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This extraordinary and breathtakingly beautiful book celebrates a lifetime of collecting passion. Oliver Hoare, one of London's most distinguished dealers, originally learnt his craft in the company of Bruce Chatwin. His love of the rare, the evocative and the seductive shines out from every stunning object in this collection and the stories that he teases out from them. No one could fail to be drawn into this gorgeous labyrinth. Published to coincide with an exhibition held in the magnificent settings of Fitzroy Square, London, the book includes antiquities from the ancient and classical worlds; superb oriental musical instruments; erotica and fertilica; a section devoted to extinct species, particularly the dodo; objects connected to shamanism, magic and alchemy; engravings by Durer, Hollar and Rembrandt; unusual paintings and textiles; curiosities including a Man Ray objet trouve, and the 13th Dalai Lama's double bass - he was passionate about jazz. 'The point of the exhibition, as its title announces, is to celebrate the fascinating, and often peculiar stories attached to works of art. The criterion for what is presented has little to do with the value of objects and therefore it differs from the more conventional 'Cabinet of Curiosities'. Nor does it reflect the current canon of what is seen as beautiful or culturally significant, although there are significant and beautiful works of art by anyone's standards. The catalogue is, hopefully, the work of a storyteller's art.' Oliver Hoare
