The initial attraction of a reader to this book is its cover. The symbol of the undying Pax Britannica—the arro¬gant image of the lion trium-phantly astride the globe, an unfurled Union Jack, backed by the imperial crown domi-nates the front flap, announc¬ing the Spectacle of the Empire. And rarely has a title so suited the contents of a book. The varied collection of paintings and photographs, many of which have not been published before, bring alive a variety of imperial themes virtually transporting the reader back to the turn of the century when the empire was a vibrant I reality.
The interest this book arouses is partly caused by the year of its publication. Released dur¬ing a period of fresh wave of nostalgia for the Raj in India and abroad, and comple-mented by the arrival of books and films Spectacle of the Empire, fits into this pattern. The focus is not so much on the empire as a political organism but more as a pheno-menon of modern history which enveloped almost every aspect of life. The period that the author has in mind would be the years 1870 to 1900 during the reign of Queen Alexandria Victoria.