Patterns in Humanity
Race, economics and homicide in the United States: a summary
Why economic factors cannot explain homicide disparities in the United States
4 weeks ago
Why economic factors cannot explain homicide disparities in the United States
Res Obscura
Post-postal
What did we lose when we stopped writing letters?
4 weeks ago
What did we lose when we stopped writing letters?
A Collection of...
New Acquisitions: 1933 and the Definition of Fascism
Today we’re going to look at definitions of fascism and ask the question – you may have guessed – if...
3 weeks ago
Today we’re going to look at definitions of fascism and ask the question – you may have guessed – if Donald Trump is running for President as a fascist. Worry not, this isn’t me shifting to full-time political pundit, nor is this the formal end of the hiatus (which will happen on...
Trying to Understand...
The Water Is Rising.
But slowly ...
4 weeks ago
African History...
The role of firearms in African military history, and the guns of the Benin kingdom.
"The Zulus appeared almost to grow out of the earth.
3 weeks ago
"The Zulus appeared almost to grow out of the earth.
Global Inequality...
The ideology of Donald J. Trump
Does Donald J.
a week ago
Trying to Understand...
Unlike For Like.
BRICS and how international institutions work.
3 weeks ago
BRICS and how international institutions work.
Flashbak
Les Malheurs des immortels, 1922: Max Ernst and Paul Éluard’s Surreal Collaboration
Misfortunes of the Immortals (Les Malheurs des immortels) is an early illustrated book by...
4 weeks ago
Misfortunes of the Immortals (Les Malheurs des immortels) is an early illustrated book by German-American-French artist and founder of the Dada movement Max Ernst (2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976). The book, which marks the beginning of his close friendship with French poet Paul...
TheCollector
10 Historic Cities in Massachusetts That Are Great Alternatives to Boston
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3 weeks ago
Classical Wisdom
Less than ONE Week Left
In Search of Homer Trip Opening
4 weeks ago
In Search of Homer Trip Opening
Flashbak
American Photographs: A Journey Down The Blue Highways, 1970s
You see, I’ve been through The desert on a horse with no name It felt good to be out of the rain In...
4 weeks ago
You see, I’ve been through The desert on a horse with no name It felt good to be out of the rain In the desert you can remember your name ‘Cause there ain’t no one for to give you no pain – America, A Horse With No Name We don’t know where British … Continue reading "American...
History Today Feed
‘The Last Dynasty’ and ‘The Fall of Egypt and the Rise of Rome’ review
‘The Last Dynasty’ and ‘The Fall of Egypt and the Rise of Rome’ review
JamesHoare
Mon, 10/28/2024 -...
3 weeks ago
‘The Last Dynasty’ and ‘The Fall of Egypt and the Rise of Rome’ review
JamesHoare
Mon, 10/28/2024 - 10:04
Res Obscura
A very deep history of Halloween
Or, how far back can historical analysis take us?
3 weeks ago
Or, how far back can historical analysis take us?
Classical Wisdom
Are Propaganda and Politics Inevitable Bedfellows?
And Does Democracy Make It Worse?
2 weeks ago
And Does Democracy Make It Worse?
Classical Wisdom
What Happens When We Die? And Does That Impact How We Live?
Homer’s Hell: The Afterlife in Greek Mythology
a week ago
Homer’s Hell: The Afterlife in Greek Mythology
Flashbak
In the Night Garden: The Magical World of George Shiras
George Shiras (1859 – 1942) began photographing in 1889, and was the first to use camera traps and...
4 weeks ago
George Shiras (1859 – 1942) began photographing in 1889, and was the first to use camera traps and flash photography when photographing animals. Shiras, a lawyer who became a politician, borrowed a hunting technique he learned from the Ojibwa tribe called jacklighting, when fire...
Flashbak
A Day At New York City’s Off-Track Betting in 1982
In 2010, around 50 Off-Track Betting (OTB) parlors around New York City were shuttered. 1,000...
3 weeks ago
In 2010, around 50 Off-Track Betting (OTB) parlors around New York City were shuttered. 1,000 employees lost their jobs. And another part of old New York went the way of the Automat and the Times Square peep show. The New York State Legislature enacted its first off-track betting...
Classical Wisdom
Monsters of Mythology
Who Made the Top Ten?
3 weeks ago
History Today Feed
How to Win an Election in Ancient Rome
How to Win an Election in Ancient Rome
JamesHoare
Fri, 10/25/2024 - 12:22
3 weeks ago
How to Win an Election in Ancient Rome
JamesHoare
Fri, 10/25/2024 - 12:22
African History...
The textile trade of pre-colonial Africa
In December 1633, a Dutch ship reached the fort of Nassau on the ‘Gold Coast’ (modern Ghana),...
a week ago
In December 1633, a Dutch ship reached the fort of Nassau on the ‘Gold Coast’ (modern Ghana), carrying more than 6,000 pieces of cloth which was to be exchanged for gold.
TheCollector
6 Cultural Trends That Defined the Roaring Twenties
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
Sotheby’s to Auction Its First Robot-Made Artwork
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4 weeks ago
History Today Feed
The Conservative Party Popularity Contest
The Conservative Party Popularity Contest
JamesHoare
Thu, 10/24/2024 - 09:21
4 weeks ago
The Conservative Party Popularity Contest
JamesHoare
Thu, 10/24/2024 - 09:21
History Today Feed
Doc Holliday: The Perennial Sidekick
Doc Holliday: The Perennial Sidekick
JamesHoare
Tue, 10/29/2024 - 09:42
3 weeks ago
Doc Holliday: The Perennial Sidekick
JamesHoare
Tue, 10/29/2024 - 09:42
Dr Alun Withey
Victorian Swappers! Adverts for exchange in the 19th century.
Victorians were inveterate 'swappers' (NB: this might not be what you think!). Newspapers and...
2 weeks ago
Victorians were inveterate 'swappers' (NB: this might not be what you think!). Newspapers and journals were full of ads for objects sought and to be exchanged. These offer a fascinating insight into what was considered desirable, the value of objects, and the processes of...
Trying to Understand...
Another Of My Essays In French
And some associated reflections.
a week ago
And some associated reflections.
History Today Feed
‘The Writers’ Castle’ by Uwe Nuehmahr review
‘The Writers’ Castle’ by Uwe Nuehmahr review
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/23/2024 - 09:34
4 weeks ago
‘The Writers’ Castle’ by Uwe Nuehmahr review
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/23/2024 - 09:34
TheCollector
How King Alfred Nearly Lost Everything (But Didn’t)
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4 weeks ago
Classical Wisdom
Should We Be Afraid of Technology?
Lessons from Prometheus and Frankenstein
3 weeks ago
Lessons from Prometheus and Frankenstein
Classical Wisdom
Why Socrates Matters
New Event: November 22
2 weeks ago
Dreams of Space -...
Space Witch (1959)
Here is a Halloween space book post for you. I have done posts for Christmas, Easter and Yuri's...
3 weeks ago
Here is a Halloween space book post for you. I have done posts for Christmas, Easter and Yuri's Night but never one for Halloween.
Space Witch is a pleasant story about a witch who wants to expand her frightening to creatures on other planets. She constructs a "space broom" and a...
TheCollector
10 Must-See Monuments & Memorials on the National Mall in DC
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Whore of Babylon & Prostitution in the Bible
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
British Artist Finds An Incredible Album Of Found Photos
Seeking vintage photographs as a source of inspiration for her work, British artist Emily Loveridge...
3 weeks ago
Seeking vintage photographs as a source of inspiration for her work, British artist Emily Loveridge came upon this album of pictures. “I find images that resonate with me and then with that I try to bring their characters to life in my work,” she tells us. “I bought the slides on...
Classical Wisdom
Last Chance
Secure Seats for the In Search of Homer Trip
3 weeks ago
Secure Seats for the In Search of Homer Trip
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Variety is the Spice of Ancient Life
3 weeks ago
Variety is the Spice of Ancient Life
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Prometheus and AI?
2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Freedom of Speech in the United States: An Overview
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
Hendrik Verwoerd’s Life & Death: The Architect of Apartheid
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Wittgenstein’s Solipsism: Where Language & Limits Collide
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
President Johnson Orders Trousers from Joe Haggar – big enough for his ‘nuts’, ‘bunghole’ and knife
On August 9 1964, President Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973) ordered a...
3 weeks ago
On August 9 1964, President Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973) ordered a pair of trousers from Joe Haggar of the Haggar Clothing Co. based in Dallas, Texas. Not a shy man, Johnson was known for conducting official business whilst sat on the toilet and...
African History...
Acemoglu in Kongo: a critique of 'Why Nations Fail' and its wilful ignorance of African history.
There aren’t many Africans on the list of Nobel laureates, nor does research on African societies...
2 weeks ago
There aren’t many Africans on the list of Nobel laureates, nor does research on African societies show up in the selection committees of Stockholm.
Flashbak
Quincy Jones Knew who Killed JFK and Saw the Pope’s ‘Pimp Shoes’
Quincy Jones knew who killed JFK, Quincy Jones (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was one of the...
2 weeks ago
Quincy Jones knew who killed JFK, Quincy Jones (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was one of the world’s great musicians, producer and arranger. Best known for his smash hits with Michael Jackson, notable on the singer’s Thriller album, Jones won 28 Grammys in a career that...
History Today Feed
The Death of Clive of India
The Death of Clive of India
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/11/2024 - 10:55
a week ago
The Death of Clive of India
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/11/2024 - 10:55
TheCollector
Who Is Kiki Smith?
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4 weeks ago
Flashbak
Vanishing Point: New Zealand and Australia in the 80s and 90s
“I approached my subjects with a sense of urgency. I believed that my world, as I knew it, was...
3 weeks ago
“I approached my subjects with a sense of urgency. I believed that my world, as I knew it, was drawing to a close” – Kathryn McCool on life in New Zealand in the 1980s Kathryn McCool was 18 when her father gave her a camera (a Ricoh SLR) he’d bought at auction. As Kathryn …...
Flashbak
Frank Stewart’s Portraits of The American Journey – A Story of Jazz And Justice
“Just how somebody in photographs can treat black people with dignity. That I’d never seen before” –...
3 weeks ago
“Just how somebody in photographs can treat black people with dignity. That I’d never seen before” – Frank Stewart Frank Stewart (born 1949) was 14 when he took his trained his Kodak Brownie on the March on Washington for Jobs in Freedom, otherwise known as the Great March in...
TheCollector
The 21st Amendment: The Only Amendment That Repealed Another
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3 weeks ago
History Today Feed
Is it Possible to Forgive and Forget?
Is it Possible to Forgive and Forget?
JamesHoare
Thu, 10/31/2024 - 09:25
2 weeks ago
Is it Possible to Forgive and Forget?
JamesHoare
Thu, 10/31/2024 - 09:25
History Today Feed
‘Patria’ by Laurence Blair review
‘Patria’ by Laurence Blair review
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/04/2024 - 11:32
2 weeks ago
‘Patria’ by Laurence Blair review
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/04/2024 - 11:32
Dreams of Space -...
Judy Space Puzzles (1970s)
Here is another quick post for you. Space puzzles!
I last shared these in 2016 so it is about time...
a week ago
Here is another quick post for you. Space puzzles!
I last shared these in 2016 so it is about time to bring them back.
These were classroom puzzles (although they were probably owned by kids at home too). They were mostly for Kindergarten-2nd grade kids and were "educational" as...
A Collection of...
Referenda ad Senatum: November 1, 2024: Ancient Weapons, Lost Works and Roman Spooky-Stuff!
Welcome back! At last, the hiatus has ended and we are back to regular weekly posts. As we’ve done a...
2 weeks ago
Welcome back! At last, the hiatus has ended and we are back to regular weekly posts. As we’ve done a few times before, this week I am breaking the hiatus by taking a chance to answer a few shorter questions posed by my patrons over at Patreon who are the Patres et Matres...
Flashbak
16 Characters From A Film Never Made : Found Photos From The American Dream
Film noir was coined in 1946 by the Italian-born French critic Nino Frank to describe the crime...
2 weeks ago
Film noir was coined in 1946 by the Italian-born French critic Nino Frank to describe the crime thrillers laced with smoky cynicism, femme fatales and amoral ambiguity first produced by Hollywood in the 1940s. “These ‘dark’ films, these films noirs, no longer have anything in...
Trying to Understand...
No More Heroes.
Pity the nation that needs someone else's.
2 weeks ago
Pity the nation that needs someone else's.
TheCollector
The Fate of Jewish Art Collections in WWII: 20 Looted Families
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4 weeks ago
History Today Feed
The Tudor War on Libel
The Tudor War on Libel
JamesHoare
Thu, 10/24/2024 - 09:19
4 weeks ago
The Tudor War on Libel
JamesHoare
Thu, 10/24/2024 - 09:19
Flashbak
Trees at Night: Art Young’s Haunting Silhouettes, 1927
“The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing which stands...
