The Royal Pantheon of the Basilica of San Isidoro in Leon (Romanesque)

This is the Royal Pantheon of the Basilica of San Isidoro in Leon. This is a depiction of Romanesque architecture. I think that it is amazing how the fresco art has survived over the years even after the depredation of Napoleon's soldiers. The paint covers almost all of the walls of the building and tells medieval and biblical stories. This scene is truly breath taking. I know that this is Romanesque because I can see the thick, solid-looking walls that support the weight of the heavy stone vaulting. In the picture above I can also see the engaged columns which are also a characteristic of Romanesque art.

A Seated Buddha from the Xiangtangshan Caves

The Buddhist cave temples of Xiangtangshan, which translates as “Mountain of Echoing Halls,” are intended to replicate a Buddha’s paradise. The temple was a cultural achievement of the Northern Qi dynasty (A.D. 550-577), whose rulers established Buddhism as the official religion.The Xiangtangshan caves are located in a rural and coal-mining area in southern Hebei Province. A total of about 30 caves are divided among three sites, according to researchers at the University of Chicago’s Xiangtangshan Caves Project. The site was near the Northern Qi capital at Ye, and the early caves were created with the support of the royal family, officials, and Buddhist monks. This is a seated Buddha from the Xiangtangshan caves. It was a part of an exhibit called "Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan" at NYU running from September 2012- January 2013. This piece was found and reconstructed from 3D digital technology and placed in this exhibition to allow people to experience the carvings in their original context and to better understand the sacred meanings it was meant to convey. I recognized this piece as a Buddha because of the elongated earlobes, chakras on his palms, the ushnisha, and the urna. This Buddha has a large halo that is embellished with floral and vegetal motifs. Most of the cave and artifacts were damaged due to a political upheaval in China. Most of the remaining Buddha sculptures have no heads or hands. I love how this piece has the halo and it depicts this Buddha as a happy being. He is smiling, and looks as if he is actually in the state of enlightenment. 

Resource: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/united-states/technology-replicates-ancient-chinese-temple-291267.html