Petr Hofman, a reader based in the former Czechoslovakia, sent LAJ some news about the historical re-creation of the altar of an old Jesuit chapel that has been created as part of an event that takes place in the Czech Republic that celebrates the rich ecclesiastical histor…
Our kind friends at Arouca Press have published a wonderful new book that highlights the writings of Monsignor Schuler, penned over the span forty years and originally written for one of our favorite publications, Sacred Music, of which he was once the editor. This new vol…
The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus located in Caterham, Surrey, England was built in the year 1881 and follows a classic gothic revival pattern, typical to the tastes of the time and place in which it was built, taking in many regards the template of a medieval parish …
There is a chasuble that is found in the treasury of St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, Austria that for a long while I have sought to feature, but regrettably very little information is available about it, beyond the fact of where it is located. Some date the chasuble …
The National Shrine of St. Alphonsus Liguori looks with pardonable pride upon the city of Baltimore. Its majestic spire rears aloft within a block of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption, the first cathedral in the nation. The shrine is known as “Baltimore’…
Continuing on with some of our considerations of vestments appropriate to the Easter Season, as well as our considerations of the exquisite vestment and embroidery work of Mother Marie Lemaire des Anges and the Ursulines of Québec, here today we take a quick look at what is…
My favorite living oil on canvas painter is Raúl Berzosa, a Spanish-born artist from Málaga, Spain. His works are many and prolific, seen in various churches and chapels round the world, including Spain, Portugal, Italy, Guatemala, Colombia, Argentina, England, and the Unit…
Altarworthy has created a luminous hand-tailored brocatelle (silk-linen) in antiquated look with an incredible medieval Italian motif in the Borromeo style. The trim is in blue with a golden floral pattern. In the pattern of the rich fabric two animals emerge: a lion and a …
In previous articles we have shared the incredible embroidery work of Mother Marie Lemaire des Anges of the Ursuline Convent of Quebec and had noted that she had passed this tradition down to her younger sisters whom she apprenticed in this art. In that vein, and to continu…
While I regrettably do not have any historical information on this particular set of vestments, given that it comes in a style we have not frequently shown here it seems worthwhile to look at it all the same. What I can say, just by virtue of looking at the style, materials…
One of the most pleasing styles of Christian architecture, to my mind, is neither gothic (with apologies to Pugin) nor baroque (with apologies to Bernini) but rather Italianate Romanesque, strongly rooted as it is in the classic Roman models that have come to characterize t…
Each year in October the Three Hearts Pilgrimage takes place in the foothills of Oklahoma, a 2-day 35 mile penitential walk in the medieval footprint. The final destination is the Traditional Benedictine monastery of Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey in Hulbert, where a joyous …
On May 12, 1996 - Mother's Day - a watershed moment happened for the renewal of sacred liturgy. That day the Austrian-born Alfonse Cardinal Stickler, age 85, sang Pontifical Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. The day marked the first time a senior pre…
Returning to our considerations of the exquisite embroidery work of the Ursulines of New France (i.e. modern day Quebec, Canada), while we have already shown you two quite impressive frontals form this atelier, perhaps none is more impressive than this particular offering w…
If there are any two times of the liturgical year that would especially seem to warrant the use of the colour gold, it is on the high feasts of Christmas and Easter. When it comes to gold vestments, few have perhaps embraced this so much as the French did in the nineteenth …
We don't often get an opportunity to feature contemporary liturgical books that have been hand-illuminated, so when we do we can hardly let such a rare opportunity slip us by. For that reason we are particularly pleased to present a set of liturgical books that were cal…
A lot of the vestments we feature here, and a lot of vestments out there in general, contain similar themes where figurative or symbolic imagery are concerned and it is for that reason that I thought I would share with our readers this interesting chasuble coming from 18th …
The Basilica of Santa Maria Novella in Florence is one of the most important churches in the city of Florence and if you happen to be sojourning there via train you're in luck as it is literally right across from Florence's train station. The church is the principal…
If you take a look at images or photographs of papal ceremonies from prior to the 1970's you will frequently see large tapestries forming a part of the liturgical or ceremonial setting (which, it should be noted, take place outside of the context of Mass; see the end of…
Relics play a key role in liturgical arts. They adorn nearly all altars. Today there are a lot of people asking about preservation and repair of relics and reliquaries, seals, restoring documents, authentication, identification, provenance, etc. These days many relics are o…
Continuing on with our periodic considerations of the commonalities we can find between Christian East and West, today I wanted to draw your attention to the church of Hagios Demetrios (St. Demetrius) which is located in Thessaloniki, Greece. The first church on this site d…
One of the challenges that I've frequently observed with fuller, "gothic" styles of chasubles is that frequently many of the designs we come across are often lacking in variety; they can seem very much the same. Some of this is accidental by virtue of the fact…