3 weeks ago
“The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing which stands in the way. As a man is, so he sees.” – William Blake Arthur Henry Young – better known as Art Young (January 14, 1866–December 29, 1943) – saw humanity in the … Continue...
TheCollector
What Are the Origins of the Vampire Myth?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
J.S. Bach & Sons: The Composer’s Legacy and Family
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
5 Works by Barbara Kruger on Gender and Feminism
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
Riddle Me This: Question Marks In Vintage Photographs
The Riddler: “Riddle me this! There are three men an a boat with a pack of cigarettes and no...
a week ago
The Riddler: “Riddle me this! There are three men an a boat with a pack of cigarettes and no matches. How did they manage to smoke?” Robin: “They threw one cigarette overboard and the boat became a cigarette lighter.” – The Question asked in Batman, 1966 The question mark...
TheCollector
What Was ‘The Malleus Maleficarum’, or ‘The Hammer of Witches’?
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
Switzerland’s Historic Neutrality: Why Doesn’t the Country Take Sides?
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4 weeks ago
History Today Feed
‘The Writers’ Castle’ by Uwe Neumahr review
‘The Writers’ Castle’ by Uwe Neumahr review
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/23/2024 - 09:34
4 weeks ago
‘The Writers’ Castle’ by Uwe Neumahr review
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/23/2024 - 09:34
TheCollector
10 Historical Facts About London You Might Not Know
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Angels in the Bible: Ambassadors From Another World?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Laser Surveys Reveal Ancient Maya City in Mexico
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Is Divorce in Christianity Really Allowed?
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2 weeks ago
Flashbak
The Horny Monkey And A Nose Pick: Humorous Japanese Postcards by Kokkei Shinbun Sha – 1907-1909
The postcard above is over an ‘Amorous Monkey (Iroke zaru)’ attempting to undress a Japanese woman...
2 weeks ago
The postcard above is over an ‘Amorous Monkey (Iroke zaru)’ attempting to undress a Japanese woman against her will. It’s an unusual tableaux. But then a lot about Japanese portrayals of sex is unfamiliar to all but the most adventurous Westerner (this Japanese sex guide and rope...
TheCollector
What Is the Significance of the Carnegie Libraries?
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2 weeks ago
History Today Feed
The Road from East Germany to North Korea
The Road from East Germany to North Korea
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/23/2024 - 09:15
4 weeks ago
The Road from East Germany to North Korea
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/23/2024 - 09:15
TheCollector
The Evolution of Socialism and Its Influence in the US
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
Andrew & Rachel Jackson: A Scandalous Marriage & the 1828 Election
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
Stock Car Racing in 1972
In the early 1970s Henry Horenstein was taking photos of Speedway racers and fans at circuits in...
2 weeks ago
In the early 1970s Henry Horenstein was taking photos of Speedway racers and fans at circuits in Seekonk, Massachusetts and Thompson, Connecticut. In 1972, women only raced each other, hair was grown out crewcuts slicked and draped, and TV-led big business had yet to move in....
Classical Wisdom
Eternal Glory
Homer and Kleos
a week ago
TheCollector
What Are the Most Spoken Indigenous Languages in Mexico?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Can You Overcome Self-Censorship?
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Influenced Mary Shelley to Write Frankenstein?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Civil Rights & Social Change: The Fight for Equality in US Elections
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Were the Conditional Biblical Prophecies Fulfilled in the Bible?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Disaster That Was Napoleon’s Russian Campaign: An Overview
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2 weeks ago
A Collection of...
Collections: The Afterlife of the Roman Republic
This week we are taking a look at what ended up being the ‘runner-up’ in the latest ACOUP Senate...
a week ago
This week we are taking a look at what ended up being the ‘runner-up’ in the latest ACOUP Senate poll (we’ll also do the winner, “The Problem with Sci-Fi Body armor” before year’s end, worry not), the “Afterlife of the Roman Republic,” which is to say a look at the continued...
Trying to Understand...
A Wasting Asset?
Europe turns away from America.
a week ago
Europe turns away from America.
A Collection of...
Fireside Friday, November 15, 2024
Hey folks, Fireside this week! For the musing this week, I want to talk about, at least for a...
6 days ago
Hey folks, Fireside this week! For the musing this week, I want to talk about, at least for a humanities field, what ‘research support’ from a university means and why it is valuable, but before we get to that, I just want to make a note going forward. In particular, there have...
African History...
A history of Horses in the southern half of Africa ca. 1498-1900.
Horses and humans have shared a long history in Africa since the emergence of equestrian societies...
4 days ago
Horses and humans have shared a long history in Africa since the emergence of equestrian societies across the continent during the bronze age.
Trying to Understand...
A Strange Defeat.
A failure of understanding in Ukraine.
20 hours ago
A failure of understanding in Ukraine.
TheCollector
11th-Century Coins Found by Metal Detectors Valued at $5.6M
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
A Brief History of Mount Everest
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Did Descartes View Animals?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Many Presidents Served Two (Full) Terms?
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
A Tour of The Westwood Mall, Michigan, 1972 – 1984
We’re off to the Westwood Mall in Michigan in the 1970s and early 1980s. Most of the images here are...
3 weeks ago
We’re off to the Westwood Mall in Michigan in the 1970s and early 1980s. Most of the images here are from the store’s opening on August 3 1972. We see shopper browsing for music in Recordland beneath a poster for the singer Cyndi Lauper, buying into the ‘grapefruit diet’, getting...
TheCollector
What Composition Techniques Did Tamara de Lempicka Use?
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2 weeks ago
Classical Wisdom
Democracy
The Greeks' Greatest Gift?
2 weeks ago
The Greeks' Greatest Gift?
TheCollector
Medieval Ethiopia: The Origins of the Solomonic Dynasty
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Who Won the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House?
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2 weeks ago
Flashbak
Édouard Manet’s Illustrations of Edgar Allan Poe’s ‘The Raven’, 1875
The French poet and essayist Charles Baudelaire (1821-67) introduced Edgar Allan Poe to French...
a week ago
The French poet and essayist Charles Baudelaire (1821-67) introduced Edgar Allan Poe to French readers in 1847. Baudelaire, who saw Poe as a “sacred soul” and something of a kindred spirit, translated many of the American writer’s words into French, including Poe’s poem The...
TheCollector
The Fifteenth Amendment: Expanding Voting Rights After the Civil War
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3 weeks ago
History Today Feed
The Allure of Medieval Churches
The Allure of Medieval Churches
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/30/2024 - 09:12
3 weeks ago
The Allure of Medieval Churches
JamesHoare
Wed, 10/30/2024 - 09:12
TheCollector
What Are the Top 7 Sights to See in Milan?
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a week ago
Dreams of Space -...
Undersea Base (1974)
So a large change for today, instead of Outer Space books we are going to Inner Space with Undersea...
6 days ago
So a large change for today, instead of Outer Space books we are going to Inner Space with Undersea Base. I have blogged about Mae Freeman's book Space Base (1974) several times. In it she showed children visiting a space station in the future. I recently found she had also...
TheCollector
How Did Guy Fawkes Influence Shakespeare?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
When the Portuguese Met the Chinese: Rediscover the “Age of Discovery”
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
When They Were Kids: What Were US Presidents Like as Children?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Was the Council of Chalcedon?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Who Won the Battle of Fort Pillow?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Silla Burial Mounds: Treasures of Korea’s Ancient Past
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a week ago
TheCollector
Bragi Boddason: The Viking Skald Who Became a God
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a week ago
TheCollector
What Was the Carnation Revolution?
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4 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Ancient Rituals Do We Still Celebrate at Halloween?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Gehenna: A History of Hell on Earth
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Small Towns in the US for Art Lovers
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
Cars of Britain in the 1970s
In the 1970s, David Rostance was photographing life in the UK. Inevitably, his pictures of...
2 weeks ago
In the 1970s, David Rostance was photographing life in the UK. Inevitably, his pictures of Birmingham, The Black Country, London and Wolverhampton included cars. He took the above picture of the Ford Cortina Mk.1 parked on the roadside on 5th February 1978. It could be seen a...
TheCollector
The First Black President: Barack Obama’s Historic Election in 2008
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2 weeks ago
Classical Wisdom
A Few Spots Left
Secure Seats for the In Search of Homer Trip
a week ago
Secure Seats for the In Search of Homer Trip
TheCollector
What Is Second Thessalonians About?
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a week ago
Flashbak
Joe And Petunia: Stars of British Pubic Information Films (1968-1973)
As with most British public information films (PIF) of the 1960s and 70s, the protagonists most...
2 days ago
As with most British public information films (PIF) of the 1960s and 70s, the protagonists most likely die in the end. In the final instalment of the four-strong Joe and Petunia series, the British couple illustrate the dangers driving on bad tyres by driving into a tree. ...
TheCollector
10 Myths About the Greek God Poseidon
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Can War Be Justified? A Philosophical View
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Future of US Elections: Potential Changes and Emerging Issues
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Historic College Towns in America You Should Visit
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Sorites Paradox: Why Traditional Logic Is Not Omnipotent
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Was the Rhodesian Bush War?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Capturing Alaska: Who Are 6 of Alaska’s Most Celebrated Painters?
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Facts About the Curious Calvin Coolidge: The Coolest President?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Pioneering Folklore: Who Was John Lomax?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Sea Monsters in Renaissance Maps: Tales From Unknown Waters
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Historic Small Towns in the Rockies You Should Visit
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a week ago
TheCollector
Did Jesus Christ Really Exist?
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a week ago
Flashbak
Erich Sokol For Playboy : Beautiful Women And Desperate Men (NSFW)
“Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves they have a...
a week ago
“Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves they have a better idea.” – John Ciardi, American poet (24 June 1916 – 30 March 1986) Erich Sokol (31 March 1933 – 20 February 2003) was an Austrian illustrator and caricaturist best known...
Global Inequality...
Would Lenin have approved of the IMF?
An indispensable organization
5 days ago
An indispensable organization
TheCollector
New Pompeii Excavations Reveal Decorated “Tiny House”
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Oldest National Parks in the United States
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Must-See Pirate Fortresses and Coastal Strongholds Around the World
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Nemean Lion: Heracles’ First Labor & the Birth of a Hero
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Who Was Oswald Mosley?
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a week ago
Flashbak
Snapshots of Cars On The Streets of London in the 1980s
Peter Marshall has taken us around London the 1980s, showing us graffiti in London, garages, sex...
a week ago
Peter Marshall has taken us around London the 1980s, showing us graffiti in London, garages, sex shops, the West End, the East End and all parts between. Our focus here is in the cars on London’s roads in the 1980s. David Rostance took his pictures of London cars in the 1970s....
History Today Feed
‘Who Really Wrote the Bible’ by William M. Schniedewind review
‘Who Really Wrote the Bible’ by William M. Schniedewind review
JamesHoare
Tue, 11/12/2024 - 09:16
a week ago
‘Who Really Wrote the Bible’ by William M. Schniedewind review
JamesHoare
Tue, 11/12/2024 - 09:16
TheCollector
What Is the Gospel of Truth?
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a week ago
History Today Feed
Fear, Friendship and the Channel Tunnel
Fear, Friendship and the Channel Tunnel
JamesHoare
Thu, 11/14/2024 - 09:09
a week ago
Fear, Friendship and the Channel Tunnel
JamesHoare
Thu, 11/14/2024 - 09:09
TheCollector
Derrida’s Deconstruction in Literary Analysis: A Detailed Guide
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is the Origin of Cowpox (& How Did It Cure Smallpox)?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Archaeologists Unearth Ancient Egyptian Tomb in Luxor
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Did the Roman Empire Affect Christianity?
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a week ago
TheCollector
10 Must-See Historic Landmarks in Florida
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a week ago
Flashbak
‘Leasure And Pleasure’: Window Shopping In 1980s Hull
“When I started this project in 1977, Hull was in the throes of a massive redevelopment, with many...
a week ago
“When I started this project in 1977, Hull was in the throes of a massive redevelopment, with many inner city areas being bulldozed and instant slums being created on its outskirts. It seemed to have learnt nothing from the mistakes I had fought against during the previous decade...
Classical Wisdom
Four Common(ly misunderstood) Latin Proverbs
Factoids From the Ancient World
3 days ago
Factoids From the Ancient World
History Today Feed
‘The Green Ages’ by Annette Kehnel review
‘The Green Ages’ by Annette Kehnel review
JamesHoare
Tue, 11/19/2024 - 08:36
2 days ago
‘The Green Ages’ by Annette Kehnel review
JamesHoare
Tue, 11/19/2024 - 08:36
History Today Feed
How Ancient Greece Shaped the British Raj
How Ancient Greece Shaped the British Raj
JamesHoare
Tue, 11/19/2024 - 08:35
2 days ago
How Ancient Greece Shaped the British Raj
JamesHoare
Tue, 11/19/2024 - 08:35
Flashbak
Liberation Through Art: Flyers From New York’s Deitch Projects (1996 – 2010)
“I also believe in the ability of art to enhance people’s lives, to liberate people’s lives, to act...
