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History Today Feed
‘The Graces’ by Breeze Barrington review ‘The Graces’ by Breeze Barrington review JamesHoare Tue, 08/12/2025 - 08:23
3 weeks ago
TheCollector
How Joan of Arc Helped Charles VII Win the Hundred Years’ War Throughout French history, few heroines have been admired as much as Joan of Arc. This teenage girl...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
Throughout French history, few heroines have been admired as much as Joan of Arc. This teenage girl etched her way into French history thanks to her divine mission; she had been told by God to reclaim French territory from the English. Whatever the actual reasoning for the...
Flashbak
Harry Clarke’s 24 Sinsiter Illustrations for Edgar Allan Poe’s Tales of Mystery and Imagination,... By the time Harry Clarke (17 March 1889 – 6 January 1931) came to illustrate Edgar Allan Poe’s Tales...
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By the time Harry Clarke (17 March 1889 – 6 January 1931) came to illustrate Edgar Allan Poe’s Tales of Mystery and Imagination in 1919, the work first published in 1902 had already been illustrated by Arthur Rackham, Edmund Dulac and Gustave Doré. Those were tough acts to...
TheCollector
How Augustus’s Golden Heirs Met a Tragic Fate Augustus infamously had a difficult time securing an heir. Each man he chose died before his time...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
Augustus infamously had a difficult time securing an heir. Each man he chose died before his time until the old emperor had to “settle” for his stepson Tiberius. Augustus’s favorite heirs seem to have been his grandsons Lucius and Gaius Caesar, whom he groomed from infancy, but...
Patterns in Humanity
How many are criminals? Probably more than you think...
3 weeks ago
Classical Wisdom
The Lost Psychedelic Cult of Ancient Greece Where Fasting, Feasting, and Visions Collided
3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Why Nathan Bedford Forrest Remains One of America’s Most Divisive Figures Nathan Bedford Forrest is one of the most controversial figures from the Civil War Era. He was a...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
Nathan Bedford Forrest is one of the most controversial figures from the Civil War Era. He was a self-made millionaire who made a fortune from the slave trade. During the war, he earned a reputation as an aggressive and successful cavalry commander. However, his actions before...
History Today Feed
‘The Blood in Winter’ by Jonathan Healey review ‘The Blood in Winter’ by Jonathan Healey review JamesHoare Mon, 08/11/2025 - 08:55
3 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Mythology Behind Avatar and the Sacred Planet Trope In 2009, James Cameron’s Avatar was released in theaters around the world and garnered critical...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
In 2009, James Cameron’s Avatar was released in theaters around the world and garnered critical acclaim as one of the most successful movies of all time. It introduced us to the world of Pandora, a mystical and sacred place, and a symbol of life itself. The visual spectacle was...
Flashbak
Sometimes Overwhelming: New York City People in the 1970s and 80s by Arlene Gottfried “My mother used to say ‘Arlene – just don’t wander!’ Then I started wandering, but I got a camera...
3 weeks ago
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“My mother used to say ‘Arlene – just don’t wander!’ Then I started wandering, but I got a camera because it gave it a little more meaning…a life of wandering is really what it all is.” –  Arlene Gottfried New Yorker Arlene Gottfried (August 26, 1950 – August 8, 2017) walked...
TheCollector
Where Did Native Americans Originate From? The Native American story began some 15,000-plus years ago. Using a now-submerged Arctic land...
3 weeks ago
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The Native American story began some 15,000-plus years ago. Using a now-submerged Arctic land bridge, they crossed from Siberia to Alaska. The land bridge, now known as Beringia, emerged during a period of low sea levels during the last Ice Age. Connecting North America and Asia,...
Global Inequality...
Dr. Morell and the Patient A A review of Normal Ohler’s "Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany"
3 weeks ago
Flashbak
Rampant Women On Sex Strike: Aubrey Beardsley’s 8 Erotic Illustrations For Lysistrata, 1896 As for old flames and lovers  they’re none left. And since Milesians went against us, I’ve not seen...
3 weeks ago
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As for old flames and lovers  they’re none left. And since Milesians went against us, I’ve not seen a decent eight-inch dildo. Yes, it’s just leather, but it helps us out. So would you be willing, if I found a way, to work with me to make this fighting end? – Lysistrata prepares...
