Vanishing Histories : 100 Endangered Sites from the World Monuments Watch
- Book Review,
by Amery Colin, Brian Curran
From Publishers Weekly
Stewarding world history and culture, the World Monument Fund offers both a warning call and a reassurance in Vanishing Histories: 100 Endangered Sites from the World Monuments Watch by Colin Amory with Brian Curran. From Vienna's baroque Belvedere Gardens, Tbilisi's Ottoman-influenced historic district in the republic of Georgia and the 13th-century terraced vineyards in Liguria, Italy, to Cambodia's 12th-century Banteay Chhmar Temple of Jayavarman VII, Cairo's ancient public water distribution centers and Peru's Machu Picchu, the authors provide brief descriptions of the origins, uses, decline and, in many cases, restoration of sites all over the world. Buildings on the south end of Ellis Island, right under New Yorkers' noses, are dangerously fragile and await planned preservation; Colorado's Mesa Verde National Park has undergone extensive preservation efforts. Thoughtful presentation and 222 beautiful photographs (138 in color) make this an ideal gift for travelers and historians. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
The World Monuments Fund (WMF) is an international organization that preserves and safeguards the historic, artistic, and architectural heritage of humankind. This important and beautifully illustrated work coincides with the WMF's biennial Watch List, which identifies 100 of the most imperiled treasures of the world. Amery, an architectural correspondent for the London Financial Times, has joined forces with Curran, director of projects for the WMF, to list and describe each of the endangered sites and to offer a call to save a number of historical monuments, including Prague's historic center, Peru's Machu Picchu, Cambodia's Angkor Archaelogical District, St. Petersburg's Alexander Palace, Colorado's Mesa Verde, and various other churches, synagogues, fortresses, monasteries, and archaeological sites. Poignantly dedicated to the memory of all the vanished monuments, specifically the two giant Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan, destroyed this year by the Taliban government, the book features 239 striking photographs, 150 in full color, and includes an excellent index and table of contents. Highly recommended for travel, architecture, and even history collections. Melinda Stivers Leach, Precision Editorial Svcs., Wondervu, CO Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
The World Monuments Fund, which has been monitoring the state of precious architectural and artistic sites since 1965, established the World Monuments Watch in 1995 to heighten awareness of endangered cultural sites in the hope of garnering the support necessary for their preservation. Architectural expert Amery and conservator Curran present the histories of 100 such monuments in a volume as notable for the beauty of its photographs as for the urgency of its message. As the authors describe the social, aesthetic, and spiritual significance of remarkable sites all across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, they argue eloquently for worldwide protection of such cultural jewels as ancient churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, and palaces; Brancusi's Endless Column in Romania; the Vat Sisaket in Laos; mausoleums in Pakistan; and Mexico's Madera cave dwellings--each site moving testimony to humanity's creativity and faith. Eye-opening and stirring, this survey is especially poignant in the wake of the tragic obliteration of the monumental World Trade Center towers in New York City. Donna Seaman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Book Description
"An important, illuminating call to arms not only for those in the preservation community but for anyone interested in the fate of some of the world's most significant and threatened cultural treasures." -Robert A.M. Stern Dedicated to the preservation of our planet's architectural treasures, the World Monuments Watch was established in 1996 to aid in the rescue of endangered cultural sites. Breathtaking full-color photographs, many newly commissioned, portray the most important sites on the Watch's list between 1996 and 2000-including such marvels as the Angkor Archaeological District in Cambodia, Colorado's Mesa Verde National Park, ancient Pompeii, and many others around the globe. Spanning Baroque palace gardens in Vienna to an ancient city in the central Asian desert, the book includes brief discussions of each site. Published in association with the World Monuments Fund, the parent organization of the World Monuments Watch, this richly visual book will appeal to anyone interested in architecture, archaeology, and cultural history. 239 photographs, 150 in full color, 240 pages, 93/4 x 11"
About the Author
Colin Amery, for 20 years the architectural correspondent of the London Financial Times, is now special adviser to the World Monuments Fund in Britain. Brian Curran is director of projects for the World Monuments Fund in Britain. John Berendt is former editor of New York Magazine and a former Esquire columnist. His novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is an international best-seller.
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