In their ongoing search for divinity, Western European Christians followed many different paths to a personal connection with the eternal, including the intimacies of private prayer, the spectacle of the Mass, and the veneration of saintly relics. Along the way, art objects and artifacts served as companions, guides and comforts. The essays in this catalogue consider the central role objects and images played in these spiritual journeys. They investigate imagery's critical role in the development of personal devotions, in the organization of liturgical worship, and in practices surrounding the institution of the Eucharist and the cult of saints.

In their ongoing search for divinity, Western European Christians followed many different paths to a personal connection with the eternal, including the intimacies of private prayer, the spectacle of the Mass, and the veneration of saintly relics. Along the way, art objects and artifacts served as companions, guides and comforts. The essays in this catalogue consider the central role objects and images played in these spiritual journeys. They investigate imagery's critical role in the development of personal devotions, in the organization of liturgical worship, and in practices surrounding the institution of the Eucharist and the cult of saints.