Alexandra of Denmark's 1863 earrings worn by Elizabeth II, Diana and Camilla

Expectation versus reality: a collage.

Cam and Di in the very same earrings. Though, judging by the fact that Camilla's ears are not pierced, there are two possibilities: either they were glued on for her, or remade as clip-ons.

The original pair was presented to Alexandra of Denmark by the City of London Corporation on her marriage to the Prince of Wales in 1863, together with a necklace weighing more than one hundred and seventy carats. In the 1960s Elizabeth II commissioned new earrings from the family diamonds, recutting precisely this pair. Since then the earrings have been worn by Elizabeth herself and by Princess Diana, and last month Camilla appeared in them.

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Madonna with Cherubim in Milan's Brera: from Bellini to Mantegna

"Madonna with Cherubim" was long considered the work of Giovanni Bellini, until in 1885, during restoration, features characteristic of his chief rival, and incidentally his relative, Andrea Mantegna, came to light. What misled viewers was a softness uncharacteristic of Mantegna. Despite the established title, the Madonna and Child

Pushkin Museum refused the Ludwig collection over the branch name

The silliest thing about this renaming is its poor timing. For when the Pushkin Museum was offered, as a gift, the greatest collection of contemporary art of the second half of the twentieth century, the collection of Peter Ludwig, the very reason for the refusal was the condition that the

Yeeeehaw!

Voiture woke Count de Guiche at night to announce that he was married

The Comte de Guiche asked Vincent Voiture, a man renowned for his wit, whether it was true that he was married. Voiture gave no answer. But he came to the count after midnight, woke him and said: "I have come to tell you that I am married". De

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Madonna with Cherubim in Milan's Brera: from Bellini to Mantegna

Pushkin Museum refused the Ludwig collection over the branch name

Yeeeehaw!

Voiture woke Count de Guiche at night to announce that he was married