Based on an international conference held on the occasion of the opening of the new sculpture galleries in the NGA, Washington, DC in 2003.

"In this book twenty scholars examine the history of the collecting of sculpture from the late Middle Ages to the nineteenth century, as represented in the collections of royal families, aristocratic amateurs, and artists. The essays explore the nature of collecting, whether as a form of opulent interior decoration, as a means of outdoor display in architecture and landscape architecture, or as an accumulation of studio models. Case studies are drawn from Italian, French, German, Dutch, Flemish, and English examples."--Jacket.