Since it first appeared in 1768, the Encyclopaedia Britannica has presented the last word on the knowledge of its time. Its illustrious contributors include many of the men and women who have shaped Western science, art, literature, and statecraft, making the Britannica one of the few reference books whose past editions are coveted and consulted as avidly as their latest. Now, for the first time, the gems from the Britannica's fifteen editions have been collected in a. Single volume of unsurpassed eloquence, erudition, and entertainment. The Treasury of the Encyclopaedia Britannica is divided into two sections. Part One, "Let Knowledge Grow," traces the history of ten different fields over the past two centuries. Devoting one chapter to each subject - from art, science, and technology to medicine, religion, and human behavior - this section helps to convey how our thinking has developed over the last two hundred years. From the. Essential to the quirky, these pages chronicle a dizzying journey through history. Part Two reads like a Who's Who on What's What. Titled "Best Foot Forward," it features the Britannica's most brilliant contributors on their subjects of expertise. From Lawrence of Arabia on guerrilla warfare to Irene Castle on ballroom dancing to Carl Sagan on extraterrestrial life and Orville Wright on his brother Wilbur, this collection covers the sublime, the ridiculous, and. Everything in between. The only thing the pieces have in common is their quality. Truly a celebration of the human mind at its best, The Treasury of the Encyclopaedia Britannica is as fascinating as it is authoritative, a book that will be read for sheer pleasure as well as for its classic scholarship.