Stealing the Mystic Lamb
The True Story of the World's Most Coveted Masterpiece
1 of 1 copy available
Since its completion in 1432, this twelve-panel oil painting has been looted in three different wars, burned, dismembered, forged, smuggled, illegally sold, censored, hidden, attacked by iconoclasts, hunted by the Nazis and Napoleon, used as a diplomatic tool, ransomed, rescued by Austrian double-agents, and stolen a total of thirteen times.
In this fast-paced, real-life thriller, art historian Noah Charney unravels the stories of each of these thefts. In the process, he illuminates the whole fascinating history of art crime and the psychological, ideological, religious, political, and social motivations that have led many men to covet this one masterpiece above all others.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
December 14, 2010 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781452620336
- File size: 301405 KB
- Duration: 10:27:55
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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A seventeenth-century Flemish painting so beautiful it cursed itself forever was the Ghent Altarpiece, or the Mystic Lamb. Painted in innovative detail onto 12 wooden panels by Jan van Eyck, the masterpiece earned uncommon fame throughout its peripatetic life. Author Noah Charney writes, "Since its completion in 1432, the altarpiece has disappeared, been looted in three different wars, and been burned, copied, forged, illegally sold, censored, attacked by iconoclasts, hidden away, ransomed, rescued, and stolen time and time again." Narrator John Allen Nelson sounds comfortable with the challenging vocabulary prevalent in central Europe from the Renaissance to the present. Nelson's forceful delivery demands attention to every word, taking on the format of a history lecture for those wearing earphones. J.A.H. (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
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