Category Archives: London

The Consequences of Varicella (Part 1)

Posted on 19/11/2017 by carolinemmurray

One of the things about this grandparenting lark is being asked occasionally to improve one’s knowledge of the East End of London by pushing a baby in a buggy around it. The Object of Worship and I had a very … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, History, London | Tagged City of London School, East End, James Cook, London docks, Sir William Perkin, St Paul's church Shadwell, Thomas Jefferson, Urban Baristas, Walter Pater | 3 Comments

Robert Harrild and Sons

Posted on 11/09/2017 by carolinemmurray

Just as everything is connected to everything else, so one thing leads to another. I was leafing through an ancient copy of Country Life in the doctor’s waiting room the other day, and was electrified to see a photograph of … Continue reading →

Posted in Bibliography, Biography, History, London, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Christ's Hospital, Gothic novel, Great Exhibition, printing, printing press, printing roller, Robert Harrild | 14 Comments

St Antholin’s

Posted on 04/09/2017 by carolinemmurray

4 September 1666 is generally reckoned to have been the most destructive day of the Great Fire of London, during which large amounts of the city on the north bank of the Thames were razed to the ground. The lost … Continue reading →

Posted in Bibliography, Biography, History, London, Printing and Publishing | Tagged City of London, Great Fire of London, London churches, Richard Newcourt, Sir Joseph Banks, St Antholin's church, St Anthony Abbot, Temple of Mithras, The Gentle Author | 3 Comments

Father of the More Famous

Posted on 01/09/2017 by carolinemmurray

I’m currently reading a book about Sir Joseph Banks as an Enlightenment figure (yes, I probably should get out more), and was struck by this quotation: ‘Mann [the Abbé Mann (1735–1809), a Yorkshire Catholic convert and savant who became a … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biography, History, Italy, Literature, London, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Anthony Panizzi, Dante, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Gabriele Rossetti, Sir Joseph Banks, Ugo Foscolo | Leave a comment

A Curious Herbal

Posted on 16/07/2017 by carolinemmurray

In Modena recently, we were having a nice mooch round the Biblioteca Estense in the Palazzo dei Musei, which also houses the Galleria Estense, the Lapidario Romano, the Musei Civici di Modena, and several other collections. (A tasting session for … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Bibliography, Botany, Cambridge, Gardens, History, London, Natural history, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Alexander Blackwell, Biblioteca Estense, Cambridge University Library, Chelsea Physic Garden, debtor's prison, Elizabeth Blackwell, herbals, Modena, Sweden | 3 Comments

First Catch Your Unicorn

Posted on 18/03/2017 by carolinemmurray

After reading a depressing story about the number of songbirds illegally netted on the British RAF bases in Cyprus, in order to create a dish sanctified (as the hunters claim) by centuries of Cypriot ‘culture’, I was thinking back to … Continue reading →

Posted in Bibliography, History, London, Natural history, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Boke of Kervynge, British Museum, Forme of Cury, Gustavus Brander, medival cookery, Samuel Pegge, unicorn, Wynkyn de Worde | 3 Comments

In Chancery

Posted on 20/02/2017 by carolinemmurray

Bleak House is my favourite Dickens novel. I don’t propose to defend the assertion now, but I mention it because recent rummagings in the library in which I spend my Friday mornings have brought to light a rather sad tale … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Botany, Gardens, History, London, Natural history | Tagged Benjamin Robertson, botanic gardens, chancery, legacies, Lord Chancellor, Stockwell, wills | 2 Comments

Westminster Bridge

Posted on 22/01/2017 by carolinemmurray

I tend to ignore the porcelain gallery at the Fitzwilliam Museum, since, as I have mentioned before, I really don’t like the coy, arch, simpering, figurative pieces that populate so many of the shelves. A quick genuflect towards the bookcase … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biography, Cambridge, History, London, Museums and Galleries, Venice | Tagged 'Architect Earl', 9th earl of Pembroke, Canaletto, Fitzwilliam Museum, Westminster Bridge | 2 Comments

Dr Ducarel Writes to Dr Watson

Posted on 01/01/2017 by carolinemmurray

Whether history has been kind to Andrew Coltée Ducarel (1713–85) rather depends on which source you use. Francis Grose and Horace Walpole seem both to have loathed him (but didn’t the latter loathe almost everyone?). Others, including John Nichols, have … Continue reading →

Posted in Bibliography, Biography, Botany, Gardens, History, London, Natural history, Printing and Publishing | Tagged Andrew Ducarel, garden history, Garden Museum, herbals, horticulture, Lambeth, plant collections, Tradescant, William Watson | 10 Comments

Object of the Month: December

Posted on 11/12/2016 by carolinemmurray

I bought a pack of these Christmas cards at the Fitzwilliam Museum shop a couple of weeks ago (don’t all rush, because sadly they are showing as out of stock on the website at the moment), partly because it’s a … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, History, London, Museums and Galleries | Tagged Christmas cards, Fitzwilliam Museum, Hendrick Avercamp, ice-skating, Netherlands, skates | 1 Comment