The appeal of this extraordinary book lies in its rapt obsession with the details of the domestic interior, borne out in a wonderfully rich collection of pictures. These charming paintings and watercolors, mostly dating from 1770 to 1860 and coming from all over Europe, Russia, and America, record with faithful accuracy the shape of a room, the pattern of a carpet, the furniture, pictures, fabrics, and wall coverings, the hang of the curtains and the fall of the light they admit.<br /><br />The pictures find their place in a complete survey of domestic—and some more palatial—interiors portrayed in art from the ancient world to the late nineteenth century, and including works by Vermeer, Hogarth, Durer, Degas, and Vuillard. The text goes beyond scholarly commentary to present an evolving picture of men and women in relation to domestic surroundings, full of human interest, wit, and wide-ranging cultural references.<br /><br />Mario Praz (1896–1982) was Professor of English Language and Literature at the University of Rome. The most celebrated of his many other books is <em>The Romantic Agony</em>.