The Baglioni Chapel is a chapel in the Collegiate church of Santa Maria Maggiore, Spello, central Italy. It is known for its Renaissance frescoes executed by Pinturicchio from c. 1500 to 1501.

The decoration was commissioned by the prior (later bishop) Troilo Baglioni, and the end of the work is assigned to 1501. The work was the last important one by Pinturicchio in Umbria, before his sojourns in Rome and Siena. The paintings, typically for Pinturicchio, were executed rapidly thanks to a well-organized workshop, with other masters painting above his drawings.

In the later 16th century, the chapel received a pavement with Deruta ceramics. It was restored in 1976–77 and provided with an air conditioning system against the effects of humidity.

The chapel has a quadrangular floor plan with a cross-vault. The frescoes' theme is stories from the childhoods of Mary and of Jesus. The vault contains four Sibyls, sitting on thrones and flanked by cartouches with prophecies of the coming of Jesus. Largely damaged and over-painted, they were perhaps made by Bartolomeo Caporali. The wide grotesque candelabra on the ogives are perhaps from the same artist, due to similarities to those he painted in church of Sant'Antonio Abate at Deruta.

The three main scenes, in the shape of lunettes, occupy the three available walls and are enclosed within painted pillars and arches. The latter's painted intrados has geometrical and rosetta decorations, and creates the illusionistic effect of a Greek-cross plan.

The left wall shows the Annunciation, set in a large Renaissance loggia whose pavement, depicted in geometrical perspective, leads, behind the hortus conclusus, to a richly detailed landscape. The main characters are conventional ones: Mary is distracted from reading by an angel, who kneels to bless her with a white lily in one hand, a symbol of her virginal purity. In the upper part God the Father is depicted, surrounded by angels, emitting a ray of light incorporating the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove.

The right part of the fresco shows a window with a grid; on the left is a shelf with books and an amphora: under it is a self-portrait of Pinturicchio, featuring the dedicatory bejewelled inscription, "BERNARDINVS PICTORICIVS PERVSIN[VS]".

The central wall features the Adoration of the Shepherds, depicting the arrival of the Magi procession in the background. The scene is set on a lawn before the stable, portrayed with sotto in su perspective. A landscape can be seen behind a window in the stable.

The shepherds in the foreground have expressive and detailed features, after the fashion of early Netherlandish painting which influenced Pinturicchio. The young man on the left with a goat is depicted with a more idealized beauty, inspired by ancient reliefs with sacrifice motifs. The group of the Madonna with Child re-uses the typology of the Adoration of the Shepherds painted by Pinturicchio in the Presepio Chapel of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome.

In the upper part there is a choir of angels. The background is rich in detail, including a well-defined city with a miniature appeal. Among the allegoric elements, a peacock sits on the stable as a symbol of immortality.

The right wall is occupied by the Dispute with the Doctors. The Child Jesus is surrounded by two groups of philosophers of the Temple of Jerusalem, which can be seen in the background and is characterized by a large dome. The scene follows a scheme already used by Pinturicchio in the Bufalini Chapel, which was in turn derived from that adopted by Perugino in his Delivery of the Keys in the Sistine Chapel. The edifice has a central plan and has two niches with decorations, grotesques and ancient statues.

The crowd is formed by standard characters including young spouses, wise men, toothless women and other normal spectators. These include some portraits, such as that of Troilo Baglioni on the left, wearing the dress of a protonotary apostolic

shot executed by pinhole Auloma Superpanorama 6x17, Filter auloma ND4, negative scanned by Canon EOS 1100D, 120 film Kodak ektar 100

Tower Green is a space within the Tower of London, a royal castle in London, where two English Queens consort and several other British nobles were executed by beheading. It was considered more dignified for nobility to be executed away from the gawping spectators, and Queen Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey were among the nobility beheaded here. Queen Victoria asked for information on the exact location at which the executions took place, and had some granite paving laid to mark the spot. However it is unclear whether the location is indeed correct because other sources place it on the current parade ground, between the White Tower and the entrance to the current Waterloo Barracks.

 

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle located on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the square mile of the City of London by the open space known as Tower Hill. It was founded towards the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest of England. The White Tower, which gives the entire castle its name, was built by William the Conqueror in 1078, and was a resented symbol of oppression, inflicted upon London by the new ruling elite. The castle was used as a prison from 1100 (Ranulf Flambard) until 1952 (Kray twins), although that was not its primary purpose. A grand palace early in its history, it served as a royal residence. As a whole, the Tower is a complex of several buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat. There were several phases of expansion, mainly under Kings Richard the Lionheart, Henry III, and Edward I in the 12th and 13th centuries. The general layout established by the late 13th century remains despite later activity on the site.

Clone Wars Season 4

212th Group Shot

Today on June 10, 1692, Bridget Bishop was the first person executed for witchcraft during the Salem witch trials of 1692. She was a landowner and a woman who spoke her mind...yeah, she's a witch. Puritans!

I know one of her descendents. Rest well, Bridget.

 

Salem Witch Trial Memorial, Old Burying Point.

The main road into Sidmouth has been closed all week for emergency road works. During the storms at the start of the week the "Road Closed" and "Diversion" signs blew down so anyone unaware of the situation was in a spot of bother, including the driver of this incoming bus who had to execute a multi-point turn in Temple Street.

Tower Green is a space within the Tower of London, a royal castle in London, where two English Queens consort and several other British nobles were executed by beheading. It was considered more dignified for nobility to be executed away from the gawping spectators, and Queen Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey were among the nobility beheaded here. Queen Victoria asked for information on the exact location at which the executions took place, and had some granite paving laid to mark the spot. However it is unclear whether the location is indeed correct because other sources place it on the current parade ground, between the White Tower and the entrance to the current Waterloo Barracks.

 

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle located on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the square mile of the City of London by the open space known as Tower Hill. It was founded towards the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest of England. The White Tower, which gives the entire castle its name, was built by William the Conqueror in 1078, and was a resented symbol of oppression, inflicted upon London by the new ruling elite. The castle was used as a prison from 1100 (Ranulf Flambard) until 1952 (Kray twins), although that was not its primary purpose. A grand palace early in its history, it served as a royal residence. As a whole, the Tower is a complex of several buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat. There were several phases of expansion, mainly under Kings Richard the Lionheart, Henry III, and Edward I in the 12th and 13th centuries. The general layout established by the late 13th century remains despite later activity on the site.

Studio portrait, executed with strobist technic, using two flashes and Rembrandt lighting setup. It was used one 60cm lightbox with flash in TTL mode and another flash in manual mode for background, using yellow gel.

Canon 60d

Canon EF 24-105 f/4 L IS USM

Canon 580EXII

Yongnuo YN-565EXII

Yongnuo YN-622C TX + 2 YN 622C LI

The Madonna della Seggiola or The Madonna della Sedia (28" in diameter (71 cm)) is an oil on panel Madonna painting by the High Italian Renaissance artist Raphael, executed c. 1513–1514, and housed at the Palazzo Pitti Collection in Florence, Italy. Although there is documentation on its arrival to its current location, Palazzo Pitti, it is still unknown who commissioned the painting; however, it has been in the Medici family since the 16th century.

It depicts Mary embracing the Christ child while sitting in a chair as the young John the Baptist devoutly watches. The Madonna della Sedia is one of the single most important of Raphael's Madonnas. The painting also showcases Raphael's use of the tondo form and his naturalistic approach to depicting the Madonna.

The Madonna della Sedia is Raphael's most humanistic form of the Madonna. Throughout Raphael's life, this humanistic representation of the Madonna occupied his mind. The Madonna della Sedia is the incarnation of a realistic mother and child, representing human motherhood. Painted during his Roman period, this Madonna does not have the strict geometrical form and linear style of his earlier Florentine treatments of the same subject. The Madonna is portrayed subtly and naturalistically, including the drapery, her anatomy, and the movement of her body, as if it was a result of an immediate action. The Madonna della Sedia balanced simplification and detail with the treatment of her embroidered shawl, the directness of the figures and the touching of the two heads (Madonna and Christ child). Raphael dressed the Madonna in the Italian clothing of the time. Mary is depicted wearing a striped headdress, which falls behind her backside and compliments her richly colored ornamental dress with fringe.

The Madonna's image also shows less attention to careful selections, which takes the focus off refinement, and shifts it to more of a rapid representation of an observation or attitude. The Christ child and Mary are both in profile view in order to balance the composition, which resolved the issue of overcrowding. Mary is sitting in a position that is not easily replicated in reality, which allows the Christ child to sit comfortably, while balancing the figures in regards to the painting's round shape. The curvature of the two arms of Mary and Christ child in the foreground also lend themselves to a spherical form, which rounds out the composition. The chair dictates the outer limits of the composition and is the painting's namesake.

The colors play an important role in this painting, from the green embroidered garment to the cerulean blue or the juxtaposition of the Madonna's red sleeve with the Christ child's orange drapery, which adds an extra element of enrichment and a vibrancy to the color palette. The warmer colors seem to suggest the influence of Titian and Raphael's rival Sebastiano del Piombo.

Unfortunately, the Madonna della Sedia's commission is undocumented despite it being created while Raphael was spending a relatively well-documented period of twelve years in Rome. The painting was painted during the same time Raphael was working on the frescoes in the Vatican Stanze and loggia of the Vatican, including the paintings Incendio del Borgo, Battle of Ostia, and Coronation of Charlemagne. Most of Raphael's commissions for this period were under the strict guidance of Pope Leo X (Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici), who was known to be one of Raphael's biggest patrons at the time. While under Leo's patronage, Raphael rarely got commissions from outside of the pope's immediate circle. Leo X was also the successor to Pope Julius II (Giuliano della Rovere) who was another major patron of Raphael and a central contributor to the High Renaissance. However, it has been speculated that the painting was painted for Leo X, which also connects the painting to the Medici family during the sixteenth century while in Rome. The chair's finial in the Madonna della Sedia is evidence that supports the idea that the painting could have been commissioned for Pope Leo X. The finial takes on the form of a round ball, similar to the Medici's heraldic symbol, the palle, which is also seen in Leo's coat of arms. On the other hand, the chair's finial could also be a symbol for Pope Julius II and his family's symbol, the Della Rovere oak acorn, further adding to the mystery of the unidentified patron.

Already in the Gallerie Degli Uffizi, it was then moved to the Pitti Palace by the beginning of the eighteenth century. It was listed in inventories in 1723 and 1761 as being on display in the Grand Prince Ferdinando's bedroom. It was later moved throughout the Rooms of the Planets, starting with the Room of Jupiter (c. 1771) and later the Room of Mars (c. 1793), after the Leopoldine rearrangement of the picture gallery. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, it was taken during the Napoleonic looting of Florence and was in Paris from 1799 to 1815. Back in Florence, the painting has been in the Room of Saturn since 1882.

The Madonna della Sedia is the culmination of Raphael's use of the tondo form and influenced an equivalent singular male portrait, The Portrait of Baldassare Castiglione (c. 1514–1515). The painting is oil on panel, with St John the Baptist painted in a different key range. The painted black background is lacking the usual landscape, which typically would harmonize all the colors and figures. The composition is entirely from Raphael's hand, which was a result of him shuddering off the legacies of Leonardo da Vinci and Pietro Perugino, who early on had influenced his career and style substantially. The technical execution of the painting lies within its remarkable composition, which was originally envisioned as a rectangle. Raphael did not consider the circular shape during the preliminary sketches for this painting, even though it is a form he favored during and after his Florentine period. The figures' accommodation to the shape is skillful. The painting also revolutionized the Madonna format in the Renaissance style due to its departure from the pyramidal composition of the Madonna, Christ child, Saint Joseph, and by giving the painting a superficial background, which is radically different when comparing it to an earlier Madonna portrait, The Alba Madonna (c. 1510).

The painting also revolutionized singular portrait painting during the Renaissance by enlarging the figure's scale and how they compositionally occupy the entire plane. By radically changing the scale of the figures in this painting, allowing them to occupy most of the available space, the Christ child seems to be the basis of both the Madonna and Saint John the Baptist's proportions and relationship within the painting.

The Madonna della Sedia has been admired by many artists, poets, and engravers. It has been copied many times over and, historically, was considered one of the most revered of Raphael's Madonnas. There are a few enchanting legends connected to the Madonna della Sedia painting, one being about a beautiful Urbino peasant girl, who was as good as she was beautiful, charitable, and pious, who gave her assistance to an ill hermit she had stumbled upon. The hermit rewarded the girl by blessing her and stating that she would be painted as the mother of God. Many years later, on a sunny day holding her infant in the garden and with her toddler son playing at her knees, she was spotted by a handsome young man at her garden gate. That young man was Raphael Sanzio who immediately said he would like to paint her as she sat there with her two sons, later represented as the original Virgin, Christ child, and St. John.

Because of the painting's roundness, it became the subject of another story in which a peasant girl saves a hermit from a pack of wolves in the branches of an oak, and the hermit prophesies that she will become immortalized for her good deed. Years later, the girl had two children, and the tree was made into wine barrels. Raphael happened upon the trio and used a barrel bottom to paint them. This scenario was the subject of an 1839 lithograph by August Hopfgarten and a painting by Johann Michael Wittmer.

Ingres greatly admired Raphael and paid tribute to him by including this painting in many of his works, such as in the background of Henri IV playing with his children and Raphael and La Fornarina on the table in front of the subject in his Portrait of monsieur Rivière. The image was worked into the carpet in Napoleon I on his Imperial Throne.

Johann Zoffany also included this painting along with many others in his 1770s painting of the Tribuna of the Uffizi.

In 1858, Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote that the painting was "the most beautiful picture in the world" after having seen it via "a hundred engravings and copies".

The depiction inspired Raphael Morghen and Niccolò De Antoni for a commission for Prince Consort for his Raphael Collection, which is conserved at the Royal Collection Trust.

 

Almost an optical illusion. We loved that garden.

 

Beautiful flowers at Reford Gardens.

 

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/

 

Ripples in water. Concentric circles in water.

 

MAKING CIRCLES IN THE WATER (2011)

Faire des ronds dans l'eau (2011)

 

Balmori Associates, New York, USA.

 

Visit: www.balmori.com

  

GROUNDED IN ECOLOGY

 

Balmori Associates is an international urban and landscape design firm founded by Diana Balmori. Balmori Associates is recognized across the globe for its creative interfacing of landscape and architecture and expanding the boundaries between nature and structure. As distinguished leaders in the field of urban design and the design of innovative public spaces Balmori Associates gives form to the processes of sustainability, producing ‘green infrastructures’ while revealing the constructed and natural operations of a site.

 

Balmori Associates strives to achieve the highest standards of environmental responsibility by rooting our work in two basic sustainable design principles: Low-Impact and Regenerative . Low-Impact to reduce potential detrimental effects of local and project-related construction, development or consumption and to minimize environmental impacts, while sustaining the health and resilience of ecological systems. Regenerative Design to integrate building systems within landscape for resource renewal and the restoration of constructed landscape.

