Check out the original 1851 reviews of Moby-Dick. ‹ Literary Hub

Check out the original 1851 reviews of Moby-Dick. By Book Marks October 18, 2021, 3:11pm On the occasion of its 170th publication anniversary, here are the very first reviews of Herman Melville’s leviathan-sized opus of obsession, revenge, and meticulously detailed whaling practices. * "To convey an adequate idea of a book of such various merits as that which the author of Typee and Omoo has here placed before the reading public, is impossible i...

Abyssinia: The Only African Country to Avoid Colonialism

Ethiopians attend a parade to mark the 123rd anniversary of the battle of Adwa that marked the end of the first Italian invasion in 1896, photo taken 2020.   On October 23rd, 1896, Italy and Ethiopia signed the Treaty of Addis Ababa. The defeated Italians have no other option than to confirm Ethiopian independence and renounce their colonial projects in the region. Abyssinia, a thousand-year-old African nation, had resisted a drastically more developed modern army and became the ...

Wombs, Worms, and Wolves: Constructing Cancer in Early Modern England

A surgical operation to remove a malignant tumour from a man’s left breast and armpit in a Dublin drawing room, 1817. / Image courtesy Wellcome Images, Wikimedia Commons Understanding more fully how early modern people thought about cancer is significant for several reasons. By Dr. Alanna SkuseResearcherUniversity of Reading Abstract This essay examines medical and popular attitudes to cancer in the early modern period, c.1580–1720. Cancer, it is...

Investigating German colonialism in the British Library’s collections

Content warning: This blog reproduces an image from a historical publication which is now considered racistLast week, the Zanzibari writer Abdulrazak Gurnah became the first black African author in 35 years to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. Judges from the Swedish Academy highlighted his ‘uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism’ as a key reason for the distinction.Much of Gurnah’s writing is set in East Africa, and his latest novel, Afterlives, explores ...

Female poets of ancient Hellas

We have all heard of Sappho, but did you know there were many other female poets whose work survives to this day? I'd like to share some of them with you today--and about the women who wrote them. Anyte of Tegea Anyte of Tegea (Ἀνύτη Τεγεᾶτις) was an early 3rd century BC Arcadian poet, was the leader of a school of poetry and literature on Peloponnesus, which also included the poet Leonidas of Tarentum. Antipater of Thessalonica listed her as one of the nine earthly muses. At least ...

Henry Every

Henry Every (b. 1653), also known as Henry Avery, Benjamin Bridgeman, ‘Long Ben’ and (incorrectly) John Avery, was one of the most savage and successful pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy. Capturing a treasure ship of the Mughal emperor in 1695 with a cargo worth over $95 million today, he promptly disappeared and was never seen again. Thanks to his jackpot capture of the Ganij-i-Sawai, Every gained the nickname ‘Arch Pirate’. It has long been said that Every’s huge success inspired ma...

Minium and cinnabar

Near Matches Ignore ExactFull Text Everything2 Minium (definition) See all of Minium, no other writeups in this node. (definition) by Webster 1913 Wed Dec 22 1999 at 1:12:14 Min"i*um [L. minium, an Iberian word, the Romans getting all their cinnabar from Spain; cf. Basque armine�xa0;.] Chem. A heavy, brilliant red pigment, consisting of an oxide of lead, Pb3O4, obtained by exposing lead or massicot to a gentle and continued heat in the air. It is used as a cement, as a paint, a...

5 Iron Age Tools and Innovations | HISTORY

Sep 9, 2021 5 Iron Age Tools and Innovations New techniques helped make iron stronger—but there were also innovations in the use of gold, silver and stone. By Becky Little ...

Signs of the True and Pseudo Apostles

From Chaucer source book. Source:

Who Were The Chthonic Greek Gods? 5 Gods & Their Myths

Montage of Aeneas and the Sibyl in the Underworld by Jan Brueghel the Younger, 1630s via The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City; with Orestes Pursued by the Furies by Adolphe-William Bouguereau, 1862 via the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk   The Greek gods were divided into two categories: those above the earth and those below. The chthonic gods in Ancient Greece resided in or were associated with the underworld and the dead. The most prominent chthonic gods were...

A Short History of Wales - txt file

The Non-Athenian Foundation of the Modern West

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." ~ Zeus didn’t say this. He didn’t care about the meek. When Zeus threw his thunderbolts, the meek would die with the evil. The thunderbolts of Zeus do not differentiate between the meek and the evil. The deceptions of Zeus are legendary. His sexual conquests, mostly through the use of deception, include: Hera, Aegina, Alcmene, Antiope, Callisto, Danae, Io, Nemesis, Europa, Ganymede, Leda, Metis, and other women of antiquity. There is no...

Richard III: fact and fiction

On 22 August 1485, the last English king to be killed in combat died at the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was none other than Richard III, a monarch whose reputation is still debated, known variously as the King under the Carpark, Shakespeare's hunchback ruler, and the (alleged) murderer of his young nephews, Edward V and Richard, Duke of York. In this blogpost, we set out some of the manuscript evidence for the reign of this controversial sovereign. One of the earliest notices of the Ba...

Renaissance Science – XVII

As we saw in the last episode, Ptolemaeus’ Geographia enjoyed a strong popularity following its rediscovery and translation into Latin from Greek at the beginning of fifteenth century, going through at least five printed editions before the end of the century. The following century saw several important new translation and revised editions both in Latin and in the vernacular. This initial popularity can at least be partially explained by the fact that Ptolemaeus’ Mathēmatikē Syntaxis and his ...

