Medieval Iconography: A Research Guide (Garland Medieval Bibliographies)

This annotated bibliography will help researchers to accurately interpret motifs in medieval art and literature. Five chapters describe overview studies and identify and briefly annotate journal articles in English and all major European languages. "Medieval Art" treats library catalogs of illuminated medieval manuscripts, and genres such as glass, sculpture, and wood carving by country. "Other Tools" covers medieval encyclopedias, preaching handbooks, and sermon and exempla collections as repositories of imagery. "The Natural World" surveys imagery of land and water animals, plants, stones, and illustrated bestiaries. "The Christian Tradition" discusses the Bible and its apocrypha, saints' legends, and material on specific biblical figures, such as the horns believed to be given Cain or Moses. "Learned Imagery" includes sections on alchemy, astrology, famous persons such as Arthur, Alexander the Great, and Roland, and mythology, both mythographic commentaries and treatments of individual myths. Finally, "Daily Life" covers topics such as medieval ideas of beauty and the body, color symbolism, costumes, feasts, and specific images like the symbolism of mirrors.