Jubilee The Jubilee has its origins in the Jewish tradition establishing every 50 years a year of rest for the land (to strengthen future cultivations), the restitution of confiscated lands, the liberation of slaves, and the forgiveness of debts, thus eliminating too rich or too poor people. To signal the beginning of the Jubilee, a…
Saint Peter’s Square is a large plaza, allowing 300K people, located directly in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. At the center of the “square” is the Vatican obelisk, an ancient Egyptian obelisk. A granite fountain constructed by Bernini in 1675 matches another fountain designed by Carlo Maderno. Bernini designed the square, including…
St. Peter’s Baldacchino is a towering bronze canopy sculpted over the High Altar of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, which is built over the tomb of St Peter. Even though sculpted canopies are ordinary in medieval churches and buildings, the Baldacchino in St. Peter’s church was noted for its grandeur and the man who executed…
Only Peter can be seen as Christ’s vicar on Earth No Catholic Pope or other Prelate can claim the same. Circus Nero with Egyptian Obelisk, now at St.Peter’s square Crucifixion and bones of St Peter: First dome over grave? Constantine’s church in 370 AD: In constructing the Old St. Peter’s Basilica, Constantine the Great…
The annual feast of cathedra petri at Rome A wooden seat (cathedra) was given by the Holy Roman Emperor Charles the Bald to Pope John VIII in 875 to be used during the Charles’ coronation as emperor at Christmas day in the old St. Peter’s Basilica. A depiction of the emperor appears on the crossbeam…
The Maitreya Sacred Altar, is a renowned Buddhist site on the picturesque Xuedou Mountain, near Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province. This sacred altar is like a city in the sky, a temple in the clouds, resplendent in gold and radiating grandeur: The Maitreya Sacred Altar and geodesic dome were designed by the Tsinghua University Architectural R&D…
Transcendental Edifices Circular Buildings & Communities Akichaka, 5-bodied man Circle inscribed in a square Square inscribed in a circle Radisson-Frankfurt Shenyang (100m) Guangzhou (138m) Fushun Mauritius, breeam rated Temple of Heaven, China Filmmaker’s and National Heroes Monument, Burkina Faso El Alhambra Ø-architecture+K-Carlos circles+square Twelve very precisely…
8 Secrets of the Taj Mahal This world-wonder memorial remains a place of mystery The mausoleum in Agra is India’s most famous monument, and a sublime shrine to eternal love. Built from between 1632 and 1647 by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, the Taj Mahal was dedicated to Jahan’s favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died during…
Swaminarayan Akshardham is a Hindu temple in Delhi. The modern (2005) complex displays millennia of traditional and modern Hindu culture, spirituality, and architecture. The temple, at the center of the complex, was built according to the Vastu shastra. Originating in ancient India, Vastu Shastra ( वास्तु शास्त्र, vāstu śāstra “science of architecture”) is an ancient…
Star sizes A sphere is a geometrical object that is a 3D analogue to a 2D circle. Stars and planets are often seen as spheres. Naturally occurring stone spheres Over 130 manmade “living” self-reproducing perfectingly round metal spheres embedded in Precambrian rock have been found in S-African mine. They are over 3B yrs…
The Holy Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is the “little” shrine that protects and covers the sepulchre or tomb of Jesus. Its restoration was planned for 1959, but it took the 3 groups responsible for the edifice, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Franciscan order of the Catholic Church,…
3 architectural styles in one Cathedral The Cathedral’s construction began in 1221, in the style of French Gothic architecture and the Latin cross. After a hiatus of 200 years, it went through embellishments of great π- & φ-based splendor in the 15th & 16th centuries: The octagonal Chapel of the Constable, the octagonal tower and…
