Dressed ‘as if for a Carnival’: Solving the Mystery of the Origins of Children’s Fashion. A New Perspective on the History and Historiography of Children’s Dress

The article has a double focus: explaining the so-far obscure origins of children’s fashion in the later eighteenth century and putting its emergence in the context of the ‘grand narrative’ concerning the ‘discovery of childhood’ during this pivotal period. Contrary to Rousseau’s famous dismissal of the hussar suit, the role of ‘fancy dress’ inspiration in the development of children’s fashions for the first time purposefully meant to distinguish the (male) child from the grown-ups and, concurrent with the Enlightenment’s ideas on childhood, emerges as central rather than marginal. The repertory of styles adopted for boys’ wear is shown to have been inspired by various ethnic and historical dress traditions rooted in the fascination with masquerade characteristic of the Rococo culture but harnessed to express the emerging new attitudes. Among them, special attention is given to inspirations by Polish national dress.

Second, the article takes on the argument presented by Daniel Thomas Cook in his inspiring article in Textile History, 42, no. 1 (2011). Having acknowledged the foundational role of fashion history in the emergence of childhood studies, Cook regards its present status as peripheral. He dismisses the underlying premise of its principal ‘grand narrative’ as based on a fruitless distinction between utility (and functionality) and fashion rather than the invention or discovery of the ‘child’ and ‘childhood’. While partially accepting Cook’s criticism, the article argues that the ‘grand narrative’, thus modified and expanded, retains its usefulness. In the nineteenth century, the ‘fancy dress’ and ‘playfulness’ theme continued, reflected in the most popular children’s styles (sailor suit, Little Lord Fauntleroy suit) and a range of others, temporarily or locally prominent, and intertwining with multifarious cultural, artistic, social and commercial developments.     

What's on the Case-List? Legal Texts and Felonies Rediscovered

In this article light will be thrown upon so-called case-lists, a medieval source material based upon abstracts of the Norwegian Christian Laws. I have chosen to focus on one aspect in particular: the case-lists also present medieval legislation otherwise lost for posterity, and we therefore catch a glimpse of unknown felonies centred on taboos concerning food, sex and heathen practice; for instance, in a "kinky" combination so far unheard of: men having sex with women who ate horsemeat were liable to a fine of 40 marks. Following an outline of the case-lists, and remarks on methodological problems posed by these sources, the felonies will be presented and placed in a historical context. Finally, I will address the question of provenance of the case-lists.     

Political Leadership,Parties and Citizens: The Personalisation of Leadership,edited by Jean Blondel and Jean-Louis Thièbault with Katarzyna Czernicka,Takashi Inoguchi,Ukrist Pathmanand and Fulvio Venturino

Tom Behan, The Camorra, Routledge, London, 1996, 225 pp., ISBN 0–415–09987–0 hbk, £25.00.

Gianluca Fiorentini and Sam Peltzman (eds), The Economics of Organized Crime, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996, 301 pp., ISBN 0–521–47248–2 hbk, £30.00.

T.C.W. Blanning and David Cannadine (eds), History and Biography: Essays in Honour of Derek Beales, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996, ix + 298 pp, ISBN 0–521–47330–6 hbk, £35.00.

’La Terza Irlanda’. Gli scritti sulla Sardegna di Carlo Cattaneo e Giuseppe Mazzini, (ed.) Francesco Cheratzu, Condaghes, Cagliari, 1995, ISBN 88–86229–12–1.

Martin Clark, Modern Italy 1871–1995,2nd edn, Longman, London and New York, 1996, xiii + 474 pp., ISBN 0–582–05126–6 pbk, £19.99.

Spencer M. Di Scala, Italy: From Revolution to Republic: 1700 to the Present, Westview Press, Boulder, San Francisco and Oxford, 1995, xxiii + 416 pp, ISBN 0–8133–1342–2 hbk, £56.50, 0–8133–1343–0 pbk, £15.50.

Christopher Duggan and Christopher Wagstaff (eds), Italy in the Cold War: Politics, Culture and Society, 1948–58, Berg, Oxford, 1995, 228 pp., ISBN 1–85973–038–8 hbk, £34.95.

Douglas J. Forsyth, The Crisis of Liberal Italy. Monetary and Financial Policy, 1914–1922, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1993, xii + 370 pp., ISBN 0–521–41682–5 hbk, £40.00.

Paul Furlong, Modern Italy: Representation and Reform, Routledge, London, 1994, 295 pp., ISBN 0–415–01565–0 pbk.

Maria Ida Gaeta (ed.), Giovanni Gentile: la filosofia, la politica, l'organizzazione della cultura, Marsilio, Venice, 1995, ISBN 88–317–6285–0, 30,000 Lire.

Giovanni Turi, Giovanni Gentile: una biografia, Giunti, Florence, 1995, ISBN 88–09–20755–6, 48,000 Lire.

