<snip> Note that none of this applies if you scan or photograph the image yourself, or if it is licensed under a Wikipedia-compatible license by someone who did.
-Matt <snip>
According to a number of librarians I've spoken with, a number of US Museums and libraries would differ with you on that. They believe that if they own the original work, unless they license copies, all images of that work belong to them. They could very well be wrong, but that's what they think, and would probably eventually be willing to test in court. For a lot of items they'll severely restrict access, just so that this sort of thing won't happen, and if the precedent is upheld, this is likely only to get worse. It's unclear to me whether we should use this case as a precedent, although it's clear that both Wikipedia and the Commons does. </armchair lawyering> Makemi