2 days ago
“I also believe in the ability of art to enhance people’s lives, to liberate people’s lives, to act as a form of communication that transcends language to connect cultures together” – Jeffrey Deitch Deitch Projects (1996 – 2010) changed our expectations around art. Named after...
TheCollector
10 Things to Do in London if You Love History
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos)? Origins & History
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is the Role of First Ladies in US Elections?
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3 weeks ago
Flashbak
The Sweet Flypaper of Life by Roy DeCarava and Langston Hughes
“We’ve had so many books about how bad life is, maybe it’s time to have one showing how good it is”...
2 weeks ago
“We’ve had so many books about how bad life is, maybe it’s time to have one showing how good it is” – Langston Hughes, The Sweet Flypaper of Life The Sweet Flypaper of Life (1955), a collaboration between photographer Roy DeCarava and poet Langston Hughes (February 1, 1902 –...
TheCollector
How Did Christianity Affect Japanese Immigration to America?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Contemporary Artist to Recreate Missing Piece of Bayeux Tapestry
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is Christian Gnosticism? (History, Tenets, Legacy)
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3 weeks ago
Classical Wisdom
Where to Stay While in Search of Homer?
***Only 15 Seats Left
2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Who Were the Legendary Mountain Men of the Old West?
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2 weeks ago
History Today Feed
Brushing for Britain
Brushing for Britain
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/06/2024 - 10:37
2 weeks ago
Brushing for Britain
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/06/2024 - 10:37
TheCollector
Did the French Revolution Spark Modern Democracy?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
5 Iconic Photographs by Ansel Adams
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a week ago
TheCollector
Rijksmuseum Begins Restoration of Rembrandt’s ‘The Night Watch’
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a week ago
TheCollector
8 Famous Women Writers Who Wrote Under Male Pseudonyms
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a week ago
TheCollector
Paris Announces Notre Dame Reopening Plus Potential Entry Fee
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is Berlin Science Week? Everything You Need to Know
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Tiffany Stained Glass Window Poised to Set New Auction Record
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Frick Collection Announces April 2025 Reopening
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Rare Leonora Carrington Sculpture Heads to Auction
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Operation Unthinkable: The Military Plan That Was Never Used
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Benjamin Franklin: All About His Personal & Private Life
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2 weeks ago
Flashbak
Très Parisien: The Height Of French Chic 1920-1936
Très Parisien magazine sold itself as ‘chic’ and ‘elegant’. Published between 1920 and 1936 it...
2 weeks ago
Très Parisien magazine sold itself as ‘chic’ and ‘elegant’. Published between 1920 and 1936 it presented creations by such couturiers as Louise Chéruit, Premet (best known for La Garconne, or The Flapper, a black dress with a white collar and cuffs introduced in 1923, Philip et...
TheCollector
4 Great Films About the Troubles and Irish Independence
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2 weeks ago
Flashbak
12 Perfect Christmas Gifts From Dianne B, A Postcard Set from 1983
In 1983, photographer Peter Hujar (1934–87) created Twelve Perfect Christmas Gifts from Dianne B, a...
a week ago
In 1983, photographer Peter Hujar (1934–87) created Twelve Perfect Christmas Gifts from Dianne B, a mini-portfolio of 12 postcards. Eight are by Huja, plus four in colour by Neil Winokur and a sleeve by Ken Tisa. The postcards for maverick boutique owner Dianne Benson are lovely...
History Today Feed
Paracelsus: Revolutionary or Mystic?
Paracelsus: Revolutionary or Mystic?
JamesHoare
Thu, 11/07/2024 - 09:38
a week ago
Paracelsus: Revolutionary or Mystic?
JamesHoare
Thu, 11/07/2024 - 09:38
TheCollector
Here’s What to Know About the History of Lake Como’s World-Famous Villa
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Dark History of Australia’s Blackbirding
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a week ago
TheCollector
Walt Disney: The American Dream Personified (Bio & Facts)
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3 days ago
TheCollector
Who Were the Armored Pioneers Between the World Wars?
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2 days ago
TheCollector
4 Norse Myths That Inspired Cinema
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2 days ago
TheCollector
The Footsteps of Finn MacCool: The Landscape of Giants in Ireland
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Must-Visit Utah Ghost Towns With a Rich History
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Is the Q Source the Origin of the Gospels?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Why Did Remedios Varo Paint So Many Self-Portraits?
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a week ago
TheCollector
Artist Frank Auerbach Dies at 93
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a week ago
Flashbak
Postcards From The First Bauhaus Exhibition, 1923
To promote their first major exhibition, from 15 August to 30 September 1923, members of Germany’s...
6 days ago
To promote their first major exhibition, from 15 August to 30 September 1923, members of Germany’s Bauhaus design school (der Bauhäusler) produced a set of postcards. Fellow lovers of collecting postcards (deltiology) understand the joy of holding these small picturesque moments...
TheCollector
What Is the Book of Galatians About?
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6 days ago
TheCollector
The Mythical Green Anaconda of the Amazon Rainforest
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6 days ago
TheCollector
Shakespeare’s Richard III: Everything You Need to Know
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4 days ago
Flashbak
I’m Not a Look-Alike: François Brunelle’s Doppelgänger Photos
doppelganger (n.) Wraith. literally: double-goer. Apparition of a living person, 1826 (from 1824 as...
3 days ago
doppelganger (n.) Wraith. literally: double-goer. Apparition of a living person, 1826 (from 1824 as a German word in English). – OED We are more alike than many of us hope. Photographer François Brunelle has spent years tracking down real-life doppelgängers — people who are...
History Today Feed
On the Spot: Gina Anne Tam
On the Spot: Gina Anne Tam
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/18/2024 - 10:08
3 days ago
On the Spot: Gina Anne Tam
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/18/2024 - 10:08
TheCollector
The West African Squadron: Hunting Slave Ships on the High Seas
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3 days ago
TheCollector
The Kiel Mutiny: An Attempt to End WWI?
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2 days ago
TheCollector
King Charles XIV John (Bernadotte): Marshal of France, King of Sweden
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2 days ago
TheCollector
Maurizio Cattelan’s Duct-Taped Banana Could Fetch $1 Million
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Consumerism in Pop Art: Was It Celebrated or Criticized?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Russia Became the World’s Biggest Country
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Which Archeological Finds Support the Bible?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick: Meet the “Real” Kingmaker
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
What’s the Creation Myth in Norse Mythology?
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a week ago
TheCollector
What Are the Unconditional Biblical Prophecies?
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a week ago
TheCollector
How Did a Pig End Up on Trial in the Middle Ages?
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a week ago
TheCollector
The Infancy Gospel of Thomas & the Childhood of Jesus Christ
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a week ago
TheCollector
The History of Method Acting in Hollywood in 8 Lessons
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a week ago
History Today Feed
The St Brice’s Day Massacre
The St Brice’s Day Massacre
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/13/2024 - 09:53
a week ago
The St Brice’s Day Massacre
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/13/2024 - 09:53
TheCollector
5 Famous Artists Who Were Inspired by Alphanumerics
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a week ago
TheCollector
Naumachia: The Gladiatorial Naval Battles of Ancient Rome
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a week ago
TheCollector
What Is First Thessalonians About?
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6 days ago
TheCollector
What Was Che Guevara Doing in Africa?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Is My Life Just a Cosmic Accident? Finding Meaning in a Meaningless Universe
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Medieval Anglo-French Wars (1076-1453): A Brief History
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
8 Artists Who Defined the Roaring Twenties
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Why Do I Care What Others Think? A Philosophical View of Self-Esteem
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a week ago
TheCollector
The Church Under the Tang Dynasty: A Forgotten Outpost of Christianity
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a week ago
TheCollector
10 Historic Small Towns in Upstate New York Worth Exploring
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a week ago
TheCollector
5 Iconic Quotes by the Duke of Wellington
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a week ago
TheCollector
Why Bother Being Good? A Philosophical Exploration of Morality
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a week ago
TheCollector
David Roberts & Frederick Catherwood: Artists of Ancient Egypt & Maya
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a week ago
TheCollector
British Museum Receives Its Most Valuable Gift Ever
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a week ago
TheCollector
The Indigenous Architecture of the Cosmos in the Amazon
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a week ago
TheCollector
10 Must-Visit Historic Villages in Portugal
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6 days ago
TheCollector
Who Was Vernon Lee?
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5 days ago
TheCollector
Top 10 Depictions of the Annunciation in Art
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5 days ago
TheCollector
Norman Rockwell’s “Four Freedoms” That Almost Weren’t
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5 days ago
TheCollector
10 Historic Towns in Colorado Perfect for Retirement
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4 days ago
TheCollector
What Are Peter Sloterdijk’s 5 Most Important Ideas?
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3 days ago
TheCollector
4 Egyptian Myths That Inspired Cinema
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2 days ago
TheCollector
10 Strange Old Currencies Throughout Time
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3 weeks ago
TheCollector
5 Notable Women Who Transformed Latin America
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
10 Must-Visit Historical Landmarks in the US Midwest
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Capture of the Ceryneian Hind: The Third Labor of Heracles
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is Mudlarking? Treasure Hunting in the Thames
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a week ago
TheCollector
New Alphonse Mucha Museum to Open in Prague
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a week ago
TheCollector
6 Demons in Tibetan Buddhism
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a week ago
TheCollector
What Do We Mean by Aboriginal Languages?
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a week ago
TheCollector
10 Historic Towns in Southwest France Brimming With Joie de Vivre
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a week ago
TheCollector
Viking Ship Technology: Daring and Dangerous Innovations
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a week ago
TheCollector
A (Brief) History of the IRA
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a week ago
TheCollector
Who Were the 43 Group?
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a week ago
TheCollector
Who Were the Samaritans?
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6 days ago
TheCollector
Who Exactly Were the Hospitallers?
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6 days ago
TheCollector
10 Most Socially Progressive Countries You Can Move To
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5 days ago
TheCollector
Rock the Vote! How Music & Pop Culture Influenced Elections
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4 days ago
TheCollector
What Is the History of the Piggy Bank? (Curious Origins)
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4 days ago
TheCollector
U.S. Returns Looted Artifacts Worth $10 Million to India
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4 days ago
History Today Feed
A Christmas to Save the Byzantine Empire
A Christmas to Save the Byzantine Empire
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/18/2024 - 10:07
3 days ago
A Christmas to Save the Byzantine Empire
JamesHoare
Mon, 11/18/2024 - 10:07
TheCollector
Russian Civil War Propaganda: Posters & Propaganda Trains
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3 days ago
TheCollector
Sotheby’s Sells Monet’s Water Lilies For $65.5 Million
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2 days ago
TheCollector
Exploring Open Primaries: How They Work and Which States Use Them
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Bronze Age Town Found in Saudi Arabian Desert
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
Who Won the Battle of the Wilderness?
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2 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Legend of El Dorado: Myth vs. History
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a week ago
TheCollector
Who Are the Samaritans in the Bible?
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a week ago
TheCollector
What Is the History of Hipster Culture?
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a week ago
TheCollector
When Was the Era of Japan’s Bakufu?
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a week ago
TheCollector
What Is the Good Friday Agreement?
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a week ago
TheCollector
The Battle of Pharsalus: How Rome Became an Empire
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a week ago
TheCollector
How Did the Industrial Revolution Transform Social Structures & Living Conditions?
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5 days ago
TheCollector
What Is First Corinthians About?
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5 days ago
TheCollector
What Makes a Piece of Art a Masterpiece?
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4 days ago
TheCollector
The Forgotten Tomb of Henry VIII: Why Was He Buried Somewhere Else?
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4 days ago
TheCollector
4 Greek Myths That Inspired Cinema
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3 days ago
TheCollector
What Are the Pauline Epistles About?
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a week ago
TheCollector
7 Facts About the Ghent Altarpiece
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yesterday
History Today Feed
The Pilgrim as a Historian
The Pilgrim as a Historian
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/20/2024 - 10:50
22 hours ago
The Pilgrim as a Historian
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/20/2024 - 10:50
TheCollector
Who Was Jelly Roll Morton? Self-styled “Inventor” of Jazz
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2 weeks ago
Flashbak
Good Morning: The US Humor Magazine May 1919 – October 2021
Good Morning was an American political humor magazine, first published in May 1919. It was founded...
13 hours ago
Good Morning was an American political humor magazine, first published in May 1919. It was founded by Ellis O. Jones, a former associate editor of Life magazine and editor of Ladies’ Home Journal who once called for the US Army and Navy to be disbanded and went on to head the...
TheCollector
Who Are the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?
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16 hours ago
History Today Feed
The Female Detectives of Victorian Britain
The Female Detectives of Victorian Britain
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/20/2024 - 10:37
22 hours ago
The Female Detectives of Victorian Britain
JamesHoare
Wed, 11/20/2024 - 10:37
TheCollector
Magritte Sets $121 Million Auction Record
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23 hours ago
TheCollector
Fall of Berlin: How WWII Ended in Europe
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20 hours ago
TheCollector
Which Biblical Scriptures Present Gratitude at Thanksgiving?
