Like titans, El Greco and Velazquez tower at either end of the reign of Philip III, a quarter-century of remarkable artistic achievements during the Golden Age of Spain.

A glorious exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts brings together monumental masterpieces by two of Spain’s greatest painters and striking works by artists who deserve to be better known.

There’s no shame in jumping on board the most popular game in town. So even the Museum of Fine Arts has found a way to celebrate the beloved hometown team.

Nestled in a corner between two galleries (Art of Europe and Old Kingdom Egypt) is a small exhibit that features Norman Rockwell’s “The Rookie” (which was on the cover of the March 2, 1957, Saturday Evening Post), along with Red Sox memorabilia that includes Hideki Okajima’s 2007 World Series jersey and a ticket stub from the 2008 MLB Season Opener that was recently played in Japan.

Invoking the poet’s own words, Paul Blandford guides visitors through the stately house where Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote the memorable poems that made him a young nation’s oracular voice.

For 249 years, giants of American history moved through these high-ceilinged rooms looking out its windows across Brattle Street to open fields and the Charles River.

Like lots of males in the mood for love, this horny guy licks his lips with a slithery tongue, puffs out his chest and makes weird eeeh-eeeehing sounds.

My son-in-law? Frat boys watching “Girls Gone Wild”? Sylvester Stallone doing an interview?

 Meet the Rhinoceros Iguana, a reptilian Romeo who courts his scaly lady just two weeks a year right before rainy season. He chivalrously waits for her to crawl from her burrow so he can bob his head for several days to impress her (kinda like Angus Young of AC/DC) so she will consent to make cold-blooded whoopie with him.

“Just Looking,” the great title of John Updike’s book on visiting museums, is the perfect way to describe this fall’s upcoming exhibitions. But instead of “Just Looking,” there may be some thinking, talking, and learning as well.