In this stunning catalog, Wees, curator of decorative arts at the Clark Art Institute, shares her extensive knowledge of silver. Robert Sterling Clark, who established the Art Institute in 1955, preferred Huguenot silver? especially that of Paul de Lamerie? so his collection, which contains typical objects from the early 16th to the mid-20th centuries, is especially rich in 18th-century examples. Wees arranges this collection according to general function ("Dining," "Lighting," etc.) and prefaces each chapter with exhaustively footnoted essays. She accompanies each item with crisp black-and-white photographs, a wealth of description, and helpful commentary. Analogous to Kathryn Buhler's standard catalog of American silver in Boston's Museum of Fine Arts, this is a wonderful tool for researching makers and hallmarks, comparing stylistic elements, or just marveling at the beauty of an extraordinary collection. While not intended to be a historical compendium, this informative, visual feast belongs in all silver reference collections and will also certainly appeal to individual collectors. 19 colour & 1,222 b/w illustrations

This work presents detailed technical descriptions of 66 Faberge eggs, as well as the stories of people involved in their making or presentation.

The Russian Revolution and Civil War - as never seen before! Packed with jaw-dropping, at times blood-curdling images, Russia Accursed! showcases the reaction of Ivan Vladmirov (1869-1947) to the human suffering and Bolshevik barbarity he observed as an artist-reporter during the years 1917-25. Some of his paintings and watercolours appeared in magazines and periodicals, including London weekly The Graphic (Vladimirov's mother was English). But other scenes - featuring point-blank executions, passers-by cutting chunks of meat from a dead horse or dogs gnawing at a human corpse - were deemed too shocking for publication and had to be secretly exported from the USSR by American relief workers. Selected from private collections, Russian museums and the Hoover Library at Stanford University, California, most of the 160 Vladimirov images in this majestic 324-page volume are published here for the first time. Placed in their historic context by scholarly essays, contemporary photographs and eye-witness quotes, they revolutionize our understanding of the beginnings of the Soviet Union.