Kathryn Jones, Lauren Porter and Jennifer Scott

ISBN 978 1 909741 10 2
Hardback with slipcase, 215 × 215 mm
120 pages, over 100 colour illustrations

From time immemorial, monarchs have used gold to symbolise their status and power, and artists have used it to evoke the divine. This book explores the role of gold in art and the exploitation of its worth and rarity to promote messages of authority, immortality and wealth.

The works discussed range from the astonishing survival of the 4,000-year-old Rillaton gold cup to Fabergé‘s exquisite gold boxes, together with medieval gold-ground paintings, shimmering Persian miniatures, magnificent gilded furniture, fine bindings sparkling with gold, Japanese ‘pear-skin’ lacquer, and jewellery both formal and personal.