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Objects Of Intrigue

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objects of intrigue

In England, Certain Royal Appointees Get to Carry Special Rods and Wands

They're all different colors, too.
Sarah Laskow May 16, 2018
A watercolor drawing depicts a dinner party held in Giles County, Virginia. An enslaved woman and boy serve food and drink, while a third slave controls the punkah fans.
objects of intrigue

How Ceiling Fans Allowed Slaves to Eavesdrop on Plantation Owners

The punkahs of the Antebellum era served many purposes.
Eve Kahn May 14, 2018
The culture sits on plush velvet.
objects of intrigue

The Moldy Medallions That Preserve Penicillin's Past

Alexander Fleming, the researcher who discovered it, started culturing commemorative keepsakes.
Jessica Leigh Hester May 10, 2018
objects of intrigue

Greenland’s Hand-Sized Wooden Maps Were Used for Storytelling, Not Navigation

These distinctive artifacts are clues to how the Tunumiit people saw the world.
Hans Harmsen May 2, 2018
The image may evoke watercolors, but it actually references a deadly bacteria.
objects of intrigue

The Geekiest Cuff Links of 1900 Featured Little Images of Plague Bacteria

No one knows who made them or why.
Jessica Leigh Hester May 2, 2018
The Hand of Glory in the Whitby Museum.
objects of intrigue

Why This Severed Hand Is So Glorious

According to legend, thieves could use it to render a whole household unconscious.
Wendy Pratt April 27, 2018
A girdle book held by the Beinecke Library at Yale University.
objects of intrigue

Go Medieval by Attaching a Book to Your Belt

They're incredibly rare today, but portable girdle books were once very handy.
Sarah Laskow April 19, 2018
objects of intrigue

Making Art for Bees

Michael Candy's Synthetic Pollenizer is "a sculpture for a different species."
Cara Giaimo April 17, 2018
A scorpion demon, embroidered by Eleanor B. Roosevelt in 1940.
objects of intrigue

How Better to Protest Federal Policy Than With an Embroidered Scorpion Demon?

Eleanor B. Roosevelt—no, not THAT Eleanor Roosevelt—thought the New Deal was monstrous.
Cara Giaimo April 16, 2018
Demonstrating the mirror's zero-refraction characteristics.
objects of intrigue

See Yourself As You Truly Are in This Mysterious Metal Mirror

Made in Kerala, the "Aranmula kannadi" won't distort your reflection.
Savera John and Susan Paul July 6, 2022
Charles Manson's name is etched onto one of this guitars.
objects of intrigue

Charles Manson's Guitar Is a Symbol of Music and Murder

One of the infamous killer's instruments is on display in Tennessee.
Eric Grundhauser April 5, 2018
A "Cup of Knowledge" could hold both tea and the secret to your future.
objects of intrigue

These Fortune-Telling Tea Cups Made Divination Easy

"Many Curious Things I See, When Telling Fortunes In Your Tea."
Anne Ewbank April 4, 2018
A photograph by F. W. Guerin from the turn of the century shows a woman holding a book.
objects of intrigue

The Victorian Cards That Explained How to Use a Book to Flirt

"Resting on right cheek: You are too willing."
Natasha Frost March 23, 2018
A rat explores his new creative potential.
objects of intrigue

Finally, a Theremin for Rats

With the help of human musician Dan Deacon, some rats have made a film soundtrack with it.
Cara Giaimo March 13, 2018
The Exeter Book is the source of 95 of the 96 Old English riddles still known today.
objects of intrigue

One of the World's Most Irreplaceable Books Was Used as a Cutting Board

The Exeter Book also once served as a coaster.
Anne Ewbank February 27, 2018
Are you jelly?
objects of intrigue

Nostradamus Wrote Prophecies; He Also Made Jelly

His cookbook contained recipes for sweets and plague remedies.
Anne Ewbank February 15, 2018
A puzzle jug, c. 1660 - 1690.
objects of intrigue

Puzzle Jugs, the Drinking Vessels Designed to Confound

If you're thirsty for problem-solving, these pitchers are perfect.
Carly Silver February 7, 2018
Order up, number 30.
objects of intrigue

The Fast Food Numbering System That Repeatedly Inspires Theft

Swiping Whataburger’s table tents is almost a rite of passage.
Paula Mejia January 31, 2018