Free summaries
Art — page 5
197 public-domain art books, summarised. Page 5 of 5.
Jewellery
H. Clifford (Harold Clifford) Smith
A meticulous history traces Western personal adornment across centuries, mapping how precious metals, gemstones, and intricate enameling evolved alongside art, commerce, and human self-expression.
Illuminated manuscripts in classical and mediaeval times, their art and their technique
J. H. (John Henry) Middleton
A deep historical investigation reveals how ancient and medieval craftspeople created illuminated books, tracing the transformation of manuscript production from physical rolls to printed pages.
Leonardo Da Vinci
Maurice W. Brockwell
A comprehensive study of a Renaissance master reveals a thinker whose restless intellect constantly sought to decipher the physical world through art, mechanics, and philosophy.
Laocoon
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Physical form and the passage of time create an impassable border between visual art and written words. This foundational critique dismantles the confusion between mediums, proving that poetry governs action while plastic arts belong exclusively to space.
Practical taxidermy
Montagu Browne
True craft demands patient determination and a complete rejection of professional secrecy.