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The Face

Our Human Story

Debra N Mancoff
Exploring the human experience through the representation of the face in art, Debra Mancoff presents over 360 artefacts ranging from prehistoric figurines to Renaissance drawings, and from 16th-century African masks to 20th-century photographs, all selected from the British Museum’s collections. The book is arranged by theme, from birth and childhood, through love and beauty, faith, power and identity to death – the gallery of faces ending with an Aztec human skull covered in turquoise and lignite mosaic.  
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RRP £16.95

£6.99

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Product information:
  • Publisher: Thames & Hudson
  • Year: 2018
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 304pp
  • Illustrated: Yes
  • Dimensions: 188x168mm
  • ISBN: 9780500518625
  • Condition: New
  • Weight: 0.9kg
Product code:
514642
Product information
Full publisher description
The face is not only central to identity, but is also the primary vehicle for human expression, emotion and character. It also signifies intellect and power, and has often been regarded as a window into the soul. Above all, it is the focus of our attention whenever we encounter another individual. But how have different cultures depicted faces, whether a likeness or idealized, whether masked or revealed, whether newborn, in the prime of life, dying or even deceased? Why has the depiction of the human face been so central to artistic expression in all world cultures, and why has it sometimes even been defaced or destroyed by iconoclasts and others?

Debra N. Mancoff explores the depiction of the human face through the full range of objects and works of art in the collection of the British Museum, and discovers how the face subtly conveys the full spectrum of human emotion. Arranged thematically, the book's chapters each begin with a brief introduction before depicting faces in various visually led pairings and groupings that encourage the reader to look for associations regardless of the objects' cultural origins. Some of the juxtapositions are allowed to speak for themselves; others are explored through brief narrative captions. Some of the juxtapositions raise a smile; others are surprisingly affecting. This book will both fascinate and delight the reader, offering insights into experiences that we all share as human beings and that our faces inevitably reveal.
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