Manners and Tone of Good Society (1879), the seminal guide to Victorian dining, outlined how to navigate around the vast array of cutlery and serveware in the Victorian age. Touching food with bare hands was not acceptable behavior.

So everyone had to learn to recognize all the different accompaniments to the usual dinner service, such as asparagus servers, marrow scoops, and grape scissors. Oh, and you had to know how to use them as well.

How do you think you would manage if you sat down to a lovely meal and saw any of the items below? Would you be the toast of the town or commit a gastronomic faux pas?

10 Sugar Nips

Sugar was brought to the grocer in cone shapes called “sugar loaves.” Mountains and hats were often named after them due to their distinctive shape. In wealthy households, the mistress of the house would cut up the loaf using sugar nippers to break the hard substance into smaller, usable parts for the table. Only the mistress would do this as sugar was expensive and kept in boxes under lock and key.

The sugar nips were tongs with a flat surface at the end suitable for lifting pieces of sugar. But they were also sturdy and tough. Nips used for cutting were often made from steel, but decorative tongs for table use were often made from silver with elaborate engravings.^[1]

9 Snail Forks

In Victorian England, the lower classes ate snails regularly. These were affectionately called “wall fish” and were served to locals in pubs like the Royal Oak in Shepton Mallet. Eating snails wasn’t only for the upper classes or the French as most people tend to think today.

The snail would be held in one hand, with or without a napkin, and the snail meat would be plucked out of the shell with the other. Delicious!

While one might not have made a full living doing so, a man in Bristol in Victorian times known as “Snailer Jack” sold snails as snack food. People would eat them to ward against—or even cure—tuberculosis. They were also reputed to have a particular property that strengthened the lungs . . . but only if eaten raw.^[2]

Fancy a snail?

8 Marrow Scoops

Picture this scene if you will. You are a Victorian man or woman at a posh dinner party, and your host’s servants present a glorious roast on the table in front of you. You can’t wait to dig in.

But wait! How can you get the delicious marrow out of the bone without offending your host with caveman-like, bone-sucking behavior? A common problem, we know.

In this situation, it’s best to handle your marrow scoop with the narrow, elongated end directed toward the bone.^[3] Scoop out all the marrow you can, and enjoy the envy of your fellow guests as they are forced to leave their bones on the plate.

As identified by the Leeds Museum, the image above shows a marrow scoop from the late 19th century. Marrow scoops from the mid-1700s (which predate the Victorian era) have a longer, narrower shape.

7 Spoon Warmer

Victorian houses were only heated by fires in each room, so the kitchen was often some distance from where the family would actually sit down to eat. As the food was brought to the table, the cutlery would cool down. In turn, this would cause the food to cool faster when it was eaten.

To avoid this problem, the Victorians invented the spoon warmer. A vessel, often with feet, was filled with hot water, and the spoons were inserted into the opening. Warm spoons helped to prevent rich and fatty gravy from congealing on the plates.

Victorian spoon warmers can rarely be found today. Those lucky enough to spot one might find playful designs such as a snail shell sitting on rocks, an egg-shaped oval on little feet, frogs and fish with open mouths, helmets, or hunting horns. As time went on and homes were better heated, these little devices fell out of fashion. But they remain a delightful reminder of Victorian creativity when it came to dining room etiquette.^[4]

6 Caddy Spoons

In the 1760s, the caddy spoon was created as a unique and beautiful accessory for preparing tea in Europe and America. Tea leaves were kept in a tea caddy, a special box designed to keep the leaves fresh and attractively presented. These were often locked at other times as tea was an expensive and precious commodity.

A caddy spoon, which could fit inside the caddy, was used to measure out a portion of tea leaves for the teapot. Certain shapes of shells, shovels, or ladles were made by Victorian silversmiths. As time marched into the 20th century, these accessories were decorated with local scenes, crests, or place names particular to the area and owners’ tastes.

One of the most valuable caddy spoons was sold at auction in 1931 for over £2,000. Designed by Omar Ramsden, his art nouveau spoon was inlaid with semiprecious stones with a knotwork handle.^[5]

5 Asparagus Server

Asparagus was introduced to English society in the 16th century. But it was not until the 18th century that it became a fashionable and exotic addition to meals. Eating asparagus was the height of elegance and sophistication, so what better to serve this de rigueur vegetable than a pair of asparagus servers?

One might wonder what all the fuss was about and why a spoon and fork would not have done just as well. But the Victorians decided that they needed slightly less clumsy apparatus for fine dining.

Silver asparagus tongs are a captivating item that reminds us of a more elegant era. They are still quite useful today if you wish to enjoy a spear or two for supper.^[6]

4 Knife Rest

When our Victorian friends sat down for dinner, there may have been up to 12 different courses! The knife rest was used to keep the single set of utensils clean between courses.

Probably, the knife rest helped to prevent the tablecloth from becoming soiled between courses rather than merely saving the servants the extra trouble of washing more utensils. Most households certainly would not have changed cutlery between courses.

The first knife rests used at the time of Henry VIII would have been made of wood. But as the Victorians always liked to take things one step further, theirs were made from every metal you can think of as well as crystal and glass, pottery, mother-of-pearl, ivory, and horn.^[7]

3 Grape Scissors

These scissors were often decorated with vines and grape designs as they were used to cut a stalk of grapes in the dessert course. Only then were you permitted to use your hands. In Victorian society, there were only rare occasions when dining etiquette would permit the use of hands at the table—for example, when eating fruit or bread.

In a rather clever design quirk, the handles were longer than the blades so that the grape enthusiast could cut deep into the bunch and select the number of grapes he wanted. The blunt ends prevented the fruit from being pierced. These scissors were made of silver to prevent any tarnishing and to last for many years.^[8]

2 Aspic Spoon

The Victorians could not get enough of aspic. For those fortunate few who have not come across aspic, it is a jelly made from gelatin and the stock from meat, poultry, or fish. Other foods, such as eggs or meat, are suspended throughout the mixture.

Aspic stopped the meats within the gelatin from becoming spoiled by preventing contact with the air and any lurking bacteria. This was perfect for the Victorians, who had not yet invented refrigeration. An aspic spoon featured a long bowl at one end that had one sharpened side to help cut through suspended, more solid objects in the jelly.^[9]

1 Crumb Scoop And Tray

The Victorians were a clean and tidy lot who thought nothing was worse than seeing all the crumbs left on the tablecloth following a meal. So they invented the crumb scoop.

Arriving in the 1850s, this ingenious device was used by the servants to clear the tablecloth of any meal detritus, including breadcrumbs, salad leaves, and anything else that missed both mouths and plates. Crumb scoops were commonly made of silver and could be highly decorated with engravings of floral motifs. The scoop handle was made of bone, ivory, mother-of-pearl, ivorine, or wood.^[10]

Alexa lives in Ireland and loves writing about psychology, sociology, anthropology, and anything historical.

The roots of American racism run deep. The country’s troubled history of infighting over the ideal that all men are created equal has often clashed with the harsh reality of life for people of color.

Racial prejudice has always haunted the United States, and it continues in many corners of the country today. Although the conclusion of the US Civil War and the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment abolished the institution of slavery, individual states remained free to write their own brutally racist laws (aka “Jim Crow laws”).

Here are 10 disturbing facts about the Jim Crow era in the United States.

10 History Of Jim Crow

The history of Jim Crow laws dates all the way back to the early 1800s when slavery was still legal in the United States. In Jump, Jim Crow, a bizarre stage show that debuted in 1828, Thomas Rice created what he and his audiences thought of as comedy. Rice painted his face black and performed with the supposed gestures and mannerisms of African Americans.

Though stage actors had appeared in blackface before Rice, he popularized the genre in the 1830s and had a disgustingly cultish level of success with it. The name of the show came to represent the patently racist laws and practices that developed a century later.

