1 comments about The Key to the Brescia Casket: Typology and the Early Christian Imagination (Collection Des Etudes Augustiniennes. Serie Antiquite, 165).

1. This fine and convincing book is about the interpretation of the religious carvings on a small ivory casket dated to 390 a.d. Tkacz used typology -- the study of "Old Testment people and events as prefiguring the Messiah" to present a comprehensive theory as to the casket's fifty-nine carvings. What makes this book so valuable for the mainstream is that all its many scholarly quotations are presented in English, and the writing is patient and clear. Anyone fascinated by the early centuries of Christianity, by the questions as to what the early Christians believed and how they expressed themselves pictorially will be impressed by this book, if not perhaps enthralled. The book provides an experience during which one learns about Scriptural interpretation as one learns about the complexity of this precious relic. A rewarding read.

No comments about The Altar and the Altarpiece: Sacramental Themes in Early Netherlandish Painting (Icon Editions).

1 comments about Early Nasca Needlework.

1. Alan Sawyer has a beautifully presented book here. It's not heavy on text, but that is partly due to the fact that as the author states, there have been virtually no proper excavations of Nasca burials to base information on.

   What you get here is litrely pages of gorgeous photographs of existing early nasca needlework that the author was able to locate in various collections. He has concentrated on pieces with a provence in the nasca or ica valleys.

   This book is illuminating, but to get the most out if it you should look at a book that has been written on the earlier, related Paracas style in order to really see the differences between the two styles, as they are often confused in non-specialist books.

   Beautiful, colorful, inspiring and educational. This book is a must for anybody interested in ancient peruvian textiles or arts or who just wants to see rare textiles that are as good as anything else produced anywhere in the world over the last 2000 years.

No comments about Joan of Arc in French Art and Culture (1700-1855): From Satire to Sanctity.

No comments about Symbols of the faith.

No comments about The Fruit of Devotion: Mysticism and the Imagery of Love in Flemish Paintings of the Virgin and Child, 1450-1550 (Oculi : Studies in the Arts of the).

No comments about Emblemata Sacra: Emblem Books from the Maurits Sabbe Library, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.

No comments about The Controversy on Images from Calvin to Baronius (Toronto Studies in Religion).

1 comments about The Christmas Story.

1. "The Christmas Story", Text selected by Linn Howard and Mary Jane Pool, with Photographs by Elliott Erwitt. Harry N. Abrams, Publishers, New York, 2001.

   This is an elegantly bound book, with spectacular photos of the 18th century crib created by the leading artists of the then Kingdom of Naples. This small book will make an excellent stocking stuffer. The Photographer, Elliot Erwitt, has done a wonderful job of catching all the miniature details of the multitude of figurines used in the crib (or crèche, as the book calls it).

   Although you are told that the figures are "...no more than twenty inches high", it is not until you reach the last photo of the book, displaying the crèche on a table top, that you fully realize how small the entire scene is. Then, you begin to get an inkling of the amount of work the photographer has done to capture the exquisite beauty of each tiny piece.

   For me, the overall book is marred by the choice of Gospel texts from the King James Version. For members of the largest Christian church in the United States, the King James Version is not acceptable. Further, the King James Version has blatant errors, such as (see page 19 in this tiny book), Luke 2.13,14, which reads, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men". Various Protestant bible societies have come around to, ".. peace on earth to those on whom his favor rests" This is close enough to the Douay-Rheims, "...peace on earth to men of good will". So, five stars for the excellent photography, one star for the choice of bible version, yields an average of three stars.

2 comments about Outside the Box.

1. The word "creative" means "marked by the ability or power to create" in contrast to "something imitated." This book exemplies creativity. In her book, Mikie supplies the creative link between God's Word and God's creation. He, of course, is the Genius behind both the Word and the world, but she has supplied the creative link. Her photography of His world is wonderful, but when His Word is combined with her photography of His world, the result is an original work of art that blesses the soul.



2. OUTSIDE THE BOX presents us with a true message: that if we choose to see the world we live in with unlimited vision, we will see God everywhere. Mikie M. Rath offers this message by combining original photographs with thought-provoking scripture passages, helping us understand that the divine speaks to us through the sublime and the mundane. It is our task to look, listen and perceive with openness and with reverence. With her work, Mikie Rath inspires me to find more meaning in my everyday existence.