Painted Mysteries

When looking at a painting of the Madonna with the Christ Child, do you know why Jesus is clutching a goldfinch? Or why a peacock often appears in paintings of the Annunciation? Can you use your knowledge of Greek and Roman mythology to interpret what is going on in Botticelli’s Primavera? Are you so steeped in the Bible that you know why Lot’s wife was turned into a pillar of salt? Past generations would have known the answers: religious belief and the mythology of antiquity permeated people’s lives and decoding symbols within a painting was automatic. In this book, Caroline Chapman aims to encourages art lovers to look more deeply into pictures and to understand better what they see. In over 100 images, many of them famous masterpieces, she dissects the paintings, recounting the stories the artists were depicting and unravelling the layers of meaning that modern viewers may find elusive or mysterious.