Symbols, Signs and Signets

The history and simple reference without being overwelling, just inspirational. I have owned this book for 30+ years and just bought for my graffitti/marking artist son-in-law.

This is one of my favorite books on symbols only thing is the description or title of the symbol is listed at the beginning of each chapter I found it annoying always having to flip back but still love this book

I am primarily interested in Christian symbolism and this book has quite a few, though not meant as an exhaustive resource on any particular set of symbols. I enjoyed the broad range of symbols this book presents - Mayan, Egyptian, metaphysical, Asian, and even some hobo symbols (plus lots more). This book is truly a good general reference for symbol meanings. It is a bit sparse on the origins of the symbols, but certainly supplies enough information to get my interest piqued in different symbols!

Dover Publications scores yet again! This book hits a home run with bases loaded for many reasons. First, it is jam-packed with thousands of symbols, signs, marks, inscriptions and engravings. All are in black and white, and all are excellent quality. Second, the book presents a fascinating range of symbols, organized by subject, including: Symbolic Gods and Dieties (included are Egyptian, Assyrian, Greek/Roman, Nordic and Aztec Gods), Astronomy and Astrology, Alchemy, Magic, Church and Religion, Heraldry, Japanese Crests, Cattle Brands, and a large section containing some of the distinctive marks of the medieval european craftsman/guild marks and signets.Third, this is a surprisingly useful reference. For writers, historian, artists, and the incurably curious, here is a book that sets out, for example, all of the alchemical signs for the materials (gold, silver, etc) and alchemical processes, a host of Catholic and other ancient christian religious symbols, nice engravings of all the important Egyptian gods, etc etc.Highly Recommended.

I found this book in my local library under the "one day checkout" section. Appartantly it is one of the most popular books at the library. It is a pictoral treasury with over 1350 illustrations from many different cultures and time periods. A very nice book to own.