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Among a multitude of superlatives, a number of remarkable statistics about the museum are apparent. It houses the greatest collection of Egyptian art outside Cairo — some 36,000 objects. The Met owns nearly 3,000 European paintings, including some of the most important Old Masters in the world; its Rembrandts and Vermeers alone are among the finest anywhere. Furniture, silver, glass, ceramics, and textiles from the late 17th to the early 20th centuries; exquisite tapestries, samplers, quilts, and woven and printed fabrics from all periods and civilizations, dating back to 3000 B.C.; metalwork, scientific instruments, and period rooms of the major Western European countries from the Renaissance; rare first editions, artists’ treatises and manuals, illustrated atlases, and seminal works of art history — all combine to form an unparalleled insight into past eras and cultures.
In addition to its permanent collection, the Met’s tradition of presenting landmark guest exhibitions has brought the best-of-the-best international museums to Fifth Avenue. Some of the most celebrated have been “Treasures of Tutankhamun” (1978), “The Vatican Collections” (1983), “Splendors of Imperial China” (1996), and “The Private Collection of Edgar Degas” (1997–98). Few cultural experiences can compare to the Met, which prides itself on being not merely a museum but also an extraordinary concert venue. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is an extension of the classroom, a benefactor of students the world over, and New Yorkers’ most beloved oasis in which to feast the eyes and enrich the soul. The museum is, quite simply, a reason to live in New York City.
While The Metropolitan Museum of Art has assets totaling $2.2 billion, its value to the entire nation is incalculable. Its reputation in the global art world, purchasing power, and corporate and private admirers and benefactors amount to a brand synonymous with excellence. Generations have been raised on its treasures; millions of visitors consider it a destination in itself.
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