In 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote the book Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which carried an anti-racist, antislavery message and even featured a character called Jim Crow. In an ironic twist, Rice ended up performing in blackface in stage adaptations of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which were unfaithful to the novel and delivered a racist message that mocked African Americans.^[1]

9 Slavery Outlawed

After a long-drawn-out civil war, the federal government made slavery illegal in the United States on December 18, 1865. At that time, Secretary of State William Seward verified the ratification of the Thirteen Amendment to the US Constitution. At least three-quarters of the then 36 states had to vote in favor of ratifying the amendment to abolish slavery across the country.

Twenty-seven states ratified by December 6, 1865. Five more voted in favor by the end of January 1866, and Texas assented in February 1870. However, three states held out until the 20th century. Delaware ratified the amendment in February 1901, Kentucky in March 1976, and Mississippi in February 2013.

Mississippi had actually voted in favor of the amendment in March 1995. But they didn’t send the required paperwork to the National Archives to make it official until 2013 due to a clerical oversight.

Today, many people do not realize that the Republican Party, not the Democratic Party, mainly fought for the rights of blacks during and after the Civil War. Despite opposition from the Democrats, the Republicans passed the Thirteenth Amendment (outlawing slavery), the Fourteenth Amendment (giving blacks equal rights under the law), and the Fifteenth Amendment (giving blacks the right to vote).

After the Thirteenth Amendment was formally ratified in 1865, there was a brief intermission in systemic racism. But it took less than 20 years before many Democrat-dominated state and local governments, primarily in the South, began enacting laws to mandate racial segregation. These came to be called “Jim Crow laws.”

In this long, painful period of US history, slavery was officially abolished but overt racism at the hands of the law was not. The grim period of Jim Crow had begun.^[2]

8 The Civil Rights Act Of 1875

Believe it or not, a civil rights act existed in the United States way back in 1875. Cosponsored by two Republicans, the bill passed 162–99 in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and 38–26 in the Republican-controlled Senate. An impressive seven African-American representatives had debated in favor of passing the bill. On March 1, 1875, Republican President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law.^[3]

The act would have stopped Jim Crow laws by prohibiting racial segregation. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before the US Supreme Court ruled that the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was unconstitutional. Although the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery, Congress did not have the authority to regulate private persons or corporations under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Nevertheless, the Civil Rights Act of 1875 shows that many people in the 19th century wanted to abolish racial discrimination under the law.

7 Tennessee

Tennessee didn’t even have a recovery period before its racist ways became law. As early as 1866, shortly after the end of the US Civil War, Tennessee passed its first Jim Crow law.

Initially, the state created separate schools for white children and black children. In 1870, Tennessee banned interracial marriage. Then, in 1875, they legalized racial discrimination via private businesses, saying that hotels and other private enterprises could refuse service on the grounds of race.

Shortly thereafter, the infamous “Whites Only” signs began appearing in front of many public establishments. The tragic fact of segregation had just become a reality for the people of Tennessee.^[4]

6 Alabama

Alabama was another Southern state which almost immediately adopted Jim Crow laws after the end of the Civil War. In 1867, they banned interracial marriage. Fines ranged as high as $1,000, which was an exorbitant price to pay in those days.

Several years later, the state passed a law that made black and white children attend separate schools. In 1891, with limited exceptions, railroads were required to have separate cars for black and white passengers.^[5]

As more laws were enacted, bus stations soon had separate waiting areas and ticket windows for black and white people. Bathrooms were segregated by skin color, and white female nurses weren’t allowed to tend to black male patients. It was even illegal for people of different races to play a game of pool together.

5 1930s

The Jim Crow laws that segregated schools, businesses, railways, and more became increasingly oppressive and bizarre as time went on. By the 1930s, it seemed like anything that even implied that blacks and whites were equal was made illegal.

Black men were not allowed to touch white women in any way without risking a charge of rape, even for common gestures as harmless as a handshake. A black man could not offer to light a cigarette for a white woman without being accused of making a romantic overture. This would also land black men in legal trouble.^[6]

Even after the Civil War and the freeing of the slaves, African Americans were still treated as second-class citizens.

4 1940s

Racial discrimination during the Jim Crow era wasn’t confined to the South in the United States. Many photos exist of signs from Northern states establishing their own segregation laws, disallowing whites and blacks from enjoying the same public accommodations.^[7]

Black people were not the only ones who experienced such discrimination. During World War II, Japanese Americans were segregated especially harshly.

By the 1940s, it was illegal in Alabama for white and black people to play games together that involved dice, checkers, dominoes, or cards. It was also unlawful in some areas for white people to sell their homes to people of color, and these laws could be quite detailed.

For instance, in some places, if a person had one-eighth or more of a nonwhite race in his lineage, he was considered to be a person of color. At less than one-eighth, he was considered to be white and was free to use the public accommodations available to white people.

3 The Change Of The 1950s

In the 1950s, attitudes began to change. Support groups and organizations formed in the 1930s and 1940s openly pushed for an end to the Jim Crow era. The “separate but equal” decision of the US Supreme Court in 1896, which had permeated the Jim Crow laws, was growing stale.

In 1955, another monumental act in US history would transpire—the civil disobedience of Rosa Parks. She refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, which was against the law at that time.

Parks was arrested, which set the stage for massive social change. Many claim that the Jim Crow era ended in 1954. That year, in their Brown v. Board of Education decision, the US Supreme Court struck down the 1896 law that had permitted states to segregate public schools. Even so, segregation clearly continued for another decade.^[8]

2 Civil Rights Of The 1960s

The road to racial equality in the US had been paved by the movements of the 1950s. In turn, the 1960s drove political and racial turmoil across those avenues as equality was demanded and the push for a new civil rights act gained traction.

Still, it was a slow process. Demonstrations and civil disobedience were nothing new. However, the culmination of all these movements occurred when groups like the Black Panthers and individuals such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. gained serious support from both black and white people across America.

This caused widespread chaos. Race riots, massive protests, and general societal disarray became the dominant theme of the day.^[9]

1 A New Civil Rights Act

On August 28, 1963, approximately 250,000 people participated in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The goal was to achieve economic and civil rights for African Americans. At the Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, where he told of his dream of a nation without racism and segregation.

With the widespread desire for change, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was ripe to become law with massive backing. It called for the end of an era that had stained the fabric of American history. People are still alive who lived through the Jim Crow era. They remember when it was illegal—based on the color of your skin—to drink from certain water fountains or enter certain establishments.

Finally, after nearly a century of cruel and bizarre laws, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed into law. Initially proposed by Democratic President John F. Kennedy, the first bill failed. Kennedy thought he had lined up enough support from both Democrats and Republicans, but passage was held up by Democrat Howard W. Smith, an ardent segregationist from Virginia.

After Kennedy was assassinated, Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson used his skill to get the act passed. The main opposition came from the Democrats. Still, Johnson managed to rally enough Democrats and Republicans to vote for a compromise bill, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law on July 2, 1964.^[10]

It prohibited discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, as these had all been used to divide people throughout the United States’ tumultuous history. The act still stands as federal law today. Although racism may not be wholly defeated in the United States, it is clear in the eyes of the law that discrimination is an illegal practice that should be forcibly relegated to the dustbin of history.

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There are instances when conflict arises not between states, but within a particular country. There are different reasons why civil wars happen. It can be political, religious or even political divide that drives a country to implode. These are instances when bloody civil wars of modern era could actually take its toll on the population. This could lead to human rights abuses, not to mention hamper progress.

It is common to see both economic and social drawbacks to countries that have engaged in these types of wars. Unfortunately, these wars could go for years or even decades at a time. Here are 12 bloody civil wars of modern era.

List of most brutal civil wars of modern era.

What was the most brutal modern civil war? What was the most recent civil war? Listed below are top 12 bloody civil wars of modern history.

12. Bosnian War

There are countries that are just waiting to erupt. This is exactly the case with Bosnia during the early 1990s. During the early 1990s, we’ve seen the collapse of the Soviet Union. Bosnia being a multi-cultural country has resulted to a civil war. In fact, it has been viewed by many human rights advocates as ethnic cleansing.

Bosnia along with Herzegovina and other former republics under Yugoslavia declared war. Bosnian Serbs attacked mainly the Muslim population in 1992. This civil war lasted for more than three years. Estimated total number of casualties is from 90,000 to 300,000.

The nationalist Croats and Serbs attacked the countryside which can be considered ethnic cleansing. The problem was only resolved by the UN after air strikes and sanctions. In the end, both parties agreed to enter a peace treaty.

11. Sectarian Violence in Pakistan

There are constant attacks to different groups in Pakistan. The usual targets are Sunni, Shia, Ahmad, Hindu and Christian groups. From 1987 to 2007, there were 4,000 deaths between Shia and Sunni sectarian conflicts alone. The groups blamed for the sectarian attacks are TTP, Sunni Militant Groups and even ISIS.

10. Islamic Resistance and Communism in the Philippines

Another one that made it in our list of bloody civil wars of modern era is The Philippine armed conflicts with communist guerrillas and Muslims. The Philippines is familiar with armed conflict. There are many insurgents that the Philippine government is dealing with.

To give you a background of the insurgencies happening in the Philippines, it can all be traced during the Martial Law years in 60s and 70s. Moro National Liberation Front was formed almost at the same timeline as the Communist Party of the Philippines. Both factions were fighting to free the country from a dictator, while the Muslim insurgents are also looking to secede from the country. Most of the gun fights happened in the countryside. Until today, these insurgencies are still present in the country.

The country has tried to enter different treaties in the past in order to potentially stop the gun fight in the countryside. However, it has resulted to more Muslim insurgents, Islamic extremists and a thriving communist guerrilla group.

9. Chinese Civil War

The Chinese Civil War officially started during the the 1920s. However, during the Second World War, both Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Ze Dong’s communist party decided to unite in order to defeat the Japanese invaders.

Chang Kai-shek did not believe in democracy. Instead, he believes in ruling China under one ruler which is backed by a military. With right wing tactics, Chiang Kai-shek rooted out opposition in China including communists. What Mao Ze Dong believed in is to utilize the poor people from the countryside and unite them to with the war against Chiang Kai-shek’s forces. By the end of the Chinese Civil War, Taiwan was formed.

What made the Chinese Civil War on our list of bloody civil wars in modern era is the protracted nature of its revolution that incurred 8 million casualties.

8. Sri Lankan Civil War

In 2011, UN released a report saying that the Sri Lankan Civil War has lost over 100,000 lives in a span of 26 years. The war was fought between Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the local government of Sri Lanka.

A war that started in 1983, it only ended in 2009 when the Tigers considered to surrender. Unfortunately, civilian casualty is at 40,000 especially in the last five months of the conflict. With casualty of this magnitude, Sri Lankan Civil War made it in our list of bloody civil wars of modern.

Though peacetime was welcomed by Sri Lankans, there were a number of problems that still emerged after the civil war. For instance, restoration of rule of law has been quite difficult. Also, investigations regarding violations of human rights are still yet to be completed.

7. Angolan Civil War

Angola fought for its independence from Portugal. With the help of the Cubans and Soviet Union, Angola gained its freedom and established a socialist government. Soon after, civil war broke out. Union for Total Independence of Angola or UNITA, backed by the CIA fought against the Movement for the Liberation of Angola. For nearly 27 years, the battle was fought by both sides. It is considered by many as one of the most prolonged civil wars in modern history.

The Angolan Civil War ended in 2002 when Jonas Savimbi was killed. Right after, both parties agreed on having a ceasefire and had an election. Unfortunately, the Angolan Civil War left the economy in ruins, and left 500,000 deaths.

6. The Laos Secret War

The Laotian Civil War, otherwise known as the Secret War was fought between communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao Government. It was called the Secret War because of CIA’s involvement in the crisis. After the French left the Indochina region, the Royal Lao Government received the power but excluded the anti-colonial armed nationalist movement. The number of people lost during this war is at 450,000 for Laos and 600,000 in Cambodia. Refugees have also exceeded a million. Other than the numbers, another reason why it is considered as part of our list of bloody civil wars of modern era is because of the use of chemical warfare. >> 10 Deadliest Wars In Human History.

5. Somali Civil War

Since 1991, the Somali Civil war is still going on until the present. Home to a number of people, Siad Barre during the late 80s was their unpopular leader. In response, he attacked opposing forces which even accelerated his removal from power. In 1990s, he was reinstated in power using a revolution. After this, Northern part of the country declared independence. However, it is still unrecognized.

Until today, Somalia is among the top countries receiving help from the UN. UN constantly sends peacekeeping forces in order to facilitate aids distributed into the populace.

4. Iraq Civil War

Right after 9-11 when America decided to attack Iraq in search of Weapons of Mass Destruction, it has left the country in ruins. In effect, it has created a civil war that has been responsible for the creation of ISIS. It is part of our list of bloody civil wars because of number of other countries directly or indirectly affected by Iraq’s conflict.

It started when Fallujah and Mosul were conquered by ISIS. This forced the resignation of PM Nouri Al-Maliki. Also, this problem resulted to massive number of refugees and civilian casualties.

3. Boko Haram Insurgency

Boko Haram is a jihadist group that decided to take arms in 2009 against the government of Nigeria. By 2012, there were different factions that have been formed from Boko Haram. The most dominant and violent faction is led by Abubakar Shekau. In 2015, there were other Boko Haram groups that have joined Al Qaeda.

By 2013, 1,000 people already died as a result of this conflict. By 2014, it escalated even more and casualties reached to over 10,000 deaths. Today, the conflict has been seen in other African countries.

2. War in North West Pakistan

Another one making it in our list of bloody civil wars of modern era is the War in North West Pakistan. The War in North West Pakistan is a conflict which is also known as War in Waziristan. The state of Pakistan is involved in an armed conflict with groups such as Terik-i-Taliban-Pakistan (TTP) and ISIS. It started in 2004 when the government was searching for possible Al Qaeda members in Waziristan. Eventually, it has escalated into fully armed resistance. Cumulative number of casualties is at almost 60,000 today and it is still ongoing. >> Political Experiments On Pakistan In 70 Years.

1. Spanish Civil War

During 1936 to 1939, The Spanish Civil War can be considered as one of the bloodiest civil wars in modern history. It is included in our list of bloody civil wars of modern era simply because of the actions of the fascist Nationalist group.

The conflict is supporters of Nationalists led by General Franco and democratically elect president. The thing that makes Spanish Civil War significant in history is its prelude to the Second World War. Nazi Germany supported Franco who eventually ruled the country as a dictator, while Soviet Union supported the opposing side.

There are many conflicts within countries. From rebel groups trying to gain power to religious groups trying to get rid of each other, these are just some of the reasons why some conflicts are present in some countries. However, there are also instances when it is initiated by other factors such as presence of foreign influence such as CIA supporting groups that can protect US interest.

Bloody Civil Wars of Modern Era

1. Spanish Civil War
2. War in North West Pakistan
3. Boko Haram Insurgency
4. Iraq Civil War
5. Somali Civil War
6. The Laos Secret War
7. Angolan Civil War
8. Sri Lankan Civil War
9. Chinese Civil War
10. Islamic Resistance and Communism in the Philippines
11. Sectarian Violence in Pakistan
12. Bosnian War

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The Renaissance wasn’t just a revolution in the arts, but also the sciences, particularly mathematics. There was a marked proliferation of mathematical societies and institutions across Europe around this time, like the Accademia dei Lincei in Italy and the Royal Society in England, which in turn produced some of the best mathematical minds in history. 

10. Marino Ghetaldi

Marin Getaldic, also known as Marino Ghetaldi or Marinus Ghetaldus, was a notable Renaissance mathematician from Dubrovnik, Croatia. Born in the late 16th century, he excelled at math from an early age, and would work with other known mathematicians, like Christopher Clavius and François Viète, throughout his career. 

