The Oxford Dictionary of Christian Art & Architecture

The Oxford Dictionary of Christian Art and Architecture explains a wide range of terms used in the study of the history of Christian art and architecture including subjects, topics, themes, artists, works, movements, and buildings. This long-awaited new edition of Peter and Linda Murray's classic text continues to provide an invaluable, authoritative, and engaging guide to interpreting Christian art both for students and teachers of the subject, as well as non-specialists and those without a formal education in Christianity.

The new editor, the Reverend Tom Devonshire Jones, has been aided by over a dozen expert contributors, fully updating the text for the new century. Areas that have been expanded upon include the artwork, artists, and innovations of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries (such as the relationship between Christianity and film). Coverage includes art from around the world, with new entries upon the Christian art of North America, Latin America, Australia, and of the non-Western world, as well as Christian artistic interactions with other religions, including Judaism and Islam.

The detailed bibliography has been heavily revised and updated, increasing the number of sources cited and expanding on sources relevant to the study of non-traditional Christian art. The updated bibliography will be placed on a companion webpage to the Dictionary, which will also feature an appendix of web links to sites of relevant interest.

The late Peter Murray FSA and Linda Murray FSA were well-known art historians with over 30 years' teaching experience, and several books written in collaboration, as well as those written independently. Peter Murray was Professor of the History of Art at Birkbeck College, in the University of London, from 1967 until his retirement in 1980. Linda Murray taught art history in the University of London Extra-Mural Department from 1949 to 1979.

Tom Devonshire Jones studied Classics and Theology at Oxford, always with an eye on the art of Antiquity and Christianity. Since ordination in the Church of England in 1960 the interactions of art and religion have been a significant focus of his parish and campus ministries in England and the United States. He is the founder of Art and Christianity Enquiry (acetrust.org), and he is married and lives in London.