Mark Gilbert, The Italian Revolution. The End of Politics, Italian Style?, Westview Press, Boulder, San Francisco and Oxford, 1995, 204 pp., ISBN 0–8133–8788–4 hbk, ISBN 0–8133–2685–0 pbk.

V.A. Goddard, Gender, Family and Work in Naples, Berg, Oxford, 1996, 264 pp., ISBN 1–85973–0345 hbk, 1–85973–039–6 pbk, £14.95.

Italo Pardo, Managing Existence in Naples: Morality, Action and Structure, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996, 232 pp., ISBN 0–521–562–279 hbk, 0–521–566–657 pbk.

Stephen Gundle, I comunisti italiani tra Hollywood e Mosca. La sfida della cultura di massa, Giunti, Florence, 1995, 572 pp., ISBN 88–09–20642–8 pbk, 42,000 Lire.

Walter Laqueur, Fascism: Past, Present, Future, Oxford University Press, New York, 1996, 263 pp., ISBN 0–19–509245–7 hbk, $27.50, 0–19–511793‐X pbk, $13.95.

Stanley G. Payne, A History of Fascism 1914–1945, University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, 1995, 613 pp., ISBN 0–299–1487–0 hbk, $39.95 or £31.95, 0–299–14874–2 pbk, $19.95 or £14.95.

Renzo Martinelli, Storia del Partito comunista italiano: II ‘Partito nuovo’ dalla Liberazione al 18 Aprile, Einaudi, Turin, 1995, 382 pp, ISBN 88–06–13877–4, 65,000 Lire.

Patrick McCarthy and Gianfranco Pasquino (eds), The End of Post‐War Politics in Italy. The Landmark 1992 Elections, Westview Press, Boulder, San Francisco and Oxford, 1993, 187 pp., ISBN 0–8133–8628–4, £21.95.

Philip Morgan, Italian Fascism 1919–1945, Macmillan, Basingstoke, 1995, vii + 209 pp., ISBN 03353–7793 pbk, £12.99

John Whittam, Fascist Italy, Manchester University Press, Manchester, 1995, v + 179 pp., ISBN 07190–40043 pbk, £12.99.

Serge Noiret, La nascita del sistema dei partiti nell'ltalia contemporanea. La proportionate del 1919, Lacaita, Manduria, Bari and Rome, 1994, 313 pp., 30,1997 Lire.

Silvana Patriarca, Numbers and Nationhood. Writing Statistics in Nineteenth‐Century Italy, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996, pp. 280, ISBN 0–521–46296–7 hbk, £40.00.

Paolo Pombeni, La Costituente. Un problema storico‐politico, Il Mulino, Bologna, 1995, 170 pp., ISBN 88–15–05192–9 pbk, 18,000 Lire.

Michele Sarfatti, Mussolini contro gli ebrei: Cronaca dell'elaborazione delle leggi del 1938, Silvio Zamorani editore, Turin, 1994, 199 pp., ISBN 88–7158–033–8, 30,000 Lire.     

Nationalism and nostalgia: the case of radical Basque nationalism*

Abstract. This article argues that the myth of the Golden Age is a key mobilising element within radical Basque nationalism. By using an ethno‐symbolist approach, this article argues that nostalgia, a catchword for looking back, usually relates to an idealised past. It then proceeds to explain how ETA in particular has domesticated the past to justify its political violence which is currently exalted as a means of honouring the fighting spirit of their ancestors. From this perspective, violence is presented as a redemptive act that can stop the decay of the Basque nation and bring a new political future in which the inspiring ancient virtues will be rediscovered. This nostalgic gaze upon the past continually ‘reminds’ radical Basque nationalists of an imaginary, yet familiar, past which can only be regained by using revolutionary violence.     

Millerocaulis zamunerae sp. nov. (Osmundaceae) from Jurassic,geothermally influenced,wetland environments of Patagonia,Argentina

Sagasti, A.J., García Massini, J., Escapa, I.H., Guido, D.M. & Channing, A., August 2016. Millerocaulis zamunerae sp. nov. (Osmundaceae) from Jurassic geothermally influenced wetland environments of Patagonia, Argentina. Alcheringa 40, xxx–xxx. ISSN 0311-5518

A new species of Millerocaulis Erasmus ex. Tidwell emend. Vera is defined based on several permineralized stems recovered from geothermally influenced chert deposits in the Middle–Late Jurassic La Matilde Formation (Santa Cruz, Argentina). Millerocaulis zamunerae sp. nov. is characterized by the presence of an ectophloic dictyoxylic siphonostele, inner parenchymatic and outer sclerotic cortices, homogeneous sclerotic ring in the petiole bases, two masses of sclerenchyma lining the concavity of the petiolar vascular bundle, petiolar inner cortex with sclerenchyma strands in the outermost petiole cycles and stipular wings having one large and several smaller sclerenchyma bundles. Millerocaulis zamunerae inhabited geothermal wetlands and other hot-spring-related sedimentary facies associated with the La Bajada epithermal deposit. Reference to active geothermal wetlands, analogous living plants and other fossil hot spring ecosystems suggest the plant’s tolerance of physico-chemical stressors including elevated temperature, pH, salinity and phytotoxic metals/metalloids. Millerocaulis zamunerae thrived in wetlands preserved in the Jurassic geothermal systems of Santa Cruz Province, the same kind of environment in which Equisetum thermale Channing et al. was recorded previously.

