history

Specific eras: Antiquity, Middle Ages, 16th Century, 17th Century, 19th Century, 20th Century …

Colosseum, Meta Sudans, and the Arch of Constantine in Rome

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Colosseum, Meta Sudans, and the Arch of Constantine in Rome, around the last decade of the 19th Century or turn of the 20th Century (“[The Colisuem (sic) and Meta Sudans, Rome, Italy]” Photograph. Detroit, Mich: Detroit Publishing Co., c1890-c1900. From Library of Congress: Photochrome Prints. https://loc.gov/​pictures/​resource/​ppmsc.06599/)

The Meta Sudans … was a large monumental conical fountain in ancient Rome.

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The ruins of Meta Sudans survived until the 20th century. In 1936 Benito Mussolini had its remains wantonly demolished and paved over to make room for the new traffic circle around the Colosseum. A commemorative plaque was set in the road.

“Meta Sudans,” Wikipedia

901 West Kinzie Street, Chicago in 2016 and 2017

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With the summer 2023 opening of the Guinness Open Gate Brewery Chicago announced just head of this St. Patrick’s Day week, I’m taking the opportunity to look back at the 901 W. Kinzie Street location. These are the “before” pictures, if you will, of the site before its redevelopment. This building used to be along my bike commute route to and from River North. 2017 photos show intensive mural art decoration—and the 2016 photo below shows that the murals hadn’t been there all that long. (And from the current photo accompanying the Sun-Times story, it looks like the murals are already largely gone—and there’s already an adjacent residential highrise.)

An Essay on Brewing, with a View of establishing The Principles of the Art · Caxton Club Exhibits

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An Essay on Brewing, with a View of establishing The Principles of the Art published in 1758 is the first text to recommend the use of the thermometer in a brewery. The author, Michael Combrune, was an ale brewer in the small village of Hempstead just north of London. This work is the first practical … Read more

Whitewashed: Church Mural Of Soviet Military Defeat Painted Over By Belarusian Authorities

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Whitewashed: Church Mural Of Soviet Military Defeat Painted Over By Belarusian Authorities In late 2022, a report on Belarus’s state-funded media singled out the mural in the Soly church, accusing it of “inciting national and religious hatred.” The report also claimed priests of the church “do not care about saving souls, but about returning western … Read more

Henry Louis Gates Jr. on Ron DeSantis and African American studies A.P. curriculum

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“Is it fair to see Governor DeSantis’s attempts to police the contents of the College Board’s A.P. curriculum in African American studies in classrooms in Florida solely as little more than a contemporary version of Mildred Rutherford’s Lost Cause textbook campaign? No. But the governor would do well to consider the company that he is keeping. And let’s just say that he, no expert in African American history, seems to be gleefully embarked on an effort to censor scholarship about the complexities of the Black past with a determination reminiscent of Rutherford’s. While most certainly not embracing her cause, Mr. DeSantis is complicitous in perpetuating her agenda.”

Henry Louis Gates Jr., “Who’s Afraid of Black History?,” The New York Times, February 17, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/17/opinion/desantis-florida-african-american-studies-black-history.html.