Venice

Unlike any other guide, this stunningly illustrated handbook conducts visitors around Venice using the observations and opinions of famous writers and art historians to enlighten them. Among the people it quotes are Vasari, Ruskin, Berenson, Wittkower, Dickens, Henry James, A.J.C. Hare, Otto Demus, Ernst Gombrich, Michael Levey, Cecil Gould, Hugh Honour, and James Morris. The book divides Venice up into seven walks and four excursions. These divisions are accompanied by eight clear maps so that people can see the maximum number of sights they wish to in a limited time. Its coverage of Venice's rich store of paintings and sculpture is as full as that of its unique architecture. The illustrations are mostly taken from old engravings and, like the text, provide a fascinating historical perspective on the present-day versions of the scenes and buildings they represent.