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Map of Emperor Hadrian's Journeys Across the Provinces of the Roman Empire

Map of the travels of Emperor Hadrian through the towns and provinces of the Roman Empire. Hadrian did not begin his reign in Rome, and he went on to spend it in perpetual motion, setting off now for Germany, now for Britain, now for the East: he oversaw the building

Archive · Geography · Science · Humour

The Holtermann Nugget, found in Australia in 1872, and its photomontage

When you are the largest gold nugget in the world and your only virtue is to shine. ps The so-called Holtermann Nugget was found in Australia in 1872. The 285-kilogram behemoth contained 83 kg of pure gold, which is to say that it was still 70% slag. The

Geography · Maps · Books · Observations · Humour

Map of Britain in a 1961 Soviet book and the wrong placement of Nottinghamshire

The authors of a curious little book, "Atomic Energy in Aviation and Rocket Technology" (1961), seem to be asking us: what, exactly, matters most in a map? Fidelity of scale, beauty of line, the number of dragons and sea monsters in the margins, the power to frighten, or,

Colour geological map of France with shaded relief, French lettering and a legend in the lower left corner.

NB! · Geography · Maps · Observations

The geological map of France and how it differs from political maps

Firstly, it is very beautiful. A geological map of France. And secondly, political maps are simply dull

NB! · Geography · Maps · Observations · Society · Humour

Germany and Russia

Germany and Russia. And Poland between them, naturally; how could it be otherwise. One date I have prudently blurred out, simply because I am not sure whether, where we are, mentioning it nowadays merely lands one in prison or has already progressed to the firing squad.

Geography · Maps · Books · Monarchies

Sergey Nikitin, in his book "The Land of Names" (NLO, 2020) on historical onomastics in Russia, relates, for example, that Paul I, soon after his accession, renamed Yekaterinoslav, Feodosia and Sevastopol, all named under Catherine the Great, to…

Novorossiysk is, in principle, clear enough: the new name was tied to that of the whole region, Russia's southern Russian acquisitions. But Kafa and Akhtiar? The former is found as early as Afanasy Nikitin; it was what the Genoese called Feodosia, and after them the Turks who seized

NB! · Architecture · Faith · Geography · Heritage

This is a church in the village of Krokhino, near Beloye Lake on the River Sheksna

This is a church in the village of Krokhino, near Beloye Lake on the River Sheksna. In 1961 it was flooded during the creation of the Sheksna Reservoir. Funds are now being raised for the restoration and conservation of the remains of the church, which rises above a small islet.

Tourists walk across a flooded square past a building with an arcade and a brick wall, their reflections and the façades mirrored in the water.

NB! · Geography · Nature · Reportage

Minor flooding in the square in front of the Archaeological Museum in Venice

Venice today. A small deluge in the square in front of the Archaeological Museum

Geography · Art · Maps · Monarchies · Humour

A half-naked lady with a remarkable coiffure sits enthroned upon a sumptuous chariot drawn by two exceedingly large armadillos

A half-naked lady with a remarkable coiffure sits enthroned upon a sumptuous chariot drawn by two exceedingly large armadillos. Why, this is America, of course! One guesses it at the first glance. At any rate, this is the image chosen for that enchanting part of the world by Jean

Coming Up · Geography · Museums · Society

Museum train on the Great Patriotic War travels across Belarus from 11 to 28 June

There are flat-museums, open-air museums, museums that are natural sites, tiny little museums and, for instance, museums on wheels. One such train has set off from Russia for Belarus. It is planned to travel around the country from 11 to 28 June, and the number of potential visitors

Map of Europe with red dots marking places with “saint” in their name, densest in France, Spain, Italy and Greece.

NB! · Faith · Geography · Maps · Observations · Humour

Map of European settlements with names containing the word “Saint”

This map marks every European town whose name begins with the root Saint, "Holy" (in the national languages, naturally). One is tempted, of course, to say: France, Spain and Italy, pray for us

NB! · Architecture · Geography · Observations

Never before had I seen a monument to ore

Never before had I seen a monument to ore. Still less a double one. The plaques commemorate the days on which the first and the billionth tonnes of iron ore were extracted at the quarry of the Mikhailovsky GOK in 1960 and 2004 respectively