The Angelus was painted by JF Millet (1814-1875) in 1859. His early life was spent in rural France working on the family farm whilst being instructed in the classics by the priests from the local parish. Millet inherited his father’s artistic talent and as a boy copied prints from the Bible and so his artistic […]
A city like Rome, with its abundance of history and art, can, at times, produce sentiments of inadequacy and disorientation. Here we can find places that open our minds to the possibility of a recuperation of our Christian identity and roots. For a moment, let us abandon the noisy hub-bub of the streets and try […]
The splendid mosaics in the apse of St Mary Major’s Basilica in Rome narrate the life story of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Of particular interest is the “Dormitio Mariæ”, the Dormition of Mary, which is found just below the central mosaic. The mosaic depicts the Marian mystery that the Eastern Church refer to as the […]
Pompeo Batoni (1708-1787) is the painter who depicted the most famous image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He was born in Lucca in 1708 and his father was a skilled goldsmith who imposed the family trade on his son. As a youth, Batoni displayed his ability in the engraving and decoration of precious metals […]
“The celestial woman had black hair that protruded from a green mantle that flowed down her body from head to foot. Below the mantle she wore a white robe tied around the waist with a rose coloured sash ….”I am who I am in the Divine Trinity. I am the Virgin of Revelation.” With these […]
Christmas is the ideal time to contemplate the Lord’s birth through one of the most beautiful works of art: the Nativity by Barocci. Frederico Barocci (1530-1612), is one of the most important mannerist painters of the 16th century who applied an extraordinary use of colour, characterised by warm colour shades, to his artistic work. The […]
Just below the main altar in the splendid Basilica of St Mary Majors, Rome, it is possible to venerate the precious relic of Our Lord’s crib. The relics are protected in an elegant crystal reliquary in the form of a manger which is supported by four golden angels. It is closed by a lid […]
Francesco Podesti (1800 –1895), the skilled painter and portrait artist, was entrusted with the task of realising a work to commemorate the proclamation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception in the Vatican. The work was to be frescoed onto the walls of the Borgia Tower, in a room that is adjacent to Raphael’s Fire […]
Sr Emanuela was interviewed on Relevant Radio on the Solemnity of the Assumption and she talked about the Mosaic of the Dormition of Mary in St Mary Major’sBasilica Rome.
The Temptations of Christ (1480-1482) Botticelli, Sistine Chapel St Luke’s account of the temptation of Jesus in the desert is the Gospel reading on the first Sunday of Lent and it also signals the start of the penitential itinerary that will lead us to Easter Sunday. The representation of the devil as a tempter is […]