 

Our diverse portfolio includes executed projects at all scales, and award-winning competitions and has garnered numerous awards for design excellence; and sustainability is a central concern in all our work. In 1998, Balmori Associates’ Master Plan won the international competition for the waterfront development of the Abandoibarra district of Bilbao, Spain. We provided design leadership on the greenroof at Silvercup Studios in Queens, New York, the largest scientifically monitored green roof in the United States. In the fall of 2012 Korean Prime Minister and several ministries moved from Seoul to Sejong, South Korea new multifunctional administrative city, a zero-waste urban plan designed by Balmori Associates. (Info from Balmori's website)

 

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LES JARDINS DE MÉTIS | REFORD GARDENS

  

Visit : www.refordgardens.com/

  

From Wikipedia:

 

Elsie Stephen Meighen - born January 22, 1872, Perth, Ontario - and Robert Wilson Reford - born in 1867, Montreal - got married on June 12, 1894.

 

Elsie Reford was a pioneer of Canadian horticulture, creating one of the largest private gardens in Canada on her estate, Estevan Lodge in eastern Québec. Located in Grand-Métis on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, her gardens have been open to the public since 1962 and operate under the name Les Jardins de Métis and Reford Gardens.

  

Born January 22, 1872 at Perth, Ontario, Elsie Reford was the eldest of three children born to Robert Meighen and Elsie Stephen. Coming from modest backgrounds themselves, Elsie’s parents ensured that their children received a good education. After being educated in Montreal, she was sent to finishing school in Dresden and Paris, returning to Montreal fluent in both German and French, and ready to take her place in society.

 

She married Robert Wilson Reford on June 12, 1894. She gave birth to two sons, Bruce in 1895 and Eric in 1900. Robert and Elsie Reford were, by many accounts, an ideal couple. In 1902, they built a house on Drummond Street in Montreal. They both loved the outdoors and they spend several weeks a year in a log cabin they built at Lac Caribou, south of Rimouski. In the autumn they hunted for caribou, deer, and ducks. They returned in winter to ski and snowshoe. Elsie Reford also liked to ride. She had learned as a girl and spent many hours riding on the slopes of Mount Royal. And of course, there was salmon-fishing – a sport at which she excelled.

 

In her day, she was known for her civic, social, and political activism. She was engaged in philanthropic activities, particularly for the Montreal Maternity Hospital and she was also the moving force behind the creation of the Women’s Canadian Club of Montreal, the first women club in Canada. She believed it important that the women become involved in debates over the great issues of the day, « something beyond the local gossip of the hour ». Her acquaintance with Lord Grey, the Governor-General of Canada from 1904 to 1911, led to her involvement in organizing, in 1908, Québec City’s tercentennial celebrations. The event was one of many to which she devoted herself in building bridges with French-Canadian community.

 

During the First World War, she joined her two sons in England and did volunteer work at the War Office, translating documents from German into English. After the war, she was active in the Victorian Order of Nurses, the Montreal Council of Social Agencies, and the National Association of Conservative Women.

 

In 1925 at the age of 53 years, Elsie Reford was operated for appendicitis and during her convalescence, her doctor counselled against fishing, fearing that she did not have the strength to return to the river.”Why not take up gardening?” he said, thinking this a more suitable pastime for a convalescent woman of a certain age. That is why she began laying out the gardens and supervising their construction. The gardens would take ten years to build, and would extend over more than twenty acres.

 

Elsie Reford had to overcome many difficulties in bringing her garden to life. First among them were the allergies that sometimes left her bedridden for days on end. The second obstacle was the property itself. Estevan was first and foremost a fishing lodge. The site was chosen because of its proximity to a salmon river and its dramatic views – not for the quality of the soil.

 

To counter-act nature’s deficiencies, she created soil for each of the plants she had selected, bringing peat and sand from nearby farms. This exchange was fortuitous to the local farmers, suffering through the Great Depression. Then, as now, the gardens provided much-needed work to an area with high unemployment. Elsie Reford’s genius as a gardener was born of the knowledge she developed of the needs of plants. Over the course of her long life, she became an expert plantsman. By the end of her life, Elsie Reford was able to counsel other gardeners, writing in the journals of the Royal Horticultural Society and the North American Lily Society. Elsie Reford was not a landscape architect and had no training of any kind as a garden designer. While she collected and appreciated art, she claimed no talents as an artist.

 

Elsie Stephen Reford died at her Drummond Street home on November 8, 1967 in her ninety-sixth year.

 

In 1995, the Reford Gardens ("Jardins de Métis") in Grand-Métis were designated a National Historic Site of Canada, as being an excellent Canadian example of the English-inspired garden.(Wikipedia)

 

Visit : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsie_Reford

  

LES JARDINS DE MÉTIS

 

Créés par Elsie Reford de 1926 à 1958, ces jardins témoignent de façon remarquable de l’art paysager à l’anglaise. Disposés dans un cadre naturel, un ensemble de jardins exhibent fleurs vivaces, arbres et arbustes. Le jardin des pommetiers, les rocailles et l’Allée royale évoquent l’œuvre de cette dame passionnée d’horticulture. Agrémenté d’un ruisseau et de sentiers sinueux, ce site jouit d’un microclimat favorable à la croissance d’espèces uniques au Canada. Les pavots bleus et les lis, privilégiés par Mme Reford, y fleurissent toujours et contribuent , avec d’autres plantes exotiques et indigènes, à l’harmonie de ces lieux.

 

Created by Elsie Reford between 1926 and 1958, these gardens are an inspired example of the English art of the garden. Woven into a natural setting, a series of gardens display perennials, trees and shrubs. A crab-apple orchard, a rock garden, and the Long Walk are also the legacy of this dedicated horticulturist. A microclimate favours the growth of species found nowhere else in Canada, while the stream and winding paths add to the charm. Elsie Reford’s beloved blue poppies and lilies still bloom and contribute, with other exotic and indigenous plants, to the harmony of the site.

 

Commission des lieux et monuments historiques du Canada

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Gouvernement du Canada – Government of Canada

  

© Copyright

This photo and all those in my Photostream are protected by copyright. No one may reproduce, copy, transmit or manipulate them without my written permission.

 

Commentary.

  

St. Albans is an ancient settlement dating back at least

3,000 years to the Iron Age.

When the Romans invaded this realm in A.D. 43

they established several key military strongholds

in the south-east, including Colchester, London and St. Albans,

or as they named it, Verulamium.

It stands on a river-terrace above the River Ver.

Even after Roman occupation St. Albans became

an important religious centre with the founding of the Benedictine

Abbey of St. Albans.

Alban is said to have lived in the town in the 3rd. or 4th. Century.

Christianity was being persecuted at that time.

Alban took the place of a Priest in refusing to

abandon his Christian faith.

As a result, he was executed but was ultimately

given his Sainthood for his sacrifice and example.

The medieval abbey was given Cathedral status in 1877.

Before the 20th. Century, St. Albans was looked upon

as a small rural backwater.

During the Inter-War years, it developed a successful

local Electronics industry.

In recent times, being near to London

and with its considerable historical relics,

it has become very popular with tourists,

looking for an interesting, provincial Market Town to visit.

shot executed by pinhole auloma panorama 6x12

Film lomography negative iso100

Camera Auloma Panorama 6x12

Film scan by Canon EOS 1100D

to know more visit www.auloma.com

shot executed by pinhole Auloma Panorama 6x12, negative scanned by Canon EOS 1100D, film Fomapan 400

R.B.K. is a landscape-oriented oil painting with a wooden support and frame that depicts a seated figure on the right facing towards a rectangular framed area in the centre of the painting. The scene is represented in bright colours in a loose style that appears fully abstract in places. Eight bands, each comprising three stripes in blue, pale green and dark green paint, run diagonally in roughly parallel bands across the painting’s foreground, as if the scene were viewed through a series of slats. The figure is depicted with a curvaceous body in various tones of blue, and its face, which appears as if silhouetted against a bright yellow shape, is partly obscured by one of the diagonal bands. The area on the left towards which the figure turns is framed with a dark blue outline and has a green and yellow rhomboid on its far side, suggesting that it represents an open door or a window shutter. Within this rectangular window or door area sits a largely abstract composition, although one of the shapes it contains resembles a flat red heart shape. The work’s pine frame is painted red along its top, while the rest is coloured light green.

 

This work was painted by the British artist Howard Hodgkin during 1969 and 1970, while he was living and working in London. Its support comprises a single sheet of plywood that has been pinned and glued to four outer battens. This is fitted into a rebated groove on the inside of the pine frame, with a metal plate securing it in each corner. The plywood was initially primed with a very dry, thin white layer possibly comprising chalk and animal glue, after which paint was loosely applied across the work in multiple layers. The diagonal stripes were painted last, over the top of the existing forms underneath, and the paint is generally opaque in colour and matt in finish throughout the work.

 

R.B.K. is a portrait of the well-known American painter R.B. Kitaj (Ronald Brooks Kitaj), a friend of Hodgkin’s who was also based in London during the 1960s and 1970s. Many of Hodgkin’s works from the this time are portraits of figures from the British art world, including artists, critics and dealers, yet many of these show their sitters in ambiguous environments and with a colourful abstraction that makes them difficult to identify, as is seen in R.B.K. as well as Mrs Nicholas Monro 1966–9 (Tate T01117) and Mr and Mrs E.J.P. 1969–73 (Tate T07111).

 

Since the early 1970s Hodgkin’s paintings have almost exclusively been executed on wooden supports (see, for instance, Come into the Garden, Maud 2000–3, Tate T12322). The critic Michael Auping has suggested that R.B.K. may have been the first work to be produced in this way, Hodgkin’s paintings until that point having generally been executed on canvas (Michael Auping, ‘A Long View’, in Metropolitan Museum of Art 1996, p.17). In 1984 Hodgkin explained that one reason for his starting to paint on wood was that unlike canvas it ‘has such a character of its own. In a piece of wood with grain ... you get these beautiful wave patterns ... there is already something to work with – either with or against. It has an identity already. Whereas a white canvas is just a piece of white canvas, it hasn’t any identity or will of its own at all’ (Howard Hodgkin and Patrick Caulfield, ‘Howard Hodgkin and Patrick Caulfield in Conversation’, Art Monthly, no.78, July/August 1984, p.5). This statement seems particularly relevant to R.B.K. given that when viewed in person, the grain of its frame is visible through the paint.

 

R.B.K. was also among the first of many works in which Hodgkin painted his frames in colours that featured in the main composition of the painting. As the director of Tate Nicholas Serota has observed, this has the effect that in Hodgkin’s works ‘the frame is not something to be added as protection or separation once the painting has been completed’ but is an integral component of the work (Nicholas Serota, ‘Introduction’, in Irish Museum of Modern Art 2006, p.13). The critic James Meyer has argued that Hodgkin’s emphasis on the frame has allowed him simultaneously to emphasise the physical ‘thingness’ of his works and the ‘transparency’ evoked through their pictorial depth (James Meyer, ‘Hodgkin’s Body’, in Irish Museum of Modern Art 2006, p.49). Discussing R.B.K. in particular, Meyer has claimed that the painting highlights this combination through a complicated play of surface and recession: ‘the literal frame functions as a window revealing the sitter ... through a screen of diagonal bars. In the distance, a window frames yet another scene’ (Meyer 2006, p.49).

The island was formerly known as Ruatan and Rattan. It is approximately 77 kilometres (48 mi) long, and less than 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) across at its widest point. The island consists of two municipalities: José Santos Guardiola in the east and Roatán, including the Cayos Cochinos, further south in the west.

 

The island rests on an exposed ancient coral reef, rising to about 270 metres (890 ft) above sea level. Offshore reefs offer opportunities for diving. Most habitation is in the western half of the island.

 

The most populous town of the island is Coxen Hole, capital of Roatán municipality, located in the southwest. West of Coxen Hole are the settlements of Gravel Bay, Flowers Bay and Pensacola on the south coast, and Sandy Bay, West End and West Bay on the north coast. To the east of Coxen Hole are the settlements of Mount Pleasant, French Harbour, Parrot Tree, Jonesville and Oakridge on the south coast, and Punta Gorda on the north coast.

 

The easternmost quarter of the island is separated by a channel through the mangroves that is 15 metres wide on average. This section is called Helene, or Santa Elena in Spanish. Satellite islands at the eastern end are Morat, Barbareta, and Pigeon Cay. Further west between French Harbour and Coxen Hole are several cays, including Stamp Cay and Barefoot Cay.

 

Located near the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, the largest barrier reef in the Caribbean Sea (second largest worldwide after Australia's Great Barrier Reef), Roatán has become an important cruise ship, scuba diving and eco-tourism destination in Honduras. Tourism is its most important economic sector, though fishing is also an important source of income for islanders. Roatán is located within 40 miles of La Ceiba. The island is served by the Juan Manuel Gálvez Roatán International Airport and the Galaxy Wave Ferry service twice a day.

 

The Indians of the Bay Islands are believed to have been related to either the Paya, the Maya, the Lenca or the Jicaque, which were the tribes present on the mainland. Christopher Columbus on his fourth voyage (1502–1504) came to the islands as he visited the neighbouring Bay Island of Guanaja. Soon after, the Spanish began trading in the islands for slave labour. More devastating for the local Indians was exposure to Eurasian infectious diseases to which they had no immunity, such as smallpox and measles. No indigenous people survived the consequent epidemics

 

Throughout European colonial times, the Bay of Honduras attracted an array of individual settlers, pirates, traders and military forces. Various economic activities were engaged in and political struggles played out between the European powers, chiefly Britain and Spain. Sea travellers frequently stopped over at Roatán and the other islands as resting points. On several occasions, the islands were subject to military occupation. In contesting with the Spanish for colonisation of the Caribbean, the English occupied the Bay Islands on and off between 1550 and 1700. During this time, buccaneers found the vacated, mostly unprotected islands a haven for safe harbour and transport. English, French and Dutch pirates established settlements on the islands. They frequently raided the Spanish treasure ships, cargo vessels carrying gold and silver from the New World to Spain.

 

During the War of the Austrian Succession (King George's War in the US), a detachment of the British Army under Lt. Col John Caulfeild garrisoned the island from 1742 to 1749. The garrison was originally found from two companies of Gooch's Virginia Regiment, but these were eventually amalgamated into Trelawney's 49th Foot (later the 1st Royal Berkshire Regiment).

 

In 1797, the British defeated the Black Carib, who had been supported by the French, in a battle for control of the Windward Caribbean island of St. Vincent. Weary of their resistance to British plans for sugar plantations, the British rounded up the St. Vincent Black Carib and deported them to Roatán. The majority of Black Carib migrated to Trujillo on mainland Honduras, but a portion remained to found the community of Punta Gorda on the northern coast of Roatán. The Black Carib, whose ancestry includes Arawak and African Maroons, remained in Punta Gorda, becoming the Bay Island's first permanent post-Columbian settlers. They also migrated from there to parts of the northern coast of Central America, becoming the foundation of the modern-day Garífuna culture in Honduras, Belize and Guatemala.

