"The spirit was approached through a multitude of sensory beauties"

The title to this post comes from the Guardian's slide show of the Treasures of Heaven exhibit now at the British Museum. Personally, I find the idea of saints' relics a little bit uncomfortable, especially in its more 'complete' forms (as with the bodies of saints displayed I have seen openly displayed in Italian and Greek churches). But it is true that these medieval works of gold, ivory and alabaster make you feel better just looking at them. They are so natural in their materials, and yet so permanent in their preservation of the artist's vision.

Medieval vividness and attention to detail is also on display at the Getty Museum's Medieval Gospels exhibit. I especially enjoyed the action figure-ish illustration of St. John (at the top of the page when you follow the link).

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