Makeup In The 12th Century

By Eleanor Hodgson “Another time I was at a meetingIn Heaven, by chanceAnd the statues were complaining,Of ladies who paint themselves,I saw them complain to God,About the women who heighten their complexion,And make their flesh shine,With paint that should be used on statues.” The first verse of a Tenso written by the Benedictine Monge de Montaudon (monk of Montaudon) between 1180-1215. Make-up was hardly a … Continue reading Makeup In The 12th Century

Bold Reynard With His Wits So Fine

By Tara Hodgson & Barnie Matthews In our culture, foxes are usually depicted as sly, devious and cunning, from the Redwall novels to Blackadder’s “as cunning as a fox who’s just been appointed professor of cunning at Oxford university”. Which might seem a little strange to anyone who’s ever encountered a real life fox: while foxes are certainly intelligent, they are also frequently shy and … Continue reading Bold Reynard With His Wits So Fine