All posts tagged: Cathedral

Mexico’s ‘cathedral of football’, the stadium Maradona never really left | Football News

Mexico’s ‘cathedral of football’, the stadium Maradona never really left | Football News

Published by Webster

The security officer near tunnel eight of Azteca Stadium is tired. A small crowd has gathered at the alley leading to the dressing room and he is holding them back. On the wall nearby hangs a photograph: Diego Maradona on the shoulders of his teammates after the 1986 quarter-final at this very stadium, hair fanned out like a halo. Some try to bribe their way past, but the security officer doesn’t move. Near the stadium café, there used to be a small bronze statue of Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ goal. It was removed during renovation before this World Cup. “We had to make some space, but it will be restored soon,” says Juventino Gonzales, who runs the stadium tours. The goal that made him and unmade England, boxed up in storage beneath the stadium where it happened. Azteca and Maradona have given each other footballing immortality. “Almost every visitor comes in search of Maradona memorabilia. Some get so emotional that they even cry,” says Gonzales. When Maradona died over five years ago, thousands turned up …

16th-Century Royal Burial Treasures Found in Lithuania’s Vilnius Cathedral

16th-Century Royal Burial Treasures Found in Lithuania’s Vilnius Cathedral

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A remarkable discovery has been made in Lithuania’s Vilnius Cathedral, where 16th-century royal burial regalia were recovered after being concealed for nearly a century. The artefacts, including crowns, rings, chains, a sceptre, and coffin plaques, had been hidden in a crypt at the start of World War II. These treasures, once belonging to significant figures from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland, provide insight into the era’s historical and cultural importance. Discovery Details and Historical Context According to a press release from the Vilnius Archdiocese, as reported by Live Science, the regalia were discovered on December 16, 2024, by a team of experts using an endoscopic camera to examine the cathedral’s underground chambers. The items, originally unearthed during restoration work in 1931 after a flood exposed royal sarcophagi, were hidden in 1939 for safekeeping. They include burial ornaments tied to Alexander Jagiellon, Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland, along with two queens, Elisabeth of Austria and Barbara Radziwiłł. These families played a crucial role during the Polish Renaissance. Mykolas …

Notre Dame Cathedral reopens in Paris after devastating 2019 fire

Notre Dame Cathedral reopens in Paris after devastating 2019 fire

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Image Source : AP Notre Dame is reopening for the first time since a fire in 2019 nearly destroyed the 12th-century cathedral in Paris. Image Source : ap World leaders including, US President-elect Donald Trump, US First Lady Jill Biden, Britain’s Prince William and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attended the event on Saturday. Image Source : ap Over 2,500 people thronged Paris streets on Saturday as the reopening scheduled for weekends (December 7, 8). Saturday’s events started with Archbishop Laurent Ulrich symbolically reopening Notre Dame’s grand wooden doors with three resounding knocks. Image Source : ap French President addressed the event and declared, “The bells of Notre Dame are ringing again” during the reopening ceremony. The restoration is seen as a moment of triumph for French President Emmanuel Macron as the cathedral has been rebuilt in just five years. Image Source : ap During the reopening, clergy walked down the central isle after the service in Notre Dame Cathedral. Image Source : ap Flooded with light and song, the cathedral came alive in a moment …

123 Bodies Found in England’s Ancient Leicester Cathedral: What You Need to Know

123 Bodies Found in England’s Ancient Leicester Cathedral: What You Need to Know

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An excavation near Leicester Cathedral has led to the discovery of a burial pit containing the remains of 123 individuals. The find, described as one of the largest mass graves from the period, dates back over 800 years to the early 12th century. Despite the scale of the burial, no evidence of violence was found, leaving researchers questioning whether famine or disease was responsible for the deaths. The team, led by Mathew Morris, Project Officer at the University of Leicester Archaeological Services, concluded that the pit was filled rapidly in three successive deposits. Morris, in an interview published by The Guardian, stated that the bodies appear to have been brought in cartloads and dropped into the shaft within a short period. He estimated the buried individuals represented about 5 percent of Leicester’s medieval population. Clues in Historical Records and Radiocarbon Dating As per the report by the publication, tnitial speculation linked the burial to the Black Death. However, radiocarbon testing placed the deaths in the 12th century, predating the plague by over a century. Morris told the …