Military jeeps with helmeted American soldiers before St. Peter's Basilica. A priest in a cassock stands at left, and a crowd of townspeople gathers around.

NB!

American jeeps in St. Peter's Square, Rome

Black-and-white photo of an American tank with soldiers near the Colosseum in Rome, surrounded by a crowd of cheering residents.

NB! · Society · Rome

Allied liberation of Rome on 4 June 1944, the first Axis capital freed

Rome was the first Axis capital to be liberated by the Allies. On 4 June 1944 American troops entered the city, although the northern regions of Italy remained under Fascist control almost until the end of the war

An officer in a dark uniform fires a pistol while warriors with spears and shields close in through tall grass, a horse galloping in the distance.

NB! · Art · Monarchies · People

Paul Joseph Jamin's 1882 painting of the death of Prince Napoleon

The Death of Prince Napoléon. Paul Joseph Jamin, 1882

Elizabeth II in coronation robes, with crown, sceptre and orb, seated before a painted Gothic vault.

NB! · London · Monarchies · Observations · People

Coronation of Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953 and her coronation portrait

What a beauty Elizabeth II is in this coronation portrait. On 2 June 1953, 68 years ago, she was crowned.

Newspaper clipping of 18 April 1963 with a headline about a pocket phone and a photo of a woman holding a small device.

NB! · Archive · Science · Pop Culture · Humour

Mansfield News-Journal reported in 1963 on a pocket telephone of the future

In the future you will be able to carry a telephone in your pocket. A prediction from 1963

A huge oval, head-like object covered in pieces of bark and hay stands on a concrete floor by panoramic windows, with green trees visible outside.

NB!

Large oval sculpture of bark and hay in a museum hall

Top view of a corner of artificial turf on a lit white floor, with a green projected hand icon, signal waves and the text aLTE. Feet in black trousers and shoes are visible below.

NB!

Green aLTE projection on artificial turf and feet in black shoes

Two black-and-white photographs side by side: an infant on the left and an elderly balding man in a dark suit and tie on the right.

NB! · Cinema · Observations · Humour

Childhood and adult portraits of Hitchcock with the same facial expression

Astonishing, really. Hitchcock carried the same unchanging expression through his entire life

NB! · Faith · Monarchies · Moscow

The Coronation of Nicholas II on 14 (26) May 1896

NB! · Books · Observations · Mores · People

Of Sofya Andreyevna I shall say this: who are we to call her a harridan?

Black-and-white photograph of an elderly woman in glasses and a fur hat, wearing a patterned scarf and seated in an upholstered chair.

NB! · Archaeology · Books · Observations · Mores · Humour

Agatha Christie's 46 years of marriage to the archaeologist Max Mallowan

One recalls Agatha Christie's remark about the archaeologist husband, who is so good for a woman because the older she grows, the more interesting she becomes to him. The writer lived to 85, and for 46 of those years she was married to the archaeologist Max Mallowan, who

Two photos of a bas-relief showing a woman with a violin and a small nude figure in her hand, before restoration on the left and after on the right.

NB! · Architecture · Heritage · Saint Petersburg

Bas-relief on the facade of 19 Vosstaniya Street in Saint Petersburg before and after restoration

Before and after restoration. A favourite genre. A bas-relief on the façade of the apartment building at 19 Vosstaniya Street in Saint Petersburg