(CNN) -- Stakes have been raised in the museum world with the reopening after 10 years of Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum. Enough old masters were dusted down and rehung during the renovation to get a room of Russian oligarchs panting. The chance to see Rembrandt's huge and glorious "The Night Watch" painting once more -- it has a whole room to itself in the refurbished gallery -- is reason enough to plan some serious museum crawling on your next European trip. But do you always want to follow the crowd to the obvious treasures? Your Mona Lisas, your Van Goghs? Sometimes those artistic icons are obligatory sights but experts reveal that -- from a two-million-year-old stone tool to a life-size Roman equestrian statue made entirely of bronze -- some of the most remarkable museum and gallery highlights take a little digging.
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Competition in museum world heats up with reopening of Dutch treasure house
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Greatest treasures not always where crowds are
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British Museum cites its oldest object -- a chopping tool
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In Florence, a Madonna portrait modeled on artist's beloved wife is alternative must-see
When the @placeholder reopened this year after a decade-long refurbishment there was no question about the key exhibit.