Sacred Sites: The Library of Esoterica by Jessica Hundley (Hardback)

Taking us on a journey through the history of sacred art and architecture, this fifth volume of TASCHEN’s acclaimed Library of Esoterica explores the myriad ways in which we imbue our environments with profound and enduring meaning. From the earliest designation of nature and the body as temple to a futuristic embrace of imaginary realms, Sacred Sites travels the vast and mystical landscapes of myth, religion and imagination.

Through gathering, we ignite our spaces with spirit — circling the bonfire, bowing at the forest altar, giving praise at the temple to our chosen divinities. Through pilgrimage, we carve indelible pathways, making our meditative way across continents as generations of footsteps tread, again and again, upon hallowed ground. And through our creative offerings to spirit, we envision new worlds: golden temples hewn from rock, enormous spirals sculpted from sand and soil, silent sanctuaries hidden among wooded groves. We paint the ancient cave walls, carve petroglyphs to mark the way, and place roses in veneration at the candlelit shrine.

Slowly, stone by stone, we raise monuments to our gods — a cosmic geometry held within the sacred architecture of worship. These hidden patterns can be traced in the towering pyramids found across the globe and throughout an astounding diversity of cultures, in the marble sanctuaries built for the Greek and Roman goddesses, in the windblown mountain monasteries of ancient Asia and the indigenous cliff dwellings of the American Southwest. Tracing a hallowed route from rugged stone temples to transcendent works of modern architecture, Sacred Sites celebrates the collective history of spaces made sacrosanct through human worship.

Perfect for readers who love sacred art and architecture, world religion and mythology, mysticism and visual history — and anyone after a beautiful, museum-grade volume to treasure.