Ana Julia Sagasti [anajusagasti@gmail.com] División Paleobotánica, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Becaria Doctoral Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Paseo del Bosque S/N B1900FWA La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Juan García Massini [massini112@yahoo.com.ar] Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja (CRILAR), Provincia de La Rioja, UNLaR, SEGEMAR, UNCa, CONICET. Entre Ríos y Mendoza S/N, 5301 Anillaco, La Rioja Argentina. Ignacio H. Escapa [iescapa@mef.org.ar] Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Av. Fontana 140, U9100GYO, Trelew, Chubut, Argentina. Diego M. Guido [diegoguido@yahoo.com] Instituto de Recursos Minerales (INREMI), Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Calle 64 y 120, La Plata (1900), Argentina. Alan Channing [channinga@gmail.com] School of Earth & Ocean Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF10 3AT, UK.     

Urban sprawl in Spain: differences among cities and causes

Urban sprawl has a major impact on the environment, public health and the socio-economic evolution of cities. The causes are numerous, being mainly related to the generalized use of the automobile in modern cities. Urban sprawl has been especially relevant in US cities since the 1950s, rapidly spreading to other cities in the rest of the world. This paper studies the case of Spain using recent data. Spanish cities have grown rapidly over the 90s and 2000s. The country has completed the process of urbanization and has suffered the effects of a major real estate bubble. In this context, we are interested in measuring and explaining where and why urban sprawl has appeared in Spanish cities. Digital mapping carried out around the year 2000 providing full coverage of Spain is used to calculate an Urban Sprawl Index. It is applied to all urban areas and municipalities throughout the country, providing an objective, comparable measurement of sprawl and identifying which areas are most affected by this phenomenon. A second stage of analysis is conducted in an attempt to explain the causes of the differences in sprawl among Spanish cities with a regression model based on the literature. We have found that the cases most affected by sprawl are the latest urban developments on the Mediterranean coast as well as certain areas in the vicinity of large cities: the mountains to the north of Madrid and the coastline near Barcelona and Valencia. In some cases, urban sprawl is starting to become a problem for the environment and urban sustainability, with important consequences for the future evolution of the affected cities.     

A Multidisciplinary Study of a Group of Post‐Classical Cameos from the National Museum in Krakow,Poland

A group of 18 cameos dated from the 16th to 19th centuries (bearing motifs of Roman emperors and female members of their families) from the Constantine Schmidt‐Ci??yński collection was investigated with gemmological analyses, supported by non‐destructive mineralogical methods such as X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and micro‐Raman spectroscopy (RS) to ascertain the material used. Although there is no scientific method to date the specimens precisely, the mineralogical data supported by archaeological analyses enabled the estimation of the possible timing of the manufacture of the gems. As a result, the cameos were divided into four basic chronological groups: (1) Renaissance, (2) Baroque, (3) uncertain and (4) Classical and Neoclassical.     

Timber exploitation during the 5th–3rd millennia BCE at Arslantepe (Malatya,Turkey): environmental constraints and cultural choices

A considerable amount of charcoal remains from the archaeological site of Arslantepe (Eastern Anatolia) has been analysed. The anthracological assemblage comes from seven archaeological periods, ranging from the Late Chalcolithic 1–2 (mid-5th millennium BCE) to the Early Bronze Age III (late 3rd millennium BCE). The woody taxa exploited by the local communities appeared to have only minor changes throughout the investigated periods. For the evaluation of wood use practices, charcoal was chronologically grouped according to depositional context. The categories of depositional context identified differentiate between the uses of wood for structural parts of buildings, object manufacture, fuel, refuse, and wood found in outdoor areas or in burial contexts. Communities at Arslantepe, characterized by different cultural and socio-economic traits, appeared overall to select timber depending on its use: hydrophilous plants prevail in building material, with the exception of the 2900–2500 BCE period when environmental constraints probably motivate the dominance of woodland-steppe plants. The differential occurrence of taxa in the diverse depositional contexts highlighted cases of under/overestimation of remains, in particular in relation to the woods for construction. Finally, taxa have been attributed to different ecological groups. The interpretation of results and the comparison with other available palaeoenvironmental data point out that climatic factors play only a secondary role in the choice of wood exploitation in the area. Human choice may vary even with constant environmental records.