There was a total eclipse of the sun in 1699 and the preparations made by Governments revealed their superstitions. For instance: The elector of Darmstadt was informed of the approach of a total eclipse and in 1699, published the following edit in consequence: “His Highness, having been informed that on Wednesday morning next, at ten […]
Did You Know?
DYK: Social Standing and dinners – Watch where you are seated!
Did you know that in the seventeenth century, a person’s social standing determined what he or she ate at dinners? The best food was placed next to the most important people. Also, people didn’t tend to sample everything that was on the table, they just ate what was closest to them. In the seventeenth century […]
DYK: Why do employees ‘get the sack’?
“Get the Sack’ actually comes from the days when workmen carried their tools in sacks. Before the Industrial Revolution in Europe and the age of mass employment, people who needed work done and had the means to pay someone else to do it would hire workers with the skills to do specific jobs. These workers […]
DYK: What does it mean to be a freelancer?
A freelancer, freelance worker, or freelance is a person who is self-employed and is not committed to a particular employer long-term. The word Freelance actually came from the Middle Ages when freelances were soldiers who fought for anyone who would hire them. They were literally freelancers who used their lances wherever they were directed.
DYK: Have you ever buried a hatchet? This is where the phrase came from
Bury the hatchet – means to settle your differences with an adversary. Hatchets were buried by the chiefs of tribes when they came to a peace agreement. The phrase is recorded from the 17th century in English but the practice it refers to is much earlier, possibly pre-dating the European settlement of America. A translation […]
Christmas Boxes were originally earthenware boxes
The 26th of December, also called St. Stephen’s Day. Boxing Day is a public holiday that forms part of the Christmas festivities in most of the countries that were once part of the British Empire. It was originally the first working day after Christmas Day, but is now always celebrated on December 26th, regardless of […]
Merry Christmas!
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! The universal joy of Christmas is certainly wonderful. We ring the bells when princes are born, or toll a mournful dirge when great men pass away. Nations have their red-letter days, their carnivals and festivals, but once in the year and only once, the whole world stands still to celebrate the advent […]