The Cat in Art is both full of surprises and hauntingly familiar, as cats play and pounce and sleep and purr their way through 170 great art masterpieces from the ancient world to the present. What cats represent to us in life, they bring to art: elegance and grace; domestic tranquility; symbols of sensuality and mischievousness.

Here are paintings by Van Eyck, Raphael, Leonardo, Bruegel, Rembrandt, Chardin, Gainsborough, Manet, Renoir, Bonnard, Gauguin, Matisse, Balthus, Picasso, Warhol, and many others. Sometimes the cats are the stars of the work, and sometimes they are working their magic from the corners of rooms—in which case both the whole work and a detail showing the cat are illustrated.

Stefano Zuffi’s charming text tells the reader what it all means, from the feline goddesses of the ancients, to the devilish cats of the Middle Ages, to the indispensable companions of our own time.

Stefano Zuffi is an art historian who specializes in Renaissance and Baroque painting. He has written numerous popular books about art and artists, including Abrams’ Art in Venice (1999). He lives in Milan.