Partnering with Integration Design Group , Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheridan, Colorado recently underwent a noteworthy renovation. Now this particular parish church was originally built in the mid-1960's with some later interior renovations taking place in the late 1…
Before and After: Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheridan, Colorado
Partnering with Integration Design Group , Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheridan, Colorado recently underwent a noteworthy renovation. Now this particular parish church was originally built in the mid-1960's with some later interior renovations taking place in the late 1…
The Ancient Roman Diptych of Ss. Peter and Paul
Located within the Vatican Museums in Rome are two very interesting, and small, depictions of the apostles Ss. Peter and Paul. Originally these took the form of a diptych -- meaning that the two portraits were connected in the middle in such a way that they could be closed …
An Early Christian Reliquary Chest: The Late Antique Capsella Reliquiario of Grado
Housed in the Treasury of the Basilica of Sant'Eufemia in Grado is a silver reliquary chest that is dated to circa A.D. 500. The chest is quite small, measuring only around 11.4cm (4.5") long, 6.8cm (3.5") high and 6.8cm (2.7") wide and as such, it is w…
A Survey of Some Byzantine Sculptural Works
When you think of ecclesiastical art in the East, we naturally think of the (painted) icon, but did you know that the East also has a rich sculptural tradition? The sculptural tradition of the Christian East tends to mainly situate itself within the earlier centuries of Byz…
A Robust, Hand, Wood-Carved Statue of St. John the Baptist
For the feast of St. John the Baptist, we have the opportunity to share another hand-carved statue coming from the polychromed series of saints that have een coming out of the workshop of Hape Sculpture , located in Val Gardena, a beautiful valley set within the Dolomites of…
The Oldest Church in Paris: Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre
The wonderful parish of Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre is a favorite church in Paris, located just a few minutes walk from the famous Notre Dame Cathedral. From its attached rose garden tourists and pilgrims alike take photos of the massive cathedral, rising across the river on an …
Watts and Co.'s Pugin Inspired 'Holy Name' Vestments
Watts & Co of London is well enough known for its long history and tradition of hand-embroidered Catholic vestments as well as its beautiful range of distinctive silk damask chasubles in general. One of their most popular ranges are their Holy Name vestments which are …
The Tradition of Handwoven Liturgical Rugs
In Catholic lands there is a longstanding custom of hand-knotted liturgical rugs. Of course this is the complete opposite of carpet, which does not belong in church, mainly due to the value of acoustics. Rugs on the other hand, when artistic and suitable for the sacred litu…
The Basilica of Santa Prassede: Chapel of St. Zenon
One of the oldest and most important churches in Rome is Santa Prassede (in Latin: Basilica Sanctae Praxedis ). Here is where Sts. Cyril and Methodius lived while in Rome in the adjoining Benedictine monastery complex. Here visitors gather to see the pray before one of the c…
The Sixth Century Archepiscopal Throne of St. Maximianus of Ravenna
Ravenna is, of course, famous for its Italo-Byzantine churches and mosaics, however a relic that frequently gets less attention is the beautiful carved episcopal throne of the sainted archbishop of Ravenna, Maximianus (+556). Before we discuss the throne in particular, let&…
A French Chalice and Paten at the Louvre Museum
Recently while touring the Louvre in Paris with a priest friend, we noticed this rare gem. In some ways a miracle, given that the lion's share of ecclesiastical metalware in France went missing during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, stolen and looted by r…
Silk, Light and Texture: A New Cope from Atelier LAVS
The Italian firm, Atelier LAVS , have been featured here before, most especially their especially splendid precious mitres which are always immediately identifiable when seen worn on the heads of Catholic prelates today -- which they frequently are, particularly within Italy…
Harrison Design and the Church of Mary Our Queen in Peachtree Corners, Georgia
The architects at Harrison Design , a firm based out of Atlanta, Georgia with various other satellite offices, undertood a project in recent years to design a new church for the parish of Mary, Our Queen in Peachtree Corners, Georgia. Harrison Design themselves note that the…
Further Examples of the Formale Coming in Other Forms
In two previous articles we covered the topic of the formale -- a decorative clasp used by senior prelates when wearing the cope, placed over the spot where the cope connects at the front. The first article covered the general history of the formale , while our more recent …
The Venerable Archconfraternity of the Most Holy Trinity of Pilgrims and Convalescents
In Catholic countries, as in the Diocese of Rome, the role of the (arch)confraternity plays an undisputed role. It follows a very successful model that helps keep serious church members - and especially men - volunteering and actively involved in church life.
French Engraver François Houat's 1694 Edition of the Missale Romanum
Typography and liturgical printing are one of those areas that frequently get neglected in our contemporary considerations of the liturgical arts and yet a well published liturgical book is not only of practical value, it is also yet another manifestation of the beauty that…
An Early Eighteenth Century Monstrance Gifted by Pope Benedict XIII
The Terra Sancta Museum in the Holy Land has many important and prominent treasures of liturgical art within their collections and while we only just recently shared some of their monstrances, with Corpus Christi being observed in many places this past weekend, we couldn…
Boldly Coloured Copes from Sixteenth, Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries
The dominant design trends for vestments in recent centuries has gone something like this: some sort of damask is used over the entirety of the vestment, with galloons separating the orphreys form the rest of the design. Sometimes, the orphreys might be gold, however, to di…
Three Monstrances from the Collections of the Terra Sancta Museum
Within the collections of the Terra Sancta Museum are many stunning monstrances and to honour this time of the year I thought we would look at just three examples coming from their collections. The first monstrance we will look at today was crafted in Paris during the ninet…
Markos Kampanis' Romanesque Image of Christ in Majesty at Mary Help of Christians Parish in Chester, Illinois
M arkos Kampanis is a painter and muralist based in Athens, Greece. As one might expect, his work is heavily influenced by the Byzantine iconographic tradition, but the scope and potential of his work also extends well beyond that, seeking to "bridge tradition and moder…
The Fresco of the Annunciation at Wadi al-Natroun Monastery in Egypt
When one thinks of Coptic art, one tends to think of very highly stylized icons. Now of course, most icons in the iconographic tradition are highly stylized, including Byzantine and Russian icons for example, but the Coptic tradition took it to a whole other level, with ico…
A Set of Gold Vestments with the Trinitarian Eye
One of the most popularly misunderstood symbols in some parts of the world is that comprised of a triangle with an eye placed within it. Now symbols are the sort of thing that can have various meanings assigned (or re-assigned) to them of course, but within a Western Christ…