Ghetaldi was known for reconstructing the lost works of Apollonius and several other mathematical papers, including ones on physics and parabolas. Ghetaldi’s interest in scientific instruments, particularly optical devices, grew after his encounters with Galileo. His most remarkable contributions, however, were in the emerging field of applying algebraic concepts to geometry, which led to the development of Cartesian geometry. His contributions to mathematics and specifically geometry have since been acknowledged by scholars like Christian Huygens and Edmond Halley. 

9. Gemma Frisius

Born as Regnier Gemma in Friesland, Netherlands, in 1508, Gemma Frisius was a mathematician, astronomer, and cosmographer during the Renaissance period. Despite a difficult childhood marked by poverty, Gemma went on to study medicine and mathematics at the University of Louvain, eventually becoming a leading theoretical mathematician and professor at the same university. 

Gemma made important contributions in the development of maps, globes, and other astronomical instruments. In 1529, he published a corrected version of Apianus’s Cosmographia. He also designed a combined terrestrial and celestial globe, along with his book De Principiis Astronomiae Cosmographicae, which introduced map designs that would remain in use for decades to come. Gemma described a unique method to determine longitude using a clock and later expanded it to finding the longitude at sea, which turned out to be the solution to the long-standing problem of finding the longitude at sea. 

8. John Napier

John Napier was a Scottish mathematician and theological writer known for his invention of logarithms. He was born in 1550 in Merchiston Castle, near Edinburgh, Scotland, though we don’t know much else about his early life.

Napier was always interested in the inventions of war, as he worked on various military devices throughout his career, like burning mirrors, artillery pieces, and a metal chariot. His most notable contribution to mathematics was his invention of logarithms. He started working on them around 1594, though his work on the topic was only published after his death. Logarithms simplified calculations, especially multiplication, by transforming them into simple addition problems.

7. Scipione Del Ferro

Also known as Scipio del Ferro was a Renaissance-era mathematician from Bologna, Italy. Born in 1465, he attended the University of Bologna, where he’d later work as a lecturer in arithmetic and geometry in 1496 – a position he held until his death in 1526. Although none of his original work has survived, Ferro is credited with finding a solution to an unsolved cubic equation at the time. 

This solution hugely contributed to the study of fractions with irrational denominators, though his mathematical achievements largely remained unknown during his lifetime. Most of his findings were written in a personal notebook, which was passed on to his son-in-law, Hannibal Nave, after his death. The notebook contained Ferro’s solution to the cubic equation, which gained popularity when another influential Renaissance-era mathematician, Girolamo Cardano, discovered and published it in one of his own works.

6. Regiomontanus

Regiomontanus, also called Johannes Müller von Königsberg, was a prominent German scholar born in Königsberg, Bavaria in 1436. He received education at home and later attended the Universities of Leipzig and Vienna, where he became a pupil and friend of Georg von Peuerbach – another notable astronomer of the time.

Regiomontanus and Peuerbach would go on to collaborate on many astronomical topics, like the discrepancy between the predicted and observed positions of planets and lunar eclipses. They also worked on translating and critiquing Ptolemy’s Almagest, which Regiomontanus completed after Peuerbach’s death. This translation, known as the Epitome of the Almagest, played a huge role in Copernicus’ refutation of Ptolemy’s geocentric model. 

5. Luca Pacioli

Luca Pacioli was born in Borgo San Sepolcro, Tuscany around 1445. He’d go on to become an influential mathematician and educator of his era, receiving his early training in Venice and Rome under the guidance of figures like Piero della Francesca and Leon Battista Alberti. Pacioli’s passion for math led him to compile and summarize many works of his contemporaries.

Pacioli’s works not only made the mathematical knowledge of the time accessible to more people, but also introduced the modern system of double-entry bookkeeping, leading many to regard him as the ‘Father of Accounting’. His use of journals, ledgers, and the concept of balancing debits with credits massively contributed to the development of modern accounting practices. Pacioli is also remembered for his collaboration with Leonardo da Vinci in Milan, which further improved his own work. 

4. Niccolò Fontana Tartaglia

Often referred to as just Tartaglia, Niccolò Fontana Tartaglia was an Italian mathematician and physicist who lived from 1499 to 1557. He saw war and destruction at an early age, as he survived the French sack of Brescia in 1512 that left him severely injured. Despite these serious challenges, Tartaglia was good at math and eventually settled in Venice as a mathematics teacher.

Tartaglia made many contributions to the fields of physics and mathematics, particularly ballistics. He refuted Aristotle’s claim that air sustained motion, claiming instead that air resisted motion and that projectile physics should be studied in conditions without any air resistance. His groundbreaking work on ballistics, including his 1537 book, Nova Scientia, published in 1537, laid the foundation for the modern science of projectiles. Tartaglia also made notable contributions to other areas of mathematics, as he was one of the first mathematicians to provide workable solutions for cubic equations.

3. Francois Viète

François Viète was a Renaissance-era French mathematician and astronomer who made many contributions to the field of algebra. Born in Fontenay-le-Comte, France, in 1540, Viète studied law at the University of Poitiers before beginning his career as an attorney. His mathematical journey began when he was hired to educate the daughter of a prominent military leader, where he wrote some of his earliest treatises and works. 

France experienced some of its most turbulent and politically-unstable times during Viète’s lifetime, as there was an ongoing war between the Protestant and Catholic factions of the empire. Despite that, he continued work as a mathematician for Henry IV, where he was tasked with deciphering code against other European powers. 

His most notable contribution to mathematics is his formulation of the first systematic algebraic notations in his book In Artem Analyticam Isagoge, and to a lesser extent in the Canon Mathematicus, which deals with the concepts of trigonometry and astronomy. 

2. Tycho Brahe

While most people have likely never heard of him, Tycho Brahe, born in Sweden in 1546, made many fundamental contributions to the field of astronomy. Raised by his uncle, Jørgen Brahe, Tycho initially studied law at the University of Copenhagen. However, he would soon turn to astronomy after witnessing a total solar eclipse at the age of 14, which sparked his interest in the subject. 

Tycho continued his astronomy studies at the University of Leipzig, where he made his first recorded observations. He largely worked on improving the field through accurate observations and precise data, which led him to build his own observatory near Copenhagen. There, he designed and built advanced instruments, calibrated them, and carried out nightly observations. 

Tycho Brahe’s contributions to astronomy were profound, as they laid the foundation for future discoveries. Even before the advent of the telescope, Tycho was able to accurately map the entire Solar System, along with the positions of more than 777 fixed stars. His work challenged many prevailing theories of the time, like Aristotle’s notion of an immutable universe, and set the stage for other revolutionary insights of the coming years, like the heliocentric model proposed by Copernicus. 

1. Johannes Kepler

Johannes Kepler was a German mathematician and astronomer who massively advanced our understanding of planets. His three fundamental laws of planetary motion revolutionized the field and are in use to this day, as they transformed Copernicus’s heliocentric view into a dynamic universe with non-circular planetary orbits.

Apart from his achievements in astronomy, Kepler made important contributions to optics and geometry, including the first proof of logarithms and an explanation for the behavior of light inside telescopes. Interestingly, Kepler’s scientific work remained intertwined with his theological and astrological beliefs throughout his life, as he believed that the universe’s design was governed by God. Regardless, some of his works were so influential that they paved the way for other phenomenal works of the future, including some of Isaac Newton’s foundational principles of physics.

Beginning roughly around 1967, Hollywood began changing its order of operations, focusing more on films that favored younger audiences and were more directly in response to popular culture. And while there are many names that have become synonymous with what came to be known as the “New Hollywood,” stories of this era tend to forget that it was an entire industry at the center of such a shakeup. Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola are household names, yet many other directors had just as significant an impact. Here are ten of them:

Related: 10 Films Where The Supporting Role Was Better Than The Lead

10 Jack Hill

Known by many as the “Howard Hawks of exploitation filmmaking,” Jack Hill made a name for himself in the world of student filmmaking at UCLA, which brought him in contact with Roger Corman. This gave him the opportunity to direct horror films throughout the 1960s, such as Blood Bath (1966) and Spider Baby (1967).

