This book is exactly want the tittle implies. This is a concise encyclopedia of glass. Well laid out in 10 sections with an intriguing forward and an informative introduction. There is a select bibliography a section on care and conservation among other interesting finds. Color plates abound with concise descriptions.

If you only obtain one book on the diversity of glass, this should be the one.

Contents:

Pre-Roman glass

Roman Glass

Islamic Glass

Medieval Glass

The renaissance Period

The Eighteenth Century

Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau

Twentieth-Century Developments

Fakes and Forgeries

This is a narrative history of porcelain, lavishly illustrated. It covers only porcelain, not other forms of ceramics. It focuses on wares that I would consider exclusively museum quality. The illustrations are gorgeous. The text is gracefully written and thoroughly informative. Although it is not arranged topically as a real encyclopedia would be, it does have a marvelous glossary at the end that is an education in itself. With the caveat that this is a narrative not a topical reference, I highly recommend this book.