Art · Museums · Paris

Allegories of the Seasons on Rouen faience from the Nicolas Fouquay manufactory, 1730s

The Seasons. Rouen faience, Nicolas Fouquay manufactory, 1730s. The anthropomorphic allegories of the seasons take their cue from the style of Ovid's "Metamorphoses". Winter is represented by a pensive old man. The Rouen faience manufactory is known for the virtuosity of its masters, and it is

Faith · Art · Rome · Ethnography

Wooden Nativity Scene from Sutrio Installed in Saint Peter's Square

This year's Christmas crib for Saint Peter's Square in the Vatican was made in the northern Italian village of Sutrio, in the province of Udine. All the figures are made entirely of wood, and the hemisphere above them symbolises the grotto in which the Holy Family

Art · Museums

As it is International Skating Day, let us recall the most famous painting on the subject

Sir Henry Raeburn, founder of the Scottish school of painting, “The Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch”, 1784, National Gallery of Scotland

Art · Observations · Humour

You will say: what a splendid portrait of Louise de La Vallière, attributed to Pierre Mignard, with an estimate of a mere €100,000

I will say: MADAM, RESPECT THE LABOUR OF CLEANERS

Archaeology · Art · Museums

The Charioteer of Delphi, one of the most photographed statues in the world, sometimes called the Mona Lisa of Ancient Greece, was created between 470 and 466 BC and has survived to our day, or rather to its discovery in the spring of 1896, thanks to a la

The Charioteer of Delphi, one of the most photographed statues in the world, sometimes called the Mona Lisa of Ancient Greece, was created between 470 and 466 BC and has survived to our day, or rather to its discovery in the spring of 1896, thanks to a landslide brought down

Art · Monarchies · Humour

Napoleon Converses with Francis II after the Battle of Austerlitz

Napoleon converses with Francis II after the Battle of Austerlitz. Pierre-Paul Prud'hon, 1809. A pity that no one ever told him those breeches fit dreadfully

Faith · Art · Observations · Ethnography

Madonna delle Milizie in Scicli and the legend of the rescue of Sicily from the Saracens in 1091

The Madonna delle Milizie from the church in the comune of Scicli is a unique representation of the Mother of God as a horsewoman on a white steed. According to legend, it was the Madonna herself, appearing in a radiant cloud on horseback, who saved Sicily from capture by the

NB! · Art · Mores · Humour

This fellow has been receiving his friends without leaving his bed since about 1653

This fellow has been receiving his friends without leaving his bed since about 1653. Beer, wine and tobacco as the marks of idle dissipation, already in the days of the Dutch Golden Age and in the lifetime of the artist Gesina ter Borch

NB! · Faith · Art · Heritage

In the transept of the Catholic church of Saint-Mamboeuf, in the Burgundian Deanery of Charmont-Montbéliard, two monumental canvases hang facing each other: a Deposition of Christ dated 1902, and a painting of 1921 showing the burial of a soldier of the F

NB! · Art · London · Museums · Mores · Humour

This 11-year-old English boy from 1660 has a very cool cap, even by modern standards

Coming Up · Art · Books · Observations

A selection of eight books on history and art from Alpina Non-Fiction and Garage

NonFic is approaching, so I want to share some of the books recently sent to me for review that are worth hunting out at the fair's stands. 1. "A Little History of the World" by Ernst Gombrich. For people of any age who would like to

Detail of a painting: a young nude woman looks back over her shoulder while infant cupids hold a white veil above her.

Art · Humour

Painting “The Toilet of Venus” attributed to Jean-Honoré Fragonard

Madam, Cover Yourself! The Toilet of Venus, attributed to Jean-Honoré Fragonard