Bellicose things: the inner lives of Byzantine warfare implements: Word & Image: Vol 37, No 2

Bellicose things: the inner lives of Byzantine warfare implementsRoland Betancourt Pages 160-177 | Published online: 04 Aug 2021 AbstractThe Poliorcetica (Vat. gr. 1605) is a Byzantine treatise on siege warfare, composed by the so-called Heron of Byzantium, which was illuminated with drawings and schematics for the construction and use of military tools and structures in the eleventh century. Using an object-oriented lens, this article ...

How Cats Became Divine Symbols in Ancient Egypt | HISTORY

Aug 17, 2021 How Cats Became Divine Symbols in Ancient Egypt Felines served a useful purpose in ancient Egyptian households and were eventually associated with deities. By Elizabeth Yuko ...

A History Of Cars In Films

Cars have been highlighted in films throughout history, inspiring many generations and influencing the latest trends. The cars we see on screen have often become our dream cars, that we long to buy or even just rent for a day.So, from James Bond (1964) all the way through to John Wick (2014), here is a shortlist of some of the most iconic cars in films throughout history. One thing is for sure – these cars are so legendary that they will have you researching how to get them on car finance wit...

Fine Lines: Created to address a fuel crisis, the Mini became a dream car for the masses - Toronto Star

When the Mini was launched in the late 1950s, it was supposed to be an answer to fears that the global supply of oil would be reduced to a trickle. It was 1956 during the Suez Crisis. Britain, along with a number of other countries, had succumb to gas shortages and invoked rationing. What was needed was a small car that was cheap to own and good on fuel. That’s it, that’s all. Little did anyone know the Mini would become the coolest car in the world — a fashion statement, the ultima...

Byzantium Suffers Barbarian Wrath in the Massacre of Milan of 539 AD

"Woe to the vanquished!" the old saying goes, and it was often showcased in history. During the devastating Gothic War that raged between 535 and 554 AD on the Italian Peninsula, the venerable city of Milan suffered greatly at the hands of its conquerors. The events that transpired within the walls of that city remain etched in history as one of the worst massacres ever. The populace suffered greatly at the hands of the warlike Germanic tribes, and would take a long time to recover. Alas, his...

Islam - pagan origin and Moon god worship

Hubal and Allah the Moon God? Islam: Truth or Myth? start page Introduction to basic facts of history: Moon worship has been practiced in Arabia since 2000 BC. The crescent moon is the most common symbol of this pagan moon worship as far back as 2000 BC. In Mecca, there was a god named Hubal who was Lord of the Kabah. This Hubal was a moon god. One Muslim apologist confessed that the idol of moon god Hubal was placed upon the roof of the Kaba about 400 years before Muhammad. T...

The Romans, the Visigoths, the Huns

From the second century AD, the Goths were regarded as Europe’s most ferocious warriors. In the fourth century AD, a nomadic tribe appeared that was ferocious on a new level: the Huns. The Huns arrived on the Volga in 370 AD, and they started raiding the territory dominated by the Goths and other Germanic tribes that were living outside the borders of the Roman Empire. In 376 AD, they defeated the Goths. Ermanaric, King of the Goths, was devastated by the defeat and committed suicide. The Rom...

Coins, the Overlooked Keys to History | The New Yorker

Clip source: Coins%2C%20the%20Overlooked%20Keys%20to%20History%20%7C%20The%20New%20Yorker Skip to main content Under ReviewCoins, the Overlooked Keys to HistoryA delightful new book argues that numismatics—the study of coins—is the "beautiful science of civilizations." By Casey Cep July 28, 2021https://www.facebook.com/dialog/feed?&display=popup&caption=Coins%2C%20the%20Overlooked%20Keys%20to%20History&app_id=1147169538698836&link=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newyorker.com%2Fbooks%2Funder-review%2Fc...

Female Nudity In Art: 6 Paintings And Their Symbolic Meanings

Nudity and art have been connected since the beginning of humanity. Female nudity in art, divine or mortal, became a fascinating and shocking symbol. For centuries, artists have been accused, absolved, marginalized because of the subjects but at the same time gained admiration, glory, and acceptance. Take a look at these six seminal paintings of female nudes and find out more about why they became so important for the history of art.   Female Nudity In Art Over Time The ...

A long history of aphrodisiacs, from health tonic to sexual aid | Psyche Ideas

From a 15th century Herbalarium manuscript illustrating the aphropdisiac effect of Mandrake. Photo by DeAgostini/GettyA long history of aphrodisiacs, from health tonic to sexual aidAlison M Downham MooreAlison M Downham Mooreis associate professor in modern European history and humanities at Western Sydney University. Her books include Gut Feeling and Digestive Health in Nineteenth-Century Literature, History and Culture (2018), co-edited with Manon Mathias; Sexual Myths of Modernity: Sadism,...

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center: A hub for historic and modern-day rocket power

NASA's George C. Marshall Space Flight Center has more than six decades of history designing, building and testing a storied series of rockets, rocket engines and instruments to fly in space. The center’s accomplishments include the Redstone rocket used to launch Project Mercury, the Saturn rockets for the Apollo program, the Skylab space station, and the Hubble Space Telescope. Marshall is located on the grounds of the U.S. Army Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, a city in northern A...