Product Description

Before the Renaissance and Reformation, holy images were treated not as

"art" but as objects of veneration which possessed the tangible presence

of the Holy. In this magisterial book, Hans Belting traces the long

history of the sacral image and its changing role in European culture.

looks at the beliefs, superstitions, hopes,

and fears that come into play as people handle and respond to sacred

images, and presents a compelling interpretation of the place of the

image in Western history.