This book sets out to investigate the wealth of the artistic production that developed in Central Europe ‎(‎Austria and Bohemia in particular‎)‎ in the first half of the 19th century‎,‎ when Biedermeier appeared as an original attempt to give rise to a ‎-universal‎- stylistic expression‎.‎ Its simplicity of line‎,‎ rigorous and simple although not lacking in elegance and refinement‎,‎ the appearance of the first craft productions based on standard models and its unquestionable modernity all make Biedermeier the first example of design‎,‎ the undisputed point of breakdown between Classicism and Modernism‎.‎ Indeed‎,‎ it is considered on the most fascinating genres of the 19th century‎.‎ The volume offers a 360 view of Central European production using more than 300 objects of extraordinary originality‎,‎ quality and workmanship from the National Gallery and Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts of Prague and from major Bohemian museums‎.‎ Paintings‎,‎ furnishings‎,‎ sculptures‎,‎ drawings‎,‎ graphic works‎,‎ artistic craftsmanship‎,‎ jewels‎,‎ ceramics and glassware that decorated the homes of gentry and bourgeois‎,‎ miniatures‎,‎ daguerreotypes‎.‎‎.‎‎.‎ Remarkable pieces such as the refined lady‎'‎s desk‎,‎ designed and constructed in the workshop of the most important creator of Biedermeier furniture‎,‎ the Viennese Josef Danhauser ‎(‎1780‎- 1829‎)‎‎,‎ and a beautiful lyre‎- shaped secretaire with walnut veneer and musical motif carvings that overcome the ostentation of Empire style‎.‎