A Higher Contemplation

In this guidebook to the content and symbolism of medieval Christian visual art, Fliegel (curator, medieval art, Cleveland Museum of Art; Resplendent Faith: Liturgical Treasuries of the Middle Ages) clearly explains the early Christian and Byzantine perception of images and then explores in detail pictures of saints and angels, images of the cross and crucifixion, and the many visual varieties of the cult of Mary in the later Middle Ages. The book also briefly describes Byzantine and western European societies as well as their evolution between 300 and 1600 C.E., the period which created the imagery exemplified in the book's generally excellent illustrations, many drawn from the Cleveland Museum of Art's outstanding medieval collection. The images' content—self-evident to contemporary observers when it was created—requires explanation today for many; for present-day readers the glossary provides simple definitions of terms and religious concepts in common currency in the past but less so in the present.