Encyclopedia of Saints

by Clemens Jockle

The Encyclopedia of Saints presents three hundred of the major saints of the Roman Catholic calendar of celebrations in alphabetical order. It tells the stories of their trials and triumphs and the legends that have grown up around them, and it also describes how their extraordinary lives have been commemorated in feast days and pilgrimage sites.

Equal attention is given to their depiction in the fine arts. The devotion that generations of artists have paid to their vestments and attributes and the pivotal events in their careers demonstrates the extent to which their example has inspired and nourished the Western cultural tradition. Beautifully reproduced illustrations include paintings, sculptures, mosaics, book illustrations, reliquaries and pilgrimage scenes.

Genres: Religion

496 pages, Hardcover

First published August 20, 1998

Reviews

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Different from other books on saints because it separates the factual basis from the legendary basis, and it is very thorough on artistic depictions of saints. Besides that, it's a bit lacking in organization: the saints are listed alphabetically, without a table for when the saints' days are. Seems especially thorough on the martyrs of the Diocletian persecutions.

[Cws]

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