The funerary monument for Christopher Columbus stands in the south transept of the Seville Cathedral, Apart from a coating of dust, it looks startlingly lifelike; as though four 16th century heralds of thte rulers of Spain are waiting only for a flourish of trumpets to prompt them to carry toward the altar the coffin of the man to whom the Crown had bestowed the titles admiral, viceroy, and governor. The monument is a tomb, however, and after decades of multiple studies and a few genetic...

Christ's Ascension, Ceiling Boss, Norwich Cathedral, 14th century It's a tricky assignment: visually representing a supernatural experience--a disappearing act. The ascension of Christ into heaven, forty days after his resurrection from the dead, is related three times in the New Testament ( Mark 16:19 , Luke 24:50-53 , and Acts 1:9-11 ), but the details are scant and vague. He is "lifted" or "taken, " or "carried" up to heaven. Only in Acts does it say that "...a cloud took him out of their...

Hercules, with help from Hermes and Athena, steals Cerberus from Hades Our hero has three remaining labors before he is freed from his servitude to King Eurystheus (and, by extension, Hera). If you missed Part 1, with the preceding labors of Hercules, you can read it here . Hercules fights the Giant Geryon, Mosaic Floor, 26 CE, National Archeological Museum of Spain, Madrid This task on which King Eurystheus sends Hercules is yet another suicide mission. As well, it's another adventure in...