In response to theologians’ quest for the historical Jesus, a new genre of Gospel-inspired fictional reconstructions became increasingly popular during the Victorian period. By exploring how such writers as Oscar Wilde, George Moore and Marie Corelli used fiction to revitalize the Scriptures, Stevens shows that they not only helped to disseminate modernist theology to the reading public but also set down the template for a literary tradition within which later authors, from Robert Graves to Dan Brown, have worked.

Putting the current obesity epidemic in historical perspective, this study explores fatness in art, literature and the history of medicine, from the Venus of Willendorf to Monty Python’s Mr Creosote. Starting with the medical understanding of obesity, the authors discuss topics such as the history of food and drink; fat people on show; diet drugs; the deadly sins of gluttony and sloth; and how the desirable body shape has changed over time.

Requiring shallow, warm, clean waters to thrive, a coral is a colony of tiny sac-like polyps that over time produces calcified stony reefs of fabulous colour and complexity. This exhibition catalogue, inspired by the collection at the Manchester Museum, presents a series of essays examining various aspects of coral, including its use in jewellery and ornament; its symbolic importance throughout history; its unusual natural history; and the sensitivity of coral reefs to climate change and pollution.