"Lisa Jardine and Jerry Brotton raise questions about the formation of cultural identity in Western Europe. Through an analysis of the circulation of art and luxury objects, the authors challenge the view that Renaissance culture defined itself in large part against an exotic, dangerous, always marginal East.

Featuring more than seventy illustrations, including many in color and some published for the first time, their book provides fascinating insights into the works of Leonardo da Vinci, Durer, Holbein, Pisanello, and Titian."--BOOK JACKET.