Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Profane iconography
(1,913 words)

1. Introduction

Profane iconography (Latin, originally pro fano, “lying outside the sacred precinct”; profanus, “unconsecrated,” “unholy”), as distinct from religious iconography, comprises pictorial themes in visual art from worldly contexts. Although didactics of Christian moral virtue are often present, the material itself does not come from theological sources such as the Bible or legends of the sain…

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Windorf, Wiebke, “Profane iconography”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 02 June 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_025944>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20210107



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