British Museum

The world of Achaemenid Persia : history, art and society in Iran and the ancient Near East : proceedings of a conference at the British Museum 29th September-1st October 2005 by British Museum( )

1 edition published in 2010 in English and held by 959 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

Interest and fascination in Achaemenid Persia has burgeoned in recent years. It is time for a major new appraisal of the glorious civilization founded by Cyrus the Great and continued by his successors, the Great Kings Darius I, Xerxes and Artaxerxes I. This volume offers precisely that: a sustained and comprehensive overview of the field of Achaemenid studies by leading scholars and experts. It discusses all aspects of Achaemenid history and archaeology between 550 BCE and 330 BCE, and embraces the whole vast territory of the Persian Empire from North Africa to India and from Central Asia to the Persian Gulf. Topics covered include aspects of Achaemenid religion, administration, material culture, ethnicity, gender and the survival of Achaemenid traditions. The publication of the book is an event: it represents a watershed not only in better appreciation and understanding of the rich and complex cultural heritage established by Cyrus, but also of the lasting significance of the Achaemenid kings and the impact that their remarkable civilization has had on wider Persian and Middle Eastern history

American prints from Hopper to Pollock by Stephen Coppel( Book )

1 edition published in 2008 in English and held by 701 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

"Outside the United States, the British Museum has the most comprehensive collection of American prints of the first half of the twentieth century. American Prints from Hopper to Pollock reproduces 147 outstanding prints by 74 leading American artists, including George Bellows, Edward Hopper, Grant Wood, Josef Albers, Alexander Calder, Louise Bourgeois and Jackson Pollock, providing an overview of American printmaking before the rise of the big print workshops of the 1960s and 1970s." "The first half of the 20th century was a period of great change in America, and this publication examines American society and culture through the prints produced by some of the most important artists of the time. It opens with John Sloan's Ashcan School etchings in the 1900s and concludes with Jackson Pollock and the triumph of Abstract Expressionism in the 1950s. Many of the images in the intervening period explore the changing urban landscape of New York, the onset of the Depression, the romanticized visions of the American heartlands by the Regionalists, and the response to the rise of Fascism in Europe and America's entry into the Second World War." "With its compelling illustrations and illuminating text, this is a book that raises the profile of American printmaking at a dynamic time in America's history. With 162 illustrations"--Jacket

The British Museum book of Chinese Art by Jessica Rawson( Book )

1 edition published in 1993 in English and held by 643 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

Drawings by Michelangelo, from the British Museum by British Museum( Book )

2 editions published in 1979 in English and held by 430 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

Michelangelo's drawings offer a unique insight into how the artist worked and thought. They are beautiful artworks in their own right but also provide a crucial link between his work as a sculptor, painter and architect. Michelangelo was extraordinarily famous during his lifetime, so much so that other artists produced portraits of him and three biographies were written. His artistic achievements set him in a class apart from his contemporaries; after the death of his main rival Raphael in 1520, he was to dominate the Roman art world for more than four decades. His primary focus as an artist was the male body, and his drawings chart his relentless search to find poses that would most eloquently express the emotional and spiritual state of his subjects

Egyptian mummies by Carol Andrews( Book )

2 editions published in 1984 in English and held by 416 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

Explores the reasons why ancient Egyptians mummified their dead; provides information about how mummies were made; and discusses the items and rituals that accompanied the dead to their tombs

Ukiyo-e paintings in the British Museum by Timothy Clark( Book )

1 edition published in 1992 in English and held by 384 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

Wonders of the age : masterpieces of early Safavid painting, 1501-1576 by Stuart Cary Welch( Book )

1 edition published in 1979 in English and held by 340 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

85 miniatures from 12 lenders and anonymous sources were assembled by Stuart Cary Welch, curator of Muslim and Hindu painting at the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University

Enlightenment : discovering the world in the eighteenth century( Book )

1 edition published in 2003 in English and held by 296 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

The extraordinary companion to the British Museum's 250th anniversary exhibition. Opened in 1753 as the world's first public museum, the British Museum epitomized the Age of Enlightenment's dream of a rational universe. Indeed, in many ways the museum was the age's most potent instrument: the incarnation of a world that could be parsed, classified, and comprehended through the physical observation of objects, all in the name of reason, progress, and civic improvement. In this lavishly illustrated volume, published to coincide with a new permanent exhibit, the museum's centrality to the Enlightenment enterprise is explored through the stunning breadth and variety of its early collections. From painting and sculpture to scientific instruments to fossils, the incredible objects displayed in these pages testify to the museum's devotion to discovering and learning about the natural world, the past, and other civilizations. The story of how these global collections were amassed is brilliantly told and includes many accounts of the legendary collectors and expeditions that have made the British Museum one of the world's premier museums. ... Publisher description

Atlas of ancient Egypt by Delia Pemberton( Book )

2 editions published between 2004 and 2005 in English and held by 230 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

The Nile River literally created civilization in Egypt. The Nile's waters made it possible for people to live and grow food, and to travel and trade with one another. Egypt's birds and animals living along the Nile Valley became the models for its gods and goddesses, and hidden in the vast deserts and mountain ranges that protected Egypt from invasion were rich natural resources of metals, stone, gems and minerals that became the basis of Egypt's wealth and strength

The cat in ancient Egypt by Jaromír Málek( Book )

1 edition published in 1993 in English and held by 217 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

Most modern domestic cats are descendants of the cats of ancient Egypt. These beautiful and engaging creatures represent, therefore, a living link between Egyptian civilization and the completely different world of today. Dr Malek's absorbing survey shows that wild cats were probably domesticated at least as early as 2000 BC but started to be regularly included in tomb paintings of family life only some 500 years later, during the New Kingdom. Dr Malek draws evidence from a vast range of artistic and written sources to show how the cat became one of the most widely-esteemed animals, revered as a manifestation of the goddess Bastet. Large numbers of mummified cats were buried in the Late Period, and bronze statuettes of cats were dedicated to temples during religious festivals. Illustrating the text with representations of cats in tomb paintings, sculpture, papyri, jewellery, ostraka, mummies and coffins, the author conveys the affection and respect in which cats were held in ancient Egypt. This lively and readable book will surely prove to be the definitive account of the Egyptian cat: aristocrat of domestic animals