The Architectural Setting of the Cult of Saints in the Early Christian West c.300-1200 (Oxford Historical Monographs)

From the earliest centuries of Christianity, the cult of saintly relics has been an important feature of the worship of the Church. This book explores the way in which church architecture has been shaped by holy bones--the physical remains or "relics" of those whom the Church venerated as saints. This is the first complete modern study of this aspect of medieval church architecture in western Europe.