 

The majority permanent population of Roatán originated from the Cayman Islands near Jamaica. They arrived in the 1830s shortly after Britain's abolition of slavery in 1838. The changes in the labour system disrupted the economic structure of the Caymans. The islands had a largely seafaring culture; natives were familiar with the area from turtle fishing and other activities. Former slaveholders from the Cayman Islands were among the first to settle in the seaside locations throughout primarily western Roatán. During the late 1830s and 1840s, former slaves also migrated from the Cayman Islands, in larger number than planters. All together, the former Cayman peoples became the largest cultural group on the island.

For a brief period in the 1850s, Britain declared the Bay Islands its colony. Within a decade, the Crown ceded the territory formally back to Honduras. British colonists were sent to compete for control. They asked American William Walker, a freebooter (filibuster) with a private army, to help end the crisis in 1860 by invading Honduras; he was captured upon landing in Trujillo and executed there.

 

In the latter half of the 19th century, the island populations grew steadily and established new settlements all over Roatán and the other islands. Settlers came from all over the world and played a part in shaping the cultural face of the island. Islanders started a fruit trade industry which became profitable. By the 1870s it was purchased by American interests, most notably the New Orleans and Bay Islands Fruit Company. Later the Standard Fruit and United Fruit companies became the foundation for modern-day fruit companies, the industry which led to Honduras being called a "banana republic".

 

In the 20th century, there was continued population growth resulting in increased economic changes and environmental challenges. A population boom began with an influx of Spanish-speaking Mestizo migrants from the Honduran mainland. Since the late 20th century, they tripled the previous resident population. Mestizo migrants settled primarily in the urban areas of Coxen Hole and Barrio Los Fuertes (near French Harbour). Even the mainlander influx was dwarfed in number and economic effects by the overwhelming tourist presence in the 21st century. Numerous American, Canadian, British, New Zealander, Australian and South African settlers and entrepreneurs engaged chiefly in the fishing industry, and later, provided the foundation for attracting the tourist trade.

 

In 1998, Roatán suffered some damage from Hurricane Mitch, temporarily paralysing most commercial activity. The storm also broke up the popular dive-wrecks Aguila and Odyssey.

 

Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coxen_Hole

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roatán

   

Dear friends, today together with my students, I started a joint project that covers few courses that I teach (History of costume, Visual communication, Computer aided design etc).

The main goal will be promotion of the costume/fashion culture, constructing images that are strongly connoted by a certain period/epoch.

We have been shooting all day long few costumes that were made in the last few years as parts of the final projects for the History of costume course.

The costume in this image was executed by Olgica Dojchinoska Momirovska with assistance of Nikola Karakashov, Milena Kuzmanovska was in charge for the hair and make up and the model was Miljana Atanasova. Photo and editing by me. It depicts reconstructed female costume in the style of Louis XV.

I am very proud of my students!

(2009)

 

✔ Full version includes 42 Colors Hud

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✔ The item you are purchasing is meant for MESH BODIES.

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Enjoy your purchase !

You are welcome anytime to contact me for any support needed.

You are welcome to visit any time:)

Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449-1494) - two miracles of the Madonna - polychrome stained glass windows, executed in 1492 by Alessandro Agolanti to a design by Ghirlandaio - Tornabuoni Chapel (1485-1490) - Santa Maria Novella Florence

 

La cappella Tornabuoni è la cappella maggiore della basilica di Santa Maria Novella a Firenze. Contiene uno dei più vasti cicli di affreschi di tutta la città, realizzato da Domenico Ghirlandaio e bottega dal 1485 al 1490.

Gli affreschi hanno come tema le Scene della vita della Vergine e di san Giovanni Battista, inquadrate da finte architetture (pilastri con capitelli corinzi dorati e trabeazioni con dentelli, sulle tre pareti disponibili. Le scene si leggono dal basso verso l'alto, da destra a sinistra, secondo uno schema che già all'epoca doveva risultare un po' arcaico.

Le due pareti principali, a destra e a sinistra, presentano tre file di scene ciascuna, a sua volta divise in due scene rettangolari, ed una grande lunetta sulla sommità, per un totale di sette scene a parete.

  

The Cappella Tornabuoni is the main chapel (or chancel) in the church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy. It is famous for the extensive and well-preserved fresco cycle on its walls, one of the most complete in the city, which was created by Domenico Ghirlandaio and his workshop between 1485 and 1490.

The portraits of the members of the Tornabuoni family and of relatives, friends, allies and clients of the Medici and the Tornabuoni are included as spectators to the holy stories.

Ghirlandaio worked to the frescoes from 1485 to 1490, with the collaboration of his workshop artists, who included his brothers Davide and Benedetto, his brother-in-law Sebastiano Mainardi and, probably, the young Michelangelo Buonarroti. The windows were also executed according to Ghirlandaio's design. The complex was completed by an altarpiece portraying the Madonna del Latte in Glory with Angel and Saints, flanked by two panels with St. Catherine of Siena and St. Lawrence.

The execution of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine by the hands of the droid general Grievous would shock the Galaxy. No-one knew it was coming, save one man. The man who gave Grievous the order to execute the Chancellor live on the holonet. Though Grievous didn’t know it, he had just killed Darth Sidious, thus ensuring his own master’s rise to Dark Lord of the Sith.

 

Whilst he had been reluctant to order his former master’s execution, Count Dooku, the now reigning Sith Lord, knew he had been presented with no alternative. Having witnessed how willing Sidious had been to dispose of a resurrected Darth Maul, Dooku knew all too well that it would have been only a matter of time before his master was ready to dispose of him.

 

Supreme Chancellor Palpatine’s death would long be considered a decisive victory for the Confederacy of Independent Systems, and the closest it ever came to victory in the Clone War. Yet, for Dooku, it was a loss. Sidious’ passing doomed their vision for a New Galactic Order, with the Republic electing Senator Kargan Feigarn of Anaxes to the position of Supreme Chancellor to replace Palpatine. Feigarn, one of the first proponents for the Repubic to muster an army to combat the Separatist crisis, would openly declare in his election speech that the Clone War would not end until the Confederacy was eradicated the Galaxy.

 

Though the Confederacy held a sizable military advantage at the time of Feigarn’s declaration, that would be quickly eroded as Palpatine’s death convinced usually hesitant Senators such as Bail Organa of Alderaan, Mon Mothma of Chandrilla and Padme Amidala of Naboo to approve a significant investment into the Republic’s military budget.

 

With a level playing field, the war began to turn significantly against the Confederacy and they soon found themselves completely pushed out of the mid-rim worlds. But despite this erupting military crisis for the Confederacy. Count Dooku was nowhere to be found. Instead of leading all the systems who had pledged allegiance to his independence movement, Dooku had journeyed to the planet Korriban, ancient home world of the Sith for guidance.

 

On Korriban he would encounter someone he never expected to see again. The spirit of his former master, the evil Darth Sidious. Craving information on how to fulfil the plan they had both spent well over a decade preparing, Dooku would come to learn that Sidious never planned to rule with Dooku by his side. He had long planned to replace him with the young Jedi Anakin Skywalker, the fabled chosen one. Before Dooku could even consider thinking of asking his former master for how best to enact their stratagem without him, Sidious revealed the truth.

 

The stratagem was designed around Sidious, and without him to enact it, it was destined to collapse. Already Sidious’ agents had begun to neutralise the Clone trooper inhibitor chips, eliminating the infamous Order 66 from existence. He’d also taken great care to foster a close relationship with the young Skywalker, thus ensuring that if his apprentice were to remove him, it would ensure that Skywalker would never serve Dooku. Palpatine had long prepared for the possibility that his apprentice would attempt to usurp him.

 

If he was not able to rule the Galaxy, then he would not allow anyone else to either.

 

After being mocked by his former master, Dooku lashed out. Though Sidious and the Jedi both believed the young Skywalker to be the fabled Chosen One, Dooku thought otherwise. After all, to both he and his master, the Chosen One was destined to bring balance to the Force. Not necessarily destroy the Sith, regardless of what the Jedi interpreted it as. Therefore, if he could not use Protocol 66 to reduce the Jedi’s numbers, he would simply have to create a new generation of Sith Lords in order to restore the balance.

 

With that, Dooku would depart Korriban but not without a final mocking from his former master, and it would haunt Dooku for the rest of his life. Palpatine had been preparing to construct a Galactic Empire to unite the Galaxy against an unknown force from beyond that threatened to destroy the Galaxy. Though he would try to dismiss the idea, it would ultimately cause him take a less active role in the leadership of the Confederacy as he made preparations for the future. Most in Republic intelligence suspected this was to avoid retaliatory actions for Palpatine’s execution, but the Jedi believed otherwise. History had taught them that it was never good when the Sith disappeared into the shadows. The Republic would lead a large military campaign to locate the Dark Lord but would ultimately prove unsuccessful.

 

Dooku would meanwhile order the construction of a battle station his master had long sought to create, in the hopes that its destructive power would be enough to give the Confederacy victory over the increasingly authoritarian Galactic Republic. If need be, it could also protect the galaxy from the danger his master spoke of. But with the Republic’s military offensive pressuring the Confederacy on every front in the Outer Rim, Dooku decided to have the station constructed in the Unknown Regions, far from prying eyes.

 

It was during the search for a suitable build sight that Dooku would come across a young Chiss by the name of Mitth'raw'nuruodo. The young Chiss’ homeworld had been devastated by a Republic weapons trial gone wrong, which had rendered the planet inhospitable, and thus he was more than willing to join the Separatist cause. It wasn’t until he was able to take out a Republic Star Destroyer with a cargo transport that Dooku allowed the young Chiss to join their ranks.

 

Many speculate the recruitment of ‘Thrawn’, as he came to be known by, was what revived the Separatist military cause, which had been faltering following the demise of General Grievous at the hands of Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. It would be Thrawn’s actions that would strand Jedi Master Mace Windu on the surface of Bodrin, where Dooku would slay the Jedi Master, ensuring Skywalker’s ascension to the rank of Grand Master of the Jedi Order.

 

Whilst the Force could sustain him, Dooku knew that time was against him and thus choose to train five students at once in the ways of the Force. The clear violation of the Rule of Two prevented him from declaring them all his apprentices, so to encourage them Dooku offered to make the one who bested Obi-Wan Kenobi in combat his apprentice. Eventually the group would come to be known as the hands of Dooku to the galaxy, but to Dooku, they were his acolytes. Neither Sith nor Jedi.

 

They were the ones who would help him bring balance to the Force.

 

Countless Jedi would fall to the acolytes´ blades, many of them merely padawan learners. The loss of so many Jedi would create a ripple in the Force, originating from a source deep in the Unknown Regions. Dooku interpreted it as a sign that he was fulfilling his destiny and the Force was being slowly brought into balance, until he found the source itself. It was a singularity through which the Force fed into the galaxy. Eventually, Dooku came to realise that the singularity could be weaponised, and after a year of trails, the singularity was engineered to become part of the Confederacy’s battle station. The entire station was powered using the Force emitted from the singularity.

 

Dooku knew that with the singularity, he controlled the Force itself and began making preparations for the Confederacy’s new campaign to seize Coruscant from Republic control.

 

Though temperamental, the singularity was eventually installed into the battle station, but not without consequences. Close proximity to the singularity would often cause Dooku to hear what he assumed were echoes of the past. The voice of Sidious, vowing to destroy all that they had built. The voice of Yoda, the Count’s former Jedi teacher. But perhaps the biggest surprise of all, was to hear the voice of Qui-Gon Jinn Dooku’s former Jedi apprentice.

 

Whilst he would presume the voice was little more than a remnant, Dooku would come to find there was more to this voice of his former apprentice than it first appeared. Quin-Gon’s ghost would spend any waking moment that Dooku was on board the station attempting to make the former Jedi Master see the error his ways.

 

Dooku would ultimately choose to spend as little time on the battle station as possible whilst continuing to maintain a low profile in order to avoid the prying eyes of the Jedi.

 

It wouldn’t be until the battle station was almost entirely operational that Dooku would come face to face with a Jedi once again. Much to his surprise though, it wasn’t Grand Jedi Master Skywalker as he had long anticipated. It was Obi-Wan Kenobi. Skywalker’s former teacher who had begun to train a new apprentice of his own.

 

The three of them would engage in a duel, and though the Count’s age would hinder him, his strength with the Force allowed him to counteract such a hindrance. But even with such a strong connection to the Force, Dooku was unable to prevent Kenobi from severing his right hand. Vengeance for having done the same action to Skywalker well over a decade ago.

 

However, even in such a weakened state, the Sith Lord bested Kenobi’s apprentice with ease and brought the boy’s life to a swift end by decapitating him. The action would break Kenobi’s spirit, who declared just how ashamed Qui-Gon would be knowing what had become of his former master. Well aware of his former apprentice’s disapproval of his new title, Dooku departed the battle without killing Kenobi, much to Kenobi’s own surprise.

 

Though he had not foreseen his decision to not kill the weakened Kenobi, the Sith Lord new what was about to transpire. Kenobi had managed to plant a tracking device on his cape, and whilst the Jedi Master thought he’d done so without detection, Dooku had long known it was coming. Just as he had desired.

 

With the tracker revealing his location to the Republic, Dooku returned to the battle station and waited for his enemies to come to him. He knew full well that this would be the battle that decided the Clone War, and he was determined to win it. But to accomplish this, he knew there was one thing above all else he had to do.

 

Slay Grand Master Skywalker.

 

As the battle erupted, both Kenobi and Skywalker would manage to board the battle station, making their way to the singularity where they would encounter Dooku. The first time they had duelled was at the start of the Clone War and now, they'd duel for the final time with the fate of the Galaxy at stake.....

executing a taxiway Alpha departure.

Turns out the executables are 32-bit only, but good news is that the old UE 2.5 command keybindings fully works in the remastered edition =P. Path is AppData\Roaming\BioshockHD

 

I didn't spend much time into the game, and this is the last screenshot from me for the next few weeks, gonna spend a while traveling in the west coast on business.

 

Bioshock Remastered

- 4K rendering, cropped;

- Custom ReShade setting;

- .ini keybinds for noclip. FOV and timestop.

 

Instructions!: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7od9SVfDzlg

Well executed minifigures by Hobbybrick from the very best Manga-series there is. 20 years and still going strong. Hopefully one day we will find it, the One piece. :)

I absolutely adore the custom hats, if the series wasn't that expensive I would get the whole set.

 

(Sorry for the bad photo quality, soon I will have a better place to take them...)

The year is 18 BBY, 1 year since we received the orders to execute all of the Jedi for committing treason against the republic. After the purge, we were given new armour, and reassigned from being the Wampa Squad, to the Eighth Brother’s personal troopers. Since then, we have gone on countless missions to find the treasonous Jedi alongside the powerful inquisitor, the Eighth Brother.

