New Old Time

Botticelli's Birth of Venus painting displayed in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, warm ochre walls and parquet floor with museum visitors in soft focus contemplating the Renaissance masterpiece

Simonetta Vespucci: The Beauty That Inspired Bo...

She died at twenty-two, and Botticelli never forgot her. Simonetta Vespucci — the most celebrated beauty of Quattrocento Florence, the beloved of Giuliano de' Medici, the muse who became a...

Simonetta Vespucci: The Beauty That Inspired Bo...

She died at twenty-two, and Botticelli never forgot her. Simonetta Vespucci — the most celebrated beauty of Quattrocento Florence, the beloved of Giuliano de' Medici, the muse who became a...

Antique double-hemisphere world map unrolled on a dark oak table with brass compass, celestial globe, divider and quill in warm candlelight, magnifying glass resting near California shown as an island

The Dutch Golden Age and Amsterdam's Dominance ...

In the 17th century, Amsterdam was the cartographic capital of the world. The great publishing houses of the Dutch Golden Age — Blaeu, Hondius, Jansson, de Wit — produced maps...

The Dutch Golden Age and Amsterdam's Dominance ...

In the 17th century, Amsterdam was the cartographic capital of the world. The great publishing houses of the Dutch Golden Age — Blaeu, Hondius, Jansson, de Wit — produced maps...

Rows of 18th century green glass vessels — bottles, decanters, flasks and goblets — displayed on the horizontal glazing bars of a large multi-pane window, backlit by soft natural daylight revealing their translucency

Glass in the Eighteenth Century: Craft, Commerc...

In the 18th century, glass was not merely a material — it was a technology, a luxury, a scientific instrument, and an art form. From the furnaces of Murano to...

Glass in the Eighteenth Century: Craft, Commerc...

In the 18th century, glass was not merely a material — it was a technology, a luxury, a scientific instrument, and an art form. From the furnaces of Murano to...

Aerial view of a Chinese imperial garden pond with ornamental goldfish and koi in deep red, golden orange, white and mottled patterns swimming among lily pads and lotus flowers

Billardon de Sauvigny and the First European Go...

In 1780, Edme-Louis Billardon de Sauvigny published the first European monograph dedicated exclusively to goldfish — a landmark work that introduced 88 varieties of ornamental fish to Western science, and...

Billardon de Sauvigny and the First European Go...

In 1780, Edme-Louis Billardon de Sauvigny published the first European monograph dedicated exclusively to goldfish — a landmark work that introduced 88 varieties of ornamental fish to Western science, and...

Interior of a Victorian country house conservatory with exotic ferns, palms and orchids in terracotta pots, cane chairs and wrought-iron table with teacup, soft light filtering through curved glass panels

The Victorian Greenhouse: Architecture, Glass, ...

The Victorian greenhouse was not merely a place to grow plants. It was an architectural achievement, a scientific laboratory, a social space, and a symbol of the age's conviction that...

The Victorian Greenhouse: Architecture, Glass, ...

The Victorian greenhouse was not merely a place to grow plants. It was an architectural achievement, a scientific laboratory, a social space, and a symbol of the age's conviction that...

Mount Vesuvius erupting at night seen from the Bay of Naples, incandescent lava column reflected on dark water with sailing vessels silhouetted in the foreground, 18th century aquatint aesthetic

Sir William Hamilton and the Grand Tour: The Di...

Sir William Hamilton went to Naples as a British diplomat and stayed to watch a volcano. Over thirty years of systematic observation, he transformed the study of Vesuvius from antiquarian...

Sir William Hamilton and the Grand Tour: The Di...

Sir William Hamilton went to Naples as a British diplomat and stayed to watch a volcano. Over thirty years of systematic observation, he transformed the study of Vesuvius from antiquarian...