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The cross and the syringe
(9 minute read) Maddy Fry chronicles the often suspicion-charged relationship between believers and the practice of inoculation.
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Edinburgh’s healing beauty
(8 minute read) Adam Brocklehurst recalls a moment of consolation in the galleries of Scotland’s capital.
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The Epiphany star: still shining after all these years
(10 minute read) Joseph Evans sees the star which, tradition has it, guided the Wise Men to Jesus as an ancient form of the internet. And he argues that, two millennia on, the tale continues to be relevant for believers and unbelievers alike.
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The making of the great British Christmas
(8 minute read) The feast described in carols and schmaltzy TV adverts is a complicated patchwork of cultures constantly evolving, as Adam Brocklehurst reveals.
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Dallying shepherds and muscular Christs: the Pre-Raphaelites as mental wellbeing
(6 minute read) Adam Brocklehurst believes art can still offer us inspiration in our lockdown state.
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The efficiency of evil: Auschwitz and the detail of genocide
(7 minute read) Ronnie Convery is shocked by the minutiae of a death camp and its hideous attention to detail.
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Grimy glory: lessons in beauty from sewage-plants and run-down buildings
(7 minute read) Self-confessed commoner Adam Brocklehurst explains how the aristocratic Lucinda Lambton has helped him see the world around him with new eyes.
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On graves and greatness
(4 minute read) Walking through graveyards in Scotland and Italy becomes a surprisingly life-affirming experience for Leonard Franchi.
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Did I really see what I think I saw? Optical illusion in historical and contemporary art
(6 minute read) Seeing is believing - if you can believe what you see. Carolyn Morrison discovers an art form which makes us “think anew about what we see and how we see it.”
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Nigeria at 60: A future yet to flower
(6 minute read) Joshua Nwachukwu casts an eye over the light and shadows which mark Nigeria’s 60th anniversary as a modern independent nation.
