"Phoebe Apperson Hearst: A Life of Power and Politics offers the first biography of one of the Gilded Age's most prominent and powerful women."--Provided by publisher.

This book documents, with photographs and complete descriptions, the more than 2,200 Native Alaskan (Eskimo, Aleut, Northwest Coast, and Athapaskan) objects originally collected by the Alaska Commercial Company and donated to the University of California in 1897. Introducing the catalogue are essays on the historical background and cultural context and significance of the collection. Also included are indexes of personal and geographical names and a concordance.

A decadeslong collaboration between publisher William Randolph Hearst and architect Julia Morgan produced the formal terraces, swimming pools, and plants and sculptures that occupy the 120 acres of gardens and 450 square miles of coastland of San Simeon, now a California State Park. Their extensive correspondence reveals a captivating working relationship with shared concerns over every aspect of the enormous project. Hearst Castle historian Kastner's (Hearst Castle: The Biography of a Country House) biography of a man and of an estate is also a social study of the periodthe famous and infamous Hollywood figures who peopled the house and its grounds, the lavish lifestyle, and the mythical tales about its owner. The superb photos by Garagliano, photographer at San Simeon since 1994, capture some of the elegant views, the vast array of buildings, and the myriad details. This work of visual delight should whet the appetite for a visit to the real thing.Paula Frosch, Metropolitan Museum of Art Lib., New York Copyright Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.