Reposted by Anton HowesSubstack @substack.com · 20/05/2026Read Anton's post on Age of Invention: www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-in...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Why Scotland SucceededIt was capital, not education 001
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026NEW article by me, on a multi-national invention-promoting syndicate of the 1560s. Involving a great deal of high-political intrigue along the way! www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Salt Syndicate, Part IThe story of one of the most important inventions of the sixteenth century that nobody has ever heard of, and the multi-national syndicate that promoted it 072
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 02/08/2026That's very nice of you to say so, as I'm constantly worried about how infrequently I've been able to write things up and post them lately! 010
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 02/08/2026(By the by, Heldring et al's mechanism has a fatal flaw based on a misreading, which I need to write up at some stage - I informed Heldring of it a year ago when I first spotted it, and after he was kind enough to share some data, but got no response) 110
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 02/08/2026It's reminded me that I must look into the evidence of Nef's dissolution-leases theory at some stage, as I'm sceptical! 110
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 02/08/2026Unless I'm misunderstanding the rationale, I'd exclude Kent, Surrey, and Sussex from the analysis too, as they'd have had much the same access to Newcastle coal imports as London and the other eastern coastal counties. 110
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 19/01/2026Who are the best people in Scotland who work on Scottish policy? I don't mean politics, but policy. Taxation, healthcare, education, social care, housing, welfare, crime. So often it appears to be dictated by politics-brained special advisers and a charity lobbyists... 020
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 13/01/2026NEW article by me, on Henry VII’s trade wars, and their long-term impact on labour restrictions www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Tudor Trade WarThe true effects of Henry VII's "industrial policy" 0132
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 13/01/2026NEW article by me, on Henry VII’s trade wars, and their long-term impact on labour restrictions www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Tudor Trade WarThe true effects of Henry VII's "industrial policy" 0132
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 01/12/2025I can tell you for pre-1852 (which was the big reform, when the whole system was overhauled) and can think of a few papers that have looked at the late 19thC. But I’d not know where to look for the 20th. 000
Reposted by Anton HowesAlexander McKeever @akmckeever.bsky.social · 01/11/2025On England‘s post-Black Death labor regime: wage suppression across the board and bans on mobility (including on priests), differing from continental equivalents in being tied to strict anti-inflationary monetary policy and in lasting centuries later www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: The Century-Long DepressionThere’s an old proverb about England, current in the sixteenth century, that it was a hell for horses, a paradise for women, and a purgatory or prison for servants. 073
Reposted by Anton HowesHetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 14/10/2025Nice piece from @antonhowes.bsky.social on @britishacademy.bsky.social Fellow Joel Mokyr who won the economics Nobel. As Anton brings out, it’s great to see the prize recognising economic history, especially that which comes out in books www.worksinprogress.news/p/what-makes...worksinprogress.newsWhat makes Joel Mokyr greatHis Nobel is a triumph for history and the importance of ideas 1104
Reposted by Anton HowesJames Winters @replicatedtypo.bsky.social · 14/10/2025It was cool to see that Mokyr got the Nobel in economics. @antonhowes.bsky.social has a nice write up here: www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Joel Mokyr's NobelA triumph for history and the importance of ideas 23814
Reposted by Anton HowesAlessandro @poli.sisti.ca · 20/09/2025A little-known invention that made obsolete a lot of child labour: the "scandiscope", invented by George Smart (1757ish – 1834), allowed an adult chimney sweep to avoid employing "climbing boys" as assistants. Words by @antonhowes.bsky.social: 032
Reposted by Anton HowesJoe Brusuelas @joebrusuelas.bsky.social · 28/08/2025Good morning. A terrific long read ahead of a long holiday weekend on the perils of wage & price controls drawn from the post Black Death UK. One thing I love about Bluesky is people on this site read & think. This is worthy of your time. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: The Century-Long DepressionThere’s an old proverb about England, current in the sixteenth century, that it was a hell for horses, a paradise for women, and a purgatory or prison for servants. 2265
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 26/08/2025My latest post! On England's centuries of maximum wages (yes, you read that right), and how they led to a Lost Century of stagnant growth and a dwindling population, while the rest of Europe forged ahead. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: The Century-Long DepressionThere’s an old proverb about England, current in the sixteenth century, that it was a hell for horses, a paradise for women, and a purgatory or prison for servants. 0254
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 26/08/2025My latest post! On England's centuries of maximum wages (yes, you read that right), and how they led to a Lost Century of stagnant growth and a dwindling population, while the rest of Europe forged ahead. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: The Century-Long DepressionThere’s an old proverb about England, current in the sixteenth century, that it was a hell for horses, a paradise for women, and a purgatory or prison for servants. 0254
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 27/07/2025Interesting question! Nothing obvious springs to mind, especially as so few of the sources I use say anything about how numerals were spoken aloud! 000
Reposted by Anton HowesMark Lemley @marklemley.bsky.social · 03/07/2025Long but cool read on the centuries-long process of inventing, forgetting, and reinventing coal briquettes www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: All Fired UpThe mystifying, centuries-long failure of the coal briquette 0143
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 02/07/2025My latest post! In researching the history of coal, I stumbled across a puzzle that has baffled people for over four hundred years: why the coal briquette never became widely adopted in England. Now, finally, there is an answer! www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: All Fired UpThe mystifying, centuries-long failure of the coal briquette 0279
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 02/07/2025My latest post! In researching the history of coal, I stumbled across a puzzle that has baffled people for over four hundred years: why the coal briquette never became widely adopted in England. Now, finally, there is an answer! www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: All Fired UpThe mystifying, centuries-long failure of the coal briquette 0279
