From reading The Watsonian, I’ve learned new things about topics I’ve never considered before: the properties of honey, the city of Avignon, and 19th century homes, to name a few.
In the process of writing on Sherlockian topics, I’ve found myself knee-deep in research on radio dramas, Japanese author Natsume Soseki, and the history of early cinema.
What is the most interesting or unexpected topic you studied through the Sherlockian lens? What is a topic you may not have discovered if not for your enjoyment of the Canon?
There are so many I don’t know where to begin from… Maybe 18th century painting and painters. Visual arts are not my usual area of interest, but I made some good research when I wrote a paper some years ago on the (in)famous Thomas Griffiths Wainewright, painter, art critic, and poisoner. “Wainwright (sic) was no mean artist”. (ILLU)
Like Reggie, I’ve learned much while researching topics in the Canon. Probably my most unusual discovery was that blue diamonds phosphoresce red under certain conditions, which I uncovered while looking into “The Blue Carbuncle.” As an historian, is is not the sort of thing I’d look into … at least since I was secretary of the Rock and Mineral Club in high school, many years ago.