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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong
@drsalspong.bsky.social
1.2K followers 1.5K following 410 posts
Medievalist. First gen. Obsessed with all things 1050-1250. Political, cultural, social history, England & France. Currently researching women and rebellion. #churchcrawling. Annoyed by (VERY) Long Covid. Owned by a mini wire-haired Dachshun
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 23h
That’s fabulous! I love the carvings.
Reposted by Dr Sally Spong
jdmccafferty.bsky.social
John McCafferty @jdmccafferty.bsky.social · 2d
The "Vienna" model or sample book, c. 1410-20. An aid for workshops and travelling artists so that they had a stock of motifs & shapes. Silverpoint drawing on paper, maple wood, leather. Dimensions: 9.5 cm × 9 cm. A small thing. (Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien)
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 2d
Norwich
1) Dragon Hall
2) depending upon what's currently in them, one of the churches looked after by www.nhct-norwich.org/our-churches/
3) Norwich Cathedral Refectory cathedral.org.uk/the-refector...
OUR CHURCHES | Norwich Historic Churches Trust
www.nhct-norwich.org
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 3d
Heard it this morning. Astonishing.
drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 3d
Lovely people of Suffolk (and nearby bits of Cambs & Essex). Happening on Oct 11th in Suffolk's smallest town to fundraise for the school. Bar, Food, and laughs!
claredoescustardcomedy.eventbrite.co.uk
drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 4d
#medievalMonday Laon Cathedral 📷 my own
Image of cathedral nave, with aisles visible through early gothic arches. At the far end is a massive rose window filled with medieval stained glass, with three lancet windows underneath it, also filled with medieval stained glass. The nave does not have much seating, giving it a much more authentic medieval feel.
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 4d
One of my favourite parts of the cathedral.
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Reposted by Dr Sally Spong
tessmachling.bsky.social
Dr Tess Machling @tessmachling.bsky.social · 4d
Meanwhile, in 'ya don't f*king say' land, Reform discover that governing ain't quite so easy...

' "Everyone thought we'd come in and there were going to be these huge costs we could cut away but there just aren't," said a third senior Reform cabinet member in Kent. '
Reform poised to raise Kent council tax as Musk-inspired attack on costs falters ANNA GROSS - KENT Kent's local authority will probably raise council tax rates next year as Reform UK struggles to find big savings under an Elon Musk-inspired cost-cutting drive. Kent was one of 10 councils that Nigel Farage's rightwing populist party seized in a swath of local election victories in May. He vowed to save "a lot of money" by abolishing "wasteful" spending. But Diane Morton, Reform's cabinet member for adult social care on Kent county council, told the Financial Times that services were already "down to the bare bones". an "We've got more demand than ever before and it's growing," she said, stress-ing she did not believe access to those services should be limited. "We just want more money." As with many local authorities in England, the bulk of Kent's budget went on adult and chil-dren's social care, as well as on children with special educational needs, which together accounted for about 50 per cent of its £2.5bn annual expenditure. All councils have a legal duty to bal-ance their books and will set next year's budgets in February or March. Ahead of that, most councils in England are expected to increase council tax by 5 per cent, the maximum allowed. "I think it's going to be 5 per cent," Morton said of where Kent would land on tax rises, adding that every 1 per cent increase equated to an extra £10mn. Council leader Linden Kemkaran, a former BBC journalist, said Kent was a test bed for the party's national policies and the "shop window through which everybody is going to see what a Reform government might look like". She declined to say whether council tax would be raised but other Reform coun-cillors said they wanted to avoid hitting the full 5 per cent. Reform's experience highlights some of the obstacles it may face in national government if it won the next general election and pursued its pledge to slash taxes and spending. "Everyone thought we'd come …
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 4d
What lies beneath. #ceilingsonSunday #alwayslookup Église Saint-Pantaléon, Troyes. Repairs ongoing... 📷 my own More info in alt text
The wooden ceiling of the church - which should be covered and decorated - can be seen exposed. The planks have the remnants of plaster on them, so are off-white in colour. The ceiling bosses can clearly be seen at the intersections. The ceiling is supported by pillars which have been seriously baroqued in the middle and upper sections. The church itself is a total mash-up of architectural styles, all slamming into each other, but is crazily appealing. It wins the prize for the most plastic flowers and lace doilies around an altar I have ever seen, and desperately needs a lot of money to stop more bits of it falling into the nave and aisles.
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 7d
Ooh! This looks excellent.
rhiggitt.bsky.social
Rebekah Higgitt @rhiggitt.bsky.social · 8d
Now I know what to do with my free morning in Cambridge later this month 📜 www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
Cats, coffins and sick notes: discovering Egypt’s forgotten workers in broken pottery
Cambridge exhibition showcases the lives of skilled workers who built some of the most famous sites in ancient Egypt
www.theguardian.com
drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 7d
A bit of late 17th century woodwork for #adoorableThursday Chapelle Notre-Dame de Compassion, Bulle, Switzerland
Carved, wooden doors into the church. The wood is light coloured (it looked like walnut), and decorated with scrolls, arches, pillars, cherub-heads, and flowers. The date 1688 is on the surrounding stonework.
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 8d
Magnificent moustache #woodensday Bench end at St Peter's, Coton
Carved, wooden bench end of a man's head with a full, droopy moustache and long, curling beard.
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Reposted by Dr Sally Spong
ryanmarino.bsky.social
Ryan Marino, MD @ryanmarino.bsky.social · 9d
This is why we fund scientists to study things like oyster slobber even if you don’t think it sounds important
leahmcelrath.bsky.social
Leah McElrath @leahmcelrath.bsky.social · 10d
⚠️ Chinese researchers have invented bone glue that mimics how oysters stick to surfaces underwater.

