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So it was the time of year for us to strap on our snowboards and go find some big air. I'm only joking as that would undoubtedly end up in a tangled mess of broken limbs.

 

Instead we opted to pack our art fag, oversize cardboard glasses and some paint and then head to Battersea to find ourselves a little spot to paint in. Thankfully the weather was lovely so we cracked on and had pretty much all the painting done by the end of day one.

 

With day two having just as good weather it was pretty much plain sailing as all we had to do was install our sunglasses, cardboard hand and id-iom brand art fag (complete with glowing red LED tip) to finish up our first attempt at 3D graffiti. We even managed to fulfil the suggestion to have some ash under the cigarette when we found a sandbag to borrow some makeshift 'ash' from. A little grey paint later and 'hey presto!' you've got yourself some wind-proof ash (cheers for that suggestion Dan!) Once we were all done we then turned our attention to the serious business of having a drink and watching the Streets. All in all a pretty good weekend...

 

Cheers

 

id-iom

Se Cathedral is the largest church in Asia and is known for its giant bells and exquisite architecture. With a classical Iberian façade, the impressive Se Cathedral symbolized Portugal’s commitment to the Catholic Church as well as its overwhelming supremacy.

 

The history traces back to the time of Dominicans, who were the first missionaries to be sent to India by the Portuguese. This cathedral was designed by the muscular engineers, Ambrosio Argueiro and Julio Simao. The magnificent church with its sky-high ceilings is a do-not-miss attraction of Goa.

 

Se Cathedral is a well known cathedral and the main altar is dedicated to Catherine of Alexandria. Se is also known for St. Catherine because Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Goa on St Catherine’s Day (25th November 1510). A beautiful gilded panel depicts the martyrdom of St Catherine while wooden statues of St Paul and St Peter stand in the niches on either side of the nave. Commissioned in 1562, Se Cathedral took a hundred years to build. No wonder, it is the largest and the grandest in Old Goa! The Cathedral stands on a raised plinth of laterite plastered with lime. The inner décor of the cathedral is Corinthian, massive pillars support the barrel shaped vault and choir housed under an orthodox oblong ribbed roof. The church is fringed with Tuscan exteriors and is 250 feet in length and 181 feet in breath.

 

The construction of Cathedral was ordered in 1562 in the reign of King Dom Sebastio and instructing his heirs to finance the work from the Royal Treasury. Actually, the Cathedral was built from the sale of property impounded by the government! The baptismal font (circa 1532) to the right of the entrance faces the two statues of St Francis Xavier whose sacred relics were displayed for the first time at Se Cathedral.

 

Of the eight chapels in Se Cathedral, the four on the left belong to Our Lady of Virtues, St. Sebastian, the Blessed Sacrament and Our Lady of Life. The ones on the right are dedicated to St Anthony, St Bernard, the Cross of Miracles and the Holy Ghost. The chapels of the Blessed Sacrament and the Cross of Miracles are cloistered behind finely filigreed wooden screens.

 

The main attraction of the church is its giant bell known as the "Golden Bell". The bell is known for its tune and rich tone and is the largest bell in Goa. The walls of the church are decorated with exquisite paintings that are quite old. The Se Cathedral is a must visit while touring Goa.

Victorian Alpine Huts survey, for Parks Victoria 1994-5.

In 1865, E George Treasure married Emily Langford and by the early 1870s had moved to Victoria to work at a Seymour vineyard. George Treasure junior had been born to the family at Wangaratta, in 1873, and the next two children at Wandiligong, in 1875 and 1877, as a mark of their gradual progress towards the Dargo area. Treasure worked on reef mining at Wandiligong, doing underground work as he had done in New South Wales. He moved to another mine, the Alpine, for a healthier working environment, in 1877 { Stapleton: 28-}. In 1878, E George Treasure (then described as a Harrietville miner), selected land at Kings Spur on the Dargo High Plains{ Stephenson: 107-}. The family (3 boys, one girl) made an arduous journey on horseback via Mt Freezeout and the Lankey's Plain, to a bark roof two-room log hut built on the High Plains near Kings Spur on the eastern edge of Gow's Plains, by George and his mining associate, Harry Stitt in late 1877. The hut had a verandah at the entry, a slab chimney `stoned up' to 7-8 feet high, two modified armchairs and bush furniture made on the spot. This served as the residence for a small dairy farm which provided for the miners who crossed to the Grant and Crooked River goldfields{ Stephenson}. The house became a licensed hotel and a store was added. Three miles south there was also Gow's hotel, the `half-way house'. Cessation of mining around 1900 meant the store was wound down. George and Emily purchased a 700 acre property at Lindenow (Grassvale) while their son Harry remained at King's Spur. George senior died at Lindenow of cancer in 1901, aged 58 { Stapleton: 116}. Emily then arranged the gradual transfer of the High Plains holdings to her sons who managed the properties and stock in the interim. Emily died in 1939, aged 90. Harry L Treasure (George's son) selected the 200 acre property Castleburn (45 miles distant on the Stratford side of Dargo, later enlarged to 3000 acres), c1904, to serve summer grazing. This was after his marriage in 1903 to local girl, Clare Gamel. About the same time he and his father-in-law built a new shingle and paling house at Mayford, east of the King's Spur property, as a winter base. From 1907 Harry's brothers sold him their shares and eventually departed north. Gamel built Harry another house, Rockalpine, in 1910 - located further to the south on the Dargo Road. The family spent the winter at the house in c1912 after the house at Mayford was burnt, leaving only some old huts. Harry, Clare and family developed their High Plains holdings in the inter-war period, including a near 100,000 acre grazing lease, George's 600 acre selection, a fenced freehold at Riley's Creek to spell the cattle on their way to the mountains in summer, and `a sheltered saddle near Mt Ewan…another substantial hut and set of bush yards capable of holding large mobs' { Stapleton: 159}. The 1939 fires meant losses for the family as for many others in the region but they saved the homestead complex, losing 700 stock, fences, and several huts and yards. The family worked hard to replace them, splitting some 4000 snow gum posts in the following season along with woolly but rails for yards and gates but wire and snow gum droppers replaced the old logs in the fences. Harry and his three sons (Don, Jack & Jim) rebuilt the Mt Ewan hut and yards as a `magnificent new log hut' { Stapleton: 214}. The paling hut beside the 1939 log hut was reputedly built for Freda Treasure (Harry & Claire's daughter) as her bedroom in about 1945- presumably allowing the men to sleep in the 1939 log hut { Kosciuszko Huts Association website 2004}. However a picture of Freda at Mt Ewan (in her 20s-30s?) has her seated on her bunk, next to her saddle, knitting in the log hut. Educated at MLC in the 1930s, Freda married Wally Ryder, from another pioneering cattle family, in 1957. She shifted to Tawonga as a result but maintained a keen interest in the High Plains along with her brothers{ Stapleton: 219}. Harry gave her a paddock at Castleburn, known as Bryce's and she became known by local scribes as `Maid of the Mountains' or `Cowgirl of the Alps'}. Harry gave her a 28,000 bush grazing block to work after 1939, known as Jones' where she used an existing hut and yards. She lived there through winter with her cattle, visited occasionally by her mother. Freda died in 1988, one year after Wally { Stapleton: 267-}. Harry Treasure served as an Avon Shire councillor 1918-1949, often riding to the council meetings at Stratford. Harry made many submissions to government inquiries concerning the causes of the 1939 fires and alpine grazing. He died at Rockalpine in 1961{ Stephenson}. As a postscript, Sydney (Jack) Treasure (son of Harry) sought a selection on the High Plains in the 1940s but met with government opposition{ HO15895}. Some 20 years later the Treasures tried again stating that they had added many improvements to their grazing block (4A) and desired some freehold security. Their father and grandfather had held it for some 80 years{ HO15895}. The improvements on the adjoining freehold which served the grazing lease then included four residences (Harry's sons), sheds, fences, stockyards (CAs 2,2A,4,5){ HO15895 }. The department granted a seven year lease instead, noting the good management of the property.

