Electrum Magazine – Why The Past Matters

Art
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Madrid: Selected Masterpieces

3 days ago

By P. F. Sommerfeldt – If I had to name one of the jewels of European museum collections not enough people visit, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid would be high on that list. Its iconic collection of Renaissance paintings can compete with much larger holdings especially because it is not […]
Art
Leonardo’s ‘Secret’ Design of “The Last Supper”

1 month ago

By John Roman – Historians suggest some religious paintings of the Renaissance may have been intentionally designed to induce subliminal, out-of-body experiences in church patrons. Michael Kubovy, in his book The Psychology of Perspective and Renaissance Art (1989), uncovered a remarkable twist in artists’ use of perspective during the Renaissance. He explored the idea that […]
Artifacts of Material History
Egyptian Stone Working Use of Emery?

2 months ago

Small fragment (13 cm h) of Queen Tiye bust, yellow jasper, ca. 14th c BCE / Dynasty 18, Metropolitan Museum New York (image courtesy of MMNY) By Patrick Hunt – Did the Ancient Egyptians know and use emery? I reprised this old question in 1991 in an invited paper at […]
Art
Gulbenkian Museum Memorabilia in Lisbon

3 months ago

Calouste Gulbenkian in 1912 (Image courtesy of Financial Times London) By P. F. Sommerfeldt – In Lisbon in late March I had a list of must visits to Portugal’s beautiful capital city, including the famous Gulbenkian Museum in its private foundation premises. This renowned museum – in modern brutalist style […]
Artifacts of Material History
Minoan Pottery : Form and Technique

5 months ago

By Jess Taylor – Setting The Minoan civilization often evokes thoughts of myths of the bull-headed Monitor and his labyrinth, images of the ruins of the Knossos palace, with its red, tapered columns and advanced multi-storied architecture, their early written languages, the untranslated Linear A and translated Linear B as […]
Controversies
Should Freemasonry Be Considered Controversial?

5 months ago

Freemasonry Lodge in Vienna, 1789 (courtesy of Wienmuseum) By Pauline Chakmakjian – My publisher Markosia in the UK recently released my trilogy: The Sphinxing Rabbit: Her Sovereign Majesty, The Sphinxing Rabbit: Book of Hours and The Sphinxing Rabbit: Clubs and Societies. All three books in the series from a publisher noted for graphic novels make […]
History
Trade and Cultural Shifts in Sicily Under the Norman Kings from 1130 to 1189

6 months ago

Quadrilingual Funerary Inscription – Hebrew, Latin, Greek, Arabic – in Palazzo Normanni, Palermo, 12th c. (photo P. Hunt). By Anthony Klein – The island of Sicily in the 12th century has long been portrayed as a golden age of multi-cultural amity resulting in spectacular wealth and a flowering of syncretic art […]
Paleobotany
A Selective History of the Sacred Poppy

7 months ago

Opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) image in public domain. By Patrick Hunt – Any history of the opium poppy, in this case Papaver somniferum or the “sleep-bringing” poppy, must be replete with its known medical use and perhaps equally its less scientific lore. Why it has been known as the “sacred […]
Artifacts of Material History
Ship Figureheads: Statues of the Sea

8 months ago

Bayeux Tapestry Norman Ships with Dragon Prows as “Figureheads” (image public domain) By Timothy Demy – The carving and painting of eyes, faces, and figures on boats and ships is an ancient practice that continues around the globe in the present day. Whether the eyes were decorative, religious, or believed […]
History of Science
MIND MATTERS: Tragedy, Psychology and Mental Illness

10 months ago

Image courtesy of J.C. Scull, Mental Illness – History and Ancient Treatments, Invisible Illness, 2022 By Walter Borden, M.D. – In the Dark Ages of Greek ancient history (before writing), mental illness and seizure disorders were considered as demonic possession of one kind or another. Mysticism was the prevailing explanation of all unknowns. […]

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