Posts Tagged ‘Monaco’
“Once there was a fleeting wisp of glory / Called Camelot”*…
13th-century pages, found by chance at a British library, show a different side of Merlin, the magician who advised Camelot’s king…
Thirteenth-century manuscript fragments discovered by chance at a library in Bristol, England, have revealed an alternative version of the story of Merlin, the famed wizard of Arthurian legend. A team of scholars translated the writings, known as the Bristol Merlin, from Old French to English and traced the pages’ medieval origins, reports Alison Flood for the Guardian.
The manuscript is part of a group of texts called the Vulgate Cycle, or the Lancelot-Grail Cycle. Using handwriting analysis, the researchers determined that someone in northern or northeastern France wrote the text between 1250 and 1275. That means it was committed to parchment shortly after the Vulgate Cycle was first composed, between 1220 and 1225.
“The medieval Arthurian legends were a bit like the Marvel Universe, in that they constituted a coherent fictional world that had certain rules and a set of well-known characters who appeared and interacted with each other in multiple different stories,” Laura Chuhan Campbell, a medieval language scholar at Durham University, tells Gizmodo’s Isaac Schultz. “This fragment comes from the second volume, which documents the rise of Merlin as Arthur’s advisor, and Arthur’s turbulent early years as king.”…
“Rediscovered Medieval Manuscript Offers New Twist on Arthurian Legend,” from @SmithsonianMag.
* “Camelot,” lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner; in Camelot, based on The Once and Future King by T.H. White
###
As we meditate on the myth, we might recall that it was on this date in 1297 that François (or Francesco) Grimaldi, the leader of the Guelphs, disguised himself as a monk and led a group of his followers in the capture of the Rock of Monaco.
In the event, François (whose nickname was il Malizia, “the malicious“) was able to hold the territory for four years before being chased out by the Genoese. After his death, in 1309, he was succeeded by his cousin (and stepson), Rainier I of Monaco, Lord of Cagnes. His cousin’s descendants, the Grimaldi family, purchased Monaco from the crown of Aragon in 1419, and became the official and undisputed rulers of the principality, which they hold to this day.
François’ victory is commemorated on the Monegasque coat of arms (the emblem of the Grimaldi family), on which the supporters are two friars armed with swords.
The Passing of the Passion Pit (Part 2)…
Long-time readers will recall Carl Weese’s photographic homage to “soft-tops,” as drive-in movie theaters are known in the trade. Now, following figuratively in his footsteps, Craig Deman’s “The Drive-in Project,” a record of pleasures past across the country.
See the full portfolio here. And dive more deeply into the melancholy via this photo tour of abandoned amusement parks around the world.
###
As we reach for the speaker, we might recall that it was on this date in 1982 that Grace, Princess of Monaco (née Grace Kelly) died when she suffered a stroke, then lost control of her automobile and crashed. She had retired in 1956 from a six-year career as an actress, capped by a Academy Award for her performance in The Country Girl, to marry Prince Ranier.
Grace Kelly in “High Society” (1956)
It’s the *pictures* that got small…
Hedy Lamarr, actress and pioneer of spread-spectrum radio transmission
Virginia Postrel reports in Deep Glamour:
A beautiful exhibit of classic Hollywood portraits is currently on display at the National Portrait Gallery in London. (In December, it moves to the Bendigo Art Gallery in Victoria, Australia.) The exhibit, which draws its photos from the John Kobal Collection, originated at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, which provided the images for this slideshow, which originally ran on DG in 2008.
The photos all present idealized versions of the stars–but what a range of ideals they represent, from the refined elegance of Grace Kelly to the sultry seductiveness of Rita Hayworth’s Gilda, from Vivian Leigh in hyperfeminine white ruffles to Marlene Dietrich tough and dominant in a crisp blouse and slacks. And those are just (a few of) the women…
Like Debbie Reynolds’s late-lamented costume collection, the John Kobal Collection originated with MGM’s mother of all garage sales. In the ’60s and ’70s, when Golden Age glamour was out of fashion and studios were dumping their archives, Kobal bought and preserved prints and negatives, befriended aging stars and photographers, and documented their stories. Most of the classic images you see reproduced today come from his archives…
Marlon Brando, actor and activist
More images at Deep Glamour.
As we strike our poses, we might recall that it was on this date in 1956 that High Society opened in movie theaters across the U.S. It was the last film made by Grace Kelly, who had married Prince Ranier of Monaco months before the premiere. It was a questionable note– a remake (of The Philadelphia Story)– on which to retire… but it did feature music and lyrics by Cole Porter.
Grace Kelly, just before she became Princess Consort of Monaco
You must be logged in to post a comment.