DU1707 The Christian Iconography

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2026
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
In-person direct teaching
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Michaela Šeferisová Loudová, Ph.D.
Department of Art History – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Mgr. Michaela Šeferisová Loudová, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Art History – Faculty of Arts
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Abstract
Basic introduction to the iconography of Christian art.
Learning outcomes
Student will be able to: - describe and identify the iconographic topics appearing in the art from the early Middle Ages to the present - to consider the importance of the relation between an iconographic topic and function of the sacral space - to work with iconographical dictionaries and to search for literature necessary to examine a selected topic - to summarize the results of her/his work are by the presentation
Key topics
Main topics of the course: • Basic terms: iconography and iconology, attribute, symbol, personification, allegory, emblem • Survey of the iconographical handbooks and basic modern literature (see bibliography) • Literary sources of the Christian ikonography - Bible (Old and New Testament), lifes of the Saints (Legenda Aurea), theological and patristic literature, emblematic handbooks • Presentation and typology of the sacral themes from the Old and New Testament • Scenes from the life of the Saints, from the Church history • Attributes of the Saints • Christian personifications, allegories and emblems • Detailed presentation of selected and often depicted iconographic topics from the Early Middle Ages up to the present
Study resources and literature
    required literature
  • Legenda aurea (Orig.) : Legenda aurea [Voragine, 1998]. info
  • PANOFSKY, Erwin. Význam ve výtvarném umění. Translated by Lubomír Konečný. Vyd. 2., rev. Praha: Academia, 2013, 399 s. ISBN 9788020022363. info
  • Bible : Písmo svaté Starého a Nového zákona : český ekumenický překlad. 11. vyd., (9. přepr. v Čes. Praha: Česká biblická společnost, 1998, 863, 287. ISBN 8085810190. info
    not specified
  • Between text and language : miscellaneous studies on the history of emblematics (Souběž.) : Mezi textem a obrazem : miscellanea z historie emblematiky. info
  • LCI (Variant.) : Lexikon der christlichen Ikonographie. Bd. 1, Allgemeine Ikonographie., A-Ezechiel : Lexikon der christlichen Ikonographie. Bd. 2, Allgemeine Ikonographie., Fabelwesen-Kynokephalen : Lexikon der christlichen Ikonographie. Bd. 3, Allgemei. info
  • BÜTTNER, Frank and Andrea GOTTDANG. Einführung in die Ikonographie : Wege zur Deutung von Bildinhalten. 2., durchgesehene Aufl. München: C.H.Beck, 2009, 304 s. ISBN 9783406535796. info
  • TELESKO, Werner. Einführung in die Ikonographie der barocken Kunst. Wien: Böhlau Verlag, 2005, 286 s. ISBN 3205825283011. info
  • STRATEN, Roelof van. Einführung in die Ikonographie. 2., überarbeitete Aufl. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag, 1997, 165 s. ISBN 3496011610. info
  • NOVOTNÝ, Adolf. Biblický slovník. 3. vyd. Praha: Kalich, 1992, s. 771-139. ISBN 8090088112. info
  • WAAL, H. van de. Iconclass : an iconographic classification system. Edited by Leendert Couprie - E. Tholen - G. van Caspel-Vellekoop. Amsterdam: North-Holland publishing company, 1981, ix, 231. ISBN 0444855432. info
  • SACHS, Hannelore; Ernst BADSTÜBNER and Helga NEUMANN. Christliche Ikonographie in Stichworten. Leipzig: Koehler & Amelang, 1980, 384 s. info
Approaches, practices, and methods used in teaching
Class and seminar 1.5 hour class per week.
Method of verifying learning outcomes and course completion requirements
The prerequisite for successful completion of the course is a presentation (a consultation with the teacher on the chosen topic is mandatory) and passing a written test.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
The course can also be completed outside the examination period.
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught every week.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2019, Autumn 2020, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023, Autumn 2024, Autumn 2025.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2026, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/autumn2026/DU1707