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22 hours ago
TheCollector
Can the Real King Arthur Be Identified as Athrwys of Gwent?
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12 hours ago
Trying to Understand...
A Week Off And A New Language
See you again soon
a year ago
Res Obscura
Simulating History with ChatGPT
The Case for LLMs as Hallucination Engines
a year ago
The Case for LLMs as Hallucination Engines
Trying to Understand...
The Rise of Extractive Politics
It's about having small expectations.
a year ago
It's about having small expectations.
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Sacred Flames and Divine Philosophers
a year ago
Sacred Flames and Divine Philosophers
Classical Wisdom
Should We Follow Silly Laws?
And what happens when we don’t?
a year ago
And what happens when we don’t?
TheCollector
Authoritarian vs. Democratic Socialism: What’s the Difference?
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a year ago
African History...
A history of the Rozvi kingdom (1680-1830)
From Changamire's expulsion of the Portuguese to the ruined cities of Zimbabwe.
a year ago
From Changamire's expulsion of the Portuguese to the ruined cities of Zimbabwe.
Classical Wisdom
Can We Choose NOT to Be Harmed?
How can we train Resilience?
a year ago
How can we train Resilience?
TheCollector
Explore Ancient Rome by Visiting These 6 Sites
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10 months ago
Trying to Understand...
Things Are Falling Apart ...
And the centre's not looking too good, either.
a year ago
And the centre's not looking too good, either.
Classical Wisdom
Do You Listen Well?
Lessons on Listening from Plutarch
a year ago
Lessons on Listening from Plutarch
Trying to Understand...
Into the Waste Land
Nothing connects.
a year ago
TheCollector
Caravaggio: The Scandalous Crimes of a Baroque Artist
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10 months ago
TheCollector
What Makes Citizen Kane the Greatest Film of All Time?
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12 months ago
Trying to Understand...
A Short Essay About A Long-Playing Record
One I bought fifty years ago.
6 months ago
One I bought fifty years ago.
Trying to Understand...
War Is Complicated.
And not just the fighting bit.
a year ago
And not just the fighting bit.
weird medieval guys
Explore medieval life and death with these 5 brilliant interactive maps!
Travels, murders, and......eels?!!
a year ago
Travels, murders, and......eels?!!
Res Obscura
LLM-based educational games will be a big deal
For the first time, digital games can make qualitative assessments of learning. Here's what that...
6 months ago
For the first time, digital games can make qualitative assessments of learning. Here's what that might look like.
Classical Wisdom
Do We Need Dress Codes?
Are standards elevating or elitist?
a year ago
Are standards elevating or elitist?
TheCollector
Nietzsche’s Crusade Against the Philosophers
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a year ago
weird medieval guys
Why did medieval people invent so many collective nouns?
A pride of lions, a paddling of ducks, and....a herd of harlots?
a year ago
A pride of lions, a paddling of ducks, and....a herd of harlots?
A Collection of...
Collections: On the Reign of Alexander III of Macedon, the Great?
This week, in part as a follow-on to our series on the contest between Hellenistic armies and Roman...
6 months ago
This week, in part as a follow-on to our series on the contest between Hellenistic armies and Roman legions, I wanted to take the opportunity to talk about Alexander III, who you almost certainly know as Alexander the Great. But I want to discuss his reign with that title, ‘the...
Dreams of Space -...
One, Two (1965)
The next few posts are some of my favorite picture books. The 1st from 1965 is a very basic counting...
a year ago
The next few posts are some of my favorite picture books. The 1st from 1965 is a very basic counting book about spaceflight. I hope that you find it as charming as I do.
DeCaprio, Annie and David Krieger. Illustrated by Nydorf, Seymour. One, Two. New York: Wonder Books. (24 p.)...
Trying to Understand...
Too Much of Not A Lot
Winning the day and losing the war.
a year ago
Winning the day and losing the war.
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Mothers of the Ancient World
6 months ago
Mothers of the Ancient World
Trying to Understand...
Teach Your Children ....
Not to be afraid of moral relativism.
a year ago
Not to be afraid of moral relativism.
African History...
A complete history of Abomey: capital of Dahomey (ca. 1650-1894)
Urbanism in the forest region.
a year ago
Urbanism in the forest region.
Trying to Understand...
Honesty: What's In It For Me?
First, do lots of harm.
a year ago
Dreams of Space -...
The Young Adventurer's Pocket Book of Space Travel (1954)
Another illustration intensive book. This one is only 3" tall and 2 " wide so you might have missed...
a year ago
Another illustration intensive book. This one is only 3" tall and 2 " wide so you might have missed it :) . It was a premium with Mickey Mouse Weekly magazine. Evidently the magazine came with some pages that you could fold up into a tiny book. The others I have found evidence of...
African History...
A history of the Buganda kingdom.
government in central Africa.
a year ago
government in central Africa.
TheCollector
7 Unusual Writing Systems From Around the World & How They Developed
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10 months ago
TheCollector
What Is a Good Argument According to Aristotle?
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a year ago
Trying to Understand...
Let's Hear It For The "Underlying Causes."
Here's the answer. What was the question again?
a year ago
Here's the answer. What was the question again?
TheCollector
The Life of Aldous Huxley — Author of “Brave New World”
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10 months ago
A Collection of...
Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Addenda: The Socii
This week, as an addendum to our series on Roman civic governance (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV, V),...
a year ago
This week, as an addendum to our series on Roman civic governance (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV, V), we’re going to take a look at how Rome handles those parts of Italy it controls but which it does not inhabit. These are Rome’s ‘allies’ (socii), a euphemistic label for the...
Classical Wisdom
Tolkien and the Classics
Plato, Cicero... Bilbo?
a year ago
Dreams of Space -...
Johnny's Space Trip (1954)
A re-run--
Back to the imaginative past and Johnny's Space Trip. This 1954 fictional book captures...
a year ago
A re-run--
Back to the imaginative past and Johnny's Space Trip. This 1954 fictional book captures the spirit of doing it for yourself as Johnny and his friends build (and dream of) a spaceship for a journey from their backyard. It is pure fantasy but as you will see there is a...
Trying to Understand...
China And Russia Walk Into A Room.
And don't say a word about Europe.
5 months ago
And don't say a word about Europe.
Classical Wisdom
Are Protests the Best Way to Say Nay?
Can Mobs Make the Change They Want to See?
6 months ago
Can Mobs Make the Change They Want to See?
Trying to Understand...
Useless in Gaza
As always, if you don't know what you're doing.
a year ago
As always, if you don't know what you're doing.
African History...
Persian myths and realities on the Swahili coast: contextualizing the 'Shirazi' civilization.
Why geneticists found what archeologists and historians had failed to locate.
a year ago
Why geneticists found what archeologists and historians had failed to locate.
TheCollector
Genoa vs. Venice: A Historic and Layered Rivalry
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a year ago
TheCollector
Orange Free State, South Africa: A History
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10 months ago
History Today Feed
On the Spot: Eugene Rogan
On the Spot: Eugene Rogan
JamesHoare
Tue, 05/14/2024 - 09:43
6 months ago
On the Spot: Eugene Rogan
JamesHoare
Tue, 05/14/2024 - 09:43
African History...
a brief note on Ethnicity and the State in Africa
the evolution of the Tutsi/Hutu dichotomy in the precolonial Great Lakes.
6 months ago
the evolution of the Tutsi/Hutu dichotomy in the precolonial Great Lakes.
Trying to Understand...
We Are All Civilisational States
It's just that some people don't realise it.
a year ago
It's just that some people don't realise it.
Res Obscura
Centuries of Childhood
The history of childhood is one of multiplicity — so why do we tell parents such simplistic stories...
5 months ago
The history of childhood is one of multiplicity — so why do we tell parents such simplistic stories about it?
African History...
Guns and Spears: a military history of the Zulu kingdom.
Popular history of Africa before the colonial era often divides the continent’s military systems...
a year ago
Popular history of Africa before the colonial era often divides the continent’s military systems into two broad categories —the relatively modern armies along the Atlantic coast which used firearms, versus the 'traditional' armies in the interior that fought with arrows and...
African History...
A history of the south-western Saharan towns of Tichitt, Walata, Wadan and Chinguetti (800-1912)
Trade and civilization on west-africa's desert frontier
a year ago
Trade and civilization on west-africa's desert frontier
TheCollector
The American Patriot War: “The Americans Are Coming!”
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11 months ago
Dreams of Space -...
Let's Fly to the Universe (1962)
A rescan project, but a rescan of a reprint. I blogged about this book in 2012...
a year ago
A rescan project, but a rescan of a reprint. I blogged about this book in 2012 here:
https://dreamsofspace.blogspot.com/2012/12/flying-in-space-1961.html
I think it is Czech, but may be a difference Russian language. I got a Russian reprint of this and still find it a very...
Trying to Understand...
One Way Or Another ....
We're going to get you.
a year ago
Classical Wisdom
Why Did Rome Fall?
& Which Lesson Should We Take Away?
a year ago
& Which Lesson Should We Take Away?
A Collection of...
Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part Ib: Subjects of the Successors
This is the second part of the first part of our four part look at the context between the...
10 months ago
This is the second part of the first part of our four part look at the context between the Hellenistic army and its Macedonian phalanx and the Romans with their legions. Last week, we looked at the weapons, organization and fighting style of the Macedonian phalanx, the infantry...
Trying to Understand...
Ukraine In NATO Would Be A Disaster ...
But not necessarily for the reasons you think.
a year ago
But not necessarily for the reasons you think.
Flashbak
Liverpool Kids: Surviving Inner City Life In 1975
Paul Trevor’s photographs of Liverpool in 1975 formed part of The Survival Programme, which featured...
6 months ago
Paul Trevor’s photographs of Liverpool in 1975 formed part of The Survival Programme, which featured pictures, interviews, drafts and other materials made by member of the Exit Photography Group – Nicholas Battye, Chris Steele-Perkins and Paul Trevor. Created between 1974 and...
Trying to Understand...
Games Nations Play.
But they forget the people and the Street.
6 months ago
But they forget the people and the Street.
Trying to Understand...
If We Had More Than a Hammer ...
We might not be in this mess.
a year ago
We might not be in this mess.
TheCollector
The Good and Bad in Nolan’s Oppenheimer (Critic’s Review)
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a year ago
History Today Feed
How Did Christianity Change the Roman Empire?
How Did Christianity Change the Roman Empire?
j.hoare
Thu, 12/07/2023 - 09:29
11 months ago
How Did Christianity Change the Roman Empire?
j.hoare
Thu, 12/07/2023 - 09:29
Trying to Understand...
Understanding What's Happening in France.
The kinetic phase may come next.
a year ago
The kinetic phase may come next.
TheCollector
Who Are the Most Famous Sorceresses of Greek Mythology?
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11 months ago
Classical Wisdom
The Mother Goddess of Rome
And Her Controversial Religion
6 months ago
And Her Controversial Religion
African History...
a brief note on contacts between ancient African kingdoms and Rome.
finding the lost city of Rhapta on the east African coast.
5 months ago
finding the lost city of Rhapta on the east African coast.
Trying to Understand...
The Threat of Back to Normal
Global power has always been distributed.
a year ago
Global power has always been distributed.
Res Obscura
Before psychedelic therapy for wartime trauma, there was narcosynthesis
Notes on using AI to analyze three World War II-era films about drugs and PTSD
a year ago
Notes on using AI to analyze three World War II-era films about drugs and PTSD
TheCollector
6 Assassinations That Changed History
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6 months ago
Dreams of Space -...
Dream to Meet(1958)
A very pictorial Russian book, Dream to Meet, is basically the size of a paperback book but loaded...
a year ago
A very pictorial Russian book, Dream to Meet, is basically the size of a paperback book but loaded with illustrations. I thought you would enjoy these images.
Lyapunov, B. Illustrated by Seleznev, E. Навстречу Мечте (Dream to Meet.)
Moscow: All-Union Educational Pedagogical...
TheCollector
Amun: The Egyptian God of Creation & King of the Gods
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10 months ago
weird medieval guys
Why is medieval art so weird?
Listen now (73 min) | In this inaugural episode of the Weird Medieval Guys podcast, Olivia and Aran...
a year ago
Listen now (73 min) | In this inaugural episode of the Weird Medieval Guys podcast, Olivia and Aran discuss why medieval art is so intriguing to modern viewers and what makes so much of it so weird. Also discussed are Galaxy Quest, Mel Gibson's crimes against the Middle Ages, and...
A Collection of...
Collections: How to Roman Republic, Part V: The Courts
This is the fifth part of our five part series (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV) on the structure of the...
a year ago
This is the fifth part of our five part series (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV) on the structure of the Roman Republic during the third and second centuries BC, the ‘Middle Republic.’ Last time we looked at the odd but very important role played by the ROman Senate as the central...
Trying to Understand...
