Videos

Did you know that Vincent van Gogh was an inveterate letter writer? In 2007 the Morgan acquired a set of letters by the post-Impressionist artist Van Gogh written to friends. Hear our Director Colin B. Bailey explain why these are some of the most moving and precious objects in our collection.

One of the most timeless and eloquent of historical documents, the Declaration of Independence stands with the Magna Carta, as a classic charter of freedom. The document is a formal statement by the representatives of the Thirteen Colonies announcing their separation from Great Britain and the birth of the United States of America. The Morgan’s copy is one of just twenty-five recorded copies of the first printing of the Declaration and is considered one of the two or three finest in existence.

With over 300 drawings by Giambattista and Domenico Tiepolo, this collection is one of the strengths at the Morgan. John Marciari, Charles W. Engelhard Curator of Drawings and Prints, takes a close look at two beloved 18th-century "Punchinello" drawings by Domenico Tiepolo.

In January 2021, the Morgan acquired an exceptional group of twenty prints by Martin Puryear. Made between 2001 and 2014 at Paulson Bott Press, Berkeley, CA, they represent nearly all the prints Puryear made during the first fifteen years of the 21st century and include several of his most important works in this medium. Known primarily as a sculptor, Puryear is celebrated for the elegance and refinement of his largely handmade constructions.

Jennifer Tonkovich, Eugene and Clare Thaw Curator, discusses Running Eros, Holding a Torch. Take a closer look at a bronze figure excavated in the 1890s from a Roman villa at Boscoreale, a retreat on the slopes of Vesuvius which was buried in the eruption of 79 AD.