Some Lesser Known Facts About Shakespeare - “Shaking it with Shakespeare” Exhibition

Singapore Philatelic Museum's (SPM) newest exhibition, Shaking it with Shakespeare, shows that there is much more to Shakespeare than his plays.

I brought my nephews to the exhibition last weekend and they had a blast, There was a lot of interactive experiences for the kids. The displays also have interesting information for adults on the exhibits.

Thanks to SPM for putting this cool infographic together. Shakespeare was the king of slang and the inventor of word play. There are some words and phrases I usually use without realizing I'm quoting Shakespeare..., after I'm done with literature exams since I left school.

Equally impressive was the his list of insults. My oh my. Note to self - memorise them. haha....

Shakespeare was a master of human nature. He understood how people felt and behaved. The characters in his plays showed many different emotions and moods.

In all his plays, Shakespeare mentioned food. The common food we ate today was not available or popular then. These include potato, chocolate, banana, pineapple, tomato, maize and chilli. The rich ate a lot of meat, sugar and spices. The poor ate more vegetables.

The above interactive display was a hit with my boys and other kids. They have so much fun playing and learning with the exhibits.

A very interesting fact which made my boys' eyes open wide. People in Shakespeare's time bathed only a few times a year. ewww.....

There was no shower or bathroom. Most people washed their face and hands from a bowl or a jug of water and wiped their bodies with a cloth.

It was common to find fleas in people's hair then. O.M.G.

Shakespeare's father was a glove maker and a tanner of leather. The above exhibit challenges the visitors' sense of touch and smell. Not going to tell you more, go find out yourself. haha....


We spent several hours there. I would recommend this to anyone with children of all ages.

带我的侄儿们去参观新加坡集邮馆主办的“邮说莎士比亚”展,了解一些关于莎翁鲜为人知的事实。

莎士比亚时代的人们不洗澡, 大多数人用一个碗或壶装满水洗他们的脸和手, 用布擦一擦自己的身体。

在莎士比亚的所有戏剧里，他提到食物。我们今天常吃、常见到的食物, 当时是奇缺或不流行的。这些食物是土豆、巧克力、香蕉、菠萝、番茄、玉米和辣椒。富人吃很多肉，糖和香料。可怜的穷人只能吃蔬菜。

我们在集邮馆呆了几个小时。我推荐父母带孩子们去参观“邮说莎士比亚”展。

新加坡集邮馆主办“邮说莎士比亚”展 (5月14日至2017年1月15日)
开放时间是每天上午10时至晚上7时，公民和永久居民入场免费
外国人6元，小孩（3岁至12岁）4元