Flashes of light

On the occasion of the Jubilee 2025, the Venerable Ambrosian Library offers a visual and spiritual journey through his most precious miniatures, in an exhibition with an evocative title: Flashes of light. Edited by Francesco Braschi e Matteo Crimella, the exhibition invites visitors to be enchanted by fine works of art that recount episodes from the life of Christ as they were interpreted by medieval and Renaissance artists.

The miniatures, housed in the Library's sumptuous manuscripts, reveal a dual fascination: on the one hand, the faithful representation of the Gospel episodes, on the other hand, the cultural contextualisation which places the sacred scenes within settings typical of the artists' era. Every detail - from the costumes to the architecture - contributes to making the moments narrated in the Gospels, making every spectator a “contemporary” of Christ.

Particularly fascinating are the ornaments in gold, lapis lazuli and rare pigments, which extol the mastery of the miniaturists and emphasise the desire to restore divine beauty with the most refined techniques of the time. The exhibition concludes with a selection of Christ-era coins, from the numismatic collection of the Ambrosiana. Edited by Giancarlo Alteri, this section combines art and theology, showing how time money was an integral part of the Gospel narrative, even in the satellite dishes and in the daily life of Jesus.