Archive · Mores · Nature
As you can see, in the first half of the 19th century tomatoes were still a curiosity in Russia, and an explanation was needed not only of how they were grown, but of how they were to be eaten. At that time tomatoes went by the name of “love apples”
Aristocracy · The East · Mores · People
The marital history of General Yermolov and his so-called kebin wives, that is, temporary wives, in effect concubines drawn from the local population of the Caucasian territories occupied by the Russian army, deserves a tale of its own. Yermolov's first-born was borne to him by a
The East · Art · Books · Observations · Mores
Eighteen years ago, Miyoko Ihara, a graduate of the Nippon Institute of Photography, began photographing her grandmother Misao, who was grieving the death of her husband together with her extraordinary white cat named Fukumaru, and a whole photobook came out of it. The project ended 8 years ago, and what
Architecture · Observations · Mores · Saint Petersburg
Avito continues to delight with unique lots. This time, for a modest 89 million roubles (almost 40 million more than last year's price), this flea market of the whole universe has put up for sale a 240-square-metre, six-room flat with a terrace in the centre
Archive · Science · Mores · Humour
In 1830 the American inventor James Barron patented a mechanical fan with this witty drawing, in which a man reclining on a sofa smokes at his ease and only an open sheet of the Hard Working Men Journal reminds us of the burdens of labour. The fan, driven by clockwork
Archive · Books · Mores · People · Pop Culture
The German accountant Matthäus Schwarz decided to gather in a single book every outfit he had ever worn, annotate them at length and explain the circumstances that had prompted him to choose those very costumes. The fascinating life of a humble bookkeeper, from his childhood, when at the age of
Art · Observations · Mores · Humour
An exceedingly rich child in a cradle, a painting by the early Baroque Bolognese artist Lavinia Fontana. 1583. That the cradle resembles a tomb has its reverse side: Jesus in the sepulchre, at this time and earlier, is sometimes depicted as if lying in a bed. As for the sumptuous
Museums · Heritage · Mores · People
Chekhov bought Melikhovo after a long search for suitable property in other regions: he came across an advertisement in a newspaper and all but sight unseen decided to take it. It was the first house of their own, one might say, since the days of serfdom, and the whole large
Aristocracy · Cinema · Observations · Mores
Now that is what I call a cult film: in the mysterious and faintly sinister, very 1930s mansion of Grey Gardens live, in secluded and extravagant style, Jackie Kennedy's cousin Edith Bouvier Beale (Little Edie) and her extraordinary mother Edith Ewing Bouvier (Big Edie). Two society lionesses, by
Art · Heritage · Mores · People
Remember the grannies and grandpas who build marvellous gardens in their yards and front gardens, with ladybirds, swans made of tyres, towers of plastic bottle tops, toys, figurines, waterfalls and other magic? People usually pass such creations by with, at best, an indulgent smile and a moment's attention.
NB! · Art · Observations · Mores · Humour
London · Monarchies · Observations · Mores · Humour
On the well-worn anecdote about how at Queen Elizabeth II's reception in 1961 Yury Gagarin, having drunk a cup of tea with lemon, fished out the slice of lemon and ate it, there is one clarification. Such an incident did indeed occur, but the man in question