>Would be like saying that spending money in preserving corrosion on the original standard meter is a waste because now we can buy cheap plastic rules everywher

>Would be like saying that spending money in preserving corrosion on the original standard meter is a waste because now we can buy cheap plastic rules everywhere. No, it's like saying it's a waste to create a replica of the original standard meter because it is no longer used to determine the length of a meter. These paintings were likely useful, their continued use is less clear.