In 1952, Jacob "Jay" Gurley explored a Marshall County, Alabama, curiosity known as Bat Cave. Amazed by its stalagmites and sheer enormity, he purchased the site and began transforming it into Cathedral Caverns, a spectacular tourist attraction that eventually became a national natural landmark in 1973 and a state park in 2000. Had it not been for Gurley's hard work and dedication, this cave, a geological treasure of international renown, might have remained a little-known hole in the ground. His efforts impacted local and state tourism, economics, and politics. This is the story of one man and his vision.

Reproduction of the original: The Cathedral by Clara Bell

What Are The Ancients Trying To Tell Us? "Why would the Cro-Magnon hunter-gatherers of Europe expend so much time and effort to penetrate into deep, dark, and dangerous caverns, where they might encounter cave bears and lions or get lost and die, aided only by the dim glow of animal fat–burning stone candles, often crawling on all fours for distances of up to a mile or more underground . . . to paint amazing, haunting images of animals?" —From The Cave and the Cathedral Join researcher and scientist Amir D. Aczel on a time-traveling journey through the past and discover what the ancient caves of France and Spain may reveal about the origin of language, art, and human thought as he illuminates one of the greatest mysteries in anthropology. "A well-researched and highly readable exploration of one of the most spectacular manifestations of the unique human creative spirit–and one of its most intriguing mysteries." —Ian Tattersall, Curator, Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, and author of The Fossil Trail: How We Know What We Think We Know about Human Evolution

"The Cathedral" is a novel written by Joris-Karl Huysmans, originally published in French as "La Cathédrale" in 1898. This novel is part of the larger literary movement known as decadence and is a follow-up to Huysmans' earlier work, "Against Nature" ("À rebours"). "The Cathedral" continues to explore themes of decadence, art, and spirituality, but it takes a different narrative approach. The story revolves around the character of Durtal, an author who has previously been the protagonist of Huysmans' works. In this novel, Durtal is researching and writing a book about Gilles de Rais, a 15th-century French nobleman known for his association with Joan of Arc and later for his crimes involving child abduction and murder. This subject matter reflects Durtal's fascination with the darker aspects of history. Durtal also becomes interested in the subject of religious mysticism and decides to spend time at a Trappist monastery in order to explore his spiritual beliefs. As he immerses himself in the austere and contemplative life of the monastery, Durtal grapples with questions of faith, redemption, and the role of art in conveying religious experience. Throughout the novel, Huysmans delves into various philosophical and theological ideas, contrasting the decadent, materialistic world of late 19th-century France with the ascetic, spiritual world of the monastery. "The Cathedral" is a reflection on the complexities of human nature, the search for meaning, and the tension between art and spirituality. In essence, "The Cathedral" is a philosophical and introspective work that explores the intersection of aesthetics, religion, and the human condition. Through Durtal's journey, readers are invited to contemplate the role of art and faith in a world marked by decadence and uncertainty.

'The Cathedral' is a novel written by J.-K. Huysmans. It is the third of Huysmans' books to feature the character Durtal, a thinly disguised portrait of the author. He had already featured the character of Durtal in Là-bas and En route, which recounted his conversion to Catholicism. The Cathedral continues the story. After his retreat at a Trappist monastery, Durtal moved to the city of Chartres, renowned for its cathedral. Huysmans describes the building in great detail.

This “delicious take on the one percent in our nation’s capital” (Town & Country) and clever combination of The Bonfire of the Vanities and The Nest explores what Washington, DC’s high society members do behind the closed doors of their stately homes. They are the families considered worthy of a listing in the exclusive Green Book—a discriminative diary created by the niece of Edith Roosevelt’s social secretary. Their aristocratic bloodlines are woven into the very fabric of Washington—generation after generation. Their old money and manner lurk through the cobblestone streets of Georgetown, Kalorama, and Capitol Hill. They only socialize within their inner circle, turning a blind eye to those who come and go on the political merry-go-round. These parents and their children live in gilded existences of power and privilege. But what they have failed to understand is that the world is changing. And when the family of one of their own is held hostage and brutally murdered, everything about their legacy is called into question in this unputdownable novel that “combines social satire with moral outrage to offer a masterfully crafted, absorbing read that can simply entertain on one level and provoke reasoned discourse on another” (Booklist, starred review).

One of the great intellectual battles of modern times is between evolution and religion. Until now, they have been considered completely irreconcilable theories of origin and existence. David Sloan Wilson's Darwin's Cathedral takes the radical step of joining the two, in the process proposing an evolutionary theory of religion that shakes both evolutionary biology and social theory at their foundations. The key, argues Wilson, is to think of society as an organism, an old idea that has received new life based on recent developments in evolutionary biology. If society is an organism, can we then think of morality and religion as biologically and culturally evolved adaptations that enable human groups to function as single units rather than mere collections of individuals? Wilson brings a variety of evidence to bear on this question, from both the biological and social sciences. From Calvinism in sixteenth-century Geneva to Balinese water temples, from hunter-gatherer societies to urban America, Wilson demonstrates how religions have enabled people to achieve by collective action what they never could do alone. He also includes a chapter considering forgiveness from an evolutionary perspective and concludes by discussing how all social organizations, including science, could benefit by incorporating elements of religion. Religious believers often compare their communities to single organisms and even to insect colonies. Astoundingly, Wilson shows that they might be literally correct. Intended for any educated reader, Darwin's Cathedral will change forever the way we view the relations among evolution, religion, and human society.

An unforgettable fresco of a golden age in fourteenth-century Barcelona, Cathedral of the Sea is a thrilling historical novel of friendship and revenge, plague and hope, love and war. Arnau Estanyol arrives in Barcelona to find a city dominated by the construction of the city’s great pride—the cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar—and by its shame, the deadly Inquisition. As a young man, Arnau joins the powerful guild of stoneworkers and helps to build the church with his own hands, while his best friend and adopted brother Joanet studies to become a priest. With time, Arnau prospers and falls secretly in love with a forbidden woman. But when he is betrayed and hauled before the Inquisitor, he finds himself face-to-face with Joanet. Will he lose his life just as his beloved Cathedral of the Sea is finally completed, or will his brother save him? MORE THAN TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE!