Flagship

What Mexico’s volcanoes mean

The volcanoes that surround Mexico City have inspired admiration and fear for centuries. In ancient Mexican lore, two of them, Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl, were said to represent a couple whose tragic love story bound them together for eternity. When Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés first saw them, he remarked that they were “very tall and very magnificent.” A new exhibition at Mexico City’s Museum of Modern Art explores the meaning they hold for modern Mexicans. Neovolcanic Axis gathers hundreds of volcano paintings from many of the country’s leading 20th century painters, including José Clemente Orozco and Dr. Atl. It runs through October 21.

Australia returns sculptures

The National Gallery of Australia will return three 9th and 10th century bronze sculptures to Cambodia. The repatriation follows a decade-long investigation that revealed that, after the sculptures were dug up in a field in east Cambodia, they were smuggled across the border into Vietnam in the mid 1990s. Cambodia’s government said it was “an important step towards rectifying past injustices.” Global efforts to return culturally significant art to their original owners have accelerated in recent years. After a 20-year campaign, Cambridge University returned a set of Aboriginal spears to their traditional owners this year.

How Japanese food is changing

Japanese food has a reputation for precision but as it has grown in popularity around the world, chefs are increasingly creating fusion dishes, drawing delight and disdain. In India, Japanese cuisine — once the preserve of exclusive high-end hotels — is becoming more accessible, and melding with local hits. Indian condiments such as chaat masala are replacing wasabi and soy sauce, menus feature items like achari paneer sushi or biryani sushi rolls, and chefs experiment with replacing rice with layers of dhokla, or steamed savory cake made with fermented lentil batter. “Just like with any fusion cuisine,” a New Delhi culinary director told the South China Morning Post, “the game lies in uplifting the dish.”

Grassroots soccer surges in China

A grassroots soccer tournament in southwest China is garnering national attention, with fans extolling the excitement and joy that differentiates it from more professional sporting events. The Village Super League matches are organized by village residents but also feature halftime shows with locals singing and dancing, alongside sideline feasts. The local government where the tournament is held is trying to capitalize on the surge in online and offline interest, turning the low-level matches into must-see entertainment. The strategy looks to be paying off: One county where much of the population lives just above the national poverty line took in 1 billion RMB, or about $140 million, in tourism revenue in May alone.

Award-winning composer dies

Carl Davis, a Bafta-winning composer who wrote the score for more than 100 films and TV series, died this week at the age of 86. Born in the U.S., Davis moved to the U.K. in 1961 where he worked on a huge number of BBC productions, including Pride and Prejudice, and The French Lieutenant’s Woman — featuring Meryl Streep — for which he won the Bafta. Described as “a true polymath of music,” Davis also wrote the tune for the 2006 men’s World Cup. “We are so proud that Carl’s legacy will be his astonishing impact on music,” Davis’ publisher, Faber Music, said.

On the back of two hugely successful launches, Nintendo’s operating profit jumped by 82% to a record $1.3 billion in the second quarter. The Super Mario Bros Movie remains the highest-grossing film of the year at box offices, having netted almost $1.4 billion in global sales. Meanwhile, the latest installation in The Legend of Zelda video game saga, Tears of the Kingdom, sold almost four million units in the most recent quarter alone, pushing sales for the Switch console above 130 million worldwide.

The 2023 women’s World Cup has been full of surprises: Germany, the second-highest-ranked team in the world and one of the favorites to win the tournament, didn’t make it out of the group stages. Meanwhile, footballing giants Brazil were knocked out after being held to a draw by relative minnows Jamaica, who had to crowdfund to even make it to the tournament. What is not a surprise, however, is that the cup’s prize money is still far below that of the men’s tournament. Despite a massively higher payout for this year’s tournament than prior ones, the women’s World Cup prize money is just 25% of that for the men’s.

• Could a West African military intervention remove Niger’s ruling junta by force?
• A new lobbying group is pitching Ukraine aid to American conservatives by running ads with trucks, flags, and gritty guitar riffs.
• As Donald Trump waited to be arraigned, journalists in the courthouse covered his every move — literally.