Scott Lund’s discovery unites Da Vinci’s masterpieces

 

The Tempietto is a small commemorative tomb (martyrium) designed by Donato Bramante, to mark the location of the crucifixion of St Peter, San Pietro in Montorio, in Rome, Italy

Scott Lund’s discovery unites Da Vinci’s masterpieces

The hidden connection between the Mona Lisa and Salvator Mundi

31 DECEMBER 2024

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Investigative historian Scott Lund has revealed that Salvator Mundi and the Mona Lisa were intended to be seen together as one single image. Leonardo Da Vinci’s two paintings, a brilliant combination of astronomy and mathematics, were projected together into one divine image with a camera obscura, claims Lund, who in 2011 discovered a ley line in the Mona Lisa landscape pointing directly 29.5 km southeast from the Vatican to the primary cult site of Roman goddess Diana at Lake Nemi. More importantly, on the sacred Christmas morning of the Vatican's grand Jubilee year in 1500 AD, the ley line momentarily extended toward the center of our galaxy, indicated by the star Kaus Australis, which peeked over the horizon in simultaneous conjunction with the Sun. Lund says Leonardo da Vinci envisioned the Mona Lisa's face being struck by the first light of that dawn as she gazed at the core of our Milky Way from Bramante's Tempietto atop Rome's Janiculum hill.Muas

The legal construction of racism in fascist Italy

Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy watching military manoeuvres in 1938

The legal construction of racism in fascist Italy

Antisemitism, racial doctrine, and the marginalization of Italian Jews

15 MARCH 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

With the onset of World War I (1915-1918), Roman Jews, now full Italian citizens, were called upon to serve their country. All Jewish males of conscription age participated in the Great War. Italy had 50 Jewish generals and several military chaplains who were rabbis.

A wheelchair user explores the Vatican Museums, highlighting the importance of accessibility at one of the world's most visited cultural landmarks

Andrea Stoler’s guide to an accessible Vatican

Practical advice for wheelchair users visiting the Vatican Museums and Saint Peter’s Basilica

15 JULY 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

The Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel welcome all visitors with mobility issues and are committed to making their programmes and services accessible to everyone. Personal wheelchairs, both manual and electric, are allowed in the museums and the Sistine Chapel.

Exterior view of the Carson Pirie Scott & Co. department store building, located at the southeast corner of South State and East Madison Streets in Chicago’s Loop, decorated with bunting and flags in celebration of Abraham Lincoln’s 100th birthday (1909)

Chicago and the birth of modern architecture

Steel frames, glass façades, and the evolution of architectural thought in the industrial age

15 AUGUST 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

 

The artist in this social context must not be a simple artisan, but rather an intellectual prepared in all disciplines and all fields.

(Leon Battista Alberti)

Back in touch with Professor Sabine Frommel

 

Giuliano da Sangallo (attr.), Ideal City (Urbino), about 1504

Back in touch with Professor Sabine Frommel 

Discussing the understudied discipline of painted architecture

15 FEBRUARY 2024, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Until now, representations of architecture in panel painting, drawings, frescoes, and intarsia have been relatively understudied, and further investigations are warranted, explains Professor Sabine Frommel.

Pius XII / between silence, strategy, and survival

 

Pope Pius XII visiting Piazza San Giovanni after the bombings of Rome on 13 August 1943

Pius XII: between silence, strategy, and survival

Tracing the life, rise, and complex wartime role of Eugenio Pacelli in an era of global upheaval

15 JANUARY 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

So, who was Pius XII? Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Pacelli became Pope Pius XII on March 2, 1939. His parents were Virginia Graziosi and Filippo Pacelli. His father was dean of the consistorial lawyers, and his brother, Francesco, was a jurist of the Holy See and member of the Vatican Commission that prepared the editing of the Lateran Pacts, an agreement with the Italian State that legally separated the Vatican from the nation of Italy and compensated the Vatican for the loss of the Papal States conquered by the Kingdom of Italy in 1870. The Vatican City was all that was left of the Church’s holdings and was legally separated into its own sovereign country in an agreement with the Prime Minister, Benito Mussolini, in 1929. The Pacelli family was very familiar with the safe and slow judicial offices of the Roman Curia.

