#newbook Britain’s foremost hunter of ghosts sheds new light on the country’s greatest hauntings. From Borley Rectory to Hampton Court, Underwood has undertaken new research & made discoveries that could radically change our understanding of many famous cases. The truth can be stranger than fiction
A selection of lunar and planetary globes, from the globe museum in Vienna. #maps #globes
Some novelty globes - including a clock globe, foldable globe, inflatable globe with pump, and one with… sea monsters? #globes #maps #antiques
A selection of relief globes from the Globe Museum in Vienna. Relief globes depict the surface profile of the planet. They were created initially for the education for the blind, but soon became a popular variant. #maps #globes
It’s going to be globe related posts for the next few days. I visited the Globe Museum of the Austrian National Library. They’ve over 250 globes on display, the oldest dating to 1536. These first 2 were made by Vincenzo Coronelli, whose artistic style helped make globes decorative symbols of wealth
Things really are more transparent these days.
Who says bookselling can’t be sexy? #books
#BOTD August Derleth. A friend & fan of Lovecraft, he founded the Arkham House imprint to publish his work & bring it to a new audience. An author of 100+ books & 150 short stories, he helped develop the Cthulu mythos shared universe & created the Holmesian detective, Solar Pons
The Austrian State #Library also has some enormous 18th Century globes, created by Vincenzo Coronelli. Wikipedia describes him as a Franciscan friar, cosmographer, cartographer, publisher, and encyclopedist.
…Bloody overachievers. #globes #cartography
Scenes from the Austrian National Library in Vienna. Founded in 1723, 128 shelves are on display, showcasing 200k books (there are 12 million items in the collection). The walls are decorated with frescos from court painter Daniel Gran and there are 16 statues on display. #books #libraries
#newbook Matthews’ classic text charts the history of mazes and labyrinths, with sections on everything from hedge mazes and trick mazes to church labyrinths and famous mazes from antiquity. Not to mention a few tips for reaching the exit faster. #books #mazes
Interior scenes from the Die Wiener Staatsoper - the Vienna State Opera House. I went to see a performance of The Barber of Servile. It was pretty mediocre, but the building was worth visiting. #vienna #architecture #opera
There’s still a few days left to see this fantastically ghoulish exhibition by Seyed Amin Bagheri at the Ab Anbar gallery close to Oxford Circus. #art #gothic
There’s a very atmospheric Giacometti exhibit in the tanks at Tate Modern at the mo. #art #sculpture
The Sign of Four and A Study in Scarlet, with a terrible cover.
Is Baker Street on fire? #books #sherlockholmes
#BOTD Lionel Thomas Caswall (L. T. C.) Rolt. Though most of Rolt’s writing was as a biographer of prominent civil engineers, his ghost stories were very influential. He was inspired by M.R. James, but set his tales in industrial settings, creating a more modern setting for the supernatural. #ghosts
A History of Delusions by Victoria Shepherd
#newbook The King who thought he was made of glass. The epidemic of ‘Napoleons’ after Waterloo. The 19th century women convinced they were dead… Delusions are bizarre, but hold the key to our collective anxieties. Shepherd uncovers cases going back to medieval times, finding reason in our madness
Night of the Living Dead Action Man #toys
I like a nice big book, but the problem is that about 90% of all my reading is done in bed. If I’m ever going to read this, I’m just going to have take the risk of being smacked in the head if I nod off early. #reading #book #hammer
A scam call got sent to voicemail. The transcription tool got it just about right. #scam
What!? But I’ve always found the standards at CEX to be absolutely impeccable
Much is made of the decline of the writing in later series of #GameofThrones. Little attention has been paid, however, to the impact it had on the producers of the DVDs, who appear to have been driven insane: “in the proposal of Tilly, she Pigeon Biography to the far north…”
People like me had been in before and they were prepared. #books #bookshop
#sexystaircases This one is famous. Commissioned for the luxury Hôtel de Châteaurenard in Provence, it was decorated by Flemish artist, Jean Daret. No one had made a stairway a home for fine artwork before, his love of illusional architecture made it a unique work that has long survived the hotel
Some of the most beautifully blue skies I’ve ever seen. It’s lovely there.
The Musée du Vieil Aix - the Museum of Old Aix - is dedicated to preserving Aix-en-Provence’s folk customs. It includes a very large puppet collection. #puppets #marionette #toys
#newbook Not every body gets to rest in peace, or even in 1 piece. Famous corpses have been stolen, pickled, frozen, stuffed, picked apart & even filed away. From Mozart to Einstein, Bess Lovejoy has charted some of the most notable afterlives of famous bodies and where they finally ended up #books
#sexystaircases The Pavillon Vendôme in Aix en Provence was the host to the first ever #Cezanne exhibition in his home town, taking place 50 years after his death. However, a robbery at a second exhibition would result in his works being absent for more than half a century. #art
Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne with an atrocious cover
I look forward to reading about the ship/elephant/steam train race #books #designfail
