The Clash of Gods: A Reinterpretation of Early Christian Art - Revised and Expanded Edition

The Clash of Gods: A Reinterpretation of Early Christian Art - Revised and Expanded Edition
ISBN-10
0691246998
ISBN-13
9780691246994
Category
Art
Pages
408
Language
English
Published
2022-09-13
Publisher
Princeton University Press
Author
Thomas F. Mathews

Description

Between the third and sixth centuries, the ancient gods, goddesses, and heroes who had populated the imagination of humankind for a millennium were replaced by a new imagery of Christ and his saints. Thomas Mathews explores the many different, often surprising, artistic images and religious interpretations of Christ during this period. He challenges the accepted theory of the "Emperor Mystique," which, interpreting Christ as king, derives the vocabulary of Christian art from the propagandistic imagery of the Roman emperor. This revised edition contains a new preface by the author and a new chapter on the origin and development of icons in private domestic cult.

Similar books