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Architecture · Art · Observations · Rome
Variants of the myth of Leda and Zeus and the Dioscuri statues on Rome's Capitoline Hill
In the myths of the union of Leda and Zeus-the-swan there are several versions of the outcome: Leda bore two eggs and two children, Helen and Clytemnestra; Leda bore four eggs, plus various versions of paternity: some name Zeus as the father of the eggs and Tyndareus as
The East · Monarchies · Observations · Society
Emperor Akihito of Japan abdicates, and his son Naruhito is to succeed him
Today Akihito, the 125th Emperor of Japan, formally abdicated the Chrysanthemum Throne; tomorrow his eldest son, 59-year-old Naruhito, will be enthroned. By way of comparison, Akihito's father, Emperor Showa, lived to almost 88 and reigned for 62 years. Since abdication was not provided for by the
Observations · Mores · Rome
Even if you have very little time for a stroll around Rome, look in at Greco cafe: though it is a super-touristy place with rather high prices (juice 12 euros, a slice of cake from 10), it has not lost its charm, and there really is a great deal…
Books · Observations · Mores · Rome
Antico Caffe Greco, the Roman café founded in 1760 that Gogol and Stendhal visited
Continuing the tale of cult gastronomic haunts, I recalled a Roman café founded in 1760. The cosy Antico Caffe Greco, beside the Spanish Steps, was frequented by Stendhal, Casanova, Andersen and Schopenhauer. The walls of this little coffee house are hung with portraits of its world-famous habitués and adorned
NB! · Art · Museums · Observations · Rome · Humour
I maintain that in Bernini's "Rape of Proserpina" it is most unjust that all the attention goes to Proserpina's bottom: Hades is very fine too
NB! · Architecture · Faith · Art · Observations · Rome
Michelangelo's dome and Bernini's baldachin in Saint Peter's Basilica
St Peter's Basilica: the dome by Michelangelo, the baldachin by Bernini. I would like to congratulate everyone on the creative power of Christian culture
Archive · Architecture · Moscow · Observations · Mores
The Prague Restaurant in Moscow from a Tavern in 1872 to Its Closure, with a 1901 Photograph
@sncmag, it is a great pity that these interiors are now closed to visitors. For if we speak of the truly iconic establishments of Moscow, then it is, of course, the "Praga", opened as long ago as 1872. True, at that time it was rather a tavern, and
Art · Observations · Mores · People · Humour
Portrait of the Reverend Thomas Gisborne and His Wife Mary
Portrait of the Reverend Thomas Gisborne and his wife Mary. A splendid umbrella, a cool dog and a remarkable likeness: do you not think so? He and his wife might be twins. People used to murmur that Gisborne had married for money: the girl from the wealthy Babington family was
NB! · Faith · Art · Observations
The Execution of Saint George in a Window Relief at the Stiftskirche in Tübingen
Today, on Saint George's Day, many recall his rich iconography. To my mind, more impressive than the scene of the dragon being slain is the execution of George, for instance this relief on a window of the Stiftskirche in Tübingen
Books · Observations · Mores
Patchouli in Gaev's line in Chekhov's “The Cherry Orchard” and its possible meaning
GAYEV. Once, sister, you and I slept in this very room, and now I am fifty-one years old, strange as it may seem... LOPAKHIN. Yes, time goes on. GAYEV. What? LOPAKHIN. Time, I say, goes on. GAYEV. And it smells of patchouli here. As for this «patchouli» in The
NB! · Art · Observations · Humour
Jacob Cuyp paints a four-year-old girl holding a fish, with a cat beside her
You ask what is going on here? I shall tell you: three hundred and seventy years have passed and nothing has changed. Four-year-old children still torment animals, and the grown-ups still find it amusing. The girl also holds a fish in her right hand. All in all,