The New Secret Language of Symbols: An Illustrated Key to Unlocking Their Deep and Hidden Meanings

by David Fontana

What role has the dragon played in mythology? What is the symbolism of sacred geometry? The New Secret Language of Symbols will satisfy today’s appetite for unpacking the layers of meaning that exist below the surface of many works of art or architecture. A look at the cultural and psychological explanations of symbols—including the Jungian idea of the collective unconscious—sets the stage for the huge heart of the hundreds of symbols, presented theme by theme, with in-depth interpretations. Collective subjects such as Fruits, Weapons, and Insects are supplemented by mini-directory listings. A final section provides an overview of the most symbol-rich cultures, religions, esoteric groups, or systems, ranging from ancient Egypt and Hinduism to the Freemasons and the Tarot. Each topic centers around a multilayered artifact or image, which is fully analyzed and decoded until its deepest meanings are revealed.  

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, Art, History, Psychology, Religion

192 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

David G.J. Fontana FBPsS was a British psychologist, parapsychologist and author. He was Professor of Psychology at Cardiff University. He was also visiting professor at Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Algarve.

Reviews

[jade · Rating 3 out of 5]

In David Fontana’s newest version of The Secret Language of Symbols, a few issues surrounding ill-presented images as far as layout was concerned have been resolved, and new material has been added. In this book, Fontana wishes to take a look at art, architecture, and other media, and discover the ‘hidden’ meanings of their symbols.

In doing so, he gives his reader a gorgeously designed book, filled with rich imagery, tons of trivia, a wide array of symbols, and many different themes. That said, even this new version of The Secret Language of Symbols isn’t that much of an extensive, informative book – it is informative, yes, but doesn’t go into too much detail or depth. This makes it an excellent book for the layman and/or beginner, or someone who just loves looking at pictures, but it’s certainly not a complete encyclopaedia on the subject. It also makes its subtitle, An Illustrated Key to Unlocking Their [symbols] Deep and Hidden Meanings, seem a little misleading, as there isn’t enough detail for those deep meanings to surface.

The book contains chapters on the following themes: the cosmos, nature, humans, divinity, patterns plus shapes and properties, symbols from the daily life, and myths. It also contains short ‘articles’ on religions and philosophies, such as Islam, Hinduism, Taoism, etc.

A beautiful book for beginners or for people only moderately interested in symbols (such as myself), and an absolutely gorgeously designed book to look at (almost like an artbook or coffee table book). In such a sense, I would definitely recommend it, but don’t expect Fontana to go into too much detail (nor does he provide the reader with any references at all, which also bothered me a little bit).

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has an interesting array of information, though it doesn't go into much depth, being a simple survey. It is organized a bit haphazardly, though it does have both an index and a table of contents, so this is not a huge issue. The book itself is large and beautiful to look at, and serves itself best as a coffee table book, though if you're looking for something for serious research, you may want to look elsewhere.

[Josèphe-Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very informative book for anyone interested in looking beyond what something appears to be. The pages are beautifully illustrated, so it definitely appeals to my artistic side. I only wish the book offered a more in-depth look at the topics covered. Nonetheless, it is a great reference resource, especially when you're in a whimsical mood.

[Lizzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn't quite the book I thought it would be. I figured it would be about ancient writing systems and decrypting various ancient symbols, but instead it was a book about the symbolism in everyday objects, and what different cultures see as the symbolism in different things. It was a bit boring, and I mostly finished it because I told myself I would, but it, as a reference book, and as an overview of symbolism, is quite useful and intriguing. Plus, it has a lot of beautiful pictures.

[Eniko Rozsa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gave this book a 3 as it is beautifully done, it is nice to look at. For content, it would be much less rated. Contains superficial, high level writeups. Felt like an off-shoot of the Da Vince code, that would sell as Langdon's interest.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a thorough and well-done dictionary of symbols, cross-cultural examinations from ancient times to present. There's lots of folklore, mythology, interesting tidbits of information categorized and grouped into different subject matters.

[Alyson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great general introduction into symbology. Symbols from all over the globe are mentioned including myths.

[hissi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so BEAUTIFUL!
Its doesn't give you a definite answer about each symbol which defeats the point to me. but very nice illustrations