An intriguing visual history of the veneration in European churches and monasteries of bejeweled and decorated skeletons Death has never looked so beautiful. The fully articulated skeleton of a female saint, dressed in an intricate costume of silk brocade and gold lace, withered fingers glittering with colorful rubies, emeralds, and pearls—this is only one of the specially photographed relics featured in Heavenly Bodies. In 1578 news came of the discovery in Rome of a labyrinth of underground tombs, which were thought to hold the remains of thousands of early Christian martyrs. Skeletons of these supposed saints were subsequently sent to Catholic churches and religious houses in German-speaking Europe to replace holy relics that had been destroyed in the wake of the Protestant Reformation. The skeletons, known as “the catacomb saints,” were carefully reassembled, richly dressed in fantastic costumes, wigs, crowns, jewels, and armor, and posed in elaborate displays inside churches and shrines as reminders to the faithful of the heavenly treasures that awaited them after death. Paul Koudounaris gained unprecedented access to religious institutions to reveal these fascinating historical artifacts. Hidden for over a century as Western attitudes toward both the worship of holy relics and death itself changed, some of these ornamented skeletons appear in publication here for the first time.

Since antiquity, religious beliefs and practices have inspired many of the world’s greatest works of art. These masterworks have, in turn, fueled the imaginations of fashion designers in the 20th and 21st centuries, yielding some of the most innovative creations in the history of fashion. Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination explores fashion’s complex and often controversial relationship with Catholicism by examining the role of spirituality and religion in contemporary culture. This two-volume publication connects significant religious art and artifacts to their sartorial expressions. One volume features images of rarely seen objects from the Vatican —ecclesiastical garments and accessories—while the other focuses on fashions by designers such as Cristobal Balenciaga, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, John Galliano, Jean Paul Gaultier, Madame Grès, Christian Lacroix, Karl Lagerfeld, Jeanne Lanvin, Claire McCardell, Thierry Mugler, Elsa Schiaparelli, and Gianni Versace. Essays by art historians and leading religious authorities provide perspective on how dress manifests—or subverts—Catholic values and ideology.

This work (originally published in 1925) contributes to recognition of the feasibility of space travel. Treated are problems associated with leaving the earth, return to earth, free-space flight, circumnavigation of celestial objects, and landing on other celestial objects.

David Vance seeks to make his models appear like Greek statuesand succeeds with brilliance. Every picture is a piece of timeless art that you want to blow up and hang on your wall. More of the incredibly successful Timeless (2006) with one essential difference: Heavenly Bodies is shot in full color!

Heavenly Bodies and Human Things is a collection of poems that delve into living on the dark side. Unapologetically exploring the calm and chaos of the night, echoing the traumas of sexual assault, unrequited love, hope for an ex-lover, and a quest for home in a foreign land, the poems echo the intricacies of human emotions with brutal honesty.

Deep and wide study of 2,000 years of Christian thought on the human body Does Christianity scorn our bodies? Friedrich Nietzsche thought so, and many others since him have thought the same. Ola Sigurdson contends, to the contrary, that Christianity -- understood properly -- in fact affirms human embodiment. Presenting his constructive contributions to theology in relation to both historical and contemporary conceptions of the body, Sigurdson begins by investigating the anthropological implications of the doctrine of the incarnation. He then delves into the concept of the gaze and discusses a specifically Christian "gaze of faith" that focuses on God embodied in Jesus. Finally, he weaves these strands into a contemporary Christian theology of embodiment. Sigurdson's profound engagement with the whole history of Christian life and thought not only elucidates the spectrum of Christian perspectives on the body but also models a way of thinking historically and systematically that other theologians will find stimulating and challenging.

It's summertime in Atlanta, and all Isla Kelly cares about is hanging with friends and snagging her longtime crush. But weeks before senior year starts, her mother announces they'll be moving to a tiny island in the Caribbean to take care of her ailing grandfather. Having to leave her best friends and the only home she's ever known is bad; having to leave her father behind, too? Awful.But as Isla reluctantly starts adjusting to island life, she discovers that St. Croix isn't the disaster she thought it would be. Making friends and growing closer to her mother's side of the family, she realizes she has a place in this close-knit community. And then there's Rigel, the fascinating boy at her new school.Everyone knows Rigel Thomas, his reputation, and his somewhat notorious family. From the pool at school to the best beaches on the island, he makes it his mission to win Isla's heart. But life on St. Croix isn't all sunsets and stargazing, and as Isla is pulled deeper into Rigel's world, she learns that some things can only be discovered by slipping far beneath the surface.