Thursday Thirteen 18th century
1. From the end of 18th century and forward the parfume where used in many ways. (Though I don’t love the fact of why they did it: bad hygiene). Everything where parfumed: letters, snuff, hair net, parfume neckless, fan’s, hat needles, fabric- and paper flowers in the hair or on the clothes. In the clothes you had small pillows with the favorite parfume, iris, violet, rose, yasmin, fresia, lillys, lavendel, lemon, vanilla or orange.
2. 18th century (1700-tal in swedish) was the century of the big changes. The Swedish Government committed to trade, industry, science and new inventions. The Use was the big trend word. Everything should be produced within the country. Jonas Alströmer begin to teach the Swedish people to eat potatoes, which I’m very grateful for since I love potatoes. You can do so many great dishes with potato!
3. The Swedish King Gustav III was more amused of theater, litterature and art than of science, so he initiated The Swedish Academy and Art Academy, which made Sweden to this high culture country it is today.
4. The Swedish farmers got the right to buy aristocratic land. Ordinary people got the right to posess this countrys official positions.
5. Our big Swedish nature scientist Carl von Linné (Carolus Linnaeus, physician, zoologist/biologist, professor in botanic) initiated the Linnaean taxonomy, which classifies living things into a hierarchy. He is responsible for the latin names of a large quantity of Swedens species and even for a lot of other countries. I’m so glad he sorted it out, for it sure is a lot of species out there!
6. The medical knowledge and health care had until then been very poor and medevial in Sweden, but started to be critized by Carl von Linné, starting to focus on medical plants. There had been a lack of hospital. Stockholms first hospital opened 1752, with 8 (!) beds and a turnover of patients of 15 during the first 2 months. It was a hospital for the whole country! (The population in Sweden at that time where about 2 million citizens).
7. At the end of the 18th century they started to discuss a lot about feelings. They realized that it isn’t just common sense that rules the world, that feeelings really means something and that they are important. They started to talk about the fact that men and women should be married based on the fact that they LOVE each other and not because it was economically advantageous.
8. Swedens most wellknown and perhaps biggest skald, Carl Mikael Bellman was working in the capital. His song lyrics has influnced a lot of our music and still has a big place in our hearts today.
9. Camembert, the french white mould cheese produced from cow milk, got the current shape in the end of 18th century. Served as dessert, preferably with red wine. Who can resist that…?
10. The magnificent and glamorous fashion. What an elegance and with those fantastic creative hairstyles! They only used natural make up materials. OK, I could do without the white powder in my face, I look pale enough anyway ;-) The forerunner to the crinoline (skirt that is hold out by a stand of steelwire), the Pannier (french) - also called side hoops - were worn by women to extend the width of the skirts at the side while leaving the front and back flat where the woven patterns or embroidery could be fully admired. It was also in the late 18th century when laces showed up in ladys underwear. I’m so grateful that we don’t need to go around with woolen underwear ;-)
11. The pair or couple dance was started and it wasn’t until now that we got a Swedish word for it, dans. They tried to forbid the dance, because they thought it was a sin, but they didn’t succeed (hurray!) and the free dance were born. The dance couples were still dancing rather structured in a big circle around the dance floor, but it started to evolve. I love to dance, it doesn’t matter if I’m good at it or not. I just love it.
12. Spa is a belgian treatment neighborhood in The Ardennes which were founded during the Roman empire. The rich and beautiful people went there to be cured in the healthy water. Spa is a latin abbreviation of salus per aqua, which means health through water. In Sweden many spa’s were started in the 18th century and it became a modern trend to go there for relaxation. Thank god for the spa’s!!!
13. ♥ I ENJOY… LOVE… 18TH CENTURY LIFE!
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