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Miscellaneous Dürer to Veronese: 16th Century Painting in the National Gallery by Jill Dunkerton, Susan Foister, and Nicholas Penny $39.95 / Yale Univ. Press / 2002 Written to complement the museum's earlier publication, Giotto to Dürer, this new book is beautifully illustrated, with full-color images of art work drawn chiefly from the National Gallery, London, as well as works from numerous other collections. Full-page reproductions of "details," such as a pair of hands from Jan Gossaert's A Man with a Rosary or a soft yellow cloth from the lower corner of Titian's Bachus and Ariadne, help the reader to appreciate more fully the intricacies of the artwork and the mastery of the artists' skills. The text, however, is what makes this book particularly significant. Skewing traditional classifications, the authors instead examine the ways in which art fit the context of society during the 16th century. Whole chapters, for example, are devoted to discussions of The Altarpiece, Private Devotions, and Painting for Palaces. These and other topics, such as religious themes and the painting of portraits, are properly placed into a historical perspective. To further enhance our understanding of the period, several chapters are devoted to the techniques and materials of the artist's craft. In chapters entitled Preparing to Paint, Preparing the Panel, Painting the Panel, and Original Developments, such issues as the construction of paint surfaces, the process of gilding, and the innovation of canvas supports are discussed. The scholarly preparation of the subject notwithstanding, the text is approachable for anyone wanting to discover more about history, the Renaissance, art, or the collection at the National Gallery. Period maps, a comprehensive chronology, extensive reference notes, and an index all add to the reader's understanding of the period. —Barbara Mellin

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