Yossele The Holy Miser
Kaushik Patowary
Nov 4, 2025
In the Jewish quarter of Kraków in the 17th century lived a man named Yossele, who was both infamous and pitied. He was a miser, so the town...
Penny Sit-up, Two-Penny Hangover And Four-Penny Coffin
Kaushik Patowary
Nov 3, 2025
In the slums of Victorian England, poverty was so pervasive that even sleep came with a price tag. Among the poorest of the poor, including ...
Petrarch’s Ascent of Mont Ventoux And The Birth of Renaissance
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 30, 2025
In March 1923, when British mountaineer George Leigh Mallory was touring the United States to raise money for an expedition to Mount Everest...
The First Caesarean Section on a Living Woman
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 27, 2025
In the early years of the sixteenth century, in the small Swiss village of Siegershausen, a man named Jacob Nufer faced a situation of unima...
Rhizanthella Gardneri: The Underground Orchid
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 24, 2025
Rhizanthella gardneri , often called the Western underground orchid, is one of the most remarkable plants in the world because it spends its...
Yaoya Oshichi: The Girl Who Tried to Burn Down Tokyo For Love
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 23, 2025
In the winter of 1682, a massive fire swept through Edo, present-day Tokyo. Known as the “Great Tenna Fire” it raged through the city’s crow...
John Elwes: The Miser Who Inspired Dickens
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 21, 2025
You may not recognize the name John Elwes, but you almost certainly know his literary and cartoon heirs— Ebenezer Scrooge (the cold-hearted ...
Oyster Shell Houses of Guangdong
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 16, 2025
Along the southern coast of China, particularly in Guangdong’s Pearl River Delta, a curious architectural tradition took shape during the la...
The Befouled Statues Of Yue Fei’s Killers
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 14, 2025
Yue Fei is among the most celebrated generals in Chinese history, remembered for his loyalty and patriotism. His life unfolded during one of...
Fukushima’s ‘Umbilical Cord’ Border
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 10, 2025
This is a very simplified political map of Japan showing various prefectures in the northern end of Honshu, the largest of Japan's fou...
