Lenora Rogers's Blog
November 23, 2021
December 15, 2018
Guest Post – Tales of Freya by Sarah Dahl
History... the interesting bits!
One question every author of historical fiction is asked is “How do you do your research?”, and then we most likely explain it like this: I have the usual array (or let’s say: addiction to) books about the era and specific aspects of the time (in my and surely also Sharon’s case: women’s lives in the era). My all-time favourite is an absolutely rich book I always consult: Hjardar/Vike’s “Vikings at War”. Unprecedented deta...
December 11, 2018
How to Celebrate Christmas, 1818
Christmas History 35. How was Christmas celebrated, 200 years ago? 1818 was a simpler time, but in many ways the spirit of Christmas was much the same: the importance of good company, good cheer, and thinking of others. The following article is from the Dublin Evening Post, 26th December 1818:
The following may be briefly recapitulated as the materials for the keeping of Christmas.
1. An absence of false religion, that is to say, of cruel opinions of God, and uncharit...
November 22, 2018
Nicolas Poussin: The Master of Intellect
On the 19th of November 1665, Nicolas Poussin, aged seventy one, died in Rome. He was buried in the church of San Lorenzo in Lucina, and in 1830 was commemorated with a monument donated by Chateaubriand. Despite the fact that most of his working life was spent in Italy, Poussin is considered the leading painter of the classical French Baroque Style. Among Poussin’s patrons were the king of France Louis XIII, the Italian scholar and patron of arts Cassiano dal Pozzo, and the contr...
On my stereo this week: The Blackheart Orchestra, Tracy Chapman and Echo Del Tusker.
Chrissy Mostyn and Rick Pilkington, the multi-instrumentalist duo from Manchester, who perform as The Blackheart Orchestra, are a revelation for those into enigmatic progressive pop. I had the privilege to chat with both of them a while ago and to be quite honest with you, I am STILL enthralled by their music. One of their songs that I just keep coming back to is the haunting and beautiful Sebastian. For a truly visceral experience, I...
Art Detectives: Young Woman with Servant
Following on from one of our blogs about Dido Elizabeth Belle, one of our lovely readers made us aware of this unusual painting titled, Young Woman with Servant which is on display at Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art.
Stephen Slaughter. English, 1697–1765. Young Woman with Servant by Stephen Slaughter (1697-1765). Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Connecticut, The Ella Gallup Sumner and Mary Catlin Sumner Collection Fund.
Why unusual? It is odd on so many lev...
November 21, 2018
Mid (19th)-century Thanksgiving
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In the middle of the nineteenth century, Thanksgiving was a very different holiday in some ways, but familiar in others. It did not become a national holiday until 1863: before that the Salem papers (I’m using the Salem Register in this post) note with each passing year how many governors have issued proclamations adopting the “joyous festival, so long the ‘peculiar institution’ of New England”. How jarring to see this phrase applied to Thanksgiving—when I thought it was an e...
England’s Tudor King: Henry VIII
Henry looks down at his life
wondering, where it has all gone,
thoughts run wild, through his life
asking, what have I done?
If only the walls could speak
they would have much to say,
for Henry ruled, with an iron fist
showing no mercy, for the accused.
The execution block
a bloody reminder,
for those who crossed
England’s King…
November 19, 2018
On the ‘Make or Break Show’
This week I sat down for a detailed interview with Brandon Cullum of the “Make or Break Show” podcast to discuss workbenches, plus how we dig up historical techniques here at Lost Art Press and the exact moment I knew I was going to do woodworking for the rest of my life.
It’s an hour-long interview and delves into areas I rarely go (Brandon is a very well-prepared interviewer, and he did his homework). So in addition to woodworking, we discuss my love of trailer fires and th...
