What?! 108-Gigapixel Scan of Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring.

kottke.org May 02, 2025 By Jason Kottke

full view of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

closeup of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

extreme closeup of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

Several years ago, digital microscope technology company Hirox collaborated with The Mauritshuis museum to create a 10-gigapixel scan of Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring. Recently, Hirox upped the game with the creation of a 108-gigapixel scan of the painting. 108 billion pixels! And each pixel is 1.3 microns in size — 1000 microns is 1 millimeter. Incredible.

You can explore the scan of the painting courtesy of Hirox. Be sure to check out the 3D view (button at the bottom of the page); here’s a topographical view of the pearl:

3D view of the pearl in the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

For a look at how they captured this image, check out this behind-the-scenes video.

Tags: art · Johannes Vermeer

💬 Join the discussion on kottke.org →

full view of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

closeup of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

extreme closeup of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

Several years ago, digital microscope technology company Hirox collaborated with The Mauritshuis museum to create a 10-gigapixel scan of Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring. Recently, Hirox upped the game with the creation of a 108-gigapixel scan of the painting. 108 billion pixels! And each pixel is 1.3 microns in size — 1000 microns is 1 millimeter. Incredible.

You can explore the scan of the painting courtesy of Hirox. Be sure to check out the 3D view (button at the bottom of the page); here’s a topographical view of the pearl:

3D view of the pearl in the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting

For a look at how they captured this image, check out this behind-the-scenes video.

Tags: art · Johannes Vermeer

💬 Join the discussion on kottke.org →

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Published on May 02, 2025 by Jason Kottke

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