This volume focuses on the Second Golden Age¿́¿the critically important medieval era¿́¿of the Byzantine Empire, presenting insights into the art and culture of the Middle Byzantine era (843¿́¿1261) through the discussion of a remarkable number of works of the highest artistic and cultural standards. The book explores the role of the richly multiethnic empire during the centuries in which it influenced, converted, gained, and lost territories as diverse as Kievan Rus¿́¿, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, Syria, the Holy Land, Egypt, Cyprus, Sicily, South Italy, and the Veneto, while at the same time it set a standard of artistic excellence for Christian kingdoms in the Latin West and for Islamic states in the Near East. Examining more than 350 objects from 119 collections in 24 countries, the reader is presented with the breadth of the Byzantine Empire¿́¿s art and culture during these 4 centuries. -- Metropolitan Museum of Art website.