Since its original publication over two hundred years ago, >I?Bulter's Lives of the Saints has been one of the best-known and most used religious reference works of all time. The original works, including this December edition, have been updated twice previously in the twentieth century. The need has become urgent for this most thorough revision yet undertaken, completely rewritten and with substantial amendments to the selection of entries. This volume was revised by Kathleen Jones, working to general guidelines and backed by a team of expert consultants. The bibliographical notes to each entry, which have been such a valuable feature, are retained and updated, and in the case of major figures, expanded with notes on artistic representations. In many cases, these relate to legend rather than to history, so relevant legends are not discarded, but distinguished as such--which may have been a principle, but was not always the practice with earlier editions.
