In 1823 Louis XVIII acquired a unique slab of wood: a cross-section of Malabar oak, or teak, almost 3 metres across

In 1823 Louis XVIII acquired a unique slab of wood: a cross-section of Malabar oak, or teak, almost 3 metres across. The wood of Indian teak, especially from the Malabar Coast, is highly prized for its handsome colouring. But teak usually reaches no more than a metre and a half in thickness, so a section three metres across is a genuine rarity, worthy of a king. It was decided to make a monumental royal table from it, with a top 2.77 metres in diameter. The cabinetmaker Félix Rémond worked on the table. This masterpiece of the furniture-maker's art can be seen at the Grand Trianon

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At the close of the Strugatskys' "Roadside Picnic" the Golden Sphere is asked for this: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to leave no one aggrieved, but the digest really does come free

At the close of the Strugatskys' "Roadside Picnic" the Golden Sphere is asked for this: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to leave no one aggrieved, but the digest really does come free. So, here is the

Frederic Leighton

Frederic Leighton. “Daedalus and Icarus”, 1869 Daedalus warns his son not to climb too high: the heat of the sun may melt the wax, but Icarus is already gazing into the distance, and the lamentations of a foolish old man interest him not in the least

In 1823 Louis XVIII acquired a unique slab of wood: a cross-section of Malabar oak, or teak, almost 3 metres across

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At the close of the Strugatskys' "Roadside Picnic" the Golden Sphere is asked for this: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to leave no one aggrieved, but the digest really does come free

Frederic Leighton

Attempts to resolve the problems of many years of uncontrolled mass migration

Characters from Gogol's "Petersburg Tales" on the pedestal of the monument to Nikolai Gogol on Nikitsky Boulevard, photograph of the 1960s