Arboreal Symbolism in European Art, 1300—1800 probes the significance of trees in religious iconography of Western art.
Based in the disciplines of art history, botany, and theology, this study focuses on selected works of art in which tree forms embody and reflect Christian themes. Through this triple lens, Brown examines trees that early modern artists rendered as sacred symbols—symbols with origins in the Old Testament, New Testament, Greek and Roman cultures, and early medieval legends. Tree components and wood depicted in works of art can serve as evidence for early modern artists’ embrace of biblical metaphor, classical sources, and devotional connotations. The author considers how artists rendered seasonal change in Christian narratives to emphasize themes of spiritual transformation. Brown argues that many artists and their patrons drew parallels between the life cycle of a tree and events in the Gospels with their respective annual, liturgical celebrations.
This book will interest scholars in art history, religion, humanities, and interdisciplinary studies.
Introduction
Chapter 1: Summer
The Tree in Full Leaf as a Symbol of Fertility
Three Symbolic Tree Forms in Christian Art
The Tree of Life
The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil
The Tree of Jesse and the Genealogy of Christ
Scriptural References to Tree Species and Related Colloquial Nomenclature
Mature Trees in Biblical and Apocryphal Narrative Art
Greenery and Fledged Trees in the Sacra Conversazione
The Foliate Crucifix in Dreams, Meditations, and Visions
Chapter 2: Autumn
Allegories within Seasonal Series
Human Intervention
Harvesting Figs and Acorns from Trees
Climbing Trees and Bending Branches
Felled and Fallen Trees in Hagiography
Trees in Storms
Noah and the Flood
Windblown Trees in Hagiography
Wood Fires and Tinder Burning
Chapter 3: Winter
Dormancy, Sticks, and Bark
Stumps, Wood, and Dry Branches
Wilderness, Roots, and Trunks with Severed Branches in Hagiography
Focus on Saint Sebastian
Focus on Saint Acacius
Evergreens: Palms and Conifers
Citrus Trees and Fruit
Chapter 4: Spring
The Parable of the Sower
The Raising of Lazarus
Agony in the Garden
The Crucifixion
The Resurrection
Noli me tangere
The Ascension
The Legend of the True Cross
The Flowering Tree in Hagiography
Carvings in Wood and Amber
Biography
Katherine T. Brown is Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio.
