The real museum: famous artworks
Six famous artworks, each shown as a reproduction of the original. Each entry names the artist, links to the source and states the image licence.
The card game to explore these worlds is coming online soon. Until then, you can read every card here with its source.
Mona Lisa
A work by Leonardo da Vinci. This is a reproduction of the original artwork.
Painted in oil on a poplar panel; it has hung in the Louvre since 1797. The artwork is real; its subject may be imagined.
The Birth of Venus
A work by Sandro Botticelli. This is a reproduction of the original artwork.
Painted on canvas in the mid-1480s; it hangs in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. The artwork is real; its subject may be imagined.
The Night Watch
A work by Rembrandt van Rijn. This is a reproduction of the original artwork.
Completed in 1642, it is not a night scene: dark varnish long made it look like one. The artwork is real; its subject may be imagined.
The Starry Night
A work by Vincent van Gogh. This is a reproduction of the original artwork.
Painted in June 1889, it shows the view from Van Gogh’s room at the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. The artwork is real; its subject may be imagined.
Girl with a Pearl Earring
A work by Johannes Vermeer. This is a reproduction of the original artwork.
Painted around 1665, it is a ‘tronie’: a study of a face, not meant as a portrait. The artwork is real; its subject may be imagined.
The Great Wave off Kanagawa
A woodblock print by Katsushika Hokusai. This is a reproduction of the original artwork.
Printed from carved wooden blocks around 1831; about 1,000 copies were printed at first. The artwork is real; its subject may be imagined.