NB! · Architecture · Observations · Paris

Spiral Staircases of Paris Are a Love Affair of Their Own

Dark terracotta bust of a man with curled hair tied with a ribbon, on a plinth before a large mirror in an interior with a marble floor.

NB! · Art · Observations · Pop Culture · Humour

Bust of a Man in Patinated Terracotta by Jean-Jacques Caffieri

Why do lifestyle bloggers all have such cheekbones? That was my first thought on looking at this patinated terracotta by Jean-Jacques Caffieri. Incidentally, the bust before us is of a man

Museums · Observations · Humour

French Lessons

French lessons. Le fou en ville A fool in town. Remember it. That is what we call a person who, instead of going to a museum, chooses a shop.

NB! · Pop Culture · Humour

How to tell that you dress like a fool

Faith · Art · Museums · Observations · Rome

Guido Reni's Moses, painted between 1620 and 1625, and the influence of Caravaggio

And although the song most apt to the occasion went "don't lose it and don't break it", the masterpiece by Guido Reni in the Galleria Borghese is called "Moses Breaking the Tablets of the Law" The canvas dates from 1620-1625. By

On a white wall hang a huge dark fork, a golden pear with a leaf and a dark lobster, each with a label beneath it.

NB! · Observations · Humour

Giant metal fork, pear and lobster shown on an exhibition wall

Good morning and bon appétit! Until you have finished the giant metal pear and Pinky the lobster, nobody leaves the table. Here is a fork; I shall be back to inspect.

Armchair with curved legs, dark leather upholstery and gilt bronze mounts. Behind it stand two gilded writing desks, a vase and a painting of a nude figure.

NB!

Rococo-style armchair with gilt bronze mounts and leather upholstery

Art · Paris · People

Louis XV style cabinet by the Parisian cabinetmaker François Linke

A magnificent desk in the style of Louis XV, not to be confused with Louis XIV. A model by François Linke (1855-1946). The desk is richly decorated with gilt bronze in the form of foliage, flowers and frames that pick out every line of the piece. On the front

A gilded pet house with pale blue velvet upholstery, a vaulted roof and an arched entrance stands on a wooden floor among antiques.

NB! · Monarchies · Mores · Pop Culture · Humour

House for a dog and cat, identical to Marie Antoinette's, bought for 800 euros

A dog-and-cat house exactly like Marie Antoinette's. Bought for 800 euros

Painting in a gilded frame: a nude Leda embraces a swan, two children at her feet, a landscape with a river and hills behind.

NB! · Art · Observations

Leda and the Swan, a painting by an artist from Leonardo da Vinci's circle, made before 1517

Leda and the Swan, artist from the circle of Leonardo da Vinci, before 1517. And not a crowd of tourists in sight

Mores · Humour

Pushkin

Pushkin. Tea from China and Ceylon, flavoured with citrus fruits (orange and lemon). Very popular in Russia. You cannot imagine how popular

NB! · Museums · Paris · Pop Culture · Humour

Meanwhile, Harry Nuriev has made a merchandise collection for the Louvre, with glittering notebooks, plates at €390 and a Winged Victory of Samothrace coated in silver paint

Alexandr Radayev