"The Paintings Collection (Gemaldegalerie) of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna is one of the few truly internationally famous collections of art. Over 160 masterpieces ranging from the 15th to the 18th centuries have been selected for this book and carefully reproduced in colour. Together with art-historical comments they provide a magnificent overview."--BOOK JACKET.

Famous for having elevated the status of landscape painting, Pieter Bruegel the Elder is also considered to be the greatest 16th-century Flemish master of scenes from ordinary life. This volume presents a collection of his work, including 12 masterpieces.

This beautiful book tells the fascinating story of the Habsburg dynasty, which ruled most of central Europe, Spain, Belgium, and parts of Italy for nearly 600 years, from the 15th through the 20th century. Charles V (1500-1558) once remarked that the sun never set on the Habsburg Empire, and for most of its history, Vienna served as its capital. The Habsburgs were acclaimed collectors and generous patrons of the arts. Franz Joseph I (1830-1916), the penultimate emperor of the dynasty, created the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna to house the artistic treasures of the empire. Today, this museum possesses one of the most renowned collections in the world of Western art. An extraordinarily wide-ranging survey of the Habsburgs' collections, this volume features classical Greek and Roman works, medieval arms and armor, tapestries, early modern painting and craftwork, ceremonial gilded carriages, and opulent costumes. Together, they reveal the splendor and the spectacle of the Habsburg court. Distributed for the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, in association with the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the High Museum of Art, Atlanta, and the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna Exhibition Schedule: Minneapolis Institute of Arts (02/15/15-05/10/15) The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (06/14/15-09/13/15) High Museum of Art (10/18/15-01/17/16)

Visual refences to paintings from Ancient Egyptian wallpaintings to contemporary Western canvases

This stunning compilation of the work Pieter Bruegel, the 16th century's most famous Netherlandish artist, is being published in anticipation of the 450-year anniversary of the artist's death.