art
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This BBC article explains how a Californian follower on Twitter solved the case of an inscription on a mediaeval silver seal matrix. The wording on the rim is almost certainly Declina a Malo et fac bonum (“decline from evil and do good”) from Psalm 36:27 (ie 37 nowadays).
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It isn’t often that I like a new coin, but the addition of the White Lion of Mortimer to the Queen’s Beasts series is an exception. It’s beautiful. To read about it go here.
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… that Canterbury Cathedral has some of the world’s oldest stained glass. The “windolyser”, which is a new non-destructive technique designed to date windows in situ, has placed some of the “Canterbury Ancestors” some years before both Becket‘s matyrdom and the fire, four years later, that destroyed the building around them, showing that they were…
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“….the beautiful, unspoiled Mediterranean town of Patara is the birthplace of the bearded gift-giver, who we look out for with such excitement on Christmas Eve. Or rather, the birthplace of the third century Christian saint whose life of kindness and miraculous do-goodery created a legend which has evolved down the centuries, and given us the…
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Well, I wasn’t looking for observations on when the Renaissance commenced, rather was I trying to find information on the wedding of Robert de Vere, Duke of Ireland, Marquess of Dublin, and 9th Earl of Oxford KG. The wording of my Google search brought up a site in which I found the following: “….During…
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This replica sword is, apparently, based on one owned by the Earl of Huntingdon. Which one? Well, the description at the beginning of the above site opens with “Historically, the Earl of Huntingdon is a title held by the Scottish rulers of Huntingdonshire, but in folklore, this title belonged to the legendary Robin Hood….” …
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London’s Greatest Bridges (continued)
Albion Mill, almshouses, arson, Belgium, bribery, Canaletto, cement, Channel Five, Charles II, Company for the Strand Bridge, Company of Watermen, concrete foundations, Cornish granite, craft guilds, Frost Fairs, House of Commons, iron, John Rennie, Ladies’ Bridge, Lambeth, London Bridge, lotteries, Palace of Westminster, Pathe News, Portland stone, protests, River Thames, roads, Rob Bell, Second World War, slum clearances, Southwark, steam power, Strand, Suffragettes, Sutton Hoo, Thomas Page, timber, Waterloo, Waterloo Bridge, Westminster Bridge, windmills, Wool stapleThis series finally resumed on Channel Five at the beginning of October, to cover two of the newer structures over the Thames, neither of which are in the original form. As usual, Rob Bell’s enthusiasm is infectious and his programmes are highly informative. Episode Three covered Westminster Bridge. By 1700, the population of London was…
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The tapestries of Thomas Wolsey
“The King’s Great Matter”, allegory, Archbishop of York, Archduke Philip, Arthur “Tudor”, Baynard’s Castle, cardinals, Catherine of Aragon, Christ was born as the Redeemer of Man, Emma Luisa Cahill Marron, Ferdinand of Aragon, Field of the Cloth of Gold, Hazel Pierce, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Infanta Maria, Ipswich, Isabel of Castile, Juan Rodriguez de Fonseca, Leicester Abbey, Lord Chancellor, Manuel Duke of Beja, Margaret of Salisbury, Narbona Cathedral, Peace and Mercy, Portugal, Richard Gresham, Richmond Palace, Royal College of Arms, Sheen, Sir Edward Howard, Spain, St. George, tapestries, The Creation, The Redemption of Man, The Virtues defy Vices, Thomas Wolsey, tournaments, Trinity College, University of Cantabria, Westminster HallWe have recently come across this rather interesting article, extracted from Reyes y Prelados, by Emma Luisa Cahill Marron (excuse the missing accent) about Cardinal Wolsey and some of his artefacts. The original is in Spanish and here is a translation, by ladychaol.