districts of the long ago city can be glimpsed. Only at the southern end of this verdant and flowery slope rises the Temple of Concordia, in the east the few remains of the Temple of Juno; but from above the eye does not see the ruins of temples... instead it runs south towards the sea.

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. Temple of Concordia

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784. Temple of Asclepius

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784. Burial caves of the ancient city of Agrigento

R. De Saint Non, Voyage pittoresque ou description des Royame de Naples et de Sicile vol.IV, Paris 1785. Temple of Hercules

G.M. Pancrazi, Antiquities of Sicily, Naples 1751-1752. Aqueducts

G.M. Pancrazi, Antiquities of Sicily, Naples 1751-1752. The city from the east side

G.M. Pancrazi, Antiquities of Sicily, Naples 1751-1752

J.P.J.L. Houel, Voyage pittoresque des isles de Sicile, Malte et de Lipari, Paris 1784 Plan of ancient Akragas

The exhibition was curated by Giusi Messina. General Coordination: Giuseppe Parello, Director of Archaeological Park and Landscape of the Valley of the Temples. Texts: Maria Serena Rizzo and Valentina Caminneci Photos: Emanuele Simonaro, Fabio Florio, Angelo Pitrone.

Valley of the Temples - Agrigento

Gods and cults, great doric temples, temple of zeus, sport in akragas, living in agrigentum, early christian agrigento, the cultural landscape, living museum of the almond tree, the kolymbetra garden.

The Grand Tour: Everything You Need to Know

Gokce Dyson 28 November 2022 min Read

Carl Spitzweg, Englishmen in Campania , ca. 1835, Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany.

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Nowadays, it is very common to take a gap year before or after university studies to travel and expand your horizons. Dedicating a year or two before committing to a full-time job means you can experience different cultures, learn languages, and enjoy having a bit of fun before settling down. Back in the day, with similar objectives, many noblemen embarked on a journey across Europe before entering adulthood. It was called the Grand Tour.

The Grand Tour evolved between the 17th and 18th centuries as a custom of a traditional trip. The purpose of the Grand Tour was to provide male members of upper-class families with a formative experience. The term was first used by the Catholic priest and travel writer Richard Lassels in his guidebook The Voyage of Italy . The book came out in 1670 and described young lords traveling to Italy to see art, architecture, and antiquity. Lassels completed the Grand Tour five times during his lifetime.

The Grand Tour: Pompeo Batoni, Portrait of a Young Man on Grand Tour, 1760-65, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, USA. A wealthy young man posing for a painting during the Grand Tour

In England, for example, the general view held by the aristocrats was that foreign travel completed the education of an English gentleman. However, some people were also quite skeptical about the tour. They feared the amount of money spent to make the Grand Tour possible could ruin the young nobility.

The Grand Tour: Giovanni Paolo Panini, Interior of the Pantheon, Rome, 1734, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA. Interior of the Pantheon painted by Panini

Although the Grand Tour was largely associated with English travelers, they were far from being the only ones on the road. On the contrary, wealthy families in France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark also saw traveling as an ideal way to finish the education of their societies’ future leaders.

Itinerary of the Grand Tour

The traditional route of the Grand Tour usually began in Dover, England. Grand tourists would cross the English Channel to Le Havre in France. Upon arrival in Paris , the young men tended to hire a French-speaking guide as French was the dominant language of the elite during the 17th and 18th centuries. In Paris, they spent some time taking lessons in fencing, riding, and perhaps dancing. There, they became accustomed to the sophisticated manners of French society in courtly behavior and fashion. Paris was a crucial step in preparing for their positions to be fulfilled in government or diplomacy waiting back in England.

The Grand Tour: George Keate, The manner of passing Mount Cenis, 1755, British Museum, London, UK. A Grand Tourist crossing the Alps on a chair

From there, tourists would buy transport, and if they were prosperous enough, they would hire a tutor to accompany them. The travelers would then get back on the road and cross the Alps, carried in a chair at Mont Cenis before moving on to Turin.

Italy was exceedingly the most traveled country on the Grand Tour. A Grand tourist’s list of must-see cities in Italy included Florence , Venice , and Naples . And then, there was Rome . Each Italian city offered immense importance in experiencing art and architecture, and Rome had it all.

Touring Italy

Once arriving in Italy, noblemen traveled to Florence followed by Venice, Rome, and Naples. Florence was popular for its Renaissance art, magnificent country villas, and beautiful gardens. Young aristocrats were able to gain entry to private collections where they could observe the legacy of the Medici family. Venice , on the other hand, was the party city. There was, however, a second reason to visit Venice. During their travels, grand tourists often commissioned art to take back home with them. Wealthy ones brought sketch artists along with them. Others purchased ready-made artworks instead. Giovanni Battista Piranesi created numerous prints and sketches depicting the ancient ruins in Rome. The works of the Venetian artist were popular among noblemen.

The Grand Tour: Giovanni Battista Piranesi, The Piazza del Popolo, 1750, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, USA. Piranesi's print depicting Piazza del Popolo which was a famous landmark to see during the Grand Tour

Rome was considered the ultimate stop during the Grand Tour. The city had a harmonious mixture of past and present. One could experience modern-day Baroque art and architecture and ancient ruins , dating back thousands of years at the same time. It was lauded as home to Michelangelo’s and Bernini’s most prized works. Gentlemen visited spots like the Pantheon, the Colosseum, and Porta del Popolo. William Beckford described his feelings in a letter when he was on his Grand Tour:

Shall I ever forget the sensations I experienced upon slowly descending the hills, and crossing the bridge over the Tiber; when I entered an avenue between terraces and ornamented gates of villas, which leads to the Porto del Popolo… William Beckford, letter from the Grand Tour, 1780.

The Grand Tour: Giovanni Paolo Panini, Roman Capriccio: The Pantheon and Other Monuments, 1735, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, IN, USA. Panini's oil painting depicting monuments in Rome

The next stop on the route was Naples. When Italian authorities began excavations in Herculaneum and Pompeii in the 1730s, grand tourists flocked there to delve into the mysteries of the ancient past. Naples became a popular retreat for the British who wanted to enjoy the coastal sun. Travelers such as J. W. Goethe praised the city’s glories:

Naples is a Paradise: everyone lives in a state of intoxicated self-forgetfulness, myself included. I seem to be a completely different person whom I hardly recognize. Yesterday I thought to myself: Either you were mad before, or you are mad now. J. W. Goethe, Google Arts& Culture .

The Grand Tour: Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, Goethe in the Roman Campagna, 1787, Städel Museum, Frankfurt, Germany. Goethe painted during The Grand Tour

Returning home, young gentlemen crossed the Alps to the German-speaking parts of Europe and visited Innsbruck, Vienna , Dresden, and Berlin . From there, they stopped in Holland and Flanders before returning to England.

With the introduction of steam railways in Europe around 1825, travel became safer, cheaper, and easier to undertake. The Grand Tour custom continued; however, it was not limited to the members of wealthy families. During the 19th century, many educated men had undertaken the Grand Tour. It also became more popular for women to travel across Europe with chaperones. A Room with A View, written by English novelist E. M. Forster, tells the story of a young woman who embarks on a journey to Italy in the 1900s.

Legacy of the Grand Tour

The Grand Tour: Marble sarcophagus with the Triumph of Dionysos and the Seasons, ca. 260–270 CE, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, USA. a marble sarcophagus collected during The Grand Tour

Grand tourists would return with crates full of books, oil paintings, medals, coins, and antique artifacts to be displayed in libraries, cabinets, drawing rooms, and galleries built for that purpose. The marble sarcophagus shown above was brought back from Italy to England by the third duke of Beaufort who found this item during his Grand Tour stop in Pompeii. Impressed by the European art academies on his Grand Tour, Joshua Reynolds founded the Royal Academy of Arts in London upon his return in 1768. The Grand Tour inspired many travelers to take a greater interest in ancient art. The British School in Rome was established to learn more about the Roman ruins and it still exists today.

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Gokce Dyson

Based in Canterbury, Gokce holds a bachelor's degree in History and Archaeological Studies and a master's degree in Museum and Gallery Studies. She firmly believes that art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time. If Gokce is not tucked into a cosy corner with a medieval history book, she can be found spending her evenings doing jigsaw puzzles.

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What Was The Grand Tour...

What Was the Grand Tour and Where Did People Go?

Freelance Travel and Music Writer

Nowadays, it’s so easy to pack a bag and hop on a flight or interrail across Europe’s railway at your own leisure. But what if it was known as a right of passage, made no easier by the fact that there was no such modern luxury? Welcome to the Grand Tour – and we’re not talking about Jeremy Clarkson’s TV series …

What was the grand tour all about.

The Grand Tour was a trip of Europe, typically undertaken by young men, which begun in the 17th century and went through to the mid-19th. Women over the age of 21 would occasionally partake, providing they were accompanied by a chaperone from their family. The Grand Tour was seen as an educational trip across Europe, usually starting in Dover, and would see young, wealthy travellers search for arts and culture. Though travelling was not as easy back then, mostly thanks to no rail routes like today, those on The Grand Tour would often have a healthy supply of funds in order to enjoy themselves freely.

What did travellers get up to?

Of course, in the 17th century, there was no such thing as the internet, making discovering things while sat on the other side of the world near impossible. Cultural integration was not yet fully-fledged and nothing like we experience today, so the only way to understand different ways of life was to experience them yourself. Hence why so many people set off for the Grand Tour – the ultimate trip across Europe!

Typical routes taken on the Grand Tour

Travellers (occompanied by a tutor) would often start around the South East region and head in to France, where a coach would often be rented should the party be wealthy enough. Occasionally, the coaches would need to be disassembled in order to cross difficult terrain such as the Alps.

Once passing through Calais and Paris, a typical journey would include a stop-off in Switzerland before crossing the Alps in to Northern Italy. Here’s where the wealth really comes in to play – as luggage and methods of transport would need to be dismantled and carried manually – as really rich travellers would often employ servants to carry everything for them.

Of course, Italy is a highly cultural country and famous for its art and historic buildings, so travellers would spend longer here. Turin, Florence, Rome, Pompeii and Venice would be amongst the cities visited, generally enticing those in to extended stays.

On the return leg, travellers would visit Germany and occasionally Austria, including study time at universities such as Munich, before heading to Holland and Flanders, ahead of crossing the Channel back to Dover.

