Until now Arthur Hughes has, with some justification, been called the unknown Pre-Raphaelite. In spite of his close artistic and social connections with, among others, Rossetti, Madox Brown, Holman Hunt, Burne-Jones, William Morris, Tennyson and Lewis Carroll, and although his work can be seen in major collections throughout the world, he has been considered an elusive figure in the history of British art. This Catalogue Raisonn,, the first book solely devoted to Hughes' life and works, aims to redress the balance and put him firmly on the map. It shows him to have been an immensely likeable and modest man, with a wide circle of friends and an extremely happy family life. More to the point, it also shows him to have been among the foremost painters of the Pre-Raphaelite movement. As a good figure painter, especially of children, and a talented colourist, he was sensitive to the aims of the Brotherhood and a leading exponent of their technical practices. Over 80 when he died in the early years of