Newsweek

A volume in the outstanding series of the 'Wonders of Man', it contains abou everything on would want to know about this heritage of the 'civilized' world. The book contains some breathtaking panoramic photographs of the hillock (the Acropolis) and the Parthenon and other structures in various lights, with the backdrop of the hills around Athens. On reading the history and viewing the photographs, one is struck by how short the lifetime of the intact structure was, and how it has been show more repeatedly devastated by a succession of intruders and alien forces. Ultimately the bulk of it was apparently blown away by a barrage from the Venetians attacking the Turks who were ensconced in the structures, which unfortunately included their armory which caused a huge explosion. Most of their monuments have been shattered, and we have today only some empty roofless shells and scattered bits of broken pillars and stones.
On reflection, although Western historians credit ancient Greece with much that is the best in their civilization, one cannot but regret that they had such a short-sighted and narrow vision of their own destiny, and wasted so much of their men and resources in fighting their futile battles, either within their own clans, or with outsiders like the Persians and Turks, throughout their history. show less

A nice, quick introduction to the man and the mind behind the world of Middle Earth, and the epic Hobbit/Lord of the Rings novels.

I noticed they were careful to veer away from the fractious relationship Tolkien had with his fans, and the family's apparent distaste for the movie versions (of which this magazine is stuffed).

Still good insight into Tolkien's influences and thought processes.

It's a shame such as magnificent collection of the Egyptian people are displayed in such an out-of-date exhibition space. While the building would make a great space for an edited collection. As for the collection itself, the awe from photographs alone makes me imagine how incredible affect on a person visiting in person.

UPDATED: The new state-of-the-art Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) will open in Nov. 2022. It will be the largest museum in the world & is located on the Visa Plateau 2 miles show more from the pyramids. show less

Another wonderful volume of the Great Museums series. Though, the El Prado's collection is not a favorite of mine; I guess a year in Rome my have prejudiced me to quantrocentro Italian art.