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Pentimenti – 11th Dec 2015

“My dear Brother, I would you knew (though not felt) the extreme dolor that overwhelms my mind, for that miserable accident which (far contrary to my meaning) hath befallen. I have now sent this kinsman of mine, whom ere now it hath pleased you to favour, to instruct you truly of that which is too irksome for my pen to tell you. I beseech you that as God and many more know, how innocent I am in this case : so you will believe me, that if I had bid aught I would have bid by it. I am not so base minded that fear of any living creature or Prince should make me so afraid to do that were just; or done, to deny the same. I am not of so base a lineage, nor carry so vile a mind. But, as not to disguise, fits not a King, so will I never dissemble my actions, but cause them show even as I meant them. Thus assuring yourself of me, that as I know this was deserved, yet if I had meant it I would never lay it on others’ shoulders; no more will I not damnify myself that thought it not.
The circumstance it may please you to have of this bearer. And for your part, think you have not in the world a more loving kinswoman, nor a more dear friend than myself; nor any that will watch more carefully to preserve you and your estate. And who shall otherwise persuade you, judge them more partial to others than you. And thus in haste I leave to trouble you: beseeching God to send you a long reign.
Your most assured loving sister and cousin,
Elizabeth R.”

Letter from Elizabeth I to King James VI of Scotland, 14th February 1587, following the execution by beheading of Mary Queen of Scots, 8th February 1587

Hanson, Marilee. “Elizabeth I’s Letters About Mary Queen Of Scots” http://englishhistory.net/tudor/relative/elizabeth-is-letters-about-mary-queen-of-scots/, March 6, 2015

Yummy mummy… – 16th Nov 2015

Ever since the birth of art, fashion, bodily adornment, tribal differentiation, ritual decoration… we as a species have looked for different colours in the world around us to brighten things up a bit. You name it, we’ve used it, dyes and pigments from roots, vegetables, flowers, ground mud, blood, crushed insects and seashells, squid ink, anything that’ll stain will do, and if the stain lasts, so much the better. We still use a lot of these ancient colours. However, Mummy Brown isn’t one of them.

Particularly prized by the Pre Raphaelites, Mummy Brown, as the name suggests, is a colour made out of the ground remains of Egyptian mummies. The rich brown comes from the chemicals used in the processes of embalming, as practiced in the ancient world, principally bitumen, which substance was considered responsible for the blackening of the remains of these ancient cadavers. The trade dates back centuries, with records of its export and use cropping up from several sources, including Samuel Pepys, in the 16th century, when production was at its peak.

Unsurprisingly, the colour began to fall out of favour towards the beginning of the 20th Century, in part due to greater respect for the field of archaeology, but as much to do with artists realizing where the pigment came from. Edward Burnes-Jones, on discovering that Mummy Brown was not just a fanciful name, immediately had his tube of the stuff interred, with some small ceremony, in his garden. Rudyard Kipling, a friend of Burnes-Jones, followed suit, burying his supply in his yard to try and right the wrongs of its sacrilegious use.

Nevertheless, the pigment remained in production until 1964 when the last supplies of the material used for its production ran out. According to the then managing director of Roberson’s artists colour makers: “We might have a few odd limbs lying around somewhere, but not enough to make any more paint. We sold our last complete mummy some years ago for, I think, £3. Perhaps we shouldn’t have. We certainly can’t get any more.”

This discovery has somewhat tainted my visits to art galleries as I now wonder how many of them are, literally, public mausoleums, but in researching this article, I have also discovered one more startling fact: that these ground remains were not only used as pigment, but were also employed (and consumed) for medicinal purposes…

References:

http://www.artinsociety.com/the-life-and-death-of-mummy-brown.html
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ground-mummies-were-once-ingredient-paint-180950350/
http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-technology/mummy-brown-16th-century-paint-made-ground-mummies-001716

Plongeur – 15th Nov 2015

“I began to protest, but he cut me short. ‘A PLONGEUR with a moustache —nonsense! Take care I don’t see you with it tomorrow.’
On the way home I asked Boris what this meant. He shrugged his shoulders. ‘You must do what he says, MON AMI. No one in the hotel wears a moustache, except the cooks. I should have thought you would have noticed it. Reason? There is no reason. It is the custom.’
I saw that it was an etiquette, like not wearing a white tie with a dinner-jacket, and shaved off my moustache. Afterwards I found out the explanation of the custom, which is this: waiters in good hotels do not wear moustaches, and to show their superiority they decree that PLONGEURS shall not wear them either; and the cooks wear their moustaches to show their contempt for the waiters.”

George Orwell, ‘Down and Out in Paris and London’ 1933

Lost – Weds 18th March

‘The gentleman raised his eyes above his newspaper and looked curiously at Jemima–
“Madam, have you lost your way? ” said he. He had a long bushy tail which he was sitting upon, as the stump was somewhat damp.
Jemima thought him mighty civil and handsome. She explained that she had not lost her way, but that she was trying to find a convenient dry nesting-place.’

The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck
Beatrix Potter

The grass is greener – Weds 5th Nov

If you go up the road from my front door you go further into Brighton, but turn a right instead, and within a block of two you’ve crossed the border into HOVE – another country entirely. At first glance it would seem that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, but a closer inspection shows that not all greenness is grass… And have the children of Somerhill school been re-enacting 80s history? And who played Mrs Thatcher Milk Snatcher?

The 3663 catering lorry makes a welcome appearance; I was pleased to see it this far inland. If you haven’t already seen it in previous editions do take the time to give its livery a closer look. One day I expect to visit a bar and see all these fine wares displayed just like they are on the side of the truck. Something to look forward to.

Bonfire night tonight. I wonder what I’ll find tomorrow?

Daiquiri – Thurs 30th Oct

I can’t believe it’s the 30th October. Sunlight bounces everywhere off wet pavements and the sky is the most luxurious deep blue. Is this England or the South of France? Once again the town is filled with scaffolders stripped to the waist and taking up far too much space in the outdoor landscape as only scaffolders know how. They certainly don’t know how to park, or maybe they don’t care? Restaurants, bars and casinos all look out of their element, impaled on the sunshine like seedy 70s vampires, giving the fake-cobwebbed, Halloween-festooned doorway a run for its money in the horror stakes, and it’s hard to believe the man in a stetson is drinking coffee out of a mug and not a Daiquiri.

Border patrol – Mon 27th Oct

You don’t get many days like today. Certainly not this time of year. Only a few days before Halloween and the skies are crystal clear and blue. Possibly as a result I spent a lot more time looking at shadows, simply because there were some, and perhaps less at the minutiae that seems to fill every corner of the town, but hey, there’s room for everything (including a DIY cat walkway). You’ll need to look closely (and have some knowledge of Brighton and Hove) to understand why i photographed a skewed square paving stone. And OK I admit it, the Squirrel looked CUTE. Sometimes you just can’t help yourself.

Offline tomorrow. Things to do.

DIY – Sat 25th Oct

Saturday, and the whole world is out eating breakfast, shopping, running, or walking the dog. Or in my case having a good nose around… Todays delights include some fantastic examples of DIY, a seagull with a penchant for tea, and the door to the netherworld. PLUS two new stones of the day. One marking the hands of time, the other, well, possibly not so immediately noteworthy, but how often do you see red stones on Brighton beach? (at least ones that aren’t worn down bricks anyway…)