Roman Empire (117 CE)

Divided Roman Empire (271 CE)

Tetrarchy of Rome (c. 300 CE)

Migration Period (aka Barbarian Invasions)

Medieval Europe after the fall of Western Rome (476 CE)

A Brief History of the English Language

Looped Fibulae

6th century CE

Merovingian

Map of Celtic Cultural Region

Purse Cover from the Sutton Hoo Burial Ship

c. 625 CE

Hiberno-Saxon

Celtic Hinged Clasp showing Cloisonné decoration

Interlaced Belt Buckle

c. 625 CE

Hiberno-Saxon

Sweden, 11th-12th cent. CE

Spain, 1st cent. BCE

Other Examples of Interlace Art

South Cross
Ahenny, Ireland

Late 8th century CE

Hiberno-Saxon

Examples of Christian Celtic Crosses

Ezra from the
Codex Amiantinus

c. 700 CE

Hiberno-Saxon

Size of the Codex Amiantinus

St. Matthew from the
Lindisfarne Gospels

c. 698-721 CE

Hiberno-Saxon, Northumbrian

Reproduced Pages from The Lindisfarne Gospels

Reproduced 'Carpet Page' from The Lindisfarne Gospels

An Example of the Secrets within Medieval Manuscripts

Chi-rho-iota
from the Book of Kells

9th century CE

Hiberno-Saxon

Fine craftsmanship is all about you, but you might not notice it.

Look more keenly at it and you . . . will make out intricacies, so delicate and subtle, so exact and compact, so full of knots and links,

with colors so fresh and vivid, that you might say that all this was the work of an angel, and not of a man.

For my part, the oftener I see the book, the more carefully I study it,

the more I am lost in ever fresh amazement, and I see more and more wonders in the book.

- Giraldus Cambrensis, Topographia Hiberniae (1185 CE)

Codex Aureus of Lorsch
(aka Lorsch Gospels)

