Masterpiece Story: Adoration of the Magi by Gentile da Fabriano
Let’s explore this beautiful altarpiece which features scenes of great pomp and circumstance. Let us venture into the brilliant world of the...
James W Singer 27 April 2025
Medieval Art
Medieval Christian Monoliths: The Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela, Ethiopia
The highlands of northern Ethiopia contain eleven fascinating and unique churches. The so-called rock-hewn churches of Lalibela were carved directly...
Alexandra Kiely 18 April 2025
Legacy of Kievan Rus’: The Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, Ukraine
Saint Sophia, a stunning 11th century cathedral in Kyiv, Ukraine, is a monument of the time when Kyiv was the capital of the massive empire called...
Alexandra Kiely 18 April 2025
How Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Was Inspired by the Late Medieval Tapestry
In Charles Perrault’s 17th-century literary world, knights, dragons, and spellbound princesses persisted centuries after the topic diminished. As...
Anna Ingram 16 April 2025
Holy Week in Art: Easter Explained in Paintings
To celebrate the Christian festival of Easter, here is the story of Holy Week and Easter explained in paintings. Palm Sunday Stained glass...
Isla Phillips-Ewen 14 April 2025
Margaret of Austria: The Public Image of a Renaissance Stateswoman
Instagram and other social media have long since taken over our inherent need to be seen and acknowledged by our surroundings. But this deliberate...
Kero Fichter 6 March 2025
Ende: The First Documented Spanish Female Manuscript Illuminator
She is an enigma, an ancient, foggy artist from northern Spain in the Middle Ages. We learn nothing about Ende’s identity, life, or whether she...
Wen Gu 3 March 2025
Top 10 Weird Christian Relics
Heads, shoulders, knees, and toes… Saintly toes? The variety of saintly relics really offers it all. I hope all of this is not too morbid for you.
Marta Wiktoria Bryll 24 February 2025
The Best of Discarding Images
During the Middle Ages, illuminated manuscripts were first used in the Roman Catholic Church for liturgical services and prayers. The popularity of...
Anna Ingram 12 February 2025
The Medieval Bestiary—Cute, Quirky, and Weird Animals
Of all the medieval manuscripts, bestiaries are definitely the most fun. A medieval bestiary is a book about animals. It’s full of unusual...
Alexandra Kiely 16 January 2025
Here Be Medieval Dragons
Dragons are everywhere in popular culture. People make movies about them, collect stuffed animals of them, and dress up as them for Halloween. They...
Alexandra Kiely 16 January 2025
Masterpiece Story: Saint George and the Dragon
There is a skirmish between the hero and the villain. Fabrics whip about, horse hoofs trample, and a dying scream erupts as Saint George slaughters...
James W Singer 16 January 2025