From there, he progressed into directing primarily within the Blaxploitation genre, collaborating multiple times with actress Pam Grier on films that sought to critique the flaws of their counterparts while still empowering African American voices. Even when viewed with modern eyes, his films lend an almost-Shakespearian level of pathos to his characters, trading in sex and violence for more nuanced human struggle, if only slightly.^[1]

9 John Milius

Most famous for his contributions to such scripts as Apocalypse Now (1979) and early drafts of Dirty Harry (1972), John Milius was branded by his anarchic world views, which often clashed with mainstream Hollywood politics. That being said, such an outlook was remarkably suited for the antihero mold that occupied the era’s silver screen.

As a screenwriter, his body of work is unmatched, but Milius himself is just as accomplished as a director. His sense of personal work and knack for human fragility shows through in films like Dillinger (1973) and Big Wednesday (1977), which filled out his 1970s, before he moved on to larger films in the 1980s, such as Conan the Barbarian (1982) and Red Dawn (1984). He would later go on to co-create the HBO series Rome (2005–2007).^[2]

8 Herbert Ross

Beginning his career as a dancer, Herbert Ross transitioned to directing films in 1969 with the second adaptation of James Hilton’s 1934 novel, Goodbye, Mr. Chips. Primarily a journeyman from there on, Ross’s career in New Hollywood enabled him to brush up against such big names as Barbara Streisand and Richard Dreyfuss.

More akin to the Old Hollywood studio players that came in the generation before him, Ross’s directorial style is more chameleonic than his contemporaries, making his contributions to cinema no less dynamic as it is indistinguishable. He also has the honor of directing The Last of Sheila (1973), the only film that Tony award-winning playwright and composer Stephen Sondheim wrote.^[3]

7 Jerry Schatzberg

For all the great cinema that came out of New York in the 1970s, the name Jerry Schatzberg is not uttered enough, even by the most devoted of film lovers. His career began as a photographer, but it was not long before he transitioned into independent feature filmmaking, collaborating with Faye Dunaway and Gene Hackman.

Yet most regrettable is that Schatzberg is not remembered as an integral stepping stone in the ascension of Al Pacino to movie stardom. Just as Francis Ford Coppola directed him in three Godfather films (1972, 1974, 1990), or Sidney Lumet with Serpico (1973) and Dog Day Afternoon (1975), so too did Schatzberg while directing Pacino in The Panic in Needle Park (1971) and Scarecrow (1973). Both films exhibit a sense of naturalism that only further emphasizes the sense of humanity of that era’s cinema.^[4]

6 Bob Rafelson

Finding his initial success as an executive producer on Easy Rider (1969) (he co-created the company Raybert Productions, which eventually evolved into BBS), Bob Rafelson went on to make a slew of films responsible for “legitimizing” actors viewed only in B movies and as day players. These include Karen Black in Five Easy Pieces (1970), Arnold Schwarzenegger in Stay Hungry (1976), or the actors who portrayed The Monkees, whose careers diverged in different directions once their show was canceled (of which Rafelson had co-created, written, and directed for).^[5]

5 George Roy Hill

Similar to Herbert Ross, the visuals of a “George Roy Hill Picture” might not be easily identifiable. Yet, one need not look further than the films listed on his filmography to shut down any question of his talent. Mostly known for his musicals and comedies that populated the 1960s, it was not until 1969 that Hill found his breakout work in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford.

He would go on to collaborate with both of them again, either paired together, as in The Sting (which won Hill an Academy Award for Best Director) or separately, as in the cases of The Great Waldo Pepper (1975) or Slap Shot (1977). What makes Hill doubly astute and underrated is his ability to hide counterculture rebellion within the confines of genre filmmaking, whether it be science fiction films of the 1980s with Slaughterhouse-Five (1972) or family comedies of the 1980s, with The World According to Garp (1982) or Funny Farm (1988).^[6]

4 Alan J. Pakula

Modern crime cinema would not be what it is without Alan J. Pakula. His impact on cinema has been simultaneously underrated and felt deeply since producing To Kill a Mockingbird in 1962. And while much of the slew of crime procedural programs that populate network television is attributed to Jonathan Demme for his 1991 film, The Silence of the Lambs, one need not look further than Alan J. Pakula.

Not only did his films Klute (1971) and The Parallax View (1974) tap into a sense of Nixon-era paranoia, but he also directly addressed such themes in 1976 when he directed All the President’s Men, arguably the greatest film about investigative journalism. Pakula’s presence was felt throughout the 1970s, and he continued to make quality films into the 1990s, once his influence was already felt through other filmmakers who specialized in the very style he developed.^[7]

3 Melvin Van Peebles

Here is a filmmaker who is undoubtedly held in high regard among the pantheon of Black filmmakers yet should be held just as high in relation to independent cinema. Noteworthy for being one of the few African American directors to be hired by a major Hollywood studio, Van Peebles would then go on to self-finance his film Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971). This was in direct response to his inability to find studio backing despite the success of his previous film, Columbia Pictures’ Watermelon Man (1970).

Historical relevance aside, his films stand up against the most prestigious of social issues films, as well as alongside the crassest of lowbrow comedy of the decade. His roots as a playwright inform his rather theatrical visual style, allowing him to play with the medium in a manner reminiscent of the theater, if not outright heightened by the tricks and techniques cinema has to offer.^[8]

2 Hal Ashby

Hal Ashby is by no means unknown, yet he somehow manages to go underrated in his recognition, especially when viewed through the guise of 1970s auteurism. His success rate is almost inseparable from the 1970s, as personal struggle and studio meddling all but rendered his subsequent films unwatchable, or at least under-seen by most. Harold and Maude (1971), The Last Detail (1973), and Shampoo (1975) may seem disparate at first glance, but all of these films offer microcosmic dreamscapes that do not ignore the outside world but rather offer solace in direct opposition to the current issues of the day.

The films of Hal Ashby are not films devised, so much as they feel found. Beginning his career as an editor (for which he was awarded an Academy Award), Ashby’s films seek to pick out small moments used to articulate larger themes. This notion is most strongly summed up by critic Roger Ebert in his review of Being There (1979), where he reflects on the film’s final moments, in which the protagonist Chance (played by Peter Sellers) walks across water in a seemingly Christlike allegory. Ebert writes that “a movie is exactly what it shows us, and nothing more,” which may sound oversimplified but cannot be more precise, as Ashby always shows us just enough to speak eons on the human condition.^[9]

1 Elaine May

If Hal Ashby is the unsung director of 1970s cinema, then Elaine May may very well be one of, if not the most, unsung directors of all time. She begins her career blazing a trail of a separate kind in 1960s New York as half of the comedy duo Nichols and May (the other half being the equally revolutionary Mike Nichols). Together they made numerous albums and won multiple awards, so it was only a matter of time before Hollywood came calling.

With Nichols directing his seminal adaptation of Charles Webb’s novel The Graduate in 1967, May was soon to follow with her equally biting The Heartbreak Kid (1972) five years later. This was preceded by A New Leaf (1971) and followed by Mikey And Nicky (1976), the latter of which all but tarnished her relationship with the major studios. This resulted in May herself eventually stealing reels from the studio backlot and hiding them in a close friend’s garage, only ever returning them after some of her creative demands had been met.

That said, almost all of her films were critical and box office successes. However, May herself was labeled difficult due to misogynistic hierarchies and a sense of particularism linked to the auteurism of her male colleagues. To this day, she has only made four feature films, with a fifth one purported to be on the way. All her films have their merits if they are not outright masterpieces. The financial chaos of her 1987 flop Ishtar has been the subject of multiple media frenzies, a film that itself has not aged as poorly as it would have appeared upon its initial release three decades ago.^[10]

In modern times we commonly refer to the reign of Queen Victoria as the Victorian Era in England. That era stretched from the year 1837 until 1901. In the grand scheme of human history, it wasn’t so long ago. In the grand scheme of culinary history, it might as well have happened a million years ago on another planet. While a number of dishes seemed perfectly normal even today, there are a handful of foods that the Victorians ate that would not find a welcome home on many menus these days.

