Looking for a new place to live...........

Check out this architectural masterpiece, Bellezza Maledetta or in English, Cursed beauty.  Also known as the Palazzo Dario (Ca' Dario palace).

You will find this stunning mansion located in the Dorsoduro District in Venice, Italy.   You can pick up this beauty for a fraction of what it is worth but know that is for good reason, very good reason.

Some people refer to this Venetian-style Gothic house located on the Grand Canal in Venice as a murder house.  Seems a lot of spooky things happened there.  I absolutely love all things haunted, all things Italy, and I am especially fond of Venice, no clue why, just am so this haunted house definitely caught my attention.

So here is what happened.

A portrait of Dario
with the Bellini Brothers.

Ca' Dario was built in 1487 for Giovanni Dario who was the Venetian Ambassador to Constantinople (born 1414 in Crete).  Unfortunately, Mr. Dario died shortly after moving in to Ca' Dario.

Giovanni Dario's daughter, Marietta, her husband, Vincenzo Barbaro (a business man), and their sons moved in to Ca' Dario.


Not long after they did, Vincenzo went out of business and was stabbed to death, Marietta subsequently committed suicide, and their son, Giacomo was ambushed and killed.  Mamma Mia!

Then in the early 1800s, an Armenian diamond merchant named Arbit Abdoll took over ownership of the house and you guessed it, his business failed, and he died in the house.

English scientist, Radon Brown was the next owner who died mysteriously in the palace along side his roommate.

In 1837, John Ruskin bought the house, spent a fortune restoring the palace, went bankrupt, and committed suicide.

The next unfortunate buyers were a Hungarian Count (dead), a rich Irish man (dead), and Countess Isabelle Gontran de la Baume-Piuvinel (dead).

A French poet named Henry De Regnier also died within a few years of living there.

American multimillionaire, Charles Briggs, bought the palace but he was banned from Venice due to allegations of homosexuality and committed suicide.

I lost count of the deaths so far.

Monet 1908

Next up, Mario del Monaco, famous Italian tenor was literally on his way to buy the palace when he was involved in a car accident so he changed his mind.  Lucky for him.

Not so lucky was Count Lanze Philip Giordano who was killed by his lover, Yugoslavian Raul Blasich.  Blasich was later assassinated attempting to flee.

Manager of the rock band The Who, Crisopher Lambert committed suicide a few years after he purchased Ca Dario.

We are now up to the 80s.

Fabrizio Ferrari purchased the palace and lived there with his sister, Nicoletta, who he later "accidentally" ran over with his car.  There were no witnesses.  Fabrizio began to suffer financial decline and was arrested for attacking a model.

Turkish Fountain
inside Palazza Dario

In the 90s, businessman, Raul Gardini bought the palace for his daughter, however concomitantly, was involved in a financial scandal in which he lost most of his money.  He then committed suicide.

In the 2000s, Woody Allen was thinking to buy Ca Dario but subsequently changed his mind.

John Entwistle

John Entwistle, The Who's famous bassist merely rented the palace in 2002 and suffered a heart attack.


An American company, which remains unidentified, is the current proud owner of this cursed palace of doom with a propensity of twisting the minds of the occupants who dare to stay within its malignant walls.  This palace is more than haunted.  It is alive!

Some people believe it has to do with the fact that Ca Dario is built over an ancient Templar Cemetery.  A Templar or Knight Templar was a member of Poor Knights of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon.  This was a military order of knighthood brought together during the time of the Crusades.  They were the inspiration for other military orders.  The Templars were to protect Christian Pilgrims to the Holy Land during the 12th century.  Later, King Philip IV of France, destroyed this order.

The palace is open to the public if you dare to venture inside.  I would not recommend staying too long.  And if you are not afraid of financial ruin or perishing, you can pick this up this charmingly cursed mansion that bestows bad luck to all its inhabitants for $20 million Euros or $25.2 million US dollars.  Ca Dario is the most feared and revered palace in all of Italy.

Pick your poison, literally........

I had the weather channel on in the background the other day because there were a lot of storms cranking up nearby, and I heard them talking about an infamous poisonous garden located in Northumberland, England, and I had to find out more about this fascinating idea of a poisonous garden.

So it turns out that the poisonous garden in Northumberland is not the first of its kind.  The idea of a "deadly garden" was the concept of Catherine de'Medici.  I have blogged about her in other post during out Medieval studies which you can find here.

You may remember her for marrying in to the de Medici family--the "Godfathers of the Renaissance," the family who founded banks.  She was kidnapped when she was 11 years old, and married Henry II, the King of France when she was 14 years old and became Queen.  She was also mother-in-law to Mary Queen of Scots.

Any of that ring a bell?  At any rate, the de' Medici garden had numerous poisonous plants growing, and it is said that Catherine had a private room full of tiny apothecary cabinets fill with a collection of deadly poisons.  Interestingly enough, a lot of people died around Catherine, for reasons unknown.  I wonder what it could have been.  Hmmm.....

