Met Museum
A MCP Server that lets user ask AI models to discover the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Adds the discovered art works as Resources on the server.
What is Met Museum?
Met Museum is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to mcp server that lets user ask ai models to discover the collection of the metropolitan museum of art. adds the discovered art works as resources on the server.
A MCP Server that lets user ask AI models to discover the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Adds the discovered art works as Resources on the server.
This server falls under the Search & Data Extraction category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- A MCP Server that lets user ask AI models to discover the co
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
NPM
npx -y metmuseum-mcpManual Installation
npx -y metmuseum-mcpConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use Met Museum
The Met Museum MCP server gives AI assistants structured access to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's public collection of over 400,000 artworks and artifacts, using the Met's open Collection API. It exposes tools for listing museum departments, searching the collection by keyword and filters, retrieving detailed object metadata with optional images, and launching an interactive art explorer UI — all while registering discovered artworks as MCP Resources that clients can browse. Art enthusiasts, researchers, and educators use it to have natural conversations about the Met's holdings directly within their AI assistant.
Prerequisites
- Node.js 18 or later installed
- An MCP-compatible client such as Claude Desktop
- No API key required — the Met Collection API is free and public
Run directly with npx
The fastest way to start the server is with npx, which downloads and runs the latest version without a global install.
npx -y metmuseum-mcpAdd to Claude Desktop configuration
Open your Claude Desktop config file (macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json) and add the server entry.
{
"mcpServers": {
"metmuseum": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "metmuseum-mcp"]
}
}
}Configure optional environment variables
Optionally tune the API timeout or enable debug logging for troubleshooting.
{
"mcpServers": {
"metmuseum": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "metmuseum-mcp"],
"env": {
"MET_API_TIMEOUT_MS": "15000",
"MET_API_DEBUG": "false"
}
}
}
}Restart Claude Desktop
Restart Claude Desktop to apply the new configuration and load the Met Museum MCP server.
Start exploring the collection
Ask Claude about artworks, artists, or departments. The server will add discovered artworks as browsable MCP Resources in your client.
Met Museum Examples
Client configuration
Complete claude_desktop_config.json entry for the Met Museum MCP server using the metmuseum-mcp npm package.
{
"mcpServers": {
"metmuseum": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "metmuseum-mcp"],
"env": {
"MET_API_TIMEOUT_MS": "10000",
"MET_API_DEBUG": "false"
}
}
}
}Prompts to try
Example prompts to explore the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection with Claude.
- "Can you help me explore the works of Vincent Van Gogh in the Met?"
- "List all the departments at the Metropolitan Museum of Art."
- "Find paintings from the Asian Art department and show me a few."
- "Search for ancient Egyptian artifacts featuring scarabs."
- "Retrieve the object details for 'Corridor in the Asylum' and show the image."
- "Show me armor and weapons from the Arms and Armor department."Troubleshooting Met Museum
Artwork images are not displaying or retrieval is slow
Images are returned as base64-encoded JPEG data which can be several hundred KB per image. Increase MET_API_TIMEOUT_MS to 20000 or more. Only request images for individual artworks using get-museum-object with returnImage set; avoid requesting images in bulk search results.
Search returns few or unexpected results
The Met Collection API searches across title, artist name, culture, and other text fields. Try broader search terms or use list-departments to get valid department IDs and filter by departmentId. Not all objects in the collection have images — use hasImages:true filter to find objects with photography.
Server fails to start or npx download is slow
Run npx -y metmuseum-mcp once manually in your terminal to pre-download and cache the package. Check that Node.js 18+ is installed with node --version. If on a restricted network, install globally first: npm install -g metmuseum-mcp and then use command: metmuseum-mcp in your config.
Frequently Asked Questions about Met Museum
What is Met Museum?
Met Museum is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that mcp server that lets user ask ai models to discover the collection of the metropolitan museum of art. adds the discovered art works as resources on the server. It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install Met Museum?
Install via npm with the command: npx -y metmuseum-mcp. Then add the server configuration to your AI client's JSON config file (e.g., claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json).
Which AI clients work with Met Museum?
Met Museum works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is Met Museum free to use?
Yes, Met Museum is open source and available under the MIT License license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
Met Museum Alternatives — Similar Search & Data Extraction Servers
Looking for alternatives to Met Museum? Here are other popular search & data extraction servers you can use with Claude, Cursor, and VS Code.
TrendRadar
★ 58.0kA real-time hotspot monitoring and news aggregation assistant that provides AI-powered analysis of trending topics across multiple platforms via the Model Context Protocol. It enables users to track news and receive automated notifications through va
Scrapling
★ 52.7k🕷️ An adaptive Web Scraping framework that handles everything from a single request to a full-scale crawl!
PDF Math Translate
★ 33.9k[EMNLP 2025 Demo] PDF scientific paper translation with preserved formats - 基于 AI 完整保留排版的 PDF 文档全文双语翻译，支持 Google/DeepL/Ollama/OpenAI 等服务，提供 CLI/GUI/MCP/Docker/Zotero
GPT Researcher
★ 27.2kAn autonomous agent that conducts deep research on any data using any LLM providers
Agent Reach
★ 20.1kGive your AI agent eyes to see the entire internet. Read & search Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, GitHub, Bilibili, XiaoHongShu — one CLI, zero API fees.
Xiaohongshu
★ 13.7kMCP for xiaohongshu.com
Browse More Search & Data Extraction MCP Servers
Explore all search & data extraction servers available in the MCPgee directory. Each server includes setup guides for Claude, Cursor, and VS Code.
Set Up Met Museum in Your Editor
Choose your AI client for step-by-step setup instructions.
Quick Config Preview
Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json
Ready to use Met Museum?
Browse our complete directory of 33,000+ MCP servers, read setup guides for your editor, and start building with the Model Context Protocol.