If a man will take a view of all popery, he shall easily see that a great part of it is mere magic. – William Perkins, Puritan Divine1 "Work, justice and religion on a mediaeval English village by

Unbinding the Love, Lust, Infatuation, Desire, or Any Romantic Notions of a Man to a Woman – an Erotic Spell image source In the Classical world, such as Ancient Greece, it was common for men and women

Genetic Genealogy - DNA artifact testing This is now a real possibility, and it is pretty darned exciting! image source The biggest downside - currently, at least - is the price of testing. It is very

image source For domination of Anglo-Saxon England I believe there are certain commonalities which run through the achievement of top-dog status amongst the various kingdoms - like warring, political

In this issue we bring you articles and information of great interest in the Steempunkian world, including: An interview with a privateer - the Captain. Weapon recommendations for the discerning fighter.

Another one in my series of (distant) relations with a claim to fame. Patrick Maynard Stuart BLACKETT cir. 1950 image source Baron Blackett of Chelsea (b. 18 Nov 1897, London; d. 13 Jul 1974, London) 'The

Amy Maud BOCK thief, confidence trickster, grifter, impersonator, kleptomaniac NZ police mugshot of Amy Bock [n.d. but probably 1890] image source She was born on the 18th of May, 1859 in Hobart (Tasmania,

image source Last but by no means least on our unofficial NZ book month tour, I'd like to present author five ... Juliet Marillier image source Juliet was born in Dunedin, but now makes her home in Australia.

Just like everywhere, fads come and go - and that includes games. People lose interest or move on to play the next newest toy, but I've never been like that. If something is good to me, I am good back.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Executing Louis XVI, King of France 'Portrait of Louis XVI of France', by Antoine-François Callet (1791) image source Rightly or wrongly, the decision was made to execute

A while back, just to get out of the house, we decided to drive to Dolamore Park, as it is a lovely spot out in the countryside; and we picked up some hot chips & cold drink to take with us on our

In this issue we bring you articles and information of great interest in the Steempunkian world, including: An interview with one of the Darkzone residents - Rab Burdonne - about the life of another, quite

Anne Marbury A "courageous exponent of civil liberty and religious toleration." source (bap. 20 Jul 1591, England; d. Aug 1643, USA) In front of the Massachusetts State House in Boston there

Ponsonby Murder, 1920 “He who leaves a finger-print behind him, leaves an unforgetable signature.” ~ Sir Samuel Griffith, Chief Justice of Australia source In what has been called the (likely) first world-wide

image source For our unofficial book month I'd like to present, author four ... Essie Summers aka: 'NZ's Queen of Romance' aka: Ethel Snelson Summers (b. 1912; d. 1998) "Unrivalled New Zealand writer

Who's Who? Naming Patterns - both a hindrance and a help image source This is perhaps a cautionary tale about never assuming you have found the right person and matched them to the right family. There

Loss of tradition: confiscation and the Native Land Courts devastating impact on Maori society after the wars. image source In 1800 the Maori owned over 60 million acres of land; by 1911, they owned only

Any gardener knows that their equipment is really important, and having decent tools to work with is essential (although life would go on without such things, but yanno ...), so I recently indulged in

In this issue we bring you articles and information of great interest in the Steempunkian world, including: An interview with one of the Clockwork Arena's most secretive players - IthraGaian. Weapon

Hutchinson Family Singers Abolitionists, reformers, entertainers. image source Ten of the brothers, cir. 1845. (left to right): Asa, Andrew, Jesse, Joshua, David, Caleb, Noah, Judson, Zephaniah, John