- Annunciation by Vicenzo Pagani
Annunciation (1532) by Vicenzo Pagani. Palazzo Ducale, Urbino. - Annunciation by Vicenzo Pagani
Annunciation (1532) by Vicenzo Pagani. Palazzo Ducale, Urbino. - Saint Mary Magdalene
Saint Mary Magdalene (1508) by Timoteo Viti. Palazzo Ducale, Urbino. - Saint Mary Magdalene
Saint Mary Magdalene (1508) by Timoteo Viti. Palazzo Ducale, Urbino. - Madonna with Child
Church of Saint Dominic, Urbino. - Ancient graffiti
in Linguella, Portoferraio, Elba - Santo Stefano alle Trane
Ceiling of the church - Crucifix
Church of San Giacomo e San Quirico. Now that is a strange statue: the shoulders seem to be broken and the hair seems to be ... real. - Church of San Giacomo e San Quirico
Some Guarnerius Sculpsit in 1679. - La citadelle Saint-Elme in Villefranche
La citadelle Saint-Elme is from the 16th century. - La citadelle Saint-Elme in Villefranche
Roof of the remparts at the citadel. - Valbonne, Rue Grande
Rue Grande in Valbonne. A lovely stroll in rain before a delicious dinner. - Nice
View of the Bay of Angels (Baie des Anges) from the Castle Hill - Place des Arcades in Biot
Recently renovated places des Arcades in the centre of Biot. - Place de l'Église in Biot
One of the maltese crosses in the Church square in Biot. - Place de l'Église in Biot
Did they start in 1685 and finish in 1686? It surely looks like it. - Place de l'Église in Biot
Fleur-de-lis in Place de l'Église. They didn't even try to make it symmetric, did they? - Église Sainte-Marie-Madeleine in Biot
Dating from the beginning of the 16th century, the author being unknown. - La Légende des siècles
I wonder what is behind these doors... Maybe just a huge Hugo fan? Place des Arcades in Biot. - Anibes
Another lovely street in the old Antibes. - Map of Antibes
Map of Antibes on Rue Thuret - Mosaic
Venice is full of old mosaics. Although some are not as old as the others ... - Basilica di San Marco
A detail on the southern facade of the Basilica - Campanile
Built in the 10th-16th century, and rebuilt in 1902 after the original one collapsed. Originally a watchtower and a "lighthouse". - San Giorgio Maggiore
The church was designed by Andrea Palladio, built between 1566 and 1610. - Piazza San Marco
Piazza in the times of Covid, wonderfully empty. - Campo Manin
And another lovely building... - La Vierge du Rosaire
A stunning detail on the painting of The Virgin of the Rosary (1510). - Porziuncola
The Porziuncola in Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels. In this tiny church Francis of Assisi understood his vocation. The church is original, but the paintings are much more recent. And yes, the big church was built around this tiny one. - Porziuncola
Frescoes in the Porziuncola by Ilario da Viterbo (1393). - Assisi town
- Volta pinta
The artist was inspired by Nero's Domus Aurea in Rome. - Volta pinta
This loggia in Piazza del Comune was painted in 1556, probably by Raffaello Coda da Rimini. - Cathedral
Insanely beautiful details on the facade. - Chiesa di Sant'Andrea
Frescoes on one of the columns. - Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta
Frescoes (1477) - Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta
Coronation of the Virgin, Filippo Lippi (1467-69). - Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta
Transition of the Virgin, Filippo Lippi (1467-69). - Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta
Old Testament by Bartolo di Fredi (~1360). - Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta
New Testament by Barna da Siena and/or Lippo Memmi (~1345). - San Gimignano
View from the park of Rocca di Montestaffoli, a 14th century fortress. - San Gimignano
- Siena Cathedral
She-wolf of Siena, surrounded with emblems of confederate cities, dating from 1373. - Siena Cathedral
More interesting details on the ceiling of the Piccolomini Library. - Siena Cathedral
Ceiling of the Piccolomini Library, painted by Pinturicchio (1503). - Siena Cathedral
Some details on the ceiling of Piccolomini Library. - Abbazia di Sant'Antimo
The monastery was founded by Charlemagne in 781, but I think this church was built between 1118 and 1260. - Santa Maria Assunta
Madonna con Bambino e i Santi Agostino, Girolamo, Martino e Nicola by Matteo di Giovanni (1463). - 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
