Under the microscope: Paintings hidden secrets revealed This important addition to our understanding of art history s masterworks puts some of theworld's most famous paintingsunder a magnifying glass to uncover their most small and subtle elements andall they reveal about a bygone time, place, and culture.Guiding our eye to theminutiae of subject and symbolism, authors Rose-Marie and Rainer Hagen allow even the most familiar of pictures to come alive anew through theirintricacies and intrigues.Is the bride pregnant? Why does the man wear a beret? How does the shadow of war hang over a scene of dancing? Along the way, we travel fromAncient Egypt through to modern Europe, from theRenaissanceto theRoaring Twenties.We meetGreek heroes and poor German poetsand roamfrom cathedrals to cabaret bars, from the Garden of Eden to a Garden Bench in rural France.As we pick apart each painting and then reassemble it like a giant jigsaw puzzle, these celebrated canvases captivate not only in their sheer wealth of details but also in the witness they bear to thefashions and trends, people and politics, loves and lifestylesof their time. About the series: Bibliotheca Universalis Compact cultural companions celebrating the eclectic TASCHEN universe at an unbeatable, democratic price!Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, the name TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible, open-minded publishing.Bibliotheca Universalisbrings together nearly 100 of our all-time favorite titles in a neat new format so you can curate your own affordable library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia.Bookworm s delight never bore, always excite! "