The exuberant realism and virtuoso technique of Hellenistic sculpture formed the basis of European art. Under Alexander and his cosmopolitan successors, sculptors enriched the classical Greek repertoire with a whole range of new subjects - hermaphrodites, putti, peasants, boxers - and new styles - baroque treatment, genre figures, individualized portraiture.

Professor Smith offers a reappraisal of this entire artistic epoch as a period of innovation, demonstrating the variety, subtlety and complexity of its styles. Numerous illustrations reveal the skill and inventiveness of the Hellenistic masters, who created works of great beauty and expressive power. The result is a lively survey of a vital phase in the evolution of Western art.