James Walker African American Fashion Show Charming Model in Lilac Top Posing for a Portrait Photoshoot at a Sports Hall in Philadelphia B&W April 1997

For scale, the little things at the bottom-right are people.

Here's a nice area for this store to expand if had ever wanted too!

740 KIT , CHAMPION TANK , 2 INTO 1 FLATTRACK PIPE , NUMBER BOARDS ,DELLORTO CARBS N FILTERS , BATES HEADLAMP , TRI - BARS , REARSETS ETC .

REAL SHARP MOTOR , AVON TYRES .

The Hokie Cheerleaders during a timeout at Cassell Coliseum

Pacific City" redirects here. For the main city in the game Crackdown, see Crackdown.

     

Pacific City and Nestucca Bay from the top of the Cape Kiwanda sand dune.

 

Pacific City, Oregon

 

Census-designated place (CDP) & unincorporated community

Aerial view of Pacific City

Aerial view of Pacific City

 

Location of Pacific City, Oregon

Location of Pacific City, Oregon

Coordinates: 45°12′N 123°58′WCoordinates: 45°12′N 123°58′W

 

Country

United States

 

State

Oregon

 

County

Tillamook

 

Area

  

• Total

3.8 sq mi (10.0 km2)

 

• Land

3.7 sq mi (9.7 km2)

 

• Water

0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2)

 

Elevation

13 ft (4 m)

 

Population (2000)

  

• Total

1,027

 

• Density

274.7/sq mi (106.1/km2)

 

Time zone

Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)

 

• Summer (DST)

PDT (UTC-7)

 

ZIP code

97135

 

Area code(s)

503

 

FIPS code

41-56150[1]

 

GNIS feature ID

1136609[2]

     

The view from the trail on Cape Kiwanda

Pacific City is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Tillamook County, Oregon, United States.[3] The population was 1,027 at the 2000 census. Pacific City's main attraction is the Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area.

  

Contents

[hide] 1 History

2 Geography

3 Demographics

4 Infrastructure 4.1 Transportation

 

5 References

6 External links

  

History[edit]

  

This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this section if you can. (January 2011)

 

In 1845, Mr. Johnson, a cook on an English ship sailing along the Columbia River, deserted and traveled down the Willamette Valley. Establishing a land claim in Champoeg, he began removing brush and that summer set off a burn to clear debris. The Champoeg Fire got out of control and spread eastward. Unfortunately, the wind then reversed direction and strengthened, blowing the blaze around the previous burn and fanning it into the dry Coast Range, where it burned in the Yamhill basin for weeks, consuming 1,500,000 acres (6,100 km2) of old growth forest - the largest such area destroyed in a single forest fire in the United States.[4] Settlers did not live west of the Coast Range, but the small tribes of Native Americans in the area, already depleted by 80% due to malaria and other epidemics from 1830–1841,[5] were driven from their lands.

 

The Nestuggas were one such tribe, that had previously been encamped just north of Pacific City near the town of Woods. They had noticed the smoke for several weeks, but were surprised one morning as the bright flames flickered atop the crests of the surrounding hills and rushed down on them. The Nestuggas fled by canoe down the Big Nestucca River to the ocean, and took refuge on the half-mile wide bare sandspit between Nestucca Bay and the ocean. After several weeks the fires were ended by a heavy rain, but the devastation had been complete: The forests were gone, and the game found to be charred crisp or cooked in the water they had sought refuge in.[6]

 

Nestucca Bay was a rich fishing area, allowing the Nestuggas to survive despite the destruction of game. However, beginning in 1854 settlers began arriving in the Tillamook Valley, and by 1876 Chief Nestugga Bill and the 200 remaining people of the small tribe were relocated to a reservation on the Salmon and Siletz River.

 

Many early pioneers arrived via seagoing steamers, others arrived from across the mountains. The town of Woods established itself as a depot for the new arrivals and a source of supplies and trade for the settlers. In 1886 the Linewebber and Brown cannery was started to take advantage of the plentiful fish in Nestucca Bay, shipping 12,000 cans of salmon a year and providing an economic basis until 1926 for the region, along with logging and dairy farming. The area also became a "vacation" destination for Oregon Trail pioneers from the midwest, who had never seen the ocean.

     

Surfers in Pacific City with Cape Kiwanda in the background, November 2004

In 1893, Thomas Malaney platted the town of Ocean Park (now Pacific City) directly across the river from Woods. When a flood in 1894 wiped out the first lots, Malaney moved the town south to higher ground. The Sea View hotel (later renamed Edmundes Hotel) was built around 1895 to serve vacationers from the Willamette Valley. Other buildings and campgrounds were established for visitors, and Ferry Street was "paved" with wooden planks for automobiles.

 

The town gained its modern name of Pacific City in 1909 to avoid confusion with the Washington town of Ocean Park. By 1926, overfishing from gillnetting had left the bay depleted of salmon, so commercial harvesting was stopped and fishermen switched to surf-launched dories; over time due to commercial fishing vessels, the Dory Fleet dwindled and today only a few recreational fishermen keep the tradition alive. Tourism in the 1920s became the mainstay of the economy, lasting until the depression of the 1930s. An airport was built to attract barnstormers and aviators, and other roads and bridges were opened.[7]

 

Geography[edit]

 

Pacific City is located along the Pacific Ocean adjacent to Bob Straub State Park and spans the Nestucca River with about half the city's area being behind Nestucca Bay. It is part of the Oregon Coast.

 

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 3.8 square miles (9.8 km2), of which, 3.7 square miles (9.6 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) of it (2.86%) is water. The area is located 13 feet (4.0 m) above sea-level.[3]

 

Demographics[edit]

 

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 1,027 people, 485 households, and 317 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 274.7 people per square mile (106.0/km2). There were 1,090 housing units at an average density of 291.6 per square mile (112.5/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 94.16% Caucasian, 1.75% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 2.04% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.02% of the population.

 

There were 485 households out of which 13.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.55.

 

In the CDP the population was spread out with 16.1% under the age of 18, 4.0% from 18 to 24, 17.6% from 25 to 44, 35.0% from 45 to 64, and 27.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53 years. For every 100 females there were 96.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.1 males.

 

The median income for a household in the CDP was $33,250, and the median income for a family was $55,368. Males had a median income of $26,042 versus $26,250 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $25,819. About 8.4% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.8% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

 

Infrastructure[edit]

 

The shore station for the National Science Foundation's Ocean Observatories Initiative Regional Scale Nodes underwater cabled observatory is located in Pacific City.

 

for Fukuoka airport in Japan.

Panel discussion 4: Education in Emergencies and Protracted Crises.

 

Ms Tove Wang, Secretary-General of Save the Children Norway, Mr António Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr Anthony Lake, Executive Director of UNICEF, Mr Malcolm Brown, Deputy Minister of International Development, Canada.

 

Photo: Norway MFA/Espen Røst.

 

Website:

www.africamuseum.be

   

english

The Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA) is an ethnographical and natural history museum in Tervuren, just outside Brussels, Belgium. It was first built to show off King Leopold II's Congo Free State for the 1897 World Exhibition. It focuses mainly on Congo, Belgium's former colony. The sphere of influence however (especially regarding to biological research) extends to the whole Congo River basin, Middle Africa, East Africa and West Africa, but tries to integrate Africa as a whole. First purely intended as a colonial museum, after 1960 it became more focused on ethnography and anthropology. Like in most museums, there is a research department and a public exhibit department. Not all research is pertaining to Africa, for example the research on the archaeozoology of Sagalassos. Some researchers have strong ties with the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences.

