Friday Links

At least we no longer need to speculate on what it would be like to live in a civilization’s decline.

The Moneylender and His Wife by Quentin Matsys

• How the public thinks about libraries is a big problem. Libraries are about more than housing books. (The Smart Set)
• The Frenchman who would be Patagonian king (The Awl)
• Changing the narrative may be the salvation of San Salvador. (Virginia Quarterly Review)
• The Cavs may be screwed . Then again, Draymond Green might punch Lebron in the balls again. (FiveThirtyEight)

Dane A. Wisher is based in Brooklyn.