NB! · Archive · New York · People · Pop Culture
Latest
Archaeology · Archive · Architecture · Books · Rome
Montaigne on the ruins of ancient Rome beneath the foundations of new buildings
The ancient Roman would not have recognised the layout of his own city, were he to behold it. It has often happened that, on digging deep into the earth, men have struck the top of a very tall column which "still stood at its full height below." For
Books · Society · People
Silver coin with the mayors of Glupov from “The History of a Town”
Bank of Russia issues a 2-rouble coin to mark the 200th anniversary of Saltykov-Shchedrin. The coin is struck in 925 sterling silver, is circular in form with a diameter of 33 mm, and contains 15.55 grams of pure precious metal. The mintage will be 3,000 pieces.
Archive · Moscow · Observations · Science
The Screen Around Us
The screen around us. A robot converses with visitors at the "Electrification of the USSR" pavilion. Do you know what year it was? 1959. It looks like the future, yet it was sixty years ago. So what is it that surprises us all so much now? Photo from
Archive · Moscow · Nature
Gaspard, but Not Noé
In the Moscow Zoo of the 1930s, as a matter of fact, there was a pair of hippopotamuses, a male, Peter, and a female, Greta, and in 1943 they had a calf, August. Peter and Greta lived on into the 1980s. And now we know that besides them there was
Archive · Faith · Cinema
The Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church marking the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus', held in June 1988 in Zagorsk, now Sergiev Posad
At this council Prince Dmitry Donskoy, Andrey Rublev, Maximus the Greek, Metropolitan Macarius, Paisius Velichkovsky, the Blessed Xenia of Saint Petersburg, Ignatius (Brianchaninov), Ambrose of Optina and Theophan the Recluse were glorified among the saints. The celebration of the jubilee is shown in the 1989 documentary film “The Local Council
NB! · Cinema · Observations · Pop Culture · Humour
No Better Combo Than Einstein and Mr Bean Could Possibly Be Devised
No better combo than Einstein and Mr Bean could possibly be devised. Any thoughts as to why they are there?
Geography · Science
This spring, astronomers of the international Event Horizon Telescope project plan to film the first video of a black hole in history, having chosen for the shoot a cosmic object the size of the Solar System with a mass of 6 billion suns
The Event Horizon Telescope is a network of 12 radio telescopes located at different points of the globe, from Antarctica to Spain and Korea. In 2019 the astronomers of this project published the world's first image of the shadow of a black hole
Archive · Education · Society
Russia's Ministry of Education plans to give marks for conduct in Years 1 to 11 from 1 September
The proposal to introduce such marks was voiced at the Human Rights Council as long ago as 2024. On a trial basis, conduct marks have been awarded since the start of the 2025/26 school year in 89 schools in seven regions of Russia, each of which has chosen one
Listings · Moscow · Coming Up · Art · Museums
Exhibitions on Krasnopevtsev, Tolstoy and Soviet artists abroad
The Traditional Round-Up of Moscow's Exhibitions. 📌 Closing soon: the exhibition “Krasnopevtsev. The Balance of the Unequal” at the AZ/ART Museum, until 1 February 📌 The exhibition “A Private Collection” at the Our Artists gallery, until 1 March 📌 The exhibition “From the Patriotic War to the Decembrists. Icons,
Archive · Books
What can be said of Turgenev's works as a whole?
What can be said of Turgenev's works as a whole? That after reading them one breathes easily, believes easily, feels warmth? That one senses distinctly the moral level rising within oneself, and mentally blesses and loves the author? But these would be mere commonplaces, and yet it is
Architecture · Moscow · Heritage · Society
The four double-headed eagles of the Kremlin, removed in October 1935 and melted down
The double-headed eagles soared above the Moscow Kremlin for a very long time: until October 1935. It turns out that they witnessed not only the shelling of the Kremlin by artillery, the first parades in honour of the revolution, Lenin's speeches and Party mobilisations, but also the