religious art

Bartholomeus Spranger, Saint Ursula, c. 1583. Pen and brown ink over traces of black chalk with pink and teal watercolor washes in a Venetian ca. 1590 aedicule frame.
Rediscovered Drawing Unveiled at Christopher Bishop Fine Art
Three years ago, when art dealer Christopher Bishop saw a drawing from a private collection, he knew it was something special.
Dante and His Poem by Domenico di Michelino
Dante’s Divine Comedy and Its Influence on Art History
Looking Back as the 700th Anniversary of His Death Approaches
Hieronymus Bosch, detail from The Temptation of St. Anthony, c 1501. Oil on oak panels. 52 in × 90 in. Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga.
7 Strange Details in Hieronymus Bosch Paintings Explained
The artist used traditional symbols but also created his own, referencing the Bible and Flemish folklore to create unique visual manifestations of established metaphors and puns.
Benjamin Moran Dale, Cover of program for the National American Women's Suffrage Association procession, 1913. Rare Book and Special Collections Division, DC.
Purple: A Cultural History
If you have a bent for the occasional musical throwback, you may wonder why Prince wouldn't sing about “Red Rain.” At least the aforementioned title could boast an alliterative appeal. Alas, the…
us supreme court building at dusk 
SCOTUS Denies Jewish Heirs Guelph Treasure Seized by Nazis

On Wednesday, February 3, the US Supreme Court announced a unanimous decision on a landmark case, siding with Germany in a Nazi-era restitution case regarding the Guelph Treasure.

close up image of the virgin mary in blue surrounded by floating pitti on a tan background
Murillo's Virgin Mary Defaced in Restoration
A recently botched restoration of a once beautiful painting of the Virgin Mary is proving once again why it’s best to leave some tasks to the experts.
painting of christ with a halo and dove above his head with several angels, outside with a blue sky and trees
Should the Uffizi's Religious Art be Returned to Churches?
Eike Schmidt, the director of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence since 2015, recently bemoaned the fact that so many great works of religious art are languishing in museum storage.
Leonardo da Vinci the Annunciation
Seclusion, Sin, and Sanctity: The Virgin Mary’s Enclosed Gardens
Finding new meanings in the Hortus Conclusus