Dozens of the renowned artist's celestial beings, as created for such great literary works as the Bible, Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and Milton's classic, Paradise Lost. 75 black-and-white illustrations.

Written by two recognized authorities on nontraditional religious movements, this resource is one of the most comprehensive books on angels and related topics currently available. More than 300 entries are included and drawn from multiple religions, such as Christianity, Islam, and Hindu traditions, as well as from pop culture. A variety of angel topics are discussed, including celebrity angels, classifications of angels, obscure angels still waiting for their big break, guardian angels, fallen angels, Anaheim angels, biblical figures associated with angels, angels in art and architecture, and angels in the media and literature. Angels are also discussed in terms of the occult and metaphysics, with entries on UFOs, fairies, and witches. A comprehensive resource section lists movies, books, magazines, and organizations related to angels.

Every major poet or philosopher develops their own distinctive semantic field around those terms which matter most to them, or which contribute most profoundly to the imagined world of a particular work. This book explores the specific meanings which Milton develops around key words in Paradise Lost. Some of these are theological or philosophical terms (e.g. 'evil', 'grace', 'reason'); others are words which shape the imagined world of the poem (e.g. 'dark', 'fall', 'within'); yet others are small words or even prefixes which subtly move the argument in new directions (e.g. 'if', 'not', 're-'). Milton seems to expect his readers to be alert to the special semantic field which he creates around such words, often by infusing them with biblical and literary connotations, and activating their etymological roots; alert also to the patterns created by the repetitions of such words, and particularly to their diverse use (and often their blatant misuse) by different characters. To understand the migrations and malleability of key words is part of the education of Milton's reader.