A 350-year-old painting by Dutch artist Pieter de Hooch has sparked claims of time travel after a figure appears to be holding a device that looks strikingly like an iPhone. The artwork, titled 'Man Handing a Letter to a Woman in the Entrance Hall', shows a man on the right clutching a rectangular object that resembles a smartphone, complete with what appears to be a screen.
Apple CEO Tim Cook Weighs In
The painting even baffled Apple CEO Tim Cook, who admitted during a press conference that he was no longer certain about the iPhone's invention timeline. Cook said: 'I always thought I knew when the iPhone was invented, but now I'm not so sure anymore.' He made the comments after seeing the painting while visiting Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum art gallery, where de Hooch's piece is displayed. Cook added: 'There was an iPhone in one of the paintings. It's tough to see but I swear it's there.'
Historical Anomalies and Conspiracy Theories
The iPhone was first launched in 2007, but de Hooch painted the work in the 1670s, leading conspiracy theorists to speculate about time travel. This is not the first instance of modern items appearing in historic art. In a separate case, a sharp-eyed mother spotted what looked like Nike trainers in a 400-year-old painting, suggesting the boy in the artwork 'got his hands on the first pair of Nike trainers ever made' or was 'actually a time traveller'.
While skeptics argue that the object in de Hooch's painting could be a letter or a small book, the resemblance to an iPhone has captured public imagination. The image has gone viral, with many sharing it as 'proof' of time travel. However, art historians note that such anachronistic interpretations often arise from pareidolia—the human tendency to see familiar patterns in ambiguous stimuli.