Through the centuries Catholics have always sought to beautify their sacred rites and to show extra care and concern for the true presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. At the same time, Christian liturgy is rooted in both synagogue and temple with traditions that dev…
Each year in Australia the Christus Rex Society sponsors the Christus Rex Pilgrimage , a 3-day walking pilgrimage that covers 90 km from Ballarat to Bendigo. About 500 participants make the walk, in honor of Christ the King, with two nights camping. Liturgies are celebrated …
Continuing with our series exploring some of the beautiful churches of Latin America, we turn today to the Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús in Cusco, Peru. Cusco is the ancient capital of the Incan empire and it is perhaps best known for a style of painting named after it. …
Santa Costanza is a fourth century mausoleum structure that is thought to have been originally built to house the remains of the Emperor Constantine's relations, including one Costanza -- hence the name -- though it is worth noting there is some debate about whether thi…
Previously we have given consideration to the impressive collection of vestments at the Museu de São Roque /Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa , and today I wished to share another set from their impressive collection, this time a pontifical set. The entire set is comprised…
A beloved tradition of the Latin Church - the suspension of a cardinal's galero in his cathedral church over his tomb after his funeral - was a harmless custom that unfortunately proved to be a casualty of the lamentable 1960s revolution - an acute historical disturbanc…
One of the challenges in terms of gothic revival vestment work is making such designs stand out from the many catalogue offerings of gothic that poured into nearly every sacristy in the mid twentieth century. Many bespoke makers today are challenging the 'status quo ant…
The chapel renovations at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St Louis, Missouri are fairly well known to our readers as we have touched upon them previously, but a specific element I would like to highlight in this particular renovation are the exquisite altars that were executed …
It has been awhile since we did one of our 'digital renovations' and recently an image of St. Catherine's Church in Krakow, Poland came to my attention and it seemed to be a good candidate for just such an exercise (the intent of which are to prompt people to re…
The Liturgical Co. is a vestment atelier based in California under the care of Ms. Sequoia Sierra. Ms. Sierra designs, creates, and repairs vestments, habits, and other religious and liturgical items and furnishings related to textiles. She also produces reversible "p…
Versailles is a magnificent place to visit. It is also a place where the Classical Rite always existed - it was celebrated here, even at unknown places during the particularly difficult time of the post-conciliar years. Today the FSSP have a vibrant parish in the heart of V…
Beauty, quality and detailing remain possible in our own times and this can be seen quite well in a marble altar that was created for Corpus Christi Church in South Riding, Virginia by Rugo Stone in collaboration with a larger projects by McCrery Architects . From Rugo Stone…
Our good friend Matthew Alderman of Matthew Alderman Studios did a fabulous job some time ago (2006-2008) helping to restore the interior of the old Latin Rite Proto-Cathedral of the Most Holy Mother of God ( Ecclesia Cathedralis Deiparae Sanctissimae ) in Vladivostok, Russia…
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the spectacular Twin Cities Catholic Chorale at the Church of Saint Agnes (St. Paul, Minnesota). Now in its 50th season at the parish, the Chorale has planned some special events to celebrate its golden jubilee, including a rare prese…
LAVS is a well-known creator of hand-made vestments and miters in the medieval footprint. During the papacy of Pope Benedict XVI, their studio produced various items that made headlines, recognized by their unique three-dimensional tool work and filigree embroidery. LAVS mi…
Beauty attracts. The above images display what the interior of the German-Gothic church of St. Mary in Menasha, Wisconsin (Diocese of Green Bay) looks like today (on the right) and what it looked like for many years before (on the left). Built in the 1880s, the church was v…
In the modern world, it can be difficult to imagine what life was like in previous centuries in times when science was less advanced. As a result people got away with murder -- quite literally. In instances of the wealthier and higher functionaries of society -- who were m…
Today I thought we would take yet another pass through Renaissance Florence by looking at a cope that was made in Florence in the sixteenth century, specifically sometime between 1575-1600. As was so often the case in the Renaissance, velvet was the popular fabric of choic…
St. Louis, known as the Rome of the West, has long been a focal point of intense Catholic life and culture. Steadfast generations have maintained a stronghold of Catholic identity here, with filial devotion to the Church and her sacred liturgy manifested in a deep Eucharist…
Italian textile art is known and respected worldwide. The art of fabric woven by expert craftsman with artisanal techniques is a beautiful thing that has been going on since 1789 in the Italian town of Caserta. Located just north of Naples, this place has long been known fo…
A telier Sirio is an Italian vestment maker located in the north of Italy in Bergamo. One of the sets of designs that frequently capture my attention are their medieval inspired works in a form that I am going to call "semi-conical" or "truncated conical,"…