The Goldfinch is a painting of a chained goldfinch by Carel Fabritius, a Dutch Golden Age artist. Signed and dated 1654, it is now in the collection of the Mauritshuis in The Hague, Netherlands. The work is a trompe-l'œil oil on panel measuring 33.5 by 22.8 centimetres (13.2 in × 9.0 in) that was once part of a larger structure, perhaps a window jamb or a protective cover. A common and colourful bird with a pleasant song, the goldfinch was used in Italian Renaissance painting as a symbol of Christian redemption and the Passion of Jesus. The Goldfinch is unusual for Dutch Golden Age painting in the simplicity of its composition and use of illusionary techniques. After Fabritius was killed in the gunpowder explosion that destroyed much of the city of Delft in 1654, the painting was lost for more than two centuries before its rediscovery in Brussels. It plays a central role in the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt and its film adaptation.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Goldfinch_%28painting%29

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1864:

American Civil War: General Sherman's frontal assault against the Confederate Army of Tennessee failed, but did not stop the Union Army from advancing on Atlanta. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kennesaw_Mountain

1905:

First Russian Revolution: The crew of the Russian battleship Potemkin began a mutiny against their oppressive officers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_battleship_Potemkin

1976:

The first identifiable case of Ebola occurred in Sudan. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebola

2015:

Ignition of corn starch caused a dust fire at a water park in New Taipei City, Taiwan, killing 12 people and injuring more than 400 others. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_New_Taipei_water_park_fire

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

pushbike: 1. (Australia, New Zealand, Britain, informal) A pedal bicycle, as distinguished from a motorized bicycle. 2. (intransitive, Australia, New Zealand, Britain, informal) To travel by pushbike. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pushbike

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

To know the history of philosophy is to know that the highest thinkers of the ages, the seers of the tribes and the nations, have been optimists. The growth of philosophy is the story of man's spiritual life.   --Helen Keller https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Helen_Keller