Showing posts with label folklore. Show all posts
Showing posts with label folklore. Show all posts
Friday, November 28, 2014

Maria Merian

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A newly-published book has brought much- deserved attention to 17th-18th c. German-born naturalist and scientific illustrator Maria Meria...
Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Osseous oracles

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The historical importance of oracle bones (a.k.a. " dragon bones ") to understanding Bronze Age China was not recognized until t...
Sunday, July 20, 2014

Stone unturned

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I've been heavy on excavation lately, but this story represents the opposite. In 1964, on the recommendation of archaeologists from Gl...
Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Vulgar vulva

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The other day my friend Cathy, who plays Irish music with her husband and has traveled extensively in Ireland, told me about sheela na gig...
Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Devil dog

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With the discovery of a large canine skeleton at a dig in East Anglia, England, there is speculation that it is the very creature which te...
Friday, November 1, 2013

Bloody

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Scientists have finally hit upon a formula that they hope will end blood supply shortages and prevent infections through donations. The cr...
Sunday, May 27, 2012

Ratten

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  Hameln ( 2nd image ) in Lower Saxony, Germany, prides itself on its connection with the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin ( 1st ima...
Monday, January 31, 2011

Ring around the rosie

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1st image) Children gathered in a circle in undated photograph , 2nd image) Children playing "Ring around the Rosie" in Chicago in...
1 comment:
Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Sights, smells, and sounds

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The gaslit cobbled streets of the city are dark, dirty, and dank , and one of the houses is said to be haunted . The winding alleys, courty...
2 comments:
Wednesday, January 19, 2011

River baptism

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This sounds like a foaf story, but my friend Sue got an e-mail from her daughter-in-law whose friend's husband Jim Linderman of Grand R...
2 comments:
Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Good Samaritan

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You hear the phrase in the news all the time, associated with selfless and heroic acts. Just this past Tuesday, for instance, a passerby was...
Thursday, December 2, 2010

Doppelgänger

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A doppelgänger is a living person's ghostly double. In folklore, this double is ominous and sinister. British poet John Donne (1572-16...
Saturday, November 20, 2010

Fish tales

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The legends , fairy tales , and romantic accounts of rings being found inside fish are sometimes true! “ This was the craziest story we’d e...
Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Halloween!

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While we Americans have raised pumpkin carving to a fine art , the Jack o'lantern originated in Ireland. The carving of a lantern is as...
Saturday, October 30, 2010

"La Llorona" deconstructed

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This close to Halloween, it's time for a ghost story. I was unaware of this one until my friend Sheila 's husband Troy brought it to...
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Saturday, October 9, 2010

American Gothic

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My Mom has been working on her garden and paused with her pitchfork, reminding us both of the iconic 1930 painting " American Gothic ...
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Sunday, September 19, 2010

3 icky round things

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1st image) Rat king The "rat king" forms when a number of rats become entwined by their tails - either knotted or tangled togethe...
Sunday, September 5, 2010

Quasimodo

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" Oft in the night time, there would be a glimpse caught of a hideous form rambling along the frail balustrade of openwork which encirc...
Monday, August 30, 2010

Credit where credit is due

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Reading about my fondness for miniatures , follower Chase kindly sent along links to the microscopic art of Mykola Syadristi and a website...
Saturday, August 14, 2010

Arnolfini wedding portrait

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The biggest misconception about this Renaissance painting is that the woman depicted is pregnant. She's not. The subject is thought to b...
2 comments: