As Formas do Espírito: Arte Sacra da Diocese de Beja (two volumes)

Departamento do Património Histórico e Artístico da Diocese de Beja, Portugal, 2003 Book. Good. Hardcover. Portuguese text; Hardcover (without dust jacket); 24 x 31 cm; 3.242 Kg; Two volumes, lacks the third. Volume I: 282 pages, Volume II 167 pages, with colour illustrations.; Used books with signs of wear. Good condition overall.; This publication results from an exhibition first displayed in Rome and then in the Palácio Nacional da Ajuda in Lisbon, Portugal. Similarly to other books published by the Diocese of Beja, the three volume publication is an outcome of the systematic surveying of the artistic heritage of the Alentejo region, undertaken since 1984. This highly enlightening book exhibits man's spirituality in South Alentejo, a region with an anthropological history that has not always been understood by foreigners, and that is heavily influenced by a taste for colour and the exotic. Along with showing objects that are very characteristic of its local culture, it also includes artworks from Persia, Egypt, India and China. Each volume of this book represents a stage in the mystic journey, under the titles of Twilight, Dawn and Evening. The objects presented date from the 6th century AD to the present day and derive from different categories of the decorative arts, including paintings, sculptures, garments and jewellery. With beautiful images and details of the pieces, very thorough descriptions, accompanied by extensive and updated bibliography, this book reveals genuine treasures of art and spirituality..