In 2005, Duchess Jane Percy of Northumberland decided to create a poisonous garden modeled after that of Catherine de Medici.  The Duchess thought children would be more interested in how plants could kill rather than how plants could heal.  Her exact words were:

'I wondered why so many gardens around the world focused on the healing power of plants rather than their ability to kill... I felt that most children I knew would be more interested in hearing how a plant killed, how long it would take you to die if you ate it and how gruesome and painful the death might be.' - Duchess of Northumberland

Nightshade

The Poison Garden is located within the Alnwick Garden and has over 100 deadly, intoxicating, and hallucinogenic plants.

It is home to a variety of interesting plants such as Hemlock (which was the poison of choice for executions in Ancient Greece and in fact is said to be what killed philosopher Socrates), Strychnos nux-vomica or strychnine which can cause a human to die within 20 minutes after ingesting and is essentially undetectable, Foxglove or Digitalis can cause tremors, jaundice, hallucinations, nausea, vomiting, and even death, Deadly Nightshade or Atropa belladonna (can cause hallucinations, induce comas, unrelenting thirst, and convulsions), and Laburnum which can cause foaming at the mouth, induce comas, sleepiness, vomiting, nausea, spasms, and diarrhea.

Poppies

With permission from the government, the garden is also home to opium poppies, cannabis, tobacco, wild lettuce (Lactuca virosa), and magic mushroom.

They even have a treehouse restaurant that serves local dishes. Fingers crossed they will not be serving up anything grown in their garden.

There are, of course, a few rules if you want to take a tour of the gardens, get married at the gardens (yes this is an option), or hold a conference at the gardens.

Understandably, the garden is also under 24 hour security. You can only be in the garden with a guide.

You are not allowed to touch, smell, or taste the plants (duh for tasting), as there have been several tourist who became ill during their tour of the garden.

You should also hope you are not visiting the garden on a windy day.

You can find out more here at the official website.  I might be adding this to my bucket list.

Beowulf

Facts and information about the masterpiece poem, Beowulf.

~Did you know that Beowulf has over 30,000 lines? (Epic)

~Beowulf was written in Old English (Anglo-Saxon).

~The poem uses alliteration -i.e. repeats syllables or sounds.

~No one has been able to determine who wrote Beowulf, and it has not been proven either way that Beowulf was a real person or a fictional character.

~Real or not, Beowulf was a great warrior and hero.

~It appears that this epic poem was written no later than 1000 AD but most likely between 600 AD and 900 AD.

~The poem takes place in Denmark, Sweden, the Danish Islands, Germany, Poland, and the low countries in the 6th century.

~Stories about monsters and/or supernatural characters were common place in the 6th, 7th, and 8th centuries.

So basically, King Hrothgar (King of  Denmark) needs some help slaying Grendel, a hideous monster.  Beowulf got wind of this and sailed to Denmark to save King Hrothgar from Grendel.  During a terrible fight in the mead hall, Beowulf rips off Grendel's entire arm.  Grendel fled the scene and goes to a nearby cave where he later bled to death.

The next night, Grendel's mommy came and launched an attack on King Hrothgar and the mead hall.  Beowulf fights with her and eventually kills her with a magic sword.

The king and his people were so pleased with Beowulf, they bestowed treasure after treasure on him.

Beowulf's next adventure was a Viking raid. After that, Beowulf  became the King of the Geats and was their king for 50 years.  At this point, he hears a tale of a dragon that is scaring everyone.  Beowulf sets out to kill the dragon in his old age and accomplishes the task.  Sadly, the dragon was able to engulf Beowulf's neck in flames before he died.

Realizing he was dying, Beowulf gave instructions for his funeral.  He wanted to be cremated and have his ashes buried with the dragon's treasure on the cliff top overlooking the sea.  This tomb was called Boeowulf's Barrow.

Click the pics for more.
Beowulf resources my earlier blog post.
Timeless myths
Great resource-lone-star.net

Beowulf

Barnes and Noble.

Just wanted to share a few great resources for our current literary study, Beowulf.  I will be adding to this once we get into the study and share our lessons.


Glencoe Literature Library PDF
Amyswandering.com 
Penguin Books
web.utk.edu Beowulf questions
Lit Charts Beowulf
Beowulf resources
Shmoop
Bookrags
Beowulf Pinterest

“Anyone with gumption and a sharp mind will take the measure of two things: what's said and what's done.” 

“Fate will unwind as it must!” 

The Renaissance

Finally out of the dark ages and into the light again.  The Renaissance (14th to 17th centuries).   

The Renaissance worked its way from Italy to northern Europe, Spain, and to the southern France in record time but what was the Renaissance anyway?   First thing first, the word Renaissance is the French word for rebirth.  It is thought that the Renaissance was an attempt at recreation of classical models of Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece.

Mr. Gray History

In the beginning of the Renaissance, Italy became the center of world culture.  Italy also flourished economically and became a leading country for trade.  Italy was divided into independent states at the time with the city of Florence being the European banking center thanks to the Medici Family and their wealth.  I will talked more about them below.

