This lavish and inclusive compilation of angels in art features depictions of cherubs, guardian angels, heavenly messengers, and more, from the Middle Ages to contemporary times, represented in frescoes, oil paintings, mosaics, prints, stained glass, tapestries, manuscript illuminations, and sculpture. Includes an index of illustrators.

"The word 'angel' ... derived from the Greek 'angelos, ' it meant 'shadow side of God, ' 'messenger' or 'revealer of truth.' ... Angels were given free will by God - those who chose good were given a state of eternal grace, those who chose evil found themselves cast out of heaven into hell." (Page 5).

A gift collection of one hundred color illustrations features the celestial works of Raphael and Botticelli, as well as a selection of Victorian cupids, and includes a Valentine, a gatefold spread, a pop-up, and translucent acetates. 15,000 first printing.

This sumptuously illustrated volume analyzes artists' representations of angels and demons and heaven and hell from the Judeo-Christian tradition and describes how these artistic portrayals evolved over time. As with other books in the Guide to Imagery series, the goal of this volume is to help contemporary art enthusiasts decode the symbolic meanings in the great masterworks of Western Art. The first chapter traces the development of images of the Creation and the Afterworld from descriptions of them in the Scriptures through their evolution in later literary and philosophical works. The following two chapters examine artists' depictions of the two paths that humans may take, the path of evil or the path of salvation, and the punishments or rewards found on each. A chapter on the Judgment Day and the end of the world explores portrayals of the mysterious worlds between life and death and in the afterlife. Finally, the author looks at images of angelic and demonic beings themselves and how they came to be portrayed with the physical attributes--wings, halos, horns, and cloven hooves--with which we are now so familiar. Thoroughly researched by and expert in the field of iconography, Angels and Demons in Art will delight readers with an interest in art or religious symbolism.

The figure of the putto (often portrayed as a mischievous baby) made frequent appearances in the art and literature of Renaissance Italy. Commonly called spiritelli, or sprites, putti embodied a minor species of demon, in their nature neither good