@maryrussell.bsky.social
Theologian, detective. My 19th memoir, Knave of Diamonds, will be released in 2025. Sample the first memoir, THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE, http://bit.ly/24Pm4hf
Both BEEK and MOOR are on sale in the Kindle version in the U.S.
December 2, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Both BEEK and MOOR are on sale in the Kindle version in the U.S.
An astronomer and brewer...the man had range.
In 1647, self-taught astronomer and brewer Johannes Hevelius created the first detailed map of the Moon 🌕
Nearly four centuries later, @bodleian.ox.ac.uk have brought his Selenographia into the digital age – letting anyone explore the world’s first lunar atlas.
Learn more ⬇️
Nearly four centuries later, @bodleian.ox.ac.uk have brought his Selenographia into the digital age – letting anyone explore the world’s first lunar atlas.
Learn more ⬇️
Mapping the Moon: the world’s first lunar atlas goes digital |
www.ox.ac.uk
December 2, 2025 at 4:15 PM
An astronomer and brewer...the man had range.
Catching up on the #AshmoleanAdventCalendar
#AshmoleanAdvent Day 2: A Bronze Stag 🦌
This Roman bronze brooch in the shape of a stag would have been used to fasten a shawl or cloak.
This brooch was once decorated with bright multi-coloured enamel which was very popular in Britain and France during the Roman period.
🦌 AN1927.418
This Roman bronze brooch in the shape of a stag would have been used to fasten a shawl or cloak.
This brooch was once decorated with bright multi-coloured enamel which was very popular in Britain and France during the Roman period.
🦌 AN1927.418
December 2, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Catching up on the #AshmoleanAdventCalendar
Isn't this lovely?
#AshmoleanAdvent Day 1: Snow at Kinryūzan Temple
Our Ashmolean Advent Calendar is here! Check back each day until Christmas for a new seasonal treat from our collections.
The first festive treat from the collection is Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s View of Snow on Benten Hill at Kinryūzan Temple in Asakusa.
Our Ashmolean Advent Calendar is here! Check back each day until Christmas for a new seasonal treat from our collections.
The first festive treat from the collection is Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s View of Snow on Benten Hill at Kinryūzan Temple in Asakusa.
December 2, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Isn't this lovely?
And it is windy today, too.
December 1, 2025 at 4:55 PM
And it is windy today, too.
It is beautiful, and there will always be those who come unprepared for the day.
The 1178 Ranshofen Gospels give big Monday energy: three evangelists turn up to work missing key tools: no pen, wrong ink, no parchment.... only St John is prepared for the day.
A medieval reminder that some Mondays haven’t changed!
MS. Canon. Bibl. Lat. 60
#MedievalMonday
A medieval reminder that some Mondays haven’t changed!
MS. Canon. Bibl. Lat. 60
#MedievalMonday
December 1, 2025 at 4:54 PM
It is beautiful, and there will always be those who come unprepared for the day.
To all my readers in Scotland.
November 30, 2025 at 4:48 PM
To all my readers in Scotland.
Mr Lewis was a talented cartographer as well as a brilliant writer.
Born #OTD in 1898: C. S. Lewis, creator of Narnia!
This hand-drawn map is his own sketch, later redrafted by Pauline Baynes for Prince Caspian.
Spot Aslan’s How, Cair Paravel and Lantern Waste on the map. 🦁
Shelfmark: MS. Eng. lett. c. 220/1, fol. 160
This hand-drawn map is his own sketch, later redrafted by Pauline Baynes for Prince Caspian.
Spot Aslan’s How, Cair Paravel and Lantern Waste on the map. 🦁
Shelfmark: MS. Eng. lett. c. 220/1, fol. 160
November 30, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Mr Lewis was a talented cartographer as well as a brilliant writer.
Today has been cloudy, windy, and grey. Staying by the fire with a cuppa was mandatory.
November 29, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Today has been cloudy, windy, and grey. Staying by the fire with a cuppa was mandatory.
A well-rendered crab.
This wonderful Ancient Greek gold coin dates from late 5th-century BCE.
It was issued by the city of Akragas, today’s Agrigento, in Sicily.
The coin features a crab on the reverse, and an eagle standing on a rock, devouring a snake.These symbols were common designs on the coinage of Akragas.
It was issued by the city of Akragas, today’s Agrigento, in Sicily.
The coin features a crab on the reverse, and an eagle standing on a rock, devouring a snake.These symbols were common designs on the coinage of Akragas.
November 29, 2025 at 4:44 PM
A well-rendered crab.
People, all people it seems, enjoy a game of chance.
This terracotta die comes from the ancient city of Mohenjo-Daro, one of the first urban centres in human history 🎲⠀
⠀
Gaming with dice has been a popular pastime in India for millennia, with this object dating back to 2500–1900 BCE.
🎲 Terracotta Die, 2500–1900 BCE. 2 x 2 x 2 cm. EAMd.25
⠀
Gaming with dice has been a popular pastime in India for millennia, with this object dating back to 2500–1900 BCE.
🎲 Terracotta Die, 2500–1900 BCE. 2 x 2 x 2 cm. EAMd.25
November 28, 2025 at 4:32 PM
People, all people it seems, enjoy a game of chance.
A unique composition.
November 28, 2025 at 4:31 PM
A unique composition.
It looks more cared for now.
November 28, 2025 at 4:30 PM
It looks more cared for now.
Happy Thanksgiving to all my American Readers. May your day be filled with good food and interesting cheer.
November 27, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Happy Thanksgiving to all my American Readers. May your day be filled with good food and interesting cheer.
I love maps, but one that states it is a false map is a bit off-putting.
Our next @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #maps blog by @stuartackland.bsky.social features the "false" map of #Oxford from 1644. Look at this and be prepared to be confused!
blogs.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/maps/. When is north not north? And who was Anthony Wood? @bcsmaps.bsky.social @ox.ac.uk @bbcoxford.bsky.social
blogs.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/maps/. When is north not north? And who was Anthony Wood? @bcsmaps.bsky.social @ox.ac.uk @bbcoxford.bsky.social
November 27, 2025 at 5:10 PM
I love maps, but one that states it is a false map is a bit off-putting.
Fun fairs are for the young, but I agree, books are better.
I'd rather use the money to buy ten books than spend half an hour on that 😁
November 26, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Fun fairs are for the young, but I agree, books are better.
Happy Oxmas to all.
Oxmas falls on 25 November - a month before Christmas - giving our students and staff a chance to enjoy festive dinners, carols, mince pies and more before heading off for the vacation.
November 26, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Happy Oxmas to all.
An impressive number.
🎉 1 million visitors!
We are absolutely thrilled to have welcomed over 1 million visitors through our doors this year.
We are absolutely thrilled to have welcomed over 1 million visitors through our doors this year.
November 26, 2025 at 5:43 PM
An impressive number.
Looks like fun.
November 25, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Looks like fun.
A lovely thought.
The world may be quite turbulent at the moment, but I think we can all take at least some solace in the fact that libraries, cafés, bookstores, bakeries, museums, and Oxford commas exist.
November 25, 2025 at 4:58 PM
A lovely thought.
They are a treat to watch.
Have you ever seen a Kingfisher?
Alex Mitchell brings John Ruskin's Study of a Kingfisher to life in this beautiful animation.
💙 Study of a Kingfisher, John Ruskin (1819 - 1900), 1871. WA.RS.RUD.201
Alex Mitchell brings John Ruskin's Study of a Kingfisher to life in this beautiful animation.
💙 Study of a Kingfisher, John Ruskin (1819 - 1900), 1871. WA.RS.RUD.201
November 24, 2025 at 5:01 PM
They are a treat to watch.
As the weather has kept us inside for days, I think my husband and I are more in the mode of number 4. We are both restless and quarrelsome.
Which one are you feeling like on this Monday morning?
Shelfmark: Bodleian Library MS. Bodl. 264, found on Digital Bodleian! Explore the manuscript and what other characters it has to offer: https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/ae9f6cca-ae5c-4149-8fe4-95e6eca1f73c/
#MedievalMonday
Shelfmark: Bodleian Library MS. Bodl. 264, found on Digital Bodleian! Explore the manuscript and what other characters it has to offer: https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/ae9f6cca-ae5c-4149-8fe4-95e6eca1f73c/
#MedievalMonday
November 24, 2025 at 4:59 PM
As the weather has kept us inside for days, I think my husband and I are more in the mode of number 4. We are both restless and quarrelsome.
Such a windy day. We've been huddled by the greatroom fire all day. Tea and Mrs Hudson's scones have been a blessing.
November 23, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Such a windy day. We've been huddled by the greatroom fire all day. Tea and Mrs Hudson's scones have been a blessing.
Beautiful.
November 23, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Beautiful.
A cold, grey, rainy day. Cups of tea before the fire are most welcome.
November 22, 2025 at 5:09 PM
A cold, grey, rainy day. Cups of tea before the fire are most welcome.