Gardens
From the Bible to Versailles, gardens are bound to their political and religious history.
Books
In Australian picture books, family representation has been overwhelmingly traditional. But this may be changing.
Classics
Juvenal wrote 16 satires, divided into five books, each with their own target from decadent aristocrats to Egyptian cannibals.
Hidden women
One of the most significant woman of Venice’s golden age, Cornaro was an important figure in Renaissance politics, diplomacy and arts.
Hidden women
Hop Lin Jong's arrival in Western Australia in 1901 was remarkable only because she was Chinese. Her life might have passed in obscurity if not for the murder of her daughter in 1925.
Ancient history
From about age seven, Spartan children learned to fight and practise obeying orders. They also staged pretend battles. Boys and girls were trained separately.
Hidden women
This frail and often hated woman became a passionate advocate of a woman's place in a democratic society before a tragic episode broke her.
Hidden women
Persecuted by Stalin, writers Lydia Chukovskaya and Anna Akhmatova endured threats, cold and starvation. And in an epic feat, Lydia memorised the poems of her friend that were too dangerous to commit to paper.
Hidden women
One of the 'first white women' to travel in the Northern Territory, Elsie Masson's attitudes to the Aboriginal people she met expressed the contradictions of racial thought at this time.
Hidden women
A 2.5 metre dolls' house reveals the hopes and dreams of Petronella Oortman, a 17th-century Dutch woman.
Friday essay
Our identity unquestionably shapes (and can limit) how we interact with the world. But it should not become the only foundation upon which we build our understanding of it.
Valuing our culture
Folklore is everywhere and a valuable part of our national heritage. But it is undervalued by our government.
Christmas
Several of Santa's modern features, such as his generosity, miracle-working, and focus on morality (being 'naughty or nice'), were part of his image from the very beginning.
Year in music
It was a year when both men and women bared their emotions through music.
Year in TV
From ground-breaking to game-changing, rule-breaking to near parliament-breaking, 2018 was a hell of a year for TV.
Holiday reading
While tourism campaigns often portray the beach as an idyllic, isolated haven, many of our beach stories depict it as a darker, more complex place. Here are ten worth reading.
Christmas
For Australians serving overseas in WWI, Christmas was particularly difficult. Menus reveal how soldiers tried to maintain the traditions of home.
Close Up
Back to the Future is one of the most loved films from the 1980s, and galvanised audiences across every demographic. In this episode of Close-Up, Bruce Isaacs looks at the politics underpinning the film.
TV
Tidelands, is a speculative story about half-human/half-siren beings who live in the coastal Queensland town of Orphelin Bay. Unfortunately, it is not always a success.
Suspiria was one of the best; Black Panther a disappointment. Our critical pick of the films of 2018.