 

History

After the Congo Free State was recognized by the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885, King Léopold II decided he had to show the potential of the country in an exhibition. Economic investors had to be attracted and the public had to know this faraway country better. After considering other places, the king decided to have the exhibition in his royal estate at Tervuren. When the 1897 International Exposition was held in Brussels, a colonial section was built in Tervuren with two new transport connections to Brussels city centre, the Avenue de Tervuren and the tramway line. The 44 tram line (Brussels-Tervuren) was built at the same time as the original museum by King Leopold II of Belgium to bring the visitors from the 1897 World Exhibition to the exhibition of the Congo in Tervuren. The colonial section was hosted in the Palace of the Colonies (although there was only the one colony). It was designed by the Belgian architect Albert-Philippe Aldophe. In the main hall Georges Hobé designed a distinctive wooden Art Nouveau structure to evoke the forest, using Bilinga wood, an African tree. The exhibition displayed ethnographic objects, stuffed animals and in the "Hall of the Great Cultures" Congo's most important export products were displayed: coffee, cacao and tobacco. In the park, a copy of an African village was built, in which 60 Africans lived. The exposition was a huge success.

In 1898 the Palace of the Colonies became the Musée du Congo, and now the exhibits became permanent. It was then that the scientific research really took off. But due to the avid collecting of the scientists, the collection soon grew too large for the museum and enlargement was needed. Léopold II saw it big: he wanted not only an Africa Museum but also Chinese and Japanese pavilions, a congress centre, a World School and so forth. Tervuren became a rich suburb of Brussels. The new museum started construction in 1904 by the French architect Charles Girault in neoclassical "palace" architecture, reminiscent of Petit Palais, with large gardens extending into the Tervuren Forest, a part of the Sonian Forest. It was officially opened by King Albert I in 1910 and named The Museum of the Belgian Congo. In 1952 the adjective "Royal" was added. In 1957, for Expo '58, a large building was constructed to receive African personnel: the Centre d'Accueil du Personnel Africain (CAPA). In 1960 the museum had its name changed to The Royal Museum for Central Africa.

At present, the RMCA is struggling with modernisation. Some call it "a museum of a museum", as it shows how a museum looked like in the mid-twentieth century. For example, Expo '58 still showed a harmonious Belgian-Congolese relationship, while the country stood on the brink of independence. A more modern exhibition "The Memory of Congo" (February 4, 2005 - October 9, 2005), tried to tell the whole truth of what happened in the Congo Free State before it became Belgium's colony, a very sensitive subject in Belgium. It was put on after The Guardian reported in July 2002 that, after initial outrage by Belgian historians over King Leopold's Ghost by Adam Hochschild, the state-funded museum would finance an investigation into Hochschild's allegations. The investigatory panel, headed by Professor Jean-Luc Vellut, reported its findings in 2004. The exhibit based on them was set up the following year.

Critical of the museum was Adam Hochschild again, author of King Leopold's Ghost, who wrote an article for the New York Review of Books purporting to show 'distortions and evasions' in the special 2005 exhibition.

 

Collections

10,000,000 animals

250,000 rock samples

120,000 ethnographic objects

20,000 maps

56,000 wood samples

8,000 musical instruments

350 archives, including some of Henry Morton Stanley's journals

The herbarium collection of the Congo Museum was transferred to that of the National Botanic Garden of Belgium in 1934.

  

Português

 

Museu Real da África Central (RMCA) é um museu de história natural e etnografia, localizado em Tervuren, Bélgica. É especializado no conhecimento do antigo Congo Belga, ex-colônia que corresponde hoje à República Democrática do Congo.

Foi fundado a partir da Exposição Internacional de 1897. No ano seguinte, passou a ser chamado de "Museu do Congo", sendo posto a serviço do rei Leopoldo II, que foi proprietário particular do Estado Livre do Congo até 1908.

 

Tana Toraja Regency (Indonesian for Torajaland or Land of the Toraja, abbreviated Tator) is a regency (kabupaten) of South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia, and home to the Toraja ethnic group. The local government seat is in Makale, while the center of Toraja culture is in Rantepao. But now, Tana Toraja has been divided to two regencies that consist of Tana Toraja with its capital at Makale and North toraja with its capital at Rantepao.

 

The Tana Toraja boundary was determined by the Dutch East Indies government in 1909. In 1926, Tana Toraja was under the administration of Bugis state, Luwu. The regentschap (or regency) status was given on 8 October 1946, the last regency given by the Dutch. Since 1984, Tana Toraja has been named as the second tourist destination after Bali by the Ministry of Tourism, Indonesia. Since then, hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors have visited this regency. In addition, numerous Western anthropologists have come to Tana Toraja to study the indigenous culture and people of Toraja.

 

GEOGRAPHY

Tana Toraja is centrally placed in the island of Sulawesi, 300 km north of Makassar, the provincial capital of South Sulawesi. It lies between latitude of 2°-3° South and longitude 119°-120° East (center: 3°S 120°ECoordinates: 3°S 120°E). The total area (since the separation of the new regency of North Toraja) is 2,054.30 km², about 4.4% of the total area of South Sulawesi province. The topography of Tana Toraja is mountainous; its minimum elevation is 150 m, while the maximum is 3,083 above the sea level.

 

ADMINISTRATION

Tana Toraja Regency in 2010 comprised nineteen administrative Districts (Kecamatan), tabulated below with their 2010 Census population.

 

The Torajans are an ethnic group indigenous to a mountainous region of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Their population is approximately 1,100,000, of whom 450,000 live in the regency of Tana Toraja ("Land of Toraja").[1] Most of the population is Christian, and others are Muslim or have local animist beliefs known as aluk ("the way"). The Indonesian government has recognised this animistic belief as Aluk To Dolo ("Way of the Ancestors").

 

The word Toraja comes from the Buginese language term to riaja, meaning "people of the uplands". The Dutch colonial government named the people Toraja in 1909. Torajans are renowned for their elaborate funeral rites, burial sites carved into rocky cliffs, massive peaked-roof traditional houses known as tongkonan, and colourful wood carvings. Toraja funeral rites are important social events, usually attended by hundreds of people and lasting for several days.

 

Before the 20th century, Torajans lived in autonomous villages, where they practised animism and were relatively untouched by the outside world. In the early 1900s, Dutch missionaries first worked to convert Torajan highlanders to Christianity. When the Tana Toraja regency was further opened to the outside world in the 1970s, it became an icon of tourism in Indonesia: it was exploited by tourism development and studied by anthropologists. By the 1990s, when tourism peaked, Toraja society had changed significantly, from an agrarian model—in which social life and customs were outgrowths of the Aluk To Dolo—to a largely Christian society. Today, tourism and remittances from migrant Torajans have made for major changes in the Toraja highland, giving the Toraja a celebrity status within Indonesia and enhancing Toraja ethnic group pride.

 

ETHNIC IDENTITY

The Torajan people had little notion of themselves as a distinct ethnic group before the 20th century. Before Dutch colonisation and Christianisation, Torajans, who lived in highland areas, identified with their villages and did not share a broad sense of identity. Although complexes of rituals created linkages between highland villages, there were variations in dialects, differences in social hierarchies, and an array of ritual practices in the Sulawesi highland region. "Toraja" (from the coastal languages' to, meaning people; and riaja, uplands) was first used as a lowlander expression for highlanders. As a result, "Toraja" initially had more currency with outsiders—such as the Bugis and Makassarese, who constitute a majority of the lowland of Sulawesi—than with insiders. The Dutch missionaries' presence in the highlands gave rise to the Toraja ethnic consciousness in the Sa'dan Toraja region, and this shared identity grew with the rise of tourism in the Tana Toraja Regency. Since then, South Sulawesi has four main ethnic groups—the Bugis (the majority, including shipbuilders and seafarers), the Makassarese (lowland traders and seafarers), the Mandarese (traders and fishermen), and the Toraja (highland rice cultivators).

