Other - Imogen Corrigan

Henry the Navigator and his World

The world he lived in was Portugal, the world in his imagination was limitless. At the end of the fourteenth century, when Prince Henry was born, Portugal was a small country, only recently independent from Castile. By the time he…
Medieval Brittany

With its dramatic coastline and brilliant light, Brittany has long been a haven for artists. However, in its past it has been an empire post for the Romans, a sanctuary for refugees from Britain and central Europe, an endless source…
The Siren Sea

The ship is one of the most common images found in medieval churches and manuscripts and not just on the coast, but often far inland as well. Nations depend on it for nourishment, safety and wealth but, all too often,…
Ravenna seen through her Mosaics

There are two Ravennas. There's today's which is very pretty and a lovely place to stroll or watch the world cycle by or, behind potentially plain brick exteriors, there's the one of fifteen hundred or so years ago. It's hard…
The Goose is Getting Fat! The History of Christmas Traditions

What's behind the Wassail and why do we kiss under mistletoe and let loose women into York at Christmas? Every family hones its own traditions, but mainly they are based on a central theme: filling our houses with greenery and…
A Potted History: Greek Vases

In this lecture we track the development of Greek vase painting from stick-figures and geometric patterns in C8th BC to what could be called proto-Renaissance flowing styles achieved by c.500 BC. We’ll see how and why the artists went from…
‘Put That Light Out!’: The 93rd (Searchlight) Regiment Royal Artillery

One of the best-kept secrets of the military history of the British Isles is that of the 93rd Regiment. Very few people realise that this was an all-female regiment (with the exception of the Commanding Officer and Battery Commanders) and…
Tales in Tesserae

So many mosaics and tessellated pavements survive that we almost take them for granted with their gently-muted colours and sometimes strange messages from the ancient world. It's an art form that continues and is enjoyed to the present day but…