Our Sacred Signs: How Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Art Draw from the Same Source

by Ori Z. Soltes

The art of the three Abrahamic religions—Christianity, Judaism, and Islam—has a tangled, interwoven history. Symbols cross back and forth among the three faiths, adapted to reflect that faith’s specific spiritual needs. And much of this symbolic language predates any of the Abrahamic faiths entirely.In Our Sacred Signs, Ori Soltes traces the interconnectedness of religious symbols such as the Star of David, which isn’t, it turns out, exclusive to Judaism at all. He shows that the various ways that Jesus is portrayed on the cross recall an artistic tradition that is in no way unique to Christianity. And he shows that religious architectural conventions as simple as the dome represent early “pagan” traditions.The narrative—essentially a series of overlapping stories—moves through the halls of museums and off to the holy sites of the three religions, tracing the millennia-long artistic trail that has endured even as the West moved toward secularization in the last three hundred years.Soltes shows us how art has long been used as an instrument to take us where words cannot follow. Our Sacred Signs is a breathtaking and revelatory journey through human history, its gods, and its art.

Genres: Art

288 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2005

Reviews

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a scholar of religion, this is one of my favorite go-to books for researching Abrahamic religions and their influence on each other. Ori Soltes is always interesting, his scholarship is top notch, and his conclusions are well-documented and a great starting point for doing more research.

[Gini · Rating 3 out of 5]

If a person has an interest in religious symbols relates to Jewish,Christian, or Muslim art this would be a good place to look. The analyses and background information I found quite interesting. Best of all he covers the more recent works including ones like Picasso and Warhol. Illustrations are in gray scale and many he discusses are not presented in this book.(There's my chief complaint. )