Art history

An illustration of a 17th century plague doctor

Fake history Hunting down false facts about the past

Premium

Mary Hollingsworth discusses her new book, Princes of the Renaissance, which charts the wars and alliances between the powerful Italian families of the 15th and 16th centuries. (Image by Getty Images)

Formidable dynasties of the Italian Renaissance . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Madame Tussaud's exhibition at Baker Street, London. But who was her first waxwork? (Photo by Bettmann, via Getty Images)

Q&A Who was Madame Tussaud’s first waxwork?

Actor Boris Karloff as Frankenstein's Monster in James Whale’s classic 1931 film. (Bettmann/Getty Images)

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: the birth of a gothic monster

Premium

Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones responds to listener questions and popular internet search queries about one of the dominant powers of the ancient world, the Persian empire. (Image by Getty Images)

General ancient history

The Persian empire: everything you wanted to know . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Premium

Jerry Brotton on the Renaissance. (Image by Getty Images)

The Renaissance: everything you wanted to know . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

(L to R) Isaac Newton, Henry VIII and Bal Gangadhar Tilak

General History

How did people cope with ‘lockdowns’ of the past? And were they really all so productive?

Premium

The Regency era: everything you wanted to know . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vivid experiences: a self-portrait of Artemisia Gentileschi, the Italian Baroque artist whose brilliant renderings of biblical and classical scenes earned her commissions from some of the most powerful figures in 17th century Europe. (Photo by Araldo de Luca/Corbis via Getty Images)

Artemisia Gentileschi: how pain powered the great 17th-century artist

Premium

Simon Schama photographed in Hauteville House, Guernsey (Photo by Oxford Films, Photographer Eddie Knox)

Simon Schama on the Romantics . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Afua Hirsch in Kenya. (Photo by Clear Story/BBC)

Afua Hirsch: “The prejudice still surrounding Africa is absolutely rooted in a racist past”

People gather around the Mona Lisa painting after its return in January 1914

Mona Lisa heist: how do you steal the world’s most famous painting?

Premium

Afua Hirsch with the Samburu people, Kenya

Africa’s cultural liberation . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Premium

Self portrait by Artemisia Gentileschi as a lute player (Photo by Getty Images)

The genius of Artemisia . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A portrait and a cartoon of George IV

The two sides of George IV: is his wretched reputation deserved?