October, 2019 | Europeana Blog

neon signs on a building in a snowy city

Neon nights: how advertising signs lit up the city

Neon lighting’s distinctive glow has been brightening cities across Europe and the world all through the 20th century. Neon signs and lighting animate city centres, evoking both a modern, urban world, both futuristic and nostalgic.

women sitting at long tables working with flowers, large piles of flowers are in the foreground

The fragrance factory: Roure-Bertrand Fils and the perfume industry in Grasse

When we spray on perfume, how often do we think about how the fragrance was made? The process to extract fragrances and oils from flowers is a perfect blend of nature, science and industry, as illustrated beautifully by this short book about Roure-Bertrand Fils factory in Grasse, France.

Miloš Crnjanski: a literary life of migration and exile

Author Miloš Crnjanski’s works form an invaluable part of Serbian 20th-century literature. His creative writing – poetry and prose – as well as his life in general, were marked by key elements: migration, exile and existential drama.

large number of people working at benches in a factory

Fàbrica Gròber: the rise and fall of an industrial landmark in Girona

Fàbrica Gròber, a textile factory specialised in trimmings, buttons and haberdashery, is a landmark of Girona history, even today 40 years after it closed. This blog looks at the rich history of the factory which offered jobs and economic prosperity and modernised culture and society in its region.

Catchpenny prints in The Netherlands

What did the people in the lower orders of society and children read in the 18th and 19th centuries? In the Netherlands, their main reading material was catchpenny prints.

girl in a red dress holding a sign saying MAGGI

Maggi: a Swiss seasoning that found a home in various cultures

As a child growing up in Senegal, Maggi cubes and Maggi sauce were a big and important ingredient in many Senegalese dishes, if not all of them. I remember watching countless advertisements on TV promoting Maggi cubes, with a Senegalese lady in her boubou (traditional clothing) preparing a meal.

porcelain staute of a man writing at a desk

From quills to typewriters: how the industrial revolution changed our writing culture

Documents written centuries ago are fascinating, revealing not only the thoughts of those who wrote them but a history of how they were written. This blog looks at the changes in the way we have expressed our thoughts through the written word since the industrial revolution.

De Universiteitsbibliotheek aan het Ladeuzeplein in Leuven

Leuven’s University Library: Risen from the ashes

For Libraries Week, we are putting the spotlight on the history of a remarkable university library. Leuven University’s library has had a past as rich as it has been turbulent, peppered with religious conflicts, political discord, and wartime catastrophe.

Philips: illuminating the world from Eindhoven

Learn how two Dutch brothers who wanted to make a lightbulb factory started the multinational concern.

black and white photograph of a large early industrial works

Ironopolis: Bolckow Vaughan and the growth of Middlesbrough

Industrial heritage can be ephemeral – the buildings where we work can disappear and are not always seen as important reminders of the past. This is certainly the case with the ironworks and steelworks of Bolckow & Vaughan, which drove the growth of Middlesbrough.

Europeana Blog

Month: October 2019