"A transformative new work of scholarship: beautifully written and intellectually challenging, this book has made me think again about pictures I thought I knew well." (Caroline Campbell, Director of Collections and Research, the National Gallery, London)

The comparative historical investigation of imperialism through the lens of collecting practices, museum archetypes and museums proper, helps shape our understanding of contemporary aesthetics and diversity management as well as helps identify what is imperial about our own approaches to material culture.

Based on a radical reassessment of the historical documentation and a profound investigation of Malvasia’s art criticism, these volumes offer the most thorough treatment to date of the artist’s work.