Yale Center for British Art Releases Thousands of Public Domain Images

"We are pleased to share news from the Yale Center for British Art about the recent release of more than 22,000 additional high-resolution digital images of works in the public domain to our online collection....Under Yale University’s Open Access Policy, anyone may use the Center’s digital images of public domain material without any application, authorization, or fees due to the Center or to Yale.

This image release was made in conjunction with the celebration of Public Domain Day on January 1, 2016.  Although most of the artworks in this release are not new entries to the public domain, in most cases this is the first time that digital images of these works are easily and openly accessible to the world....

The Center recognizes that lowering the barriers between its digitized resources and their users is critical for the advancement of knowledge. In doing so, the Center continues to promote the general principle of Yale University’s policy on access to digital image of works in the public domain, that the “preservation, transmission, and advancement of knowledge in the digital age are promoted by the unencumbered use and reuse of digitized content for research, teaching, learning, and creative activities.” ..."