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Museum Finds Delightful Surprises Inside An 18th Century Math Book Owned By A 13-Year-Old

byJisha Joseph
13th October 2018
3 minute read
museum

In my opinion, museums do not get the credit they deserve. Most people just consider a trip to the museum to be a boring activity and I don’t understand why. These establishments are a treasure trove of interesting knick-knacks and artefacts that give us a glimpse into the past. They showcase the heritage of the humankind, showing us how far we’ve come and how our ancestors were a pretty fun bunch and not just a boring pile of bones.

The Museum of English and Rural Life took a shot at drawing the internet’s attention to one such case and left netizens super impressed.

It began with an inconspicuous tweet:

They gave a glimpse into what their offices look like usually and may or may not have hinted at some fun workplace activities:

Just a boring administrative office with piles of boring paperwork. You know, the usual.

But wait, there’s a gem hidden among those files. Okay, not an actual shiny gem, but something definitely interesting.

It was the mathematics book of someone named Richard Beale, who was from a farm in Biddenden, Kent. And would you look at that handwriting!

Image source

Turns out, Richard with the beautiful handwriting might have been of 13 years of age in 1784 when he owned the book.

However, despite the indisputable gorgeousness of his lettering, this is not about that.

This is about Richard’s other talent:

And his doodles often reflected elements from his personal life…

…With a pinch of fiction thrown in for good measure.

The dog, evidently, was his primary muse.

It may also have seen some things it wishes it hadn’t.

As the pages progress, Richard’s doodles start incorporating elements from his mathematical studies into them.

Image source

They immaculately merge with beautiful trees, lighthouses, ships etc and makes math look more fun than it is.

Richard was also a visionary:

That chicken looking fly AF!

And in case you’re having trouble visualising what an actual chicken wearing pants would look like, here you go:

Daaayum, that booty shake!

Twitter folk were really taken by Richard’s visionary manifestation of a chicken in trousers:

1. Yes, please.

2. It’s all the rage now.

3. All aboard the ‘Panted-Chicken’ train!

4. ‘Panted-Chicken’ is the new black.

5. As it turns out, there’s a small village named Hensbroek in North Holland which has a chicken in trousers as their coat of arms

6. And almost everybody had the same “Denim chicken?” joke from It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia.

7. And then things got weirder.

8. Many people finally found the answer to an age-old mystery.

The thread also saw an intriguing exchange with author JK Rowling, who’s made some promises I hope she’ll keep:

Yaaaasss!!! The Chronicles Of The Pant Chicken And The Balaclava Duck! Available in bookstores near you soonish. I hope. See? Museums are definitely interesting.

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