NB! · Archive · Monarchies · People · Nature
Queen Victoria and her Pomeranian Turi, whom she asked to keep beside her on her deathbed
Queen Victoria with her beloved Pomeranian Spitz, Turi. The Queen asked that Turi be at her side on her deathbed
Alexandr Radayev
NB! · Observations · Society · Humour
If anyone still doesn't know what true love is, I, for one, have spent 334 hours talking about how grandmothers in the USSR received no pension
Aristocracy · Archive · Monarchies · Observations
Group photo of European princes and Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich in Denmark
When you truly love one another, borders become no more than lines on the political map of the world. The proof is a group photograph of European princes at an aristocratic gathering in Denmark. From left to right: Carl of Sweden, Christian of Denmark (the future King of Denmark and
Cinema · Museums · Observations · Paris
This week the Louvre hosted the filming of several scenes from The Three Musketeers, directed by Martin Bourboulon
This week the Louvre hosted the filming of several scenes from The Three Musketeers, directed by Martin Bourboulon. A few dozen horsemen are riding about the museum's inner courtyard; let us hope that during production someone remembers to photoshop out the blue bins in the background. The film
NB! · Art · Observations · People
“Men liked to put me down as the best woman painter. I think I'm one of the best painters”
“Men liked to put me down as the best woman painter. I think I'm one of the best painters,” said Georgia O'Keeffe. Self-assurance was never something the old girl (1887-1986) was short of.
NB! · Archive · Architecture · Moscow
The Construction of Lenin's Mausoleum
Moscow · Observations · Society Pages · Humour
A Covid Scarecrow in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall
A Covid scarecrow in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall. They say that the innovation of the organisers from the Moscow Ensemble of Contemporary Music is in fact some fearfully expensive and elaborate microphone. I am in the eighth row, in the eighth row, do pick me out, maestro!
Art · Saint Petersburg · Humour
The VNEGR Mark on Leningrad Porcelain Factory Wares and What It Meant
What do you mean, VNEGR? What year do you think this is? VNEGR was a mark of the Leningrad Porcelain Factory that designated items made outside the 15 groups adopted in production, that is, the factory's division by complexity of work and artistic value. As a rule, pieces
Faith · Society · People
Sister André of Toulon, the oldest resident of Europe, has turned 118
Sister André, a Catholic nun and the oldest resident of Europe, has turned 118. Born Lucile Randon, she came into the world on 11 February 1904. In 1944 she became a nun of the congregation of the Daughters of Charity. Sister André now lives in Toulon, in France. Last year
Books · People · Humour
Marcel Achard, French playwright and screenwriter
I don't mind people looking at their watches while I lecture, but I can't bear it when they hold them to their ears to check that they haven't stopped. The French playwright and screenwriter Marcel Achard
London · Observations · Education · Society
Under £20,000 a year for a job that requires a doctorate and full-time commitment
Under £20,000 a year for a job that requires a doctorate and full-time commitment. And this offer comes from Oxford. How does that strike you, siiiir? New College, one of the most prosperous in Oxford, invites historians to take up a one-year post as something between a
Coming Up · Art · Moscow · People
Works by Kyiv artist Nelli Isupova at the Rituals exhibition in Moscow
Several years ago Vogue Ukraine ran a piece on the celebrated Kyiv artist Nelli Isupova. The vivid, instantly recognisable works of this woman, who became one of the centres of cultural life in the Ukrainian capital and stood at the origins of the artistic destiny of Andriivsky Descent, can at