This portrait of an unnamed woman speaks volumes about slavery, politics, and gender in revolutionary France.
Location: Louvre
Such a tease! This ambiguous portrait plays psychological and optical games with the viewer.
Leonardo, The Mona Lisa
Shown with an architectural plan in his lap, this prince constructed temples to the gods and likenesses of himself.
Seated Gudea holding temple plan
Mary’s swaying hip, elongated neck, and tender touch of the Christ Child all imbue this golden sculpture with grace. A pomegranate signals death.
Humanizing Mary: the Virgin of Jeanne d’Evreux
Artificial? Moi? This genuine portrait of familial affection challenged assumptions about the aristocracy.
Vigée Le Brun, Self-Portrait with her Daughter
This energetic image of military victory captures a moment of transition between classical and Byzantine art.
The Emperor Triumphant (Barberini Ivory)
Animal sacrifice played an important role in ancient Roman religion, but what was involved in the preparation?
Preparations for a Sacrifice
Perrault’s unified design updated the columns of ancient temples to suit modern French taste.
Claude Perrault, East façade of the Louvre
Complete with barnyard guests, this rural wedding party embodies the Enlightenment idea of “natural” man.
Jean-Baptiste Greuze, The Village Bride
In style and story, this rigorously organized canvas looked back to antiquity; it soon became an icon of Revolution.
Jacques-Louis David, Oath of the Horatii
Winged, human-headed bulls served as guardians of the city and its palace—walking by, they almost seem to move.
Lamassu from the citadel of Sargon II
Bits of the Parthenon have been spirited all over the world—in Paris, a fragment shows religious life in Athens.
Plaque of the Ergastines
Vessels like this one were typically decorated with calligraphy, but a procession of figures is featured here.
Mohammed ibn al-Zain, Basin (Baptistère de Saint ...
The gods Apollo and Artemis exact revenge for their mother, in an early attempt at showing depth in ancient Greek art.
Niobid Krater
The Lady of Auxerre stands at the beginning of the history of Greek sculpture, offering a promise of what is to come.
Lady of Auxerre
This beautiful pot was created over 5,000 years ago, and its decoration echoes its shape.
Bushel with ibex motifs
This massive capital is very different from those of Greece, and suggests the frightening power of the Persian Empire.
Capital of a column from the audience ...
This panel has one foot in the medieval tradition, but Christ’s body and the cleric’s face point to a new realism.
Enguerrand Quarton(?), Pietà of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon
With its fantastical setting and lovers’ dance, this painting introduced a new genre: the “fête galante.”
Antoine Watteau, Pilgrimage to Cythera
Van Dyck makes painting look easy! His king is just as self-assured—despite having dismounted, he exudes strength.