iconography

(ī′kə näg′rə fē)

noun

the art of representing or illustrating by pictures, figures, images, etc.
the study of symbols, themes, and subject matter in the visual arts through the identification, description, classification, and definition of these elements
pl. iconographies icons collectively; esp., any system, use, or collection of symbols or images of a particular artist, artistic or historical period, religious tradition, etc.: Hindu iconography, the iconography of Blake
iconology

Origin: ML iconographia < Gr eikonographia, a sketch, description: see icono- & -graphy

Related Forms:

See iconography in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun pl. i·co·nog·ra·phies

a. Pictorial illustration of a subject.
b. The collected representations illustrating a subject.
A set of specified or traditional symbolic forms associated with the subject or theme of a stylized work of art.
A treatise or book dealing with iconography.

Origin:

Origin: Late Latin īconographia, description, verbal sketch

Origin: , from Medieval Greek eikonographiā

Origin: : eikono-, icono-

Origin: + -graphiā, -graphy

Related Forms: