Stori3d Past
@stori3dpast.bsky.social
Harold Johnson. Maine (from away!). Bookseller. Pilgrim. Word Guy. Skeptic. History & Archaeology. Tolkien. Trek. Italy. Old English. Used to make YouTubes, now I make typos. 19th C antiquarian — Sideburns included! 🏺📖🧙🏻♂️
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Stori3d Past
@stori3dpast.bsky.social
· Nov 18
Just thought you should know.
Norse and Danish mead-horns sometimes had feet.
Norse and Danish mead-horns sometimes had feet.
Reposted by Stori3d Past
Even in the bleakest times, this little herald of the returning sun lights up the earth - Crocus are good for a sunny windowbox, doorstep-pot, or balcony, if you're short of space. Possibly also money off on some websites now, too! Here's my take on crocus - a very important plant for early bumbles!
Plant Crocus Now for UK wildlife gardening! #winterfloweringplant #containerplanting #bumblebee
YouTube video by Selqet's Gardener
youtube.com
November 25, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Even in the bleakest times, this little herald of the returning sun lights up the earth - Crocus are good for a sunny windowbox, doorstep-pot, or balcony, if you're short of space. Possibly also money off on some websites now, too! Here's my take on crocus - a very important plant for early bumbles!
Reposted by Stori3d Past
LAUNCH DAY IS HERE! The Heroes of Might and Magic: 30th Anniversary Retrospective Hardcover is now available!
Details here: bit.ly/477ecjY
Dive into this oversized full-color volume chronicling thirty years of the beloved fantasy strategy franchise! #BookSky #Games #GameDev #Fantasy #BookLife
Details here: bit.ly/477ecjY
Dive into this oversized full-color volume chronicling thirty years of the beloved fantasy strategy franchise! #BookSky #Games #GameDev #Fantasy #BookLife
Heroes of Might and Magic: 30th Anniversary Retrospective HC :: Profile :: Dark Horse Comics
Join in on an informative, exciting, and whimsical oversized full-color volume chronicling thirty years of the beloved fantasy strategy franchise, Heroes of Might and Magic!
When New World Computing r...
bit.ly
November 25, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Reposted by Stori3d Past
Marinades are great! I’m tired of doing all the work of cooking. You ingredients just sit together and think about how you ought to taste
November 25, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Marinades are great! I’m tired of doing all the work of cooking. You ingredients just sit together and think about how you ought to taste
Me: I've been restoring damaged old Bibles for years, nothing can faze me.
eBay: Hold my beer.
eBay: Hold my beer.
November 25, 2025 at 4:11 AM
Me: I've been restoring damaged old Bibles for years, nothing can faze me.
eBay: Hold my beer.
eBay: Hold my beer.
It's crazy to me that the man looking at me in this picture has been dead well over 350 years. He is so alive.
It can be tough to define what an artistic period is, often easier to compare it to what it is not.
This detail from Velazquez's Baroque "Triumph of Bacchus" (1629) shows a rough & real peasant's face & manner that would have been unthinkable a century or half-century before.
This detail from Velazquez's Baroque "Triumph of Bacchus" (1629) shows a rough & real peasant's face & manner that would have been unthinkable a century or half-century before.
November 25, 2025 at 2:44 AM
It's crazy to me that the man looking at me in this picture has been dead well over 350 years. He is so alive.
Just remembering one subscriber in Oliver Evans "Young Mill-Wright" I had forgotten. Senator Aaron Burr!
November 25, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Just remembering one subscriber in Oliver Evans "Young Mill-Wright" I had forgotten. Senator Aaron Burr!
