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This course discusses the role of cult images in the Renaissance period. While art historical scholarship has regarded images of cult as a medieval phenomenon, more recent studies (Holmes, Pon) address precisely the fact that image cults multiplied in line with the development of new aesthetic principles and theories of art in the context of the humanist circles in early modern Italy. The class challenges the idea of a division between the era of images and that of art as proposed by Hans Belting some 25 years ago. We investigate the emergence of a variety of new types of images made for public cults, such as wall paintings, prints, wooden sculpture, feathers, and their architectural and urban settings. How did the medieval tradition of the icon merge with the scientific and humanistic achievements of the early modern period? Moreover, we will examine the proliferation of cult images from Italy to other parts of Europe and beyond, such as the Americas and Asia, where the conception of new such images drew heavily on indigenous artistic and religious practices. There will be a final paper. Course is co-listed with AS.010.616.