As the end of the first millennium drew near, the beleaguered Christian communities of Spain, still dominated by Islam, were experiencing a profound spiritual crisis. Cut off from the rest of Europe and obsessed by the imminence of God's judgement, these people made of their illuminated manuscripts art forms of extraordinary expressive power. More than 20 manuscripts survive, dating from 900 to 1100, all illuminated in a bizarre and colourful style known as Mozarabic, and depicting an invented world peopled by angelic warriors, demons and beasts, exotic birds and serpents and luxuriant trees. The Beatus manuscripts, based on the commentary written three centuries earlier by the monk Beatus of Liebana, are the largest, but not only body of such work. There are Bibles, and a small number of other religious texts, all sharing the same apocalyptic vision as recounted in the Revelation of St John the Divine. This study explores the context and role of the illuminations and explains their dense theological meaning without dissipating their magic. As a result of Moorish invasions, early Spain saw Islamic influences on art, architecture, and culture, including?ironically?Christian art. Focusing on the illuminated manuscripts of 10th- and 11th-century Spain, this book beautifully portrays those influences. Gorgeous color plates make up almost half the content. In this scholarly and well-researched book, Mentre (history of arts and religion, Sorbonne) dissects the illustrations by motif, element, style, and influence, making a strong case for defining Mozarabic (the period when Spain was dominated by Islam) as a distinctive art style. Mentre's arguments are very specialized, however. This volume would stand well in collections on illuminated manuscripts or early medieval art in larger academic libraries.?Karen Ellis, Baldwin Boettcher Lib., Humble, Tex. Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.