Neil MacGregor has been Director of the British Museum since August 2002. He was Director of the National Gallery in London from 1987 to 2002. His celebrated books include A History of the World in 100 Objects, now translated into more than a dozen languages and one of the top-selling titles ever published by Penguin Press, Shakespeare's Restless World and Germany: Memories of a Nation.
From sausages and porcelain to the glory days of Bauhaus, MacGregor has produced a dazzling history that goes far beyond the stereotypes of Nazis, forests and leather shorts. The illustrations alone - the glittering interior of Aachen Cathedral, the engravings of Albrecht Dürer - make you want to jump on the first flight to Berlin -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times * Unfailingly interesting and stimulating ... the book succeeds triumphantly -- Richard J Evans * TLS *