Reminder: this is what subways look like in Russia.
The most beautiful subway stations around the world (thread): 🧵
1. Mayakovskaya, Moscow (1938)
2. Komsomolskaya, Moscow (1952)
Moscow's metro could easily fill an entire thread. Subways can and should have chandeliers and Baroque friezes.
3. City Hall Station, New York (1904)
America could have had a beautiful subway. This station, with stunning vaulted ceilings, tiled arches and skylights, was abandoned 40 years after opening.
4. Baker Street, London (1863)
The oldest underground station in the world, and almost completely unchanged for 160 years.
5. Toledo, Naples (2012)
One of the deepest stations on the Naples metro, with colors meant to evoke the depths of the ocean. Passengers reach platform level by passing beneath a "crater of light".
6. Elektrozavodskaya, Moscow (1944)
A station dedicated to the pioneers of electricity, with an innovative lighting system woven into neoclassical marble reliefs.
7. Arts et Métiers, Paris
An ode to steampunk science fiction and French novelist Jules Verne - copper cladding, portholes and exposed bolts.
8. Marienplatz, Munich (1971)
One of the most recognizable for its sheer simplicity - the work of German architect Alexander von Branca.
9. Alisher Navoi, Tashkent, Uzbekistan (1984)
The shimmering stations of Tashkent have only recently been revealed to the world after decades of photography bans. Arabic influence is obvious in the striking geometry and flower motifs.
10. Rådhuset, Stockholm (1975)
Organic architecture hewn into the bedrock below the city - the exposed walls make it look like a natural cave system.
The Pyramids of Giza are enigmas that may never be solved.
We've found thousands of hieroglyphs across Egypt - not one mentions how they were built or how the ancients cut stone.
10 facts that will blow your mind (thread) 👇
1. Only a small handful of Ancient Egyptian texts have been found that mention the pyramids at all. The best we have on their construction are these papyrus fragments, discovered in 2013, which mention the delivery of limestone blocks via the Nile River.
2. The pyramids themselves do not contain a single hieroglyph - nor were any paintings, burial treasures or mummies found within. By contrast, the tombs at the Valley of the Kings are decorated with intricate hieroglyphic texts and artworks from floor to ceiling.
Here's why it's aptly named the "City of Palaces"... 🧵
When geographer Alexander von Humboldt visited from Germany in the early 1800s, he christened it the "City of Palaces".
He even sent a letter home saying Mexico City could rival any major city in Europe.
He saw an enviable number of ornate palaces, partly due to an explosion of Neoclassical and Baroque residences built by wealthy Spanish nobles in the 18th century.
10 marvels of Gothic design, from medieval cathedrals to modern skyscrapers (thread) 🧵
1. Ely Cathedral, England (11th - 14th century)
Its wooden, octagonal "lantern" is said to be the world's only true Gothic dome. It was built after the original tower collapsed in 1322.
2. The Hungarian Parliament Building, Budapest (1904)
The other notable (neo) Gothic dome is that of Budapest's mighty parliament building. Built over a century ago, it remains the largest building in Hungary, looming over the Danube.
A thread of 21st century architectural revivals that will restore your faith in humanity: 🧵
1. Frauenkirche, Dresden, Germany
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.
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.
Classical education is more important now than ever.
12 great works of literature that every young man must read, and why (thread) 🧵
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.
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.”