The Chinese often use the expression du hua, "to read a painting", in connection with their study and appreciation of such works. This volume closely 'reads' thirty-six masterpieces of Chinese painting from the encyclopaedic collection of The Metropo...

This book provides a comprehensive review of grammatical structures and usage for intermediate to advanced students of German. Those who have had some exposure to German grammar in their earlier German courses can fine-tune their accuracy. While this...

Among the precursors of today's public museums, perhaps the most important are collections of sculpture formed in the early modern era by royal families, aristocratic amateurs, and artists. In this, the first book to survey the practice of collecting...

The appealing genre paintings of great seventeenth-century Dutch artists – Vermeer, Steen, de Hooch, Dou, and others – have long enjoyed tremendous popularity. This comprehensive book explores the evolution of genre painting throughout the Dutch Gold...

Jacques Goudstikker (1897-1940), a Jewish Dutch art dealer, took over his father's gallery in 1919 and quickly made his presence felt. Introducing a more international thrust to the gallery and demonstrating a keen business acumen, Goudstikker became...

This substantial and beautifully illustrated volume documents the National Gallery's unrivaled collection of Venetian paintings created between 1540 and 1600, including some of the greatest works commissioned by the city from Veronese, Titian, Tintor...

Treacherous, power-hungry, untempered by moral restraint, and embittered by physical deformity, Richard, the younger brother of King Edward IV, is ablaze with ambition to take England's throne. Richard III, Shakespeare's long chronicle of Richard's m...

In this rapidly paced book, a former CIA chief of counter intelligence breaks open the mysterious case of KGB officer Yuri Nosenko's 1964 defection to the United States. Still a highly controversial chapter in the history of Cold War espionage, the N...

For half a century Alfred Hitchcock created films full of gripping and memorable music. Over his long career he presided over more musical styles than any director in history and ultimately changed how we think about film music. This book is the firs...

From Wonder Woman's satin stars and golden bracelets to Batman's brooding cape and mask, the style of superheroes' dress has influenced both street wear and high fashion. This richly illustrated book explores how radical couture, avant-garde sportswe...