Art

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Boston, Massachusetts

About

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston is one of the world's most extraordinary art museums, built around the personal collection and the personal vision of its founder. Gardner designed the Venetian palazzo-style building herself, and the collection of over 7,500 objects — including paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer, Raphael, and Sargent — must remain permanently arranged exactly as she specified in her will. The museum is also the site of the largest art theft in history, with 13 works stolen in 1990.

Highlights & Things Not to Miss

The Dutch Room

Where Rembrandt, Vermeer, and the 1990 theft took place

Venetian Courtyard

The flowering four-story courtyard at the heart of the palazzo

Theft Exhibition

The story of the 1990 theft, the greatest art heist in history