Amazon.com Review
When archeologists working under Stamford Raffles, the British colonialist and founder of Singapore, stumbled on the overgrown monument of Borobudur in the Javanese jungle in the late 19th century, they uncovered an ancient marvel that has astounded archeologists ever since. A cosmos in stone, a visual scripture of Buddhism with 1,460 exquisite carved reliefs, a pilgrimage site and an enormous mandala, Borobudur was the supreme achievement of a Buddhist kingdom that flourished briefly and then died on Java in the 9th and 10th centuries. This exquisite coffee table volume is perhaps the most lavish of the several oversize photographic books on the greatest Buddhist monument in the world. Designed by Molly Shields, the book's almost-square format approximates that of Borobudur itself.
Review
Borobudur . . . is a glorious visual analysis of the 1,100-year-old holy site in Indonesia. . . . Thorough enough to satisfy scholars and pretty enough to entice the general reader, this coffee-table book is one you can return to again and again. -- Islands, 4/97
One completes this paper pilgrimage disinclined to dispute the ancient belief that cosmic Borobudur represents "e;the center of the center."e; -- The New York Times Book Review, Martin Filler
The book, fully annotated and lavishly illustrated with sweeping views and detailed closeups, is a tour de force that may be the next best thing to experiencing this portrayal of heaven and earth in person. . . . [H]auntingly beautiful. -- Contract Design, 5/97
[G]lorious photographs . . . detailed and articulate explications. -- New York Times, 12/8/96
One completes this paper pilgrimage disinclined to dispute the ancient belief that cosmic Borobudur represents "e;the center of the center."e; -- The New York Times Book Review, Martin Filler
The book, fully annotated and lavishly illustrated with sweeping views and detailed closeups, is a tour de force that may be the next best thing to experiencing this portrayal of heaven and earth in person. . . . [H]auntingly beautiful. -- Contract Design, 5/97
[G]lorious photographs . . . detailed and articulate explications. -- New York Times, 12/8/96
