Metropolitan Museum of Art

It boasts an extremely wide and thorough collection of millions of pieces, and receives more visitors per year than most other art museums across the globe. You can find this gallery in Manhattan, just east of Central Park, and it houses works of art of many time periods and many kinds. You may find historical treasures, paintings, sculptures, examples of architecture, as well as many other pieces of cultural importance.

The timeline of works spans from thousands of years before Christ, with artifacts from the age of the Egyptian and Mesopotamian empires, such as statues and religious tokens, to modern offerings from the 20th and 21st century. Roman and Greek statues abound, and well as modern art installations from the pop art and Cubist periods. In between, there is a wealth of material, and many examples of works by middle age and Renaissance master painters can be viewed.

The collection also spans many cultures from many parts of the world, including not only Europe and the West, but also examples of art from East and South East Asia, to Africa and the Middle East. For example, Hokusai's The Great Wave off Kanagawa is part of the permanent collection, along with tens of thousands of other works that are of Asian origin. The museum houses roughly 11,000 works from Southern Africa, and many of these artifacts from around the world were donated by the businessman and philanthropist Nelson A. Rockefeller.

The museum is also home to many sketches by famous artists, some of which are studies for other major works. Many of these prints were created by the classic masters of the renaissance.

In addition to visual works, the museum also houses books, practical artifacts such as weapons from various time periods and cultures, and many different kinds of architectural installations. There is also a costume institute, which contains over 35,000 different outfits and accessories. Since these artifacts are particularly fragile, however, they are not part of the permanent collection and only portions of the collection are featured twice a year.

The museum got its start in the late 19th century, founded by American businessmen as well as artists towards the early beginnings of the Industrial Revolution. The intention was to help spread art to the masses and to have a single place to house a vast body of work. From there, it not only displayed art for the everyday person to see, but it also held classes concerning the various art forms, allowing people to learn how to practice the talents that were on display. Over the decades, the museum has been a major repository of cultural heritage, as well as a location that has housed many traveling exhibitions, many art-related symposiums, and musical concerts.

It is certainly a “must see” location if you have an interest in art and are looking to visit New York City.