Jan Vermeer, Girl with a Pearl Earring, 1665, Oil on canvas.
The Mauritshuis, The Hague, Netherlands.

"As this girl stares out at the viewer with liquid eyes and parted mouth, she radiates purity, captivating all the gaze upon her. Her soft, smooth skin is as unblemished as the surface of her large tear-drop shaped earring - like a vision emanating from the darkness, she belongs to not specific time or place. Her exotic turban, wrapping her head in crystalline blue, is surmounted by a striking yellow fabric that falls behind her shoulders, lending an air of mystery to the image."

-Aurthur Wheelock, Johannes Vermeer, with contributions by Albert Blankert , Ben Broos and Jorgen Wadum, Washington, 1995.