- Santa Maria Assunta
- Palazzo Comunale
The entrance to the Palazzo Comunale. - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
Un giovane Bacco by Antonio Amorosi (figure) and Giovanni Paolo Spadino (grapes). Around 1725. - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
Crucifix from the end of the 12th century. - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
San Regolo by Domenico di Niccolo "Dei Cori" (1435). - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
Madonna col Bambino tra i Santi Biagio, Giovanni Battista, Nicola e Floriano by Lorenzo di Pietro - Vecchietta (1465). - Basilica of Santa Maria Novella
One of the many sails on the facade, which was added to the church in 1456–1470. - Giovanni delle Bande Nere
Giovanni delle Bande Nere (1498–1526) was the father of Cosimo I de Medici. The statue is by Baccio Bandinelli (1560). - :-)
Two doggos watching the Florence Cathedral. - Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore
The cathedral was built between 1296 and 1436, but the facade was added 1887. I feel like I have been lied to. - Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore
- Giotto's Campanile
Giotto stared building this tower in 1334. He combined white marble from Carrara, green marble from Prato, and red marble from Siena. The tower was completed in 1359. - Giotto's Campanile
Daedalus by Andrea Pisano. Here I can actually understand why the marble is called 'green'. - DSC 9615
- Fountain of Neptune
Designed by Baccio Bandinelli and created by Bartolomeo Ammannati between 1560 and 1574. - Palazzo Vecchio
A lion in the Palazzo Vecchio. No, this time we didn't enter it, just walked around the palace a bit. - Palazzo Vecchio
Officially, such decorations are called grotesque. - Palazzo Vecchio
Grotesque or not, I like them a lot. - David, of course
A copy of Michelangelo's David. The original (1504) was moved to Galleria dell'Accademia in 1873. - Hercules and Cacus
Hercules and Cacus by Baccio Bandinelli (1525-1534). - Medusa
Medusa's head from the statue Perseus with the Head of Medusa by Benvenuto Cellini (1545-1554) located in the Loggia dei Lanzi. - Rape/kidnapping of the Sabine Women
English wikipedia: Rape, also known as kidnapping. Slovenian wikipedia: Kidnapping, also known as rape. Oh well. By Giambologna (1583). - Detail
Street lamps in Florence have very interesting bases ;-) Oh, and they are of course three-legged. - Palazzo Vecchio
This court is full of Austrian towns, painted in 1565 by Giorgio Vasari for the wedding celebration of Francesco I de' Medici to Archduchess Johanna of Austria. This is obviously Vienna, with Stephansdom. - Palazzo Vecchio
Another one of the many Austrian towns: Graz. - Fountain of Neptune
Designed by Baccio Bandinelli and created by Bartolomeo Ammannati between 1560 and 1574. - History of Lisbon
A complete Lisbon history in one passage. Mural by Nuno Saraiva. Every city should have a mural like this one. - Tiles in Alfama
Finding little treasures while getting lost in Alfama. - Rosa dos Ventos
View from the Monument of the Discoveries. A wind rose and a world map. - Quinta Pézinhos no Tejo
Fado singers at the dinner - Convento de Cristo in Tomar
A lot of renovation was going on, so we entered through some side doors. This was the first thing that greeted us after climbing the stairs. At 40 deg C outside, these rooms were at least a bit cooler. - Convento de Cristo in Tomar
The Romanesque round church was built in the second half of the 12th century by the Knights Templar. - Convento de Cristo in Tomar
São Cristóvão - Saint Christopher (1484-1500) - Janela do Capítulo
The famous Manueline Window of the Chapter House (1510-1513). - Room of discoveries
Ceiling in the Room of Discoveries by Bernardo António de Oliveira Góis (c. 1770-c. 1820) and Cyrillo Volkmar Machado (1748-1823). - Music room
The ceiling in the Music room. Apparently there is wonderful acoustic in this room. Not if it is crowded with tourists... - Monserrate Main Hall
The ceiling in the Main hall. - Chalet of the Countess of Edla
The ceiling in the Grand Hallway. The whole chalet is very very colourful. - Chalet of the Countess of Edla
All the rooms are insanely beautiful, but this Dining room, with cork and wood, is probably my favourite. - Convento dos Capuchos
The Door of Death is the entrance to the monastery. - Levico Terme
Some artificial flowers in the town centre. - Statue of Felicita Pauļuka
A statue of Felicita Pauļuka by Lea Dāvidova-Medene (1921-1986). Statue is in the National Museum of Art. - Jugendstil quarter
One of many wonderful buildings in the Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) Quarter. Designed by Mikhail Eisenstein. - Jugendstil quarter
One of many wonderful buildings in the Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) Quarter. - Bird skyscraper
Now this is a brilliant way of reusing an old tree. - Snow angel
This is me. - Le Nomade
I love the Nomade. The first time I saw him, I found the statue too static for a nomade. But now I can understand him. And I love him. - Le Nomade
So many so different pictures one can take with the Nomade. - Untitled
Art in Zagreb airport: Untitled by Emre Namyeter (2022). There's something about this installation that I just love. - Monasterio de San Jerónimo
And the very busy ceiling. - Mexuar
Tiles on the wall of the Mexuar Council Hall, which served as the entrance to the Nasrid palace. Plus Ultra was the motto of king Charles V. - Hall of the Ambassadors
Detail on the Hall walls, part of a larger inscription in Kufic script. One can still see traces of blue colour, as these arabesque and geometric motifs were originally painted with bright colours. - Hall of the Abencerrajes
