Reference Books - ART101 - Understanding Art - LibraryGuides at Chemeketa Community College

Getting Started

The 30-volume encyclopedia called Dictionary of Art is a great place to start. It is available in print only in the library on the Salem Campus.

Medieval Art: A Topical Dictionary by Leslie Ross
ISBN: 9780313293290
Publication Date: 1996
The Oxford Dictionary of Art by Ian Chilvers (Editor); Harold Osborne (Editor); Dennis Farr (Editor)
Call Number: REF 703.21 Ox2 1997
ISBN: 0198600844
Publication Date: 1997, 2011
Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms by Kimberley Reynolds; Richard Seddon
Call Number: REF 703.21 R33
ISBN: 9780911745320
Publication Date: 1984

Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art by James Hall; Kenneth Clark
Call Number: REF 704.903 H14
ISBN: 9780813343938
Publication Date: 2007
Has few illustrations, but contains the most information about traditional scenes such as the Deposition.
Dictionary of Symbols in Western Art by Sarah Carr-Gomm
Call Number: REF 704.946 C23
ISBN: 0816033013
Publication Date: 1995
Gives treatment not only of visual symbols, e.g., dice, but of persons and scenes frequently pictured, such as Gabriel. Coverage is selective.
Illustrated Dictionary of Symbols in Eastern and Western Art by James A. Hall
Call Number: REF 704.946 H14
ISBN: 0064309827
Publication Date: 1994
This is a visual dictionary, divided into thematic chapters, e.g., "Animals," with line drawings of each subject glossing the text. There is also a chapter on collectives, e.g., The Four Prophets, and an index.
The Dent Dictionary of Symbols in Christian Art by Jennifer Speake
Call Number: REF 704.9482 Sp3
ISBN: 0460861387
Publication Date: 1994
Includes fewer personal names, but more scenes and symbols, than the The Dictionary of Symbols in Western Art
The Hutchinson Dictionary of Symbols in Art
ISBN: 9781423711322.
Publication Date: 2005

The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature by M. C. Howatson
Call Number: REF 880.3 H26
ISBN: 9780199548545
Publication Date: 2011
Revised and updated, concise encyclopedia
The Oxford Guide to Classical Mythology in the Arts, 1300-1990s by Jane Davidson Reid; Chris Rohmann
Call Number: REF 700 R27
ISBN: 9780195049985
Publication Date: 1993
A two volume guide to Classical subjects. Subjects are in BOLD CAPITAL letters. A short summary of the myth is followed by a paragraph marked Classical Sources, which tells which literary works of antiquity are the source of the myth.
The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses by George Hart
ISBN: 0415361168
Publication Date: 2005
Who's Who in Egyptian Mythology by Anthony S. Mercatante
Call Number: REF 299.3 M53
ISBN: 0517534452
Publication Date: 1978-01-01

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