 

HISTORY

From the 17th century, the Dutch established trade and political control on Sulawesi through the Dutch East Indies Company. Over two centuries, they ignored the mountainous area in the central Sulawesi, where Torajans lived, because access was difficult and it had little productive agricultural land. In the late 19th century, the Dutch became increasingly concerned about the spread of Islam in the south of Sulawesi, especially among the Makassarese and Bugis peoples. The Dutch saw the animist highlanders as potential Christians. In the 1920s, the Reformed Missionary Alliance of the Dutch Reformed Church began missionary work aided by the Dutch colonial government. In addition to introducing Christianity, the Dutch abolished slavery and imposed local taxes. A line was drawn around the Sa'dan area and called Tana Toraja ("the land of Toraja"). Tana Toraja was first a subdivision of the Luwu kingdom that had claimed the area. In 1946, the Dutch granted Tana Toraja a regentschap, and it was recognised in 1957 as one of the regencies of Indonesia.

 

Early Dutch missionaries faced strong opposition among Torajans, especially among the elite, because the abolition of their profitable slave trade had angered them. Some Torajans were forcibly relocated to the lowlands by the Dutch, where they could be more easily controlled. Taxes were kept high, undermining the wealth of the elites. Ultimately, the Dutch influence did not subdue Torajan culture, and only a few Torajans were converted. In 1950, only 10% of the population had converted to Christianity.

 

In the 1930s, Muslim lowlanders attacked the Torajans, resulting in widespread Christian conversion among those who sought to align themselves with the Dutch for political protection and to form a movement against the Bugis and Makassarese Muslims. Between 1951 and 1965 (following Indonesian independence), southern Sulawesi faced a turbulent period as the Darul Islam separatist movement fought for an Islamic state in Sulawesi. The 15 years of guerrilla warfare led to massive conversions to Christianity.

 

Alignment with the Indonesian government, however, did not guarantee safety for the Torajans. In 1965, a presidential decree required every Indonesian citizen to belong to one of five officially recognised religions: Islam, Christianity (Protestantism and Catholicism), Hinduism, or Buddhism. The Torajan religious belief (aluk) was not legally recognised, and the Torajans raised their voices against the law. To make aluk accord with the law, it had to be accepted as part of one of the official religions. In 1969, Aluk To Dolo ("the way of ancestors") was legalised as a sect of Agama Hindu Dharma, the official name of Hinduism in Indonesia.

 

SOCIETY

There are three main types of affiliation in Toraja society: family, class and religion.

 

FAMILY AFFILIATION

Family is the primary social and political grouping in Torajan society. Each village is one extended family, the seat of which is the tongkonan, a traditional Torajan house. Each tongkonan has a name, which becomes the name of the village. The familial dons maintain village unity. Marriage between distant cousins (fourth cousins and beyond) is a common practice that strengthens kinship. Toraja society prohibits marriage between close cousins (up to and including the third cousin)—except for nobles, to prevent the dispersal of property. Kinship is actively reciprocal, meaning that the extended family helps each other farm, share buffalo rituals, and pay off debts.

 

Each person belongs to both the mother's and the father's families, the only bilateral family line in Indonesia. Children, therefore, inherit household affiliation from both mother and father, including land and even family debts. Children's names are given on the basis of kinship, and are usually chosen after dead relatives. Names of aunts, uncles and cousins are commonly referred to in the names of mothers, fathers and siblings.

 

Before the start of the formal administration of Toraja villages by the Tana Toraja Regency, each Toraja village was autonomous. In a more complex situation, in which one Toraja family could not handle their problems alone, several villages formed a group; sometimes, villages would unite against other villages. Relationship between families was expressed through blood, marriage, and shared ancestral houses (tongkonan), practically signed by the exchange of water buffalo and pigs on ritual occasions. Such exchanges not only built political and cultural ties between families but defined each person's place in a social hierarchy: who poured palm wine, who wrapped a corpse and prepared offerings, where each person could or could not sit, what dishes should be used or avoided, and even what piece of meat constituted one's share.

 

CLASS AFFILIATION

In early Toraja society, family relationships were tied closely to social class. There were three strata: nobles, commoners, and slaves (slavery was abolished in 1909 by the Dutch East Indies government). Class was inherited through the mother. It was taboo, therefore, to marry "down" with a woman of lower class. On the other hand, marrying a woman of higher class could improve the status of the next generation. The nobility's condescending attitude toward the commoners is still maintained today for reasons of family prestige.

 

Nobles, who were believed to be direct descendants of the descended person from heaven, lived in tongkonans, while commoners lived in less lavish houses (bamboo shacks called banua). Slaves lived in small huts, which had to be built around their owner's tongkonan. Commoners might marry anyone, but nobles preferred to marry in-family to maintain their status. Sometimes nobles married Bugis or Makassarese nobles. Commoners and slaves were prohibited from having death feasts. Despite close kinship and status inheritance, there was some social mobility, as marriage or change in wealth could affect an individuals status. Wealth was counted by the ownership of water buffaloes.

 

Slaves in Toraja society were family property. Sometimes Torajans decided to become slaves when they incurred a debt, pledging to work as payment. Slaves could be taken during wars, and slave trading was common. Slaves could buy their freedom, but their children still inherited slave status. Slaves were prohibited from wearing bronze or gold, carving their houses, eating from the same dishes as their owners, or having sex with free women—a crime punishable by death.

 

RELIGIOUS AFFILATION

Toraja's indigenous belief system is polytheistic animism, called aluk, or "the way" (sometimes translated as "the law"). In the Toraja myth, the ancestors of Torajan people came down from heaven using stairs, which were then used by the Torajans as a communication medium with Puang Matua, the Creator. The cosmos, according to aluk, is divided into the upper world (heaven), the world of man (earth), and the underworld. At first, heaven and earth were married, then there was a darkness, a separation, and finally the light. Animals live in the underworld, which is represented by rectangular space enclosed by pillars, the earth is for mankind, and the heaven world is located above, covered with a saddle-shaped roof. Other Toraja gods include Pong Banggai di Rante (god of Earth), Indo' Ongon-Ongon (a goddess who can cause earthquakes), Pong Lalondong (god of death), and Indo' Belo Tumbang (goddess of medicine); there are many more.

 

The earthly authority, whose words and actions should be cleaved to both in life (agriculture) and death (funerals), is called to minaa (an aluk priest). Aluk is not just a belief system; it is a combination of law, religion, and habit. Aluk governs social life, agricultural practices, and ancestral rituals. The details of aluk may vary from one village to another. One common law is the requirement that death and life rituals be separated. Torajans believe that performing death rituals might ruin their corpses if combined with life rituals. The two rituals are equally important. During the time of the Dutch missionaries, Christian Torajans were prohibited from attending or performing life rituals, but were allowed to perform death rituals. Consequently, Toraja's death rituals are still practised today, while life rituals have diminished.

 

CULTURE

TONGKONAN

Tongkonan are the traditional Torajan ancestral houses. They stand high on wooden piles, topped with a layered split-bamboo roof shaped in a sweeping curved arc, and they are incised with red, black, and yellow detailed wood carvings on the exterior walls. The word "tongkonan" comes from the Torajan tongkon ("to sit").

 

Tongkonan are the center of Torajan social life. The rituals associated with the tongkonan are important expressions of Torajan spiritual life, and therefore all family members are impelled to participate, because symbolically the tongkonan represents links to their ancestors and to living and future kin. According to Torajan myth, the first tongkonan was built in heaven on four poles, with a roof made of Indian cloth. When the first Torajan ancestor descended to earth, he imitated the house and held a large ceremony.

