Uploaded March 2022 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Collections of antiquities depicted in richly illustrated books, many calling themselves museums, flourish in the eighteenth century when the public museum becomes a significant cultural institution in western Europe. These beautiful books mobilize the museum, bringing new forms of knowledge organization to readers far and wide. The books display cultural capital and, often, political power as well. Using case studies from Florence, Paris, and Naples, book historian Michael F. Suarez, S.J., examines this fascinating chapter in cultural and intellectual history.
Collections of antiquities depicted in richly illustrated books, many calling themselves museums, flourish in the eighteenth century when the public museum becomes a significant cultural institution in western Europe. These beautiful books mobilize the museum, bringing new forms of knowledge organization to readers far and wide. The books display cultural capital and, often, political power as well. Using case studies from Florence, Paris, and Naples, book historian Michael F. Suarez, S.J., examines this fascinating chapter in cultural and intellectual history.
