The Yale University Art Gallery is the oldest college art museum in the United States, having been founded in 1832 when the patriot-artist John Trumbull gave more than 100 of his paintings to Yale College. Since then its collections have grown to number more than 200,000 objects representing Eastern and Western cultures and ranging in date from ancient times to the present.

In addition to its world-renowned collections of American paintings and decorative arts, the gallery is noted for its renowned collections of Greek and Roman art, including the artifacts excavated at the ancient Roman city of Dura-Europos; the Jarves, Griggs, and Rabinowitz collections of early Italian paintings; the Société Anonyme Collection of early-20th-century European and American art; Impressionist, modern, and contemporary works; Asian art; African art; art of the ancient Americas; and Indo-Pacific art.

The gallery is both a collecting and an educational institution, and all activities are aimed at providing an invaluable resource and experience for students, scholars, and the general public.