Stendhal No. 1. (Mt. Corcoran at the Corcoran) © 2011
Corcoran Gallery of Art

The Stendhal Syndrome, an illness officially named by Italian psychiatrist Graziella Magherini in the late 1970s, describes disorienting waves of euphoria brought on by viewing great works of Florentine Art. The experience was first written about in the 19th century by the French author Stendhal (pen name of Marie-Henri Beyle) and is known to trigger dizziness, fainting, and even hallucinations.

*Painting “Mount Corcoran” by Albert Bierstadt c. 1876–77.