Making marvels : science and splendor at the courts of Europe / edited by Wolfram Koeppe.

New York, NY : Metropolitan Museum of Art, [2019]

New Haven : Distributed by Yale University Press

©2019

307 pages : illustrations (chiefly color) ; 31 cm

Published in conjunction with an exhibition held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, from November 25, 2019-March 1, 2020

Innovation, technology, and spectacle combine in wondrous works of decorative art and furniture that embody the splendor and luxury of the royal courts of Europe. At once beautiful works of art and technological wonders, the objects featured in Making Marvels demonstrate how European royalty from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment signaled their status through their collections of ingeniously crafted inventions. Featuring 150 exemplary objects ranging from mechanical toys to scientific instruments, timepieces to automata, this groundbreaking study brings to life a glorious period when luxury, a quest for knowledge, scientific invention, and political power combined to produce remarkable works of art. More than frivolous playthings, these works inspired technical innovations that influenced a broad spectrum of activities, including astronomy, engineering, and artisanal craftsmanship. This remarkable volume explores works in a wide range of materials, including precious metals, gemstones, pietra dura, marble, ivory, wood, bone, shell, glass, and paper. The book's compelling essays address the layered historical context in which these objects were fashioned and gathered into cabinets of wonder at courts throughout Europe; elucidate their complex blending of art and science; and provide fascinating details about the patrons who commissioned them and the specialists who made them.

English

March 04, 2020

Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-298) and index