Books in the The Cultural Histories Series series

A Cultural History of Dress and Fashion presents an authoritative survey from ancient times to the present. This set of six volumes covers over 2,500 years of dress and fashion. Volume 1: Antiquity (500BCE-800AD), edited by Mary HarlowVolume 2: The Medieval Age (800-1450), edited by Sarah-Grace HellerVolume 3: The Renaissance (1450-1650), edited by Elizabeth CurrieVolume 4: The Age of Enlightenment (1650-1800), edited by Peter McNeilVolume 5: The Age of Empire (1800-1920), edited by Denise Amy BaxterVolume 6: The Modern Age (1920-2000+), edited by Alexandra Palmer Each volume discusses the same key themes in its chapters:1. Textiles 2. Production and Distribution3. The Body4. Belief5. Gender and Sexuality6. Status7. Ethnicity8. Visual Representations9. Literary RepresentationsThis structure means readers can either have a broad overview of a period by reading a volume or follow a theme through history by reading the relevant chapter in each volume.Superbly illustrated, the full six volume set combines to present the most authoritative and comprehensive survey available on dress and fashion through history.The Cultural Histories SeriesA Cultural History of Dress and Fashion is part of The Cultural Histories Series. Titles are available as hardcover sets for libraries needing just one subject or preferring a tangible reference for their shelves or as part of a fully-searchable digital library. The digital product is available to institutions by annual subscription or on perpetual access via www.bloomsburyculturalhistory.com. Individual volumes for academics and researchers interested in specific historical periods are also available in print or digitally via www.bloomsburycollections.com.

How has our understanding and treatment of disability evolved in Western culture? How has it been represented and perceived in different social and cultural conditions?In a work that spans 2,500 years, these ambitious questions are addressed by over 50 experts, each contributing their overview of a theme applied to a period in history. The volumes describe different kinds of physical and mental disabilities, their representations and receptions, and what impact they have had on society and everyday life.Individual volume editors ensure the cohesion of the whole, and to make it as easy as possible to use, chapter titles are identical across each of the volumes. This gives the choice of reading about a specific period in one of the volumes, or following a theme across history by reading the relevant chapter in each of the six. The six volumes cover: 1. - Antiquity (500 BCE - 500 CE); 2. - Middle Ages (500 - 1450); 3. - Renaissance (1400 - 1650) ; 4. - Long Eighteenth Century (1650 - 1800); 5. - Long Nineteenth Century (1800 - 1920); 6. - Modern Age (1920 - 2000+).Themes (and chapter titles) are: atypical bodies; mobility impairment; chronic pain and illness; blindness; deafness; speech; learning difficulties; mental health.The page extent is approximately 2,000pp with c. 200 illustrations. Each volume opens with Notes on Contributors, a series preface and an introduction, and concludes with Notes, Bibliography and an Index.

As much as the nineteenth and early twentieth century gardens and their designs were a product and representation of industrialisation and urbanisation, they were also motors of change. Gardens became an industry in and of themselves. They were both the last resting places of the dead and cultivated plots for surv ival. Gardens were therapeutic environments regarded as civilising, socialising and assimialting institutions, and they were designed and perceived as social landscapes and community playgrounds. Rich with symbolism, gardens were treated as the subject and the setting for literature and painting and were often considerd works of art in themselves. In a time of empire, when plants were drawn from across the globe, gardens also reflected territorial conquest and expansion and they fostered national, regional and local identities.A Cultural History of Gardens in the Age of Empire presents an overview of the period with essays on issues of design, types of gardens, planting, use and reception, issues of meaning, verbal and visual representation of gardens, and the relationship of gardens to the larger landscape.

In the 20th century, many aspects of life became 'a matter of perception' in the wake of the multiplication of media, stylistic experimentation, and the rise of multiculturalism. Life sped up as a result of new modes of transportation - automobiles and airplanes - and communication - telephones and personal computers - which emphasized the rapid movement of people and ideas. The proliferation of synthetic products and simulated experiences, from artificial flavors to video games, in turn, created heady virtual worlds of sensation. This progressive mediation and acceleration of sensation, along with the sensory and environmental pollution it often spawned, also sparked various countertrends, such as the 'back to nature' movement, the craft movement, slow food and alternative medicine. This volume shows how attending to the sensory dynamics of the modern age yields many fresh insights into the intertwined processes which gave the 20th century its particular feel of technological prowess and gaudy artificiality.A Cultural History of the Senses in the Modern Age presents essays on the following topics: the social life of the senses; urban sensations; the senses in the marketplace; the senses in religion; the senses in philosophy and science; medicine and the senses; the senses in literature; art and the senses; and sensory media.

