iconography

noun

ico·​nog·​ra·​phy ˌī-kə-ˈnä-grə-fē How to pronounce iconography (audio)
plural iconographies
1
: the traditional or conventional images or symbols associated with a subject and especially a religious or legendary subject
2
: pictorial material relating to or illustrating a subject
3
: the imagery or symbolism of a work of art, an artist, or a body of art
4

Did you know?

If you saw a 17th-century painting of a man writing at a desk with a lion at his feet, would you know you were looking at St. Jerome, translator of the Bible, who, according to legend, once pulled a thorn from the paw of a lion, which thereafter became his devoted friend? And if a painting showed a young woman reclining on a bed with a shower of gold descending on her, would you recognize her as Danaë, locked up in a tower to keep her away from the lustful Zeus, who then managed to gain access to her by transforming himself into golden light (or golden coins)? An iconographic approach to art can make museum-going a lot of fun—and amateur iconographers know there are also plenty of symbols lurking in the images that advertisers bombard us with daily.

Examples of iconography in a Sentence

the iconography of the 1960s
Recent Examples on the Web
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The silver piece is adorned with a cross and the iconography of a chapel and is more than 1,000 years old, the museum said in a Jan. 15 Facebook post. Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 17 Jan. 2025 Last season’s playoff series was fraught with close endings, some instant iconography and an orange current that nullified Philly’s home court. Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 15 Jan. 2025 Price upon publish date of this article: $950 Fossil Raquel Watch Ring $130 Buy Now at amazon Swift often references clock iconography with her lyrics, tour sets, and personal style. Claire Sullivan, WWD, 21 Nov. 2024 This iconography provides a quick view of the urgency of any recommendations being made to improve your account security. Davey Winder, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for iconography 

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Late Latin īconographia "making of images," borrowed from Greek eikonographía "sketch, description" (Late Greek, "making of images"), from eikono- icono- + -graphia -graphy

First Known Use

1678, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of iconography was in 1678

Dictionary Entries Near iconography

Cite this Entry

“Iconography.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iconography. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.

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