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 10/06/2025Does anyone know how to get in touch with the historian and antiquary Malcolm Thick? I've tried via various institutions he's associated with, but no reply from them. 002
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 10/06/2025Does anyone know how to get in touch with the historian and antiquary Malcolm Thick? I've tried via various institutions he's associated with, but no reply from them. 002
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 01/05/2025Woah, would you look at that! My book, ARTS & MINDS: How the Royal Society of Arts changed a Nation, is currently half price from the publishers - for just a few days only! press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...press.princeton.eduArts and MindsA history of the extraordinary society that has touched all aspects of British life 010
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 23/04/2025Making pale ale cheaply and at scale was a major prize: a healthier, tastier, and more standardised drink, with major savings in terms of straw that could be better used for feeding cattle. But it was far easier said than done. See my latest post: www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Just Kiln TimeThe Quest for Pale Ale, Part I 0103
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 23/04/2025Making pale ale cheaply and at scale was a major prize: a healthier, tastier, and more standardised drink, with major savings in terms of straw that could be better used for feeding cattle. But it was far easier said than done. See my latest post: www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Just Kiln TimeThe Quest for Pale Ale, Part I 0103
Reposted by Anton HowesNigelSadler @nigelsadler.bsky.social · 23/04/2025Interesting blog on malt kilning and pale ales. 051
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 22/04/2025My latest post! On the long and winding quest to develop pale ale. Involving nefarious noblemen, a failed plot to raise illegal taxes, and the Dutch alchemist who invented the thermostat. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Just Kiln TimeThe Quest for Pale Ale, Part I 0206
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 22/04/2025My latest post! On the long and winding quest to develop pale ale. Involving nefarious noblemen, a failed plot to raise illegal taxes, and the Dutch alchemist who invented the thermostat. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: Just Kiln TimeThe Quest for Pale Ale, Part I 0206
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 15/04/2025Had a lot of fun doing this. And just days after recording discovered some evidence I’d missed, confirming that Cornelis Drebbel’s perpetual motion worked the way I suspected, using expanding mercury to rewind its springs! 052
Reposted by Anton HowesMike Smith♠️ @thelordreylus.bsky.social · 14/04/2025A new #EchoesofHistory is out covering the Age of Invention around England and the world in the time of #AssassinsCreedSyndicate. #HistoryHit @mattlewishistory.bsky.social speaks with @antonhowes.bsky.social in this packed episode. #AssassinsCreed @ubisoft.com open.spotify.com/episode/19KO...open.spotify.comThe Age of Invention: The Beginning of the Modern World?Echoes of History · Episode 043
Reposted by Anton HowesCentre for British Progress @britishprogress.org · 03/04/2025💫 We’re launching the Centre for British Progress Our founding essay: Rediscovering British Progress is a case for growth that drives shared progress, rooted in Britain's values and industrial heritage. It all starts with a postcard from 1870 👇 britishprogress.org/articles/red... 75336
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 25/03/2025@bho.bsky.social Hello, when will I be able to purchase a subscription again? I keep getting blocked by the paywall, and then told I am unable to pay to get past it. Could you please either release your paywalled stuff or fix subscriptions? Now that the archived site is down, this is impossible. 100
Reposted by Anton HowesJournal of Art in Society @artinsociety.bsky.social · 15/03/2025Such chutzpah ~ shortly after Caesar’s assassination, Brutus ordered this celebratory coin to be issued, with his own face on the front & reverse showing daggers, liberty cap & notation (= Ides of March). Sold for $4.2m, one of only 3 known gold examples www.numismaticnews.net/world-coins/... 512330
Reposted by Anton HowesMichael Dnes @roadscholar.bsky.social · 08/03/2025In honour of international women’s day – was the motor car co-invented by a woman? And have we been robbing her of credit for 140 years? The story begins with a heist… 11112
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 07/03/2025Been informed of a new article just published in *History of Science* by Candice Goucher, the historian & archaeologist who excavated Reeder's Pen in Jamaica. I remember some people asking what she thought, to settle the whole controversy. And she's unequivocal: 1102
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 07/03/2025Here's the post in question. I recommend reading the related footnotes, too: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....journals.sagepub.comSage Journals: Discover world-class researchSubscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher. 040
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 07/03/2025Been informed of a new article just published in *History of Science* by Candice Goucher, the historian & archaeologist who excavated Reeder's Pen in Jamaica. I remember some people asking what she thought, to settle the whole controversy. And she's unequivocal: 1102
Reposted by Anton HowesChristian Odendahl @codendahl.bsky.social · 26/02/2025"London’s voracious appetite for coal did not start in the hearths of its homes. Instead, thanks to some enterprising Germans ..., it was instead first whet by ale and beer." Of course it was. Absolutely fascinating #longread. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: How Coal Really WonThe Coal Conquest, Part II 1336
Reposted by Anton HowesThe Pub-Liking Universal Friend @johnb78.bsky.social · 24/02/2025This post should be at least one popular historical book and several movies www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: How Coal Really WonThe Coal Conquest, Part II 272
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 24/02/2025Very high praise indeed, thank you! Von Bocholt definitely seems like a character worthy of the silver screen 000
Reposted by Anton HowesAnton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 19/02/2025Why did coal, having been used in Britain for centuries, very suddenly take off in London in 1580-1600? I dove deep into the archives, unearthing a story *never* told before. It was thanks to German inventors, and through brewing, that coal really won. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: How Coal Really WonThe Coal Conquest, Part II 0238
Anton Howes @antonhowes.bsky.social · 19/02/2025Why did coal, having been used in Britain for centuries, very suddenly take off in London in 1580-1600? I dove deep into the archives, unearthing a story *never* told before. It was thanks to German inventors, and through brewing, that coal really won. www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-inv...ageofinvention.xyzAge of Invention: How Coal Really WonThe Coal Conquest, Part II 0238