Send in the Clowns
Lulu Adams came from a long, illustrious line of circus performers and was credited—even if wrongly—with being the world’s first female clown.
Eswatini: At the King’s Pleasure
Wedged between South Africa and Mozambique, Eswatini is the last absolute monarchy in Africa.
(Re)discovering Minerva Parker Nichols, Architect
The first American woman to establish an independent architectural practice, Minerva Parker Nichols built an unprecedented career in Philadelphia.
Tavolette: Paintings to Comfort the Condemned
Charged with saving the immortal souls of the condemned, comforters held tavolette showing the Crucifixion in front of the eyes of those facing execution.
Before Deep Blue: the Automaton Chess Player
You may have heard of IBM’s chess-playing computer, but Johann Nepomuk Maelzel’s Automaton Chess Player beat Deep Blue to the (mechanical) punch. Check mate.
Who Owns the Ground Beneath Your Feet?
Carbon removal, a proposed solution to climate change, will require the injection of CO2 underground—but under whose property?
Lonely Diarist of the High Seas
As ship stewardess, Ella Sheldon tended to upper-crust women onboard and battled a range of workplace demons. Her journals tell her story.
Aruba: Black Gold and Boas
What happens when an oil-rich island paradise interrupts its production of petroleum? You may have to visit the Caribbean island of Aruba to find out.
Daniel Burnham in the Philippines
Building on his success as an architect and planner in Chicago, Daniel Burnham took American values and aesthetics to the new US colony of the Philippines.
Coco De Mer: The Magical Derrière of the Sea
Once viewed as a precious item of mysterious origin, the seed of the coco do mer palm, though better understood today, remains a rare and valuable commodity.