Braziller first published the hardcover edition of this now-classic work 20 years ago, and many libraries already own it. This paperback edition may provide a more affordable alternative for smaller collections. The bulk of the volume consists of good reproductions of all the miniatures and many of the decorated text pages in the same size as the original medieval manuscript. No enlarged details are provided. In contrast, the recent volume from Abrams on the Tres Riches Heures, Cazelles's & Rathofer's Illuminations of Heaven and Earth ( LJ 12/88), does provide detail views. Its text, however, draws heavily on the scholarship of the Braziller volume, which is also more accessible to lay readers and students. The effect of looking through a copy of this famous manuscript will be satisfying to a wide audience. - Kathryn Finkelstein, M.Ln., Cincinnati Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
