Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met)

Introduction

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) is the largest art museum in the U.S. and one of the world’s most visited. Founded in 1870, The Met is an encyclopedic institution whose holdings span thousands of years and nearly every culture and continent.

Art and Artists

The Met has substantial depth in Jewish art and history. Its collection includes thousands of works of Jewish art and Judaica, from shofars and ketubot to a Mishneh Torah manuscript and a model of Solomon’s Temple. In 2019, The Colmar Treasure: A Medieval Jewish Legacy became the first exhibition at The Met Cloisters centered on Jewish artistic heritage. Contemporary Jewish artists represented include Michal Rovner, Yaacov Agam, and Avigdor Arikha.

The Met is also a leader in provenance stewardship, publishing provenance information online and identifying fifty-three objects as seized or sold under duress during the Nazi era. Israeli artists are represented with their nationality clearly labeled, though they have not received comparable dedicated exhibition attention.

Policies

The Met’s visitor guidelines prohibit leafleting, signature gathering, picketing, merchandise sales, press conferences, and solicitation on museum property. These content-neutral rules provide a clear basis for keeping political demonstrations and disruption out of its galleries.

Its equal-opportunity policy also prohibits discrimination based on categories including religion, creed, national origin, and ancestry, under which antisemitism would be addressed. However, this policy applies to employees and applicants, not explicitly to visitors. No public evidence was found of a broader visitor-facing anti-discrimination policy, language naming antisemitism specifically, or a clear public reporting mechanism for antisemitic incidents. Adding these protections publicly would make the museum’s commitment more visible to the community.

Community Engagement and Programming

The Met has supported Jewish educational programming through Hanukkah offerings, a YIVO Institute seminar on Ashkenazi heritage, and an Artist Project lecture by Israeli artist Jacob El Hanani. It has also partnered with Jewish organizations through initiatives such as its Judaica Initiative with the Jewish Funders Network.

The Met recognized Jewish American Heritage Month in May 2023 but did not recognize the month again in May 2024, 2025, or 2026, even as it continued to recognize other heritage months.

Problematic Events

In March 2024, hundreds of artists, cultural workers and activists gathered on the museum’s steps for a two-hour demonstration. Protesters called for, among other things, The Met to cut ties with trustees or supporters viewed as connected to Israel or arms companies.

Bottom Line

The Met demonstrates what a major encyclopedic museum can do when it takes Jewish art, history, and provenance seriously. Recognizing Jewish American Heritage Month and prohibiting antisemitism directly in policy would help close the gap between what the museum holds and what it publicly honors.