Take the uptown A subway train from Penn Station to 190th street. Step into Fort Tryon Park with grand views of the Hudson River, the Palisades, bedrock and the Cloisters, a 15 minute walk from the subway. Follow the walk to the entrance to begin a journey back into the 12th century.

Medieval art, limestone corbels and capitals, wood carvings, copper, iron, glass, huge hanging tapestries. Many marble sculptures have eyes with black dots. These eye-dots look strange and out of place. A large stone baptismal font in Fuentiduena Chapel had a placard that told the story of Christine. She possessed by the devil, jumped into the sacred water and emerged healed. Her name was amended to “Christine the Astonishing”, as is the entire museum.

Many limestone carved entrances from churches in France, Spain, and Germany are part of the architecture of this building.  I always wondered why there is a crescent moon under the Virgin Mary’s feet. I found the answer here. “A woman clothed in the sun, and the moon under her feet.” Apocalypse 12:1.

There are two cloisters (squares surrounded by four corridors), one large the other smaller. All eight corridors had columns, bases, and capitols of limestone carvings. There were olive trees in pots along the edges and I found one Frankincense plant ( Buswella carteri). One of the three kings brought this as a gift offering for the holy family in the manger. I learned that are fourteen “helper saints.” One carving of Saint Roch cured the plague for all those who came to him after he cured himself. There were many things to learn and see. The blocks of limestone throughout the building had pock marks, little holes. After 1,000 years, the limestone dissolved from water contact. Many carving came from limewood. I learned that these were lime trees and is very hard and resistant to tiny boring beetles. One capitol was called “Mouth of Hell”.   I stared at this and finall found the mouth. Each capitol has a different scene. They tell stories. Many illterate people learned this way. Many saints halo’s had gold foil that had tiny poked holes. One triptych from the 14th century showed Joseph the carpenter on the right panel drilling holes in wood. He had mousetraps sitting on his workbench to trap evil. The central panel showed the annunciation with tiny small streaks coming through a window to signify the holy spirit entering Mary.

One room held huge tapestries. These acted as insulation in the cold damp rooms of castles.One famous one is of a woman riding a unicorn with a fence surrounding it. Some interpret this as a diving figure, others as fertility. Many carvings were amusing such as an acrobat on a capitol – a way to balance the solemnity of Dark cold cathedrals.

My feet tired after two solid hours of standing. I checked out the gift shop ( what museum doesn’t have one?). I was too tired, and found a bench to rest while wife Nancy shopped. I would have bought a postcard of a carving but there were none available. Many visitors took pictures.

I left with a huge appreciation for the stone and wood carvers, artists, weavers, metal smiths, and carpenters.  Obviously there was no unemployment in many of the towns where these masterpieces came from.

From Babylon, it took two hours to reach the Cloisters. The surroundings are quiet with no neon and pushy crowds. It is a very different experience than times square. It is worth a whole day. Near the end of the tour, I became saturated and the last two rooms was only able to pick out a few exhibits to look at. I came away drenched in medieval history. Well worth it.