The Art of the Market: Two Centuries of American Business as Seen Through Its Stock Certificates

I received this as a gift. It's a beautiful book full of thick, glossy pages. Printed and bound in Hong Kong, as are many art books. Definitely something you could keep out for display or on a coffee table. Captures the rapidly disappearing niche of stock certificates. Wonderful macro photography of the artwork. Docked one star because of some typos (in the accompanying text). A companion book would seem to be: The Art of Money: The History and Design of Paper Currency from Around the World

The Art of the Market is a unique book that recreates the visual impressions that companies wanted to communicate to the public and shareholders. I especially like the presentation of the whole certificates with detailed enlargements. Shares in certificate form are disappearing so it only through books like this we able to connect with the first 200 years of American business. It's not a substitute for a history of American commerce but a valuable supplement, and for the art it is a worthy book in its own way.

This book is an excellent reminder of a time when stocks meant more; when stock was something tangible you held vice keystrokes gone in the blink of an eye or memory stored on your computer. In the era of online trading, art such as this is sorely missed. The commentary is not particularly deep, however the art and the history is, for lack of a better word, neat. I think this book is well suited for the coffee table and a nice reminder of how things were "back then."

I received this book as a gift, and was struck at first by its amazing "look"--it has top-notch graphics. The individual stock certificates are remarkable, and the book's authors make these images come to life as symbols of American business. The engraving of the certificates is treated as a vanishing art form, and this collection offers a reminder of just what is being lost as the market becomes more and more "virtual." At a time when more Americans own stock than ever before--and almost none of them, as the authors point out, have ever seen a stock certificate--this book represents nothing less than a hidden history of an American institution. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the stock market, but also to anyone interested in the history of American business and its influence on our culture.

Wonderfully illustrated book showing the true definition of financial art. Beautiful full-color illustrations of stock certificates. Best part of the book is the price. Very affordable (a bargain for the art!)