Stained glass windows were a prominent feature of northern Europe's gothic churches, while the walls and domes of the Byzantine churches of the south of the continent were decorated with biblical tales rendered in mosaics of multicolored glass tiles. It was as if glass, this brilliant, lustrous substance, could actually bring people closer to heaven.
北歐歌德式教堂則嵌上一個又一個彩繪玻璃窗，而南方的拜占庭教堂，則以數以萬塊的玻璃馬賽克，繁複地在圓頂或壁面上拼出聖經的故事，藉著玻璃晶瑩剔透的特性與光澤，讓人們更接近天堂。