In 1830 American James Barron patented a mechanical fan with a hanging weight

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 under the pull of a suspended weight, is, as the author of the patent declares, perfectly suited not only to the bedroom but also to the study and the dining room. Apparently on account of its relative compactness and simple design. Well, it really is better than waving a fan about

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

In the finale of the Strugatskys' Roadside Picnic, the Golden Ball is told: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to offend nobody, but the digest really does come free of charge. So, here is the main business of 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 1830 American James Barron patented a mechanical fan with a hanging weight

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

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