The Metropolitan Museum of Art
大都会艺术博物馆 · Manhattan, New York, USA
From an Egyptian temple to European master paintings: five thousand years of human civilisation laid out complete in one museum
Know before you go
- Don't touch any exhibit or case, and keep at least an arm's length from oil paintings
- don't use flash or selfie sticks in the galleries or take loud phone calls
- don't squeeze into the case areas wearing a big backpack — check it in first, then visit
This article is Not yet verified. Please check official announcements for prices, opening hours and dates.
Stories & people
Stories & people
History
Stories of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Met's most legendary exhibit is an entire Egyptian temple that was moved here — the Temple of Dendur. This sandstone temple, built around 10 BC, originally stood on the bank of the Nile and faced submersion by the lake behind the Aswan Dam; to thank the United States for helping rescue the Nubian monuments, the Egyptian government gave it to America whole. In 1967 the temple was dismantled into more than 600 stone blocks and shipped across the Atlantic, and in 1978 it was reassembled true to the original in a new glass wing of the museum, with a pool dug before it to evoke the Nile. Today, sunlight streaming through the full glass wall onto the temple's pool is the museum's most ceremonial sight. Another fine story belongs to the façade in the American Wing's courtyard: it was originally the front of the Bank of United States building on Wall Street; when the bank failed, the whole neoclassical stone wall was numbered block by block, dismantled and re-erected inside the museum — New Yorkers stored their own city's memory in this museum too.
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art official website; Wikipedia: Metropolitan Museum of Art
History
History of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art was founded in 1870 by a group of American businessmen, artists and patrons, aspiring to let Americans view the world's art systematically without leaving the country. In 1880 it moved to its present site on the east side of Central Park, and over the following century-plus of expansions it grew into the vast complex stretching some 400 m along Fifth Avenue. Together with the British Museum in London and the Louvre in Paris, it is counted among the world's three great museums; its holdings exceed 1.5 million objects, spanning five thousand years of Egyptian, Greek and Roman, European painting, Asian art, Islamic art, musical instruments and arms and armour. Its Chinese art collection is among the most important in any Western museum, with Ming-style furniture and the Astor Court, a Suzhou-garden-style courtyard, as centrepieces. The museum is run by a board of trustees with the City of New York providing the building and part of the funding — a hybrid system unlike ordinary public museums.
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art official website; Wikipedia: Metropolitan Museum of Art
Culture
Culture & customs
Background
New York is an immigrant melting pot, and the Met's collecting logic is precisely "to collect the whole world for all New Yorkers": every immigrant community can find a gallery of its ancestral civilisation here, making it not only a temple of art but this immigrant city's shared memory bank. The Met Gala on the first Monday of May each year, hosted by its Costume Institute, is the global fashion world's annual grand event and another doorway through which the public knows this museum.
Local customs
Locals visit in "deep instalments": New York residents can enter for any donation amount they wish (pay-what-you-wish) on showing ID, and many come weekly, park-style, to see just one gallery. On Friday and Saturday evenings the museum stays open until 21:00 in a quiet atmosphere, and the roof garden (open in summer) overlooks Central Park and the Manhattan skyline — a classic citizens' date spot.
Religion & beliefs
No specific religious affiliation. The museum has a branch, The Cloisters, collecting medieval religious art and architectural elements, but it is art-historical collecting and has no religious function.
Etiquette & taboos
Etiquette & taboos
Rules that apply here
Driving in the US: what to do when police pull you over
Do
- Signal right and pull over safely to the right
- Roll down your window after stopping, before the officer reaches you
- At night, turn on the interior light
- Keep both hands on the wheel and ask passengers to keep their hands visible too
Don’t
- Getting out and walking towards the police car
- Suddenly reaching for the glovebox, a pocket or under the seat
Sudden movements may be read as a threat and become dangerous. The wording of the rules varies slightly between states.
Not yet verifiedSource: Texas Department of Public Safety driver handbook
Don’t DON'T
- Don't touch any exhibit or case, and keep at least an arm's length from oil paintings
- don't use flash or selfie sticks in the galleries or take loud phone calls
- don't squeeze into the case areas wearing a big backpack — check it in first, then visit
Locals appreciate DO
- Reserve your entry slot on the official website in advance and save a screenshot of the e-ticket
- pick up a Chinese map or download the official guide app to plan your route
- allow ample time for the signature galleries such as the Temple of Dendur and the European Paintings
Plan your visit
Practical info
Travel tips
- Tickets run on timed reservations
- for popular slots (weekends, holidays) book ahead on the official website and choose your entry time, as on-site queues can stretch past an hour
- The collection exceeds 1.5 million objects — you cannot see it all in a day: on entry, take a map and lock in the must-see galleries (the Temple of Dendur in the Egyptian wing, the European Paintings galleries, the American Wing), or join a free volunteer-led tour
- Photography is allowed in the museum (flash is banned in most galleries), but tripods and selfie sticks may not be used
- large luggage and backpacks must be checked in
- The address is 1000 Fifth Avenue (at 82nd Street)
- take the 4/5/6 subway lines to 86th Street and walk about 10 minutes. Opening hours are generally Sunday–Thursday 10:00–17:00 and Friday–Saturday until 21:00, closed Wednesdays (official website prevails). A regular adult ticket is about US$30
- New York State residents and students from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut can pay what they wish with ID
- children under 12 are free — prices per official announcements. Allow at least 3–4 hours
- even just the highlights need half a day. The Cloisters branch is in Fort Tryon Park at Manhattan's northern end and requires a separate trip, covered by the same ticket on the same day.
Eat nearby
What to eat nearby
Must-try
- ['Shake Shack burgers: New York's national burger, a beef patty with secret sauce
['Shake Shack burgers: New York's national burger, a beef patty with secret sauce; the nearest branch is on the Upper East Side', 'New York-style bagels: crisp outside, chewy inside, with cream cheese and smoked salmon', 'Russ & Daughters smoked fish and Jewish deli food: a century-old house, the Lower East Side original is the classic', "Levain Bakery chunky cookies: famous for the molten chocolate-walnut cookie; the Upper West Side branch is on the way"]
| Where to eat | the museum has a cafeteria and café seating (on the pricey side); a few blocks east of the museum, the Madison Avenue and Third Avenue dining belt is dense with burgers, bagels and delis; or take food to a Central Park bench for a picnic — the most New York way to eat. |
|---|---|
| Dining etiquette | at fast-food and coffee places, order and wait at the counter for your number to be called, and clear your own tray; sit-down restaurants require a 15%–20% tip; take your rubbish away after a picnic, and alcohol is not permitted in Central Park. |
| Typical price per person | US$25–45 per person, about RMB 180–330 (typical rates); dining inside the museum runs about 20% higher. |
| Tips | Upper East Side prices are among the city's highest; on a budget, buy a bagel and coffee at the subway entrance before entering; Shake Shack and Levain have long queues at weekends, so avoid the noon peak. |
Prices are typical rates as of October 2026, not exact quotes; CNY equivalents are approximate where exchange rates fluctuate.
Photos
Photos
WestportWiki · CC BY-SA 3.0
TheCatalyst31 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Sources & verification notes
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