Radegonde

DISCOVERING FINE OBJECTS FOR DISCERNING BUYERS . Email:/ [email protected]

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

The "Duck" in Avenida Place hotel, Barcelona, Spain.

[Historic Vids @historyinmemes]

In 1968, an RAF pilot carried out an unauthorized flight over London to mark the Royal Air Force’s 50th anniversary, believing the government had failed to properly recognize the occasion. Flying a Hawker Hunter at low altitude, he swept past major landmarks including Parliament before dramatically passing through Tower Bridge.

The pilot was Alan Pollock, and the stunt quickly became one of the most infamous acts of aerial protest in British military history.

On April 5, 1968, frustrated by what he believed was the British government’s lackluster recognition of the Royal Air Force’s 50th anniversary, Pollock decided to stage his own tribute. Flying a Hawker Hunter from RAF Tangmere, he roared at low altitude over central London, circled the Palace of Westminster, and then carried out the maneuver that made the flight legendary: flying directly through Tower Bridge.

The space between the bridge’s upper walkways is around 200 feet wide, but guiding a fast-moving jet through the structure above the River Thames was extraordinarily dangerous. The flight had never been authorized, London’s airspace was heavily restricted, and the spectacle shocked both officials and the public.

Pollock was immediately grounded and faced disciplinary action, though he ultimately avoided court martial after being medically discharged from the RAF. Ironically, while the RAF had intended to hold formal celebrations for its anniversary, delays and budget problems had frustrated many personnel. Pollock’s rogue flight ended up drawing more public attention to the milestone than many of the official events combined.

[Archaeo - Histories @archeohistories]

The box bed, sometimes known by its French name of lit clos, is a bed built into a piece of furniture. It looks curious to us today and it’s somewhat of a novelty to climb into bed and shut the doors behind you, but 600 years ago this kind of bed was very popular, and it is making a comeback today.

As its name implies, the box bed is a bed which is completely contained within a wooden box. There were a lot of variations in design – some had curtains for privacy, while others were completely closed off with sliding wooden doors. They could be built in a number of ways to utilize the space available – some were freestanding and could be moved, but others were built into recesses of a room. Most well-known description of a box bed is in Emily Bronte’s 1847 novel Wuthering Heights. By the time of novel, box bed was a thing of past, but even then Bronte noted how “very conveniently designed” box beds were, admiring them for practicality of giving each member of family their own privacy with no need for individual rooms, and for fact they made narrator feel very secure when he was in bed with closed panels. While they were already obsolete by time of Bronte’s novel, box bed had a long history of use. Its roots come from Medieval Brittany. By 16th Century, examples of box beds could be found across Europe, including France, Scotland, Netherlands, Scandinavia, and Austria. As they became more popular, more commonplace designs advanced and in 18th Century box beds could be quite sophisticated and cleverly designed to blend into the room and look like inconspicuous cabinets.

While they seem a bit odd or even claustrophobic to us today, box beds were a very practical solution to a lot of problems faced by people living in Medieval Europe. Firstly, they provided a private space. Many families slept in the same room at that point, and poorer families often lived in dwellings with only one room even as recently as the Victorian era, particularly in rural communities. The beds meant that people were able to retreat to a private part of the room, and they also helped to divide the room up. Furthermore, as the beds were built in boxes which were usually raised off the ground, they provided storage space. They usually had a large bench in front of them which could be used as seating, and which also had space for storage.

The drawers under the bed or bench were sometimes pulled out to use as a bed for younger family members or guests – the original hide-a-bed. It is also noteworthy that a lot of surviving examples, and the regions where the box bed prevailed the longest, are in regions such as Scandinavia, which are mercilessly cold during the winter. The enclosed nature of the box bed means they are very warm and keeping warm could be a matter of life or death in Medieval times – this probably explains why box beds were in use in frigid Scandinavia for longer than elsewhere.

One final upside to the box bed is that examples with doors and panels also helped to keep people safe. Whilst it may not have happened often, in rural areas there was always a risk that a dangerous animal like a wolf might get in to the house – box beds kept individuals in dwelling safe, at least while they slept. After a period of several hundred years, box bed is starting to make appearances in homes across the world again. While there is thankfully very little chance of being attacked by a wolf while you sleep nowadays, cramped living conditions and prevalence of studio apartments mean that they are once again a handy solution to problem of privacy in a single room living situation.

Now that box beds are growing in popularity again, there are some regions which have come full circle. Large cities such as New York where people are turning to box beds in their studio apartments are resorting to a trend which was used by many of the earliest inhabitants in New York in 17th Century, and they are every bit as practical now as they were 400 years ago.

#archaeohistories

[Empire Aesthetics @Empireaesth]

“The Birth of the Ark Royal” (1950)

[Journal of Art in Society @artinsociety]

Marie Bashkirtseff’s painting of an orphanage child in ‘The Umbrella’ (1883), one of her few works to survive WW2, was painted just before she died from TB at 25. Her journal became a widely-praised novelistic account of 19C European life
https://t.co/Oo5JmAJX3Q

[Unearthed 🏺 @UnearthedHQ]

The Lost City You’ve Probably Never Heard Of…

Hidden deep in the mountains of southern Peru lies Choquequirao—an ancient Inca city many call the “sister” of Machu Picchu, yet far fewer have ever seen it.

There are no crowds here, no easy roads—only a long, quiet journey through wild landscapes. And maybe that’s why it feels so different. Almost untouched.