Let's Be Enemies
Since it seems to be the fashion these days.
a year ago
Since it seems to be the fashion these days.
weird medieval guys
The Medieval Monks Who Lived on Top of Giant Pillars
A history of the monastic high life
a year ago
A history of the monastic high life
African History...
A history of the Loango kingdom (ca.1500-1883) : Power, Ivory and Art in west-central Africa.
Africa's past carved in ivory
a year ago
Africa's past carved in ivory
Dreams of Space -...
Blast Off (1973)
This is also one of my favorite picture books, very hard to find, so I would like to share the full...
a year ago
This is also one of my favorite picture books, very hard to find, so I would like to share the full book with you. And Blast Off!
Cain, Linda C. and Susan Rosenbaum. Illustrated by Dillon, Leo and Diane. Blast Off. Lexington, MA: Ginn. (24 p.) 1973.
TheCollector
Emperor Nero’s “Golden House”: What Was the Domus Aurea?
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10 months ago
Trying to Understand...
The Third World War Has Been Cancelled.
It was all too difficult, finally.
4 months ago
It was all too difficult, finally.
A Collection of...
Collections: On the Reign of Alexander III of Macedon, the Great? Part II
This is the second and final part of our look at Alexander III of Macedon (Part I), who you almost...
6 months ago
This is the second and final part of our look at Alexander III of Macedon (Part I), who you almost certainly know as Alexander the Great. Last week, we looked at the sources for Alexander’s life, the historiography (that is, the history-of-the-history) of his modern reception and...
History Today Feed
How the CCP is Closing China
How the CCP is Closing China
JamesHoare
Mon, 05/13/2024 - 10:47
6 months ago
How the CCP is Closing China
JamesHoare
Mon, 05/13/2024 - 10:47
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
The Best of the Best
a year ago
Trying to Understand...
How About a Victory for the Left Occasionally?
Here are a few modest ideas.
a year ago
Here are a few modest ideas.
African History...
A history of the Majeerteen Sultanate: 1700-1927.
Maritime trade and diplomacy in the northern Horn of Africa.
a year ago
Maritime trade and diplomacy in the northern Horn of Africa.
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Plato Vs Aristotle
6 months ago
Dr Alun Withey
Creams, Clothes and Cases: The material culture of pre-modern travel.
I am currently on study leave, getting on with research for my new project on the history of travel...
9 months ago
I am currently on study leave, getting on with research for my new project on the history of travel preparations. One thing that I’m particularly interested in is the material culture of travel, and what sorts of things were available for travellers as they got ready for their...
Res Obscura
Simulating History with Multimodal AI: an Update
Generative AI offers a new, more engaging (and, hopefully, more empathetic) way of teaching history....
a year ago
Generative AI offers a new, more engaging (and, hopefully, more empathetic) way of teaching history. But how to use it?
TheCollector
Plato: A Complete Overview of His Life, Work, and Philosophy
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10 months ago
weird medieval guys
Medieval Muslims loved their cats so much
Cat shelters, cat shoes, cat jewellery, and more from the Islamic Middle Ages
a year ago
Cat shelters, cat shoes, cat jewellery, and more from the Islamic Middle Ages
Trying to Understand...
They Say They Want Rearmament ....
We-ell, you know ....
a year ago
Global Inequality...
The life of Maynard K.
A review of Zach Carter’s “The Price of Peace”
5 months ago
A review of Zach Carter’s “The Price of Peace”
African History...
Life and works of Africa's most famous Woman scholar: Nana Asmau (1793-1864)
On the contribution of Muslim women in African history.
6 months ago
On the contribution of Muslim women in African history.
TheCollector
The Banana Wars: How the US Plundered Central America
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6 months ago
Trying to Understand...
Their Enemies The Russians
But what about the rest of us?
a year ago
But what about the rest of us?
Dreams of Space -...
Техника Молодежи (Youth Technology) Issue 4 (1973 )
“ХОРОВОД КОСМИЧЕСКИХ ЛАБОРАТОРИЙ ‘Round Dance of Space Laboratories’
A re-run from a few years ago....
a year ago
“ХОРОВОД КОСМИЧЕСКИХ ЛАБОРАТОРИЙ ‘Round Dance of Space Laboratories’
A re-run from a few years ago. I really like this 1973 issue of Youth Technology. The issue was dedicated to Soviet past and future in space. It has some great illustration of what they had done and what they...
History Today Feed
Catching Nessie on Film
Catching Nessie on Film
JamesHoare
Thu, 05/16/2024 - 09:41
6 months ago
Catching Nessie on Film
JamesHoare
Thu, 05/16/2024 - 09:41
History Today Feed
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin and the Making of Stars
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin and the Making of Stars
JamesHoare
Tue, 05/07/2024 - 12:09
6 months ago
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin and the Making of Stars
JamesHoare
Tue, 05/07/2024 - 12:09
Trying to Understand...
Round Two? There Is No Round Two.
Game pretty much over in Ukraine.
a year ago
Game pretty much over in Ukraine.
Flashbak
A Shagtastic Tour of Swinging Britain in 1967
Among British Pathé’s newsreel films made for UK cinemas up until 1970 vis this wonderful time of...
6 months ago
Among British Pathé’s newsreel films made for UK cinemas up until 1970 vis this wonderful time of Swinging Britain capsule from 1967. Shot on 35mm film and backed by the lilting holiday camp music, a narrator these videos are not a little kitsch. In Swinging Britain we take an...
Classical Wisdom
Empedocles
The Philosopher God?
a year ago
A Collection of...
Gap Week: April 19, 2024 (Manor Lords First Impression)
Hey folks, this week is a bit of a gap week as I am heading out to the annual meeting of the Society...
7 months ago
Hey folks, this week is a bit of a gap week as I am heading out to the annual meeting of the Society for Military History (and, indeed, by the time you read this, I will be there). Normally, I post the abstract of my conference talk for these sorts of things, but since I …...
Trying to Understand...
Books To Help Us Understand The World?
Well, a few, anyway. And a bit.
a year ago
Well, a few, anyway. And a bit.
Trying to Understand...
Peter Pan goes to Ukraine
Some people never grow up.
a year ago
Some people never grow up.
Trying to Understand...
The Year's Midnight.
Kindness can be a revolutionary act.
a year ago
Kindness can be a revolutionary act.
Classical Wisdom
The Tragedy of Ajax
Greece's Second Greatest Soldier?
6 months ago
Greece's Second Greatest Soldier?
TheCollector
Vyacheslav Molotov: 6 Facts about Stalin’s Closest Confidant
undefined
a year ago
Res Obscura
Why I love etymologies
Telephones popularized "hello," "lox" is 8,000 years old, and other reasons why the history of words...
6 months ago
Telephones popularized "hello," "lox" is 8,000 years old, and other reasons why the history of words matters
A Collection of...
Collections: Ancient Greek and Phoenician Colonization
Davis senatum consuluit a.d. III Idus Octobris apud aedem Patreontis; de colonis Graecis et Punicis...
a year ago
Davis senatum consuluit a.d. III Idus Octobris apud aedem Patreontis; de colonis Graecis et Punicis verba fecit… This week we’re taking a brief look, by ACOUP Senate request, at Greek and Phoenician colonization in the ancient Mediterranean. In particular, the focus requested was...
African History...
Roads and wheeled transport in African history.
Why the kingdoms of Kush and Dahomey used wheels while Asante did not.
11 months ago
Why the kingdoms of Kush and Dahomey used wheels while Asante did not.
TheCollector
Top Five Painters To Watch in 2024
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10 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Plato On Knowledge
What is True?
7 months ago
TheCollector
UNESCO Creates a Virtual Museum of Stolen Cultural Artifacts
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a year ago
Trying to Understand...
Will it Bend or Will it Break?
The international system, that is.
a year ago
The international system, that is.
A Collection of...
Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part I: Aristocrats, Retainers and...
For the next few posts, I want to take a look at how some ‘tribal’ peoples raised armies, in...
5 months ago
For the next few posts, I want to take a look at how some ‘tribal’ peoples raised armies, in contrast to the way that ancient (or later) states raised armies. As moderns, we are so familiar with the way that states function that the far older systems of non-state organization and...
Classical Wisdom
Why Read Modern Books?
Now Available: Night Drew Her Sable Cloak
a year ago
Now Available: Night Drew Her Sable Cloak
TheCollector
6 Key Artists of the New Objectivity Movement
undefined
9 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Do We Need Passports? Or Borders?
Watch now (23 sec) | Crossing with Radiohead
a year ago
Watch now (23 sec) | Crossing with Radiohead
African History...
Kingdoms at the forest's edge: a history of Mangbetu (ca. 1750-1895)
The northern region of central Africa between the modern countries of D.R.Congo and South Sudan has...
6 months ago
The northern region of central Africa between the modern countries of D.R.Congo and South Sudan has a long and complex history shaped by its internal cultural developments and its unique ecology between the savannah and the forest. Among the most remarkable states that emerged in...
Classical Wisdom
Events Listing
Ancient Women, Marcus Aurelius, Economics and Resilience...
a year ago
Ancient Women, Marcus Aurelius, Economics and Resilience...
Trying to Understand...
It's War, Josep, But Not As We Know It
Trying to understand what Ukraine is all about.
a year ago
Trying to understand what Ukraine is all about.
African History...
The radical philosophy of the Hatata: a 17th century treatise by the Ethiopian thinker Zara Yacob
the historical context of the Hatata in African philosophy.
7 months ago
the historical context of the Hatata in African philosophy.
Classical Wisdom
Artemisia of Caria
Commander, Queen, and Eva Green
a year ago
Commander, Queen, and Eva Green
Dr Alun Withey
The Troublesome Gibbet of John Haines, the ‘Wounded Highwayman’ of Hounslow.
For this post, I am going to wander into the world of crime in the late eighteenth century, and the...
9 months ago
For this post, I am going to wander into the world of crime in the late eighteenth century, and the grisly fate that befell many who committed the heinous crime of highway robbery. (Full disclosure: I’m not an historian of crime, gibbets or highwaymen…perhaps the case I’m about...
Global Inequality...
The end and the beginning of history
Three ways of thinking about Lea Ypi’s Free
4 months ago
Three ways of thinking about Lea Ypi’s Free
Classical Wisdom
Essential Classics
Memorial Sales Ends
5 months ago
Flashbak
American Noir: Mugshots And Crimes From A Small Pennsylvanian Town (1930s – 1950s)
Small Town Noir is a study of life and crime in New Castle, western Pennsylvania. The site compiles...
6 months ago
Small Town Noir is a study of life and crime in New Castle, western Pennsylvania. The site compiles the mugshots of criminals who lived in the town in the 1930, 40s and 50s, with notes on their offences. The mugshots were pulled from the rubbish when the town’s police department...
Trying to Understand...
So They Want Negotiations, Now.
Have they any idea what they are talking about?
a year ago
Have they any idea what they are talking about?
Classical Wisdom
Should We Own Stuff?
The Wealth and Gold of Ancient Georgia
a year ago
The Wealth and Gold of Ancient Georgia
Dreams of Space -...
Bozo and His Rocket Ship -Capitol Record-Reader (1947)
Here an old piece of "rocket" ephemera. Back when there were these big black round things called...
8 months ago
Here an old piece of "rocket" ephemera. Back when there were these big black round things called "records," there were children's record-readers. My mom had some of these from here childhood so I actually read some of them. You would put a stack of records on (this one had 4...
A Collection of...
Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part II: Government Without States
This is the second part of our (planned) three part (I) look at how some ‘tribal’ or more correctly,...
5 months ago
This is the second part of our (planned) three part (I) look at how some ‘tribal’ or more correctly, non-state agrarian peoples raised armies to fight the Romans (and others) in the third through first centuries BC. Last time, we looked at the subsistence basis of these societies...
TheCollector
What Is a Medieval Morality Play?
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6 months ago
Classical Wisdom
The Two Trojan Wars
Secret Origins
a year ago
History Today Feed
The Scandalous Success of the Daily Mail
The Scandalous Success of the Daily Mail
j.hoare
Mon, 01/01/2024 - 13:07
10 months ago
The Scandalous Success of the Daily Mail
j.hoare
Mon, 01/01/2024 - 13:07
Trying to Understand...
And Now for Something Completely Different.
Am I me? Are You you? ?
a year ago
Trying to Understand...
Reality Would Like A Word.
Paging Tom and Daisy Buchanan
a year ago
Paging Tom and Daisy Buchanan
Res Obscura
How well can AI imitate a 17th century doctor?
Arcadio Huang is ill in 1710s Paris. Can GPT-4 and Gemini find a cure?
9 months ago
Arcadio Huang is ill in 1710s Paris. Can GPT-4 and Gemini find a cure?
TheCollector
Who Was the Real Mona Lisa?
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9 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Socrates' Wayward Student
...and the Philosophy of Pleasure
a year ago
...and the Philosophy of Pleasure
Global Inequality...
2x2 geopolitics
Wars and ideology simplified
4 months ago
Wars and ideology simplified
Flashbak
Waiting For A Miracle: Kiev in 1998
In 1998, Juri Nesterov was in Kiev, the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It was a city of...