Reposted by Stori3d Past
Paleo folks: Please recommend researchers (incl yourselves) interested in phylogenetic reconstruction in deep time, molecular clocks (discord w/ fossil clocks), foundational/methodological issues in phylo/paleo-reconstruction & who'd be interested in hanging w/ historians & philosophers of science ⚒️
November 24, 2025 at 12:02 AM
Paleo folks: Please recommend researchers (incl yourselves) interested in phylogenetic reconstruction in deep time, molecular clocks (discord w/ fossil clocks), foundational/methodological issues in phylo/paleo-reconstruction & who'd be interested in hanging w/ historians & philosophers of science ⚒️
It can be tough to define what an artistic period is, often easier to compare it to what it is not.
This detail from Velazquez's Baroque "Triumph of Bacchus" (1629) shows a rough & real peasant's face & manner that would have been unthinkable a century or half-century before.
This detail from Velazquez's Baroque "Triumph of Bacchus" (1629) shows a rough & real peasant's face & manner that would have been unthinkable a century or half-century before.
November 23, 2025 at 3:00 AM
It can be tough to define what an artistic period is, often easier to compare it to what it is not.
This detail from Velazquez's Baroque "Triumph of Bacchus" (1629) shows a rough & real peasant's face & manner that would have been unthinkable a century or half-century before.
This detail from Velazquez's Baroque "Triumph of Bacchus" (1629) shows a rough & real peasant's face & manner that would have been unthinkable a century or half-century before.
New read: "Baroque" by John Rupert Martin.
"What we regard as a normal historical development [in art] was frequently pictured by contemporary critics in moralizing terms, as if it represented a triumph of virtue over vice."
"What we regard as a normal historical development [in art] was frequently pictured by contemporary critics in moralizing terms, as if it represented a triumph of virtue over vice."
November 23, 2025 at 2:00 AM
New read: "Baroque" by John Rupert Martin.
"What we regard as a normal historical development [in art] was frequently pictured by contemporary critics in moralizing terms, as if it represented a triumph of virtue over vice."
"What we regard as a normal historical development [in art] was frequently pictured by contemporary critics in moralizing terms, as if it represented a triumph of virtue over vice."
Reposted by Stori3d Past
Today the fantastic Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi has opened.
I feel privileged to have worked in all core areas, incl. developing exhibits & species, design input, narrative, collections, labs etc as an expert consultant for 4 years.
Delighted it’s finally open! #nhmad
www.nhmad.ae/en
I feel privileged to have worked in all core areas, incl. developing exhibits & species, design input, narrative, collections, labs etc as an expert consultant for 4 years.
Delighted it’s finally open! #nhmad
www.nhmad.ae/en
Exclusive: New Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi features two fighting T. rexes
The largest museum of its kind in the Middle East opens today with an awe-inspiring dinosaur wing, a massive blue whale skeleton within arm's reach, and a stunning exploration of the region’s natural ...
www.nationalgeographic.com
November 22, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Today the fantastic Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi has opened.
I feel privileged to have worked in all core areas, incl. developing exhibits & species, design input, narrative, collections, labs etc as an expert consultant for 4 years.
Delighted it’s finally open! #nhmad
www.nhmad.ae/en
I feel privileged to have worked in all core areas, incl. developing exhibits & species, design input, narrative, collections, labs etc as an expert consultant for 4 years.
Delighted it’s finally open! #nhmad
www.nhmad.ae/en
Really great examples! 18th C French books don't do well on eBay & I probably paid too much for these. But I'm having trouble feeling sorry.
November 22, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Really great examples! 18th C French books don't do well on eBay & I probably paid too much for these. But I'm having trouble feeling sorry.
This 18th C set of science books has great example of copperplate engravings in the back.
Copperplates offer much more detail than woodcuts. But unlike woodcuts, which were set just like bits of type, copperplates had to be pressed extremely hard in a separate process, leaving a telltale crimp.
Copperplates offer much more detail than woodcuts. But unlike woodcuts, which were set just like bits of type, copperplates had to be pressed extremely hard in a separate process, leaving a telltale crimp.
November 22, 2025 at 7:27 PM
This 18th C set of science books has great example of copperplate engravings in the back.
Copperplates offer much more detail than woodcuts. But unlike woodcuts, which were set just like bits of type, copperplates had to be pressed extremely hard in a separate process, leaving a telltale crimp.
Copperplates offer much more detail than woodcuts. But unlike woodcuts, which were set just like bits of type, copperplates had to be pressed extremely hard in a separate process, leaving a telltale crimp.
And thanks to the Internet Archive - another priceless resource - I have facsimiles of the two missing plates. Now that I have sizing right, I'll be reprinting them on aged stock to insert into the book & make it whole again.
November 22, 2025 at 3:27 PM
And thanks to the Internet Archive - another priceless resource - I have facsimiles of the two missing plates. Now that I have sizing right, I'll be reprinting them on aged stock to insert into the book & make it whole again.
Eli Whitney & his cotton gin are household names in history. But have you heard of Oliver Evans? In 1795 he published a book with radical new techniques for milling flour at 5x the rate that had been possible. Evans' work literally fed the nation. I have one. With 24 of its orig 26 plates intact!
November 22, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Eli Whitney & his cotton gin are household names in history. But have you heard of Oliver Evans? In 1795 he published a book with radical new techniques for milling flour at 5x the rate that had been possible. Evans' work literally fed the nation. I have one. With 24 of its orig 26 plates intact!
Reposted by Stori3d Past
I think this has to be the best auction lot ever:
J R R #Tolkien owned this desk. Just imagine the #Writing he did here, the imagining he did, as Middle Earth came into existence.
www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6...
J R R #Tolkien owned this desk. Just imagine the #Writing he did here, the imagining he did, as Middle Earth came into existence.
www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6...
www.christies.com
November 21, 2025 at 7:51 PM
I think this has to be the best auction lot ever:
J R R #Tolkien owned this desk. Just imagine the #Writing he did here, the imagining he did, as Middle Earth came into existence.
www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6...
J R R #Tolkien owned this desk. Just imagine the #Writing he did here, the imagining he did, as Middle Earth came into existence.
www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6...
Interestingly "The Way to Eden" also has things to say about humanity giving over its decision-making to computers and AI. Honestly, not the worst episode. Even kind of smart - if you ignore the "Herbert!" chants and that godawful singing.
Wow. "The Way to Eden" may not be a great episode. But in it, the writers of 1969 predict a technology for discovering planets that became reality in 1992, 23 years later!
November 20, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Interestingly "The Way to Eden" also has things to say about humanity giving over its decision-making to computers and AI. Honestly, not the worst episode. Even kind of smart - if you ignore the "Herbert!" chants and that godawful singing.
Wow. "The Way to Eden" may not be a great episode. But in it, the writers of 1969 predict a technology for discovering planets that became reality in 1992, 23 years later!
November 20, 2025 at 4:07 PM
Wow. "The Way to Eden" may not be a great episode. But in it, the writers of 1969 predict a technology for discovering planets that became reality in 1992, 23 years later!
The cloister at Monte Oliveto monastery in Tuscany has a full cycle of 16th C frescoes recounting St Benedict's life (as told by Pope Gregory I). Not once but *twice* monks & priests tried to poison him. We're supposed to believe that the devil made them do it. But maybe Benedict was just a di*k?
November 19, 2025 at 10:24 PM
The cloister at Monte Oliveto monastery in Tuscany has a full cycle of 16th C frescoes recounting St Benedict's life (as told by Pope Gregory I). Not once but *twice* monks & priests tried to poison him. We're supposed to believe that the devil made them do it. But maybe Benedict was just a di*k?
Annnnnd the seller has canceled the sale because it's "out of stock." Sure it was. The rollercoaster that is eBay.
Just picked up an 1858 1st edition set of George Eliot's "Scenes of Clerical Life" in a fine binding for $48. That feels like a deal.
November 19, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Annnnnd the seller has canceled the sale because it's "out of stock." Sure it was. The rollercoaster that is eBay.
Just picked up an 1858 1st edition set of George Eliot's "Scenes of Clerical Life" in a fine binding for $48. That feels like a deal.
