Thai manuscript painting /

In this authoritative book, the British Library curator of Thai and Cambodian material succintly but clearly introduces Thai manuscripts to the interested reader. With the British Library manuscripts as the chief evidence, Ginsberg discusses texts, scripts, and illustrations under six popular themes: cosmology, divination, elephant treatises, the story of the Buddhist monk Phra Malai who visited Heaven and Hell, former lives of the Buddha, and genre scenes. A brief final chapter traces evolving style from the first surviving 17th-century illustrations to the present day. The 27 vivid color details and 46 black-and-white photographs illustrate the fine linear art tradition, full of delicacy and charm. No comparable survey in English exists, but Jean Boisselier's Thai Painting (CH, Sep'77) sets illuminated manuscripts in the context of other Thai painting. For the advanced student there is a valuable appendix with a complete annotated list of illustrated Thai manuscripts in major Western libraries. Recommended for Asian collections. -M. Morehart, University of British Columbia