American Amazon takes readers on a captivating visual journey into the hidden wetlands and swamps of the Southeastern United States—one of North America’s last untouched wilderness areas. Renowned photographer and National Geographic Explorer Mac Stone presents an intimate portrait of iconic landscapes like the Everglades and the Mississippi Delta. This coffee table book celebrates the rich biodiversity of the region, from powerful alligators and black bears to rare orchids and synchronously glowing fireflies. Combining breathtaking imagery with compelling storytelling, American Amazon highlights the urgent need to protect these ancient cypress forests and mysterious waterways. It’s a tribute to a natural treasure right in America’s backyard, inviting readers to discover and champion this vital ecosystem before it’s lost to time.

How to Create a Brand That Stands Out? Step 1: Grab this book. Nice. Are you tired of blending into the crowd, or afraid of getting lost in it? Awesome. Step 2: Buy this book. Or read it right there in the store — but that might not be very practical. In a world where mediocrity has become the norm, having a distinct identity is essential. Fight The Average is a powerful manifesto against the ordinary. Dries & Yuri reveal their no-nonsense approach to building exceptional brands. With practical tips and inspiring stories, they help brands, companies, and entrepreneurs stand out from the competition and win their customers’ hearts. This is the wake-up call your brand needs.

“If only every entrepreneur had access to the knowledge and expertise of Dries & Yuri.” – Kimberly Rooijakkers | CEO, Boardwalk Hotel Aruba.

“Fight The Average is a breath of fresh air in a world full of AI-generated drivel and copy-paste brands. Dries & Yuri show that brands truly shine when they dare to be different.” – Clo Willaerts | Speaker, Author, and Trainer.

“Fight The Average doesn’t just help you create a brand—it makes your brand stick. Not for the hesitant, but for entrepreneurs who dare to make bold choices and go all in.” – Jan Verlinden | Chief Lemonade Maker and Author of The Ritchie Story.

“Fight The Average is anything but average: it’s rebellious, relevant, and hits the core of what brands need today.” – Valery Super | CEO, Emboo.

“This is the shot of courage every entrepreneur needs to stand out from the rest.” – Eline De Munck | Founder, Odette Lunettes

It is a perilous time for the Roman Republic. Victory over her nemesis Hannibal in the Second Punic War and the subsequent conquest of Greece have led to widespread debauchery and mayhem on the Italian peninsula. Into the breach steps Spurius Postumius Albinus, Consul of Rome in 186 BC, who turns detective to investigate a series of crimes attributed to the cult of the wine god Bacchus that, he argues, threaten the very heart of the State.

Based on events recorded by the Roman historian Livy and confirmed by a surviving bronze plaque in Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum, Spurius is at once an ancient political whodunit and the first major treatment of a cataclysmic event in Roman history: according to Livy, some 3,500 Romans perished in the witch hunts resulting from Spurius’ investigation. In its finely balanced examination of freedom of belief and expression, and the manipulation of truth in times of national emergency, the novel has great relevance to today’s troubled world.

In elite sport, victory isn’t just physical, it’s mental. The Double-Gold Mindset reveals ten mental attitudes that top performers in sport and business share: for example, taking ownership, staying true to core values, and keeping a calm, non-judgmental mind, even when everything is on the line. Built around the Mental Basketball Team Model, this book gives you a practical playbook for performance under pressure. The Thinker crafts smart strategies. The Doer turns plans into results. The Focus Keeper keeps you and your team aligned, confident, and ready to win. The Archivist shapes today with the wisdom of the past. The Feeler guides your instinct and joy. Learn how to train your mind like a champion, and strike gold in your own game.

“Over the years, I’ve learned to stay in the moment and not get lost in the possible consequences of a situation. I focus mainly on the things I can control.” Ann Wauters.

“Be honest with yourself. If you’re not, you can’t grow.” Julie Allemand.

