The Visual Perception of Deities from the Palaeolithic to the Present
Author | : Sirpa Aalto |
Publisher | : Cambridge Scholars Publishing |
Total Pages | : 197 |
Release | : 2020-12-21 |
ISBN-10 | : 9781527564039 |
ISBN-13 | : 1527564037 |
Rating | : 4/5 (39 Downloads) |
Book excerpt: Considering that figurines, such as the Venus from Willendorf, or the Lion Man of Hohlenstein-Stadel were already created approximately 30,000 years ago, it must be assumed that humans have had a desire to see a visual expression of their sacred beings for an exceedingly prolonged period of time. It is dialectical that visual interpretations of deities always result in a physical/body structure, resembling the shape of humans. This book is a fusion of multiple independent investigations regarding visual interpretations of deities and religions over a period of 30,000 years. A survey about the psychological necessity for humans to create images of gods and goddesses provides the background for the book’s presentation of images of deities, placed in a historical context. An accompanying text supports the illustrations to position them accordingly.