eBook downloads, eBook resources & eBook authors
Animals and their symbolism in diverse world cultures and different eras of human history are chronicled in this lovely volume.
This lavishly produced voulume is the first reference work to focus on the symbols, meaning, and significance of art in native, or indigenous, cultures.
We are a product of nature. Every single cell of our body is made of, and depends, on nature. Our inner soul is heavily influenced by nature. We feel sad if the sun is not shining for a few days, and feel pleasure when drawn to the wonder of flowers and uplifted by the song of birds. We came from nature; we are part of nature. In short, we are nature. Nature has been an intimate part of the human experience from the earliest times. Different religions and cultures, from all corners of the world, have honoured and worshipped nature in art, ritual and literature in their own unique ways. This book shows how we learn about our own human nature, our own sense of identity and how we fit into the larger scheme of life and spirit when we come to better understand how our human ancestors, through art, symbol and myth, expressed their relationship with the natural world.
This study focuses on street art and large-scale murals in metropolitan Miami/Dade County, while also foregrounding the diasporic and aesthetic interventions made by migrant and second-generation artists whose families hail from the Caribbean and Latin America. Jana Evans Braziel argues that Caribbean and Latinx street artists define and visually mark the city of Miami as a diasporic, transnational urban space. These artists also help define Miami as a cosmopolitan city, yet one that is also a distinctly Caribbean and Latinx urban space, and simultaneously resist but also (at times reluctantly) participate in the forces of gentrification and urban re/development, particularly through the myriad and complex ways in which street art contributes to city branding and art tourism. The book will be of interest to scholars working in art history, urban studies, American studies, and Latin American/Caribbean studies.
This lavishly produced volume is the first reference work to focus on the symbols, meaning, and significance of art in native, or indigenous, cultures. Written in clear, accessible, jargon-free language and illustrated with more than 520 line drawings, color plates, and maps, this major reference work provides the most pertinent information available on the art of Africa, Oceania, and native North America.Many reference works treat symbolism and iconography in Western art and culture yet, until now, little attention has been pain to these rich artisitc traditions. Entries on each geographical area discuss the art of region and, through cross-references, lead the reader to additional geographical subdivisions and individual cultures. The major art forms for each culture-including worldview, religion, and society-are treated in detail.Broad subjects, such as rites of passages, are treated in the general entries. These entries address universal motifs and themes such as the center, the layered universe, the four/six directions, and architecture as symbol of the cosmos. Other major issues included here are the role of animals in art, color symbolism, and the symbolism of the various parts of the human body. This valuable reference also details the reciprocal impact of colonization on native art on modern Western art.
The first book by Bro. Anthony Mongelli, Jr. This is the first in a three-volume set that treats nine symbols and emblems of the first degree of Freemasonry, that of Entered Apprentice.This first volume, Book 1, discusses the circumpunct (the point-within-a-circle), the twin pillars and the Masonic apron. The section on the circumpunct is perhaps the most exhaustive treatment of this astounding symbol.Bro. Mongelli seeks after the significance that these symbols and emblems have had amongst diverse cultures across time with an eye toward how those meanings may inform our own interpretation of them. This book is extensively researched, having referenced more than 160 works.Features a revised and expanded version of the essay "Some Words to Newly Made Masons." Each chapter is thoroughly footnoted, features copious illustrations and a complete reference list.
Gal Ventura explores the ideological sources promoting maternal breast-feeding in modern Western society, through a survey of hundreds of artworks produced in France from the French Revolution to the beginning of the twentieth century.
These are stories of animals in Newfoundland and Labrador that are often disregarded, disliked, or even feared. The stories weave together information about their biology with elements of the folklore and traditional knowledge that brings these creatures to life.
From the household cat to horses that can fly, a surprisingly wide range of animals feature in religions and mythologies all across the world. The same animal can take on different roles: the raven can be a symbol of evil, a harbinger of death, a wise messenger or a shape-changing trickster. In Norse mythology, Odin’s magical ravens perch on his shoulders and bring him news. This compendium draws upon religious texts and myths to explore the ways sacred traditions use animal images, themes and associations in rituals, ceremonies, texts, myths, literature and folklore across the world. Sections are organized by the main animal classifications such as mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, amphibians and insects. Each chapter covers one significant grouping (such as dogs, cats or horses), first describing an animal scientifically and then detailing the mythological attributes. Numerous examples cite texts or myths. A final section covers animal hybrids, animal monsters and mythical animals as well as stars, constellations and Zodiac symbols. An appendix describes basic details of the religions and mythologies covered. A glossary defines uncommon religious terms and explains scientific animal names.
In the seventeenth century many leading poets wrote poems about Christ’s infancy, though charm and sweetness were not the leading note. Because these poets were university-educated classicists – many of them also Catholic or Anglican priests – they wrote in an elevated style, with elevated language, and their concerns were deeply theological as well as poetic. In an age of religious controversy, their poems had controversial elements, and because these poems were mostly intended for private use and limited circulation, they were not generally singable hymns of public celebration of Christ’s birth. However far from dry academic pieces, these poems offer a wide variety of approaches to both their subject, the infant Jesus, and the means of presenting it. All Wonders in One Sight examines the ways in which early modern English poets understood and accomplished the poetic task of representing Christ as both Child and God. Focusing on the intellectual and theological content of the poems as well as the devotional aims of the poets, Theresa M. Kenney aims to reveal their understandings of divine immanence and the sacrament of the Eucharist.
