'Celestial sleuth' sheds new light on Vermeer's masterpiece 'View of Delft'
Johannes Vermeer is one of the most celebrated artists of the 17th century's Dutch Golden Age period. Widely known today for his "Girl with a Pearl Earring," he was famed for his mastery in rendering the effects of light and shadow. Nowhere is this technical precision more evident than in his masterpiece, "View of Delft", a vibrant cityscape that has captivated viewers for centuries. Because few details of Vermeer's life survive to the present day, little is known about when "View of Delft" was painted. Art historians have long assumed Vermeer painted it sometime during late spring or early summer of 1660. Based on the lighting, scholars have offered a wide variety of times of day: morning, mid-day, afternoon and sunset have all been mentioned. Now, a team of researchers led by Texas State University astronomer, physics professor emeritus and Texas State University System Regents' Professor Donald Olson has applied...