In the Middle Ages, people believed that a painting or statue of the Christian God, or Jesus, or Mary, or one of the saints, could really serve as a sort of mailbox so God or a saint would hear your prayer and help you get better from being sick, or make you lucky before an exam, or protect you on a trip you were making.

So people (especially monks) made a lot of these elaborate holy pictures, which we call icons.

Maybe you’d like to paint your own icons. Study what icons look like on the Internet, or in an art history book of medieval painting. Then try to paint a sacred or lucky image of your own – it doesn’t have to be Jesus or Mary, it might be of your lucky planet, or anything that has special meaning for you.  It might be your own mother or father. Think about how the medieval artists made the saint seem special, with the gold background, and the halo. What will you do to make your picture special?

Other activities:

    * Making icons
    * Building a castle
    * Tournaments
    * Making chain mail bracelets   
    * Growing herbs 

Back to main Middle Ages project page