778-820 CE

Frankish, Carolingian

Codex Aureus of St. Emmeram

9th cent. CE

Frankish, Carolingian

Palantine Chapel of Charlemagne

805 CE

Frankish, Carolingian

Cutaway view of the original Chapel

Interior of the Chapel

Floorplan of the Chapel

Charlemagne's Marble Throne

St. Matthew from the
​Coronation Gospels

c. 800-810 CE

Frankish, Carolingian

Celtic vs Carolingian styles

Medieval Europe, 1000 CE

How Languages can be Classist

Map of Norman Conquests over time

St. Michael's
Cisnadioara, Romania

11th cent.  CE

Western Portal of St. Michael's in Romania

Interior of St. Michael's in Romania

São Martinho de Cedofeita
Porto, Portugal

c. 1087  CE

Western Portal showcasing simplified geometry

Lisbon Cathedral
Lisbon, Portugal

1150  CE

Interior of Lisbon Cathedral

Interior of
Lisbon Cathedral
for scale

Interior of Lisbon Cathedral showing Rose Window

St. Michael's
Hildesheim, Germany

1001-1031 CE

Interior of St. Michael's in Germany

Elevation & Floor Plan St. Michael's

Bernard Doors
St. Michael's, Hildesheim, Germany

1015 CE

Saint-Sernin
Toulouse, France

1070-1120 CE

Interior of Saint-Sernin

Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio
Milan, Italy

late 11th to early 12th century CE

The "Canon Tower" of the cathedral

Sant'Ambrogio compared to
Old St. Peter's

Sant'Ambrogio compared to
Old St. Peter's

Interior of Sant'Ambrogio

Last Judgement
Saint-Lazare, Autun, France

c. 1120-1135 CE

Entrance of Autun Cathedral with tympanum visible

Upper Center

Upper Left

Lower Left

Lower Right

Left, Base/Lintel

Center, Base/Lintel

Right, Base/Lintel

Complex C (The Great Pyramid)
La Venta, Mexico

c. 350 BCE | Olmec

3D Model of Complex A (foreground) and Complex-C

Overview of the Olmec people

Jadeite Mask

c. 900-400 BCE

Olmec

Deep Dive into a piece of Olmec art

Example of later Maya jade carving

Colossal Head
(Monument 1)
La Venta, Mexico

c. 900-400 BCE

Olmec

Colossal Head During Excavation

Olmec Rubber Ball

Map of the Olmec Heartland

Ball Court
Copán, Honduras

738 CE | Mayan

Xochicalco Ballcourt

Basic Design of the Mesoamerican Ballcourt

Ballgame Hoop

The Myth of the Hero Twins

Mural from El Tajín depicting Human Sacrifice

Reviving the Mesoamerican Ball Game

Teotihuacán
Ciudad de México

c. 50-250 CE

Map of Teotihuacán within Modern Mexico

Archaeological Map of the Teotihuacán Excavation

Architectural Model of Teotihuacán

Model of the Pyramid of the Sun

Artist's rendering of how the city may have looked

The Astrological Features of Teotihuacan

The Pyramid of the Sun seen from the Pyramid of the Moon

Aerial view of both Pyramids and the Avenue of the Dead

Castillo
Chichén Itzá, Mexico

c. 800-900 CE | Maya

Castillo before excavation

Red Jaguar Statue found in top room of Castillo

Inside El Castillo

Tikal Temple 1 (aka Temple of the Giant Jaguar)
Tikal, Guatemala

c. 732 CE | Maya

Walking through Tikal

Tikal Aerial View

LiDAR Mapping of Tikal

LiDAR Mapping of Tikal

LiDAR Mapping of Tikal

Tikal Revealed by LiDAR

The founding of Tenochtitlán,
(folio 2 recto of the Codex Mendoza)

1541–1542 CE

Aztec/Mexica

Ink and color on paper

Mictlantecuhtli and Quetzalcoatl (folio 56 of the Borgia Codex)

from Puebla or Tlaxcala, Mexico

ca. 1400–1500 CE | Aztec/Mexica | Mineral and vegetable pigments on deerskin

Templo Mayor
(Reconstruction view with cutaway)
Tenochtitlan, Mexico City, Mexico

Aztec/Mexica

ca. 1400-1500 CE

Excavated view of Templo Mayor Ruins

Reconstruction of the Templo Mayor Complex

Map of Tenochtitlán

Reconstruction of the Great Temple Complex

Cliff Palace
Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

c. 1150-1300 CE | Ancestral Puebloan

Artist's Rendering of Cliff Palace

Examining a Piece of Pueblo Pottery

The Life of Pueblo Pottery

Pueblo Bonito
Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

mid-9th to mid-12th century CE | Ancestral Puebloan

Ancestral Pueblo
Territory

History & Value of Chaco Canyon

Interior room of Pueblo Bonito

Pueblo Bonito Site Plan

Entrance to a Reconstructed Kiva

Diagram of a Kiva

Interior of a Reconstructed Kiva (left) & Great Kiva (right)

Artist's Rendering of Pueblo Bonito

Modern perceptions of "Gothic" art

About the term "Gothic"

The concept behind Medieval Gothic art:

Marvel not at the gold and at the expense but at the craftsmanship of the work. Bright is the noble work; but being nobly bright, the work should brighten the minds, so that they may travel, through the true lights, to the True Light where Christ is the true door

-Abbot Suger, Liber de rebus in administratione sua gestis

Basilica of Saint-Denis
Saint-Denis, France

12th century CE

Saint-Denis as it appeared with both towers intact

Chartres Cathedral (West)
Chartres, France

1145-1155 CE

Tour of Chartres Cathedral

Rose Window, south façade, Chartres Cathedral

Chartres Cathedral, south façade 

Exterior wall of Chartres Cathedral

Exterior wall of Chartres Cathedral

Interior of Chartres Cathedral

Round Roman Arch vs. Pointed Gothic Arch

Physics of a Ribbed Vault

Interior of Chartres Cathedral

Main features of Gothic Cathedrals

Royal Portal
Chartres Cathedral, Chartres, France

c. 1145-1155 CE, Gothic

Ascension Portal

Incarnation Portal

Tympanum of the Royal Portal

Romanesque Tympanum

Incarnation Tympanum

Ascension Tympanum

Romanesque Tympanum at Chartres

Detail of the decoration at the entrances

Notre Dame de Paris
Paris, France

1163-1345 CE

Maintaining Notre Dame

Exterior View from the South

Tympanum from the Western Portal

Tympanum from the Western Portal (detail)

Compared to a Romanesque Tympanum (below)

View of the height and ribbed vaulting

Interior view facing East

Notre-dame de Reims or Reims Cathedral
Reims, France

13th-14th century CE

Entrance to Reims Cathedral

Cologne Cathedral
Cologne, Germany

13th-14th century CE

Rear view of the cathedral showcasing the intricate buttressing of the structure

Interior (nave) of Cologne Cathedral

Aerial view of Cologne Cathedral

Cologne Cathedral Innovations

Detail of stonework on Cologne Cathedral spires

Interior of one of the spires