Labyrinths & Mazes
In a luxuriantly illustrated guide to labyrinths and mazes from 350 B.C.E. to the present, Hohmuth cites incarnations of this universal form in gardens, on coins, inside churches and other buildings, and incorporated into landscape designs. Labyrinths are made from materials as ephemeral as dirt and leaves and as splendid as marble, and their purpose ranges from serving as signaling beacons to awakening self-discovery. Hohmuth's engaging, straightforward text provides an overview of the history and development of each type of labyrinth and maze found throughout the Western world, such as the earliest labyrinths of Scandinavia's Troytowns, the petroglyphs of Spain's Galicia, and the graffito of Pompeii, as well as modern English gardens designed by Randall Coate and Adrian Fisher, who contributes an essay about the labyrinth as an art form. Finally, the labyrinth is explored in the world of linguistic usage, in which the form's original intent, the engendering of a spiritual experience, is obscured. Happily, the true spirit of the labyrinth is regained in this exquisite bookLauren RobertsCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved