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The Public Domain Review

An online journal of curious public domain art, books and film.

  • Rating

    4.7 / 5

  • Pricing

    Free

  • Difficulty

    Beginner

  • Works on

    Web

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What is The Public Domain Review?

The Public Domain Review is a non-profit online journal that explores surprising works from the history of art, literature and ideas, with essays and curated collections of public domain images, books, films and audio. Reading is free and most featured images can be reused, though you should check each item's rights note.

Pros: what The Public Domain Review does well

  • Beautifully curated collections
  • Free to read
  • Great source of reusable images

Cons: where it falls short

  • Rights vary by country and item
  • Not a searchable stock library

Who The Public Domain Review is for

Designers, writers and curious readers who enjoy unusual historical art and ideas.

Who can skip it

People who need a large, searchable stock image library.

The Public Domain Review alternatives

Not sold on The Public Domain Review? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.

Wellcome Collection

Focus: archives and history. Shares public domain and images with The Public Domain Review. Rated 4.6 (The Public Domain Review: 4.7).

WebsiteFreeWeb

Wikipedia

Focus: encyclopedia, reference and research. Also in Research and Learning, like The Public Domain Review. Adds iOS and Android. Rated 4.8 (The Public Domain Review: 4.7).

WebsiteFreeWeb, iOS

BBC Bitesize

Focus: revision, gcse and school. Also in Learning and Research, like The Public Domain Review. Same 4.7 rating.

WebsiteFreeWeb

Google Arts & Culture

Focus: art, museums and culture. Also in Learning and Research, like The Public Domain Review. Adds iOS and Android. Same 4.7 rating.

WebsiteFreeWeb, iOS

Internet Archive

Focus: digital library, wayback machine and archives. Also in Research and Learning, like The Public Domain Review. Same 4.7 rating.

WebsiteFreeWeb

Free alternatives to The Public Domain Review

Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.

PubMed

Focus: medical research, papers and citations. Also in Research and Learning, like The Public Domain Review. Same 4.7 rating.

WebsiteFreeWeb

web.dev

Focus: web development, performance and accessibility. Also in Learning and Reading, like The Public Domain Review. Same 4.7 rating.

WebsiteFreeWeb

ooh.directory

Focus: blogs, directory and rss. Also in Reading and Research, like The Public Domain Review. Rated 4.6 (The Public Domain Review: 4.7).

WebsiteFreeWeb

CORE

Focus: open access, research papers and academic search. Also in Research and Learning, like The Public Domain Review. Rated 4.5 (The Public Domain Review: 4.7).

WebsiteFreeWeb

HowStuffWorks

Focus: explainers, science and technology. Also in Learning and Reading, like The Public Domain Review. Rated 4.5 (The Public Domain Review: 4.7).

WebsiteFreeWeb

LibreTexts

Focus: open textbooks, oer and college. Also in Learning and Reading, like The Public Domain Review. Rated 4.5 (The Public Domain Review: 4.7).

WebsiteFreeWeb
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