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Santa Claus on a toy-laden sleigh drawn by turkeys in a photograph from 1909
How do you like Santa in a sleigh drawn by turkeys? 1909
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Science · Mores · Nature · Humour
The Thirtieth American President, Calvin Coolidge, Gives His Name to an Effect in Biology Characterised by an Increase in Libido at the appearance of New Sexual Partners, Despite a Decline in Desire for the Existing One
The effect is believed to be named after Coolidge because of a curious incident that befell the President and his wife when they were visiting a poultry farm. Mrs Coolidge took an interest in the farm's productivity, and was told that the cocks could perform their duties many
Archaeology · Mores · Humour
Hairstyles like that of Federation Council member Valentina Petrenko were already fashionable in Ancient Rome
Hairstyles like that of Federation Council member Valentina Petrenko were already fashionable in Ancient Rome. Marciana, for instance, the sister of the Emperor Trajan, who lived in the 1st century AD, wore her hair in much the same manner. Elaborate chignons and specially braided plaits were arranged over wire frames,
Museums · Science · Mores · Humour
Francis Buckland's armchair made from the hospital bed of John Hunter
Now you know what the bastard offspring of a stool and a four-poster looks like. This dreadful armchair is possibly one of the most preposterous and uncomfortable pieces of furniture I have ever had occasion to see. And yet so hideous a throne is not merely a monument to
Books · Observations · People · Pop Culture · Humour
lol, fashion historian Alexander Vasiliev has given me a fashionable dressing-down for not citing his bestseller in my piece on Volkova
lol, fashion historian Alexander Vasiliev has given me a fashionable dressing-down for not citing his bestseller in my piece on Volkova. Needless to say, a great deal is written about the Russian spy in general, especially in the gutter press. But on the whole his "Beauty in Exile&
Art · Mores · Humour
Hans Baldung's painting “Woman and Death”
There is nothing so terrible in such a difference in age. Hans Baldung, Woman and Death
Aristocracy · Monarchies · Science · Humour
Eduard Habsburg challenges Daily Mail article on the causes of the Habsburg jaw
The Daily Mail has published a long article on the Habsburg jaw. Scientists maintain that the dynasty owes its hereditary facial deformity to two centuries of inbreeding among Europe's royal families. The text has outraged our old friend Eduard Habsburg, one of the present-day representatives of the
NB! · Art · Observations · Humour
The simplest answer to why I do not regard comparison with Oscar Wilde as a compliment
The simplest answer to why I do not regard comparison with Oscar Wilde as a compliment. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, 1895.
Archive · Observations · Pop Culture · Humour
Hat with cats by milliner Benjamin Green-Field in Life magazine, 16 July 1945
A hat with cats. IT. IS. GENIUS. An illustration from Life magazine of 16 July 1945. How I long for forty cats on the head to come back into fashion! Preferably with a ball of wool 🌝 The model is by the celebrated milliner Benjamin Green-Field, creator of the Bes-
Cinema · Monarchies · Observations · Humour
The Dauphin Louis in Michôd's Film on Agincourt and the Prince's Real Fate
One of the principal figures of the Battle of Agincourt in David Michôd's film is the Dauphin of France, Louis, played by Robert Pattinson: caricatured, arrogant, dim-witted, even vicious, absurd and clumsy, with a dreadful accent, and thank heavens at least not deformed. This, too, is a
Cinema · Monarchies · Observations · Humour
Timothée Chalamet plays Henry as a humanist ruler reluctant to go to war with France
Was Henry V Really the Pacifist Michôd Made of Him? If one thinks about it, and above all finds an actor handsome enough for the public to believe him, then even a Julius Caesar or a Napoleon smeared in blood will pass perfectly well as a herald of peace and
Art · Humour
Ah, the eighteenth century: one would sit there thinking, why not pose completely undressed for a talented monkey!
Ah, the eighteenth century: one would sit there thinking, why not pose completely undressed for a talented monkey! Oh là là! Painting by Jean-Baptiste Henri Deshays