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

The eighth brother received a transmission from Vader himself, our next objective is to hunt down a Jedi master called Nirhma Moss, who survived Order 66, intel has led us to believe she is hiding in an old seperatist outpost on Devaron. We arrive at Devaron and start to find traces of life among the rocky and muddy terrain. The planet has many small cliffs topped with mud and trees, bushes flourish all over the ground and old seperatist bases can sometimes be found in the depths of Devaron. We find a small crate containing some supplies, and at the same time, the sound of a lightsaber echoes around us. I look up to see Nirhma Moss and the Eighth Brother face to face.

 

“Eighth Brother, we finally meet.”

 

“Nirhma Moss, your time has come.”

 

“I’ve heard stories of your kind, Inquisitors. I sensed your presence long before you went rummaging through my belongings.”

 

“Sir, should we fire?”

 

“No, I will take her myself.”

 

“Yes Sir!”

 

The two fought endlessly, using all their strength, but the Eighth Brother came out on top. We were ordered to carry her back to the ship. Another successful mission.

 

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This is my application for the Dark Times RPG, I hope you like the build and the story. I tried my hardest to write an interesting story for this build but I couldn’t seem to get something I liked. I hope I get accepted into the Dark Times :)

LocationFlorence, Italy

The Equestrian Monument of Cosimo I is a bronze equestrian statue executed by Giambologna from 1587 to 1594, and erected in 1594 in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, region of Tuscany, Italy.

his statue follows the Classical Roman tradition of Equestrian statues as the monument to a ruler's power, evident from the Statue of Marcus Aurelius in ancient Rome and the Regisole in Ferrara, and continued in the Renaissance by examples such as Donatello's Statue of Gattamelata (1453) in Padua and Verrocchio's Statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni (1488) in Venice.

 

This monument was commissioned by Cosimo's son Ferdinando I from the sculptor Giambologna, who also completed the Rape of the Sabines in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi. The Cosimo statue stands in front of the north corner of the Palazzo della Signoria, the northernmost of the row of statues, adjacent to the Fountain of Neptune (1563) by Ammannati, that had been commissioned by Cosimo himself. Together this duo celebrates the land and sea ambitions of Cosimo. The base of the statue has reliefs with scenes from the life of Cosimo, including his coronation in Rome as Grand-Duke in 1570 and his entrance into Siena as a ruler (1557) after his victory over that republic.[1]

 

The posture of the trotting horse in this statue is similar to those of prior statues, with right leg raised, however unlike Marcus Aurelius, Cosimo uses stirrups and his horse shows the restraint of the bridle, albeit without much tension. Cosimo, like Gattemalata, holds a military baton, armor, and sheathed sword.

 

Some sources state the man and horse were cast separately, and the combined weight of the two was 23 thousand pounds.[2] A few decades hence, Ferdinando I would have his own Equestrian monument in Piazza dell'Annunziata.[3]

  

Rembrandt (Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn Leiden, July 15, 1606 - Amsterdam, October 4, 1669) - Portrait of a Young Girl (1632) - oil on panel 60 x 50 cm - Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan

 

Il dipinto giunse in Pinacoteca nel 1813 grazie ad uno scambio con il Louvre. All’epoca l’opera era considerata autografa del maestro, documentata dalla firma e identificata con il ritratto della sorella, ma successivamente la tavola è stata espunta dal catalogo delle opere di Rembrandt. L’ipotesi oggi più attendibile è che si tratti dell’opera di un seguace, che replicò il lavoro del maestro Busto di giovane donna.

 

It was one of the five Flemish paintings sent to Brera in 1813 in exchange for several works taken from Milan by Napoleon. This painting was, for a long time, considered to be autograph, and the young woman was identified as the artist’s sister. However, the Corpus of Rembrandt’s Painting (1986) has rejected the artist’s authorship of this painting, which is thought to have been executed by a Rembrandt’s follower.

El cor i nucli de La Model és el panoptic, element classic dins l'estructura carceraria típica de finals del s. XIX i principis del XX. La idea, com el seu nom intiga era poder controlar visualment tot allò que feien els presoners en tot moment, el que donà lloc a multitud de presons d'estructura radial amb una cupula central, com la Model i moltes altres arreu del món. Però de fet, des del panoptic de la gran majoria d'elles només es podia controlar poca cosa més que la sala central, on no hi havia cap cel·la. Per contra, un exemple realment de panoptic tal i com fou ideat es troba en una presó amb el mateix nom: el Presidio Modelo de Cuba, o la presó d'Arnhem.

 

es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidio_Modelo

 

La presó model s’inaugurà el 1904 i va tancar el 2017. Prácticament d’inici ja va perdre aquesta caracteristica de model amb el que fou disenyada (primer motí ja al 1906), i la sobrepoblació de presoners fou constant, així com unes condicions generalment deplorables. Disenyada per a 1000 presos, al 1940 arribà als 13.000! No només és un punt historic per la historia criminal de Catalunya, sino també com a element esencial en la represió política, molt en especialment per part del regim feixista. Nombroses persones foren executades o partiren cap a la seva execució des de la Model (unes 1600). El més famós executat de tots, el darrer, Salvador Puig Antich.

 

Ara s’ha obert al public i es pot visitar lliurement. Cal aprofitar-ho ja que es preveu que aviat es començaran a tirar a terra el mur perimetral i bona part dels edificis secundaris. La part central, el panoptic i la majoria de galeries es conservaran, però perdran la pàtina original (ronya, de fet), i fotogràficament no serà el mateix.

 

ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pres%C3%B3_Model_de_Barcelona

 

lamodel.barcelona/ca/

 

===========================================

 

The "panoptic" or panopticon is the center of the former La Model jail in Barcelona. This kind of radial prison was usual all arround the World in late XIX and early XX Century prisons. Yet most of them were not true panopticons, because, as the name implies, from the panopticon a guard could see all the prisoners and cells at the same time. And from here you could only see the centra distributor, were no cells were located. A real panopticon is the Presidio Modelo in Cuba, or the Koepelgevangenis in Arnhem:

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panopticon

 

La Model entered service in 1904 and was closed in 2017, after decades of public demands of closure due to the deplorable condition of the inmates and the bad image for the surroundings. As the name suggests, it was intented to be a modelic prison, but although it was a modern design in early XX Century, soon the conditions deteriorated, and the first mutiny was just in 1906. Designed for 1000 inmates, in 1940 it reached a peak of 13.000 inmates, mostly political prisoners of the fascist Franco regime. Hundres left this place in their way to their execution. The last political victim was Salvador Puig Antich, executed in La Model in 1974. In fact La Model is a very important place to understand the history of the political represion in Catalonia, specially by the fascist regime between 1939 and 1978 (and beyond). Also it reflected the criminal and social problems of Barcelona in the XX Century.

 

Now the former prison is open to the public, but soon will be partly demolished (the surrounding wall and secondary buildings) to made parks, and the main building redeveloped for civic activities and also a history museum. So the time to take pictures is now or never.

 

es.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%A1rcel_Modelo_de_Barcelona

   

Alisa looks out from the room where her father was executed.

 

© Nick Danziger/nbpictures for ICRC

 

Among those executed at Mont-Valérien, 40% were hostages, 60% were 'tried', condemned to death by Nazi German military tribunals and executed by German soldiers.

65% of the executed were communists (entered the Resistance from the end of 1941), 17% were Jewish (out of a proportion in French population of less than 1 %), and 20% were foreigners (like the 'Affiche Rouge' Resistance group members).

Local skater executes with no fear.

Random idea, followed through, didn't execute as well as I'd have liked, but hey.

Strange build for me... mostly because I tend to favor part usage, and a large majority of this weapon is almost purely shapes.

Anyways. Yeah. GL, AR, and SMG all in one package.

Not really happy with how it turned out, to be honest, but it was a try.

Irlanda - Dublín - Prision de Kilmainham Gaol

 

kilmainhamgaolmuseum.ie/

 

ENGLISH:

 

Kilmainham Gaol is a former prison in Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland. It is now a museum run by the Office of Public Works, an agency of the Government of Ireland. Many Irish revolutionaries, including the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising, were imprisoned and executed in the prison by the British.

 

When it was first built in 1796, Kilmainham Gaol was called the "New Gaol" to distinguish it from the old prison it was intended to replace – a noisome dungeon, just a few hundred metres from the present site. It was officially called the County of Dublin Gaol, and was originally run by the Grand Jury for County Dublin.

 

Originally, public hangings took place at the front of the prison. However, from the 1820s onward very few hangings, public or private, took place at Kilmainham. A small hanging cell was built in the prison in 1891. It is located on the first floor, between the west wing and the east wing.

 

There was no segregation of prisoners; men, women and children were incarcerated up to 5 in each cell, with only a single candle for light and heat. Most of their time was spent in the cold and the dark, and each candle had to last for two weeks. Its cells were roughly 28 square metres in area.

 

Children were sometimes arrested for petty theft, the youngest said to be a seven-year-old child, while many of the adult prisoners were transported to Australia.

 

At Kilmainham the poor conditions in which women prisoners were kept provided the spur for the next stage of development. Remarkably, for an age that prided itself on a protective attitude for the "weaker sex", the conditions for women prisoners were persistently worse than for men. As early as his 1809 report the Inspector had observed that male prisoners were supplied with iron bedsteads while females 'lay on straw on the flags in the cells and common halls.' Half a century later there was little improvement. The women's section, located in the west wing, remained overcrowded. In an attempt to relieve the overcrowding 30 female cells were added to the Gaol in 1840. These improvements had not been made long before the Great Famine occurred, and Kilmainham was overwhelmed with the increase of prisoners.

 

Since its restoration, Kilmainham Gaol has been understood as one of the most important Irish monuments of the modern period, in relation to the narrative of the struggle for Irish independence. In the period of time extending from its opening in 1796 until its decommissioning in 1924 it has been, barring the notable exceptions of Daniel O'Connell and Michael Collins, a site of incarceration of every significant Irish nationalist leader of both the constitutional and physical force traditions. Thus, its history as an institution is intimately linked with the story of Irish nationalism. The majority of the Irish leaders in the rebellions of 1798, 1803, 1848, 1867 and 1916 were imprisoned there. It also housed prisoners during the Irish War of Independence (1919–21) and many of the anti-treaty forces during the civil war period. Charles Stewart Parnell was imprisoned in Kilmainham Gaol, along with most of his parliamentary colleagues, in 1881-82 when he signed the Kilmainham Treaty with William Gladstone.

 

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ESPAÑOL:

 

Kilmainham Gaol era una cárcel situada en Inchicore, en Dublín, reconvertida hoy en museo.

 

La cárcel se inauguró en 1796 denominándose New Gaol debido a que sustituía a la antigua cárcel situada unos cuantos cientos de metros de ella.

 

Kilmainham Gaol ha jugado un importante papel en la historia de Irlanda ya que muchos de los líderes de las revueltas de independencia de Irlanda fueron confinados y recluidos en esta prisión. Muchos de estos presos fueron además ejecutados en esta misma prisión. Las rebeliones de 1798, 1803, 1848, 1867 y 1916 acabaron con sus cabecillas en estas celdas recluidos.

 

El último preso de la cárcel fue Éamon de Valera que salió de la cárcel el 16 de julio de 1924.

 

Dentro de la cárcel no había separación de prisioneros por cuestión de sexo ni de edad, así tanto los hombres como las mujeres convivían en las mismas zonas igual que los niños.

 

En el año 1924 la cárcel se cerró definitivamente sufriendo una remodelación de la década de los 70.

 

La visita comienza en la capilla de la cárcel que es conocida por ser el lugar en el que Joseph Plunkett se casó con Grace Gifford en las horas previas a su ejecución por el pelotón de fusilamiento. Las siguientes zonas que se visitan son las celdas en las que estuvieron confinados los participantes de la revuelta de 1916. Se visita también el vestíbulo principal de la cárcel tras su remodelación que sirvió de referencia para la construcción de muchas otras cárceles sobre todo en Estados Unidos. La visita concluye en el patio dónde fueron ajusticiados, entre el 3 y el 12 de mayo, los miembros de la revuelta de 1916 y el lugar en el que se ejecutó a James Connolly diferenciado de los del resto debido a su precario estado de salud a consecuencia de las heridas recibidas durante la revuelta. Estas heridas hicieron que se le situara en las cercanías de la entrada debido a su dificultad de trasladarlo.

Title:

Society’s Shrew

******************************************************************************

The study below was uncovered through research for the following Doctorial dissertation:

Light to the shadows of their mind:

Criminal tactics and strategies

Criminology Department Dept.

Chatwick University

 

Case Study 14 :

Name: Seth circa 192…

Subject: A rather unprincipled & deviously unscrupulous scoundrel

 

From Seth’s Journal:

Headed as:

Societies Shrew

October 11, 192

It is truly amazing what people will talk about on a train. And I could not say the number of times I had collected a tidy sum by just keeping my ears open to such talk. The following remarkable account centered on a couple named Caboyt is my case in point.

  

I was traveling between cities, after finishing a weeks’ worth of “business”, successfully making a handsome “little” profit on the jewels I collected from several unsuspecting wealthy women.

  

I had spotted a young couple sitting alone at small table in the dining car. Taking a seat in the nearby bar I had taken the opportunity to observe them. They were newlyweds. I could tell by the way they had acted, and by the shiny new gold rings they sported. She was a very attractive long haired brunette, wearing a long flowing skirt and a high-necked satiny blouse with long sleeves. He was wearing a fitted suit, and by his expression, was ignorant of anything else but his bride’s existence. I too noticed her existence. Especially the existence of the solid gold necklace set with tiny rubies and diamonds she wearing, loosely hanging down from around her throat. When she talked, her hands made little motions, and it was a pleasure to watch her rings sparkle from fingers as she did so. When they left the dining car I stayed at the bar, quickly forgetting about the pair. I enjoyed a few drinks while anticipating the new opportunities that should be plentiful at my next stop.

  

Late that evening the newlyweds were abruptly placed back into my thoughts. As I made my way back to my car I saw them in their seats, sleeping soundly. Her head was on his shoulders, an arm curled around him. The head of her husband was back on the seat snoring. I noticed her necklace hanging provokingly down, flickering in the passing lights that lit up the car in ten second intervals. The back two rows of seats were vacant, so I slipped into the seat directly behind them. I slowly moved my fingers up behind her seat, dipping down I felt through her ultra-soft hair until my fingers felt the cold hardness of her necklace. I could feel the slippery sleekness of her blouse, and I will admit I did perk up in doing so. Ever so slowly I pulled it out, exposing its gold chain. Then I slipped it around, silently thanking her for the slickness of the high necked pretty blouse that made my attempt so easy. Finally I expose the clasp, and leaving it hanging sat back for a minute to let them settle. I watched it there, as the flicking lights lit it up, my hunger increasing in a prickling sensation I knew and loved so well, the thrill of the hunt. When I could contain myself no longer I reached up again and undid the clasp, then I began the delicate operation of slipping it from her throat. It took almost fifteen exhilarating minutes as I worked it free, exposing it’s; length over the seat ever longer. Then it came loose, and with a swish curled up into my palm. As the last of it slipped away my victim stirred a little, sighing in her sleep, she cuddled in even more. I waited a few more minutes, all was calm around me.