6 months ago
In 1998, Juri Nesterov was in Kiev, the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It was a city of hope. In 1991, After 57 years as the capital of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic of the Soviet Union, the city became the capital of independent Ukraine. In the picture...
African History...
a brief note on the history of Music in Africa
plus an overview of Ethiopian musical traditions
a year ago
plus an overview of Ethiopian musical traditions
History Today Feed
The Death of Caspar Hauser
The Death of Caspar Hauser
j.hoare
Sun, 12/17/2023 - 00:00
11 months ago
The Death of Caspar Hauser
j.hoare
Sun, 12/17/2023 - 00:00
Res Obscura
When technology follows art
From optics to machine learning, artists have played an important, if underrated, role in the...
11 months ago
From optics to machine learning, artists have played an important, if underrated, role in the history of technology
Dreams of Space -...
Satellites As A Hobby (1962)
Satellites as a Hobby was a children's book from Hammond (the atlas people) They commissioned and...
a year ago
Satellites as a Hobby was a children's book from Hammond (the atlas people) They commissioned and created a space map in 1958 (see Sept 8, 2011 blog post). They reused these illustration in several publication which may explain why they seem a little "dated" for 1962. This book...
Classical Wisdom
The First Biographers
...and the Surprising Legacy of Ancient Literature
a year ago
...and the Surprising Legacy of Ancient Literature
A Collection of...
Collections: Phalanx’s Twilight, Legion’s Triumph, Part IVb: Antiochus III
This is the second part of the fourth part of our four(ish) part (Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb, IVa)...
7 months ago
This is the second part of the fourth part of our four(ish) part (Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, IIIa, IIIb, IVa) look at the context between the Roman military system based on the manipular legion and the Hellenistic military system structured around the Macedonian sarisa phalanx in the...
History Today Feed
‘The Wild Men’, ‘The Men of 1924’ and ‘A Century of Labour’ review
‘The Wild Men’, ‘The Men of 1924’ and ‘A Century of Labour’ review
JamesHoare
Tue, 01/30/2024 -...
9 months ago
‘The Wild Men’, ‘The Men of 1924’ and ‘A Century of Labour’ review
JamesHoare
Tue, 01/30/2024 - 10:13
TheCollector
Why Did Ukraine Make Stamps of Banksy’s Art?
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12 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Blindspots and Biographies
a year ago
Blindspots and Biographies
Trying to Understand...
Another Of My Essays In French
And some odds and ends.
4 months ago
African History...
a brief note on themes in African art.
Cartography, Culture and History in the artwork of the Bamum kingdom.
4 months ago
Cartography, Culture and History in the artwork of the Bamum kingdom.
A Collection of...
Fireside Friday, July 12, 2024
Fireside this week! I had hoped to have the start of the Imperator Teaching Paradox series ready for...
4 months ago
Fireside this week! I had hoped to have the start of the Imperator Teaching Paradox series ready for this week, but it has been a bit stubborn and I do not want to derail my book writing/revising schedule in order to push it out before it is ready. So that will almost certainly...
History Today Feed
An Exhibition on Rational Dress for Victorian Women
An Exhibition on Rational Dress for Victorian Women
JamesHoare
Sun, 05/19/2024 - 00:00
6 months ago
An Exhibition on Rational Dress for Victorian Women
JamesHoare
Sun, 05/19/2024 - 00:00
Flashbak
A Book of Dreams: 25 Vintage Visions To Awaken Your Mind
We’re dreaming today with collector Robert E Jackson. Triggered by the undertow of memory and fed by...
6 months ago
We’re dreaming today with collector Robert E Jackson. Triggered by the undertow of memory and fed by desire, our dreams are visions of other lives, possible clues to the future. “The interpretation of dreams is the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious activities of the...
TheCollector
What Were Julius Caesar’s Greatest Achievements
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10 months ago
TheCollector
11 Greek Mythological Creatures
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10 months ago
TheCollector
Monstrous Births: Artistically Understanding the Mystery of Birth
undefined
a year ago
TheCollector
Who Were the 4 Key Players of the Risorgimento?
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10 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Sparta and… Scotland?
Laconic wit through the centuries
a year ago
Laconic wit through the centuries
Trying to Understand...
Little People With Agency.
No, not that Agency.
2 months ago
African History...
A history of Women's political power and matriliny in the kingdom of Kongo.
In the 19th century, anthropologists were fascinated by the concept of matrilineal descent in which...
a year ago
In the 19th century, anthropologists were fascinated by the concept of matrilineal descent in which kinship is traced through the female line. Matriliny was often confounded with matriarchy as a supposedly earlier stage of social evolution than patriarchy. Matriliny thus became a...
TheCollector
Homo Habilis: The First Humans?
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10 months ago
Trying to Understand...
Can't Do, Won't Do!
But striking poses is fun and easy.
10 months ago
But striking poses is fun and easy.
Dr Alun Withey
Should I Stay or Should I go?: Encouraging travel in the early modern period.
Travel today is often portrayed as a healthy activity, good for body, mind…and what’s left of the...
5 months ago
Travel today is often portrayed as a healthy activity, good for body, mind…and what’s left of the spirit! A good holiday is generally viewed as a tonic, and holiday company advertisements extol the virtues of ‘getting away’, encountering new places, people and cultures and (if...
TheCollector
Who Won the First Battle of Bull Run in the Civil War?
undefined
6 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Who’s in the Tomb?
A Macedonian Mystery: The Tombs of Aigai
6 months ago
A Macedonian Mystery: The Tombs of Aigai
Trying to Understand...
No Cheers for Authoritarianism
Remind me what it was, exactly ....
a year ago
Remind me what it was, exactly ....
Dreams of Space -...
Moon Trip (1958)
Some of you are familiar with the Ley-Polgreen 4 book "Adventures in Space series (Man-Made...
a year ago
Some of you are familiar with the Ley-Polgreen 4 book "Adventures in Space series (Man-Made Satellites, Space Pilots, Space Stations and Space Travel)."
This is about a 4 book space series you may never have seen. Michael Chester and William Nephew also did a great series of...
Trying to Understand...
Everything is (Somewhat) Connected.
But some things are more connected than others.
a year ago
But some things are more connected than others.
Dr Alun Withey
Medicine on the Move: Early Modern Travel and Remedies
As my new project on the history of travel, health risk and preparation begins to get underway, one...
a year ago
As my new project on the history of travel, health risk and preparation begins to get underway, one of the things that I am thinking about is the place of travel within early modern medical remedy culture. What kinds of conditions could befall travellers? What did early modern...
African History...
a brief note on Africa in 16th century global history.
the international relations and manuscripts of Kongo
8 months ago
the international relations and manuscripts of Kongo
Patterns in Humanity
Sweden's immigration taboo
Immigration data kept behind closed doors
3 months ago
Immigration data kept behind closed doors
African History...
The Dahlak islands and the African dynasty of Yemen
a complete history of a cosmopolitan archipelago in the red sea (4th-19th century)
a year ago
a complete history of a cosmopolitan archipelago in the red sea (4th-19th century)
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Origins of Stoicism
4 months ago
A Collection of...
Fireside Friday, June 28, 2024
Fireside this week! My hope in terms of the upcoming schedule is to have my usual July 4th post next...
4 months ago
Fireside this week! My hope in terms of the upcoming schedule is to have my usual July 4th post next week (we’re discussing political philosophy in an election year, so I am sure everyone will be very chill; regardless let me repeat you will be civil) and then after that to dive...
Trying to Understand...
NATO's Phantom Armies.
And the ghost of Carl von Clausewitz.
6 months ago
And the ghost of Carl von Clausewitz.
Dreams of Space -...
Man-Made Moons (1960)
Another book re-scanned. This one has some wonderful graphics and book design. The design is meant...
a year ago
Another book re-scanned. This one has some wonderful graphics and book design. The design is meant to be an example of isotype graphic design. This was a visual language created to unite the world without using words at all: International System Of Typographic Picture Education,...
Classical Wisdom
Jews in the Roman Bathhouse
Is it time to rethink the relationship between Judaism and Greco-Roman society?
a year ago
Is it time to rethink the relationship between Judaism and Greco-Roman society?
Dreams of Space -...
Yuri's Night is April 12th!
Dream About Gagarin (1961)
Celebrating "Yuri's Night." This is the celebration of Yuri...
a year ago
Dream About Gagarin (1961)
Celebrating "Yuri's Night." This is the celebration of Yuri Gagarin 1st manned flight into space in Vostok 1, which completed one orbit of Earth on 12 April 1961. So this book is also from 1961 suggesting that children should dream of this...
History Today Feed
The Prophecies of Merlin
The Prophecies of Merlin
JamesHoare
Mon, 04/22/2024 - 11:22
7 months ago
The Prophecies of Merlin
JamesHoare
Mon, 04/22/2024 - 11:22
Classical Wisdom
12 Ancient Greek Terms that Should Totally Make a Comeback
Eudaimonia, Arete, and much more...
a year ago
Eudaimonia, Arete, and much more...
Trying to Understand...
The West is Weak Where it Matters ...
...and some of the consequences are not obvious.
a year ago
...and some of the consequences are not obvious.
Trying to Understand...
Don't Give Peace Too Many Chances.
Nothing is more dangerous than a flawed peace treaty.
a year ago
Nothing is more dangerous than a flawed peace treaty.
Trying to Understand...
A Fistful of Clockwork Oranges
What's it going to be, then?
a year ago
What's it going to be, then?
Dreams of Space -...
I See The Earth! (1968)
I See The Earth! was a young adult/adult book about what technology would be like in the future. It...
over a year ago
I See The Earth! was a young adult/adult book about what technology would be like in the future. It included exploring and farming the ocean, monorails, huge cities and space exploration. The illustration in the margins are small but I rather enjoyed the space flight...
Trying to Understand...
Service to what nation?
Why people should stop talking about conscription.
4 months ago
Why people should stop talking about conscription.
Trying to Understand...
The Modern World Is Boring.
Where are the heroes and the adventures now?
5 months ago
Where are the heroes and the adventures now?
Trying to Understand...
Macron is Safe for the Moment
But the future worries me.
a year ago
But the future worries me.
Classical Wisdom
The Mysterious Phaistos Disk
And the Palace where it was found...
a year ago
And the Palace where it was found...
Classical Wisdom
The Myth of the Minotaur
Journey Into the Labyrinth
a year ago
Journey Into the Labyrinth
Dr Alun Withey
The Health Risks of Travel in Early-Modern Britain
As I start to make some progress on my new research project on travel, health and risk I am turning...
a year ago
As I start to make some progress on my new research project on travel, health and risk I am turning my attention to the sorts of things that early modern travellers were fearful of. As a bit of a nervous traveller myself, it’s quite comforting to know that there is actually a...
Dreams of Space -...
Searching In Science (1965)
To continue with my post from last week, Searching in Science was another science textbook that also...
a year ago
To continue with my post from last week, Searching in Science was another science textbook that also issued booklets of content. These were more astronomy than manned space flight but also had some very nice illustrations.
The Moon
The Milky Way and The...
Dreams of Space -...
Into Space: Man's First Controlled Space Flight (1961)
A bit of ephemera today. This is a pamphlet from a Revell Model Kit. They issued this kit quickly to...
a year ago
A bit of ephemera today. This is a pamphlet from a Revell Model Kit. They issued this kit quickly to take advantage of the excitement about this launch. So they had to include a booklet to explain why this slightly inaccurate model was so special. Imagine opening the model kit...
TheCollector
‘Ain Ghazal: One of the Oldest Places in Human Civilization
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a year ago
African History...
The complete history of Kano (999-1903)
journal of African cities chapter 9
a year ago
journal of African cities chapter 9
Dreams of Space -...
Cosmonaut-2 (1964)
Cosmonaut-2 was a Russian pamphlet for older children about Gherman Titov. It has some lovely...
over a year ago
Cosmonaut-2 was a Russian pamphlet for older children about Gherman Titov. It has some lovely illustration about the 2nd manned Russian space launch. At age 25 Titov remains the youngest man to fly in Earth orbit. Vostok 2 was launched on August 6, 1961.
Cosmonaut-2, 1964. 38 p....
TheCollector
Ancient Egypt Under the Achaemenid Persian Empire: A Brief Overview
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11 months ago
Res Obscura
Historical maps probably helped cause World War I
On cartography as historical argument
a year ago
On cartography as historical argument
Flashbak
New York City’s NIGHT Magazine – 1978-79
Launched in September 1978, Anton Perich’s self-financed NIGHT magazine showcased New York City’s...
4 months ago
Launched in September 1978, Anton Perich’s self-financed NIGHT magazine showcased New York City’s mix of fashion, art, and music at clubs like Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager’s Studio 54 and Howard Stein and Peppo Vanini’s Xenon, where nightlife and performance met. Distribution...