 

The construction of a tongkonan is laborious work and is usually done with the help of the extended family. There are three types of tongkonan. The tongkonan layuk is the house of the highest authority, used as the "center of government". The tongkonan pekamberan belongs to the family members who have some authority in local traditions. Ordinary family members reside in the tongkonan batu. The exclusivity to the nobility of the tongkonan is diminishing as many Torajan commoners find lucrative employment in other parts of Indonesia. As they send back money to their families, they enable the construction of larger tongkonan.

 

Architecture in the style of a tongkonan is still very common. Various administration buildings were built in this style in recent years, e.g. the Kecamatan building in Rantepao.

 

WOOD CARVINGS

To express social and religious concepts, Torajans carve wood, calling it Pa'ssura (or "the writing"). Wood carvings are therefore Toraja's cultural manifestation.

 

Each carving receives a special name, and common motifs are animals and plants that symbolise some virtue. For example, water plants and animals, such as crabs, tadpoles and water weeds, are commonly found to symbolise fertility. In some areas noble elders claim these symbols refer to strength of noble family, but not everyone agrees. The overall meaning of groups of carved motifs on houses remains debated and tourism has further complicated these debates because some feel a uniform explanation must be presented to tourists. Torajan wood carvings are composed of numerous square panels, each of which can represent various things, for example buffaloes as a wish of wealth for the family; a knot and a box, symbolizing the hope that all of the family's offspring will be happy and live in harmony; aquatic animals, indicating the need for fast and hard work, just like moving on the surface of water.

 

Regularity and order are common features in Toraja wood carving (see table below), as well as abstracts and geometrical designs. Nature is frequently used as the basis of Toraja's ornaments, because nature is full of abstractions and geometries with regularities and ordering. Toraja's ornaments have been studied in ethnomathematics to reveal their mathematical structure, but Torajans base this art only on approximations. To create an ornament, bamboo sticks are used as a geometrical tool.

 

FUNERAL RITES

In Toraja society, the funeral ritual is the most elaborate and expensive event. The richer and more powerful the individual, the more expensive is the funeral. In the aluk religion, only nobles have the right to have an extensive death feast. The death feast of a nobleman is usually attended by thousands and lasts for several days. A ceremonial site, called rante, is usually prepared in a large, grassy field where shelters for audiences, rice barns, and other ceremonial funeral structures are specially made by the deceased's family. Flute music, funeral chants, songs and poems, and crying and wailing are traditional Toraja expressions of grief with the exceptions of funerals for young children, and poor, low-status adults.

 

The ceremony is often held weeks, months, or years after the death so that the deceased's family can raise the significant funds needed to cover funeral expenses. Torajans traditionally believe that death is not a sudden, abrupt event, but a gradual process toward Puya (the land of souls, or afterlife). During the waiting period, the body of the deceased is wrapped in several layers of cloth and kept under the tongkonan. The soul of the deceased is thought to linger around the village until the funeral ceremony is completed, after which it begins its journey to Puya.

 

Another component of the ritual is the slaughter of water buffalo. The more powerful the person who died, the more buffalo are slaughtered at the death feast. Buffalo carcasses, including their heads, are usually lined up on a field waiting for their owner, who is in the "sleeping stage". Torajans believe that the deceased will need the buffalo to make the journey and that they will be quicker to arrive at Puya if they have many buffalo. Slaughtering tens of water buffalo and hundreds of pigs using a machete is the climax of the elaborate death feast, with dancing and music and young boys who catch spurting blood in long bamboo tubes. Some of the slaughtered animals are given by guests as "gifts", which are carefully noted because they will be considered debts of the deceased's family. However, a cockfight, known as bulangan londong, is an integral part of the ceremony. As with the sacrifice of the buffalo and the pigs, the cockfight is considered sacred because it involves the spilling of blood on the earth. In particular, the tradition requires the sacrifice of at least three chickens. However, it is common for at least 25 pairs of chickens to be set against each other in the context of the ceremony.

 

There are three methods of burial: the coffin may be laid in a cave or in a carved stone grave, or hung on a cliff. It contains any possessions that the deceased will need in the afterlife. The wealthy are often buried in a stone grave carved out of a rocky cliff. The grave is usually expensive and takes a few months to complete. In some areas, a stone cave may be found that is large enough to accommodate a whole family. A wood-carved effigy, called Tau tau, is usually placed in the cave looking out over the land. The coffin of a baby or child may be hung from ropes on a cliff face or from a tree. This hanging grave usually lasts for years, until the ropes rot and the coffin falls to the ground.

 

In the ritual called Ma'Nene, that takes place each year in August, the bodies of the deceased are exhumed to be washed, groomed and dressed in new clothes. The mummies are then walked around the village.

 

DANNCE AND MUSIC

Torajans perform dances on several occasions, most often during their elaborate funeral ceremonies. They dance to express their grief, and to honour and even cheer the deceased person because he is going to have a long journey in the afterlife. First, a group of men form a circle and sing a monotonous chant throughout the night to honour the deceased (a ritual called Ma'badong). This is considered by many Torajans to be the most important component of the funeral ceremony. On the second funeral day, the Ma'randing warrior dance is performed to praise the courage of the deceased during life. Several men perform the dance with a sword, a large shield made from buffalo skin, a helmet with a buffalo horn, and other ornamentation. The Ma'randing dance precedes a procession in which the deceased is carried from a rice barn to the rante, the site of the funeral ceremony. During the funeral, elder women perform the Ma'katia dance while singing a poetic song and wearing a long feathered costume. The Ma'akatia dance is performed to remind the audience of the generosity and loyalty of the deceased person. After the bloody ceremony of buffalo and pig slaughter, a group of boys and girls clap their hands while performing a cheerful dance called Ma'dondan.

 

As in other agricultural societies, Torajans dance and sing during harvest time. The Ma'bugi dance celebrates the thanksgiving event, and the Ma'gandangi dance is performed while Torajans are pounding rice. There are several war dances, such as the Manimbong dance performed by men, followed by the Ma'dandan dance performed by women. The aluk religion governs when and how Torajans dance. A dance called Ma'bua can be performed only once every 12 years. Ma'bua is a major Toraja ceremony in which priests wear a buffalo head and dance around a sacred tree.

 

A traditional musical instrument of the Toraja is a bamboo flute called a Pa'suling (suling is an Indonesian word for flute). This six-holed flute (not unique to the Toraja) is played at many dances, such as the thanksgiving dance Ma'bondensan, where the flute accompanies a group of shirtless, dancing men with long fingernails. The Toraja have indigenous musical instruments, such as the Pa'pelle (made from palm leaves) and the Pa'karombi (the Torajan version of a jaw harp). The Pa'pelle is played during harvest time and at house inauguration ceremonies.

 

COGENDER VIEWS

Among the Saʼadan (eastern Toraja) in the island of Sulawesi (Celebes), Indonesia, there are homosexual male toburake tambolang shamans; although among their neighbors the Mamasa (western Toraja) there are instead only heterosexual female toburake shamanesses.

 

LANGUAGE

The ethnic Toraja language is dominant in Tana Toraja with the main language as the Sa'dan Toraja. Although the national Indonesian language is the official language and is spoken in the community, all elementary schools in Tana Toraja teach Toraja language.

 

Language varieties of Toraja, including Kalumpang, Mamasa, Tae, Talondo, Toala, and Toraja-Sa'dan, belong to the Malayo-Polynesian language from the Austronesian family. At the outset, the isolated geographical nature of Tana Toraja formed many dialects between the Toraja languages themselves. After the formal administration of Tana Toraja, some Toraja dialects have been influenced by other languages through the transmigration program, introduced since the colonialism period, and it has been a major factor in the linguistic variety of Toraja languages.

