From Agatha to Zeno, Francis of Assisi to Mary Magdalene, Saints in Arti presents the characteristic features of more than one hundred saints often encountered in sacred Western art. Each saint is introduced by a practical list of his or her unique attributes. Entries also include notes on the saints' lives and a series of visual references to help the reader recognize these exemplary figures, their histories, and their special devotions. This useful resource is illustrated with a stunning collection of masterpieces.

Un completísimo recorrido por la representación de los símbolos y las alegorías en las obras maestras del arte universal.

An icon (from the Greek word "eikon," "image") is a wooden panel painting of a holy person or scene from Orthodox Christianity, the religion of the Byzantine Empire that is practiced today mainly in Greece and Russia. It was believed that these works acted as intermediaries between worshipers and the holy personages they depicted. Their pictorial language is stylized and primarily symbolic, rather than literal and narrative. Indeed, every attitude, pose, and color depicted in an icon has a precise meaning, and their painters—usually monks—followed prescribed models from iconographic manuals. The goal of this book is to catalogue the vast heritage of images according to iconographic type and subject, from the most ancient at the Monastery of Saint Catherine in the Sinai to those from Greece, Constantinople, and Russia. Chapters focus on the role of icons in the Orthodox liturgy and on common iconic subjects, including the fathers and saints of the Eastern Church and the life of Jesus and his followers. As with other volumes in the Guide to Imagery series, this book includes a wealth of color illustrations in which details are called out for discussion.

Il repertorio figurativo di immagini artistiche presentato in questo dizionario rappresenta la progressiva evoluzione delle conoscenze geografiche reali, presunte o immaginarie. Il primo capitolo è dedicato al globo terrestre e alla sfera celeste e include la cartografia, le figure del geografo e dell'astrologo, le rappresentazioni allegoriche di luoghi come Gerusalemme, Roma o i grandi fiumi. Il secondo capitolo indaga i continenti e i suoi abitanti, con particolare attenzione agli usi e costumi di popolazioni lontane; qui compaiono amazzoni, indigeni, pigmei e cannibali, il "buon selvaggio", ma anche concetti come esotismo, orientalismo, egittomania. Segue infine il capitolo su animali esotici e creature mitiche e fantastiche, che include i lemmi sul viaggio e gli esploratori, l'iconografia e i miti della conquista, le insidie e i pericoli della natura, le Wunderkammer e le collezioni di bizzarrie.