November 19, 2025 at 9:22 PM
Just picked up an 1858 1st edition set of George Eliot's "Scenes of Clerical Life" in a fine binding for $48. That feels like a deal.
When I say buy a 150-year-old book, not kidding!
Here's one a seller has listed from the once-wildly-popular Rollo series. It was printed in 1854, so over 170 years old. Intact, even has a couple nice engravings. The seller is asking $4.50. Perfect gift for the reader friend who has everything!
Here's one a seller has listed from the once-wildly-popular Rollo series. It was printed in 1854, so over 170 years old. Intact, even has a couple nice engravings. The seller is asking $4.50. Perfect gift for the reader friend who has everything!
November 19, 2025 at 7:07 PM
When I say buy a 150-year-old book, not kidding!
Here's one a seller has listed from the once-wildly-popular Rollo series. It was printed in 1854, so over 170 years old. Intact, even has a couple nice engravings. The seller is asking $4.50. Perfect gift for the reader friend who has everything!
Here's one a seller has listed from the once-wildly-popular Rollo series. It was printed in 1854, so over 170 years old. Intact, even has a couple nice engravings. The seller is asking $4.50. Perfect gift for the reader friend who has everything!
I mean, the sand that makes up Maine beaches eroded out of Appalachian Mountains that were once as high as the Himalayas! 200 million years of weathering gave us the beaches that summer tourists flock to. Change is literally swirling through your toes.
I don't exactly love winter. But I do love what winter storms do to Maine beaches, scouring & shaping them. Often remnants of ancient drowned forests peek back out.
A Maine winter forces you to accept that the bedrock you thought made up your world is often just shifting sands.
Scary but useful!
A Maine winter forces you to accept that the bedrock you thought made up your world is often just shifting sands.
Scary but useful!
November 19, 2025 at 2:25 PM
I mean, the sand that makes up Maine beaches eroded out of Appalachian Mountains that were once as high as the Himalayas! 200 million years of weathering gave us the beaches that summer tourists flock to. Change is literally swirling through your toes.
I don't exactly love winter. But I do love what winter storms do to Maine beaches, scouring & shaping them. Often remnants of ancient drowned forests peek back out.
A Maine winter forces you to accept that the bedrock you thought made up your world is often just shifting sands.
Scary but useful!
A Maine winter forces you to accept that the bedrock you thought made up your world is often just shifting sands.
Scary but useful!
November 19, 2025 at 2:18 PM
I don't exactly love winter. But I do love what winter storms do to Maine beaches, scouring & shaping them. Often remnants of ancient drowned forests peek back out.
A Maine winter forces you to accept that the bedrock you thought made up your world is often just shifting sands.
Scary but useful!
A Maine winter forces you to accept that the bedrock you thought made up your world is often just shifting sands.
Scary but useful!
Reposted by Stori3d Past
Now listening to an all-time favorite bittersweet comfort album.
Tallahassee, by the Mountain Goats
14 track album
themountaingoats.bandcamp.com
November 19, 2025 at 1:29 AM
Now listening to an all-time favorite bittersweet comfort album.
Own books. Dog-ear pages. Put 50 sticky notes in them. Listen to the page turn. Buy a 150-year-old book and read it. Look at the smudges on it, the foxing & toning of the leaves. Imagine who read it - this tangible, physical thing - before you. Who will after you. Physical things rule.
A few years ago I got a discman for my kid and now I get her CDs, often used, as a present. I think the physical object communicates that people made it, made choices, created art together & did so for other people to appreciate. It’s not content. Anyway maybe you want to bring hard media back too?
November 18, 2025 at 1:58 AM
Own books. Dog-ear pages. Put 50 sticky notes in them. Listen to the page turn. Buy a 150-year-old book and read it. Look at the smudges on it, the foxing & toning of the leaves. Imagine who read it - this tangible, physical thing - before you. Who will after you. Physical things rule.