AMSTERDAM—Rembrandt van Rijn’s iconic and huge painting “The Night Watch” is now also a supersized museum photo delivered right to your laptop in unsurpassed detail. The Amsterdam Rijksmuseum on Monday put on its digital portal what it called “the most detailed photograph of any artwork” ready for assessment by scientists and art lovers alike. It…

Some paintings almost everyone in the Western world knows: Leonardo’s “Mona Lisa,” Piero Della Francesca’s “The Baptism of Christ,” and “The Night Watch” by Rembrandt van Rijn. They are part of the West’s visual vernacular. These are the images we see on tea-towels, t-shirts, cellphone covers and fridge-magnets. The name Rembrandt has become a synonym for greatness. There are Rembrandt restaurants,…

The mere mention of Rembrandt’s painting “The Night Watch” brings up the rush of excitement I had when I first approached the painting more than 15 years ago. I still vividly remember my visit to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam to view the painting. It’s a memory that never fades. Awe struck me before I even…