Stone terraces cling to steep hillsides. Empty plazas sit in silence. Every corner feels like it’s holding a secret from centuries ago.

Built in the late 15th century, this vast city is still mostly unexplored. What’s still hidden beneath the earth?

Some places you visit… others make you feel like you’ve discovered them first.

[Daily Dose of Art @aDose_of_Art]

At the Salon of French Artists in 1911,
by Henri Adolphe Laissement (French, 1854-1921).

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

#BEATLES #MEMORABILIA IN #LIVERPOOL AT CATO CRANE AUCTIONEERS ! 16 Lots Live NOW Until 3rd June at https://t.co/jte64Heiid @LivEchonews @shrewsmorris @LudoJanssens @BeatleHeadlines @thesaleroom @BeatlesTweets @worldbeatfest @YOLiverpool @MartinG8177 @JuliaMirylees
#Beatles #UK

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

Coming Soon at Cato Crane Auctioneers of #Liverpool & #Wirral - Extensive Collection of Old Die-cast Model #Toys & 5 Live-steam Scratch-built Model #Locomotives & Tenders @TheSaleroom @Shrewsmorris @HeswallMagazine @toys @LivEcho @ChesterTweetsuk

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

Were You There ? #Liverpool Daily Post - November 23rd 1943 - Dresses for £1/10/4d or 158 New Pence & Mosquito the Fastest #Fighter #Bomber. ! @MikeRoyden @LivEchonews @LFC @shrewsmorris @WW2Facts @heswallmagazine @YOLiverpool @chestertweetsuk @artnet @DeptofWar @UKLabour

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

Live now to bid at https://t.co/jte64Heiid @LivEchonews @LiverpoolVista @LiverpoolTIC @LiverpoolFCW @DeadlineDayLive @TheBlueRoomEFC @EITC @Everton @EvertonStadium @LivEchoEFC @MikeRoyden @TranmereRovers @EnglandFootball @nikefootball @LivescoreEng @shrewsmorris @heswallfc #Goal

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

John Crane PR of #Heswall #Wirral ‘Bad #Business Reminder’ ! The #ELEPHANT Never Forgets that The RHINOCEROS #Charges a #Lot, & Leaves His Friend the HIPPOPOTAMUS Helplessly #Stuck in Deep #Mud ! @HeswallBusiness @heswallmagazine @HeswallHall @WirralCouncil @MyDigitalWirral

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

Gerald Leslie Brockhurst Oil on Canvas C1934 @heswallmagazine @MyDigitalWirral @shrewsmorris @livechristian1 @LiverpoolVista @LivEchonews @sudleyhouse @RLGCHoylake @liverpoolphil @JuliaMirylees @Audefledis @AOL @WirralGlobeNews @Visit_Wirral @WirralDT @ArtlineTweet #Art #FineArt

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

James Baker Pyne 1800-1970 Oil on Canvas - ‘Largo #Maggiore in #Italy’ painted C1848 … Nearest #Airport is #Milan #Malpensa or View Work at Sudley Art Gallery in #Liverpool @LiverpoolTIC @LivEchonews @LiverpoolVista @heswallmagazine @chestertweetsuk @shrewsmorris @MikeRoyden

[History Knowledge @historyvidos]

Swedish warship Vasa sank to the bottom of the Baltic Sea in 1628.

In 1961 it was salvaged and the wood was still strong enough to be able to walk the decks.

Today is the world's best-preserved XVII century ship.

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

John Crane #Art to #Business Promotional #PR is Soon in #Wirral & #Merseyside - Applications to be Represented Now Invited.. @HeswallBusiness @LivEchonews @chestertweetsuk @shrewsmorris @WestKirbyToday @heswallsquash @heswallmagazine @LiverpoolVista @PSPeopleProject @HeswallHall

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

82.6 Grams of #Silver and auction is ending on WEDNESDAY 20th May at https://t.co/jte64Heiid @LivEchonews @shrewsmorris @MartinG8177 @JuliaMirylees @Number10cat @SilverPeak @MelodyCharm1 @GreatArtandDes2 @silver_charm @KJMooris1 @KJMooris1 @dartsilverltd @silvertrade @ShirtGlam

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

Before It Is Too #Late ! - Auction Ends from 6.00pm Tonight Wednesday 20th May at https://t.co/jte64Heiid @thesaleroom @LivEchonews @Everton @LFC @shrewsmorris @heswallmagazine @Audefledis @chestertweetsuk @Number10cat @antiques_atlas @WestKirbyToday @MartinG8177 @oldtimeyvintage

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

What is Special About this #Cigar Box #Humidor Sold By Cato Crane in 2011 for £25,000.00 Where is it Now ? @thesaleroom @LivEchonews @shrewsmorris @Audefledis @MartinG8177 @CigarAficMag @MikeRoyden @HeswallBusiness @heswallmagazine @WestKirbyToday @NWalesSocial @WilliamsonArt_

[Cato Crane - Probate & Fine Objects Auctions @CatoCrane]

@WorldCoins @HongKong @hkfp @chinesecoins @chinesecoinscom @chinesecoinsol @japan @PDChina @XHNews @aandacoinsuk @CoinsEarly @thesaleroom @WirralCouncil @LivEchoLFC @LiverpoolTIC @CoinsUK @MartinSLewis @GreatArtandDes2 @BBCNews @Money @EbayPremier @CooperativeBank @BraNick91 #USA