From Library Journal
In more than a millennium of history, Venice has been graced with an array of art and architecture unsurpassed in the Western world. Now it exists as virtually a monument in itself. The achievement of this lavish coffee-table tribute is to proffer an intelligent sampling from the entire art history of the city through a selection of some 500 chronologically arranged color reproductions. Here, we are given not only a sumptuous conspectus of the paintings, sculpture, and minor arts made for or found in the city's palaces, churches, and museums but also a superb selection of the famous and less well known buildings that create the unique urban fabric of the Serene Republic. Although the illustrations are barely complemented by a sketchy text and plate captions, their quantity and quality plus the volume's modest price are sufficient to overcome any criticism and more than justify its acquisition. Recommended especially for public libraries in need of visual resources or serving potential travelers.-Robert Cahn, Fashion Inst. of Technology, New York Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
With more colorplates than the proverbial stick can be shaken at, this is something of a gazetteer of art, including architecture, in Italy's most visually distinctive city. Order of presentation is, however, not by locale but chronological. First comes work from the long transitional period from Byzantine to Romanesque styles; the great basilica San Marco, other pre-fourteenth-century buildings, and many exquisite mosaic, sculptural, and enamel details are on display here. The Gothic structures of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries are next, and from the Renaissance onward, painting looms ever larger. If it weren't so huge and heavy, the book would be a wonderful guide during an actual Venetian visit. Of course, an ordinary tourist couldn't see these artworks from the highly desirable perspectives made available to the book's photographers. Ray Olson



Language Notes
Text: English
Original Language: Italian

From the Publisher
Venice is the jewel of the Adriatic that produced Giovanni Bellini, Giorgione, Titian, and other storied artists-and became the world's most magically beautiful city. This affordable book on its wealth of art treasures is both gorgeous and comprehensive. Approximately 500 colorplates and a wonderfully accessible text take readers on a chronological grand tour of Venetian painting, sculpture, architecture, and decorative arts. From splendid Byzantine mosaics in the Basilica San Marco to Mannerist masterworks by Veronese and Tintoretto in the Doges' Palace to the unique delights of Venetian glass, the glories of Venice are here. Profiles of notable artists and locations of every artwork illustrated make this volume as useful as it is stunning. Approximately 500 illustrations in full color, 911/2 x 1255/8 " Advertising: Art magazines Subsidiary Rights: Selected by Book-of-the-Month Club Stefano Zuffi is the author of La Pittura Italiana and many other books on art.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Venice is the jewel of the Adriatic that produced Giovanni Bellini, Giorgione, Titian, and other storied artists-and became the world's most magically beautiful city. This affordable book on its wealth of art treasures is both gorgeous and comprehensive. Approximately 500 colorplates and a wonderfully accessible text take readers on a chronological grand tour of Venetian painting, sculpture, architecture, and decorative arts. From splendid Byzantine mosaics in the Basilica San Marco to Mannerist masterworks by Veronese and Tintoretto in the Doges' Palace to the unique delights of Venetian glass, the glories of Venice are here. Profiles of notable artists and locations of every artwork illustrated make this volume as useful as it is stunning.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal