Books · Monarchies · Heritage · Society

The Mirror of Law in the Offices of the Russian Empire and the Ritual of Its Consecration

In 1722 Peter I introduced a special mass-produced form of state insignia, the Zertsalo, which remained an obligatory attribute of the institutions of the Russian Empire until 1917. The symbol of the supremacy of law took the form of a wooden prism with three panels, crowned with the state

NB! · Cinema · People · Pop Culture

Photographs taken by Viggo Mortensen on the set of The Lord of the Rings

NB! · Art

"The Witching Hour", Andrew Wyeth, 1977

Cinema · Observations · Humour

Does it not strike you that a spyglass is most conveniently put to the eye on the same side as the hand that holds it?

Does it not strike you that a spyglass is most conveniently put to the eye on the same side as the hand that holds it? Clearly not the left hand to the right eye. The question, properly speaking, is for Tsar Saltan, from what is probably the finest screen adaptation

Geography · Maps · Society

Provinces of pre-revolutionary France and their replacement by departments during the Revolution

Map of the French provinces before their abolition and division into departments in 1789. Before the Revolution, France was divided into provinces, many of which go back to medieval kingdoms and feudal territories. These provinces differed considerably in their laws, customs and administrative systems. During the Revolution they were replaced

NB! · Society

On the Overthrow of the Provisional Government

Architecture · Moscow · Heritage · Society

On 28 July the Moscow City Court rejected the administrative claim brought by Arkhnadzor and Muscovites who joined its appeal against the mayor's office and the Moscow City Duma

The claim concerned Article 17 of the new city law on cultural heritage sites, adopted by the Moscow City Duma. The article allows sites to be struck off the list of identified monuments not on the strength of a historical and cultural appraisal, nor by decision of the relevant councils

Art · London · Museums · Society

London's Tate Modern has been the most visited museum of modern art since 2014, except in 2021, when the lead passed to the Centre Pompidou in Paris and to MoMA in New York

In recent years, however, the museum has faced falling attendance, especially among foreign visitors, who make up its core audience. In 2019–2020, for instance, there were more than 600,000 young people aged 16 to 24; in 2023–2024 there were only 357,000. The Art Newspaper writes that

NB! · Architecture · Books · Museums

Goethe's House in Weimar

Archive · Faith · The East · Society

Balamand Monastery in Lebanon and the Decline of the Country's Christian Population

A Lebanese Orthodox priest at the Balamand Stauropegic Monastery of the Dormition, situated 80 kilometres north of Beirut. Photograph by Marilyn Stafford, 1960. The Balamand Monastery is one of the oldest foundations in the Patriarchate of Antioch, with a history stretching back more than 850 years. The number of Christians

Archaeology · Observations · Paris

Digest of July publications on Charlie Hebdo, excavations at Pompeii and Ithaca, and La Scala

July gives way to August, time for a digest of the month's publications. Charlie Hebdo, archaeological discoveries, underground luxury factories, ancient Greek heroes, French actresses and much more in a selection of the channel's key materials 📌 The personal recollections of the daughter of the founder of

In the Press · Mores · People · Humour

A dispute over hummus in Germany and broken food taboos in Israel and India

The philosopher Slavoj Žižek writes on Substack about his eating habits:. What I hate most of all is the politically correct politicisation of food. Recently in Germany I had a conflict with friends who wanted to go to a Lebanese place, but I hate hummus, which reminds me of the

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