The Egyptians completely mastered the art of bronze-casting. This catalogue describes no fewer than 200 figures, many of which are small masterpieces.
The collection was assembled by the founder of the Glyptotek, the brewing magnet Carl Jacobsen, and his egyptologist, Valedemar Schmidt, around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Togetehr they strove to build a pantheon, i.e. a gallery which would present the world of the Egyptian gods to the Glyptotek's visitors. For this purpose the bronze figures were - and still are - ideal, as no other Egyptian art form presents so many different gods, goddesses and sacred animals as the art of the bronze-caster.
The technical process of bronze-casting, the original purpose of the bronze figures and the history of the collection are described in the catalogue's introduction, and at the back of the book is a short mythological glossary. All the figures are illustrated clearly with colour photographs.
