Monarchies · Museums · Heritage · Paris

The cultural institutions of France have held sales of valuables before: recall the sale of the crown jewels in 1887

The cultural institutions of France have held sales of valuables before: recall the sale of the crown jewels in 1887. At the same time the state disposed of a great deal of truly valuable palace furniture on the pretext that it held no historical interest. Historians look with horror on

Coming Up · Art · Heritage · Society · Paris

Le Mobilier national to auction palace furniture during Heritage Days on 20 and 21 September

The French state agency Le Mobilier national, which is responsible for valuable works of art, furniture and interiors in government institutions, palaces and collections, will hold an unprecedented auction on Heritage Days, 20 and 21 September. All proceeds from the sale of palace furniture, paintings, hangings, bronzes and the like

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A series of works by the German artist Volker Hermes: Hidden Portraits

Archive · The East · Books · Monarchies

In A Glimpse of Empire, the artist and writer Jessica Douglas-Home's book on the visit of King George V and Queen Mary to India, the so-called Delhi Durbar held in honour of the coronation, and based on her grandmother's diaries, there is…

King George, who attached little importance to appearances and their effects, was dressed in a military uniform and helmet, and rode on horseback. The Queen followed behind him in sumptuous attire, drawing the attention of the gawping crowds. George simply got lost among the generals, and, looking at the magnificently

Old oil painting of a nude man and woman seated beneath a tree with a serpent, with a lion lying nearby and doves in the foreground.

Art · Observations · Humour

Johann Militz, a representative of Austrian painting of the 18th century

God forbid, of course, to find oneself in paradise with such an Adam. Johann Militz, an Austrian artist of the eighteenth century

Museums · Mores · Humour

An American in the early 20th century made himself jaws with coyote teeth from toothbrushes

In the early twentieth century a poor but resourceful American had no teeth, so he melted down two toothbrushes, shaped the plastic as required and made himself a new set of jaws with coyote teeth. When, in the 1940s, a professional dentist heard the inventor's story, he offered

Science · Society · People

In 1952, Alan Turing, without exaggeration one of the most outstanding British scientists of his time, was convicted of gross indecency: he was obliged to admit to a homosexual relationship, unlawful in the United Kingdom…

In 1952, Alan Turing, without exaggeration one of the most outstanding British scientists of his time, was convicted of gross indecency: he was obliged to admit to a homosexual relationship, unlawful in the United Kingdom, after his flat was burgled by a 19-year-old labourer with whom Turing had

Charcoal and pencil drawing of the Arc de Triomphe wrapped in silvery blue fabric and red ropes, with grid lines and handwritten measurements in the margins.

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Project to wrap the Arc de Triomphe in Paris: drawing by Christo

Architecture · Art · Museums · Observations · Paris

Christo's project to wrap the Arc de Triomphe in Paris is postponed to 2021

It has been announced that the artist Christo Javacheff's grandiose project to wrap the Arc de Triomphe in Paris is postponed from this autumn to 2021. The married duo of pioneering artists, Christo and Jeanne-Claude (who died in 2009), who won worldwide fame for their art projects

NB! · Art · Humour

The Swiss artist Félix Vallotton (1865-1925) shows the respectful distance one is expected to keep when strolling through a wood

NB! · Architecture · Heritage · Society · People

The Shakhmatovo estate, where Blok spent 36 of the 40 years of his life, was plundered in 1918

The Shakhmatovo estate, where Blok spent 36 of the 40 years of his life, was plundered in 1918. The furnishings and furniture were sold off at auction. In July 1921 the house and its outbuildings burned down, most probably set alight through carelessness or plain, dull-witted spite.

Alexandr Radayev