Worldcrunch
Until the Enlightenment, smiling and showing teeth was not fashionable — or socially acceptable — in a Europe where dental health had not yet become widespread. But then the perception of smiles changed, shifting from a serious demeanor to an embrace of open expressions.
As the “American Century” and the West’s time at the center of the world draws to an end, Europe — which has died and been reborn many times — may have a new role as the wise teacher of decline, therefore also a teacher of limits and temperance.
The same nostalgia and same fear of the future seem to animate the two countries that have made exceptionalism their trademark
The emblematic palace of King Louis XIV, born from the will of his father Louis XIII, is celebrating its 400th anniversary. Throughout its adaptation to different eras and restoration, the work has (almost) never stopped.
With the third major terrorism attack on French soil in 18 months, the question “Why France?” is another way to measure the stakes that apply to us all.
French scientists have developed a new technology to read the long hidden portions of the French queen’s correspondence with Swedish royal Axel von Fersen, long rumored to be her lover.