13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. 734)

1. A wonderful tip from a reader about a very unusual French water tower found by the roadside From our reader: Just perusing your recent article of your internet finds and thought you might like to see this “treehouse”. I found it just outside Pontorson Railway Station when making a “pilgrimage” to the amazingMont St.…

Botany and the Forgotten Sexual Revolution

Sex and botany– two words rarely found in the same sentence, but there was a time when the study of botany was considered so obscene that books on the subject were censored for women; branded dangerous and unsuitable for her delicate sensibilities. Gardens and greenhouses became an enlightened woman’s secret haven of discovery, expression and temptation. While today’s scientific…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. 733)

1. Paper Sculptures by Kate Kato (who also teaches online courses) Kate is a sculptor living in the Welsh Borders, obsessed with flora, fauna and paper. Shop her creations here. Take an online paper mushroom-making course here! Because, why not. 2. Salvador Dali’s Anti-Venereal Disease poster he made in 1941 Found on Open Culture. Further reading:…

Curiosity du Jour: The Intimate Little World of Nun Boxes

Let’s say you’re rummaging around the dusty recesses of a centuries-old French convent, as one does, half-expecting a stray rosary or two, when suddenly you happen upon a miniature wooden box — no bigger than a jewellery case, adorned with tiny religious figurines, bits of dried flowers, and perhaps a painting of a saint. You’ve…

The Secret History of the Manicule, the Little Hand that’s Everywhere

Familiar to anyone who pays attention to vintage aesthetics, I’m embarrassed to say it’s taken me 40 years to learn the name of the beloved typographic symbol that been guiding the way for centuries. Alas, that beloved inked symbol in the shape of a pointing hand (often used to draw attention to a section of text)…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. 732)

1. Pure inspiration: Mixed media by artist & collector Nina Garner Nina is a collector. Inspired by 19th century portrait and landscape photography, her work encompasses various techniques and materials to create compositions that glorify moments in time, the beauty in nature and people, using film photography and found objects, both synthetic and natural. Find…

In 1970s Paris, an American Magazine Broke All the Rules

If The Paris Metro magazine were still around today – if such a magazine could exist today – I can imagine every English-speaking writer in the city would be lining up around the block for a job. And I’d be right there with them if it meant getting a taste of that roguish school of…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. 731)

1. This artist who creates the most incredible dollhouses Dive into Amy Balfour’s tiny colourful universe. 2. The Ancient Saudi Arabian Tribe of ‘Flower Men’ Usually camera-shy, “a photographer took a series of exceptional portraits of the “flower men” of Saudi Arabia — a tribe of people whose traditions date back more than two millennia.”…

The Forgotten Talking Towers of Europe’s First High-Speed Data Network

If you were to glance up from the foot of the hill of 19th century Montmartre, you might notice that the the windmills weren’t the only things that once danced across the sky. Perched high on its summit stood another wooden structure, a silent sentinel of pulleys and gears. From a distance, its arms seemed…

Smoke, Mirrors & Magic Lanterns: How a Parisian Horror Story Became our First Cinematic Experience

I have a rather curious new addition to the Cabinet and I’m waiting for that one in a million collector or historian to walk in the door and geek out over it with me – with any luck, they might be able to reveal more secrets about this obscure piece of antique machinery known as…