50 Sites that Explain the Classical World
Historian Charles Freeman’s beautifully-illustrated account of the evolution of the Classical World follows its development, mainly around the shores of the Mediterranean but with sites from as far afield as the sands of Syria and icy northern Britain.
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Tuscany, with Florence its capital and a host of gorgeous medieval cities set in a rolling countryside of fields, vineyards and olive groves, is the cradle of the Renaissance and for many visitors the cultural heart of Italy. This guide amply covers Florence (itself the subject of a whole Blue Guide) but also gives extensive coverage to the other major Tuscan cities – Siena, Pisa, Lucca, Cortona, Arezzo. Ideal for the Florence-based visitor making day-trips to the surroundings, or for a tour of the whole of Tuscany. Includes Blue Guides Recommended short lists of hotels and restaurants.
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Displayed on its own in a glass case in one of the later rooms of the excellent Archaeological Museum in Aghios Nikolaos, Crete, is an arresting clay head. It was found near Siteia, where it had been left at a shrine as a votive deposit. The young man’s lips are slightly curved in the famous ‘Archaic smile’. They would originally have been painted red, his eyebrows black and his enormous eyes probably dark as well. His features call to mind those of someone very famous. A frivolous idea? Perhaps. But once it’s occurred to you, it’s hard not to stroll the museum’s halls without ‘Pretty Young Thing’ ringing in your head.
The new edition of Blue Guide Crete is published February 2010.
Blue Guides coverage of Italy is colossal in its scope: 9 guides to the regions and cities of Italy are currently in print, totalling 5,000 pages of material. This brand-new guide draws on the depth and range of previous Blue Guides to offer the ultimate concise guide to the entire country. A 400-page distillation that features the erudition and detailed knowledge that have made Blue Guides the choice of discerning travellers everywhere, Blue Guide Concise Italy is an ideal companion for the first time visitor, or any visitor with an interest in the country’s art, history and culture. In full colour, with a focus on covering key sites in sufficient depth, its concentration on Italy’s art history and architecture is supplemented by Blue Guide’s shortlist recommendations of hotels and restaurants.
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The City of Light boasts a huge variety of art collections from small and intimate to one of the most celebrated museums in the world, the Louvre. One of the gastronomic capitals of the world, Paris can only be understood if approached through its history and culture.
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