"The Wisdom of the West" is the last major work of Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), which can be considered his philosophical testament. The author himself very modestly assessed its significance: "This book," he writes, "was not published in order to teach the reader history; rather, it recalls history from time to time, lest the setting in which philosophical attitudes developed be forgotten." In fact, before the reader is a beautifully presented brief history of European spiritual culture, into which an analysis of philosophical teachings is gracefully interwoven, from ancient to modern.