Magazine Posts

Matt Thomason on Unsplash

Basilica of Santa Francesca, Rome, Italy. A church at the site was known by the tenth century. It was named Santa Maria Nova ("New St Mary"), to distinguish it from the other church inside the Roman forum devoted to St Mary, Santa Maria Antiqua ("Ancient St Mary"), which had fallen into ruin by then. The relics from the ancient church were moved to this church under Pope Leo. Santa Maria Nuova was enlarged in the second half of the tenth century, and then rebuilt by Pope Honorius III in the thirteenth century, adding the campanile and the apse, as well as being decorated with a mosaic Maestà, a depiction of the Madonna enthroned accompanied by saints (as seen in the picture). Since 1352 the church has been in the care of the Olivetans. In the 16th century, the church was rededicated to Frances of Rome (Francesca Buzzi), who was canonized in 1608 and whose relics are in the crypt. The interior of the church has undergone many refurbishments.

Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Ray Hennessy on Unsplash

Viking Sky (ship, 2017) - moored in the harbour of Sète (Hérault, France).

Christian Ferrer, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Nathan Anderson on Unsplash

Sand dunes of the Thar Desert in the Indian state of Rajasthan. On this day in 1949, the state was formed after a merger of several Rajput princely states into the Indian Union following India's independence from British colonial rule.

Clément Bardot, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Colton Jones on Unsplash

Sunrise in Pieniny mountains, Poland.

Pudelek, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Barth Bailey on Unsplash

Mary Martin with children, during production of the Broadway musical The Sound of Music. Martin portrayed Maria von Trapp who died on this day in 1987.

Toni Frissell / Adam Cuerden, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Bogdan Pasca on Unsplash

Northern lights in the night sky over Mývatn, Iceland.

Giles Laurent, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.