History Today Feed
‘Spice’ by Roger Crowley review
‘Spice’ by Roger Crowley review
JamesHoare
Tue, 06/18/2024 - 09:03
5 months ago
‘Spice’ by Roger Crowley review
JamesHoare
Tue, 06/18/2024 - 09:03
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Plutarch and Pleasure
a year ago
Dreams of Space -...
Wonders of Space Travel (1954)
I have not blogged about this pamphlet since 2010 so here is a more complete scan. Wonders of Space...
a year ago
I have not blogged about this pamphlet since 2010 so here is a more complete scan. Wonders of Space Travel was a pamphlet that came enclosed in the May 8th issue of Lion Weekly (#116) in 1954.
Lion Weekly was a magazine for children with comics and stories. (from Wikipedia...
Dreams of Space -...
The Great Experience (1963)
I have been collecting these books for such a long time that it is rare to come across one I haven't...
a year ago
I have been collecting these books for such a long time that it is rare to come across one I haven't seen. I know there are still many out there but my language skills are poor enough that I rarely find the many books that exist in other languages. So I present today The Great...
Flashbak
Arnaldo Putzu and His Fabulous Hand-Painted Covers for Look-In Magazine And Movie Posters
You might not know the name Arnaldo Putzu (1927 – 2012) but chances are that if you grew up in the...
4 months ago
You might not know the name Arnaldo Putzu (1927 – 2012) but chances are that if you grew up in the 1960s and 1970s you’ve seen his work on movie posters and magazine covers. Born in Rome, Putzu studied at the Rome Academy and discovered a love of portrait painting. After...
Flashbak
Edmund Dulac’s American Weekly Covers – 1924-1951
Edmund Dulac is remembered today as one of the founding fathers of the Golden Age of Illustration,...
4 months ago
Edmund Dulac is remembered today as one of the founding fathers of the Golden Age of Illustration, roughly from 1875-1925, writes Albert Seligman. His luxurious Gift Books of the early 20th century were covered in vellum and issued in signed limited editions with tipped-in color...
Flashbak
Photos of Iggy Pop And The Stooges Playing NYC Club Ungano’s in 1970
In August 1970, American photographer Bud Lee (1940-2016) took photographs of Iggy Pop and the...
5 months ago
In August 1970, American photographer Bud Lee (1940-2016) took photographs of Iggy Pop and the Stooges performing at brothers Nick and Arnie Ungano’s basement club on New York’s West 70th Street between Amsterdam and West End Avenues. The ban were celebrating the release of their...
Classical Wisdom
Emotions: Better Out or In?
Can Catharsis Help... or Harm?
6 months ago
Can Catharsis Help... or Harm?
TheCollector
How Did Comuna 13 Transform Medellín?
undefined
6 months ago
African History...
The Swazi kingdom and its neighbours in the 19th century: from the rise of Zulu to the British
an island in the maelstrom
a year ago
an island in the maelstrom
Trying to Understand...
You And Whose Army?
NATO would do well to stay out of Ukraine.
a year ago
NATO would do well to stay out of Ukraine.
Dr Alun Withey
Are Beards Over? A Historical Perspective.
Recently I spoke with the Guardian journalist Tim Dowling for an excellent article he was writing...
over a year ago
Recently I spoke with the Guardian journalist Tim Dowling for an excellent article he was writing (published last week) about whether beards are finally ‘over’, and I thought it would be interesting to reflect on some of this. Since re-emerging around 2014, gaining popularity...
Dreams of Space -...
Telstar: Communication Break-through by Satellite (1962)
Sorry to skip a week, it may happen again next week.
Here is a straight history book of an current...
a year ago
Sorry to skip a week, it may happen again next week.
Here is a straight history book of an current (at the time) and wonderful event in global communication. We has lost track of how satellites have changed our lives and made the earth a smaller place. It is a little dull in...
Classical Wisdom
Aristotle on Luck
Do You Feel Lucky?
a year ago
Trying to Understand...
I Hate My Job And I Want To Cry.
Tried chopping wood and carrying water?
10 months ago
Tried chopping wood and carrying water?
Classical Wisdom
[Video] Roundtable Discussion with Mary Naples
Watch now (60 min) | Cult of the Capture Bride: How Ancient Women Took Power
a year ago
Watch now (60 min) | Cult of the Capture Bride: How Ancient Women Took Power
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Constantine and the Queen of Carthage
a year ago
Constantine and the Queen of Carthage
A Collection of...
Collections: How to Raise a Tribal Army in Pre-Roman Europe, Part III: Going To War With the Army...
This is the third and final part of our three-part (I, II, III) look at how some ‘tribal’ or more...
5 months ago
This is the third and final part of our three-part (I, II, III) look at how some ‘tribal’ or more correctly, non-state agrarian peoples – particularly the Celtiberians, Gauls and also many Germanic-language speaking peoples on the Rhine and Danube- raised armies to fight the...
Global Inequality...
Marx Truncated
A review of Shlomo Avineri’s “Karl Marx”
5 months ago
A review of Shlomo Avineri’s “Karl Marx”
History Today Feed
‘Age of Wolf and Wind’ by Davide Zori review
‘Age of Wolf and Wind’ by Davide Zori review
JamesHoare
Wed, 05/29/2024 - 10:27
5 months ago
‘Age of Wolf and Wind’ by Davide Zori review
JamesHoare
Wed, 05/29/2024 - 10:27
Dreams of Space -...
The Conquest of Space (1962?)
I last blogged about this book in 2015 so it is time for a revisit. I got a second copy that has a...
a year ago
I last blogged about this book in 2015 so it is time for a revisit. I got a second copy that has a couple of things I had not seen before. The Conquest of Space is a 1962 (?) Australian stamp album. It is intended for children to collect paper stamps they get in Nestle chocolate...
Classical Wisdom
Origins of Latin Literature
...and the Master of Roman Comedy
a year ago
...and the Master of Roman Comedy
Classical Wisdom
Have We Become Anti-Human?
Is this a problem? And Can/Should it be Helped?
a year ago
Is this a problem? And Can/Should it be Helped?
Patterns in Humanity
The case for prisons
The purpose of prisons, and the evidence of their efficacy
2 months ago
The purpose of prisons, and the evidence of their efficacy
Dr Alun Withey
Barbers and (the lack of!) Polite Advertising
Over the past few years, I have spent much time looking at ‘polite’ advertising in the 18th century....
over a year ago
Over the past few years, I have spent much time looking at ‘polite’ advertising in the 18th century. During this period, a whole range of retailers advertised their goods and services to appeal to ladies and gentlemen of taste. Without discussing anything so base as price or...
African History...
The myth of Mansa Musa's enslaved entourage
"Stories about his [Mansa Musa's] journey have numerous anecdotes which are not true and which the...
11 months ago
"Stories about his [Mansa Musa's] journey have numerous anecdotes which are not true and which the mind refuses to admit".
Trying to Understand...
The Evils Of Professionalism
In politics, anyway.
5 months ago
History Today Feed
Robert the Bruce: Born To Be King?
Robert the Bruce: Born To Be King?
JamesHoare
Mon, 06/17/2024 - 11:11
5 months ago
Robert the Bruce: Born To Be King?
JamesHoare
Mon, 06/17/2024 - 11:11
A Collection of...
Fireside Friday, May 31, 2024 (Academic Departments)
Fireside this week! I am spinning up to write a Teaching Paradox series on Imperator later this...
5 months ago
Fireside this week! I am spinning up to write a Teaching Paradox series on Imperator later this week, but not quite ready to get started yet. I’m also thinking, perhaps before that, of doing a short post or set of posts on the organization of non-state ‘tribal’ societies in...
African History...
a brief note on African travel literature in history
a Swahili document on south-central Africa.
5 months ago
a Swahili document on south-central Africa.
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Lost and Found
a year ago
African History...
The desert town of Southern Africa: A history of Khauxanas 1780-1906
A view of pre-colonial Namibia from the khoisan town of ||Khauxa!nas.
a year ago
A view of pre-colonial Namibia from the khoisan town of ||Khauxa!nas.
TheCollector
Who Was Clement of Rome?
undefined
10 months ago
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
The Story of Thebes
a year ago
African History...
a brief note on the intellectual contributions of African scholars in the diaspora
the biography of a West African mathematician in Cairo.
7 months ago
the biography of a West African mathematician in Cairo.
weird medieval guys
The coolest medieval woman you've never heard of
Christine de Pizan on Circe, Medusa, and other virtuous ladies
a year ago
Christine de Pizan on Circe, Medusa, and other virtuous ladies
Dreams of Space -...
Cosmodrome (1987)
Cosmodrome is a paper cut-out book that you could use to build a cosmodrome. Admittedly it is...
a year ago
Cosmodrome is a paper cut-out book that you could use to build a cosmodrome. Admittedly it is published in 1987 so it is way out of scope for my blog. But it has some great visuals and so I think it is worth sharing. I have never had the nerve to cut this out and build it. Most...
Dreams of Space -...
New Treasury for Young Readers (1963)
More or less a "housekeeping" post today. I wanted to scan this book after finding the other one...
9 months ago
More or less a "housekeeping" post today. I wanted to scan this book after finding the other one just for balance. Some fine illustration is a lost bit of space flight for children.
New Treasury for Young Readers. Reader’s Digest. Pleasantville, NY. Reader’s Digest Association....
Dr Alun Withey
Packing the Essentials!: Preparing to Travel in the 18th Century.
Now that Covid restrictions have finally been lifted, and summer is at least theoretically here –...
over a year ago
Now that Covid restrictions have finally been lifted, and summer is at least theoretically here – it’s raining outside as I write! – many people are returning to travel and undertaking the holidays that have had to be postponed over the past couple of years. The pandemic aside,...
Flashbak
Evelyn Richter’s Street Photography Reveals the Reality of Life in East Germany
For photographer Evelyn Richter (1930–2021) East Germany was not computers being towed by the...
3 months ago
For photographer Evelyn Richter (1930–2021) East Germany was not computers being towed by the bikini-clad proletariat, Western holidaymakers, badly disguised secret police and being on the wrong side of the Berlin Wall. A self-described “documentarian and historian”, Richter...
Flashbak
Vanity Fair’s Bifurcated Girls: The Article That Introduced America To Girlie Magazines, 1903
Bifurcated Girls is a salacious illustrated story that first appeared in the June 1903 issue of...
6 months ago
Bifurcated Girls is a salacious illustrated story that first appeared in the June 1903 issue of Vanity Fair magazine. That’s not the glossy publication we know today, rather the a short-lived pulp magazine published by the Commonwealth Publishing Company of New York City...
Res Obscura
Why Early Modern Books Are So Beautiful
Three theories
a year ago
African History...
The pyramids of ancient Nubia and Meroe: death on the Nile and the mortuary architecture of Kush
a complete history of an African monument
a year ago
a complete history of an African monument
Classical Wisdom
Dido: Queen of Carthage
Doomed Lover of Ancient Myth
a year ago
Doomed Lover of Ancient Myth
Classical Wisdom
[Ebook] The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius
The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius The Meditations (or Things to One’s Self) of Marcus Aurelius...
a year ago
The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius The Meditations (or Things to One’s Self) of Marcus Aurelius (121-180 AD) gives you a prescribed way in which you can actually reduce genuine suffering in your life because Rome’s great “philosopher king” lays out a very compelling, very...
African History...
A history of the west African diaspora in Arabia and Jerusalem before 1900
The legacy of west African travel to Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem.
a year ago
The legacy of west African travel to Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem.
African History...
The complete history of Gondar: Africa's city of castles (1636-1900)
Journal of African cities chapter 8
a year ago
Journal of African cities chapter 8
Dreams of Space -...
Women's Day -August (1953) Part 2
Another article that appeared in this August 1953 issue is about the current fictional space flight...
a year ago
Another article that appeared in this August 1953 issue is about the current fictional space flight programs on TV: Rocket-Bye Baby.
Classical Wisdom
Religion in the Olympics
The Olympics: Do they Unite or Divide Us?
3 months ago
The Olympics: Do they Unite or Divide Us?
A Collection of...
Gap Week: December 29, 2023 (Year In Review)
Hey folks! I had planned to do a Fireside for this week with a sort of ‘year-in-review’ musing, but...
10 months ago
Hey folks! I had planned to do a Fireside for this week with a sort of ‘year-in-review’ musing, but between the holidays and the whole pedant household coming down with a nasty cold, I’m a bit short of the time and energy to put together a full fireside with...
Classical Wisdom
Weekend Roundup
Last Chance!
a year ago
Dreams of Space -...
Utazas a vilagurbe/ Into Space (1978)
A little out of my defined time period but too good not to share. This pop-up book was part of the...
a year ago
A little out of my defined time period but too good not to share. This pop-up book was part of the burst in Russian children's publishing in 1978. It was originally published in Russian but I have seen copies in English and this one in Hungarian. The pop-ups are wonderful and...
Dr Alun Withey
Cuts, Rashes & Chatter! The Pain of the 18th-century Shave!
