Cyprus has inscribed on the World Heritage List ten churches which bear outstanding testimony to Byzantine civilization, are well-conserved examples of rural religious architecture and provide evidence for the links between eastern and western Christian art.

UNESCO: Painted Churches in the Troodos Region

On the first floor, Strand's uncompromisingly austere photography (from Spanish, North American and Mexican collections) offers a hard-bitten "collective portrait" of small-town Mexican life told through photos of individuals, landscapes, studies of architecture and religious iconology.

WSJ: Review: Two Sides of the Same Coin | 'Henri Cartier-Bresson/Paul Strand, Mexico 1932-1934' at Fondation Cartier in Paris

My response to Ranakpur led me to examine the limitations of my approach to architecture and, for the first time, the history of the interaction of narrative and architecture in Western religious buildings.

WSJ: Enlightenment on an Intimate Scale | The Adinatha Temple at Ranakpur | Masterpiece by James S. Ackerman

"The quality of architecture is invariably high in the religion category, which I think is because communities and religious organizations are often commissioning these projects, " opines Paul Finch, World Architecture Festival program director.

CNN: The world's most beautiful places to pray

This November, a selection of the most imaginative religious spaces completed within the last 3 years will be showcased at the World Architecture Festival in Singapore.

CNN: The world's most beautiful places to pray

Many ceremonies that mark national celebrations and religious rituals incorporate the practice and calligraphy has itself proved influential on modern art, architecture and design.

UNESCO: Culture

They cover a vast range of subjects from religious studies to mathematics, medicine and astronomy, music, literature, poetry, architecture and esoteric practices, and bear witness to the rich history of the city as a cultural crossroads and centre of learning.

UNESCO: MEDIA SERVICES