  

I eyed the sleeping couple. Following her arm that lay around her husband’s shoulder I could see her hand. A glittery ruby ring sparkled merrily in the passing lights. The ring was definitely not as valuable as the necklace in hand, but the allure of acquiring it overwhelmed me. Now slipping a ring from a ladies finger is of course, no great trick. If she happens to be sleeping soundly, like this one, its rather as easy as taking it from a baby.

******************

(Which for the record I have never done, preferring my victims to be of a mature age. A mantra from which I have only strayed from once, for every rule commands an exception!

 

The exception for this rule was a matching set of sparklers; dangling cascading earrings, wide “lace” style necklace, bracelet and a brace of rings, all of it small and dainty, all of it quality diamond ,and best of all, invitingly obtainable.

 

Because the young miss laden down with those petite diamonds was all of fourteen years of age. And, as for the glossy taffeta gown that clung charmingly to her girlish figure? It cried out to even the most novice of us pickpockets to use its sleekness to execute a nimble “slip up and flick” maneuver to relieve this little squirming princess of some piece of her jewelry.

 

It had definitely been worth the Crown I had expended to the well-dressed young lad with a solid gold pocket watch hanging from his vest, to spend at the penny arcade, located in the bazaar across the street…. It successfully lured him temporarily away from the richly attired kid sister wearing the diamonds in question. He had been keeping an eye over her, a job for which I could tell he had been grudgingly delegated with, and which he happily abandoned; leaving the diamond laden impish young sister vulnerably exposed to the harsher realities of life.

 

I used the procured opening to cross the young sister’s path and with a perfectly timed ploy caught her in mid stride, the fingers of my right hand grabbing her by the gown’s sleek midriff causing her to totter over my arm. The fingers of my left moved in at the same moment.

 

The gown had indeed tingled quite pleasantly underneath my left hands fingers as they glided up along her taffeta slick back to lift up and break open the clasp of the silver chain, from which hung the dangling diamonds dripping down along her gown’s full neckline; As I gently plucked and straighten her gown with my right hand, my Left hand delicately began to pull away the necklace. I asked the young miss her where she was off to in such a hurry. She told me, in quick nervous breaths, that she was looking for her brother. As I listened intently, my left hand tugged, then slipped free her necklace, spiriting it away from her heaving chest with a muted swish. I watched it disappear, flickering its protest, as I held its pretty mistress’s attention. I pocketed it as she followed my pointing finger to the bazaar across the street where I explained her brother had gone.

 

I watched as she happily scurried away from me, blissfully naive that her necklace no longer was merrily bouncing along her chest as she moved. It was just then a rather full bosomed lady passed me by, nose in the air, a ruby brooch precariously perched in the cleavage of her low cut rustling gown. I followed, my mind calculating the risk.

 

***************************

 

As the train gently rocked back and forth I kept my eyes focused on the sleeping woman’s ring, first I licked my lips, then my fingers. Reaching up I gently slipped my fingers along hers, moistening them. Then I felt for her ring, and slightly lifter her finger, carefully worked the jewel off by rocking it back and forth between my fingertips. Once I had it over her knuckle, I stopped to catch my breath and look around, all was still quiet. I easily pulled it off the rest of the way, than lay back and closed my eyes. Soon both of them were snoring regularly. I than arose, stowing away the necklace securely, and walked silently amongst the other sleeping passengers. Unnoticed by anyone, I regained my car, took my seat, and laying back I closed my eyes, and happy with myself, fell into a deep sleep.

   

October 12, 192

 

The next morning I awoke to a bright sunrise, refreshed and satisfied with the previous evening’s effort. I now settled back comfortably and watched the scenery. There appeared to be no noticeable commotion at my end of the train over my nighttime activities. But it is the reason I stayed glued to my seat for the rest of my journey, and the reason I would make a rather informal acquaintance with Sophia and Arthur Caboyt.

  

The seat in front of me was occupied by a priest traveling with his rather ancient mother. Nothing that they were discussing had captured my interest the day before. The priest was spending the morning reading his bible, his mother snoozing, so it appeared neither would be saying anything to peak my interest this morning. So I closed my eyes, placed a thought in my head, and started dozing…….

 

***********

She was a beauty, a ravishing brunette clad in a long purple satiny number. Her jewels were all sapphires, sparkling as she walked somewhat unsteadily up the path leading her away from the sanctity of the castle keep. I was following with curiosity, having seen her slip out the back way, looking for the entire world like a child sneaking out on her parents. She reached the top of the hill where it opened into a small glen. Off to the side lay a dark lake of calm water. As she stood by a cement bench on the bank of the lake the moon peeked out through the clouds, placing her in a pool of light. A pair of white swans swam over in curiosity. She bent down and lifted out her gloved hand to them, her rings and bracelet glistening radiantly.

She was not yet aware of being followed……

******************************

  

I must have fallen asleep, for next thing I knew I was rudely awakened as the train was ratcheting to a stop, whistle blowing. When the train finely halted, The priest and his mother departed. I still was going on for a distance so I kept my seat. I bid them a silent adieu; nothing about them had held my interest in any shape or form.

  

But the newcomers who took their seat turned out to be a whole other story.

  

A rather stern faced husband had escorted his chattering wife and basically maneuvered her into the seat. She was clad in a long silky, rather form fitting dress. She was wearing a nice display of glistening white pearls, and her fingers were home to several sparkly rings. By the way the pair carried themselves; I had no doubts the fair maidens jewels were the real McCoy. As I watched the diamond clasp of her pearl necklace from behind I again closed my eyes, once more reminiscing about the train ride on my first leg of the journey.

  

But this couple did not appear to be of the snatch and slip into the shadows type of prey to me. I opened my eyes, wide awake, my interest peaking as the wife’s shrill voice penetrated into me. No, I smelled real opportunity being handed to me by fate. Let me explain. In my line of business I had become a quick study of a person’s character. His was obviously that of an important ( in his mind) president( probably a bank) used to controlling all aspects of his life, including his wife. She was a quarrelsome chatterbox who was as opinionated as they come. My guess is that that he only had married her for her money, why else would he have put up with her? His name was Arthur, Hers was Sophia, and the last name was Caboyt, which perked my interest even more. Caboyt being a well-known name of a wealthy family from the large city where I had grew up as a child. The couple was attending a Charity Ball at some rather ritzy sounding establishment in a City four stops before mine. The more I heard, the more I smelled money to be made. So it was without a thought that I rose a minute after they did, and got off on the same stop, forgoing the rest of my travel plans. I quickly stashed my luggage in a locker and got out onto the street in time to see them getting into a hotel taxi.

  

I went in, collected my bags and hired a taxi to take me to an inexpensive hotel that he recommended. I checked in, prepaying for three nights to cover my tracks, threw my luggage on the bed. I looked in my stage case, and selected a reddish wig and matching moustache, trying them on for effect. Adding a pair of black, horn rimmed eye glasses completed the disguise

  

I grabbed another taxi had him drive me to the hotel they were staying at. Paying him off ,I crossed the street and positioned myself in a park. It was now early evening, the sun just dipping below the tall buildings.

  

I studied the situation from the park while sitting on a bench. It was older, with balconies extending outside each of the rooms. The balconies were cement rimmed, with low rails. If I could get a room above or below theirs, It would be a short, easy rope climb to their balcony. I went inside and inquired about available rooms for the next evening, the evening of the ball. As the clerk leafed through his book I studied the registry and soon located Sarah and Henry Caboyt’s listing. It was better than I had hoped. They couple were in room 311. 313, 413 and 213 were taken for the weekend but 315, right next door was available. Containing my excitement I took it, prepaying for two nights, giving the clerk a false ID . I explained that my luggage had been delayed, and that when it came I would just take it up myself.

  

I returned to the other hotel, and dressed and went out for dinner, forming my plans as I ate. Returning I packed a small valise, put on evening attire, and snuck out via a back stairway that led to a now shadowed alley.

  

Walking out I went up the street bus stop and hailed a taxi. He gave me a suspicious look as I gave him the name of a fancy hotel that was a couple of blocks away from where the Cabot’s, and I, were staying: but I put on my bigwig demeanor and ignored him. He let me off and as I made sure he drove off, went up the block and entered my new hotel, heading straight for the elevator, not even gaining a second glance from the well trained operator. I went into my room, whistling at the fancy digs, before setting up the groundwork for my little operation.

  

That evening I sleep soundly, almost falling deeply again into a dream.

***********************************************

I found myself in her room once again. There were two of them. Identical twin sisters who occupied adjoining rooms in the old keep of the ancient stronghold that had been turned into a posh resort for the ultra-rich.

 

They had both been attending the extravagant ball being held in the old main chamber of the castle. But one had been ill and left early, planning to take a strong sleeping draught to fight her ailment.

 

Making sure the remaining sister was still going strong at the ball, I melted away into the shadows, breaking into her room before the twelve strokes of midnight had sounded in the large grandfather clock at the end of the hall. It took no effort on my part; she had conveniently left her velvet jewel pouch on the nightstand. I quickly scooped out its contents in a couple of shimmering handfuls. It was going to be a good night I told myself happily.

 

I went to the door that joined the room where her twin was sleeping. I cautiously opened it, and then slipped inside.

 

She looked so beautifully innocent as she slept, her brown satin pajamas shimmering in the light of the full moon streaming through an open stone cased window. After a bit of searching I found her jewel case tucked under the pillow she was laying on. I had discovered it while sliding my hand underneath, and I now began to work the calfskin leather case free. As I did I saw something glimmer faintly in the moonlight? Looking closer I realized she had no removed the pendent she had been wearing around her neck. It was on a gold chain, a ruby surrounded by small diamonds. I freed her jewel case and quickly emptied its contents, only one brightly glistening handful, which joined her sister’s collection in my satchel. I then pulled back her hair and felt for the clasp of her necklace. Locating it I slid it into my view and unclasped it. Picking up one end I lifted it from her throat, and gently pulled the other end from beneath her. It went perfectly; she never stirred as I took it from her. One a whim I peeled back ever so gently the long sleeves of her pajamas, . One her left wrist she still wore a ruby and diamond bracelet. Lifting her wrist up enough so my fingers could reach I undid the clasp and pulled it free, hanging like a wide sparkling snake.

 

I listened at her door, all was quite. I stole away, sneaking down the old servants back stairway. It was as I was edging around the building to make a bolt for the woods and my escape, that I saw her. The twin, who had stayed at the ball while her sister slept, was now lurking outside. She had no idea she was being watched. I eyed her sapphire jewelry sparkling along her pretty satin gown. I could tell she was up to something, as she hesitated, then assuming no one was around, headed off onto the path leading to a small lake. I followed without a second’s hesitation……..

 

************************************************

 

October 13, 192

  

The next morning I arose late, refreshed and ready for whatever exploits the day would hold for me.

  

After checking out my surroundings, including the balcony, I took a long hot shower and stretched out, waiting like a lion in the brush. Late afternoon I made my way down to the lobby with a book and nestled in a shadowy corner to wait. My plan was to watch them leave, follow them to gauge how long it would take them to return, head back, enter their room via the balcony and pilfer the room of its valuables and exit stage right, before they returned. I was banking on a fat jewel case. The rooms had no safes.

  

I sat, I observing my fellow guests coming and going about their personal business. Soon I noticed more and more of them in evening dress, heading out for a night on the town, which was a treat in and of its self. I did perk up when a lady clad in a long black velvet dress, matching gloves and pearls, walked down the stairs. As a pearl hanger, she would have been a tempting target. Pearls were always easy to pawn, and hers were a rather nice set. She seemed to be the easily distractible type, and easily distractible types who wore expensive jewels had always been my specialty. But I already had my mind set on Sophia Caboyt’s jewels that evening, So I let her slip away, watching her long gown swish about her pleasant figure.. Bird in the hand I thought, wistfully hoping that would prove to be the case.

  

An hour later I was rewarded as Sophia and Arthur came down. The couple was dressed to the nines for the evening, he was in a tux, she was in a long flowing glossy gown and gloves. She was dripping in diamonds, a full set. My heart sank, I wanted those diamonds, Quickly as I watched them I revised my plan. She was wearing a small fortune. I was sure that whatever was left in their room was probably not worth nearly as much, even the pearls.

  

I than sat and pretended to read my book for about another two hours while my mind went over several new plans of action. Accepting one of them as feasible, I rose and headed back up to my room. Lost my disguise, packed my valise for a hasty exit, put on my mask and gloves, turned out the lights, carefully opened my balcony door, and from a vantage point where I could see their room, I waited for their return. Breaking into a room with sleeping occupants was something I would rather not do, but oh, well, I would have to creep a little more carefully. Hopefully they would return home tipsy and sleep deeply.

  

Three and one half hours later the lights went on in their room. The balcony door was opened and Sophia came sweeping out, her jewelry blazing in the street lamps light from below. I watched with growing anticipation as she leaned out and looked onto the view below, her necklace and long earrings swaying out over the void, careful I thought, don’t let the pretty things fall. Her husband voice came out of the room inside, calling to her in an angry tone. “Sophia, I don’t believe it, they gave me the wrong top coat.” She sighed, gathering air, Are you sure she snapped, yes he said, my gloves are not in the pocket. She turned and went to the door, Go back tomorrow she decreed. I am going back now, he rebelled, and giving them a piece of my mind, I tipped that idiot 5 shillings. I heard the door slam. As it did, she had continued telling him not to go.

 

He had left and my mind started buzzing. What is he up to? He had no real reason not to wait, unless he was really that much of a hot head. If that was the case, He would easily be gone for an hour, which would give me at least 45 minutes to work with. They didn’t appear to have been drinking, If I stuck with my original plan, when he returned, things would be a lot more sticky, especially if he was in a foul mood and couldn’t sleep.

  

My window of opportunity, small already, began to shrink even more. I could have just let it go, but no I scolded myself, I would forever be berating myself for letting the chance to make a major coup slip through my fingers. I decided to risk it. Sometimes you just have to roll the dice and see how things lay and hope, luck will travel with it. I quickly reformulated my plan.

  

I went back and pulled a small derringer and some rope from my valise. She had been wearing a satin sash encircling her waist, held with a brooch. Once she handed me the brooch, I would use the sash to gag her; and my rope to tie her securely to a chair freeing me to search her and her room for valuables. I smiled in wicked anticipation; I have always liked a good old fashioned hold-up. I looked at my watch, still a good 32 minutes to obtain her jewels.

  

Climbing between the two ledges I slipped onto their balcony, ducking below the side and waited. Nothing stirred. I slinked over to the window and peered inside. No movement. Waiting another eternal minute I decided to enter, Carefully opening the glass door so it let out only the slightest of clicks I entered. I saw a door on the opposite side of the room, slightly ajar I could hear the sound of water running. Sophia was drawing a bath. I couldn’t believe my luck. I wedged myself in a corner and waited. I could see her shadow in the crack of light emitting from the door, and then I heard her slide into the tub. Immediately I was on the move.

 

I had seen a glistening pile on top of a small table by the bathroom door. I went there first. On the table were spread out in a sparkling array the diamonds she had been wearing earlier. I carefully lifted each magnificent piece and secreted them into my small satchel, one eye on the outer door, and one ear on the occupant of the bath tub. As I made a complete sweep of the table I saw her silvery, shiny jeweled purse off to one side, lying on her satin gloves. I went through it and found a the wad of notes and a heavy gold compact and matching cigarette holder. Putting the items back inside, along with her gloves, I pocketed the shiny purse. Then I noticed her jewel case when I had come in laying on the vanity. I went over and opened it, my eyes rewarded by a satisfying collection of glittery jewels, gold and pearls. I and quickly emptied it of its valuable contents, a set of emerald with diamonds( necklace, earrings, ring and bracelets), several gold chains, two pairs of gold earrings, one set with small diamonds, a thick solid gold bracelet, and a rather nice 3 strand pearl choker, as well as the pearls she had been wearing on the train. I hadn’t seen this much ice lately outside a jewelry store. Closing the case, I slipped it into a drawer out of sight..

  

I did not see her gown with its sash and brooch. I snuck a peak into the bathroom; I saw a long flowing satin bathrobe, but no red gown visible. I hesitated, for I could see her outline in the tub, she was laying back with her eyes closed, a hand hung down, from which glittered a pair of rings. No, I thought, letting them go. I went to her closet; there was a gold gown, but not the gown she had been wearing. I looked at my watch, 9 minutes left; I was running out of time. I went back to the bed and circled it, keeping a close eye on the two doors. Looking over on the opposite side by the wall I saw something glossy on the floor.. There it was, the little darling had slid off and was hiding on the floor. Lifting it up, I let the smooth material run through my hands, feeling it through the thin gloves I was wearing. I felt nothing hard, laying it across the chair I looked under the bed, saw something silky and pulled at it. It came out like a shiny snake, with a large diamond studded head. There was the prize. I took the sash and the brooch and stuffed them in my pocket. 3 minutes left by my watch.. I went back to the closet and felt along a couple of her things hanging there, hoping to find a clip , or possibly another brooch, one a silky jacket I felt something hard, it turned out to be a gold pin of a humming bird with jeweled wings. I pulled it free. My time was up, and I had plenty,

  

Turning out the lights I Heading to the door of the balcony fortunately I heard them just as I opened the glass door. I peeked to the balcony next door, on the opposite side of mine. A couple was in the middle of an argument. A quite pretty lady was giving a tuxedo shirted male a piece of her mind. She was a long haired brunette clad in a long silk sheath, gold and black descending stripes. She was lecturing a harried thin gentleman in a white tux shirt, chewing him out in rapid Italian. I was caught between a rock and a hard place. I stepped out in the shadows, closing the door behind me. I did not want to chance having the dejewelled princess or her husband walk into the bedroom and find me there. The minutes ticked by. I was mesmerized by the hand the Italian woman was shaking under his nose. The ladies’ Jeweled rings and bracelets flashing extravagantly in and out of the light. I will admit that after 6 excoriatingly long minutes I started to sweat a little. The show was quite fascinating, but I was expecting company at any time. And three would definitely be a crowd. She was not running out of steam, I felt sorry for the little guy.

  

Finally the Italian banshee ended her tirade. She ran into the room sobbing, he meekly followed. Just Than I about jumped out of my skin when I head Sophia calling out her husband’s name. Arthur she screeched, are you there yet, I have soap in my eyes. Do I dare, I thought to myself, those magnificent rings flashing back into my mind.

  

I moved swiftly back into the room, stealthily going to the bathroom door, looked around the door and stole a peak. She was holding her eyes closed, searching in vain for a towel, which had fallen just below her searching hand. The hand where the expensively jeweled rings she had worn into her bath resided. I moved swiftly, rapping on the door. About time she said as I handed her a towel. I took her hand, and kissed her soapy wet fingers. She smirked; don’t try to make up with me Arthur. I let go of her now ring less fingers. Turning I walked out swiftly, closing the door behind me before she had a chance to clear her eyes. Swiftly going back out the balcony door, I flew over the rail into my own balcony, and into the door. I waited for a minute without moving. The coast seemed clear.

  

I felt safe to turn the lights on. I hid her sash, brooch, jewels, and the silvery jeweled purse in the false bottom of my small valise. I put back on the red wig moustache and glasses and evening clothes. Then snatching up my case, I went to the door after a final inspection of the room. 65 minutes now had ticked by since the husband had left the apartment, leaving his wife and her jewels behind unprotected. It was time to make a hasty exit. As my white gloved hand touched the knob I heard voices in the hall. Damn I thought, she had taking the argument out of the room. Thankfully I heard the door slam. This was becoming a circus I thought, opening door a crack. The hall way was clear. I moved quickly down the corridor turning into another , down with lay my exit down a rear stairwell. I froze in my tracks. Now what I thought!

  

At the far end of the corridor, just passed my exit, was a wall where a full length painting of the battle of waterloo hung. The lady in velvet and pearls that I had been scrutinizing earlier in the evening sashaying through the lobby, was standing with her back to me mesmerized by the painting, her hands clasped behind her while she swayed to and fro studying it.. She was so enthralled by it that I probably could have walked right up to her and slipped the pearls from her throat and wrist without her even noticing me. Why not, I asked myself rhetorically. Setting the valise by the exit, I began removing my gloves as I walked up to her on the balls of my feet, silent as a cat. Pretty is it not I asked in her ear, she started, backing into me. I caught her as she twittered nervously. Sorry I said, steadying her. She blushed as she turned to me, giving me full view of the pearls around her throat. I kissed her hand, asking for her apologies as I turned and left her standing there. I heard the swish of her dress. I had been right about her being vulnerably captivated by the painting. The proof was in the pudding, or in this case the triple string pearl bracelet I had slipped away from her gloved wrist as she had bumped against me

  

I started down the stairs leading down to the lobby silently thanking whatever distraction it was that was holding Arthur up from returning home. Then, I saw him. I was coming down to the bottom of stairs I saw Arthur cutting through the lobby. I walked past him nodding as he passed raising my valise in salutation. He nodded back passing me without another look. He had a smile on his face, so he had received satisfaction from something. I too had a smirk on mine, garnering some satisfaction that he was totally unaware that a small fortune in his wife’s jewels was walking out the door right under his nose.

 

I left, holding my valise and headed down the street. I hailed a taxi, had him drop me off at the bus station, then went into my hotel and packed, before falling again into sound , pleasantly dream filled , sleep.

  

October 14, 192

  

I arose early the next day, leaving by the same back door to the alleyway.

Flagging a taxi I had him drive me to the shopping area by the train station.

I meandered around a bit and then, sure I was not being watched, made my way to the train station.

  

I than caught the next train heading to my original destination. After a long, leisurely meal, and a couple well-earned drinks at the bar I headed back to my seat. This time there were no brides with shiny necklaces, or Caboyt’s with their pompous arrogance and fancy jewels to entertain me. So I found one of my own making. As the train rumbled into the night I snuggled down and replayed the whole adventure, savoring every aspect until I fell into dream filled sleep.

****************************************

  

She must have imbibed more than I thought, for she walked to the bench, and taken a careful look around, began to undress. Watching the swans, she started by removing her jewelry, placing them in a pile that glistened in the moon’s light. She then stepped behind some bushes, and I observed her laying her gloves, gown and some silky nickers over a tree limb. I began to move back and cut along the woods to where she had undressed. A soft, subtle splash of water let me know she had entered the pool. Reaching her things hanging on the tree limb I looked out, she was in up to her chest, back to me, still watching the swans that had moved off a small distance when she had entered. I carefully pulled her clothes off the limb, then hid them behind a tree, , feeling the hardness of her broach, I unfastened from her gown. Then on all fours, keeping below the bench, I carefully crawled forward, inching ever closer to the glistening pile of rich jewels that beckoned me…..

 

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•52 Church Street is Christ Church Cathedral. In 1816 the stone Christ Church was built by order of Governor Macquarie by convicts. Designed by convict artist Joseph Lycett. The first Bishop of Newcastle was appointed in 1847. Bishop Tyrrell who arrived 1848. The old church of 1816 was used until architect John Horbury Hunt drew up plans for a cathedral and had it demolished. One stone remains in the nave of the current Cathedral. In 1883 Cathedral Hall was built across the road for use as a church whilst the Cathedral was being built. Work began 1883 on the Cathedral but stopped in 1891 as the foundations began to subside. Work restarted in 1902 and was soon finished with marble floors, stained glass windows and a superb Warriors Chapel. The church ran a competition in 1868 for a cathedral to cost no more than £10,000. The winners were Terry and Speechley from Melbourne with John Horbury Hunt as supervising architect. Cost concerns arose and John Horbury Hunt was appointed as the architect. During repairs undertaken after the 1989 Newcastle earthquake the original 1816 church foundation stone was re-positioned within the Cathedral nave. Hunt also designed a Pro-Cathedral opposite which was called Cathedral Hall. It is now the Anglican Newcastle Grammar School. This was used until the opening of the new Cathedral for services in 1902. Kempe of London supplied the stained glass windows in the nave and baptistery in the new Cathedral. It also contains a stained glass jewel: the Dies Domini window designed by Sir Edward Burne-Jones and executed by Morris & Co. of London. The Warriors' Chapel was built in 1924. It was a permanent memorial to all those who died in World War I, especially men and women of Newcastle and the Hunter Valley. The Christ Church burial ground, located on the northern side of the church and now a park and is the first known European burial ground in Newcastle.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Le costume d'Arles est avec le costume provençal comtadin l'une des deux grandes variantes du costume provençal. Appelé aussi arlèse, son port a été relancé par Frédéric Mistral à la fin du XIXe siècle comme l'un des signes de l'identité culturelle de la Provence. Encore utilisé le dimanche jusqu'au début du XXe siècle, son usage courant a progressivement disparu au cours de la première moitié du XXe siècle. Actuellement, il n'est porté qu'épisodiquement, par des groupes folkloriques ou lors de manifestations volontaristes de l'identité locale1.

  

Historique

Costumes arlésiens au XVIIIe siècle (Atelier de couture à Arles, Antoine Raspal, 1760, musée Réattu, Arles).

 

Parmi toutes les variétés locales à la mode au cours du XVIIIe siècle, seul le costume d'Arles, porté indifféremment par les femmes de toutes conditions, a traversé la Révolution, tout en continuant à évoluer d'une façon naturelle. Jusque dans les années 1950, il était encore porté, quotidiennement à Arles par un certain nombre de femmes, et plus particulièrement le dimanche. Le costume d'Arles a été la tenue féminine traditionnelle dans tout l'ancien archevêché, a tenté de s'imposer jusqu'à Avignon sous l'impulsion de Frédéric Mistral, a débordé sur la rive droite du Rhône de la Camargue gardoise jusqu'à l'Uzège2, s'est étendu à l'Est par delà la Crau, jusqu'à la Durance et le golfe de Fos. Toute son évolution est retracée au Museon Arlaten3.

  

Originalité

 

Ce costume d'Arles se distingue d'abord par une coiffe spéciale qui nécessite le port de cheveux longs. En fonction des jours de la semaine et des tâches à accomplir, cette coiffure était retenue sur le sommet de la tête par un ruban, une cravate ou un nœud de dentelles. Mais elle exigeait toujours un temps de préparation important et des soins particuliers pour respecter l'exigence de ses canons. Cette coiffure est peu adaptée aujourd'hui à une vie professionnelle moderne. Face à la mode des cheveux courts, un substitut sous forme de postiche a été proposé, mais son manque de naturel l'a voué à l'échec4.

 

Composition

 

Parmi les pièces qui compose actuellement l'habillement et signe son élégance, il y a la chapelle ou cache-coeur, plastron de dentelle en forme de trapèze, apparu en 1860, et qui couvre la poitrine5, le grand châle ou fichu, de forme carrée, qui moule le buste, la robe longue en satin de différentes couleurs, souvent pincée à la taille, les dorures (bijoux, agrafes, boucles ou crochets) qui sont transmises de génération en génération. Ces parures vont du tour de cou en argent, aux différentes croix d'or filigranées, dites croix provençales, des bracelets en or massif enrichis de diamants6, aux boucles d'oreilles (pendants ou brandanto) réservées aux seules femmes mariées, en passant par les bagues rehaussées de pierres précieuses, les boucles de soulier en argent, les agrafes de manteau dorées ou argentées, les crochets d'argent pour la ceinture qui permettaient de suspendre les clefs, à la fois signe de richesse et de possession sur la maison familiale7.

  

Arles

 

Arles is located in France

Arles is located in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

Coordinates: 43°40′36″N 4°37′40″ECoordinates: 43°40′36″N 4°37′40″E

Country France

Region Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

Department Bouches-du-Rhône

Arrondissement Arles

Canton Arles

Intercommunality CA Arles-Crau-Camargue-Montagnette

Government

• Mayor (2014–2020) Hervé Schiavetti (PCF)

Area1 758.93 km2 (293.02 sq mi)

Population (2012)2 52,439

• Density 69/km2 (180/sq mi)

Time zone CET (UTC+1)

• Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)

INSEE/Postal code 13004 /13200

Elevation 0–57 m (0–187 ft)

(avg. 10 m or 33 ft)

 

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

 

Arles (French pronunciation: ​[aʁl]; Provençal [ˈaʀle] in both classical and Mistralian norms; Arelate in Classical Latin) is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence.

 

A large part of the Camargue is located on the territory of the commune, making it the largest commune in Metropolitan France in terms of territory (though Maripasoula, French Guiana, is much larger). The city has a long history, and was of considerable importance in the Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis. The Roman and Romanesque Monuments of Arles were listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1981. The Dutch post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh lived in Arles from 1888 to 1889 and produced over 300 paintings and drawings during his time there. An international photography festival has been held in the city since 1970.

 

Geography

 

The river Rhône forks into two branches just upstream of Arles, forming the Camargue delta. Because the Camargue is for a large part administratively part of Arles, the commune as a whole is the largest commune in Metropolitan France in terms of territory, although its population is only slightly more than 50,000. Its area is 758.93 km2 (293.02 sq mi), which is more than seven times the area of Paris.

Climate

 

Arles has a Mediterranean climate with a mean annual temperature of 14.6 °C (1948 - 1999). The summers are warm and moderately dry, with seasonal averages between 22 °C and 24 °C, and mild winters with a mean temperature of about 7 °C. The city is constantly, but especially in the winter months, subject to the influence of the mistral, a cold wind which can cause sudden and severe frosts. Rainfall (636 mm per year) is fairly evenly distributed from September to May, with the summer drought being less marked than in other Mediterranean areas.[1]

 

Ancient era

 

The Ligurians were in this area from about 800 BC. Later, Celtic influences have been discovered. The city became an important Phoenician trading port, before being taken by the Romans.

 

The Romans took the town in 123 BC and expanded it into an important city, with a canal link to the Mediterranean Sea being constructed in 104 BC. However, it struggled to escape the shadow of Massalia (Marseilles) further along the coast.

