Green vestments from the Renaissance and Middle Ages have less commonly survived and come down to us, no doubt in part because typically the vestments which have survived are also those that are the most precious and ornamental in nature -- and typically the most precious a…
Rare Survivals: A Green Cope from the 1500's
Green vestments from the Renaissance and Middle Ages have less commonly survived and come down to us, no doubt in part because typically the vestments which have survived are also those that are the most precious and ornamental in nature -- and typically the most precious a…
Some Early Modern Byzantine Mitres
Within the Latin West, we are, of course, accustomed to the iconic curved and pointed episcopal mitre. In an article we published here in 2022, we detailed a very brief history of theWestern mitre and the evolution its shape . One of the things we noted in that article was t…
Medieval Survivals and Its Liturgical Lessons For Today: A Twelfth Century Apparelled Alb
Albs are one of those basic items of clerical vesture that tend to get a lot more attention these days than one would think they might. Likely derived from the Roman tunic, at root they are simply a white linen under-robe that is worn by clerics beneath the other, much more…
The Fifteenth Century Frauenfeld-Kreuzlingen Mitre
Crafted circa 1414-1420, the Frauenfeld mitre is an exquisite and rare, in tact example of a late medieval mitre. The mitre is thought to have been possibly commissioned by the Abbot of Kreuzlingen, Erhard Lind, after the anti-pope John XXIII granted him the privilege of we…
Altarpieces of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
While the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary was only officially made a dogma in the 1950's, belief in the Assumption does, of course, extend back much further into history than this. It was celebrated at least as early as the fourth or fifth century and attesting to…
Some Sacristies of Europe
What is a sacristy? For most Catholics, they tend to think of the sacristy (which is sometimes also called a vestry or, in some liturgical books, a diaconicum or secretarium ) as something akin to a mere 'cloak room' or 'storage room' for priests. There is …
The Chapel of the Virgin: Crown Jewel of the Cathedral of Rouen
The Chapel of the Virgin (Chapelle de la Vierge) is an extraordinary chapel located in the axis of the cathedral of Rouen, more formally known as the Cathédrale Primatiale Notre-Dame de l'Assomption de Rouen. The chapel itself was begun in the year 1302 at the initiati…
A Semi-Conical Chasuble From the 1400's
Recently I came across this rather fetching chasuble that is thought to be of Italian and/or German origin, dated to sometime within the 1400's. Many medieval chasubles can be rather 'busy,' covered as many often are, with all sorts of symbols and figures, but …
Alb (Camice) Made by St. Clare of Assisi
The liturgical garment known as an alb was in previous centuries much more flowing, as seen here in thirteenth century, with pleated sides. These oversized albs were held up at the waste with a regular cincture, allowing material to overhang at the waist. Similarly, sleeves…
The Cathedral-Basilica of San Lorenzo in Viterbo
Viterbo's Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral-Basilica of San Lorenzo, is a twelfth century Romanesque edifice located within central Italy part way between Rome and Florence. For a time, this particular basilica was home to two popes: Alexander IV and John XXI.
A Sixteenth Century Antependium Featuring the Roman Martyr, St. Lawrence
Saint Lawrence is a popular third century Roman martyr who was killed during the persecutions of the Emperor Valerian. He is said to have died in the year A.D. 258 at the tender age of 33 -- thus placing his martyrdom thirty years before that of another great and popular ma…
A Rare Example of a Western Vestment Showcasing the Transfiguration
For whatever reason, in the Christian West the Transfiguration is one of those events in the life of Christ that has not received as much liturgical prominence as say the Nativity, the Epiphany, or the Ascension. In fact in the Latin rite it was only in the mid-fifteenth ce…
The Feast of Our Lady of the Snows and the Medieval Facade of Santa Maria Maggiore
In a previous article , we discussed the current baroque and previous medieval facade of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. Like so many of the churches of Rome, it has seen an evolution in its appearance over the centuries. In general, antique, Roman inspired facades were, in th…
The Five Cupolas of the Basilica of San Marco in Venice
In a previous article we spoke more generally about the Italo-Byzantine Domes of Venice . That particular article was focused primarily on the exterior of the domes with their distinctive shape that can be found throughout Venice as well as some other parts of Italy where th…
The Wooden Churches of Chile
While I tend to most appreciate a fully polychromed marble church in the Imperial Roman tradition, I have also always been drawn to wooden church structures. There is a certain rusticity about these churches that, much like a log cabin, feels comfortable in some way, shape …
