{"product_id":"the-madmans-gallery-the-strangest-paintings-sculptures-and-other-curiosities-from-the-history-of-art-9781797221762","title":"The Madman's Gallery: The Strangest Paintings, Sculptures and Other Curiosities from the History of Art","description":"\u003cb\u003eEnter \u003ci\u003eThe Madman's Gallery\u003c\/i\u003e and discover an extraordinary, illustrated exhibition of the greatest curiosities from the global history of art, featuring one hundred magnificently eccentric antique paintings, engravings, illustrations, and sculptures, each with a fascinatingly bizarre story to tell.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Brought to light from the depths of libraries, museums, dealers, and galleries around the world, these forgotten artistic treasures include portraits of oddballs such as the British explorer with a penchant for riding crocodiles, and the Italian monk who levitated so often he's recognized as the patron saint of airplane passengers. Discover impossible medieval land yachts, floating churches, and eagle-powered airships. Encounter dog-headed holy men, armies of German giants, 18th-century stuntmen, human chessboards, screaming ghost heads, and more marvels of the human imagination. A captivating odditorium of obscure and engaging characters and works, each expertly brought to life by historian and curator of the strange Edward Brooke-Hitching, here is a richly illustrated and entertaining gallery for lovers of outré art and history. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e A GLOBAL SURVEY: Here are European painters who used ground up Egyptian mummies as pigment, examples of the antique Japanese art of \u003ci\u003eGyotaku \u003c\/i\u003e(fish stone rubbings) using dried fish as printing plates, a Parisian art hoax featuring paintings actually created by a chimpanzee, and much more. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e ODDITIES ABOUND: Depictions of the demon worms believed to cause toothaches carved into human molars: Check. A nude version of the Mona Lisa painted by the \"bad boy\" apprentice of Leonardo da Vinci: Here it is. The most admiring portrait of a cannibal likely ever produced: Presented in full color. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e EXPERT AUTHOR: Edward Brooke-Hitching is a master of taking visually driven deep dives into unusual historical subjects, such as the maps of imaginary geography in \u003ci\u003eThe Phantom Atlas\u003c\/i\u003e or ancient pathways through the stars in \u003ci\u003eThe Sky Atlas\u003c\/i\u003e, imaginative depictions of heavens, hells, and afterworlds in \u003ci\u003eThe Devil's Atlas\u003c\/i\u003e, and the strangest books imaginable in \u003ci\u003eThe Madman's Library\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Perfect for: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e Fans of beautifully illustrated works, art history, and unusual world atlas collections \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e Readers of quirky history such as \u003ci\u003eSchott's Miscellany\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eAtlas Obscura\u003c\/i\u003e, and the wildly popular \u003ci\u003eQI\u003c\/i\u003e series (for which the author is a writer and researcher) \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e Gift for a graduate, teacher, or student of world history, art history, library science, archeology, sociology, or any discipline engaged in the exploration of curiosities and human nature \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Chronicle Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/07\/2023\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781797221762\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 256","brand":"Edward Brooke-Hitching","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42589507059893,"sku":"9781797221762","price":29.75,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_42a3a628-78e1-46e9-97c1-23a2a288c85b.jpg?v=1673326240","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-madmans-gallery-the-strangest-paintings-sculptures-and-other-curiosities-from-the-history-of-art-9781797221762","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}