432 pages, hardback in cloth-covered, silk lined box, 435 x 355 mm, over 1000 colour illustrations
PRICE: £200.00
ISBN: 9780953994106
This extraordinary publication represents a landmark in both Tibetan studies and the art of bookmaking. It presents for the first time two magnificent eighteenth-century manuscripts illuminating in exquisite detail the essential but little-known practices of elemental divination as described in The White Beryl – an important seventeenth-century treatise written by Sangs-rgyas rGya-mtsho (1653–1705), the rekowned polymath who was regent to the Fifth Dalai Lama. Read more
In the winter of 1586, Hakob Jughayets'i, one of Armenia's most celebrated illuminators, completed work on a Gospel Book with an extensive and extraordinary programme of narrative miniatures and marginal figures. More
Detailed biographies describe the lives of twelve collectors of tribal art in Britain, active between 1770 and 1990. These men were rarely field collectors and only occasional travellers, but they were vigorous hunters, for whom the pursuit, handling and possession of such objects was what mattered. More
The unique character of Ethiopian art is the legacy of its situation high in the mountains on the Horn of Africa. Though remote and often isolated it evolved a tradition, going back to the fourth century AD, in response to contacts with Byzantine, European and Islamic cultures. More
The ancient kingdoms of the Cameroon Grassfields are famous for their splendid artworks – thrones ornamented with precious European beads, wooden figures sculptured by unknown masters, enormous drums, finely carved jewellery made from ivory and brass, as well as fabulous masks. This exhibition catalogue presents 150 impressive masterpieces from the courts of the Grassfield kingdoms. More
Ethiopia has often attracted attention because of its unique position as an ancient Christian culture far into Africa. Many people have been fascinated by the brilliant colours and childlike directness of recent traditional Ethiopian art. Little attention, however, has been given to the great periods that this culture has witnessed in the past. The 15th century saw a magnificent flowering of painting… More
Around 1800, an anonymous engraver in Sharanakula, a small temple place on the southern coast of Orissa, illustrated a palm-leaf anthology of love poems. The one hundred Sanskrit quatrains, which are said to be the work of the 7th-century poet Amaru, describe the behaviour of enamoured couples, their longing for each other, the lovers’ anxieties, their ecstatic joy as well as their doubts and sorrows. More
First published a quarter-century ago in German, Dietrich Seckel’s essay remains a vital contribution to a much-debated feature of Buddhist art, its aniconism, its aversion to depicting spiritual entities of the very highest order. More
This catalogue discusses and illustrates a wide variety of Chinese books, dating from the sixth to the nineteenth century -- some very rare. More
The Maharanas of Mewar in Rajasthan have long been regarded as pre-eminent among the Rajput chiefs of India and as dedicated guardians of social and cultural tradition. The Mewar school of painting, centred first at Chitor and later at Udaipur, was one of the most vigorous and prolific of all Indian court styles. It reveals an unrivalled continuity of development from the 16th century or earlier until as late as the 1940s. More
Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, is probably Japan’s most popular Buddhist deity. Images of Kannon – who hears the cries for help of all beings in distress – are the main focus of worship in many Japanese temples. This exhibition catalogue presents an exceptional selection of the most beautiful sculptures and paintings from the 7th to the 14th century, some of which have never been seen before outside Japan or which are rarely accessible even to the Japanese public. More