The Alte Pinakothek Munich /anglais - Softcover

Munich's Alte Pinakothek houses a rich collection of paintings, from the fourteenth to the eighteenth century. Founded in the sixteenth century by Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria, the collection is now housed in a neoclassical building, built under the auspices of King Ludwig I. Maximilian I acquired eleven of Durer's works, so the gallery boasts such paintings as the Four Apostles and the Paumgarten Altar. To Elector Max Emanuel we owe the beginning of the Rubens collection, which is now the largest in the world. Eleven of the paintings are illustrated in this title, including The Honeysuckle Bower, Helene Fourment in her Wedding Dress and the Last Judgment. The great royal collectors were hungry for works from all schools. The Italian collection includes Raphael, Botticelli and Titian. French painting is represented by Chardin, Fragonard and many others, while the Spanish section is crowned by El Greco's The Disrobing of Christ. Each section is prefaced by an introductory text, which sets the paintings in their historical context, and detailed captions also accompany each painting.

Dr Reinhold Baumstark is Director General of the Bavarian State Paintings Collection.