Michelangelo and the Dream of the Sistine

 

Cover of the book Michelangelo and the dream of the Sistine Chapel co-authored by Valentina Ansuini and Jade Bajeot and Illustrated by Sabrina Gabrielli

Michelangelo and the Dream of the Sistine

An illustrated children’s book about Michelangelo and his challenging work in the Sistine Chapel

15 MAY 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Children are usually exposed to history through fragments of information: historical dates to learn, historical figures to summarize, and masterpieces of arts seen as cultural references far removed from real life. However, history can be made more interesting with storytelling, images, and the element of intrigue. These notions are central to the book entitled Michelangelo and the Dream of the Sistine Chapel written for children and illustrated by Sabrina Gabrielli along with co-authors Valentina Ansuini and Jade Bajeot. Although it can be treated as another typical biography book or museum guide, this project fits into larger debates about childhood engagement with history and art history museums.

 

Chesed by Marlene Burns

Interview with Marlene Burns: art as sacred expression

Faith and creativity through Judaic art and sanctuary design

15 FEBRUARY 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Marlene Burns has been a professional artist for over 55 years, beginning with an apprenticeship in sanctuary art while earning two university degrees in fine art. Her career has included gallery affiliations and cultivating a clientele for contemporary art in residential and commercial spaces.

Jogging through ancient Rome / A journey with the Gods

The Colosseum and Arch of Titus in Rome, Italy

Jogging through ancient Rome: a journey with the Gods

Iconic landmarks and mythology on a scenic running tour of Rome

15 MARCH 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

The Roman Empire was a vast, polytheistic, fascinating civilization. Throughout the eternal city, we recognized and worshiped multiple gods and goddesses. Although the monotheistic religion of Judaism thrived throughout the empire—a religion that eventually gave rise to Christianity and Islam—the original Romans honored multiple deities. We truly believed that these gods and goddesses served a role in founding our civilization. Most importantly, we also believed that these gods and goddesses helped shape our daily lives.

The gods of Greece and Rome

Artemis with a hind, better known as "Diana of Versailles" as it was long exhibited in the Versailles Castle. Marble, Roman artwork, Imperial Era (1st-2nd centuries CE). Found in Italy

The gods of Greece and Rome

A way for kids to experience the allure and drama of ancient Rome

15 APRIL 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Once upon a time, a very long time ago, the people of Greece believed that the world was ruled by a family of powerful gods and goddesses. The ancient Greeks shared myths—compelling origin stories—by telling oral stories that were then immortalized by painting such tales on walls, vases, pots, jars, and cups.

Laocoön / From myth to marble

 

Laocoön and His Sons in Vatican museum, Vatican

Laocoön: from myth to marble

A few interesting facts about the Laocoön sculpture in the Vatican Museums

15 MAY 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

The existence of multiple gods (theòi) are supernatural presences (dàimones) to whom the Greeks attributed special abilities and powers. They believed that the presence and will of a god were manifested in every act and moment of life.

My “Spanglish’ Vatican tour / Exploring hidden histories through two languages

Marranos were Spanish, Portuguese, and Navarrese Jews who converted to Christianity in the 15th and 16th centuries—often under pressure—but secretly continued practicing Judaism or were suspected of doing so

My “Spanglish’ Vatican tour

Exploring hidden histories through two languages

15 JUNE 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Throughout history, Jews have tragically faced persecution in many forms, but perhaps one of the most profound experiences of transformation occurred in the Iberian Peninsula, or Spain and Portugal. In the late 14th and 15th centuries, tens of thousands of Jews in Spain were forcibly converted to Catholicism. These Jews, known as Conversos, became an integral part of the religious and social fabric of Spain and Portugal, yet they lived under constant suspicion and scrutiny. A smaller, courageous subset of these converts, who tried to secretly maintain their Jewish traditions and practices, were often labeled Marranos—a derogatory term meaning "swine"—or, more commonly, Crypto-Jews.

A fascinating interview with Michael Steinberger / Tracing the hidden Jews of Brazil

Recife, the capital of Pernambuco, is a major cultural and economic hub in Brazil's northeast, known for its canals, bridges, and historic architecture

A fascinating interview with Michael Steinberger

Tracing the hidden Jews of Brazil

15 SEPTEMBER 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

The story of Jews in Brazil is one of obscured courage, survival, and reinvention, says Michael Steinberger, founder of the Jewish Heritage Alliance (JHA), a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the legacy of Sefarad—Jews of Iberian descent.

Sabine Frommel on artistic migrations in Europe / How travel, patrons, and politics shaped Renaissance creativity

Rosso Fiorentino, Leda and the Swan, copied from Michelangelo, 1532-1540 (London, The National Gallery)

Sabine Frommel on artistic migrations in Europe

How travel, patrons, and politics shaped Renaissance creativity

15 OCTOBER 2025, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

Numerous artistic migrations throughout Europe have been explored by Sabine Frommel. Yet, these movements of artists have not always been voluntary, as creativity and innovation have always been a result of forced migrations.