The Impossible Museum: The Best Art You'll Never See

This provocative book brings back to life 40 wonders of the art world that will never be seen again.

Spanning centuries and encompassing a variety of masterpieces — from paintings on canvas and cave walls to structures and jewelry — this fascinating compendium of »lost art« takes readers on a historic journey and explores how and why art can disappear from our lives. Some works are simply missing, such as da Vinci’s "Leda and the Swan" or the Romanov jewels. Others were intentionally transformed, such as Robert Smithson’s "Spiral Jetty", or destroyed, like the Buddhas of Bamyan. Some pieces are hidden away, such as the paintings at Lascaux or frescoes from the Pompeiian house of Marcus Lucretius. Others were stolen, including a Stradivarius violin, Jackson Pollock’s "Springs Winter", and Caravaggio’s "Nativity".

However they disappeared from view, these works represent significant gaps in art history. Fortunately for us, many exact replicas or studies for these pieces exist, while others were photographed before their destruction. Working with the latest research and documentation, author Céline Delavaux brings each lost piece back to life through illuminating text and helpful illustrations. Assembled together in this elaborate and informative volume, these works comprise their own unique "museum" — a place readers will be certain to visit again and again.