Paul McGhee
banner
pmcghee.bsky.social
Paul McGhee
@pmcghee.bsky.social
Rug repairer. Haunter of car boot sales. Cambridge, UK.

Also stereography at @pmcghee2.bsky.social
Pattern Recognition

Batch of medieval floor tiles imaginatively displayed in Norwich Castle.
November 11, 2025 at 7:58 AM
Rug of the Day
Big fabulous kilim from (?) Konya seen in Turkish restaurant Haggle* in Norwich with similar one courtesy of Mr Google.

*so called because all furnishings were bought in the Istanbul souks, so the owner tells me. Food was also fabulous!
November 11, 2025 at 7:33 AM
Some charkha tech at the South Asia Collection in Norwich. Worth going to see.

thesouthasiacollection.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Some suggestions I expect to be made shortly for the new, unbiased, BBC DG

Dominic Cummings
Toby Young
Michael Portillo
Grok
Jacob Rees-Mogg
November 10, 2025 at 7:18 AM
Rug of the Day

Detail from an old carpet of my acquaintance. Identified by AI as, variously, an Anatolian rug, a Safavid textile or a piece of embroidered canvas work. What do you think?
November 9, 2025 at 8:14 AM
Rug of the Day

People made from loop and cut pile on canvas by Anna Perach, seen in Norwich.
November 8, 2025 at 5:00 PM
An interesting historical ramble by an American Conservative about why Empires are cool again.
November 7, 2025 at 6:50 AM
Reposted by Paul McGhee
Fabulous Visigothic bronze belt buckles inlaid with cloisonné glass. AD 500s.

Which is your favourite?

From the Visigothic Necropolis of Duratón, near Segovia, Spain.
Casa del Sol Museum, Segovia
📷 by me

#Archaeology
November 6, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Reposted by Paul McGhee
You’re all making a big deal out of this, but an elderly man in cognitive decline lives there, and needs this for orientation
[P] Found a higher-quality photo; IT *IS* TAPED UP SHEETS OF PAPER!
November 6, 2025 at 8:28 AM
George being right again.
1. The approach of mainstream Democrats is summed up in this astonishing February advice from the Democratic strategist James Carville:
“Roll over and play dead. Allow the Republicans to crumble beneath their own weight and make the American people miss us.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/25/o...
🧵
Opinion | James Carville: It’s Time for a Daring Political Maneuver, Democrats
www.nytimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:50 AM
Rugs of the Day

Four wedding blankets from the marshy bit at the bottom of Iraq, which have, unexpectedly but appropriately, ended up in a Fenland auction house.

www.khm.uio.no/english/coll...
November 6, 2025 at 6:28 AM
I spent 17 years in the satellite business and would love to see the UK working with European, Indian, Japanese and (yes, even) Russian partners rather than the Americans, who have simply lost all credibility as "partners" in anything.

committees.parliament.uk/committee/77...
Government needs to take action if UK is to be a winner in new race for space - Committees - UK Parliament
The House of Lords UK Engagement with Space Committee has released its report, ‘The Space Economy: Act Now or Lose Out’.
committees.parliament.uk
November 5, 2025 at 7:35 PM
James on excellent form.
“This is one of the most infamous maps of the Middle East that you will ever see”
James Barr — The British and French Mandates
YouTube video by The Engelsberg Seminars
m.youtube.com
November 5, 2025 at 6:01 PM
@archivist.comind.network Hi Archie, thanks for follow-back. I tend to post a lots of pictures, talk about obscure aspects of global textiles and get into philosophical arguments, so feel free to ignore me in the interests of harboring your precious resources. Good luck with your mission!
November 5, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Reposted by Paul McGhee
Some cheerful Kurdish rugs
November 4, 2025 at 8:56 AM
First entry on my Christmas list
Alan Garner takes readers on a captivating journey in POWSELS AND THRUMS, tracing his life from a working-class childhood during World War II to the halls of Oxford University, back to the landscapes of Cheshire that fueled him.
Available tomorrow: https://bit.ly/4hHEX1M
November 3, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Good to see real leaders doing leading stuff today
This is the only way forward.
November 3, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Rug of the Day
Seen at the car boot sale.

Solidly built Melas (W Anatolia) rug with silky highlights in the white petals of the flowers
November 3, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Reposted by Paul McGhee
Write something. Write it today. Write your heart out. Write something weird that only you would think of. Your enemies will not topple to your silence. Write your future and live it.
November 1, 2025 at 11:37 AM
That reminds me. Must buy black pudding for breakfast.
Goedemorgen, het is november! 🍂🍁
November 1, 2025 at 5:16 AM
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings, and I'm fine, really. I just accidentally pressed my panic alarm and I don't need a carer.
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings. Look on my works and no worries if not.
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings. Look on my works and don't forget to like and subscribe.
October 30, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Heading into and out of our local M&S
October 30, 2025 at 7:02 AM
Wandlebury has the sweetest cows.
October 29, 2025 at 5:24 AM
Patriarch of the Day

Mar Awa wins the Internet.
Mar Awa III, patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, also born in Chicago, gave Pope Leo a Cubs jersey.
October 28, 2025 at 6:45 AM
Idea of the Day

King Charles to invite Vladimir Putin for a state visit. Asks him to bring Patriarch Kiril to discuss possible alliance between Church of England and Russian Orthodox Church.
Very bored with the news - stalemate in every field. Decided to float a ridiculous idea every day to compensate.

m/f
October 27, 2025 at 8:32 AM