The ceiling in the Hall of Abencerrajes. The decorations are called muqarnas, and in the museum is a very instructive exhibition on how such a ceiling was made. Basically a lot A LOT of tiny pieces (alveoles) put together. - Ornaments
- Zellij in Alhambra
More wonderful zellij pattern in the palace. - Stucco in Alhambra
Detail of stucco on the wall indicating that the decorations were indeed colourful. - Palacio de la Madraza
The madrasa was founded in 1349 by Yusuf I, Most of the building (now part of University of Granada) was replaced with a baroque building. These (I think) are the doors of Saints Caecilius and Gregory of Elvira. With pomegranate underneath, the symbol of Granada. - Palacio de Dar al-Horra
No, this is not an entrance, but a tiny niche (called a taqa). Probably used to store a vase or a jug of water. - Spanish art
- Panda Bâ
Panda Bâ by Julien Marinetti, it was placed here just two weeks prior to our visit. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
The ceiling in the Room of the Poor is an upside-down boat-skiff shape. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
Such lovely beams under the ceiling. I think the inscription says Seule * as seule etoile, meaning the founder's wife. - Casket in Salle Saint-Louis
A 15th century casket shows a woman plaiting a crown and a man playing a harp. - Tapestry
A magnificent almost 8 m long "thousand flowers" tapestry is from the 16th century. What an interesting motif... - Beaune Polyptych
The Polyptych altarpiece of the Last Judgement by Rogier van der Wayden, dating from ~1446. Opened central panel shows Christ on a rainbow and Archangel Michael below him with the scale to weigh souls, with heaven being on the left and hell on the right. - Beaune Polyptych detail
The red angel above Nicolas Rolin's head holds a golden helmet. - Beaune Polyptych
Closed altarpiece shows Nicolas Rolin, Chancellor of Burgundy, and his wife Guigone de Salins, who founded the hospice in 1443. In the center are St. Sebastian and St. Anthony with the Annunciation on top. While the wife has a 'proper' white angel, the red angel of Nicolas looks quite devilish to me. - Beaune Polyptych detail
Another lovely detail of the Beaune altarpiece. A piglet hiding behind the painted statue of Saint Anthony. - Vézelay Abbey
The portal on the exterior of the church. - Vézelay Abbey
A lovely detail on the facade indicates the grandeur inside. - Vézelay Abbey
St Paul the Hermit's burial. Saint Anthony burying Saint Paul, with two lions digging the grave. - Vézelay Abbey
The crypt - Château de Chenonceau
Chambre des Cinq Reines Room of the daughters and daughters-in-law of Catherine de Médicis: La Reine Margot, Elisabeth of France, Maria Stuart (wife of François II), Elisabeth of Austria (wife of Charles IX), and Louise of Lorraine (wife of Henri III). - Château de Chenonceau
La chambre de Catherine de Médicis The rooms were quite cosy with fireplaces, wooden ceilings and the walls covered with Flemish tapestries. - Château de Chambord
One of the famous Flemish tapestries commissioned by Francis I in 1532. It depicts the story of Scipio Africanus, the Roman General who defeated Carthage. The oxen are taken to the temple of Jupiter to be sacrificed, while the elephants and camels carry the wealth brought back from Africa. - Bayeux Cathedral
One of the many angels in the crypt. They play all sorts of instruments. - Bayeux Cathedral
15th century fresco of angels in the crypt. - Bayeux Cathedral
The ceiling in the Bayeux cathedral choir shows various local bishops and saints. The whole cathedral is indeed a stunning place. - Mont Saint-Michel
Adam and Eve's expulsion from Paradise, 1546. - Mont Saint-Michel
Christ's Descent into Limbo, 1547. What cuties these little devils are. - Cairn of Barnenez
Art exhibition by local kids. Love it! - Serpent d'ocean
... to see the Serpent d'ocean. Made by Huang Yong Ping in 2012. - Serpent d'ocean
Unfortunately, there was high tide so we could not walk to the serpent. - Pomposa Abbey
What a lovely peacock. A peacock is apparently considered incorruptible, representing the yearning for heavenly beatitude. - Pomposa Abbey
Frescoes in the refractory. - Pomposa Abbey
The Chapter House with early 14th century frescoes by a direct pupil of Giotto. In the center is Saint Guido, the Abbot of Pomposa (970-1046), on the left Saint Paul and on the right a pair of prophets, Moses and David. Note the horns on Moses :-) - Pomposa Abbey
Another fresco in the Chapter House, this one depicts Saint Benedict. - Pomposa Abbey
In the apse, Christ sits on the throne surrounded by musician angels and saints. Below is the procession opened by the Virgin Mary with St. Benedict. The Abbot Andrea, who ordered the work in 1351 is kneeling down on the left. The bottom part tells the story of Saint Eustace. Fresoes by Vitale da Bologna. - Pomposa Abbey
Ah, the Last Judgment. The Hell is interesting as there are people actually being tortured. Often they are just being taken by all sorts of cute creatures. - Pomposa Abbey
Some of the frescoes are even older, from the 10th century. - Pomposa Abbey
The church is full of 14th century Bolognese school frescoes, depicting Old Testament, New Testament and the Apocalypse. - Beatrice
Super-Beatrice by LeDiesis - Ravenna
What a wonderful depiction of Dante! - Ravenna
- Mecato Coperto
The old market is now occupied with modern restaurants and bars. - Ravenna
Spirito e Bellezza by Luisa Valentini (2013) - Casa Matha
Casa Matha is a guild of fishermen, one of the oldest in the world. - Marlene Dietrich
Super-Marlene by LeDiesis - Ravenna
Not a window, actually a roof. - Mausoleum of Galla Placidia
The Mausoleum of Galla Placidia was built between 425 and 450. Galla Placidia was the daughter of the Roman emperor Theodosius I.