Unless there are particular reasons, for example a skin condition, or a faulty razor, shaving today...
over a year ago
Unless there are particular reasons, for example a skin condition, or a faulty razor, shaving today is usually a pretty mundane – if not a pleasant – experience. Indeed, the rise of traditional barbershops over the past few years, offering shaving as an experience, together with...
TheCollector
Why Did the Germans Struggle in the Battle of Crete?
undefined
12 months ago
weird medieval guys
An 800 year prayer book that's decorated with puns
Plus a little history of manuscript illustration
a year ago
Plus a little history of manuscript illustration
African History...
Join me on Notes
"On the Zanzibari envoy to 11th century china and the recent Swahili-Persian DNA study"
a year ago
"On the Zanzibari envoy to 11th century china and the recent Swahili-Persian DNA study"
Dr Alun Withey
Finding Your Beard Style in the 19th Century
In the previous post I noted the variety of facial hair styles that were worn by men in the...
over a year ago
In the previous post I noted the variety of facial hair styles that were worn by men in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, depending on factors including status, location and age. Rather than each age having one particular style of facial hair that was ubiquitous, the...
African History...
How Africans wrote their own history: Debates and dialogues between four west African historians in...
Facts, myths and royal propaganda.
a year ago
Facts, myths and royal propaganda.
African History...
a brief note on the long history of African diplomacy.
historical links between west africa and the Maghreb.
4 months ago
historical links between west africa and the Maghreb.
African History...
The heroic age in Darfur: a history of the pre-colonial kingdom of Darfur ca. 1500-1916.
The political marginalization of the Darfur region since the creation of colonial Sudan has resulted...
4 months ago
The political marginalization of the Darfur region since the creation of colonial Sudan has resulted in one of the continent's longest-standing conflicts, which threatens to destroy the country's social fabric and its historical heritage. Just as the plight of modern Darfur...
Dreams of Space -...
Building Reading Skills (1951)
Today is a series of school spelling workbooks. What does that have to do with space? They chose an...
a year ago
Today is a series of school spelling workbooks. What does that have to do with space? They chose an aerospace theme for their series of books and since spaceflight was the trend for children they "branded" them. Truly these are pretty dull books even with a couple of space...
Dreams of Space -...
Looking Into Science (1965)
Here is a re-post, with new scans, of one of my most popular series of books. There was a 1965...
over a year ago
Here is a re-post, with new scans, of one of my most popular series of books. There was a 1965 textbook for children call Looking Into Science. They reused the contents in a series of booklets that I would like to share with you. There were a large number of these booklets...
African History...
A history of the Damagaram sultanate of Zinder: ca. 1730-1899.
Politics, Guns, and Trade in the pre-colonial Sahel
a year ago
Politics, Guns, and Trade in the pre-colonial Sahel
Dreams of Space -...
Hombres Del Espacio (1960)
So a fun one today. This is so silly and dated that I almost feel like apologizing, but I won't....
a year ago
So a fun one today. This is so silly and dated that I almost feel like apologizing, but I won't. This is the story of the exploration of space and has to be seen! It might have been assembled from stills from a Spanish film (I don't recognize it so feel free to tell me). But...
African History...
The kingdom of Ndongo and the Portuguese: Queen Njinga and the dynasty of women sovereigns...
The effects of early colonial warfare in central Africa
a year ago
The effects of early colonial warfare in central Africa
TheCollector
Battle of Thebes: How Alexander the Great Destroyed the Great City
undefined
10 months ago
TheCollector
Does Nietzsche Believe in Free Will?
undefined
a year ago
Classical Wisdom
Marcus Aurelius VS Diogenes
Comparing the Stoics and the Cynics...
a year ago
Comparing the Stoics and the Cynics...
Trying to Understand...
Don't Confuse Me With Facts.
They know what they think.
a year ago
They know what they think.
Dreams of Space -...
What the Moon Is Like (1963)
Happy 2023, this book is 60 years old this year and still seems as fresh as ever since we are...
a year ago
Happy 2023, this book is 60 years old this year and still seems as fresh as ever since we are exploring the Moon again.
What the Moon is Like is another book by the children's science writer Franklyn Branley. He wrote many children's non-fiction books with a variety of...
Dr Alun Withey
How Much?! Barbers & the Price of Shaving.
One of the central themes of my new book is how the practice of shaving has changed over time and,...
over a year ago
One of the central themes of my new book is how the practice of shaving has changed over time and, more importantly, who has been responsible for it. From the second half of the eighteenth century, individual men began to take more responsibility for shaving themselves, helped on...
African History...
A muslim kingdom in the Ethiopian highlands: the history of Ifat and Adal ca. 1285-1520.
During the late Middle Ages, the northern Horn of Africa was home to some of the continent's most...
5 months ago
During the late Middle Ages, the northern Horn of Africa was home to some of the continent's most powerful dynasties, whose history significantly shaped the region's social landscape. The history of one of these dynasties, often referred to as the Solomonids, has been...
African History...
A social history of the Lamu city-state (1370-1885)
Journal of African cities chapter 5
a year ago
Journal of African cities chapter 5
Res Obscura
How well can GPT-4 simulate an acid trip in 1963?
An experiment with historical simulation
11 months ago
An experiment with historical simulation
Trying to Understand...
People, States and Borders.
And other dubious ideas.
3 months ago
Dr Alun Withey
Beard Fashions and Class
Over the past few centuries, fashions in facial hair have changed substantially. In the mid...
over a year ago
Over the past few centuries, fashions in facial hair have changed substantially. In the mid seventeenth century many men wore the ‘Van Dyke’ style of a small, pointy beard and moustaches. By the end of the 1600s, beards were in decline, leaving many men with just moustaches. The...
Flashbak
‘Look at Me’: Scot Sothern’s powerful photographs of life on LA’s streets
In amongst the crowds drifting along Hollywood Boulevard there’s an old guy sitting on an orange...
6 months ago
In amongst the crowds drifting along Hollywood Boulevard there’s an old guy sitting on an orange bucket. He’s wearing dirty jeans and a grey hoodie. The guy’s in his seventies. Weather-worn. Grizzled beard. Walking stick. Back trouble caused by “old spinal injuries and bad...
Dreams of Space -...
The Man Who Sold The Moon (1951 edition)
This is a 1951 paperback collection of 4 Robert Heinlein stories. Normally I would not blog about a...
a year ago
This is a 1951 paperback collection of 4 Robert Heinlein stories. Normally I would not blog about a science fiction collection but I found this charming. I imagined some older avid child finding this collection and devouring it. Both the title and cover have a lot of appeal and...
Dreams of Space -...
Moon Fleet Log Book (1966)
The Moon Fleet Log Book was a book distributed by Wall's Ice Cream to collect space cards that came...
over a year ago
The Moon Fleet Log Book was a book distributed by Wall's Ice Cream to collect space cards that came with the ice cream. There were spaces for 24 cards. This book was incomplete but still worth sharing with you.
Dreams of Space -...
Out of This World (1953)
Happy Friday the 13th (in October too). Don't worry, you have gotten really lucky today.
Out of...
a year ago
Happy Friday the 13th (in October too). Don't worry, you have gotten really lucky today.
Out of this World was one of my favorite "discoveries" when I first started collecting these books. It is a massive 160 pages of games, jokes, riddles, and space facts. I last blogged about...
Dreams of Space -...
Exploring Space (Hebrew) (1960)
The Hebrew version of Exploring Space. If you notice it opens right to left. So you will see a few...
a year ago
The Hebrew version of Exploring Space. If you notice it opens right to left. So you will see a few pages where the Hebrew version "switches" sides. Because this is such a charming book I have loaded the whole thing. As an additional treat I own some of the original illustration...
Classical Wisdom
Art of the Etruscans
Romans before the Romans
7 months ago
Flashbak
Armand Henrion: The Artist Who Always Painted Himself As A Clown
Armand Henrion (1875 – 1958) was a Belgian-born artist. He contributed to the Expressionist...
4 months ago
Armand Henrion (1875 – 1958) was a Belgian-born artist. He contributed to the Expressionist movement, worked in France and became a French citizen. And he liked to paint self-portraits – hundreds of them – in which he is dressed as a clown (more Pierrot than Bozo). Pierrot...
Dreams of Space -...
Collier's Encyclopedia Space Articles (1959)
This is a pamphlet distributed to schools to convince student and teachers to buy their...
a year ago
This is a pamphlet distributed to schools to convince student and teachers to buy their encyclopedia. It was also a nice "free" classroom supplement for teachers trying to teach about the coming space age.
This last essay is actually from 1952, it is a nice...
Trying to Understand...
A Short Service Announcement.
From this week, and on an experimental basis, I’m enabling paid subscriptions for those who may be...
a year ago
From this week, and on an experimental basis, I’m enabling paid subscriptions for those who may be interested. The essays themselves will continue to be entirely free, and I don’t have plans to produce subscriber-only material. I’ve also set up a Buy Me a Coffee cup.
weird medieval guys
What does a biblically accurate angel actually look like?
Sexy? Scary? Both?
a year ago
Trying to Understand...
Ukraine and the end of "Europe."
Nation-states were the problem: supranationality was not the answer.
a year ago
Nation-states were the problem: supranationality was not the answer.
Trying to Understand...
The Past Is Another Country.
A book review from the future.
4 months ago
A book review from the future.
African History...
The forgotten ruins of Botswana: stone towns at the desert's edge.
At its height in the 17th century, the stone towns of the ‘zimbabwe culture’ encompassed an area the...
5 months ago
At its height in the 17th century, the stone towns of the ‘zimbabwe culture’ encompassed an area the size of France. The hundreds of ruins spread across three countries in south-eastern Africa are among the continent’s best-preserved historical monuments and have been the subject...
TheCollector
Horse Archers: The Feared Unit of Ancient and Medieval Warfare
undefined
a year ago
Dreams of Space -...
Das Neue Universum, Volume 67 (1950)
Das Neue Universum (The New Universe) was a German science annual series aimed at older...
a year ago
Das Neue Universum (The New Universe) was a German science annual series aimed at older children.
From the German Wikipedia site (translated) : "The New Universe is a German children's literature series with themes in the fields of knowledge , research , adventure and...
Dreams of Space -...
Women's Day -August (1953) Part 3
From the same 1953 Women's Day issue comes my final posting from this "space packed" issue. For an...
a year ago
From the same 1953 Women's Day issue comes my final posting from this "space packed" issue. For an early Christmas present to yourself or a craft project to make the perfect present for someone else, here are the plans for making some nifty space helmets!
A Collection of...
Collections: How to Roman Republic 101, Addenda: The Provinces
This is the second and (in theory) last addendum to our series on Roman civic governance (I, II,...
a year ago
This is the second and (in theory) last addendum to our series on Roman civic governance (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IIIc, IV, V, A1). Having discussed how Rome handles those parts of Italy it controls but which were not part of the Roman Republic itself, we now look at how the Romans...
Classical Wisdom
What is Love? And From Where did it Come?
All the ways to say LOVE, according to the Greeks
9 months ago
All the ways to say LOVE, according to the Greeks
Dreams of Space -...
Women's Day -August (1953) Part 1
Women's Day magazine also got involved in the spaceflight fad in the early 1950s. This 1953 (August)...
a year ago
Women's Day magazine also got involved in the spaceflight fad in the early 1950s. This 1953 (August) issue had a number of space related articles including: Will Your Child Visit The Moon? The article makes the case to the mothers of America that travel into space and the Moon is...
Trying to Understand...
Externalising Our Hatreds.
It's Ukraine and Gaza. Again.
a year ago
It's Ukraine and Gaza. Again.
African History...
A complete history of Jenne: 250BC-1893AD
Journal of African cities chapter 6
a year ago
Journal of African cities chapter 6
Patterns in Humanity
Immigration and crime: Denmark
Are immigrants overrepresented in crime? If so, which immigrants? And why?
3 months ago
Are immigrants overrepresented in crime? If so, which immigrants? And why?
A Collection of...
Collections: The Philosophy of Liberty – On Liberalism
It is once again the week of July 4th and so, as is customary here, I am going to use this week’s...
4 months ago
It is once again the week of July 4th and so, as is customary here, I am going to use this week’s post to talk about the United States or more correctly this week about the political philosophy the United States was founded on: liberalism. Now an immediate clarification is...
Classical Wisdom
Five Reasons Why Socrates Was A Terrible Husband
Should you meet your heroes?
6 months ago
Should you meet your heroes?
History Today Feed
Radical Conservatives and the Federal Union
Radical Conservatives and the Federal Union
JamesHoare
Tue, 08/13/2024 - 09:21
3 months ago
Radical Conservatives and the Federal Union
JamesHoare
Tue, 08/13/2024 - 09:21
weird medieval guys
Why medieval artists drew ancient Romans in medieval clothes
Or, how the French stole Julius Caesar in 1200 AD
a year ago
Or, how the French stole Julius Caesar in 1200 AD
African History...
Empire building and Government in the Yorubaland: a history of Oyo (1600-1836)
Why Africa's internal political processes explain African history better than external actors.
a year ago
Why Africa's internal political processes explain African history better than external actors.
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