TheCollector
How the Women of the Gothic Revival Inspired Christina Rossetti’s Poetry Beginning with Horace Walpole’s 1764 novel The Castle of Otranto, literature and architecture began...
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Beginning with Horace Walpole’s 1764 novel The Castle of Otranto, literature and architecture began to develop a unique relationship in Great Britain. Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, British authors wrote poetry, novels, and short stories that evoked the mystery and drama...
Flashbak
Irving Penn and Missy Miyake’s Creative Matchup, 1986-1999 “Through his eyes Penn-san reinterprets the clothes, gives them new breath, and presents them to me...
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“Through his eyes Penn-san reinterprets the clothes, gives them new breath, and presents them to me from a new vantage point” – Issey Miyake on Irving Penn   From 1986 til 1999, Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake (22 April 1938 – 5 August 2022) and American photographer...
TheCollector
5 Sufi Orders That Changed the World Sufism began as an ascetic and mystical movement in the early centuries of Islam. However, over the...
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Sufism began as an ascetic and mystical movement in the early centuries of Islam. However, over the centuries, the movement developed into an intricate system of philosophy, ethics, and practices that Muslims could follow to experience the fullest depth of the Prophet Muhammad’s...
A Collection of...
Collections: Life, Work, Death and the Peasant, Part IIIb: Children and Childrearing This is the back half of the third part of our series (I, II, IIIa) discussing the patterns of life...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
This is the back half of the third part of our series (I, II, IIIa) discussing the patterns of life for the pre-modern peasants who made up the great majority of humans who lived in the past. Last week, we started looking at family formation through the lens of marriage, this...
TheCollector
What Happened to Troy After the Trojan War? Archaeological & Mythical Evidence The city of Troy is most famous today for being at the center of the Trojan War. Its dramatic...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
The city of Troy is most famous today for being at the center of the Trojan War. Its dramatic defeat, brought about by the deception of the Trojan Horse, reportedly led to its utter destruction. For many researchers, this story can ultimately be linked to the destruction of Troy...
Flashbak
The Merrie Tales of Jacques Tournebroche, 1923 The Merrie Tales of Jacques Tournebroche And Child Life in Town and Country (1909) is a collection...
3 weeks ago
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The Merrie Tales of Jacques Tournebroche And Child Life in Town and Country (1909) is a collection of short stories set in the 1400s by French writer and Noel Laureate Anatole France (1844 – 1924). The 1923 edition contains illustrations from woodcuts by the British artist Marcia...
TheCollector
Tantra’s Complicated Relationship With the Modern Western World Tantra is a concept at once familiar and utterly foreign. It is everywhere and nowhere. Most of us...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
Tantra is a concept at once familiar and utterly foreign. It is everywhere and nowhere. Most of us would imagine that we have a clear idea of what Tantra is and yet many of us would be surprised about how much history and complexity lies in the philosophy and the practice. In the...
History Today Feed
How Important was the French Revolution? How Important was the French Revolution? JamesHoare Thu, 08/07/2025 - 08:38
3 weeks ago
TheCollector
Taoism, the Philosophy of Flow & Embracing Effortlessness The struggle for control over every aspect of life is common in modern Western society. However,...
3 weeks ago
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The struggle for control over every aspect of life is common in modern Western society. However, this approach can be juxtaposed with the ancient Chinese religious and philosophical ideas of Taoism. Taoism offers a guide for living a free-flowing life that is guided by the...
Flashbak
Logan Airport Versus Neptune Road, Photographing Boston’s ‘War’ of 1973 “I look at these photographs and feel the overwhelming sensation of the noise of these low-flying...
3 weeks ago
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“I look at these photographs and feel the overwhelming sensation of the noise of these low-flying aircraft. Yet I could leave what seemed like a war zone. And it was a kind of war, long-time residents trying for normalcy and the powers that be wanting them out.” – Michael Philip...
TheCollector
The Art of Deception: How WWII Was Won With Trickery In 1939, World War II erupted in Europe. This war, mechanized with tanks, trucks, and fighter...
3 weeks ago
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In 1939, World War II erupted in Europe. This war, mechanized with tanks, trucks, and fighter planes, was faster and more mobile than any previous conflict. To gain an advantage over similarly matched rivals, both the Allied and Axis powers added a significant new element to...
