Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A quintessential read!, 24 Jun 2001
The relatively simple Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura just outside the walls of Rome comes under the scrutiny of history, theology, anthropology & folklore to illuminate its physical & spiritual architecture.Margaret Visser guides us through this organic aged basilica, from its apse to its nave, its catacombs to its campanile, she opens our eyes to its symbolism, its layers of religious expression, the Christian fascination with lambs & virgins, the meaning of martyrdom & the provenance of relics. Effortlessly, this tranquil & earnest author moves us back through the ages to reveal, like the ancient stones she walks past, the erstwhile Roman attitudes toward our mortal remains & then through Christianity's infancy, in all its forms & purposes. Part archaeology, part love story, part poetry & part tourist guide, The Geometry of Love is a quintessential read & I fell in love with columns all over again! A superb example of writing about what you know - this author bequeaths us a unique & enfolding account of the why, where, who, when & what of a charming house of worship.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An unusual but rewarding book, 18 Sep 2002
If you have ever visited an old and beautiful building, and wondered just what it all meant, then is definately the book to read. At one time, almost every member of society would have understood the many messages that are conveyed through the art and architecture of a church. That knowledge is lost to most people now, yet we still get the sense when we enter a church that there are important stories to be told. Margaret Visser here takes us on a guided tour through a Christian church in Rome, using this one particular church to begin to tell those secret stories. This becomes the starting point for a spirited discussion on the iconography used in religious buildings. Visser's approach is always lively, with a deft mix of anecdote and painstaking research. The book is not aimed at a Christian market, but has a much broader appeal, and has a good deal to interest anyone who has an interest in history, mythology, art, or religion. Few books really invite the reader to open their eyes and have a good look at what is around them, but this achieves exactly that. It is just a shame though that the publishers of this book did not see to include some illustrations of the church in the book, to complement the vivid picture Visser paints for us.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
if you have ever visited a catacomb, read this!, 11 Mar 2008
This is a lovely book. It effortlessly illuminates the often difficult field of early christian ritual and attitude, showing how these ancient foundations have evolved through the centuries into the faith we see today. It demonstrates how to 'read a church', making quite complex architectural forms and principles comprehensible to the non-specialist, but it also shows how they have been driven and evolved through the impetus of a faith which is most movingly shared.
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