British potter Edmund de Waal has written a compelling memoir about his family during the holocaust, The Hare With Amber Eyes per the Guardian. In it, he talks about his family's collection of netsuke which survived the war by being hidden in a mattress. Netsuke are Japanese mini-sculptures which originated in the 17th century.
Speaking of Japan, the icons that Japanese Catholics were forced to trample on to apostasize were called fumies. This happened under the Tokugawa Shogunate.
A genizah is a storeroom for sacred Jewish texts. One of the most important was found in Cairo in the 1890's.
Oscar Wilde died a pauper from meningitis in 1900. He had served 2 years in jail for libel. On his deathbed, he converted to Catholicism. He was a big mystery religion fan.
French has the fabulous expression "l'esprit de l'escalier" which means "staircase wit." It means thinking of a rejoinder too late e.g. after you are already taking your leave on the staircase.
In which I engage in shallow discussions about books, movies, science, history and whatever else I'm thinking at that moment. And have beers with Captain Howdy.
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