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BRUCE STEPHENSON, MARVIN BOLT and ANNA FELICITY FRIEDMAN, The Universe Unveiled: Instruments and Images through History. Chicago: Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum and Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. Pp. 152. ISBN 0-521-79143-X. 119.95, $29.95 (hardback).
This is a book of an unusual type; it does not conform to the standard categories of museum publication and as such is a welcome and successful attempt to solve some of the problems of communication and access in relation to collections. Museums of scientific artefacts often contain beautiful objects that readily supply attractive illustrations, but their technical explanation can be challenging, while their significance in the story of science can present even greater problems for technically motivated curators. Museums...