William Beckford’s Grand Tour route across Europe

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COMMENTS

The Grand Tour
Englishmen abroad. At its height, from around 1660-1820, the Grand Tour was considered to be the best way to complete a gentleman's education. After leaving school or university, young noblemen from northern Europe left for France to start the tour. After acquiring a coach in Calais, they would ride on to Paris - their first major stop.
Grand Tour
A c. 1760 painting of James Grant, John Mytton, Thomas Robinson and Thomas Wynne on the Grand Tour by Nathaniel Dance-Holland. The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tutor or family member ...
The Grand Tour
Beginning in the late sixteenth century, it became fashionable for young aristocrats to visit Paris, Venice, Florence, and above all Rome, as the culmination of their classical education. Thus was born the idea of the Grand Tour, a practice that introduced Englishmen, Germans, Scandinavians, and also Americans to the art and culture of France ...
Smarthistory
Required works of art for AP®︎ Art History. by Smarthistory. Below are short videos, essays, high-resolution photographs, and additional resources for each of the 250 required works of art that form the central curriculum for the AP®︎ Art History course. These works of art were selected by the College Board because they "represent ...
American Artists and the Legacy of the Grand Tour, 1880-1960
This exhibition explores a time from approximately 1880 to 1960 when American artists endeavored to follow in the footsteps of this tradition and trek to Europe for a variety of reasons: study and opportunities to exhibit, illustration on commission, war, and leisure. At the center of their journeys was also the goal of education, for ...
The Grand Tour of Europe in the 17th and 18th Centuries
18th Century Grand Tour of Europe. The Travels of European Twenty-Somethings. Venice was not to be missed on the Grand Tour. Grand Canal circa 1740 painting by Canaletto. The French Revolution marked the end of a spectacular period of travel and enlightenment for European youth, particularly from England. Young English elites of the seventeenth ...
What was the Grand Tour?
Art, antiquity and architecture: the Grand Tour provided an opportunity to discover the cultural wonders of Europe and beyond. Popular throughout the 18th century, this extended journey was seen as a rite of passage for mainly young, aristocratic English men. As well as marvelling at artistic masterpieces, Grand Tourists brought back souvenirs ...
The Grand Tour
The Grand Tour. Meryl Cates. October 2, 2013. Opening Fanfare, The Grand Tour. Photograph by Stephanie Berger. «In celebration of the New European Paintings Galleries, 1250-1800, the Museum hosted two special evenings of concerts on September 17 and 18. Music and art came together to illuminate the time period represented by the galleries ...
AP Art History Course
The AP Art History framework is organized into 10 commonly taught units of study that provide one possible sequence for the course. As always, you have the flexibility to organize the course content as you like. Unit. Exam Weighting (Multiple-Choice Section) Unit 1: Global Prehistory, 30,000-500 BCE. ~4%.
What Was the Grand Tour of Europe?
In the 18th century, a 'Grand Tour' became a rite of passage for wealthy young men. Essentially an elaborate form of finishing school, the tradition saw aristocrats travel across Europe to take in Greek and Roman history, language and literature, art, architecture and antiquity, while a paid 'cicerone' acted as both a chaperone and teacher.
AP Art History
You'll explore the evolution of art from the early middle ages through the mid-18th century in Europe and the Americas. Topics may include: Influences on Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Art. The Age of Exploration and colonialism. Naturalism and developments in visual form. Patronage and continued religious influence.
Grand Tour
Grand Tour. Following the emotional wave provoked by the first sensational discoveries at Pompeii and Herculaneum in the mid-eighteenth century, a growing number of travellers from Europe came to Italy to admire the vestiges of the past. Thanks to the sensitivity of the Bourbon kings, the cities buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD were ...
AP®︎ Art History
Unit 5: Early Europe and Colonial Americas: 200-1750 C.E. Medieval art in Europe Art of the Islamic world in the medieval era Renaissance Art in Europe. Protestant Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation Colonial Americas.
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Section I: Multiple Choice. 80 Questions | 1 Hour | 50% of Exam Score. Questions on the exam will appear both as: sets of 2-3 questions, with each set based on color images of works of art. individual questions, some of which are based on color images of works of art. The multiple-choice section includes images of works of art both in and ...
What You Need to Know About the Grand Tour
The Grand Tour evolved between the 17th and 18th centuries as a custom of a traditional trip. The purpose of the Grand Tour was to provide male members of upper-class families with a formative experience. The term was first used by the Catholic priest and travel writer Richard Lassels in his guidebook The Voyage of Italy.
AP Art History Exam Past Exam Questions
Download free-response questions from past exams along with scoring guidelines, sample responses from exam takers, and scoring distributions. If you are using assistive technology and need help accessing these PDFs in another format, contact Services for Students with Disabilities at 212-713-8333 or by email at [email protected]. The ...
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AP Art History Ch 26. Arabesque. Click the card to flip 👆. Ornamental design with twisting, flowing lines, originally in Islamic decoration. Ex: Salon de la Princesse. Click the card to flip 👆. 1 / 15.
What Was the Grand Tour and Where Did People Go?
The Grand Tour was a trip of Europe, typically undertaken by young men, which begun in the 17th century and went through to the mid-19th. Women over the age of 21 would occasionally partake, providing they were accompanied by a chaperone from their family. The Grand Tour was seen as an educational trip across Europe, usually starting in Dover ...
Grand tour
grand tour, multiyear journey, typically running through France and Italy.It was undertaken by aristocratic or wealthy young men from northern Europe, especially England, to complete their education.The term was coined in 1670 by priest and writer Richard Lassels in his Voyage of Italy, but the practice probably began some 100 years earlier.It reached its height during the 18th century and ...
PDF AP® ART HISTORY
Jefferson's original building is the middle structure of the present day capitol complex. At the center of the capitol is the rotunda, a two-story space capped by a dome and illuminated by skylights. The dome was added to the building in 1794 C.E. Between 1904 and 1906 C.E., architect John K. Peebles completed Jefferson's original ...
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Cultural Trip Around Europe. In fine art, the term "Grand Tour" refers to the fashionable European trip undertaken by cultural and socially conscious tourists, to the great centres of classical, Renaissance and Baroque architecture, sculpture and painting: notably, Paris, Florence, Venice, Rome, Vienna, Dresden, Berlin, Amsterdam and Antwerp.
Early Europe and Colonial Americas: 200-1750 C.E.
Introduction to cultures and religions for the study of AP Art History. Unit 3. Global prehistory: 30,000-500 B.C.E. Unit 4. Ancient Mediterranean: 3500 B.C.E.-300 C.E. Unit 5. Early Europe and Colonial Americas: 200-1750 C.E. ... an introduction for the study of art history (Opens a modal) Architecture and liturgy (Opens a modal) The life of ...
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AP®︎/College Art History. Course: ... and through a monumental gate of inlaid and highly decorated red sandstone made for a first impression of grand splendor and symmetry: aligned along a long water channel through this gate is the Taj—set majestically on a raised platform on the north end. The rectangular complex runs roughly 1860 feet ...