A Handbook of Symbols in Christian Art

by Sill, Gertrude Grace

• ISBN13: 9780684826837
• ISBN10: 0684826836
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1996-06-01
• Publisher: Touchstone

Summary

Organized like a primer, with hundreds of entries in 50 categories—from A for Angels to Z for Zodiac—this handy pocket reference enables you to recognize at a glance the identity and meaning of all the elements in any Christian work of art. 162 paintings from every century illustrate the enduring themes of our biblical heritage. A short introductory essay explains how to use the handbook and the functions of symbols in art. Cross-references, illustrations, a detailed index, and the pocket-book size make A Handbook of Symbols in Christian Art an invaluable work for museum-goers, students, travelers, art collectors, and general readers.

Author Biography

Gertrude Grace Sill was educated at Smith College and Wesleyan University. She has lectured on fine art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Frick Museum and currently teaches the history of art at Fairfield University. Ms. Sill is an amateur painter and collector of nineteenth-century American still-life and landscape painting.

Table of Contents

To the Reader	p. ix
Introduction	p. xi
Angels	p. 1
Apocalypse	p. 4
Apocrypha	p. 5
Apostles	p. 9
Beasts, Real and Imaginary	p. 16
Church	p. 28
Color	p. 29
Cross	p. 30
Death	p. 34
Devils and Demons	p. 34
Doctors of the Church	p. 35
Donors	p. 39
Earth and the Elements	p. 40
Eucharist	p. 43
Evangelists	p. 44
Flowers	p. 50
Fruits	p. 53
God the Father	p. 57
God the Son	p. 57
God the Holy Ghost	p. 58
Halos	p. 59
Heaven	p. 60
Hell	p. 62
The Human Body	p. 62
Initials	p. 65
Instruments of the Passion	p. 66
Jesus Christ	p. 68
His Life	p. 70
Parables	p. 101
Miracles	p. 104
Kings	p. 109
Knights	p. 109
Last Judgment	p. 111
Liberal Arts	p. 112
Mary	p. 115
Miscellaneous Objects	p. 128
Numbers	p. 137
Old Testament Prophecies	p. 139
Prophets	p. 163
Religious Artifacts	p. 165
Objects	p. 166
Orders	p. 169
Sacraments	p. 173
Saints	p. 174
Shapes	p. 202
Sibyls	p. 203
Tree	p. 204
Trinity	p. 207
Vestments	p. 209
Vices and Virtues	p. 212
Year (Church)	p. 215
Zodiac	p. 217
Bibliography	p. 221
List of Illustrations and Acknowledgments	p. 223
Index	p. 233
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