Photographer Page

Fine Art

New York printmaker Louis Prang produced this lithograph in 1890, when Champagne was still a relatively new luxury import from France.

This 15th-century tempera on silk painting depicts the many palaces, pavilions, and courtyards of the Forbidden City.

A Viking party prepares to raid England in a miniature from a 12th-century work on St. Edmund, now at The Morgan Library & Museum in New York.

Carême, pictured here in a lithograph by Charles de Steuben, elevated the status of the chef to new heights. The showmanship of his confections could be seen by all at his pastry shop, and his cookbooks appealed to a public eager for access to the art of haute cuisine previously limited to the aristocracy. As his popularity grew, he put self-portraits in his books so fans might recognize him. Royalty and high society bid for his services, but he often turned them down to write. When the composer Gioacchino Rossini was asked if he planned to tour America, he replied, “Only if Carême comes with me.”

Saladin's capture of the True Cross in 1187 inspired the Children's Crusade. Engraving from 13th-century Chronicle of Matthew Paris.

A 15th-century illustration from Marco Polo’s Travels, held by the Bodleian Library, Oxford, shows the Polos’ departure from Venice. St. Mark’s Basilica with its four bronze horses is recognizable (left) and alongside it is the Doge’s Palace. In front are the columns of St. Theodore and St. Mark, topped by a winged lion. The inclusion of exotic animals (lower left) hints at the wondrous thing to come on their epic voyage.