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Flap-dragon
Snap-dragon (also known as Flap-dragon, Snapdragon, or Flapdragon) was a parlour game popular from about the 16th century. It was played during the winter, particularly on Christmas Eve. Brandy was heated and placed in a wide shallow bowl; raisins were placed in the brandy which was then set alight. Typically, lights were extinguished or dimmed to increase the eerie effect of the blue flames playing across the liquor. The game is described in Samuel Johnson's ''A Dictionary of the English Language, Dictionary of the English Language'' (1755) as "a play in which they catch raisins out of burning brandy and, extinguishing them by closing the mouth, eat them." According to an article in Richard Steele's ''Tatler (1709 journal), Tatler'' magazine, "the wantonness of the thing was to see each other look like a demon, as we burnt ourselves, and snatched out the fruit." Snap-dragon was played in England, Canada, and the United States, but there is insufficient evidence of the practice i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
SnapDragon
''Antirrhinum'' is a genus of plants commonly known as dragon flowers, snapdragons and dog flower because of the flowers' fancied resemblance to the face of a dragon that opens and closes its mouth when laterally squeezed. They are native to rocky areas of Europe, the United States, Canada, and North Africa. It is widely used as an ornamental plant in borders and as a cut flower. Description The Antirrhinum is morphologically diverse, particularly the New World group (''Saerorhinum''). The genus is characterized by personate flowers with an inferior gibbous corolla. Taxonomy ''Antirrhinum'' used to be treated within the family Scrophulariaceae, but studies of DNA sequences have led to its inclusion in a vastly enlarged family Plantaginaceae, within the tribe Antirrhineae. Circumscription The taxonomy of this genus is complex and not yet fully resolved at present. In particular the exact circumscription of the genus, especially the inclusion of the New World species (Sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zante Currant
Zante currants, Corinth raisins, Corinthian raisins or outside the United States simply currants, are raisins of the small, sweet, seedless grape cultivar Black Corinth (''Vitis vinifera''). The name comes from the Anglo-French phrase "raisins de Corinthe" (grapes of Corinth) and the Ionian island of Zakynthos (Zante), which was once the major producer and exporter. It is not related to black, red or white currants, which are berries of shrubs in the genus ''Ribes'' and not usually prepared in dried form. History The Zante currant is one of the oldest known raisins. The first written record of the grape was made in 75 AD by Pliny the Elder, who described a tiny, juicy, thick-skinned grape with small bunches. The next mention is a millennium later, when the raisins became a subject of trade between Venetian merchants and Greek producers from Ionian coasts. In the 14th century, they were sold in the English market under the label ''Reysyns de Corauntz'', and the name ''raisins o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Love's Labour's Lost
''Love's Labour's Lost'' is one of William Shakespeare's early comedies, believed to have been written in the mid-1590s for a performance at the Inns of Court before Elizabeth I of England, Queen Elizabeth I. It follows the King of Navarre and his three companions as they attempt to swear off the company of women for three years in order to focus on study and fasting. Their subsequent infatuation with the Princess of France and her ladies makes them forsworn (break their oath). In an untraditional ending for a comedy, the play closes with the death of the Princess's father, and all weddings are delayed for a year. The play draws on themes of masculine love and desire, reckoning and rationalisation, and reality versus fantasy. Though first published in quarto in 1598, the play's title page suggests a revision of an earlier version of the play. There are no obvious sources for the play's plot. The use of apostrophes in the play's title varies in early editions, though it is most ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chambers Book Of Days
''Chambers Book of Days'' (''The Book of Days: A Miscellany of Popular Antiquities in Connection with the Calendar, Including Anecdote, Biography, & History, Curiosities of Literature and Oddities of Human Life and Character'') was written by the Scottish author Robert Chambers and first published in 1864. A new version of ''Chambers Book of Days'' was published by Chambers Harrap in 2004. ''The Book of Days'' (1864) ''The Book of Days'' was Robert Chambers' last publication, and perhaps his most elaborate. It was a huge collection of short, largely factual pieces which today would generally be bracketed as "trivia" but very interesting trivia. The formula has been much repeated. It is supposed that his excessive labour in connection with this book hastened his death. It was published in two large volumes, each over 840 pages long, and, for its day, was well-illustrated with engraved drawings linked to the articles. Its full title is ''The Book of Days: A Miscellany of Popula ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Chambers (publisher, Born 1802)
Robert Chambers (; 10 July 1802 – 17 March 1871) was a Scottish publisher, geologist, evolutionary thinker, author and journal editor who, like his elder brother and business partner William Chambers, was highly influential in mid-19th-century scientific and political circles. Chambers was an early phrenologist in the Edinburgh Phrenological Society. He was also the anonymous author of ''Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation'', which was so controversial that his authorship was not acknowledged until after his death. Early life Chambers was born in Peebles in the Scottish Borders 10 July 1802 to Jean Gibson (''c''. 1781–1843) and James Chambers, a cotton manufacturer. He was their second son of six children. The town had changed little in centuries. The town had old and new parts, each consisting of little more than a single street. Peebles was mainly inhabited by weavers and labourers living in thatched cottages. His father, James Chambers, made his living as a cott ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter Raleigh
