World travelers and armchair tourists who want to explore the mythology and archaeology of the ruins, sanctuaries, mountains, lost cities, and temples of ancient civilizations will find this guide ideal. Detailed here are the monuments and sites where ancient peoples once gathered to perform sacred rituals and ceremonies to worship various gods and to achieve spiritual enlightenment. Important archaeological, historical, and geological destinations worldwide are profiled, from the Great Pyramid in Egypt and the Forbidden City in China to the Temples of Angkor in Cambodia and Mount Shasta in California. Sites are described in historical and cultural context, and practical contemporary travel information is provided, including detailed maps, drawings, photographs, and travel directions.

A listing of five hundred sites new and old, famous and unknown, that have been used to connect humanity with its gods.

A travel guide to the world's most sacred locales offers travel tips and detailed maps to the Great Pyramid, Easter Island, the Himalayas, Ayers Rock, Chaco Canyon, Jericho, Delphi, Stonehenge, and Mayan ruins, among other sites of spiritual importance. Original.

... "Twenty years of photographs by photographer and anthropologist Martin Gray. Accompanying each photograph is commentary that takes us into the history, mythology and spiritual magnetism of the particular place ..."--Jacket.

From Roman temples to Buddhist shrines in the Chinese desert, these hallowed halls have been abandoned to nature. More than 200 outstanding images show what happens to sacred places when humanity retreats. What happens when the congregation moves away from its place of worship? Or when shifting borders or persecution mean that people can no longer reach their church, synagogue, or mosque? Through magnificent, sometimes haunting images, Abandoned Sacred Places explores more than 100 lost worlds, including ancient and modern temples, synagogues, churches, mosques, and stone circles. Organized geographically, this unforgettable volume wanders from Stonehenge in England and Carnac in France to crumbling inner-city churches and synagogues in present-day Detroit and Chicago, from Mayan pyramids in Mexico to Hindu temples lost in the Indian jungle.

50 of the most spectacular holy sites in the world.

Combining current trends, academic theories, and historical insights, this travel guide brings both lesser-known and famous European spiritual locales into perspective by explaining the significance of each sacred site. The cultural relevance, history, and spirituality of each site—including Stonehenge, the Acropolis, Mont Saint Michel, Pompeii, and Saint Peter’s Basilica—are explained, creating a moving and artistic travel experience. Each destination—with selections spanning more than 15 countries throughout Europe—is accompanied by easy-to-follow maps and directions.