Art History in the Age of Bellori. Scholarship and Cultural Politics in Seventeenth-Century Rome, 2002, 412 p., rel. -

Giovan Pietro Bellori was one of the most important intellectuals of seventeenth-century Italy. Best known today for his art criticism and biographies of artists he knew personally, such as Nicholas Poussin, in his own day he was renowned for his expertise in coins, gems, and ancient painting. This collection of essays presents new findings about Bellori's multifarious activities as well as fresh interpretations of his ideas. A frank, unbiased reevaluation of its subject, Art History in the Age of Bellori contributes to a more nuanced understanding of Bellori's place in seventeenth-century letters and politics, art criticism, and antiquarian studies.