The Renaissance was about knowledge and new ideas in many areas of life.  This was a time of curiosity and exploration.  Most scholars, up until now, had only been allowed to study the teachings of the church but people began to realize there was much more, much, much more.  Artist became obsessed with the human body once the Renaissance began.  They took their art into more of a scientific direction.  Scientists would dissect a body to help artists draw more accurate images of anatomy.  Remember, previously they were limited to religion as a subject matter so this is a completely different dynamic.  Giotto di Bondone was the first Renaissance painter.  He was from Florence, Italy and liked to paint people/objects in nature.  This was called realistic painting and so it began.  

We have studied the Renaissance several times during our 10 years of homeschooling but we learn a few new things each time.  This is probably our last time with a formal study of the Renaissance.

Here is a short list of a few of the key players of the Renaissance.  

The Medici Family.
Walkabout Florence website.

The Medici Family a.k.a. the Godfathers of the Renaissance.
*Giovanni de Medici (1360-1429) was the founder of the Medici Banks.  These banks made the family very wealthy.
*Cosimo de Medici (1389-1464) was the first leader of Florence, Italy.
*Lorenzo Di Medici (1449-1492) ruled Florence through the majority of the Italian Renaissance.  He was knows as Lorenzo the Magnificent.
*Catherine de Medici (1519-1589) married King Henry II of France in 1547.  She became the Queen of France but before all of that happened, Catherine was taken as a hostage  when she was 11 years old.  She convinced her kidnappers to let her go stating she wanted to be a nun.  It worked, they let her go but she never became a nun.
*Marie de Medici (1575-1642) married King Henry IV of France and became the Queen of France.

Renaissance artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo created masterpiece after masterpiece.  

~Leonardo da Vinci was described as a "Renaissance Man."  His most famous paintings are the Last Supper and the "Mona Lisa."  Da Vinci was also one of the greatest inventors of all times as well.

~Michelangelo's most famous work, David, is over 17 feet tall.  Michelangelo's most famous painting is on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

~Raphael was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the Sistine Madonna.

Famous writers of the Renaissance include William Shakespeare and Dante Alighieri.  Hamlet is Shakespeare's most famous work.  Dante lived in Florence.  He is known for creating the greatest epic poem ever written in the Italian language, The Divine Comedy. (1300s)

Famous Renaissance explorers such as Vespucci, Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan, Ponce de Leon, Francis Drake,  Cabot, and De Soto embarked on many voyages.

Gutenberg press

The invention of the Gutenberg printing press (1450) by Johannes Gutenberg was created during the Renaissance.

The amazing accomplishments, inventions, art, music, scientific discoveries, and literature that emerged as a result of the Renaissance are too numerous to list.  I added a few links if you want to learn more.

Here are a few more random/interesting and somewhat gross facts we came up with.    

~Did you know that in those days, most people got married in June?  Why?  Because they took their yearly baths in May.  They believed that water weakened the body so they rarely bathed.  It is also said that the bride carries flowers to hide body odor.  

~An eclipse was considered bad luck.

~Plato's Academy was in Florence.

~Washing your face with urine was common place during those days.  Most people did this every day.  They are scared of water but wash their faces with urine, seems legit.

~Freckles were considered disgusting so to remedy this, they rubbed their freckles with sulfur.  Ouch! 

~Eagle poo was used to ease childbirth. 

~Toothache?  There were no dentists back then so if you had a toothache, you just pulled your own tooth.

~Everyone had a "poop and pee" pot under their beds.  The thought was that if you had to go to the bathroom at night this would be easier.  Some people would just dump the contents out of their windows the next morning and called it cleaned.  

And with that, The End! 

My other blog posts about the Renaissance are here, here, here, and here. 

You can find more Renaissance artists here.

The Renaissance: Was it a thing? By John Green via Khan Academy.
Short Renaissance trade video.

Renaissance Art History Channel.

Renaissance wrap-up

We are finally nearing the end of the Middle Ages.  What a fascinating time period!  Full of plague, beheadings, and barbarians. 

The Renaissance began in Italy during the late middle ages.  Roughly from the 14th to the 17th century.  In a nutshell, the Renaissance or rebirth was all about rediscovering literature, art, philosophy, music, science,  and religion.  Humanism was also developed during the 14th century.

So, what did we cover?  A lot!  Italy, Florence, Venice, Renaissance artists and writers, science, alchemists, The Medici Family, inventions, patrons, Popes, architecture, Shakespeare, The Globe Theater, and explorers.

I am sure I am leaving a few things out.  This study could have easily taken a year or more but this is also a topic that will repeat itself in the high school days.  High school! GASP!  This is not too far awaaaaaaaaaaaaay!  

We will be taking a much needed break for the week of Thanksgiving and then we will be right back at it.  We will be working on a horse unit study which should be easy and fun since my kiddos are very horse-savvy. 

Renaissance resources

A few great Renaissance resources.

The Renaissance Connection

Usborne quicklinks

Usborne quicklinks