Overview
"Selling Russia's Treasures documents one of the great cultural dramas of the twentieth century: the sale, by a cash-hungry Soviet government, of the artistic treasures accumulated by the Russian royal family, aristocracy, and church over the centuries and nationalized after the October 1917 revolution. An astonishing variety of objects, from icons and illuminated manuscripts to Faberge eggs and Old Master paintings, entered the collections of wealthy westerners like Andrew Mellon; in fact, the canvases he purchased from the Hermitage now form the core of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Written by the leading experts in the field and long regarded as the definitive treatment of its subject, the original Russian edition of Selling Russia's Treasures is sought after by scholars and laymen alike. Now, for the first time, this important book is made available in English, in a revised and expanded edition that includes new material on the secret files of the Hermitage, the sale of religious art, and the loss of twentieth-century French paintings from the Museum of New Western Art. Numerous color plates reunite long-dispersed masterworks, if only on the page, and rare photographs and archival documents help bring the buried history of the ""Stalin sales"" to light. Several appendices-including a checklist of pieces sold from Russia's crown jewels, a chronology, and biographies of key figures-add to the value of this volume, which not only reveals an important episode of cultural history, but is also relevant to contemporary debates about museum deaccessioning and the repatriation of cultural objects. AUTHOR: Nicolas V. Iljine, a consultant to museums and cultural institutions, has organized a number of important exhibitions, including RUSSIA!, the landmark survey of Russian art that opened at New York's Guggenheim Museum in 2005. Natalya Semyonova, an art historian, is the author of several books on art collecting in Russia. 383 illustrations"
Full Product Details
Author: Nicolas V. Iljine ,
Natalya Semyonova
Publisher: Abbeville Press Inc.,U.S.
Imprint: Abbeville Press Inc.,U.S.
Weight: 2.396kg
ISBN: 9780789211545
ISBN 10: 0789211548
Pages: 364
Publication Date: 28 November 2013
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.
Reviews
With precision and passion, the authors take measure of the irreparable damage done to Russia's heritage for pitifully inadequate financial returns. An avidly researched, magnificently illustrated, and thought-provoking history of a country's once glorious artistic splendor squandered. --Booklist This lavishly illustrated tome highlights what Soviet culture lost, including historic Russian icons and masterpieces by Rembrandt and Van Gogh. It also points out the cruel irony of a revolution-ravaged USSR looking to the capitalist West for art purchasers. Among the buyers: American billionaire Andrew Mellon, who wound up donating his Russian-bought holdings to the National Art Gallery. A book for art lovers and history buffs alike. --The Seattle Times, gift guide selection The plates are wonderful, each listing the work, the artist, the date of sale and the purchaser. The accompanying text adds much more context. Yes, you may be thinking, we know some of this -- but not all, not in such detail, not so comprehensively discussed and documented. It would make a wonderful gift to someone this Christmas season. --Judith H. Dobrzynski, Real Clear Arts blog
"""With precision and passion, the authors take measure of the irreparable damage done to Russia's heritage for pitifully inadequate financial returns. An avidly researched, magnificently illustrated, and thought-provoking history of a country's once glorious artistic splendor squandered."" --Booklist ""This lavishly illustrated tome highlights what Soviet culture lost, including historic Russian icons and masterpieces by Rembrandt and Van Gogh. It also points out the ""cruel irony"" of a revolution-ravaged USSR looking to the capitalist West for art purchasers. Among the buyers: American billionaire Andrew Mellon, who wound up donating his Russian-bought holdings to the National Art Gallery. A book for art lovers and history buffs alike."" --The Seattle Times, gift guide selection ""The plates are wonderful, each listing the work, the artist, the date of sale and the purchaser. The accompanying text adds much more context. Yes, you may be thinking, we know some of this -- but not all, not in such detail, not so comprehensively discussed and documented. It would make a wonderful gift to someone this Christmas season."" --Judith H. Dobrzynski, Real Clear Arts blog"
Author Information
Nicolas V. Iljine, a consultant to museums and cultural institutions, has organized a number of important exhibitions, including RUSSIA!, the landmark survey of Russian art that opened at New York's Guggenheim Museum in 2005. Natalya Semyonova, an art historian, is the author of several books on art collecting in Russia.