This is an encore of one of our previous lists, as presented by our YouTube host Simon Whistler. Read the full list!

In bygone days, before modern technology, people had to rely more on their imaginations to come up with entertaining pastimes. This often resulted in some very strange games, especially for children, during the Victorian Age and long before. Some of these games are silly, while others are a little disturbing, and versions of some are still played today.

Here are 10 of the weirdest children’s games from the Victorian era and earlier.

10 Funeral

Some children’s pastimes during this era were startlingly macabre, such as one make-believe game known as Funeral. As strange and disturbing as it may seem today, laying out a doll and performing a mock funeral, sometimes even burying the doll, was common in the 19th century and referred to by authors of the day.

One publication noted that Charles Dickens referenced such a game in his 1840 novel The Old Curiosity Shop. In the story, the protagonist, Nell, stumbles across a group of children in a graveyard “playing funeral” with a very realistic doll—their baby brother or sister.

Considering the high infant and child mortality rate in this era, it makes sense that end-of-life rituals would be reflected in children’s play. Not only did kids gather together pretending to mourn a loved one, but there were toys made for this purpose, including a tiny black coffin and a tiny black mourning dress.^[1]

9 Honey-Pots

There isn’t much to the 19th-century game Honey-Pots, but that doesn’t mean it was easy. One player rolls their body into a very tight ball, and another player has to lift the person and carry them as if they were a jar of honey being brought home from the market. Depending on the size of the player who’s impersonating the honey-pot and the one doing the lifting, this could be a challenging task. It was probably also uncomfortable being transported in this strange manner.^[2]

8 Apple and Candle

The Victorians liked games involving fire, like Ghostly Fire and the very popular Snap Dragon. Some of these were clearly hazardous, such as the Halloween game Apple and Candle, in which a stick was strung up horizontally with an apple attached to one end and a lit candle attached to the other. Participants would take their turn jumping up and using their teeth to try to snatch the apple from the quickly twirling stick.

However, as The Book of Days explains, “it very frequently happens that the candle comes round before they are aware, and scorches them in the face, or anoints them with grease.”^[3]

7 Knucklebones

The ancient game of Knucklebones is suspected of having originated in either ancient Egypt or Lydia and eventually made its way into Roman and Greek culture. The children’s version of the game involves simultaneously throwing five game pieces up in the air. As they fall, a player tries to catch as many as possible on the back of their hand. In another version, players try to throw one or two pieces at a time into a small hole in the ground or the opening of some small object.

The strangest thing about this pastime is that the actual knucklebones of goats and sheep were originally used as game pieces. Later, they were made of all sorts of different materials, including glass, wood, stone, and even bronze and gold. Games similar to Knucklebones are still played today, such as the children’s game, Jackstones.^[4]

6 Hot Cockles

One famous Victorian party game for children and adults, Hot Cockles, is possibly the most bizarre and violent, which may be why the memory of it has not been lost to history—except for maybe on an episode of Jackass.

A player kneels down, blindfolded, and places their head in the lap of a seated person, then waits for the other guests to take turns kicking them from behind. The objective is for the player to “guess who has just kicked them.” In another version of the game, the blindfolded player would guess the identity of the person who has just slapped them.^[5]

5 Ring Around the Rosie

Everyone’s familiar with the cute childhood game Ring Around the Rosie, which is still popular today. This activity started long before the Victorian era and involves kids holding hands as they dance around in a circle, singing the words to this old nursery rhyme. However, the lyrics may be rooted in a tragic chapter of history. There is a widespread belief that the words describe symptoms of the bubonic plague.

The first line, “Ring around the Rosie,” could easily refer to the bright red rash visible on infected people. The line “Pocket full of posies” could be included because the flower was considered a good luck charm that was thought to guard against the contraction of the virus. Posies were also “sometimes used to overpower the stench of dead bodies.”

The line “Atischoo, atischoo,” is meant to sound like sneezes, so that also fits in with the theory. But children in some places instead say “Ashes, ashes,” which could be a reference to the frequent cremations that were done during the plague. Sadly, the phrase “We all fall down” might symbolize death, as the plague, of course, had a very high fatality rate.^[6]

4 The Bellman

There are many variations on the 2,000-year-old game we know today as Blind Man’s Bluff, in which a player is blindfolded and spun around before chasing after other players who are calling out to them. One version known as The Bellman is a reverse of the standard game. All the players are blindfolded except one, who rings a bell. When the blindfolded players hear the bell, they run in the direction the sound came from, trying to catch the person who rang it.

This is one of many games played in the Victorian Era and earlier that could be somewhat dangerous. As History Collection points out: “It’s very likely that the blindfolded kids collided into one another, and possibly ended up getting a concussion.” ^[7]

3 Ball of Wool

It’s hard to imagine being so bored that it would seem like fun to try to blow a ball of wool off the opposite side of a table, but maybe that’s because we’re not in the Victorian Age. Yes, this was a game. The challenging part was trying to get the ball of wool past the person on the other side, who was supposed to block it from going over the edge. In another version, a player would use their breath to keep a feather in the air for as long as possible.

Imagine trying to entertain children with this game at your next family gathering.^[8]

2 Predictions of Future Husbands

During the Victorian era, there were a number of games that revolved around girls trying to glean information about their future husbands. These were especially popular during Halloween parties. One such game involved the pouring of melted lead through a key into a bowl of water and analyzing the shapes for hints of their future husband’s occupation.

In another game, a girl was supposed to eat an apple by candlelight while looking into a mirror and hopefully see the reflection of her intended standing behind her.

Three Luggies called for a girl to be blindfolded, so common in this era, and have three turns at placing her left hand in one of three bowls to determine what kind of husband she would get, but it only counted if her hand was in the same bowl at least twice. If she dipped her hand in a bowl of water, she was destined to wed a bachelor. A bowl of milk meant she would marry a widower, but if the bowl was empty, it meant spinsterhood, a frightening prospect in the 1800s. No wonder they played it on Halloween.

There was also a version of this game for males, but the bowl that meant the young man would marry a widow contained fowl water instead of milk.^[9]

1 Marriage Games

A marriage-themed game might sound goofy today, but since Victorians, in general, seemed to be so preoccupied with who was going to marry whom, it makes sense that there would be a party game based on the topic. These games tended to be geared toward teenagers and young adults. Marriages and Divorces almost sounds like the predecessor to speed dating and has been compared to it. However, the old-fashioned parlor game may have actually been a more effective matchmaking technique. In Marriages and Divorces, all the girls would line up on one side of the room while the boys would line up on the other side. Whoever you happened to be standing across from was your partner. Each player had to write a “character sketch,” including their flaws and their good points.

As if this game wasn’t awkward and embarrassing enough, each participant was required to read these descriptions aloud in front of the group. Depending on how well a couple hit it off, they would either ask the game’s judge to be “married” or “divorced.” However, it was up to the judge to decide if they were compatible enough. In the event that a couple asked to be divorced, despite the judge’s opinion that they were suitable, there was a penalty. The two players had to pay a forfeit.

In a different version of the game, just called Marriages, everyone would name a famous person, alive or dead, or a fictional character. The male participants, assuming the role of one of these celebrities, would propose to a female player, who would either accept or reject the proposal. However, if she declined, she was obligated to explain why. After everyone was matched up, the males had to explain why their character proposed to the female player. This game could be a way to explore romantic attitudes in mixed company but with a less personal and direct approach than Marriages and Divorces.^[10]

In modern times we commonly refer to the reign of Queen Victoria as the Victorian Era in England. That era stretched from the year 1837 until 1901. In the grand scheme of human history, it wasn’t so long ago. In the grand scheme of culinary history, it might as well have happened a million years ago on another planet. While a number of dishes seemed perfectly normal even today, there are a handful of foods that the Victorians ate that would not find a welcome home on many menus these days.

