Archive · Architecture · Art · People

Henri Cartier-Bresson's Famous Photograph of Young People Gazing at a Ceiling Was Taken Not in the Louvre but in the Rotunda of the American Capitol in 1957

Henri Cartier-Bresson's famous photograph of young people gazing at a ceiling was taken not in the Louvre but in the Rotunda of the American Capitol in 1957. The young people are looking not merely at a ceiling but at one of the most beautiful domes in the

Observations · Pop Culture · Humour

In Jacques Offenbach's operetta "Orpheus in the Underworld", Pluto arrives on Olympus with a stick of sausage and on skis, and the Olympian gods, tired of ambrosia, are ready to stage a revolution

In Jacques Offenbach's operetta "Orpheus in the Underworld", Pluto arrives on Olympus with a stick of sausage and on skis, and the Olympian gods, tired of ambrosia, are ready to stage a revolution. Jupiter, meanwhile, turns into a fly, seduces Eurydice and gives himself up to

Art · Moscow · Museums · Society

Sergey Bocharov's portrait of the Night Witches and the 46th Guards Regiment's combat record

Group Portrait of the Heroine Airwomen of the 46th Guards Taman Night Bomber Aviation Regiment, Order of the Red Banner and Order of Suvorov, by Sergey Bocharov, 1985. The painting was acquired by the Central House of Aviation and Cosmonautics of DOSAAF, where it is on display to this day.

A blurred black-and-white photograph or print with a dark figure, in a light frame with a wide mat. It stands on a table; the edge of another frame is visible beside it.

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Black-and-white portrait in a frame with a mat

Aristocracy · Archive · Monarchies · Mores

Windsor family photographs on the drawing room piano, four generations and the Danish sisters

A few days ago King Charles III met the acting Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, at Sandringham House. Let us try to examine the furnishings of the drawing room in which such meetings take place. On the piano stands a row of family photographs. King George V and Queen

Archaeology · Museums · Paris

Bronze Tyche found in Paris in 1675 and regarded as the patron goddess of Lutetia

The goddess of chance Tyche was depicted not only with a cornucopia and a ship's rudder, but also wearing a crown in the form of city walls. Popular in the Hellenistic age, the goddess was regarded as the patroness of cities. Female statues with a fortress tower on

NB! · Observations · Humour

A reminder not to stay up too late on the internet ✅

A long-haired, gray-bearded man in a blue police uniform with a badge sits on a motorcycle before a house and trees. A gothic-style caption below reads Policeman Théoden.

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Police officer on a motorcycle in a frame captioned Policeman Théoden

NB! · Cinema · Observations

My Favourite Sitcom

Archive · Faith · Art · Observations · Humour

Hansken and other known elephants in Europe, and doubts over six elephants in Mantua

A festive float drawn by three pairs of elephants at Mantua, during the celebrations in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1640. Most probably we are looking at a diverting fantasy, for elephants in the Europe of that age could be counted on the fingers of one hand. To

NB! · Cinema · Observations · Humour

Tarkovsky to the Rescue, Lads!

Archive · Moscow · Society · People

Artist Valery Yurlov recalls the crush at Stalin's funeral in Moscow

And then, when Stalin was being buried, I walked past the coffin. There was a terrible crush, and I reached the coffin only because I walked over people's heads. Quite literally. I was with a friend, a former soldier, who knew the area very well, since he lived

Alexandr Radayev