No beginning or end: it was a concept that best described the existence of Zurvan Akarana, an ancient Persian deity. He had no beginning, no end, or a specific gender (although he’s often referred to as a male) and could have been best symbolized as being “a circle of eternal life.”

Zurvan Talon Abraxas

The earliest mentions of Zurvān appear in tablets dated to about the 13th and 12th centuries bce, found at the site of the ancient Mesopotamian city of Nuzi. Known also as the god of growth, maturity, and decay, Zurvān appeared under two aspects: Limitless Time and Time of Long Dominion. The latter emerges from Infinite Time, lasts for 12,000 years, and returns to it. Zurvān was originally associated with three other deities: Vayu (wind), Thvarshtar (space), and Ātar (fire).

Zurvān was the chief Persian deity before the advent of Zoroastrianism and was associated with the axis mundi, or the centre of the world. The most common image of Zurvān depicts a winged, lion-headed deity encircled by a serpent, representing the motion of the Sun.

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Klimt Kiss Toast!!

News Note: A Bill Has Been Introduced in the Illinois Legislature Limiting Women's Hats to a Diameter of Eighteen Inches

Record Group 46: Records of the U.S. SenateSeries: Berryman Political Cartoon Collection

This illustration entitled, "News Note: A Bill Has Been Introduced in the Illinois Legislature Limiting Women's Hats to a Diameter of Eighteen Inches", by cartoonist Clifford Berryman, which appeared in the Washington Evening Star on April 24, 1909, depicts the serious nature of issues caused by women wearing large hats, especially for men sitting behind them at sporting events.

Two women with enormous hats sit in the front row of a sporting event.  One is holding a scorecard and pencil.  The men behind them are maneuvering to see around them.  A man further back is standing up calling to a policeman, “Officer, do your duty!”  The man wears a sport coat, tie, starched collar, and a straw hat.  The other men in the stands are similarly dressed.  The police officer is standing amid the crowded stands.  His helmet says, “Hat Cop.”  He holds an 18 inch ruler and measuring tape.

(XユーザーのCuriosityさん: 「Full Moon from Space https://t.co/6B3f7tdVzR」 / Xから)

Ohara Shōson - Fox by the Moonlit Water (ca. 1928-1930)

Diogène Maillart

the slave

1894

War Correspondent Lee Miller lights the cigarette of a Red Army Cavalryman after the link-up between US and Soviet forces near Torgau Germany - April 1945