"An informed and detailed assessment by someone with a deep understanding of art" - Martin Gayford, The Sunday Telegraph

"It has sufficient breadth of content and clarity of purpose to have wide appeal among the uninitiated, and yet would not be out of place on the shelves of the most knowledgeable art pundit" - Frances Spalding, Art Quarterly    


This pocket guide to the art of the Western world, covers all the essential places to visit and sets the major works in the collections in their historical and social context. Helen Langdon takes us not only to the best-loved museums around the world but also to a vast selection of minor but equally fascinating galleries, churches, villas and houses, where she draws our attention to outstanding paintings and sculptures.    


Introductory essays to the art of each country, together with extensive indexes and glossaries, and over 200 colour illustrations that range from some of the world’s greatest works of art to unfamiliar treasures, make this a pocket compendium of Western art that will be as useful to the student as the traveller.