“If, after the first game of a championship, you already let your shoulders drop, you undermine your chances of winning later on. That’s why it’s important to take the time to reflect – and to truly change gears.” Antonia Delaere

Tibetan Buddhist art is not only rich in figural icons but also extremely diverse in its symbols and ritual objects. This first systematic review is an abundantly illustrated reference book on Tibetan ritual art that aids our understanding of its different types and forms, its sacred meanings and ceremonial functions. Eighteen chapters, several hundred different implements are documented in detail, in many cases for the first time and often in their various styles and iconographic forms: altar utensils and amulets, masks and mirrors, magic daggers and mandalas, torma sculptures and prayer objects, vajras and votive tablets, sacrificial vessels and oracle crowns, stupas and spirit traps, ritual vases, textiles, furniture, and symbolic emblems. These are accompanied by many historical and modern text sources, as well as rare recorded oral material from high-ranking Tibetan masters. This long-awaited handbook is a must-have for all those with an interest in Buddhist art and religion.

‘Oishii!’ – ‘Delicious!’ is the most common word in Japan to describe food. Expressing culinary taste goes hand in hand with the social and cultural identity of those eating it. Hence food is much more than nutrition; rather it is tied to all areas of human life and illustrates the various aspects of a society and its culture. Against this backdrop renowned authors devote themselves to Japanese food and drink culture. How is rice cultivated? How do you catch bonitos? What is the secret to good sake and how did green tea become a lifestyle product? Hitherto partly undisclosed treasures from the Linden-Museum Stuttgart and valuable examples from home and abroad draw attention to the rich material culture of food and drink in Japan.

Text in German.

The Jewish Journey tells the history of the Jewish people from antiquity to modern times through 22 objects from the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, brought together here for the first time. Many of the objects are little-known treasures and all 22 have remarkable stories. Spanning 4000 years of history and covering 14 different countries, the objects trace the evolution of Jewish life and culture from its earliest beginnings in Ancient Mesopotamia through time and space to the modern day.

The collection of drawings in the Ashmolean is one of the greatest treasures of the University of Oxford. It began spectacularly in 1843 when a group of drawings by Raphael and Michelangelo that had previously belonged to the portrait painter, Sir Thomas Lawrence, was bought by subscription. Lawrence’s collection was one of the greatest collections of Old Master drawings ever assembled and its dispersal was much regretted. The Raphaels and Michelangelos, however, were the jewels in its crown. Following their arrival in Oxford, their fame attracted a number of gifts and bequests of drawings and watercolours by Dürer, Claude Lorraine, Brueghel, J. M. W Turner, Henry Moore and many others.

This is a story not only of Old Masters but of benefactors – Francis Douce, Chambers Hall, John Ruskin and their successors – whose different tastes account for the variety of the drawings in the modern Print Room. It is a story also of the curators who bought them. In particular, it is the story of Sir Karl Parker who arrived at the museum in 1934 and left a collection when he retired in 1962 that comprehensively covered the history of the art of drawing in Europe from its origins to the present day. The exhibition, Master Drawings: Michelangelo to Moore, celebrates this history. It includes many of the finest drawings in Oxford, representing the work of many different artists: Raphael and Michelangelo; Dürer and the artists of the Northern Renaissance; Guercino and Rubens; Boucher and Tiepolo; German Romantics; J. M. W. Turner; Degas and Pissarro; the artists of the Ballets Russes; British twentieth-century artists from Gwen John to Hockney; and much else.

The magnificent historic city of Bath – home to sweeping crescents in honeyed stone, restorative thermal waters, and beautiful boutiques – is no stranger to those who seek to explore its manifold charms. Most are only intrigued by the obvious: the Roman Baths, the Pulteney Bridge, the Royal Crescent, the Circus. But for the more inquisitive there are countless hidden gems to discover.

Pick up this book and explore Bath’s best-kept secrets – stories, locations, and unique personalities from the past and present, who have been neglected by the conventional tourist routes. In these pages you’ll take a bespoke detour off the well-beaten path to unearth unexpected treasures: from secret statues and characterful pubs to artists’ studios and Georgian ballrooms, from memorials paying homage to lesser-known figures who left their indelible mark on the city to treats for foodies and fashionistas. Make your own gin, weave a scarf, tell the time with a stylish personal sundial, play ‘shove ha’penny’, bind your own book – or head beyond the city fringes, just a short hop by bike, punt, barge, or steam train, for a fresh perspective on this picture-perfect metropolis. The possibilities are endless. Whether you’re a first-timer, a frequent visitor or a native who has ‘seen it all’, here are 111 things you never thought you’d see in Bath.

‘Keep Portland Weird’ is just the tip of this delightfully bizarre city’s iceberg. Though the City of Roses has experienced its fair share of changes in recent years, the spirit of ‘Old Portland’ lives in the shadow of gourmet donut shops and farm-to-table restaurants, and that’s where the real adventure begins. Summon spirits at a haunted pizzeria. Let it all hang out at a nude beach on the Columbia River. Get your kicks at the world’s only vegan strip club, and visit the world’s smallest park (blink and you might miss it).

Throughout these pages, you’ll learn about Portland’s (at times sordid) past; relive the pioneers’ grueling trek to Oregon; discover the strangest museums you’ve ever heard of, and get the scoop on the restaurants, bars, and coffee shops that don’t come with an hour-long wait. Whether you’re a frequent visitor or first timer; recent transplant or Portland native, you will discover 111 hidden places that prove Portland is weirder than you could have ever imagined.

Beyond the crowded star-paved boulevards of Hollywood and famously posh boutiques of Rodeo Drive, is another Los Angeles; a hidden shopper’s paradise, brimming with hundreds of charming, eclectic, curious, nostalgic, glamorous and quirky neighbourhood stores, restaurants, and bars that are practically unknown to tourists. From Pasadena to the Pacific Coast Highway, discover the secret haunts and favourite local speciality shops of starlets and mere mortals alike. Wear the hottest designers before they get famous; get your knit on at a yarn-filled emporium; satisfy your sweet tooth at the world’s first “cupcake ATM”; indulge your devotion to handmade American craftsmanship with a pair of custom-designed kicks; score some cast-off celebrity bling at a Beverly Hills pawn shop; navigate a two-block alley crammed with 150 discount shops. It’s all yours for the taking in the City of Angels.

One of the first people in Europe to consider the gifts which the Aztec ruler Montezuma gave to Hérnan Cortés as works of art was Albrecht Dürer: ‘Nothing I have yet seen has given me such joy as the objects brought to the king from the new gold countries […] Some pieces display an extraordinary skill; I have been astonished by the ingenuity of the inhabitants of those far distant lands,’ he wrote. It was 1520 and those works had been sent to Brussels.

The five centuries that have passed since the beauty of these objects was first noticed seem not to have been enough for the ancient cultures of Latin America to be fully understood. This catalogue of pre-Columbian art is a fresh attempt to examine and come to terms with artworks produced by a section of mankind that came to the attention of Europeans only after the voyages of Columbus and other explorers. It illustrates the collection of pre-Columbian art of Giancarlo and Inti Ligabue, one of the few collections of its kind in Italian hands: over 150 pieces from Mesoamerica and South America, an extraordinary corpus of objects which give testament to the excellence achieved by ancient artists. But it also tells the story of certain rare objects which belonged to the Medici Collection, one of Europe’s greatest treasures. Among these are two atlatls, spear-throwers covered in gold-leaf from the Aztec or Mixtec cultures, a Taíno necklace dating from the fourteenth or fifteenth century, and a Teotihuacan stone mask. These objects are accompanied by pieces from private European collections and a number of significant artworks from the Quai Branly Museum in Paris.

Essays by leading scholars and archaeologists, such as C. Phillips, C.F. Baudez, J.M. Hoppan, J.J. Leyenard, F. Kauffmann Doig, C. Cavatrunci, D. Domenica, and M. Polia, weave both scientific and humanistic interpretations of Amerindian thought. The Giancarlo and Inti Ligabue Collection of masterpieces of ancient Latin American cultures is part of a huge and broad-ranging hoard of objects gathered over a period of almost fifty years.

Illustrating one of the great art treasures of the world, The Hours of Catherine of Cleves is a fifteenth century illuminated manuscript containing a series of some of the most beautiful illustrations of the Bible ever made. Many of the great scenes from the Old Testament and many more from the New Testament are included, besides the Stations of the Cross and portraits of the Saints. The work of an unidentified Dutch master painter, the manuscript was made for Catherine of Cleves on the occasion of her marriage to the Duke of Guelders. All the 157 surviving miniatures are reproduced to actual size and in exquisite colour with gold, together with three samples of pages containing the Latin prayers. Each page is accompanied by a descriptive and explanatory commentary by John Plummer. His introduction discusses the development of the Book of Hours as a liturgical form in general, and the history of the Cleves Hours specifically, and describes the place it holds in the history of Northern Painting.

Published on the occasion of an important international loan exhibition at The Azerbaijan National Museum in Baku, this multi-author book is much more than a mere catalogue. Containing previously unpublished research and a wealth of previously hidden material from museums and private collections around the world, and written by a team of international museum professionals and independent scholars, it is the first co-ordinated and detailed study of the West Caspian region’s characteristic silk embroideries. The book traces the history of embroidery in the Caucasus, the multi-cultural sources of domestic embroidery, iconography and designs in which the textile traditions of the Iranian and Turkic worlds meet, materials and needlework techniques, as well as the relationship between embroidery and the pile carpet weaving tradition in the region.

Contents:
1 Silk Treasures of Azerbaijan, Alberto Boralevi & Asli Samadova
2 Historical Azerbaijan, Murray L. Eiland III
3 Caucasian Embroideries in Context, Penny Oakley
4 Safavid-style Domestic Embroideries from Historical Azerbaijan, 1550-1800, Michael Franses
5 Silk Culture in the Caucasus, Irina Koshoridze
6 Azerbaijan Embroidery Techniques, Jennifer Wearden
7 What Went Before to Make It as It Was? Caucasian Embroidered Textiles from The Textile Museum Collection, Sumru Belger Krody
8 Busily Engaged on Embroidery : Collecting and Curatorship for the V&A, Moya Carey
9 An Early Museum Collection: Azerbaijan Embroideries in the V&A, Penny Oakley
10 A Shared Design Lexicon: Azerbaijan Embroideries and Rugs, Brian Morehouse

Excellent food, sublime wines, a unique cultural heritage and magnificent countryside – all this and more is what you can expect to find in France, one of the most popular countries to visit in Europe. Attractions range from the tall peaks of the Alps and the Pyrenees, to the lovely Loire Valley, and the sophisticated Côte d’Azur. Then there are the great cities – the capital, Paris, and a number of enchanting regional centres, such as Strasbourg, Lyon and Marseille. France invites you to discover its glorious treasures by car. This big travel handbook shows you the highlights along twelve beautiful routes – from ancient pilgrimage routes to remote country lanes, from the Massif Central to the famous regions and landscapes like Normandy, Champagne and the Alsace. This volume is supplemented by a guide to all French UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage sites. In addition, there are plans of all the major towns and a 176-page road atlas, making Discover France a unique combination of picture book, travel guide and atlas.

With vivid memories of his first visit to the Scottish National Gallery in the 1970s and his initial encounter with Hugo van der Goes’ The Trinity Altarpiece, Rembrandt’s A Woman in Bed, Velázquez’s An Old Woman Cooking Eggs and Degas’ Diego Martelli, Robert Storr discusses the shifting balance of museum collections from historically ‘certified’ classics to art whose status and significance remains in active contention and from singular ‘treasures’ to ensembles that speak to the larger scope of an artist’s endeavour. Also available: Unfinished Paintings: Narratives of the Non-Finito Watson Gordon Lecture 2014 ISBN 9781906270919 ‘The Hardest Kind of Archetype’: Reflections on Roy Lichtenstein The Watson Gordon Lecture 2010 ISBN 9781906270384 Picasso’s ‘Toys for Adults’ Cubism as Surrealism: The Watson Gordon Lecture 2008 ISBN 9781906270261 Sound, Silence, and Modernity in Dutch Pictures of Manners The Watson Gordon Lecture 2007 ISBN 9781906270254 Roger Fry’s Journey From the Primitives to the Post-Impressionists: Watson Gordon Lecture 2006 ISBN 9781906270117

Thomas R. Schiff’s vivid panoramic photographs capture the iconic buildings and landscapes of San Francisco and the Bay Area in new and surprising ways. From the Golden Gate Bridge to Coit Tower, they offer a refreshing perspective on familiar places and reveal unexpected treasures in everyday ones. With essays on photography, perception, and architecture by Susan Ehrens, Wendy Lesser, and Tim Culvahouse, and an author interview by Dave Christensen, The Poetics of Distortion: Panoramic Photographs of the San Francisco Bay Area is a mind-bending, eye-opening, very San Franciscan journey.

Each year between 1819 and 1825, John Constable submitted a monumental canvas to the Royal Academy of Arts in London for display in the annual Exhibition. These so-called ‘six-footers’ vividly captured the life of the River Stour in Suffolk, where Constable grew up and where he returned to paint each year. The Leaping Horse, the last of these, is now a major work in the Academy’s collection, and is the subject of this fascinating new book, the latest in the Royal Academy’s studies of its masterworks. The art historian Richard Humphreys explores Constable’s often avant-garde working methods, as well as his struggle to gain full acceptance within the art establishment of the early nineteenth century. With reproductions of the artist’s full-scale preliminary sketches as well as brand new photography of the painting itself, this book is the ideal companion for art lovers who seek a deeper appreciation of Constable’s iconic depictions of the English countryside.

The Image Archive of the main library at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH-Bibliothek) is home to a vast collection of photographs. It includes material collected by professors and other staff at the ETH, images created and collected by institutes and chairs within the ETH, but also the entire archives of companies or other institutions, such as Switzerland s legendary former national airline Swissair (1931 – 2001), or private collections bequeathed to ETH-Bibliothek. The aim of the new book series Pictorial Worlds. Photographs from the ETH-Bibliothek’s Image Archive is to build a bridge between analytical treatment of historical image sources and the interest in individual photographs for any possible reason. One of the collections held at the Image Archive has been put together by Swiss entrepreneur Adolf Feller (1879 – 1931) and his daughter Elisabeth (1910 – 1973). Unique in size, scope and period covered, it comprises 54,000 postcards from 1889 – 1980. It documents comprehensively what can be called the ‘Golden Age’ of picture postcards before World War I, with its enormous diversity of motifs, radical changes of style in design and of the era when postcards had their heyday as a communication medium. The collection’s main focus is on images of individual sites, places and landscapes in 140 countries. Around 15,000 motifs are from Switzerland. The period best represented in the collection is from 1893 – 1930. The World in Pocket-size Format is a documentation of this magnificent collection. The book is also an illustrated history of this means of communication that has had its time of utmost importance in human relationships. Text in English and German.

Living Buildings celebrates the 60th Anniversary of Donald Insall Associates, the Practice founded by distinguished British architect Donald Insall, a leading exponent in the field of Architectural Conservation. Probably best known for the restoration of Windsor Castle after a devastating fire in 1992, the team’s dedicated work has ensured the longevity of many of Britain’s national treasures. This book presents a detailed examination of a painstaking approach to architectural conservation, comprehensively illustrated by case-studies, drawings, plans and in-depth descriptions. It is designed for a wide readership among all those who love and care for old buildings and appreciate good new design in sensitive areas.

Switzerland is well-known for its host of remarkable collections of 18th century European porcelain. Exemplary representatives include renowned collectors such as Dr Albert Kocher and Dr Marcel Nyffeler. A number of these magnificent collections can be found today – as a result of endowments or gifts – in Switzerland’s renowned institutions. Today, the ‘white gold’ from Saxony still fascinates Swiss connoisseurs: this publication is dedicated to their passion for collecting and for exceptional treasures, and is enriched with articles by renowned art historians and porcelain experts. An impressive overview of the gems from the most sumptuous Meissen porcelain of the early period.