A prominent attribute of Toraja language is the notion of grief. The importance of death ceremony in Toraja culture has characterised their languages to express intricate degrees of grief and mourning. The Toraja language contains many terms referring to sadness, longing, depression, and mental pain. Giving a clear expression of the psychological and physical effect of loss is a catharsis and sometimes lessens the pain of grief itself.

 

ECONOMY

Prior to Suharto's "New Order" administration, the Torajan economy was based on agriculture, with cultivated wet rice in terraced fields on mountain slopes, and supplemental cassava and maize crops. Much time and energy were devoted to raising water buffalo, pigs, and chickens, primarily for ceremonial sacrifices and consumption. Coffee was the first significant cash crop produced in Toraja, and was introduced in the mid 19th century, changing the local economy towards commodity production for external markets and gaining an excellent reputation for quality in the international market.

 

With the commencement of the New Order in 1965, Indonesia's economy developed and opened to foreign investment. In Toraja, a coffee plantation and factory was established by Key Coffee of Japan, and Torajan coffee regained a reputation for quality within the growing international specialty coffee sector Multinational oil and mining companies opened new operations in Indonesia during the 1970s and 1980s. Torajans, particularly younger ones, relocated to work for the foreign companies—to Kalimantan for timber and oil, to Papua for mining, to the cities of Sulawesi and Java, and many went to Malaysia. The out-migration of Torajans was steady until 1985. and has continued since, with remittances sent back by emigre Torajans performing an important role within the contemporary economy.

 

Tourism commenced in Toraja in the 1970s, and accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s. Between 1984 and 1997, a significant number of Torajans obtained their incomes from tourism, working in and owning hotels, as tour guides, drivers, or selling souvenirs. With the rise of political and economic instability in Indonesia in the late 1990s—including religious conflicts elsewhere on Sulawesi—tourism in Tana Toraja has declined dramatically. Toraja continues to be a well known origin for Indonesian coffee, grown by both smallholders and plantation estates, although migration, remittances and off-farm income is considered far more important to most households, even those in rural areas.

 

TOURISM AND CULTURAL CHANGE

Before the 1970s, Toraja was almost unknown to Western tourism. In 1971, about 50 Europeans visited Tana Toraja. In 1972, at least 400 visitors attended the funeral ritual of Puang of Sangalla, the highest-ranking nobleman in Tana Toraja and the so-called "last pure-blooded Toraja noble." The event was documented by National Geographic and broadcast in several European countries. In 1976, about 12,000 tourists visited the regency and in 1981, Torajan sculpture was exhibited in major North American museums. "The land of the heavenly kings of Tana Toraja", as written in the exhibition brochure, embraced the outside world.

 

In 1984, the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism declared Tana Toraja Regency the prima donna of South Sulawesi. Tana Toraja was heralded as "the second stop after Bali". Tourism was increasing dramatically: by 1985, a total number of 150,000 foreigners had visited the Regency (in addition to 80,000 domestic tourists), and the annual number of foreign visitors was recorded at 40,000 in 1989. Souvenir stands appeared in Rantepao, the cultural center of Toraja, roads were sealed at the most-visited tourist sites, new hotels and tourist-oriented restaurants were opened, and an airstrip was opened in the Regency in 1981.

 

Tourism developers have marketed Tana Toraja as an exotic adventure—an area rich in culture and off the beaten track. Western tourists expected to see stone-age villages and pagan funerals. Toraja is for tourists who have gone as far as Bali and are willing to see more of the wild, "untouched" islands. However, they were more likely to see a Torajan wearing a hat and denim, living in a Christian society. Tourists felt that the tongkonan and other Torajan rituals had been preconceived to make profits, and complained that the destination was too commercialised. This has resulted in several clashes between Torajans and tourism developers, whom Torajans see as outsiders.

 

A clash between local Torajan leaders and the South Sulawesi provincial government (as a tourist developer) broke out in 1985. The government designated 18 Toraja villages and burial sites as traditional tourist attractions. Consequently, zoning restrictions were applied to these areas, such that Torajans themselves were barred from changing their tongkonans and burial sites. The plan was opposed by some Torajan leaders, as they felt that their rituals and traditions were being determined by outsiders. As a result, in 1987, the Torajan village of Kété Kesú and several other designated tourist attractions closed their doors to tourists. This closure lasted only a few days, as the villagers found it too difficult to survive without the income from selling souvenirs.

 

Tourism has also transformed Toraja society. Originally, there was a ritual which allowed commoners to marry nobles (puang) and thereby gain nobility for their children. However, the image of Torajan society created for the tourists, often by "lower-ranking" guides, has eroded its traditional strict hierarchy. High status is not as esteemed in Tana Toraja as it once was. Many low-ranking men can declare themselves and their children nobles by gaining enough wealth through work outside the region and then marrying a noble woman.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Sold for £ 1.600

 

The Jaguar Land-Rover Collection

Brightwells Auctions

Bicester Heritage

Buckingham Road

Bicester

Oxfordshire

England

March 2018

 

In late 1966, Ford unveiled the MkII Cortina, just four years after the original and highly successful MkI with a fresh squared-off look courtesy of Ford UK’s chief stylist Roy Haynes. A fraction wider and shorter than the MkI it replaced, it incorporated numerous improvements such as a tighter turning circle, more compliant suspension and most importantly, a lot more interior space.

 

A new five-bearing 1.300 cc engine and carry-over 1.500 cc unit were offered, capacity increasing further to 1.599 cc on the larger unit in August ’67 along with new crossflow heads for both. New models were badged 1300 or 1600 and were available as two- and four-door saloons in base, Deluxe and Super trim levels and not long much later, the roomy estate version joined the price list.

 

Produced in 1970, this MkII 1300 base spec estate is now a rare sight and will no doubt draw admiration and intrigue in equal dose wherever its taken. This four-owner car has formed part of a large private collection for many years and retains its delightfully original and simple interior featuring black leatherette seats. The history file contains nine old Mot certificates and a tax disc from 2013.

 

We are led to believe that it this one has been fitted with the more powerful 1.600 cc unit at some time in the past, although we ask that you make your own mind up as to what capacity engine is actually fitted.

 

It was last MOT’d in June 2012, at which time the recorded mileage was 7.652 miles which we can only assume to be 107.652. Judging by the Mot history the car was in regular, albeit limited use until its last Mot. Given that it has not been used for at least five or six years, we have not attempted to start it and would advise a service and thorough check-over before enjoying this classic estate life through the summer show season.

 

Enthusiasts from other countries never fully understand why we Brits get so excited about old Fords from this era, but they are economical, cheap to run and pleasant to drive, this lovely original Cortina just needs some regular exercise to keep it fit and healthy – don’t we all.

For me, being a nurse is a calling. I just knew it was something I wanted to do. I want to help people. I want to work as a nurse in the emergency room because it’s fast paced. You are saving a life in a high pressure situation or addressing a concern right when it comes into the hospital.

www.shu.edu/givingtuesday

For lots of pageant videos and links to more pageant photo sets see: www.areaguides.com/pageants

For more pictures not shown in my photostream, please see ギャル (Japanese Magazine Scans)

for battlekittyspastica

 

It smells a bit like sushi even though it's not a fish-smell (thank heavens for that)

For the MocAthalon, category 28: St. Patrick's Day

21 May 2019 - OECD Forum

 

Film Screening H is for Harry: A Boy Overcoming Illiteracy

 

Speakers : Jon Mc Goh, Producer - Mercurial Films

Jaime Taylor, Co-Director, H for Harry; Filmmaker - Postcode Films

 

www.oecd.org/forum

 

Photo : © Andrew Wheeler / OECD

Built for the 3rd Annual Flickr Military Contest

Built 5/25/10

 

Large Diorama: Combined Arms

 

After a typical daily patrol, the mechanized platoon returns to base along the same route the unit has taken numerous times. The long road back to base is bordered on both sides by opium poppy fields and native farmers.