Trying to Understand...
It Gets Worse. This time, there will be consequences.
3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Was the Phoenician Trade Network? The Phoenicians’ success from the late Bronze Age on sat astride an already strong foundation. This...
3 weeks ago
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3 weeks ago
The Phoenicians’ success from the late Bronze Age on sat astride an already strong foundation. This base in what’s now Lebanon consisted of three successful trade hubs (Tyre, Sidon, and Byblos). With fewer opportunities inland, they took to the seas. They sailed west across the...
History Today Feed
What’s in a Pope’s Name? What’s in a Pope’s Name? JamesHoare Wed, 08/06/2025 - 09:03
3 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is the Book of Ezekiel About? From the first chapter, the Book of Ezekiel is packed with vivid imagery and colorful descriptions...
3 weeks ago
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From the first chapter, the Book of Ezekiel is packed with vivid imagery and colorful descriptions of God’s warnings to his people about the impending destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. Like Jeremiah, Ezekiel pivots later to messages of hope and restoration, calling on the...
History Today Feed
The Islamic Ethics of the Wine Tax The Islamic Ethics of the Wine Tax JamesHoare Tue, 08/05/2025 - 09:06
4 weeks ago
TheCollector
The Statue of Athena Parthenos: Everything You Need to Know The statue of Athena Parthenos was a large-scale ivory and gold statue created in the 5th century...
4 weeks ago
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4 weeks ago
The statue of Athena Parthenos was a large-scale ivory and gold statue created in the 5th century BCE and dedicated to the goddess in the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis. The larger-than-life devotional image of one of ancient Greece’s most important goddesses was considered...
History Today Feed
‘The Colonialist’ by William Kelleher Storey review ‘The Colonialist’ by William Kelleher Storey review JamesHoare Mon, 08/04/2025 - 09:08
4 weeks ago
TheCollector
What Is the Book of Daniel About? The Book of Daniel contains some of the most iconic scenes from the Bible. Children’s Bibles often...
4 weeks ago
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4 weeks ago
The Book of Daniel contains some of the most iconic scenes from the Bible. Children’s Bibles often depict Daniel in the lion’s den, or his friends in the fiery furnace. Yet, there is much more to Daniel than fantastic stories to entertain children. It holds significant lessons...
Dreams of Space -...
Merry Mouse and His Trip to the Moon (1953) My next 4 posts are celebrating children's illustrated fiction about going to the Moon. Even though...
a month ago
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a month ago
My next 4 posts are celebrating children's illustrated fiction about going to the Moon. Even though I have been collecting these children's book for over 30 years it still is very exciting to find one that you never knew existed. Jack Coggins was an amazing space artist in the...
Flashbak
I Am a Stranger in This Country: An Outsider Photographs Britain and Ireland’s Travellers In I Am a Stranger in This Country Berlin-based photograph Frederik Rüegger shows us pictures from...
a month ago
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a month ago
In I Am a Stranger in This Country Berlin-based photograph Frederik Rüegger shows us pictures from the two years he spent visiting the Roma and Traveller communities in Britain and Ireland. The book’s title is a nod to his reflects his status as a foreigner abroad and the...
TheCollector
How the Hospitallers Lost the Holy Land but Survived the Ages During the Crusades, warriors devoted themselves to protecting the Holy Land from attack, dedicating...
a month ago
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a month ago
During the Crusades, warriors devoted themselves to protecting the Holy Land from attack, dedicating themselves to God, the Church, and their mission. Several orders of devout knights emerged, the most famous of which was the Knights Templar, but another well-known order was the...
A Collection of...
Collections: Life, Work, Death and the Peasant, Part IIIa: Family Formation This is the first part of the third part of our series (I, II) discussing the patterns of life of...
a month ago
32
a month ago
This is the first part of the third part of our series (I, II) discussing the patterns of life of the pre-modern peasants who made up the great majority of all humans who lived in our agrarian past and indeed a majority of all humans who have ever lived. Last week, we looked at...
TheCollector
The Musket Wars That Changed Māori Society Forever The Musket Wars, which occurred from the early 1800s to the 1840s, brought about a significant...
a month ago
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a month ago
The Musket Wars, which occurred from the early 1800s to the 1840s, brought about a significant transformation in Māori society and warfare. This four-decades-long conflict was characterized by the widespread use of muskets, which had been introduced (both willingly and...
