A coin showing a Megalosaurus, inscribed Buckland 1824, stands on its edge against a rock.

NB! · London · Palaeontology · Humour

British dinosaurs to appear on UK coins for the first time

At last, the native inhabitants of the planet will be shown the respect they deserve. British dinosaurs are to appear on the currency of the empire grrrrrr

Archaeology · Faith · Art · Humour

Anyone spending Valentine's Day alone will be under the patronage of the Lion-Headed Goddess, who is also standing alone at this party in the sanctuary of Thinissut, glass in hand, though wrapped in the hem of a sumptuous dress of feathers from some marve

Anyone spending Valentine's Day alone will be under the patronage of the Lion-Headed Goddess, who is also standing alone at this party in the sanctuary of Thinissut, glass in hand, though wrapped in the hem of a sumptuous dress of feathers from some marvellous bird, and is

A pair of gold sandals and gold finger stalls laid out in rows on a grey background, with a caption below.

NB! · Archaeology · Museums · New York · Humour

Gold sandals and finger stalls from the tomb of three foreign wives of Thutmose III

If one must stroll the afterlife in sandals, then with closed toes. Sandals and toe stalls of sheet gold, found in the tomb of the three foreign wives of Pharaoh Thutmose III: Menhet, Menwi and Merti. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Black and white photograph of a woman in a swimsuit standing in sea water, holding a long wooden board in front of a breakwater.

NB! · Mores · People · Humour

Agatha Christie took up surfing during her husband's tour of British Empire countries

Agatha Christie, meanwhile, learnt to surf thanks to her husband, who was busy organising the British Empire Exhibition. Agatha rode the waves on a board in South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Hawaii. She was most likely among the first Britons to master the sport, somewhere in the neighbourhood of

NB! · Archive · People · Humour

George Bernard Shaw with a primitive surfboard on the South African coast at the age of 75

Architecture · Observations · Humour

The Tower of São Vicente de Belém in Lisbon, early sixteenth century

vs The dacha of the oil magnate Steingel on the southern shore of Crimea, 1912 Incidentally, both structures are considerably smaller in reality than they appear in the photographs

Painted portrait of a woman in a golden dress with two children looking out from behind her shoulders, in a dark wooden frame.

NB! · Art · Humour

Portrait of a Mother with Two Children by John Cooper, 1725

Goggle-eyed children have gatecrashed mummy's selfie. 1725, John Cooper

NB! · Archaeology · Art · Cinema · Madrid · Museums · Humour

And More on Amusing Coincidences

And more on amusing coincidences. Princess Leia and the stone Lady of Elche, 4th century BC, Archaeological Museum of Madrid

Monarchies · Observations · Society · Humour

Battle of Karansebes, where the Austrian army defeated itself after a drunken brawl

The Battle of Caransebeș will go down in history as one of the most absurd engagements ever fought: the Austrian army managed to defeat itself. My thanks to Twitter's algorithmic feed for this staggering story. One is deeply sorry for the men who perished in this tragedy, yet

NB! · Aristocracy · Monarchies · Observations · Humour

Remember: if you see me in the guise of Leopold I, in full ceremonial dress and a gigantic headdress of white plumes with a peacock atop, it means I am returning with good news

Remember: if you see me in the guise of Leopold I, in full ceremonial dress and a gigantic headdress of white plumes with a peacock atop, it means I am returning with good news. If I appear as Prince Gundaker of Liechtenstein, with a sail of black feathers upon my

Museums · Mores · Humour

The Poor Man's Friend, a reusable condom with a steel spring, 1914

The Poor Man's Friend is an excellent solution for men of 1914 in straitened circumstances. A reusable condom, washable, and coiled up by means of a metal spiral at its base so that it may also serve as a female contraceptive. Thank God it is sold together with

Archive · Faith · Mores · Saint Petersburg · Humour

Metropolitan Isidore advised an acquaintance in 1888 to take his wife to a spring in Perm

A story comes to mind, told on the word of a participant in the events, which took place in the capital in early 1888. It concerns Isidore, Metropolitan of Novgorod, Saint Petersburg and Finland, who had conducted the funeral service for Alexander II and crowned Alexander III, and who was