UNITED STATES, January 4, 2015 (Ancient Origins): The Smithsonian Institution has released more than 44,000 images of precious artworks and artifacts from two of their museums of Asian art, many of which have never been shown publicly before. The galleries are the first Smithsonian museums and first Asian art museums to digitize and share their collections on the internet.
The images come from the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. The digital collection, which took several years to complete, includes ancient ceramics and spear heads dating back more than 6,000 years, bronze swords, ancient armor, intricate manuscripts, gold and silver jewelry, ceremonial objects, toys, beautiful paintings, textiles and costumes, and ancient Persian and Egyptian artifacts.
The images are provided without copyright restrictions for non-commercial use. “Now, a new generation can not only appreciate these works on their own terms, but remix this content in ways we have yet to imagine,” Courtney O’Callaghan, the galleries’ director of digital media and technology, said in a statement.
To access the images, go to http://www.asia.si.edu/collections/edan/default.cfm. A quick search for “India” yielded over 1,300 images.