 

After passing one of the unsuspecting farm houses the American unit is attacked from a small building located at the 5 o’clock position of the Bradley Fighting vehicle. The U.S. forces have walked into a carefully and preciously planned ambush.

 

According to typical U.S. Army protocol, the Bradley and the 6 infantry soldiers immediately begin to engage the enemy threat. The Bradley turret quickly turns and begins to level the building where the attack began with its 25 mm M242 Chain Gun. The six soldiers in the rear of the vehicle quickly exit the Bradley and seek protective cover behind the steel reinforced aluminum armor. In the first few seconds of the firefight one American soldier goes down and helped to the cover behind the Bradley.

 

Multiple enemy forces pour from within the neighboring buildings, and the friendlies quickly realize they are greatly outnumbered. Realizing the unit is in grave danger, the commander calls to higher for air support. Luckily, there is a new UAV, the Seeker, in the air only 2 minutes from their location.

 

Unknown to the patrol, the leader of the enemy forces had planned to initiate the attack at a precise and exact time, which would call for the attack to begin when the American armored vehicle would be right on top of a buried IED (Improvised Explosive Device). The enemy commander’s plan has worked so far and he is about to detonate the IED with a cellular phone while hidden in the perceived safety of the larger building.

 

The American forces were ambushed with superior numbers and the enemy is about to spring the final trap that would spell doom for the entire unit. . . . . . . . . . . . .

 

However, thanks to the close coordination between land and air forces, the adept American commander is able to save his men from death by calling in a local UAV to level the area and eliminate the IED threat hidden within.

For now anyway, the 1H17 Birmingham Moor St - London Marylebone stops at Leamington Spa with 68011 on the rear . Shortly the vegetation will block the neighbouring properties view of the station , but the 68 grunt will still be heard until someone decides that they’ve had enough of passengers riding in a proper carriage….

 

Waiting for the tram and the return trip to parking structure after a day at the Getty.

 

I turned and saw this view of downtown LA threatened by storm clouds, while the sun shined brightly above.

 

For whatever reason, 19308 had a functioning blind but was unable to display the 9 to/from Birchwood, so a paper route number in the windscreen saves the day while Stagecoach East Midlands (with the old logo) is shown above. It turns off Pelham Bridge to curve back round to the bus station on 26.1.21

I was thinking about a photo and thought I'd nip outside and grab a shot of Octavia, our kitchen window spider, who is now absolutely huge and must surely be pregnant.

 

Instead, on the other side of the driveway, I noticed some leaves that were just starting to turn in a most beautiful way.

 

That means that the creeper should soon be giving us a fine show, and that's always worth waiting for. :)

On Thursday morning, I got to town early enough and with enough pocket change to stop for a cocoa at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Decent cocoa. Odd people, though. The place was busy, but no one sat down to enjoy their beverage-of-choice. They'd get their morning jolt of caffeine, then rush out to their cars to head off to the office.

 

Not me. I sat down for a nice cocoa and a sketch.

 

Media: Noodler's Manhattan Black ink and watercolor in a Moleskine sketchbook.

The search for Malaysia's Hottest Hunks for year 2008/2009. Fashion Show by Camel Active, performances by the hunks, shirtless catwalks and more. Organised by NewIcon For Him & Newtide.

Ratchathewi for me is a full day shopping venture. Along the Phetchaburi road ( sometimes you will see it spelt Phet Buri road or New Phet Buri road ) you will find some of the best shopping malls in Bangkok. I have listed some of them in this article. However the many tourists along with locals make this a very busy part of town. Trying to navigate along the pavement is a chore. Very similar to Sampeng market in China town. There are several pedestrian bridges to help you get across this very busy road ( Phetchaburi road ) the part near to the Palladium shopping mall at the traffic lights is especially busy.

Ratchathewi District is sub divided into four sub districts Thung Phaya Thai , Thanon Phaya Thai, Thanon Phetchaburi and Makkasan. I have been many times to Pratunam it is a busy and bustling shopping area that can easily be reached on foot from Ratchaprasong ~ I know I have done it many times. Most of the products available are for sale wholesale, so this is the place to go for some cheap bargains. Haggling is more important here than in other shopping areas, and things get cheaper if you buy in bulk, which seems to be the norm anywhere in Thailand.

City Complex Phetchaburi rd. walking along Phetchaburi Road, you definitely cannot miss this enormous 6 storey City Complex. It is one of the most popular malls in Pratunam that is specifically marketed towards teenage girls and ladies. Most of the shops are selling fashionable clothing, shoes and accessories, but there are also a few of them dedicated to cosmetics, jewellery and crafts. There is on the fifth floor a food court offering all the usual items of food.

Grand Diamond Plaza, Phetchaburi road, is a unique shopping mall because it is also a suite hotel with four incredible penthouse suites along with 172 luxuriously appointed suites. They have a Morning market : 04:00 am – 09:00 am and a Night market : 06:00 pm – 09:00 pm. The basement holds a 24 hour Super Market. There is also an international food court on the top floor and a outdoor swimming pool for both adults and children is on the 8th floor.

Indra Square Ratchaprarop rd. is an indoor shopping mall with more than 300 retail and wholesale outlets. The first floor is mostly for fashion, silk and accessories, and has some fast food outlets. The clothes here are remarkably good value, and unlike City Complex, there is a decent supply for men and children as well. The second floor has a more larger selection of items for sale, including arts, crafts, toys and mobile / cell phones. If you're getting hungry, there's a food centre on the second floor. There are some clothing shops at the ground level of the nearby Baiyoke Tower II also.

Metro Fashion Mall Phetchaburi rd. This brand new wholesale shopping mall opened in 2009. Its seven floors accommodate 370 wholesale vendors selling fashion apparel, bags, footwear, cosmetics and accessories. There is a food centre on the third floor and a branch of McDonald's on the ground floor outside.

Pantip Plaza Phetchaburi rd. This shopping mall is great for kids and men that are still kids! You enter the doors and bang it hits you, The I want syndrome. A six floor shopping mall devoted to computer gear, famous for its pirated media. The pirated trade is much more low key than it used to be, but software and DVDs are still widely available, It is also a good place for digital cameras, gadgets, printers, I-pod players, etc. Test out whatever you are buying as there are many suspect goods on sale here. If you want to be safe, buy at the official brand stores, although prices are similar to Western countries prices. You will find IT City here, also a large retailer of computers and cameras along with software.

Platinum Fashion Mall Phetchaburi rd. Its very imposing from outside but the shops are really packed in inside, some of them being no more than the size of a kiosk. A great place for fashion shopping, especially as it is air conditioned. Many of the 1,300 shops here are also at the Chatuchak Market at weekends. It is particularly interesting for women as the shops mostly sell clothing, handbags, shoes, accessories, gifts and make-up. A lot of shops ( but not all of them ) are geared towards export and wholesale. There's a huge and very good food court at the sixth floor of the mall. It can get very busy, especially around noon and evening time.

Palladium Square ~ It was formerly known as Pratunam Centre and is located on the corner of Phetchaburi Road and Ratchaprarop and the very busy cross roads with Ratchadamri road. This area is already known for wholesale shopping at Platinum Fashion Mall, electronics Mecca Pantip Plaza and the busy, all day and all night world of Pratunam Market found just across the road. This five storey building is home to bargains galore with most shops and stalls selling many items of clothing for 100 Baht or less.

Pratunam Market Phetchaburi road and surrounding Soi’s ~ Pratunam Market is an immense open-air garment market, and although it is geared towards exporters, anyone can shop here. Most of the items for sale are T-shirts, dresses, shorts, jeans, shoes and accessories. You could easily spend a day here if you wish, as the area has a stunning amount of more than 4,000 shops. While the market is officially open till 18:00, many shops already close around 16:00. The market spreads out on the streets around Baiyoke Tower I, and the ground floor of that tower also has a few clothing shops. In the early evening, a night market is set up in the streets along Baiyoke Tower I that stay open until after 02:00 am. This market whilst great for looking around is not as good as Khlong Thom Market in China Town. I would suggest taking a tape measure with you, as many of the products are not true to size.

