Chapter 1 of a 3-part blog post. In 1851 the painter Daniel Maclise exhibited a narrative painting showing William Caxton demonstrating his printing press to King Edward IV. The composition originally included a scowling, miserable Monk – but if you look at it today, the Monk has disappeared. There’s a Missing Monk Mystery. … More Missing Monk Mystery: Chapter 1
Wars and fighting and armaments and heroes don’t much interest me. But I’ve found a book that stands as an extraordinary link between four great military figures: Odysseus of Ithaca, Lawrence of Arabia, the First Earl Wavell and the Second Earl Wavell. Unimpressed as I am with heroism, I find these connections strangely moving. … More Four Heroes
A newly-acquired Mystery Object has taken my researches to new heights or depths of obscurity and unfashionableness. A small oval lidless vessel with intriguing low-relief figures and inscriptions, cold to the touch, hard and brittle, yet not ceramic. Nothing about this object rings any bells with me. Welcome to the forgotten world of Fictile Ivory. … More Fictile Ivory
Regretfully, I haven’t had time to write a new spooky Hallowe’en blog post for 2024. Instead, I’ve revised a piece from 2021, and re-present it to you now, hoping that you were so terrified last time around that you have forgotten the story and will be freshly surprised and horrified all over again. … More Bluidy Mackenzie Redux
Our Courtauld Institute Art History summer school party is here in Ravenna, visiting eight jaw-dropping buildings from the 5th and 6th centuries on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Seven feature stunning mosaics. Plus some extra buildings and three museums. It’s going to be an intensive three days. Here we go… … More Mosaic, Part 2
Until a few weeks ago, my knowledge of the Dark Ages was not merely Dark, it was Blank. But then The Dark Ages burst into unbelievably brilliant sparkling gorgeous colour. Join me in Ravenna, on a Courtauld Institute Art History study tour. The course title: Ravenna: Capital of the Mosaic. … More Mosaic, Part 1
I have become temporarily immersed in the year 1757. However, cursory research suggests that 1757 wasn’t particularly distinguished for world-changing historical events. So why should I pick that year as my focus of attention? Because of a new addition to my ceramics collection: a large pottery bowl purchased recently in a local auction. … More Seventeen Fifty-Seven
There are thirteen of us, from across the world, assembled closely together for three days of deep emotional and intellectual immersion. Ooohh, what’s this about? Is it a murder mystery? Is it about a cult? Is it a reality TV show? No, no, it’s much more serious. It’s an Art History study tour. … More Flemish Primitives?
Here’s a nineteenth century Staffordshire Willow Pattern plate. You don’t need to be an expert to know this. It isn’t rare or valuable, so why did I buy it? Because it’s rather special: a plate with a story to tell. A plate which shouldn’t be here in Britain. It should be in Brazil. … More China to Brazil
Two objects made of wood: a tiny sycamore container and a Chippendale-style oak chair. You might think that other than the material, there wouldn’t be much similarity between them. But there you would be wrong. These pieces tell striking parallel stories about woodworking at the highest level of craftsmanship in Scottish small-town settings. … More Sycamore and Oak