 

Its chance came when it sided with Julius Caesar against Pompey, providing military support. Massalia backed Pompey; when Caesar emerged victorious, Massalia was stripped of its possessions, which were transferred to Arelate as a reward. The town was formally established as a colony for veterans of the Roman legion Legio VI Ferrata, which had its base there. Its full title as a colony was Colonia Iulia Paterna Arelatensium Sextanorum, "the ancestral Julian colony of Arles of the soldiers of the Sixth."

 

Arelate was a city of considerable importance in the province of Gallia Narbonensis. It covered an area of some 40 hectares (99 acres) and possessed a number of monuments, including an amphitheatre, triumphal arch, Roman circus, theatre, and a full circuit of walls. Ancient Arles was closer to the sea than it is now and served as a major port. It also had (and still has) the southernmost bridge on the Rhône. Very unusually, the Roman bridge was not fixed but consisted of a pontoon-style bridge of boats, with towers and drawbridges at each end. The boats were secured in place by anchors and were tethered to twin towers built just upstream of the bridge. This unusual design was a way of coping with the river's frequent violent floods, which would have made short work of a conventional bridge. Nothing remains of the Roman bridge, which has been replaced by a more modern bridge near the same spot.

 

The city reached a peak of influence during the 4th and 5th centuries, when Roman Emperors frequently used it as their headquarters during military campaigns. In 395, it became the seat of the Praetorian Prefecture of the Gauls, governing the western part of the Western Empire: Gaul proper plus Hispania (Spain) and Armorica (Brittany). At that time, the city was perhaps home to 75,000–100,000 people.[2][3][4][5]

 

It became a favorite city of Emperor Constantine I, who built baths there, substantial remains of which are still standing. His son, Constantine II, was born in Arles. Usurper Constantine III declared himself emperor in the West (407–411) and made Arles his capital in 408.

 

Arles became renowned as a cultural and religious centre during the late Roman Empire. It was the birthplace of the sceptical philosopher Favorinus. It was also a key location for Roman Christianity and an important base for the Christianization of Gaul. The city's bishopric was held by a series of outstanding clerics, beginning with Saint Trophimus around 225 and continuing with Saint Honoratus, then Saint Hilarius in the first half of the 5th century. The political tension between the Catholic bishops of Arles and the Visigothic kings is epitomized in the career of the Frankish St. Caesarius, bishop of Arles 503–542, who was suspected by the Arian Visigoth Alaric II of conspiring with the Burgundians to turn over the Arelate to Burgundy, and was exiled for a year to Bordeaux in Aquitaine. Political tensions were evident again in 512, when Arles held out against Theodoric the Great and Caesarius was imprisoned and sent to Ravenna to explain his actions before the Ostrogothic king.[6]

 

The friction between the Arian Christianity of the Visigoths and the Catholicism of the bishops sent out from Rome established deep roots for religious heterodoxy, even heresy, in Occitan culture. At Treves in 385, Priscillian achieved the distinction of becoming the first Christian executed for heresy (Manichaean in his case, see also Cathars, Camisards). Despite this tension and the city's decline in the face of barbarian invasions, Arles remained a great religious centre and host of church councils (see Council of Arles), the rival of Vienne, for hundreds of years.

Roman aqueduct and mill

Aqueduct of Arles at Barbegal

 

The Barbegal aqueduct and mill is a Roman watermill complex located on the territory of the commune of Fontvieille, a few kilometres from Arles. The complex has been referred to as "the greatest known concentration of mechanical power in the ancient world".[7] The remains of the mill streams and buildings which housed the overshot water wheels are still visible at the site, and it is by far the best-preserved of ancient mills. There are two aqueducts which join just north of the mill complex, and a sluice which enabled the operators to control the water supply to the complex. The mill consisted of 16 waterwheels in two separate rows built into a steep hillside. There are substantial masonry remains of the water channels and foundations of the individual mills, together with a staircase rising up the hill upon which the mills are built. The mills apparently operated from the end of the 1st century until about the end of the 3rd century.[8] The capacity of the mills has been estimated at 4.5 tons of flour per day, sufficient to supply enough bread for 6,000 of the 30-40,000 inhabitants of Arelate at that time.[9] A similar mill complex existed also on the Janiculum in Rome. Examination of the mill leat still just visible on one side of the hill shows a substantial accretion of lime in the channel, tending to confirm its long working life.

 

It is thought that the wheels were overshot water wheels with the outflow from the top driving the next one down and so on, to the base of the hill. Vertical water mills were well known to the Romans, being described by Vitruvius in his De Architectura of 25 BC, and mentioned by Pliny the Elder in his Naturalis Historia of 77 AD. There are also later references to floating water mills from Byzantium and to sawmills on the river Moselle by the poet Ausonius. The use of multiple stacked sequences of reverse overshot water-wheels was widespread in Roman mines.

Middle Ages

Place de la République.

Cafe Terrace at Night by Vincent van Gogh (September 1888), depicts the warmth of a café in Arles

 

In 735, after raiding the Lower Rhône, Andalusian Saracens led by Yusuf ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri moved into the stronghold summoned by Count Maurontus, who feared Charles Martel's expansionist ambitions, though this may have been an excuse to further Moorish expansion beyond Iberia. The next year, Charles campaigned south to Septimania and Provence, attacking and capturing Arles after destroying Avignon. In 739. Charles definitely drove Maurontus to exile, and brought Provence to heel. In 855, it was made the capital of a Frankish Kingdom of Arles, which included Burgundy and part of Provence, but was frequently terrorised by Saracen and Viking raiders. In 888, Rudolph, Count of Auxerre (now in north-western Burgundy), founded the kingdom of Transjuran Burgundy (literally, beyond the Jura mountains), which included western Switzerland as far as the river Reuss, Valais, Geneva, Chablais and Bugey.

 

In 933, Hugh of Arles ("Hugues de Provence") gave his kingdom up to Rudolph II, who merged the two kingdoms into a new Kingdom of Arles. In 1032, King Rudolph III died, and the kingdom was inherited by Emperor Conrad II the Salic. Though his successors counted themselves kings of Arles, few went to be crowned in the cathedral. Most of the kingdom's territory was progressively incorporated into France. During these troubled times, the amphitheatre was converted into a fortress, with watchtowers built at each of the four quadrants and a minuscule walled town being constructed within. The population was by now only a fraction of what it had been in Roman times, with much of old Arles lying in ruins.

 

The town regained political and economic prominence in the 12th century, with the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa traveling there in 1178 for his coronation. In the 12th century, it became a free city governed by an elected podestat (chief magistrate; literally "power"), who appointed the consuls and other magistrates. It retained this status until the French Revolution of 1789.

 

Arles joined the countship of Provence in 1239, but, once more, its prominence was eclipsed by Marseilles. In 1378, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV ceded the remnants of the Kingdom of Arles to the Dauphin of France (later King Charles VI of France) and the kingdom ceased to exist even on paper.

Modern era

 

Arles remained economically important for many years as a major port on the Rhône. In the 19th century, the arrival of the railway diminished river trade, leading to the town becoming something of a backwater.

 

This made it an attractive destination for the painter Vincent van Gogh, who arrived there on 21 February 1888. He was fascinated by the Provençal landscapes, producing over 300 paintings and drawings during his time in Arles. Many of his most famous paintings were completed there, including The Night Cafe, the Yellow Room, Starry Night Over the Rhone, and L'Arlésienne. Paul Gauguin visited van Gogh in Arles. However, van Gogh's mental health deteriorated and he became alarmingly eccentric, culminating in the well-known ear-severing incident in December 1888 which resulted in two stays in the Old Hospital of Arles. The concerned Arlesians circulated a petition the following February demanding that van Gogh be confined. In May 1889, he took the hint and left Arles for the Saint-Paul asylum at nearby Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.

Jewish history

Main article: History of the Jews in Arles

 

Arles had an important and evident Jewish community between the Roman era and until the end of the 15th century. A local legend describes the first Jews in Arles as exiles from Judaea after Jerusalem fell to the Romans. Nevertheless, the first documented evident of Jews in Arles is not before fifth century, when a distinguished community had already existed in town. Arles was an important Jewish crossroads, as a port city and close to Spain and the rest of Europe alike. It served a major role in the work of the Hachmei Provence group of famous Jewish scholars, translators and philosophers, who were most important to Judaism throughout the Middle Ages. At the eighth century, the jurisdiction of the Jews of Arles were passed to the local Archbishop, making the Jewish taxes to the clergy somewhat of a shield for the community from mob attacks, most frequent during the Crusades. The community lived relatively peacefully until the last decade of the 15th century, when they were expelled out of the city never to return. Several Jews did live in the city in the centuries after, though no community was found ever after. Nowadays, Jewish archaeological findings and texts from Arles can be found in the local museum.[10]

Population

 

Arles has important Roman remnants, most of which have been listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1981 within the Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments group. They include:

 

The Gallo-Roman theatre

The arena or amphitheatre

The Alyscamps (Roman necropolis)

The Thermae of Constantine

The cryptoporticus

Arles Obelisk

Barbegal aqueduct and mill

 

The Church of St. Trophime (Saint Trophimus), formerly a cathedral, is a major work of Romanesque architecture, and the representation of the Last Judgment on its portal is considered one of the finest examples of Romanesque sculpture, as are the columns in the adjacent cloister.

 

The town also has a museum of ancient history, the Musée de l'Arles et de la Provence antiques, with one of the best collections of Roman sarcophagi to be found anywhere outside Rome itself. Other museums include the Musée Réattu and the Museon Arlaten.

 

The courtyard of the Old Arles hospital, now named "Espace Van Gogh," is a center for Vincent van Gogh's works, several of which are masterpieces.[11] The garden, framed on all four sides by buildings of the complex, is approached through arcades on the first floor. A circulation gallery is located on the first and second floors.[12]

Archaeology

Main article: Arles portrait bust

 

In September–October 2007, divers led by Luc Long from the French Department of Subaquatic Archaeological Research, headed by Michel L'Hour, discovered a life-sized marble bust of an apparently important Roman person in the Rhône near Arles, together with smaller statues of Marsyas in Hellenistic style and of the god Neptune from the third century AD. The larger bust was tentatively dated to 46 BC. Since the bust displayed several characteristics of an ageing person with wrinkles, deep naso-labial creases and hollows in his face, and since the archaeologists believed that Julius Caesar had founded the colony Colonia Iulia Paterna Arelate Sextanorum in 46 BC, the scientists came to the preliminary conclusion that the bust depicted a life-portrait of the Roman dictator: France's Minister of Culture Christine Albanel reported on May 13, 2008, that the bust would be the oldest representation of Caesar known today.[13] The story was picked up by all larger media outlets.[14][15] The realism of the portrait was said to place it in the tradition of late Republican portrait and genre sculptures. The archaeologists further claimed that a bust of Julius Caesar might have been thrown away or discreetly disposed of, because Caesar's portraits could have been viewed as politically dangerous possessions after the dictator's assassination.

 

Historians and archaeologists not affiliated with the French administration, among them Paul Zanker, the renowned archaeologist and expert on Caesar and Augustus, were quick to question whether the bust is a portrait of Caesar.[16][17][18] Many noted the lack of resemblances to Caesar's likenesses issued on coins during the last years of the dictator's life, and to the Tusculum bust of Caesar,[19] which depicts Julius Caesar in his lifetime, either as a so-called zeitgesicht or as a direct portrait. After a further stylistic assessment, Zanker dated the Arles-bust to the Augustan period. Elkins argued for the third century AD as the terminus post quem for the deposition of the statues, refuting the claim that the bust was thrown away due to feared repercussions from Caesar's assassination in 44 BC.[20] The main argument by the French archaeologists that Caesar had founded the colony in 46 BC proved to be incorrect, as the colony was founded by Caesar's former quaestor Tiberius Claudius Nero on the dictator's orders in his absence.[21] Mary Beard has accused the persons involved in the find of having willfully invented their claims for publicity reasons. The French ministry of culture has not yet responded to the criticism and negative reviews.

Sport

 

AC Arles-Avignon is a professional French football team. They currently play in Championnat de France Amateur, the fourth division in French football. They play at the Parc des Sports, which has a capacity of just over 17,000.

Culture

 

A well known photography festival, Rencontres d'Arles, takes place in Arles every year, and the French national school of photography is located there.

 

The major French publishing house Actes Sud is also situated in Arles.

 

Bull fights are conducted in the amphitheatre, including Provençal-style bullfights (courses camarguaises) in which the bull is not killed, but rather a team of athletic men attempt to remove a tassle from the bull's horn without getting injured. Every Easter and on the first weekend of September, during the feria, Arles also holds Spanish-style corridas (in which the bulls are killed) with an encierro (bull-running in the streets) preceding each fight.

 

The film Ronin was partially filmed in Arles.

European Capital of Culture

 

Arles played a major role in Marseille-Provence 2013, the year-long series of cultural events held in the region after it was designated the European Capital of Culture for 2013. The city hosted a segment of the opening ceremony with a pyrotechnical performance by Groupe F on the banks of the Rhône. It also unveiled the new wing of the Musée Départemental Arles Antique as part of Marseille-Provence 2013.

Economy

 

Arles's open-air street market is a major market in the region. It occurs on Saturday and Wednesday mornings.

Transport

 

The Gare d'Arles railway station offers connections to Avignon, Nîmes, Marseille, Paris, Bordeaux and several regional destinations.

Notable people

 

Vincent van Gogh, lived here from February 1888 until May 1889.

The Provençal poet Frédéric Mistral (1830–1914) was born near Arles

Jeanne Calment (1875–1997), the oldest human being whose age is documented, was born, lived and died, at the age of 122 years and 164 days, in Arles

Anne-Marie David, singer (Eurovision winner in 1973)

Christian Lacroix, fashion designer

Lucien Clergue, photographer

Djibril Cissé, footballer

Antoine de Seguiran, 18th-century encyclopédiste

Genesius of Arles, a notary martyred under Maximianus in 303 or 308

Blessed Jean Marie du Lau, last Archbishop of Arles, killed by the revolutionary mob in Paris on September 2, 1792

Juan Bautista (real name Jean-Baptiste Jalabert), matador

Maja Hoffmann, art patron

Mehdi Savalli, matador

The medieval writer Antoine de la Sale was probably born in Arles around 1386

Home of the Gipsy Kings, a music group from Arles

Gael Givet, footballer

Lloyd Palun, footballer

Fanny Valette, actress

Luc Hoffmann, ornithologist, conservationist and philanthropist.

Saint Caesarius of Arles, bishop who lived from the late 5th to the mid 6th century, known for prophecy and writings that would later be used by theologians such as St. Thomas Aquinas

Samuel ibn Tibbon, famous Jewish translator and scholar during the Middle Ages.

Kalonymus ben Kalonymus, famous Jewish scholar and philosopher, Arles born, active during the Middle Ages.

