Who needs Italy...

when we have The Cathedral Basilica of St Louis?

A Romanesque exterior that projects all the majesty, pomp and substance befitting a major place of worship.

Entering the church is literally removing oneself from the world...

and being surrounded by a very different sense of beauty.

I'm tempted to say a darker sense of beauty and more mysterious - but there's nothing much darker or more mysterious than the 'real' world we live in!

You don't come to the Basilica for the leaded or stained glass...

you come for the mosaics!

This is the world's largest mosaic collection: the work of 20 artists over 83,000 square feet.



Over 41.5 MILLION pieces of tesserae (mosaic tile) in approximately 7000 colors!

I love the almost Native American feel of this one!

Gold mosaic is everywhere - and while this Byzantine style of art (and ostentatiousness of worship, for that matter) isn't my 'cup of tea', I can certainly appreciate the craftsmanship and 'otherwordliness' of the effect.


The mosaic work was 76 years in the making ( 1912- 1988).

The Cathedral was designated as a Basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1997.

So, while you're saving all your money for that trip to Italy to see the frescoes and mosaics in Ravenna and Florence (and you really SHOULD go see them, they're exquisite too), don't overlook the beauty that's right here at home!



You really can get quite lost in your thoughts - and in 'looking heavenward' - while you're there.



It was the perfect place to spend some quiet hours on Holy Saturday.