M.J. Rose

…”The purpose and origin of the hoard remains a mystery…”

6,000-year-old crown found in Dead Sea cave revealed

(by April Holloway – Ancient Origins)

“The world’s oldest crown, which was famously discovered in 1961 as part of the Nahal Mishar Hoard, along with numerous other treasured artefacts, are to be revealed in New York University’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World as part of the ‘Masters of Fire: Copper Age Art from Israel’ exhibit.

The ancient crown dates back to the Copper Age between 4000–3500 BC, and is just one out of more than 400 artefacts that were recovered in a cave in the Judean Desert near the Dead Sea more than half a century ago. The crown is shaped like a thick ring and features vultures and doors protruding from the top. It is believed that it played a part in burial ceremonies for people of importance at the time…”

See more here.

Remember those glittery sugar coated Easter Eggs with a tiny, frosted hole in the front through which one could peer into a miniature world of Easter Bunny mystery?

This lovely art installation is the grown up version –

Tiny Worlds Buried into Gallery Walls by Patrick Jacobs

by Danny Olda

“The Brooklyn based artist Patrick Jacobs explores the gallery space in a unique way. He installs his work inside galleries – literally within the gallery. Jacobs carefully constructs meticulously detailed diorama-like models. These models are then installed within the white walls of the gallery and fitted with porthole type windows. The installations give the appearance of miniature and often vividly colored worlds hidden within the gallery structure. However, the small round windows only allow viewers to act as onlookers, as if scientific researchers or even giant voyeurs. A world that would be pleasant to get lost in is perpetually inaccessible…”

For the rest, and many beautiful pictures, click here.

Happy Valentines Day dear readers. Here is a beautiful piece from The Public Domain Review…

Sir Arthur and the Fairies

In the spring of 1920, at the beginning of a growing fascination with spiritualism brought on by the death of his son and brother in WWI, Arthur Conan Doyle took up the case of the Cottingley Fairies. Mary Losure explores how the creator of Sherlock Holmes became convinced that the ‘fairy photographs’ taken by two girls from Yorkshire were real.

“In the winter of 1920, readers of the popular British magazine the Strand found a curious headline on the cover of their Christmas issues. “FAIRIES PHOTOGRAPHED,” it said. “AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT DESCRIBED BY A. CONAN DOYLE.” The Strand’s readership was well acquainted with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; most of his wildly popular Sherlock Holmes stories had appeared for the first time in its pages. The great man’s claim that fairies –real fairies – had been photographed in the north of England by two young girls was greeted with wonder, but unfortunately for Conan Doyle, most of it was of the “what can he be thinking?” variety. How could the creator of the world’s most famous, least-fool-able detective have convinced himself that “fairy” photographs were real? Let us proceed, Holmes-like, to examine the question.

Mistake Number One: Misinterpreting the Evidence

To his credit, Conan Doyle made what was (to him) a thorough, scientific, step- by- step investigation of the “fairy” photographs. For his first step, he consulted experts at the London offices of the George Eastman Kodak Company. They examined prints of the first two “fairy” photos and told Conan Doyle they could find no evidence of photo-doctoring; still, they insisted someone who knew enough about photography could have faked them. In Conan Doyle’s mind, that ruled out the two Yorkshire village girls who had taken the photographs, Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths…”

For the rest, and more photographs, click here.