Art and the Christian Apocrypha - Tapa dura

"Those interested in the development of Christian art through the centuries will especially appreciate this volume.." -The Bible Today "Helpful for both art historians and those in religious studies, it is written for graduate or upper-level undergraduate courses." -Religious Studies Review "The joint effort of two specialists in their field has created a book that is not only a pleasure to read but also a pleasure to look at. The publisher has given an excellent design to this volume, up to the point that the perhaps most beautiful of all the pictures in this book is shown on the front cover of the paperback edition: Caravaggio's "Rest During the Flight into Egypt," with Mary and the boy Jesus sound asleep, Joseph holding the music and a juvenile angel playing the violin. Hans-Josef Klauck, University of Chicago."

The Christian canon of scripture, known as the New Testament, excluded many of the Church's traditional stories about its origins. Although not in the Bible, these popular stories have had a powerful influence on the Church's traditions and theology, and a particularly marked effect on visual representations of Christian belief. This book provides a lucid introduction to the relationship between the apocryphal texts and the paintings, mosaics, and sculpture in which they are frequently paralleled, and which have been so significant in transmitting these non-Biblical stories to generations of churchgoers.