Culture Critic Profile picture
Feb 10 12 tweets 3 min read Read on X
This is what great European cities looked like a century ago... (thread) 🧵

1. London (1930s)
...and Westminster bridge in 1896
2. Paris (1902)
...and the Notre-Dame in 1896
3. Barcelona (1909)
4. Vienna (1896)
5. Milan (1896)
6. Berlin (1896)
7. Amsterdam (1922)
8. Warsaw (1927)
And Paris again, where it was the norm to dress impeccably during the 1920s. What changed?
My (free) newsletter explores the beauties of the old world every week 👇
culturecritic.beehiiv.com/subscribe

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Culture Critic

Culture Critic Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @Culture_Crit

Feb 9
A thread of 21st century architectural revivals that will restore your faith in humanity: 🧵

1. Frauenkirche, Dresden, Germany Image
Dresden's German Baroque gem was destroyed by Allied bombings in 1945. Using the original bricks (left in rubble since the war), it was rebuilt as close to the original as possible. It reopened in 2005. Image
2. Kossuth Square, Budapest, Hungary

Budapest is erasing the brutalist blight from its communist past. This building at Kossuth Square has been restored according to its original plans from the 1920s. There are many such examples around the city. Image
Read 11 tweets
Feb 8
Classical education is more important now than ever.

12 great works of literature that every young man must read, and why (thread) 🧵 Image
1. The Divine Comedy - Dante Alighieri (c.1321)

What happens when you’ve lost yourself and wandered from the straight and true? You must travel through hell and purgatory to emerge in paradise.

Dante was the greatest poet of all time. Read him to discover the inner workings of your own soul.Image
2. The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas (1844)

As Edmond Dantès said: “Life is a storm, my young friend. You bask in the sunlight one moment, get shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes.”

Read to learn what to do when that storm comes.Image
Read 16 tweets
Feb 7
This is what great American cities looked like a century ago, in video (thread):

1. San Francisco, 1906
2. New York City, 1911
...and Broadway in 1896
Read 12 tweets
Feb 6
Cathedrals aren't just beautiful. They're encoded with symbolism.

The layout, statues and stained-glass windows all represent something higher... (thread) 🧵 Image
The plan is usually cruciform in shape and oriented eastward. Worshippers face the rising sun, a daily reminder of Christ’s resurrection.

The north and south transepts or “arms” represent Christ’s right and left hands on the cross. Image
The entrance at the West end corresponds with Christ's feet - you enter at the foot of the cross and proceed upward to the altar. Image
Read 16 tweets
Feb 5
Reminder that the US built some of the greatest train stations ever seen.

These are the most beautiful (thread) 🧵 Image
1. Union Station, Washington, D.C. (1907)

One of the first great union stations, a triumph of Beaux-Arts architecture with no expense spared. The coffered ceiling is laced with gold leaf, and rows of marble centurions keep watch over the main hall. Image
2. Birmingham Terminal Station, AL (1909)

As the motorcar flourished, many of the great stations fell into disuse and were demolished. Birmingham's great Byzantine / Beaux-Arts station was razed in 1969 to make way for a new highway. Image
Read 13 tweets
Feb 2
I often post wonders from the distant past. What about the churches we still build today?

These will surprise you (all built in the last 20 years)... 🧵Image
1. Many of today's great new churches are Eastern Orthodox. Georgia's Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi became one of the world's largest churches by interior measure in 2004. Image
2. And the Serbs just finished this, the Church of Saint Sava in Belgrade - an Orthodox titan to rival the Hagia Sophia. Image
Read 16 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(