Shadow Sentinels
The theme for "Smile on Saturday" for the 10th of August is "four in a row". Recently, a rather worn set of French dominoes came into my possession, and I have been looking for an excuse to photograph them. It is the middle of winter where I live, and most days have been grey with overcast, leaden skies, and yet the other day in the afternoon we had some glorious sun. I noticed the rays of light shining onto the floor of my sunroom through the French doors I have looking out onto the garden. I liked the dramatic shadows that were created, so I went and fetched my Grandfather’s hand made marquetry chessboard and put it in the sun with the intention of setting up four pawns in a row with their shadows. Then I remembered the dominoes, so I set them up instead. I did several configurations of them in a row, but this one with its dramatic shadows cast across the board won out! I hope you like my choice for the theme this week, and that it makes you smile!
This rather worn French dominoes set that has come into my possession has earned each and every chip, dint and scratch as it was made by hand in the late Eighteenth or very early Nineteenth Century. The black base layer is made of ebonised wood, whilst the top, white pieces, are ivory - now yellowed with age - with the circular grooves inked in black paint. The two layers are affixed together with a silver rivet in the centre of each piece.
The chessboard was made by my Grandfather, a skilful and creative man, in 1952. Two chess sets, a draughts set and three chess boards made by my Grandfather were bequeathed to me as part of his estate when he died.
Shadow Sentinels
The theme for "Smile on Saturday" for the 10th of August is "four in a row". Recently, a rather worn set of French dominoes came into my possession, and I have been looking for an excuse to photograph them. It is the middle of winter where I live, and most days have been grey with overcast, leaden skies, and yet the other day in the afternoon we had some glorious sun. I noticed the rays of light shining onto the floor of my sunroom through the French doors I have looking out onto the garden. I liked the dramatic shadows that were created, so I went and fetched my Grandfather’s hand made marquetry chessboard and put it in the sun with the intention of setting up four pawns in a row with their shadows. Then I remembered the dominoes, so I set them up instead. I did several configurations of them in a row, but this one with its dramatic shadows cast across the board won out! I hope you like my choice for the theme this week, and that it makes you smile!
This rather worn French dominoes set that has come into my possession has earned each and every chip, dint and scratch as it was made by hand in the late Eighteenth or very early Nineteenth Century. The black base layer is made of ebonised wood, whilst the top, white pieces, are ivory - now yellowed with age - with the circular grooves inked in black paint. The two layers are affixed together with a silver rivet in the centre of each piece.
The chessboard was made by my Grandfather, a skilful and creative man, in 1952. Two chess sets, a draughts set and three chess boards made by my Grandfather were bequeathed to me as part of his estate when he died.