The adhesive can reportedly repair orthopedic fractures in 2-3 minutes, even in blood-rich environments, and is bioabsorbable.

interestingengineering.com/science/chin...
China's oyster-inspired 'bone glue' bonds fractures in minutes
A new oyster-inspired Bone-02 adhesive can revolutionize bone repair without metal fasteners.
interestingengineering.com
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 9d
The sort of history I absolutely love.
yvbsg.bsky.social
Yorkshire Vernacular Buildings Study Group @yvbsg.bsky.social · 9d
#WindowsOnWednesday Some workroom windows, including dairies and cheese rooms, were exempt from window tax if clearly labelled as such.
Dairy window in Hurstwood, Lancashire. Dairy window in Old Chamber, West Yorkshire. Dairy window in Cropton, North Yorkshire. Dairy window in Eastwood, West Yorkshire.
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 10d
Always here for a good medieval colour scheme!
drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 10d
It's gorgeous!
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 10d
Really hope so.
drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 10d
Dating to 1472 (date on the fireplace), the Maison du Dauphin is one of the oldest house in Troyes. #medievalMonday 📷 my own
The beautifully wonky end-gable wall of a timber-framed house. The rendered walls are washed in an ochre colour, with the window frames and drain pipes in red. In front are cobbles, and to the left is a later building
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 11d
Fingers crossed. 🤞
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 11d
Oh no! Have the receivers given any indication of what they are looking to do with it? @lauragathagan.bsky.social
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 11d
According to the Trust catalogue, it's Dutch. Artist unknown and entitled 'Two unknown girls'
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 12d
Stunning stuff from the 13th century. #stainedglassSunday at Laon Cathedral 📷 my own. More info in alt text #medievalsky
3 lancet windows, with the central being the most visible. They are full of beautiful stained glass. The central window shows (bottom to top), the story of the crucifixion, beginning in the bottom left hand corner with Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. The windows are surrounded by slim Gothic arches of light coloured stone. The cathedral has introduced subtle lighting at the bottom and top of each window to enhance their impact and reflect the candlelight which would have originally lit the scene. Detail from the bottom of the window showing Jesus entering Jerusalem, the last supper, and the betrayal in the the garden of Gethsemane
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 12d
I'm so, so sorry. I have done this and it's bloody awful. We were 39, and had known each other since we were babies. I miss her every day.
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 13d
Early 12th century fabulousness for #fontsonFriday. St Peter's, Coton #medieval 📷 my own. More info in alt text
Description from the Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture. "The bowl is square and supported on five shafts, the four at the corners slender and modern, the central shaft thicker with a cushion base. The inner bowl is circular and lead lined. The faces of the bowl are carved with four different designs as follows: E face: sixbay arcade with block capitals and bases supporting semicircular intersecting arches. S face: five bay arcade with block capitals and no bases supporting semicircular arches. The arcade appears to lean alarmingly, but this is mainly due to inaccurate fitting of the bowl on its base. W face: Arcade of three bays without capitals or bases. Under each arch is a bundle of four-five vertical reeds. N face: three rows of lateral face chevron at the top meeting another three rows at the bottom point-to-point to form a horizontal row of lozenges at the centre of the face. That, at any rate, seems to have been the intention, but the whole thing is inaccurately carved and the second lozenge from the R is one unit of chevron higher than it should be." W face: Arcade of three bays without capitals or bases. Under each arch is a bundle of four-five vertical reeds. This photo also includes details of the inner font bowl and wooden lid
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drsalspong.bsky.social
Dr Sally Spong @drsalspong.bsky.social · 14d
a man wearing a beanie and a black t-shirt with a camera on it
ALT: a man wearing a beanie and a black t-shirt with a camera on it
media.tenor.com
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