On Monday I blogged about this portrait of Richard Croft’s children—where Herbert, aged ten, is lying in the pose of Melancholy, in the background in partial shadow, due to his having died.
The children’s father, the 6th Baronet Richard Croft,… Read More
I have a new book coming out next February with National Geographic. Here’s the cover. The subject is fashion, namely, a history of the world through the lens of what people wore, and why. It’s in the final layout phase… Read More
Up to a quarter of women who gave birth in hospitals in Europe and America in the 17th through the 19th centuries died of puerperal fever. It's an infection that could most likely have been prevented by doctors and nurses washing their hands.