This Summer at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC, the acclaimed exhibit Play it Loud: The Instruments of Rock and Roll took center stage at one of the world’s premier art venues. Sharing the same space with ancient Egyptian, Roman and Greek sculpture and Impressionist Masters of the Renaissance was Eddie Van Halen’s ‘Frankenstein’ guitar. For the world’s fans of rock and roll, I’d say we’ve arrived.

Currently on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, this exhibit celebrates and focuses on the instruments that made the music. These tools, in the hands of the masters, created the iconic sounds of rock that defined an era and changed the world. Read on to see these modern masterpieces in a never before curated collection that produced the powerful art form.