Milling is the process of cutting away material - usually, but not exclusively, metal - by feeding a piece of work pas a rotating multiple-tooth cutter. The cutting action of the teeth of the millign cutter provides a fast method of machining, and the machines surface may be flat, angular, or curved. The surface may also be milled to any combination of shapes.

Whittling Woodland Animals introduces the simple art of whittling with 15 wilderness creatures to create from scratch. The relaxing and rewarding craft of whittling is synonymous with a woodland setting, which provides the ideal subject matter for this new book from seasoned woodcarver, Peter Benson. Intricately carved and infused with character, this collection of 15 whittled woodland creatures makes a perfect beginner's guide to the hobby. Making delightful gifts and trinkets for nature lovers, you'll want to carve every single animal in the book. The main tools and techniques are clearly explained, how to carve safely and clear step-by-step instructions for each animal. A handy campfire-friendly size, simply grab your whittling kit and head out into the woods to while away the hours.

The only book available on Scottish painting, this book is now in its third edition with a new introduction and final chapter that brings the book up to date with the latest developments in Scottish painting (Richard Wright's win of the Turner Prize 2009). Illustrated throughout, the work is by acknowledged authority on Scottish painting William Hardie. Scottish society has been reflected through the strong colour and energetic brushwork of its artists. The book traces the beginnings of Scottish painting from the foundation of the Foulis Academy in 1753, with William Dyce and Scott Lauder establishing themselves in the south, followed by W Q Orchardson and John Pettie around 1860. European travel ensured Scottish painters were open to new techniques, and the explosion of the Glasgow Boys and then the Colourists onto the scene meant Scotland was respected for its innovation and imagination. Charles Rennie Mackintosh today is still internationally recognised for his work, and the painting of John Byrne, Curister, and Peter Howson bring the book to the present day.

With a mix of illustrated step-by-step guides for beginners and more pared-down pattern profiles for advanced carvers, this compilation is perfect for carvers of all skill levels. The featured patterns and projects are from some of today's leading carving experts, including Shawn Cipa, Floyd Rhadigan, Chris Pye, Don Dearolf, Rick Jensen, Robert Biermann, and Sandy Smith. With step-by-step instructions and colour photos, readers are guaranteed a very merry carving experience.

In 1752 Charles-Joseph Natoire, then a highly successful painter, assumed the directorship of the prestigious Academie de France in Rome. Twenty-three years later he was removed from office, criticised as being singularly inept. What was the basis for this condemnation that has been perpetuated by historians ever since? Reed Benhamou's re-evaluation of Natoire's life and work at the Academie is the first to weigh the prevailing opinion against the historical record. The accusations made against Charles-Joseph Natoire were many and varied: that his artistic work was increasingly unworthy of serious study; that he demeaned his students; that he was a religious bigot; that he was a fraudulent book-keeper. Benhamou evaluates these and other charges in the light of contemporary correspondences, critics' assessment of his work, legal briefs, royal accounts and the parallel experiences of his precursors and successors at the Academie. The director's role is shown to be multifaceted and no director succeeded in every area. What is arresting is why Natoire was singled out as being uniquely weak, uniquely bigoted, uniquely incompetent. The Charles-Joseph Natoire who emerges from this book differs in nearly every respect from the unflattering portrait promulgated by historians and popular media. His increasingly iconoclastic students rebelled against the traditional qualities valued by the French artistic elite; the Academie went underfunded because of the effects of war and a profligate king, and he was caught between two competing institutional regimes. In this book Reed Benhamou not only unravels the myth and reality surrounding Natoire, but also also sheds light on the workings of the institution he served for nearly a quarter of a century.

The Drosten stone - one of Scotland's premier monuments - came to light during restoration work at St Vigeans church, near Arbroath, in the 1870s. A rare example of Pictish writing, the Drosten stone is just one in an astounding collection of exquisitely preserved Pictish sculptures discovered in and around the church. The carvings on these stones revel in Pictish inventiveness, teeming with lively naturalistic animals and innovative compositions of monsters and people, as well as both Pictish symbols and everyday objects. The sculptures' iconography also draws on a deep knowledge of Christian and classical literature, witness to a highly literate and cosmopolitan society. This definitive study of St Vigeans' Pictish stones, generously illustrated with plates of the full collection, begins in the recent past, when the sculptures began to emerge as a remarkable historic entity. It then explores the history of the sculptures, including an analysis of the carvings, the geology of the stones and attempts to extract meaning and context for this unique stone collection as part of a powerful ecclesiastical landscape.