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Christianity

Procession marking the opening of the Belfast-based Ulster parliament in June 1921

One Hundred Years Ago, Northern Ireland’s ‘Unholy War’ Resulted in a Deadly Summer

In July 1921, an outburst of sectarian violence in Belfast claimed 16 lives on the eve of a truce between Great Britain and Ireland

Artist's impression of Thomas Cromwell's London estate

See the Palatial London Mansion of Thomas Cromwell, Adviser to Henry VIII

New research reveals what the Tudor statesman’s 58-room estate may have looked like

The team conducted a non-destructive analysis of a panel depicting the prophet Nathan.

Art Meets Science

Canterbury Cathedral’s 12th-Century Stained Glass May Be England’s Oldest

New research suggests four of the English church’s intricate windows were in place when Henry II’s men murdered Thomas Becket in 1170

The church may be the largest ever found in Nubia.

Cool Finds

Ruins of Monumental Church Linked to Medieval Nubian Kingdom Found in Sudan

The building complex was likely the seat of Christian power for Makuria, which was once as large as France and Spain combined

The 2,000-year-old civic building is set to open to the public following an extensive restoration project.

Cool Finds

Enormous Roman Basilica Dated to King Herod’s Reign Revealed in Israel

At its height, the public building boasted opulent marble columns and sculptures

Immaculate Heart College Art Department, c. 1955

Women Who Shaped History

Studio of ‘Pop Art Nun’ Corita Kent Saved From Becoming Parking Lot

The artist’s brightly colored silkscreen works addressed civil rights and social justice issues

Experts describe the Galloway Hoard as the “richest collection of rare and unique Viking-age objects ever found in Britain or Ireland.”

Trove of Viking-Age Treasures Makes Its Long-Awaited Public Debut

The Galloway Hoard, a collection of 100 rare artifacts buried in Scotland around 900 A.D., is finally on view

At the library of St. Mark’s Syrian Orthodox Monastery in Jerusalem, Stewart and Abouna Shimon Can, a monk, view centuries-old Syriac manuscripts.

This American Monk Travels the World to Rescue Ancient Documents From Oblivion

Father Columba Stewart has visited sites from Kathmandu to Timbuktu in his mission to safeguard precious manuscripts that tell humanity’s story

The cathedral's dean, Randy Hollerith, describes Wiesel as “the living embodiment of resilience in the face of hatred.”

National Cathedral Unveils Carving of Elie Wiesel, Nobel Laureate and Chronicler of the Holocaust

The bust of the “Night” author appears in a corner of the Washington, D.C. church’s Human Rights Porch

Two scribes with near-identical handwriting penned the Great Isaiah Scroll.

Innovation for Good: Game Changers

How A.I. Is Helping Scholars Unlock the Secrets of the Dead Sea Scrolls

A new handwriting analysis suggests that two scribes collaborated on a key ancient manuscript

Scholars are set to undertake a "thorough technical and scientific study" of the painting, which was previously attributed to the circle of Spanish artist José de Ribera.

Baroque Painting Almost Sold for €1,500 May Be a Caravaggio Worth Millions

Spanish authorities halted the sale after identifying “sufficient stylistic and documentary evidence” linking the work to the Old Master

Akhenaten, father of Tutankhamun and husband of Nefertiti, ruled Egypt between roughly 1353 and 1336 B.C.

Art Meets Science

Is This the Face of King Tut’s Father, Pharaoh Akhenaten?

New 3-D reconstruction visualizes what KV55, a mummy long thought to be the ancient Egyptian ruler, may have looked like

Much of the Apostle Santiago Church burned to the ground in a March 7 fire.

Fire at 16th-Century Mexican Church Prompts Debate Over How to Protect Cultural Heritage

Critics argue that a lack of preservation funding contributed to the devastating loss

The site is comprised of six sectors, the last of which was recently excavated.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Traces of Early Christian Community in Egypt

Active between the fourth and eighth centuries A.D., the vast site housed multiple churches, monastic cells and other structures

Builders found the ruins beneath 81-year-old Charles Pole's back garden.

Cool Finds

Ruins of Medieval Palace Found Beneath English Retiree’s Garden

Beginning in the 13th century, the castle in Somerset County served as a residence for local bishops

The team used DNA analysis to determine the brothers' hair and eye color. Top: Spytihněv I and bottom: Vratislav I

Art Meets Science

3-D Reconstructions Reveal the Faces of Two Medieval Dukes

Researchers used a variety of techniques to visualize what Czech rulers Spytihněv I and Vratislav I might have looked like

Medieval women viewed birthing girdles, or long pieces of parchment inscribed with religious invocations and drawings, as protective talismans.

A Medieval Woman Wore This ‘Birthing Girdle’ to Protect Herself During Labor

Researchers found traces of bodily fluids, as well as milk and other materials associated with pregnancy, on the ten-foot long parchment

Researchers unearthed three Polish nuns' remains at a municipal cemetery in Orneta.

Researchers Uncover Remains of Polish Nuns Murdered by Soviets During WWII

As the Red Army pushed the Nazis out of Poland in 1945, soldiers engaged in brutal acts of repression against civilians

This mural—found on the east wall of the south transept in the Augsburg Cathedral—depicts the beheading of St. John the Baptist.

Cool Finds

1,000-Year-Old Bavarian Frescoes Depict Life and Beheading of John the Baptist

The paintings, which adorn the Augsburg Cathedral in southern Germany, are among the oldest of their kind in northern Europe

Rome's Basilica dei Santi Apostoli has housed bones said to belong to St. James and St. Philip since the sixth century A.D.

Bones Venerated as St. James the Younger’s Don’t Belong to the Apostle, Study Suggests

Researchers dated the femur fragments to between 214 and 340 A.D.—at least 160 years after the saint’s lifetime

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