10. Broxy Meat 

Meat has long been a dinner staple for people all over the world. Victorians enjoyed all kinds of meat, fish, and poultry. From beef, to pork, to lamb and more, they definitely had their carnivorous side. But just like today, meat wasn’t always the cheapest item to buy. Sometimes if you wanted to have a tasty steak you had to go for a bit lower quality. That was where broxy meat came in.

If you couldn’t afford the good cuts of meat, and the average person very likely could not, then your local butcher may have had broxy meat at a discount. Usually sheep, though it didn’t have to be necessarily, broxy meat was the meat of any animal that had died of a disease. Essentially you were taking a gamble by even eating it. While not every disease can go from animal to human very easily, sheep could be infected with everything from tetanus, to ringworm, to various parasites and bacteria that would either kill you or make you wish you were dead. 

9. Brown Windsor Soup 

Brown Windsor soup sounds very proper and British even when you have no idea what’s in it. And this really is a traditional British favourite. You can still find it places today, though the recipe has definitely evolved to become more refined in the modern area. These days it’s made with root vegetables and even a little bit of Madeira wine. Back in the day it was somewhat less  fancy.

The traditional recipe for Brown Windsor soup involved brown gravy, a little malt vinegar, some peppercorns and a bit of dried fruits like figs or dates. That’s it. You could also add the Madeira wine to this brew as well, so at least you’d get a buzz off of what is essentially gravy and fruit masquerading as soup.

8. Sheep Trotters 

You can find hot dog carts all over big cities today, but head back to the Victorian era and you’d be finding trotter vendors everywhere. Sheep trotters were the street food of choice for the Victorian crowd, genuinely proving to be very popular despite there not being much to them.

As the name suggests, a sheep trotter is just a sheep’s foot. They were usually boiled and then you could just gnaw on the greasy, grisly appendage until you cleaned it down to the bone. There wasn’t very much meat on one of these, and there was also the potential that it wasn’t very clean either. But they were cheap, and easy to come by, and for that reason you could find hundreds of them in major cities during that time. While people in the Western hemisphere have more or less abandoned the dish, it’s still highly popular with some Eastern cultures, where it’s called paya. 

7. Bloaters

Bloaters were smoked herring, and they were exceptionally popular. While smoked herring isn’t that unusual, and is still popular to this day, there was a difference between normal smoke herring, something like a kipper, and a bloater.  The hint is in the name and how it’s prepared.

Bloaters were prepared whole and as is. Everything was still included in the fish, it wasn’t gutted or cleaned in any way. They got the name bloater because the fish would bloat as it smokes since its guts were still inside it and they just started expanding. That’s traditionally one of the main reasons we gut an animal before preparing it, because the gasses and fluids in their stomachs and organs can be both volatile and messy. The last thing most of us want when eating a fish is to see the contents of its digestive tract.

These fish were popular in Greater Yarmouth in Norfolk and traditionally were made from some of the later catch of the season. The early fish were often too small to prepare normally, so they could be pickled.  The fatter fish later in the season that had bulked-up were smoked and sold as bloaters and it was generally considered safe to just eat them whole.  They were so popular that people would often buy boxes of them and mail them as gifts to friends and relatives. 

6. Pressed Duck 

The name pressed duck doesn’t sound too awful at first, but when you get into the logistics of how this dish was prepared it’s quite morbid. The dish was popular enough that a chef actually invented a duck press to better make it. It became a signature dish at Le Tour d’argent in France we’re apparently over 1 million people dined on this creepy entree.

Before pressing the duck, it needed to be killed. The preferred method for butchery was strangulation so that you didn’t lose any of the blood. You let the carcass sit for a day so everything could settle, and then gut the bird leaving its liver and heart intact. The duck was to be tossed in an oven on the highest setting for about 20 minutes at that point so that the liver and heart will have broken down.

This is where pressed duck gets morbid and weird. The freshly cooked duck was taken tableside and along with the press in front of the diners. The legs and breast meat were carefully removed and then the carcass was put in the press and crushed. The blood and marrow would drain out through a spout and collect in a bowl. A little bit of liver and stock would be added to the duck juice, and you’d have yourself a sauce. The duck was then served with the sauce poured over it. 

5. Slink Meat

If you have an affinity for leather, you may have heard of slink leather before. It’s leather made from the skin of unborn calves. It’s about as grisly as it sounds and it’s not the only use of slink out there.

Along with broxy meat, slink meat was another thing that you could find at a butcher shop if you were on a budget and couldn’t afford the decent cuts. If a cow was slaughtered for meat and it was found to be pregnant at the time, that unborn calf could be butchered and sold as meat.  They would also sell the meat of miscarried cows or ones born prematurely. It’s not legal to sell that kind of meat anymore, but for the Victorians it was a cost effective alternative to regular cuts.

4. Jellied Eels

Jellied eels isn’t a trick name or a dish that’s hard to figure out in some way. It’s precisely what it claims to be. A traditional Cockney dish, it was made by chopping up eels and boiling them in water and vinegar with some spices. When you allow the dish to cool, it will solidify into a puck of fishy jelly. 

They used to be popular as a street food, sold outside of pubs and eaten cold. As the variety of foods sold on the streets grew, jellied eel out of fashion. This was also because it became harder to find eels during the Victorian era. It said that at one point in time eel was so common in the Thames you could just toss a net in and pull out as many as you could handle. By the Victorian era the Thames was so polluted that the population had nearly vanished. Most of the eels that were jellied for Victorian diners was actually imported from places like Holland. 

That said, it’s actually becoming popular again but the eels still need to be imported.

3. Mock Turtle Soup and Brain Balls

The idea of turtle soup may not be appealing to everyone if for no other reason than turtle is not something we generally eat. So would mock turtle soup be better or worse? That comes down to what you think of how the Victorians made mock turtle.

Never ones to be wasteful, the Victorian cooks used anything they could find to make food. In the case of mock turtle soup all you needed was a cow’s head. According to one published recipe you needed to scald the head until all the hair was gone. Then boil it until the horns turn soft. At that point you can cut it into slices the size of your finger. 

The remainder of the recipe is fairly standard involving some stock, a lot of seasonings, a little Madeira wine, and then chopped brains. The brains were formed into balls, and you had mock turtle soup and brain balls all made from a cow’s head.

2. Foie Gras Ice Cream

A few years ago artisanal ice cream really took off and there were a lot of stories online about little shops around the country that would make truly bizarre flavors. It started simply enough with things like bacon ice cream, and then expanded to lavender and saffron and Sriracha hot sauce. You’ll even see cooking shows on the Food Network where a chef will try their hand at making a bizarre flavor of ice cream just to see if it works.

Thank the Victorians for being the first to come up with the idea that anything can be ice cream if you tried hard enough. Foie gras ice cream was a perplexing dish meant to be served in a mold shaped like a duck. You would take pre-made ice cream and mix in some cayenne pepper then line the duck mold with it. A layer of aspic jelly was added and then the whole mixture was allowed to freeze before the remainder was packed full of liver pate. It wasn’t clear if this was a dessert or an entree. 

1. Arsenic Complexion Wafers

These days we understand the dangers of arsenic. In fact, the only time you tend to hear of it anymore is when it is used as a poison. For centuries, however, people have been using arsenic as a health and beauty aid. It was often used in skin care to improve the complexion. During the Victorian era they took this to a new level with arsenic wafers.

Advertised as a way of making your complexion smooth and clear, getting rid of moles and pimples, you could buy a box of arsenic wafers and just munch away on the poison whenever you felt like sprucing up your appearance. In addition to the benefits for your complexion they were advertised as being a cure for dyspepsia, habitual constipation, malaria, lackluster eyes, and even low spirits. If you’re curious, about 1/8 of a teaspoon of arsenic can kill a healthy adult.

