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Cynthia Green

Cynthia Green

Cynthia Green holds an M.A. in History from Emory University. She has written for NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) and the Circuit des Remparts Angoulême, among others, and is a regular contributor to Mode & Tendances Magazine.

Sari drape

Why Saris are Indian Material Culture

Between 1996 and 2003, a folklorist studied the connection between handlooms (technology), sari makers (producers), and sari wearers (consumers) in the ancient city of Banaras.
Actress Maria Callas as Violetta in La Traviata, 1958

Why Verdi Wrote an Opera about Sex Work

Giuseppi Verdi's 1853 opera La Traviata was a shocker when it was first performed. Nineteenth-century audiences didn't expect to watch a sex worker die of tuberculosis at the opera.
Alexander Pushkin

How Alexander Pushkin Was Inspired By His African Heritage

Alexander Pushkin is known as the quintessential Russian writer, but he took particular inspiration from his African great-grandfather, General Abraham Petrovitch Gannibal.
Closeup of a colorful zipper with metal teeth

How WWI Made the Zipper a Success

A money belt with a zipper became an instant success among WWI U.S. sailors, whose uniforms did not have pockets. Almost all initial zipper sales were for the money belts.
Turf Cutters 1869 by Thomas Wade 1828-1891

Peat’s Place in Art

Since the nineteenth century, peat (or turf) has brought social consciousness to art. In the 1800s, Pre-Raphaelite paintings focused on the fact that the poor harvested it.
Karen Blixen

The Writer Behind Out of Africa

For Karen Blixen, the Danish author of "Out of Africa," role, purpose, fate and destiny are intertwined
Kim Jong-hyun

What Exactly is K-Pop, Anyway?

Since the late 90s, K-Pop has been one of South Korea's most important cultural exports. Fans have a deeply emotional attachment to the music.
Jan van Der Heyden painting

Jan van der Heyden and the Dawn of Efficient Street Lights

17th-century Amsterdam was the first city in Europe to have an efficient system of street lighting—thanks to a Golden Age painter called Jan van der Heyden.
Kilts

How Highlanders Came to Wear Kilts

Kilts are traditional garb from Scotland, right? Well, that's not quite the whole story.
Twelfth Night party

Shakespeare, Rembrandt, and the Real “Twelfth Night”

"Twelfth Night" was more than a Shakespeare play; for a very long time it was an extremely popular European winter feast.
Spring Frances MacDonald

The Scottish Sisters Who Pioneered Art Nouveau

Margaret and Frances Macdonald and their Glasgow School of Art classmates Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Harold MacNair were Art Nouveau's Glasgow Four.
Kimono pattern

The Surprising History of the Kimono

The kimono that the world associates with Japan was actually created in the late-nineteenth century as a cultural identifier.
Seaweed William Kilburn

Are You Wearing Seaweed?

Are you wearing seaweed? People have been for hundreds of years, in sizing, patterns and fibers, although they might not have known it.
Wampum illustration

Wampum was Massachusetts’ First Legal Currency

First Nations' seashell-derived wampum was Massachusetts' first legal currency, used as currency throughout northeastern America into the 19th century.
Perry Pears

England’s Forgotten Favorite Drink

Thanks to botanical artists, 19th century paintings of perry pears are helping to bring England's forgotten bubbly back to our glasses.
Bog butter barrels

Bog Butter Barrels and Ireland’s 3000-Year-Old Refrigerators

Wooden Bog Butter Barrels are possibly the most beautiful things you can find in a bog.  But why did people throw their butter into bogs?
Victorian fern gatherers

When Ferns Were All The Rage

Despite the jurassic-sounding name, pteridomania (from the Greek for fern, plant and mania) was responsible for the 19th century fern leaf collector's job.
Official Macron portrait

Louis XIV, Napoleon, and Macron: The Choreography of Portraits

Official portraits have been a means of communicating intention and creating image throughout history. Consider three of France's iconic leaders.
Harpsichord

Why We Will Never Hear What Mozart Heard

Modern pianos are the product of a 600-year evolution—from Hermann Poll's 1397 clavicembalum, to clavichords, harpsichords, and the modern grand piano.
"Distribution of Alms and Death of Ananias" by Masaccio

How Buon Fresco Brought Perspective to Drawing

Buon fresco, perhaps the best-known kind of wall painting, is the result of a chemical reaction turning paint and wet plaster into a single, solid surface.
Indian Dress

Why India Once Led The Fashion Industry

India led the fashion world in the 16th and 17th centuries through cotton fabric, design motifs, and its customer-centric market system.
de Heem books

The 17th-Century Dutch Version of Bookstagram

Jan Davidszoon de Heem, one of the greatest still-life painters of the 17th century Dutch Golden Age, brought particular brilliance to book still-lifes.
Purple Prince

The History of Purple, From Pliny to Prince

In August Pantone honored late singer/songwriter Prince with a new shade of purple called Purple Rain. Why is the color purple considered to be so special?
Water carrier

The Story Behind “The Parisian Water-Carrier”

Who was the "Parisian water-carrier" depicted in eighteenth-century French sculptor Edme Bouchardon’s sketches, and how did he earn his living?