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Byzantium Under Siege Again: Preserving Chora’s Icons

The four gigantic minarets surrounding Hagia Sophia serve as a constant reminder of the Turkish triumph in 1453 over the holy city founded by the emperor Constantine. The church, turned mosque, turned museum, and now reverted to a mosque stands undoubtedly among the greatest architectural accomplishments in human history. Its Read more…

By Jared Staudt, 5 yearsAugust 31, 2020 ago
Architecture

Cluny: The Lost Capital of Medieval Culture

Wine, Romanesque architecture, and the monastic life, all reached their high point in the Middle Ages, tucked away in the province of Burgundy. You may not have heard of Cluny, but, from its humble founding in 910, it quickly constructed the largest church in Europe and built an independent network Read more…

By Jared Staudt, 5 yearsMarch 5, 2020 ago
Architecture

Rereading The Hunchback of Notre Dame after the Fire

Victor Hugo begins The Hunchback of Notre Dame, amazingly, by discussing a fire! Not any fire, but one that destroyed a beautiful and historical Gothic building.  The story opens in the Grand Hall of Paris’ Royal Palace on the 6th on January 1482, with a crowd awaiting a miracle play, Read more…

By Jared Staudt, 5 yearsFebruary 7, 2020 ago
Architecture

A Pilgrimage to the World’s Oldest House Church . . . in Connecticut

My family spent Christmas back in my hometown, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Some of us took a pilgrimage of sorts to visit ancient and medieval art in New York City and Yale University’s Art Gallery in New Haven. Connecticut may seem an odd location, but a team from Yale helped to excavate Read more…

By Jared Staudt, 5 yearsJanuary 19, 2020 ago
Architecture

Monasticism in Ireland: Old, New, and Renewed

The early Middle Ages rightly can be called the Age of the Monks and the title fits in Ireland even more than anywhere else. Ancient Ireland did not have cities and, with its tribal organization, the monastery served as a central place of prayer, learning, and social organization. Over time, Read more…

By Jared Staudt, 6 yearsOctober 3, 2019 ago
Architecture

St. Denis: The Amazing Story of the First Gothic Church

Without St. Denis, there would be no Notre Dame de Paris as we knew it (and hope to see it again). Though not as well known, the Basilica of St. Denis is one of the most remarkable churches in Christendom.  St. Denis, just north of Paris, initiated the Gothic revolution. Read more…

By Jared Staudt, 6 yearsJuly 2, 2019 ago
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