Seven “Must See” Works of Art

1. The Mona Lisa (the Louvre, Paris)
2. The Venus de Milo (the Louvre)
3. The Winged Victory of Samothrace (the Louvre)
4. The Sistine Chapel (Vatican Museum, Rome)
5. Michelangelo’s Pieta (St Peter’s, Rome)
6. Michelangelo’s David (the Accademia, Florence)
7. Botticelli’s Birth of Venus {the Uffizi Gallery, Florence)

All these works are very familiar, almost to the point of being cliched, especially the Mona Lisa (the Winged Victory is that stone angel with no head, and Birth of Venus is that naked blond girl on the seashell). Since they are so familiar, and their images have been seen so many times, they may disappoint at first. The presence of scores of frenzied, camera-flashing tourists (as is the case at the Mona Lisa from dawn till dusk) won’t help. If you go to see any of these works, try to be at the head of the line when the museum opens, go directly to them and then move on to the other magnificent works of art to be found in these museums. Do not skip them, however. All these works are surpassingly beautiful, justly famous, and well worth seeing.