One thing that has struck me as I have trawled through hundreds of photographs over the past few years is the way some people look to be people of their time and others, despite the period clothing and arrangement of the hair, have thoroughly modern faces. The members of this family certainly look to be … Continue reading Faces in the Street – Where have I seen you before?
Women
Faces in the Street – ‘A beautiful head of hair’
Unidentified young woman c1870-1900Photographer: George & George's Federal Studio The use of the term crowning glory to describe a woman’s hair has been around since the middle of the nineteenth century. As the Albury Banner and Wodonga Express put it, ’Whether the locks be golden-hued or ebony, one of the greatest gifts of the Creator … Continue reading Faces in the Street – ‘A beautiful head of hair’
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen – Some thoughts on re-reading
I recently re-read Pride and Prejudice, a book I last read some time in the mid-1970s. In the intervening years, I have watched a couple of film adaptations but haven’t been struck giddy by the story. And I have no particular fascination for the Regency period. When I think of that period I don’t think … Continue reading Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen – Some thoughts on re-reading
Witchcraft Trials in Early Modern England
A far more succinct version of this post was published by The Coffee Pot Book Club on 9 March 2020. ‘The early-modern European witch-hunts were neither orchestrated massacres nor spontaneous pogroms. Alleged witches were not rounded up at night and summarily killed extra-judicially or lynched as the victims of mob justice. They were executed after trial and … Continue reading Witchcraft Trials in Early Modern England
Book Review – Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
Into the Water opens with a disturbing scene – a young woman is bound by two or more men and drowned in icy water. There is no sense given of when this happened or who she is other than her name, Libby. So, from the very beginning there is an undercurrent of danger. The novel … Continue reading Book Review – Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
Catherine Meyrick 