Met Museum MCP Server vs Rijksmuseum MCP
A side-by-side look at the Met Museum MCP Server and Rijksmuseum MCP MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Met Museum MCP Server for art & culture work as a local process; choose Rijksmuseum MCP for art & culture as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Met Museum MCP Server when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Art & Culture domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
met_list_departments, met_search_collections, met_list_objects.
Choose Rijksmuseum MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Art & Culture domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: API key required.
- You have the keys it needs:
RIJKSMUSEUM_API_KEY, PORT, LOG_LEVEL.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Art & Culture | Art & Culture |
| Quality signal | 52/100 · Good | 43/100 · Fair |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | API key required |
| Pricing | Not declared | BYOK (pay the provider) |
| Required env vars | None listed | RIJKSMUSEUM_API_KEYPORTLOG_LEVEL |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 4 | 72 |
| Directory activity | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 4 | Not listed |
| Full listing | View Met Museum MCP Server | View Rijksmuseum MCP |
Tools & capabilities
Met Museum MCP Server tools 4
met_list_departmentsReturn all 19 curatorial departments with their numeric IDs and display namesmet_search_collectionsSearch the collection by keyword, optionally matched in titles or tags only, with filters for department, date range, medium, geography, image availability, on-view status, and highlight designationmet_list_objectsList every object ID in a department, every object created or revised since a date, or both, without a keywordmet_get_objectFetch full records for one or more object IDs — metadata, provenance, artist info, CC0 image URLs, tags, and Wikidata links — optionally with up to 3 CC0 images as image content
Rijksmuseum MCP tools
No tool names declared yet. Check the project README from the listing page.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Met Museum MCP Server
{
"mcpServers": {
"met-museum-mcp-server": {
"command": "bunx",
"args": [
"@cyanheads/met-museum-mcp-server@latest"
]
}
}
}
Rijksmuseum MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"r-huijts-rijksmuseum-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-server-rijksmuseum"
],
"env": {
"RIJKSMUSEUM_API_KEY": "YOUR_RIJKSMUSEUM_API_KEY_HERE",
"PORT": "YOUR_PORT_HERE",
"LOG_LEVEL": "YOUR_LOG_LEVEL_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Met Museum MCP Server is categorized under Art & Culture and uses a local stdio subprocess. Rijksmuseum MCP belongs to Art & Culture and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Met Museum MCP Server for art & culture work and Rijksmuseum MCP for art & culture.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Met Museum MCP Server has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Rijksmuseum MCP is bring-your-own-key: usage is billed by the API provider you supply a key for. Auth: api key required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add met-museum-mcp-server and r-huijts-rijksmuseum-mcp as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Met Museum MCP Server has a quality signal of 52/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 4 GitHub stars. Rijksmuseum MCP has 43/100 (Fair) with 1 views, 0 installs and 72 GitHub stars.