This collection of essays begins with an examination of the changing theories of luxury and austerity since classical times and other papers apply the theme to the history of Ireland and Britain. These papers were read before the 23rd Irish Conference of Historians in Maynooth, 1997.

Austerity, necessity and luxury, Christopher, J. Berry; the idea of monastic austerity in early Ireland, Colman Etchingham; concepts of generosity in early modern England, Felicity Heal; "Dives" and Lazarus in 16th-century Ireland, Colm Lennon; public and private uses of wealth in Ireland c. 1660 - 1760, Toby Barnard; hospitality housekeeping and high living in 18th-century Ireland, L.A. Clarkson; matters material and luxurious, 18th and early 9th century Irish linen consumption, Brenda Collins; "the whole country was in motion" - mendicancy and vagrancy in pre-famine Ireland, Laurence M. Geary; the charities and famine in mid 19th-century Ireland, Tim P. O'Neill; Irish presbyterians and the great famine, David W. Miller; luxury and austerity, patronage and charity - landlords and a Galway convent in the 19th century, John Maiben Gilmartin; Poverty and plenty, the Victorian contrast, Asa Briggs; "a living saint if ever there was one" - work, austerity and authority in the lives of Irish women of the house, 1921-1961, Caitriona Clear.

"a timely reminder that no matter how wealthy Ireland has become, great austerity still exists in the midst of great luxury for a minority, which, on the evidence presented in this fine book, is merely a case of history repeating itself." Diarmaid Ferriter, St Patrick's College, Drumcondra Irish Economic and Social History 2000 "the essays gathered here spur new insight into the Celtic tiger's complex antecedents." Janet Nolan, Loyola University Chicago Irish Studies Review Oct 2000 "Comparatively little scholarship has appeared on the career of luxury in Ireland; as that career gains pace in this new century, it is gratifying indeed to have available a foundational work of such soundness." Irish Literary Supplement Fall 2001