By Sabine Haag & Franz Kirschweger
Vendome Press, $90.00, 304 pages
Habsburg Treasures is a lovely and in-depth compendium of the collections assembled by the house of Habsburg, and today held in the Vienna Kusnthistorisches Museum. Unlike many catalogs of large and diverse collections, this volume sticks to the basics. There is only one long essay, on the history of the collection and the men and women who assembled it, by Sabine Haag. The rest of the text is short annotations, most about half a page, that give a brief history and context of the item pictured on the facing page, and in some cases in the next couple of pages. These annotations do use some technical terms, but they should be accessible to anyone with a basic background in art history, or who is willing to look up the terms. This volume is a little expensive, but not out of line with similar texts, and it is beautifully assembled, and would look great on a coffee table for people who want to look smart. The items featured in the volume are diverse, and the artists vary from household names like Donatello, too much lesser known artists. This would make a great gift for an art historian or history lover, especially those who are interested in the late Renaissance period, when the collection was assembled.
Reviewed by Katie Richards
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