> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Medieval Bling: Skeletons Encrusted in Jewels and Gold - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/medieval-bling-skeletons-encrusted-in-jewels-and-gold/ - Published: 2013-09-14T00:55:26.000Z - Updated: 2025-11-24T16:34:42.000Z - Description: In a forthcoming book titled Heavenly Bodies: Cult Treasures & Spectacular Saints from the Catacombs, photographer Paul Koudounaris brings before his lens bejeweled skeletons long-lost in the catacombs of Rome. - Author: Mostafa Heddaya - Tags: Art, Photo Essays, skeletons, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 06:59 (2012, 2013, part 2) ![p.12-3 St Valerius in Weyarn_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-12-3-st-valerius-in-weyarn_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Valerius in Weyarn (all images copyright Paul Koudounaries and courtesy Thames & Hudson) In a forthcoming book titled [*Heavenly Bodies: Cult Treasures & Spectacular Saints from the Catacombs*](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0500251959/hyperallergic-20?ref=hyperallergic.com), Los Angeles photographer [Paul Koudounaris](http://empiredelamort.com/?ref=hyperallergic.com) brings before his lens bejeweled skeletons long-lost in the [catacombs of Rome](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catacombs%5Fof%5FRome?ref=hyperallergic.com). The remains were first unearthed in 1578, when they were disbursed throughout Catholic christendom as saintly relics. But according to Koudounaris, who also penned a 2011 volume on the subject, [*The Empire of Death: A Cultural History of Ossuaries and Charnel Houses*](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0500251789/hyperallergic-20?ref=hyperallergic.com), the true identities of the skeletons remains a mystery. The relics, all opulent finery bleating against the stiff repose of death, reprise and damn the famous “almost-instinct” expressed in the closing lines of Philip Larkin’s “[An Arundel Tomb](http://www.poetryfoundation.org/learning/guide/237912?ref=hyperallergic.com#poem)“: if love won’t survive us, at least the gaudy ornaments of material piety [might](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For%5Fthe%5FLove%5Fof%5FGod?ref=hyperallergic.com). Hope everyone had a terrific Fashion Week! ![p.34 copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-34-st-felix-sursee-switzerland_-copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St Felix, Sursee, Switzerland ![p.47 hand of St Valentin_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-47-hand-of-st-valentin_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) Hand of St. Valentin ![p.48-9 St Benedictus_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-48-9-st-benedictus_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Benedictus ![p.50 Deodatus skull relic_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-50-deodatus-skull-relic_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) Deodatus skull relic ![p.56 relic of St Deodatus in Rheinau_copyrightPaul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-56-relic-of-st-deodatus-in-rheinau_copyrightpaul-koudounaris.jpg) Relic of St. Deodatus in Rheinau ![p.61 St Luciana_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-61-st-luciana_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Luciana ![p.70-1 skull of St Getreu in Ursberg_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-70-1-skull-of-st-getreu-in-ursberg_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) Skull of St. Getreu in Ursberg ![p.78-9 St Friedrich at the Benedictine abbey in Melk_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-78-9-st-friedrich-at-the-benedictine-abbey-in-melk_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Friedrich at the Benedictine abbey in Melk ![p.84 St Valentinus in Waldsassen_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-84-st-valentinus-in-waldsassen_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Valentinus in Waldsassen ![p.88-9 In Stams, Austria_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-88-9-in-stams-austria_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) In Stams, Austria ![p.147 St Munditia grasps a flask_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-147-st-munditia-grasps-a-flask_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Munditia grasps a flask ![p.22 St Albertus_copyright Paul Koudounaris](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2013/09/p-22-st-albertus_copyright-paul-koudounaris.jpg) St. Albertus [*Heavenly Bodies Cult Treasures & Spectacular Saints from the Catacombs* ](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0500251959/hyperallergic-20?ref=hyperallergic.com)*by Paul Koudounaris will be released on October 8, 2013 by Thames & Hudson.*