San Regolo by Domenico di Niccolo "Dei Cori" (1435). - Palazzo Nobili-Tarugi
Piazza Grande in rain. And Palazzo Nobili-Tarugi (left) built in the 16th century by either Antonio da Sangallo the Elder or possibly by Jacopo Barozzi from Vignola. - 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
- Palazzo Vecchio
Officially, such decorations are called grotesque. - Palazzo Vecchio
Grotesque or not, I like them a lot. - View from Piazzale Michelangelo
- History of Lisbon
A complete Lisbon history in one passage. Mural by Nuno Saraiva. Every city should have a mural like this one. - Óbidos
View of the town from the castle walls. - 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. - Palácio Nacional de Mafra
- House of Blackheads
Originally built in 1334 for the city's guilds. The facade was was added in 1500s and the four statues of Neptune, Mercury, Unity and Peace were added in 1896. - Mentzendorff house
Built in 1695. - House of Blackheads
Originally built in 1334 for the city's guilds. This wonderful building was bombed in WWII, and completely rebuilt in 1999. - Riga centre
Some lovely old houses in the city centre. - Church of St. Fosca
The church is also a pilgrimage site. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
The reason why we came to Beaune: The hospices. Founded in 1443 as a hospital for the poor by Phillip the Good was in use until 1971. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
Trente-trois. Trente-trois. Trente-trois... Thirty three. Thirty three. Thirty three... Oui, oui, oui, oui, oui... - 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. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
View of the glazed-tiled hospice roof from the cour d'honneur, the main inner court. The roof type probably has central European origins, but is now a trademark of Burgundy. - 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. - Château de Chenonceau
La chambre de Catherine de Médicis A typical renaissance baldachin bed. - Château de Chambord
Louis XIV's ceremonial apartment. While Francoise's bedroom looked cosy, this one is too grand for my liking. - Bayeux Cathedral
The portal of Saint Thomas Becket, showing the assembly of Northampton (1164) and the Assembly of Ambosus (1170); crossing of the English Channel and his martyrdom; and the veneration of his tomb. - Bayeux Cathedral
Plenty of old windows in the cathedral as well... These are from 1260, showing the local bishops Exupère and Loup. - Bayeux Cathedral
The 11th century crypt is simply magnificent. The entrance to the crypt was closed soon afterwards and the crypt forgotten - until 1412. - 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. - Fougères
Anne of Brittany (1477-1514) is a name that comes up often in these parts. She was the Duchess of Brittany and Queen of France, twice. - Mont Saint-Michel
Virgin and the child, 13th century. - Mont Saint-Michel
Plenty of lovely souvenir shops and places to eat in the town, but some of them closed fairly early in the evening. - Manoir de Kervaudu
I get the door. I get the open upper part for ventilation or light. I even get the cat door. But why do you need two cat doors? - Le Croisic
One of the many crêperies. I think we counted six just here. Within a two minute walk. - Mausoleum of Theoderic
There is a large porphyry bathtub in the top floor. - Mausoleum of Theoderic
- The Arian Baptistery
As always, beautiful decorations everywhere. - The Orthodox Baptistery
Lush decorations - The Orthodox Baptistery
Hm, is this an optical illusion? Because sometimes I see birds and sometimes fish. - Domus dei Tappeti di Pietra
Parts were covered with mosaics and parts with marble plates. This were the foundations for the marble plates, now (pretty sure) reused elsewhere. - Domus dei Tappeti di Pietra
I wonder if the red and blue were always that pale or were they more vibrant. - Domus dei Tappeti di Pietra
Dance of the Seasons (original). Spring on the left, Autumn with the crown is in the front, Winter in the back and Summer is missing. A personification of Time plays a pan flute. - Sant’Apollinare Nuovo
The Three Magi, Balthasar, Melchior and Caspar. They carry the gifts (gold, frankincense and myrrh) and walk towards the Bethlehem star.