The gallery of beautiful women, painted by Joseph Karl Stieler for King Ludwig I, still exerts an unusual fascination for visitors to Schloss Nymphenburg in Munich. The gallery of beauties was part of the Munich residence of the king in the so-called conversation or games rooms of the ballroom building. The gallery was open to the public and was therefore already listed in contemporary guidebooks as one of the attractions of Munich. All 36 images of the beauties have been reproduced in colour and without the usual amputation of the painted surfaces. The catalogue with details pertaining to the history of the individual portraits and the persons portrayed is preceded by a study of the genre of galleries of beautiful women in general as well as an essay about their historical development.