In these unprecedented times, as millions of people around the globe plan to remain indoors for an indefinite amount of time, staying home from work and school means an abundance of extra time on their hands. But even if you’re confined to your home, discovering art and history from the world’s top institutions around the globe doesn’t have to be off-limits. Google Arts & Culture has teamed up with over 2,500 museums and galleries around the globe to create virtual tours and extraordinary content. While no digital platform can quite capture the magic and awe of strolling through a museum in person, Google’s art digitization project is the next best thing. Here, 10 museums around the globe to visit virtually.
With its grand front steps, sprawling rooms full of antiquities and paintings, and its lavish Met Gala costume party, the Met in New York City is one of the world’s most revered institutions. While this year’s Met Gala is on hold, the Costume Institute collection is still available to peruse on a rotating basis, along with the rest of the near-infinite collections. The couture works of Elsa Schiaparelli and Christian Dior are currently featured, as well as in-depth gigapixel (or one-billion-pixel) examinations of Vermeer’s Woman With a Water Pitcher and Bruegel the Elder’s Harvesters. Google also deployed its Street View technology to take viewers on a tour through the Temple of Dendur and other popular spots inside the museum.