Sky in Van Gogh's 'Starry Night' matches the real sky of July 1889: study

A new study suggests the sky in Van Gogh's famous painting 'The Starry Night' resembles the night sky of July 22, 1889. A South Korean research team conducted an astronomical analysis, comparing the painting with how the sky would have appeared around that date as seen from the asylum in Saint-Remy-de-Provence, France.

Art historians have generally dated the painting to June 1889; the new date is about a month later. The study was led by Eliza Jeong-Hyun Kim, CEO of a Seoul-based telescope manufacturer and a doctoral researcher at Kyung Hee University. It was published in the journal Scientific Reports.

According to Kim, the moon's shape at that time matches the painting, and Venus, along with the Hyades cluster in Taurus, would have been rising in the east. Weather data also suggests the sky could have been clear that night. Kim traveled to France in 2019 to compare the June and July skies.

Researchers also say a reference to cicadas in Van Gogh's letters points toward July. However, physicist Jose Luis Aragon of Mexico's National Autonomous University said July 22 should be seen as an interesting hypothesis rather than a definitive date. He noted that since Van Gogh painted from memory and sketches, the work may blend elements from multiple nights. Kim has not yet seen the painting in person at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, where it is held.