This study explores the role of early medieval religious art in its historical context, focusing on England from the reign of Alfred the Great to the aftermath of the Norman conquest. Tenth and eleventh century society expressed itself extensively through visual means, and the surviving material provides a rich body of evidence for the religious culture of the time. Combining visual and documentary evidence, The Role of Art in the Late Anglo-Saxon Church sheds new light on a wide range of magnificent art works and their functions, and offers fresh perspectives on the ecclesiastical history and beliefs of late Anglo Saxon England, with important implications for the study of early medieval civilization in general. a strikingly original contribution ... The book functions as both a refresher course and an eye-opener ... a book which is produced as thoughtfully, as it is written ... The author draws upon a wide range of comparative material, Continental and Byzantine, and the footnotes are rich in references. The effect of a steady and probing intelligence asking repeated questions of the same objects is to bring them into a more complete light than has heretofore been the case. That a multitude of new questions will now crop up is the greatest testimony to the value of this consistently impressive monograph.