Being in Trastevere is like being in an old Italian village rather than in Rome, and it was even more of a treat coming upon this interesting church. The first church on this site was likely founded in the 3rd century by Pope Urban I and was devoted to the Roman martyr Cecilia (patron saint […]
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Piazza San Pietro
Bernini strikes again, this time on the largest canvas, Piazza San Pietro, in the smallest sovereign state, Vatican City. The vast square, measuring 340 meters x 240 meters, contains 284 columns. 140 saints are perched above. The two semi-circular colonnades represent the motherly arms of the church. The 25-meter tall obelisk is from Heliopolis in […]
Chiesa del Gesù
Get your sunglasses out! Entering Rome’s most important Jesuit church, Chiesa del Gesù, is like looking directly at the sun. This overwhelming, stunning gold and marble interior was designed by Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola, a pupil of Michelangelo’s. The centerpiece is the ceiling fresco, designed by Giovanni Battista Gauli, who also frescoed the cupola, including […]
The Pantheon
Romans love their domes, and this is the mother of them all. This was the largest dome in the world until the 15th century. Don’t feel too bad, though, since it’s still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world. The Pantheon originated in 27 B.C., when a temple was ordered by Marcus Agrippa. In […]
Eglise de la Trinité
What a nice surprise to come upon this beautiful Roman Catholic church tucked behind Gare St-Lazare in the 9th arrondissement. It was built in the late 1800’s and was designed by Théodore Ballu as part of Haussmann’s beautification effort. Figures of Faith, Hope and Charity adorn the exterior, and the bell tower is topped with […]
Eglise St. Jean Baptiste, Arras, France
This small Catholic church peeks above the rooftops. When this church was built in the 12th century it was called Saint Nicolas des Fosses since it was constructed on the site of Bastion Saint Nicolas. In the1560’s, that church was demolished and rebuilt. During the French Revolution, most churches were sold as national property and […]
Abbaye Sainte-Vaast
The 18th-century Benedictine Abbaye Sainte-Vaast is a grey-stone classical building pockmarked by shrapnel from both world wars. The abbey was originally founded in the seventh century, at which time it marked the birth of the town of Arras. Its generous size indicates the important spiritual and economic role it played. Today, the Musée des Beaux-Arts […]
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Luxembourg
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Luxembourg was founded in the early 17th century as part of the city’s Jesuit college. When the Jesuits were ordered from the area in the 18th century, the church was given to the City of Luxembourg. Notre Dame awarded cathedral status in 1870 when Pope Pius IX declared Luxembourg a self-governing diocese. […]
Église Saint-Michel, Luxembourg
This church sits on the oldest religious site in the city, where the castle chapel of the Counts of Luxembourg was built in the 10th century. The church has gone through many incarnations; it was destroyed, rebuilt and renovated many times throughout the centuries in different styles including Gothic, Romanesque and Baroque. The current building […]
St. Mary’s Church Hay
St. Mary’s tower can be seen from many points in Hay-on-Wye, but it’s the old, weathered gravestones that caught my eye. The church was originally constructed in the 12th century. It was significantly renovated in the 19th century when a new nave, chancel and trio of Gothic arches were added. Today, the lower part of […]
