The baptismal basin of St. Louis is a surprising work of art. This masterpiece of bronze inlaid with gold and silver was made by Mohammed ibn Al-Zain during the Mamluk sultanate (a dynasty of slave...

The Gladiator was discovered in the 17th century, when the Borghese family ordered excavations of their estates. This remarkable statue, carved from a single block of marble, can be considered one of...

In the desert of Saqqara, south of Cairo, French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette set out on the trail of a lost necropolis: the Serapeum. He found, buried in the sand, a mysterious statue with an...

Pope Julius II invited Michelangelo to Rome in 1505, intending to commission a number of works from the great artist—such as the construction of the papal tomb, which was to be adorned with some...