 

Twin towns — sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

 

Arles is twinned with:

 

Pskov, Russia

Jerez de la Frontera, Spain

Fulda, Germany

York, Pennsylvania, United States

Cubelles, Spain

Vercelli, Italy

Sagné, Mauritania

Kalymnos, Greece

Wisbech, United Kingdom

Zhouzhuang, Kunshan, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China

Verviers, Belgium

 

See also

 

Archbishopric of Arles

Montmajour Abbey

Trinquetaille

Langlois Bridge

Saint-Martin-de-Crau

Communes of the Bouches-du-Rhône department

 

References

 

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Archdiocese of Aix". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton.

INSEE

 

The table contains the temperatures and precipitation of the city of Arles for the period 1948-1999, extracted from the site Sophy.u-3mrs.fr.

www.academia.edu/1166147/_The_Fall_and_Decline_of_the_Rom...

Rick Steves' Provence & the French Riviera, p. 78, at Google Books

Nelson's Dictionary of Christianity: The Authoritative Resource on the Christian World, p. 1173, at Google Books

Provence, p. 81, at Google Books

Wace, Dictionary)

Greene, Kevin (2000). "Technological Innovation and Economic Progress in the Ancient World: M.I. Finley Re-Considered". The Economic History Review. New Series. 53 (1): 29–59 [p. 39]. doi:10.1111/1468-0289.00151.

"Ville d'Histoire et de Patrimoine". Patrimoine.ville-arles.fr. Retrieved 2013-03-25.

"La meunerie de Barbegal". Etab.ac-caen.fr. Retrieved 2013-03-25.

jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/1784-arles

Fisher, R, ed (2011). Fodor's France 2011. Toronto and New York: Fodor's Travel, division of Random House. p. 563 ISBN 978-1-4000-0473-7.

"Espace Van Gogh". Visiter, Places of Interest. Arles Office de Tourisme. Retrieved 2011-04-29.

Original communiqué (May 13, 2008); second communiqué (May 20, 2008); report (May 20, 2008)

E.g."Divers find marble bust of Caesar that may date to 46 B.C.". Archived from the original on 2008-06-05. Retrieved 2008-05-14. , CNN-Online et al.

Video (QuickTime) Archived May 28, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. on the archaeological find (France 3)

Paul Zanker, "Der Echte war energischer, distanzierter, ironischer" Archived May 29, 2008, at the Wayback Machine., Sueddeutsche Zeitung, May 25, 2008, on-line

Mary Beard, "The face of Julius Caesar? Come off it!", TLS, May 14, 2008, on-line

Nathan T. Elkins, 'Oldest Bust' of Julius Caesar found in France?, May 14, 2008, on-line

Cp. this image at the AERIA library

A different approach was presented by Mary Beard, in that members of a military Caesarian colony would not have discarded portraits of Caesar, whom they worshipped as god, although statues were in fact destroyed by the Anti-Caesarians in the city of Rome after Caesar's assassination (Appian, BC III.1.9).

Konrat Ziegler & Walther Sontheimer (eds.), "Arelate", in Der Kleine Pauly: Lexikon der Antike, Vol. 1, col. 525, Munich 1979; in 46 BC, Caesar himself was campaigning in Africa, before later returning to Rome.

Grille exécutée par Fray Francisco de Salamanca et Juan de Avila.

Fondé au XIIIe siècle après la découverte d'une statue de la Vierge et symbole de la "Hispanidad", il fut le plus important monastère d'Espagne durant quatre siècles.

C'est là que vint Colomb après son voyage de 1492 pour rendre compte aux Rois Catholiques de son voyage vers les Indes... et c'est là, en 1496, que furent baptisés les premiers Indiens ramenés en Europe.

March 2029 - SSA troops execute a mission to locate an abandoned DARKWATER military facility in Sudan. They met no resistance and recovered old DARKWATER technology and documents hidden in the facility. Lucky for them, it did not look like the EU had found the place yet. However, some rooms and certain areas of the facility looked demolished and unrecognisable. Reports indicate the facility has hastily destroyed by DARKWATER units after the head of the facility was executed due to his little care to orders issued by DARKWATER command. Sharp Sky was hired by the Indian government to raid this place. They were hired to find DARKWATER technology for the Indian armed forces that use semi-outdated equipment. This successful mission strengthened relations between Sharp Sky and the Indian government. Unintentionally, this annoyed the European Union’s leaders because they had been the ones who had found many facilities in Eastern Africa and the Middle East. According to found DARKWATER documents, this facility had encountered safety and maintenance problems and had been disbanded.

 

---

 

The Sharp Sky figure in the scene is the new standard for all main SSA figures from now on. Scout and Marksman/Sniper variants aren't official yet.

     

Use the Emperor's order dictionary.

         

LEGO STARWARS blog:

stormtrooper.kr/

The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as Castel Sant'Angelo, is a towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, Rome, Italy. It was initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family. The building was later used by the popes as a fortress and castle, and is now a museum. The Castle was once the tallest building in Rome.

The tomb of the Roman emperor Hadrian, also called Hadrian's mole, was erected on the right bank of the Tiber, between 134 and 139 AD. Originally the mausoleum was a decorated cylinder, with a garden top and golden quadriga. Hadrian's ashes were placed here a year after his death in Baiae in 138, together with those of his wife Sabina, and his first adopted son, Lucius Aelius, who also died in 138. Following this, the remains of succeeding emperors were also placed here, the last recorded deposition being Caracalla in 217. The urns containing these ashes were probably placed in what is now known as the Treasury room deep within the building. Hadrian also built the Pons Aelius facing straight onto the mausoleum – it still provides a scenic approach from the center of Rome and the left bank of the Tiber, and is renowned for the Baroque additions of statues of angels holding aloft elements of the Passion of Christ.

Much of the tomb contents and decorations have been lost since the building's conversion to a military fortress in 401 and its subsequent inclusion in the Aurelian Walls by Flavius Augustus Honorius. The urns and ashes were scattered by Visigoth looters during Alaric's sacking of Rome in 410, and the original decorative bronze and stone statuary were thrown down upon the attacking Goths when they besieged Rome in 537, as recounted by Procopius. An unusual survivor, however, is the capstone of a funerary urn (probably that of Hadrian), which made its way to Saint Peter's Basilica, covered the tomb of Otto II and later was incorporated into a massive Renaissance baptistery. The use of spolia from the tomb in the post-Roman period was noted in the 16th century — Giorgio Vasari writes:

 

...in order to build churches for the use of the Christians, not only were the most honoured temples of the idols [pagan Roman gods] destroyed, but in order to ennoble and decorate Saint Peter's with more ornaments than it then possessed, they took away the stone columns from the tomb of Hadrian, now the castle of Sant'Angelo, as well as many other things which we now see in ruins.

 

Legend holds that the Archangel Michael appeared atop the mausoleum, sheathing his sword as a sign of the end of the plague of 590, thus lending the castle its present name. A less charitable yet more apt elaboration of the legend, given the militant disposition of this archangel, was heard by the 15th-century traveler who saw an angel statue on the castle roof. He recounts that during a prolonged season of the plague, Pope Gregory I heard that the populace, even Christians, had begun revering a pagan idol at the church of Santa Agata in Suburra. A vision urged the pope to lead a procession to the church. Upon arriving, the idol miraculously fell apart with a clap of thunder. Returning to St Peter's by the Aelian Bridge, the pope had another vision of an angel atop the castle, wiping the blood from his sword on his mantle, and then sheathing it. While the pope interpreted this as a sign that God was appeased, this did not prevent Gregory from destroying more sites of pagan worship in Rome.

The popes converted the structure into a castle, beginning in the 14th century; Pope Nicholas III connected the castle to St Peter's Basilica by a covered fortified corridor called the Passetto di Borgo. The fortress was the refuge of Pope Clement VII from the siege of Charles V's Landsknechte during the Sack of Rome (1527), in which Benvenuto Cellini describes strolling the ramparts and shooting enemy soldiers.

 

Leo X built a chapel with a Madonna by Raffaello da Montelupo. In 1536 Montelupo also created a marble statue of Saint Michael holding his sword after the 590 plague (as described above) to surmount the Castel.[6] Later Paul III built a rich apartment, to ensure that in any future siege the pope had an appropriate place to stay.

 

Montelupo's statue was replaced by a bronze statue of the same subject, executed by the Flemish sculptor Peter Anton von Verschaffelt, in 1753. Verschaffelt's is still in place and Montelupo's can be seen in an open court in the interior of the Castle.

 

The Papal state also used Sant'Angelo as a prison; Giordano Bruno, for example, was imprisoned there for six years. Another prisoner was the sculptor and goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini. Executions were performed in the small inner courtyard. As a prison, it was also the setting for the third act of Giacomo Puccini's 1900 opera Tosca; the eponymous heroine leaps to her death from the Castel's ramparts.

It has been a busy few weeks, planning and executing a seven part project for one of my favorite clients and squeaking in other work between those shoots. Between at project and my other responsibilities, I have pulled almost a month (maybe more, who can remember) for 7 day work weeks. So, I am headed up to lake Bruin with a few friends for a much-needed couple of days off.

 

Before I go, I thought I’d throw a few images up on the site that were outtakes from the recent shoots. It’s been a fun project where I had a lot of creative latitude. I feel extraordinarily fortunate to be able to make a living doing something I really love, namely taking pictures. But, when I am doing client work, I am sometimes restricted in what I can post. Such is the life of the freelancer.

 

Although I do plan on doing some work on a wedding that I recent photographed, this weekend will be more about play than work. Depending on the conditions, I would like to get some shooting in while I am up there. Readers of this blog won’t be surprised to know that I love north Louisiana and the photographs I am occasionally able to capture from the mystical, empty place.

 

I hope you all have a good weekend and just to keep this site active (I’ve been slack about posting, I know). Here are some of the shots I took recently but which probably won’t make the cut with the client.

 

Check out more at my blog, for lots of photos, recipes, tech talk, travel writing and other ramblings. I appreciate any feedback but, please do not post graphic awards or invitations in the comments, I'm just not crazy about them. Also, if you want to use any of my Commercial Commons licensed photos please link the attribution back to my blog (listed above) and use my full name, Frank McMains. Thanks! Sorry, but you have to pay to use fully copyright protected photos.

Sadly, not executed as well as I had hoped for, but I like this shot nevertheless for the expression of movement as well as for the delightful subject. The sheer number of cyclists in Amsterdam and their appearance at considerable speed from all directions is astonishing. There are no overweight Dutch people, they are all so fit!

Image of Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 767 doing a photo runby on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad made at Boston Mill.

or "the messiest photoshoot EVER up to this day"

 

yeah, I bought glitter for the sole purpose of taking pictures with it. After some trials with it in my hands, like it was faerie dust and etc, I decided to make something different and... why not put all this sparkly stuff on my lips?

I'm not sure if I liked it or not - kind of, but I guess I could execute better this idea with more stuff...

Also, I still suck at taking self-portraits - even with a tripod.

And now all my room, my clothes and my camera are fucking sparkly!

 

(non-required info: the title is a reference to stevie nick's song!! I love it)

U memorijalnom parku Dotrščina spomenik je u čast žrtava fašizma strijeljanima u ovoj šumi. Spomenik je djelo Vojina Bakića (1915.- 1992.), koji je bio istaknuti hrvatski kipar srpskog podrijetla.

Zbog odbijanja svjetla od metalne površine ovog lijepog spomenika, on se mijenja od sata do sata, od jednog do drugog godišnjeg doba. Nikad se ne čini isti.

 

In memorial park Dotrščina there is a monument in honour of victims of fascism executed in this forest. The monument is work of Vojin Bakić, ( born 1915 , died 1992) who was a prominent Croatian sculptor of Serbian descent.

Due to reflection of the light from the metallic surface of this beautiful monument, it changes from hour to hour and from season to season. It never seems to be the same.

Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449-1494) - St. John the Baptist - polychrome stained glass windows, executed in 1492 by Alessandro Agolanti to a design by Ghirlandaio - Tornabuoni Chapel (1485-1490) - Santa Maria Novella Florence

 

La cappella Tornabuoni è la cappella maggiore della basilica di Santa Maria Novella a Firenze. Contiene uno dei più vasti cicli di affreschi di tutta la città, realizzato da Domenico Ghirlandaio e bottega dal 1485 al 1490.

Gli affreschi hanno come tema le Scene della vita della Vergine e di san Giovanni Battista, inquadrate da finte architetture (pilastri con capitelli corinzi dorati e trabeazioni con dentelli, sulle tre pareti disponibili. Le scene si leggono dal basso verso l'alto, da destra a sinistra, secondo uno schema che già all'epoca doveva risultare un po' arcaico.

Le due pareti principali, a destra e a sinistra, presentano tre file di scene ciascuna, a sua volta divise in due scene rettangolari, ed una grande lunetta sulla sommità, per un totale di sette scene a parete.

  

The Cappella Tornabuoni is the main chapel (or chancel) in the church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy. It is famous for the extensive and well-preserved fresco cycle on its walls, one of the most complete in the city, which was created by Domenico Ghirlandaio and his workshop between 1485 and 1490.

The portraits of the members of the Tornabuoni family and of relatives, friends, allies and clients of the Medici and the Tornabuoni are included as spectators to the holy stories.

Ghirlandaio worked to the frescoes from 1485 to 1490, with the collaboration of his workshop artists, who included his brothers Davide and Benedetto, his brother-in-law Sebastiano Mainardi and, probably, the young Michelangelo Buonarroti. The windows were also executed according to Ghirlandaio's design. The complex was completed by an altarpiece portraying the Madonna del Latte in Glory with Angel and Saints, flanked by two panels with St. Catherine of Siena and St. Lawrence.

Executing an overshoot before returning to Boscombe Down.

It has been a busy few weeks, planning and executing a seven part project for one of my favorite clients and squeaking in other work between those shoots. Between at project and my other responsibilities, I have pulled almost a month (maybe more, who can remember) for 7 day work weeks. So, I am headed up to lake Bruin with a few friends for a much-needed couple of days off.

 

Before I go, I thought I’d throw a few images up on the site that were outtakes from the recent shoots. It’s been a fun project where I had a lot of creative latitude. I feel extraordinarily fortunate to be able to make a living doing something I really love, namely taking pictures. But, when I am doing client work, I am sometimes restricted in what I can post. Such is the life of the freelancer.

 

Although I do plan on doing some work on a wedding that I recent photographed, this weekend will be more about play than work. Depending on the conditions, I would like to get some shooting in while I am up there. Readers of this blog won’t be surprised to know that I love north Louisiana and the photographs I am occasionally able to capture from the mystical, empty place.

 

I hope you all have a good weekend and just to keep this site active (I’ve been slack about posting, I know). Here are some of the shots I took recently but which probably won’t make the cut with the client.

 

Check out more at my blog, for lots of photos, recipes, tech talk, travel writing and other ramblings. I appreciate any feedback but, please do not post graphic awards or invitations in the comments, I'm just not crazy about them. Also, if you want to use any of my Commercial Commons licensed photos please link the attribution back to my blog (listed above) and use my full name, Frank McMains. Thanks! Sorry, but you have to pay to use fully copyright protected photos.