People baffled after noticing 'Apple phone' in 350-year-old painting

People have been left well and truly baffled after noticing an 'Apple phone' in a 350-year-old painting.

In a work of art by Pieter de Hooch, a Dutch Golden Age painter famous for his genre works of quiet domestic scenes with an open doorway, there appears to an extremely modern detail that is making people do a double-take.

In the painting, which was created way back when in 1670, a man seems to be holding an iPhone and it has gone as far as to even leave Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, scratching his head.

SJArt / Alamy Stock Photo

The painting led the tech maestro to question whether he was correct about the official date of the smartphone's creation.

Speaking in a press conference in 2016, Cook admitted he was 'not so sure' Apple had been the ones to create the phone - which was first released in 2007.

He said at the time: "I always thought I knew when the iPhone was invented, but now I’m not so sure anymore."

Cook first saw De Hooch's painting in the Rijksmuseum art gallery whilst away on a trip to Amsterdam.

He claimed: "There was an iPhone in one of the paintings. It's tough to see but I swear it's there."

The news has since provided even more subject matter for time-travel conspiracy theorists certain about the prospect of the phenomenon.

However, considering the name of the painting is 'Young Woman with a Letter and a Messenger in an Interior' - it would appear that Cook totally misinterpreted it given that the 'iPhone' in question was actually just an envelope.

And this isn't the first time someone has spotted what appears to be a modern element in some pretty ancient art after some eagle-eyed exhibition-goers were left absolutely totally stunned after allegedly spotting 'Nike shoes' in a 400-year-old painting.

National Gallery

The work of art in question, 'Portrait of Frederick Sluysken', painted by Dutch Master Ferdinand Bol back in the 17th century, re-opened the heated debate around time-travelling.

The portrait, which was on display at the National Gallery in London, left one pair of art lovers extremely perplexed when they saw the muse of the portrait seemingly donning a pair of modern Nike trainers, despite the footwear brand only being founded in 1964.

It even appears as if the kicks had the iconic white Nike tick on the inner side of the left shoe - despite the fact it was painted hundreds of years before the brand was even established.

Fiona Foskett went to the gallery with her daughter, Holly, when they were left totally dumfounded by the bizarre sight.

The Isle of Wight resident told The Sun: "I said to my daughter, 'Hold on, is he wearing a pair of Nike trainers?'

"Looking at the age, he must have got his hands on the first pair of Nike trainers ever made. Or is he actually a time traveller?"