Welcome to Friday,
Here are five things I thought worth sharing this week:
How Did the Chess Pieces Get Their Names?
“The costumery of the first Klan is the American adaptation of a European harassment ritual called charivari.” It appears much of the theatricality we identify with the Klan today was largely tossed together from European traditions by listless young men who capitalized on the mystery and fear they stoked in choosing to terrorize others.
Fraktur was a bold typeface commonly used in the 1700s in Pennsylvania – and later infamously used by the Nazis – to adorn records like birth certificates and baptisms. It utilizes warm tones, birds, and hearts to embellish the type on these civil and religious documents.
The origins of that childhood favorite, Candy Land.
Finally, new tests on Beethoven’s hair reveal clues about the composer’s death and family history. The journal article, fully open to read, provides much more detail on the genetic testing researchers used.
Currently reading: The Language Hoax by John McWhorter
Have a great weekend.
Photo by TOMOKO UJI on Unsplash