The Victorian era was a transformative period in British history. Under Queen Victoria’s reign from 1837 to 1901, the empire grew to be the largest industrial powerhouse in the world. It was a time of unprecedented advances in the arts and sciences, along with social improvements like the rise of the suffragette movement. 

Weirdly enough, the Victorian period is also remembered for some of the most bizarre – and sometimes downright eerie – trends ever imagined in human history. While most people have probably already heard of the Victorian practice of photographing their dead, it’s only the tip of the iceberg. In fact, compared to some items on this list, that might even be one of the tamer trends of the era.

10. Belladonna Eye Drops

By the early 19th century, makeup was going out of fashion across western Europe, replaced by a more nude, effortless look that’s popular to this day. Queen Victoria had even gone so far as to declare it impolite, instantly making it unpopular among her subjects. 

To achieve that look, Victorian women would often experiment with other alternatives, some of which could only be described as ‘deadly’ in the modern context. From lead and arsenic-based dyes that could severely damage the skin to poisonous substances like vermillion, an average Victorian-era makeup kit could painfully kill you at worst, and leave you with some debilitating life-long conditions at best. Perhaps the deadliest practice of all was using belladonna – one of the most toxic plants we know of – as eye drops to make the eyes look bigger, causing permanent blindness or even death if directly ingested. 

9. Creepy Christmas Cards

Christmas cards trace their origins to the Victorian period, when in 1843, a man named Sir Henry Cole – inspired by the recently-published A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens – commissioned the first 1,000 copies. However, the earliest Christmas cards were costly to make, as each one had to be individually designed by a professional colorer, using a technique called lithography. It wouldn’t be until the 1870s that improvements in printing techniques and the postal system allowed mass production and distribution. 

As for the art style, it’d still take decades before the Victorians really nailed the ‘Christmas card’ aesthetic we recognize today. While many Victorian-era Christmas cards featured everyday designs like animals and landscapes, there was also a strong demand for morbid and creepy designs. 

Insects and lobsters were particularly popular, though there were quite a few works featuring mythological monsters and ghostly children as well. According to historians, some of these designs reflected the harsh realities of life during the Victorian period, as quite a few poor children did freeze to death on Christmas. 

8. Mummy Unwrapping Parties

The beginning of the 19th century saw a resurgence in popularity surrounding Egypt and ancient-Egyptian culture across Europe, largely due to Napoleon’s invasion of England in 1798. In Victorian-era England, however, the craze took on a much more macabre dimension. They were particularly obsessed with mummies, celebrating them in ways that’d be considered anti science – or even a bit creepy – to anyone today. 

One especially dark practice was that of unwrapping Egyptian mummies and showcasing the process like an art exhibit, usually by rich and influential collectors in cities like London. The ceremony would involve food and drinks – much like any other party you’ve been to – followed by slow and careful unraveling of a long-dead, mummified human body in front of a captive audience, usually by a professional surgeon. Depending on the performer, the session could include discussion and commentary about the various features of the mummy, like the state of its skin and hair. 

7. The Tapeworm Diet

While it’s true that ingesting tapeworms could theoretically help you lose weight, science has advanced far enough to know that it’s a horrible idea. That wasn’t the case at all during the Victorian era, when it was considered normal to sacrifice one’s health and well-being to attain the almost-impossible beauty standards of the time. 

To get that fragile, almost-dead look popular back then, many women resorted to the tapeworm diet, which is exactly what it sounds like. It was usually administered as a pill with tapeworm larvae, which would then hatch, enter the digestive system, and hopefully start absorbing a part of whatever the host ate. Of course, as the tapeworm is also a parasitic worm, things didn’t always go as expected, as the diet led to other medical complications like diarrhea and vomiting.

6. Dangerous Cosmetics

A box of cosmetics in a typical Victorian household would contain many things considered industrial hazards today, so much so that if you ended up dying due to chemical exposure, it’d be difficult to tell exactly what killed you. 

Lead was a particularly popular ingredient, widely found in powders and foundations used by women throughout the Victorian era. Paints containing high amounts of lead were used to achieve a deathly pale look, though they also corroded the skin and left other long-term effects on the body. Mercury was another favorite, used in products ranging from blemish removers to cold creams.

5. Baby Farmers

The Victorian period was a particularly tough time for single mothers. While abortion was illegal and socially frowned-upon, so was the mistreatment of children by their parents, and the death of a child due to abandonment or neglect carried an almost-certain death penalty. On top of that, it was next to impossible for single mothers to find a job, thanks to the social stigma attached to giving birth out of wedlock.

To get out of their situation, many women opted to hand over their unwanted children to someone colloquially known as a ‘baby farmer’. These were other women or agencies that adopted and fostered the children in their care, usually in exchange for a large fee. While it was a noble idea and many of these agencies indeed turned into the earliest forms of adoption agencies, the system was marred by cases of abuse. In particularly extreme cases, like those of Margaret Waters and Amelia Dyer, many kids were murdered days – or even hours – after being adopted. The practice was so widespread that the British government had to pass laws like the Infant Life Protection Act and Children Act of 1908 to put an end to it.

4. Bathing Machines

Bathing machines were essentially portable changing rooms for women, mainly used at the beach and other public swimming spots. Despite their rather progressive ideas in other areas – like makeup – Victorians were still quite prudish about women having a good time in the open. To make sure that didn’t happen, strict segregation laws were implemented across Victorian England in 1832, making it compulsory for men and women to be at least 60 feet apart at the beach. 

Of course, that wasn’t enough, as it still allowed women to have a good time publicly, if only a bit farther away from men. The bathing machine was the perfect solution. At its most basic, it was a large box on carriage wheels that could be dragged into the water by horses or manual labor, complete with sections for wet clothes and step ladders to keep the whole thing above water. The swimmer would enter from one side, change into their swimsuits, and exit into the water on the other. More elaborate designs – like the one used by Queen Victoria – came with drapes and other improvements for further privacy. 

3. Scheele’s Green

In 1775, a Swedish scientist called Carl Wilhelm Scheele came up with his own concoction for a green dye. Now known as Scheele’s green, it was made with copper arsenite, and massively improved on other greens available in the market. It looked like the color green found in nature, for one, compared to the gray or brown shades found in most of its alternatives. It was also quite poisonous, as we now know, leaving anyone exposed to it with some long-term medical conditions. In the more extreme cases, it could even cause death. 

Regardless, Scheele’s green – and an improved version called Paris Green – became immensely popular during the Victorian era, used in everything from wallpapers to carpets to even children’s toys. It’d be accurate to picture this time period in a green hue, even if most people were well aware of the harmful effects of exposure to arsenic. According to one rumor, Napoleon Bonaparte likely died from excessive amounts of Scheele’s Green present in his manor at St. Helena. 

2. Human Hair Jewelry

You’d think that arsenic and lead were the most bizarre ingredients found in a typical Victorian home, though you’d be wrong. There was also human hair, usually taken from a deceased loved one and fashioned into jewelry, like wreaths, necklaces, bracelets, and everything else one can make with hair. 

It was an entire art form of the era, and it took a painstaking amount of effort and time to make the more elaborate pieces. It wasn’t uncommon to use hair from more than one deceased relative, or even a family pet, if it helped the look. The practice died down some time in the 20th century, as more and more people started to realize that it was sort of creepy. However, one can still find museums and private societies dedicated to the preservation of the craft.

1. Resurrectionists

While medicine and surgery reached new heights during the Victorian period, the physicians, surgeons, and other medical experts were always short on subjects to experiment on. As capital punishment was quickly going out of style during this time, there was a sudden, severe shortage of dead bodies for scientific experiments.

These conditions gave birth to an entirely new class of criminals – the resurrectionists, a euphemistic term for grave robbers and organ traffickers that regularly supplied hospitals with fresh cadavers and dead body parts to work with. While the practice was illegal, obviously, the high fees offered by medical practitioners – combined with the high level of unemployment in the country – made it a lucrative, widespread occupation. It was so bad that at its peak, people had to guard the graves of their loved ones to ensure that they didn’t get robbed.