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Queen Edith, whose dish-bearer remained close to her after her husband's death
Queen Edith, whose dish-bearer remained close to her after her husband's death

Dish-bearers and butlers were thegns who acted as personal attendants of kings in Anglo-Saxon England. Royal feasts played an important role in consolidating community and hierarchy among the elite, and dish-bearers and butlers served the food and drinks at these meals. Thegns were substantial landowners who occupied the third lay (non-religious) rank of the aristocracy in English society, after the king and ealdormen. Dish-bearers and butlers ranked above ordinary thegns in lists of witnesses to charters, and they probably also carried out diverse military and administrative duties as required by the king. No dish-bearer or butler is known to have served in the reigns of two different kings, suggesting that the position was a personal one which ended with the king's death. Some went on to have illustrious careers as ealdormen, but most never rose higher than thegn. In the later Anglo-Saxon period, queens (example depicted) and æthelings (sons of kings) also had dish-bearers. (Full article...)

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Sergei Prokofiev

Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. As the creator of works across numerous music genres, he is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century. His works include operas such as The Gambler, The Fiery Angel and The Love for Three Oranges; the suite Lieutenant Kijé; the ballet Romeo and Juliet; and Peter and the Wolf. Altogether during his adult life, he composed seven operas, seven symphonies, eight ballets, five piano concertos, two violin concertos, a cello concerto, a symphony-concerto for cello and orchestra, and nine completed piano sonatas. This photograph was taken circa 1918 in New York City.

Photograph credit: Bain News Service; restored by MyCatIsAChonk

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