A SMALL piece of mould that changed the face of medicine was sold yesterday for pounds 8,050 at auction.

The image of Nipper, the HMV dog, in front of a gramophone is familiar to several generations, and the canine music fan is very collectable, as John Windsor discovers

The Bronze Age settlement in Flag Fen lives again.

Court circular

For years, women have insisted that anything men can do, they can do better. Now new research into the workings of the brain reveals that the sexes are simply differently hardwired. Men, it seems, are strong on spatial and mechanical skills (ie building treehouse) and women are good at domesticity and childcare (ie keeping treehouse). It's all rather troubling. Hester Lacey reports

The Hansel Gretel Machine

"Your country needs you," was the recruitment message on the poster of the Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener. His private message to the Prince of Wales was somewhat different.

The albums are unique, says the historian Michael Bloch

A Japanese tourist has been charged with trying to abduct a rare penguin and for disturbing the world's only mainland albatross breeding colony, on the Otago Peninsula in New Zealand.

Outside the ANC hall yesterday morning the souvenir plate seller, peddling the faces of ANC party heroes like President Nelson Mandela and Chris Hani, said it was the Mother of the Nation, the president's ex-wife, who was the customers' favourite.

The Government has faced heavy flak for seeming to have softened its stance on the issue of tobacco sponsorship. But it should be grateful that critics failed to notice the smoke signals closer to home.

Most remnants of the colonial era have been sold off by the Hong Kong government. But one last big house-clearing auction is still under way, and the large crowds show many still hanker for even the smallest scraps of an era that ended just five months ago.

The Republic of Ireland's battered Under-21 squad have collected another unwanted souvenir from their exhausting European Championship double-header through two time zones via Iceland and Lithuania.

We have five free pairs of tickets to each of the following shows. To receive yours, just take this copy of The Independent to the venue. First come, first served.