This is a well-researched, thoroughly documented, and handsomely illustrated publication in two parts on Vanderlyn's <i>Panorama</i>, now on permanent exhibition in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. In the first part, K. Avery gives a concise overview of the history of panoramas in Europe, the huge circular paintings which served as the first mass media combining several features attractive to the viewer -- illusion, information, and a low admission price. He also describes John Vanderlyn's life and his tireless struggles to house and display the <i>Panorama of Versailles</i> which he painted in 1814-15 in an attempt to introduce European good taste to America. In the second part, P. Fodera describes the conservation of the piece. When donated to the Metropolitan in 1952, all that remained of the 18' x 165' painting were 24 pieces in varying sizes comprising less than 50% of the original area. It took Larry Majewski of the Conservation Center of the NYU Institute of Fine Arts two years to assemble the pieces, line them in two sections, and reconstruct the missing portions. Following exhibition in 1957, the two paintings were rolled and placed in storage. In 1981, when the museum wanted to put it on permanent display, it was found that the wax lining was too soft to prevent the recurrence of deformations. Gustav Berger, who was called in to solve the problem, mounted the two sections on Fibrplate®, a material developed especially for this purpose. It provided a huge, seamless, flexible sheet which could be made to conform to the curvature of the painting, and was stiff enough to prevent the recurrence of old distortions. He also designed a special apparatus to mount the two paintings, 12' x 83' each, in sections. Peter Fodera coordinated the conservation project. -- AATA