Archaeology · In the Press · Faith · Art · Books · Museums · Science
In the finale of the Strugatskys' Roadside Picnic, the Golden Ball is told: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to offend nobody, but the digest really does come free of charge. So, here is the main business of the
The East · Archaeology · Faith · Observations · Ethnography
A Case in Which the Image of an Ancient Nubian Ruler Could Be Mistaken for a Figure of Christ. The petroglyph from Misida (2) in northern Sudan, near the Third Cataract of the Nile, consists of a male figure about two and a half metres tall and two goats. The
Faith · People · Rome
Faith · Observations · Society · Paris · Humour
I Don't Care for Such Familiarity, but What Will the Pope Say? On 18 September the Vatican declined several protocol proposals from the Élysée Palace, including the Legion of Honour and a visit to Notre-Dame. On 25 September Leo XIV publicly reprimanded Macron: war, euthanasia, the abandonment
Architecture · Faith · Observations · Heritage
Palekh has a remarkable Church of the Exaltation of the Cross with an interesting tent-roofed bell tower. The people of Palekh built it all together, from 1762 to 1774. In Saint Petersburg at that time Rastrelli was giving way to Vallin de la Mothe, while in the Vladimir lands
Faith · Society
On the evening of 26 September Pope Leo XIV flew by helicopter to Lourdes as part of his apostolic visit to France. At the Massabielle Grotto the Pope led a prayer service attended by numerous pilgrims. Before the statue of the Mother of God, Leo XIV touched the rock of
The Golden Age · NB! · Archive · Faith · Mores
Faith · Architecture · The East · Heritage
Restoration of a tenth-century church has been completed in the Georgian village of Didi Kldeisi in Tetritskaro Municipality. Tetritskaro Municipality lies in the Kvemo Kartli region in the south of Georgia. After its restoration, the church was consecrated in honour of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of
Cinema · Faith · Books · Society · Pop Culture
A scandal is brewing in American religious circles over Meryl Streep voicing Aslan the Lion. Greta Gerwig's film "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew" is due to reach cinemas in February 2027. Clive Staples Lewis wrote seven books in the "Chronicles of Narnia" cycle,
Architecture · Moscow · Faith · Heritage · Society
The Bell Tower of the Strastnoy Monastery as a Beacon of Anti-Religious Propaganda. The bell tower of the Strastnoy Monastery, demolished in 1937, was used in the Soviet years for anti-religious propaganda and for advertising Communist ideas: the monastery had been closed since 1919 and housed the Central
NB! · Archive · Architecture · Faith · Moscow · Heritage
The “Annushka” tram on Malaya Dmitrovka in 1896. Straight ahead is the Cathedral of the Passion Icon of the Mother of God, part of the Strastnoy Monastery, demolished in 1937. On the left is the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin in Putinki, built in 1652 and surviving to
Archaeology · Faith · Science
A pendant of copper alloy, dated to the eleventh century, has been found in Staraya Russa. One side shows a warrior with a spear and shield, presumably a Christian saint; the other, a head with snakes, reminiscent of Medusa. Such objects are known as zmeeviki ("serpent amulets"). Four