The J. Paul Getty Museum Handbook of the Antiquities Collection

Book excerpt: The J. Paul Getty Museum's antiquities collection contains objects spanning thousands of years, from Preclassical times as far back as the third millennium B.C. through A.D. 600, encompassing Cycladic, Minoan, Mycenaean, Greek, Etruscan, South Italian, Roman, and Romano-Egyptian artifacts. The collection at the Getty Villa includes one of the finest assemblages of ancient Greek vases in the United States; monumental marble sculptures and diminutive bronzes; Greek and Roman gems; and Hellenistic silverware, jewelry, and glass. In lively prose accompanied by full-color photographs of nearly two hundred objects, this handbook presents the most important pieces in the collection.