Johannes Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring"

Nationality: Dutch
Born-Died: 1632-1675
Creation Date: c. 1665
Size: 17.5 × 15 inch (44.5 × 39 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: Mauritshuis, The Hague, Netherlands
Three interesting facts about this painting:

1.) Vermeer certainly could not afford to own a pearl as large as the one depicted here.  He probably had the model wear a faux-pearl glass earring and employed some artistic license in regards to its size.

2.) In the Netherlands, around this time, painters occasionally included fashion from the middle-east such as Rembrandt's "The Artist in Oriental Costume..."  This is part of the reason why Vermeer's Dutch model is wearing a Turban.

3.) Conservationists have found hairs from Vermeer's brushes stuck in the paint of the woman's face.