Patterns in Humanity
Immigration and crime in the Nordics A collection, description and visualization of data from the Nordic countries
a month ago
TheCollector
The Tumultuous Ottoman Interregnum (Bayezid’s Fall & Civil War) Under Sultan Bayezid, “The Thunderbolt,” the Ottoman Empire had a series of stunning military...
a month ago
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a month ago
Under Sultan Bayezid, “The Thunderbolt,” the Ottoman Empire had a series of stunning military victories in the Balkans and Western Asia. However, Bayezid’s ambitions placed him in the path of the Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, who captured the Sultan in battle. Known as the...
Res Obscura
OpenAI's "Study Mode" and the risks of flattery Serious learning requires friction, frustration... and other humans
a month ago
TheCollector
How the Crusades Reshaped Medieval Europe From 1096 to about 1300 CE, during the Middle Ages in Europe, European monarchs and other royals...
a month ago
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From 1096 to about 1300 CE, during the Middle Ages in Europe, European monarchs and other royals sent armies to the Holy Land in the Middle East to attempt to secure the city of Jerusalem and surrounding territory for Christendom. These “holy wars,” fought between Christians and...
Flashbak
Teenagers in Their Bedrooms in the 1990s “Our bedrooms tell stories about us. They become the repository for memories, desire and self-image”...
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“Our bedrooms tell stories about us. They become the repository for memories, desire and self-image” – American photographer Adrienne Salinger   When Adrienne Salinger first published her portraits of teenagers in their bedrooms in the 1990s, the American photographer wanted In...
TheCollector
5 Alluring Female Portraits Painted by Gustav Klimt Gustav Klimt redefined the modern female portrait. He introduced elements that were previously...
a month ago
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a month ago
Gustav Klimt redefined the modern female portrait. He introduced elements that were previously reserved for decorative arts or medieval icons. Klimt used gold, restless geometrical shapes, and dazzling enamel-like colors. While most portraitists of his time focused on showing...
History Today Feed
Mental Health and the 17th-Century Ship’s Doctor Mental Health and the 17th-Century Ship’s Doctor JamesHoare Thu, 07/31/2025 - 08:19
a month ago
TheCollector
What Did Sargon of Akkad and Sargon of Assyria Have in Common? Sargon of Akkad (ruled c. 2334-2279 BCE) and Sargon II of Assyria (ruled 721-705 BCE) were two of...
a month ago
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Sargon of Akkad (ruled c. 2334-2279 BCE) and Sargon II of Assyria (ruled 721-705 BCE) were two of the greatest rulers in ancient Near Eastern history. Despite sharing the same name, the two men were from different dynasties and lived more than 1,500 years and hundreds of miles...
Trying to Understand...
Living With Russia. The alternative is what, exactly?
a month ago
TheCollector
7 Unusual Saints of the Middle Ages During the Middle Ages, devout Christians venerated holy people known as saints. As everyday...
a month ago
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a month ago
During the Middle Ages, devout Christians venerated holy people known as saints. As everyday Christians made it through the struggles of life, they found comfort by identifying with saints, some of whom had extremely strange and unusual stories, or vitae. As strange as some of...
History Today Feed
Charles de Gaulle is Sentenced to Death Charles de Gaulle is Sentenced to Death JamesHoare Wed, 07/30/2025 - 09:02
a month ago
TheCollector
What the Book of Nahum Says About the Fall of Nineveh Nahum prophesied about the imminent destruction of Nineveh and, by extension, the Assyrian Empire,...
a month ago
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Nahum prophesied about the imminent destruction of Nineveh and, by extension, the Assyrian Empire, though he did not prophesy directly to them. Instead, he brought his message to an audience in Judah that gained much hope from the news that Nineveh was about to fall. The Kingdom...
Flashbak
Saving Jesus: An Interview with Broadcasting Legend Melvyn Bragg, 1984 “I wear suits now basically because it’s easier if you are doing a television programme to wear the...
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“I wear suits now basically because it’s easier if you are doing a television programme to wear the same thing all the time. You don’t want to go in way over the programme. It’s another way to get people to forget about me and concentrate on the person I am talking to.” – Melvyn...