The history of gardens in antiquity is characterized by a rich mix of cultures interacting throughout Europe, Africa and Asia. This period - from the sixth century BCE to the sixth century CE - was foundational to the later periods of garden history. The emergence of advanced horticultural techniques, sustained regional and international trade routes, and centralized power structures promoted the development of highly sophisticated garden culture in both private and public contexts. New evidence derived from archaeology and fresh analysis of literary and visual sources revises our perspective, reminding us that these garden cultures were varied and diverse, yet connected through ritual, trade, conquest, and cultural practices in ways we are only beginning to define.

The collection of ideas, values, and beliefs known as the Enlightenment fundamentally altered the ways in which the family was understood. During this period (1650-1800), traditional family roles were rethought, questioning much which had been taken for granted, such as the innate nature of children. At the same time, the Enlightenment also reinforced many long-held notions, applying new ideas to perpetuate assumptions about gender and race.The commercialization of agriculture, industrialization, and urbanization, as well as the opportunities presented by expanding education and the sale of domestic goods all impacted on the family. Further, the continuing expansion of Western empires, the ownership of slaves within American states, and the political turmoil of the American and French revolutions all helped to shape both the ideals and the experience of family life. A Cultural History of Childhood and Family in the Age of Enlightenment presents essays on family relationships, community, economy, geography and the environment, education, life cycle, the state, faith and religion, health and science, and world contexts.

A Cultural History of Peace presents an authoritative survey from ancient times to the present. The set of six volumes covers a span of 2500 years, tracing how different cultures and societies have thought about, struggled for, developed and sustained peace in different ways and at different times.1. A Cultural History of Peace in Antiquity (500 BCE - 800 CE)2. A Cultural History of Peace in the Medieval Age (800 - 1450)3. A Cultural History of Peace in the Renaissance (1450 - 1648)4. A Cultural History of Peace in the Age of Enlightenment (1648 - 1815)5. A Cultural History of Peace in the Age of Empire (1815 - 1920)6. A Cultural History of Peace in the Modern Age (1920 - present)Each volume discusses the same themes in its chapters:1. Definitions of Peace2. Human Nature, Peace and War3. Peace, War and Gender4. Peace, Pacifism and Religion5. Representations of Peace6. Peace as Integration7. Peace Movements8. Peace, Security and DeterrenceThis structure offers readers a broad overview of a period within each volume or the opportunity to follow a theme through history by reading the relevant chapter across volumes.Generously illustrated, the full six-volume set combines to present the most authoritative and comprehensive survey available on peace in history.The Cultural Histories SeriesA Cultural History of Peace is part of The Cultural Histories Series. Titles are available as hardcover sets for libraries needing just one subject or preferring a tangible reference for their shelves or as part of a fully-searchable digital library. The digital product is available to institutions by annual subscription or on perpetual access via www.bloomsburyculturalhistory.com.Individual volumes for academics and researchers interested in specific historical periods are also available in print or digitally via www.bloomsburycollections.com.

The ancient world used the senses to express an enormous range of cultural meanings. Indeed the senses were functionally significant in all aspects of ancient life, often in ways that were complex and interconnected. Antiquity was also a period where the senses were experienced vividly: cities stank, statues were brightly painted and literature made full use of sensory imagery to create its effects. In a steeply hierarchical world, with vast differences between the landed wealthy, the poor and the slaves, the senses played a key role in establishing and maintaining boundaries between social groups; but the use of the senses in the ancient world was not static. New religions, such as Christianity, developed their own way of using the senses, acquiring unique forms of sensory-related symbolism in processes which were slow and often contested. The aim of this volume is to provide an overview of these structures and developments and to show how their study can yield a more nuanced understanding of the ancient world.A Cultural History of the Senses in Antiquity presents essays on the following topics: the social life of the senses; urban sensations; the senses in the marketplace; the senses in religion; the senses in philosophy and science; medicine and the senses; the senses in literature; art and the senses; and sensory media.

A thematic overview of how sexuality was perceived in the period from 1920 to 2000, covering homosexuality, heterosexuality, sexual variations, prostitution, medicine, religion, erotica and popular belief.

A thematic overview of how sexuality was perceived in the period from 1820 to 1920, covering homosexuality, heterosexuality, sexual variations, prostitution, medicine, religion, erotica and popular belief.

A thematic overview of how sexuality was perceived in the period from 1650 to 1820, covering homosexuality, heterosexuality, sexual variations, prostitution, medicine, religion, erotica and popular belief.