As a holiday treat, here are photos of the Armenia exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They are much more delightful than most of what you found under your tree and totally fat free. But please - don’t view them on your phone! Go to your biggest screen to enjoy these.
A huge painted curtain. Here’s some details:
Angels with polka-dot gowns and hanging lights just like the ones I saw in Turkey!
Sometimes, it’s the story that grabs you: this depressingly stiff sculpture (below) allegedly shows the crucified Christ standing on the skull of Adam, symbolizing how Christ was crucified at the place where Adam was buried. Where did THAT legend start?? Who writes this stuff?
There’s also a reliquary holding the same spear that was used to stab Christ as he hung on the cross. Yep, they saved that exact spear in someone’s attic for thousands of years, with a label, (in Armenian)….really, religious lore is full of exaggerations and big faith leaps, but some of these are such extreme historical whoppers they I wonder how anyone ever believed them.
The exhibit is up until January 13th, if you get a chance.