Jakub's Fantasy Map World

After only a few weeks of silence, it's time for some more blogposting! As promised, this post's topic will be focused on this map: Yes, that's right, it's the famous Fool's Cap Map of the World from 1595 (also known as Nosce te ipsum - Latin for "know thyself"), and a History academic at the University of Suffolk has recently published a book that delves into the story behind this map. While  Nosce te ipsum, and other kinds of maps that are similar to it, are maps that I had already seen on display at the Secret Maps exhibition at the British Library many months ago, I have never had the time to get to know more about what the map's purpose was all about. Well, finally, I now have the chance. As is typical of event posts, let's start by going into some details about the History academic that delivered the talk in the University's Waterfront Lecture Theatre on the evening of the 23rd of April. So, Dr Michael Sauter is an Associate Professor of...

Hi all! After going through the beauty that is the Lemn Sissay experience at the end of March, and whilst waiting for Michael Sauter's event to come around on the 23rd of April, I decided to divert off the main path and try out another creative writing group, that is based near to where I live - the Wolsey Writers group!  So, what is this all about? Well, Wolsey Writers is a creative writing meetup that was originally set-up in 2015 by Katie Ward , a former creative writing lecturer at the University of Suffolk, and a published author of two novels, having written Girl Reading in 2013, as well as Pathways in 2024. Each month, the group dives in to different literary topics, and external speakers from the Suffolk literary community are invited into the group from time-to-time to give talks in areas that are within their area of expertise.  It is based at the New Wolsey Theatre in Ipswich, and the meetup usually takes place on the first Saturday of every month from 10:30am to...