If religious architecture evokes the pathway to and from Heaven, or down to Hell, there are lots of stories and paintings about it too: Jacob's Ladder, angels visiting earth (Genesis 28), praying monks climbing a ladder toward Jesus and the light, distant clouds in the sky seen from

The Emerald Tablet (or Tabula Smaragdina) is the alchemists' Bible and, brief though it is, it is allusive and magical. No wonder it inspired medieval alchemists... I will tell you a thing that is without falsehood and most certain. That which is above is like that which is below,

The Philosopher's Stone entered western European alchemy from the Arab and Islamic world, where the Black Stone of Mecca was held sacred. The Philosopher's Stone seems like a secular attempt to find spiritual values in precious stones in much the same way the Church encouraged relics

The origins and meanings of the symbols for the Sun, Moon and planets are as shrouded in mystery as Venus itself. Certainly the Earth and Sun (and perhaps the Moon) look like shields and Mars is a shield with a spear. Some say Mercury's symbol shows his winged

In the Orthodox, Syrian and Oriental churches today, Byzantine Empress Theodora is a saint. But among Roman Catholics she is dismissed as an unrepentant ex-courtesan and a heretic, who argued that Jesus was divine and not human at all. It doesn't help that she convinced the Emperor

Zodiac Man reflected the classical and medieval view that the human body corresponded to the Heavens and its primary impact was on medicine. Doctors had to study both the patient and the position of the stars and planets in order to determine whether to operate. Bloodletting, for example: if the

Below is a list of how the Western Zodiac icons have been placed in this Virgin Mary chapter. * Aries: Theodora * Taurus: the Word, Logos * Gemini: Hermes * Cancer: Gateway to the Earth * Leo: God's light * Virgo: the Virgin Mary * Libra: Marriage of Theodora and Justinian * Scorpio: the phoenix of