Sir Walter Raleigh (; – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebellion in Ireland, helped defend England against the Spanish Armada and held political positions under Elizabeth I. Raleigh was born to a Protestant family in Devon, the son of Walter Raleigh and Catherine Champernowne. He was the younger half-brother of Sir Humphrey Gilbert and a cousin of Sir Richard Grenville. Little is known of his early life, though in his late teens he spent some time in France taking part in the religious civil wars. In his 20s he took part in the suppression of rebellion in the colonisation of Ireland; he also participated in the siege of Smerwick. Later, he became a landlord of property in Ireland and mayor of Youghal in East Munster, where his house still stands in Myrtle Grove. He rose rapidly in the favour of Quee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles I Of England
Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after his father inherited the English throne in 1603, he moved to England, where he spent much of the rest of his life. He became heir apparent to the kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland in 1612 upon the death of his elder brother, Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales. An unsuccessful and unpopular attempt to marry him to the Spanish Habsburg princess Maria Anna of Spain, Maria Anna culminated in an eight-month visit to Spain in 1623 that demonstrated the futility of the marriage negotiation. Two years later, he married the House of Bourbon, Bourbon princess Henrietta Maria of France. After his 1625 succession, Charles quarrelled with the Parliament of England, English Parliament, which sought to curb his royal prerogati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James I Of England
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland as James I from the Union of the Crowns, union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until his death in 1625. The kingdoms of Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland and Kingdom of England, England were individual sovereign states, with their own parliaments, judiciaries, and laws, though both were ruled by James in personal union. James was the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and a great-great-grandson of Henry VII of England, Henry VII, King of England and Lord of Ireland, and thus a potential successor to all three thrones. He succeeded to the Scottish throne at the age of thirteen months, after his mother was compelled to abdicate in his favour. Four different regents governed during his minority, which ended officially in 1578, though he did not gain full control of his government until 1583. In 1603, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twelfth Night (holiday)
Twelfth Night (also known as Epiphany Eve) is a Christian festival on the last night of the Twelve Days of Christmas, marking the coming of the Epiphany. Different traditions mark the date of Twelfth Night as either or , depending on whether the counting begins on Christmas Day or . A superstition in some English-speaking countries suggests it unlucky to leave Christmas decorations hanging after Twelfth Night, a tradition also variously attached to the festivals of Candlemas (2 February), Good Friday, Shrove Tuesday, and Septuagesima. Other popular customs include eating king cake, singing Christmas carols, chalking the door, having one's house blessed, merrymaking, and attending church services. Date In many Western ecclesiastical traditions, Christmas Day is considered the "First Day of Christmas" and the Twelve Days are , inclusive, making Twelfth Night on , which is Epiphany Eve. In some customs, the Twelve Days of Christmas are counted from sundown on the evening of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halloween
Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observance of Allhallowtide, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints ( hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed. One theory holds that many Halloween traditions were influenced by Celtic harvest festivals, particularly the Gaelic festival Samhain, which are believed to have pagan roots. Some go further and suggest that Samhain may have been Christianized as All Hallow's Day, along with its eve, by the early Church. Other academics believe Halloween began solely as a Christian holiday, being the vigil of All Hallow's Day. Celebrated in Ireland and Scotland for centuries, Irish and Scottish immigrants took many Halloween customs to North America in the 19th century,Brunvand, Jan (editor). ''Ame ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christmas Pudding
Christmas pudding is sweet dried-fruit pudding traditionally served as part of Christmas dinner in Britain and other countries to which the tradition has been exported. It has its origins in medieval England, with early recipes making use of dried fruit, suet, breadcrumbs, flour, eggs and spice, along with liquid such as milk or fortified wine. Later, recipes became more elaborate. In 1845, cookery writer Eliza Acton wrote the first recipe for what she called "Christmas pudding". The dish is sometimes known as plum puddingBroomfield, Andrea (2007Food and cooking in Victorian England: a historypp.149-150. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007 (though this can also refer to other kinds of boiled pudding involving dried fruit). The word "plum" was used then for what has been called a "raisin" since the 18th century, and the pudding does not in fact contain plums in the modern sense of the word. Basics Many households have their own recipes for Christmas pudding, some handed down thr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plum
A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus''''.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found in the wild, only around human settlements: ''Prunus domestica'' has been traced to East European and Caucasian mountains, while ''Prunus salicina'' and '' Prunus simonii'' originated in China. Plum remains have been found in Neolithic age archaeological sites along with olives, grapes and figs. According to Ken Albala, plums originated in Iran. They were brought to Britain from Asia. An article on plum tree cultivation in Andalusia (southern Spain) appears in Ibn al-'Awwam's 12th-century agricultural work, ''Book on Agriculture''. Etymology and names The name plum derived from Old English ''plume'' "plum, plum tree", borrowed from Germanic or Middle Dutch, derived from Latin ' and ultimately from Ancient Greek ''proumnon'', itself belie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
