Category Archives: History

When a diagram is better than a map

Posted on October 5, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

Long-time subscribers to Travel Between the Pages are well aware that I have an unusal interest in London’s Underground map. I can pinpoint my fascination with the well designed plans to my first visit to the British capital and my … Continue reading →

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Here Be Monsters

Posted on September 28, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

The Carta Marina (Latin for map of the sea) is the earliest known map of the Nordic countries with details and place names. The map was created over a 12 year period by the Swedish cartographer Olaus Magnus (1490–1557) and the first … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Europe, History, Maps | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Why Did The Beatles Cross The Road

Posted on September 26, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

The Beatles released the Abbey Road album in London, on this date in 1969. I’ve been thinking about the album after hearing Her Majesty referenced about a dozen times during the last two weeks. If you can’t find your copy, it’s all on YouTube now. … Continue reading →

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How Random Is This

Posted on September 25, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

New York City’s amazing Metropolitan Museum of Art is probably my favorite museum in the world and I’ve been to hundreds. It’s also one of the most visited museums in the world with nearly 2 million guests annually. The Met … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art, Asia, Europe, History, Middle East, Museums, USA | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

when the dying speak, they cannot lie

Posted on September 24, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

I was sad to read of the passing of the great English author Hilary Mantel. Here in the colonies we became acquainted with her powerful prose through the Wolf Hall trilogy. I thought that I would share this piece from Hilary Mantel’s essay … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Freedom of Speech, History, Theater, Writing | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Which Countries Still Have A Monarchy

Posted on September 19, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

With all of the hubbub about the death of Queen Elizabeth II and Charles’ ascension to the throne, I wondered what countries still maintained a monarchy. Low and behold, the excellent website Visual Capitalist has a helpful graphic that answers … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, History, Maps | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

How do you define museum ?

Posted on September 6, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

After a vote at their 26th general conference on August 24th, the International Council of Museums (ICOM) has refined their official definition of the term “museum,” that they previously established nearly half a century ago. The updated definition—which now incorporates … Continue reading →

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The Ballad of Holland Island

Posted on September 2, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

I recently had the opportunity to road trip along the Mid-Atlantic coast of the U.S. in the states of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. The highlight was a visit to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, on Assateague Island, which has stunning beaches, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art, Film, History, Music, USA | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Journey Through Swiss Railway History

Posted on August 29, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

It has been my good fortune to have traveled extensively throughout Switzerland by train. IMHO the Swiss railway network is unparalleled for its engineering and for the beauty of the geography that it covers. So, I was happy to learn … Continue reading →

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The Very Definition of Irony

Posted on August 26, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

  Even if you do not live in North America you are probably aware that the United States has been experiencing a wave of book bannings and attempts by a vocal neo-Fascist Christian Nationalist minority to censor both library books … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Freedom of Speech, History, Libraries, USA, Writing | Tagged , , | 1 Comment