A SERIES of virtual art history courses will let attendees travel back to the medieval era.

Monmouthshire Museums is running an evening lecture series online, discovering the history of art.

The 10 weeks of talks begins on Monday, September 20 at 7pm and will take the story back to the mysteries of medieval art.

Twinkling with backgrounds of real gold and drawing on religious and folkloric imagery, these pictures set out a magical and sacred world for viewers in the 10th century through to the 14th century - and laid the foundation for the Renaissance.

The online course of hour-long lectures with Eleanor Bird explores not only painted images, from tiny devotional works to great cathedral altarpieces, but also the architecture of the cathedrals themselves.

New building techniques allowed medieval masons to move from the solid but majestic Romanesque to the soaring volumes of the great Gothic structures which recreated an idea of heaven on earth.

Along the way, we set the art in its historical context, looking at how towns developed and ideas were reflected in glowing stained glass, tapestries and manuscripts.

Disappear into another age for an hour a week and in the process, expand your knowledge so that your visits to museums and medieval buildings take on a new level of enjoyment.

The lecture series runs from Monday, September 20, 7-8pm on Zoom, and costs £50 for ten lectures.

Booking is essential by 4pm at the latest on Sunday, September 19.

Contact MonLife Heritage Museums to book.