Yotsuya, Tokyo, Japan

 

Nikon F6

Nikkor AF 50mm F1.4G

Kodak TMAX 100

HC-110 Developer

DSLR Scan

Valoi Easy35

Negative Lab Pro

This was my third visit to Linton, but I seem to have mislaid the exterior shots I have taken previously, but will search for them.

 

Linton sits beside the main road south out of Maidstone, and the village is stretched out along it.

 

Inside it is a calm space, with the fabulous Cornwallis chapel to the north of the chance, with contains some of the finest monuments I have seen in Kent.

 

------------------------------------------

 

LINTON HILL

TQ 75 SE LINTON

(East Side)

3/139 Church of St. Nicholas

23.5.67

GV II*

Parish church. C14 and C15. Alterations and additions of 1860 by

R.C. Hussey in a C15 style. Ragstone, with plain tile roof. Nave,

south aisle, south porch, chancel, south chancel chapel, north chancel

chapel. Nave and south aisle extended to west and north aisle and north-

west tower added in 1860. Nave: Probably C14, extended in 1860. West

End: small blocks of evenly-coursed stone. Chamfered stone plinth.

One buttress. C19 four-light window and pointed-arched doorway with

squared hoodmould and brattished canopy. South aisle: C14, extended to

west in 1860. Re-faced in 1860 with small blocks of evenly-coursed stone.

Chamfered stone plinth. Gabled. Three C19 three-light windows; one to

west and 2 flanking porch. South porch: C19, with stonework and plinth

similar to nave. Carved bargeboards. Moulded outer and plain-chamfered

inner doorway. South chancel chapel: later C14. Roughly coursed stone

on un-dressed plinth. Two C19 windows, one blocked 2-light to south,

one 3-light to east in a C15 style. Chancel: C14, re-faced, and

probably extended, in C19. Diagonal north-east and south-east buttresses.

2-light C19 windows to north and south.

Moulded pointed-arched south doorway. Vestry: C19. Low, and at right-

angles to chancel. North chancel chapel: C15 or early C16. Roughly

coursed galleted stone, with high moulded stone plinth. Gabled. C19

east window of 3 stepped lights and similar north window. North aisle:

1860. Chamfered stone plinth. Gabled. Two 3-light north windows.

North-west tower: 1860. Three stages, on moulded stone plinth, with

moulded off-sets between stages. Clasping buttresses. Recessed stone

spire. Two 2-light windows to each face of belfry. Small rectangular

north light to second stage and trefoil-headed lights to north and west

of bottom stage. Pointed-arched north doorway. West clock. South face

abuts nave. Interior: Structure: 3-bay south arcade to nave of doubly

plain-chamfered pointed arches; 2 east bays C14, west bay C19 in a C14

style. Columns with scroll-moulded capitals. 2-bay north arcade to nave

in a C14 style. Tower protrudes into north-west end bay. Tall pointed-

arched C15 chancel arch, with continuous outer moulding, and inner moulding

springing on each side from concave-sided semi-octagonal shaft with

moulded capital and base. Later C14 doubly plain-chamfered pointed arch

between chancel and south chapel, springing from attached semi-octagonal

columns with moulded capitals and bases. Pointed doubly plain-chamfered

arch dying into wall between south chapel and south aisle. 4-centred

doubly hollow-chamfered C15 or early C16 arch between chancel and north

chapel, inner order springing from attached semi-octagonal columns with

moulded capitals and high moulded bases. C19 arch between north chapel

and north aisle. Chamfered medieval rere-arch to blocked south window

of south chapel. Roof: Medieval crown-post roof to nave, with 3 moulded

octagonal crown-posts and ribbed C19 boarding under rafters. 2

medieval moulded octagonal crown-posts to south chapel. C19 boarded

wagon roof to chancel. Fittings: moulded cinquefoil-

headed niche with splayed reveals, to east wall of chancel. Small pointed-

arched plain-chamfered piscina adjacent to niche. Traceried wooden screen

with moulded, brattished cornice between chancel and south chapel.

Intricately-carved wooden screen under chancel arch, with vaulted wooden

canopy, enriched cornice and parapet, erected 1949. Monuments: hanging

monument on north wall of north aisle, to Sir Anthony Mayne, d.1627, and

2 wives. Alabaster, with convex corniced plinth. Three-quarter-length

figures between 4 Corinthian columns, with entablature arched over

centre. Achievements of Sir Anthony under arch, and heraldic shield

over each wife above entablature. Seated mourner (Faithful Gardener?)

above arch. Monuments within north chancel chapel: standing monument

against north wall, to Sir Anthony Mayne, d.1615, and wife. Alabaster.

Rectangular chest bearing inscription, surmounted by kneeling figures,

flanked by Corinthian columns bearing entablature with convex cornice.

Achievements above cornice. Vestiges of family tree carved and painted

on back panel. Gothic monument against north wall, to Galfridus Mann,

d.1756. Designed by Richard Bentley 1758: erected at expense of Horace

Walpole. Chest tomb on plain base, chest with trefoils in relief and with

plain central inscription in Latin. Above, a marble urn under crocketed

arch, soffit of arch panelled with quatrefoils. Tablet on north wall to

Eleanor Mann, d.1751. Rectangular, with foliated base plate. Inscribed

panel flanked by cupid terms. Moulded cornice, with flaming urn to each

end, surmounted by grey marble obelisk with white marble dragon rising

from urn. Tablet on south wall to Maria Isabella Mann, d.1823. Signed

E.H. Baily. Inscription on rectangular plinth beneath elderly mourner

seated in relief against gadrooned urn, with draped tapering back plate.

White marble tablet on south wall to Julia, Countess Cornwallis, d.1847,

by Baily. White marble on black ground, flanked by draped semi-octagonal

pilasters with moulded capitals linked by arch in relief. Tablet on west

wall to Edward Mann, d.1775. White marble on brown ground. Base-plate

with achievements. Oval inscription panel with moulded cornice surmounted

by urn against obelisk. Tablet on east wall to Charles James Mann,

d.1835 aged 22, and sister Jemima Isabella Wykeham Martin, d.1836, by

Baily. Rectangular consoled inscription panel surmounted by segmental-

headed white marble tablet on black marble base-plate, with 2 large

draped urns in relief. Free-standing white marble monument in north-

east corner, to the same Charles James Mann, signed by Baily. Young

man lying upon Grecian couch. Free-standing marble monument in south-

west corner, to Laura, Countess Cornwallis, d.1840, by Baily. Woman,

book in hand, turning on couch. (J. Newman, B.O.E. series, West Kent

and the Weald, 1980).

  

Listing NGR: TQ7538950165

 

britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101250235-church-of-st-nicho...

 

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LINTON.

SOUTHWARD from Loose, on the opposite side of Cocks heath, lies the parish of Linton, antiently written LYLLYNGTON, and in Latin, Lilintuna, which probably took its name from the old English word, lytlan, signifying little or small, and stane, a stone, the upper part of this parish abounding with the quarry stone.

 

THIS PARISH lies adjoining to Cocks-heath, upon the ridge of quarry hills, the summit of which is the northern boundary of the weald of Kent, consequently almost the whole of it is within that district, only a small part of the heath being beyond it. Cocks-heath is a beautiful, and for this inclosed part of the country, an extensive plain, being about three miles in length, and in some places more than a mile in width. It is esteemed a most healthy spot, and being well watered, is generally preferred, as a situation for large encampments, it being equally commodious for the troops to march from it, on an emergency, either into the county of Sussex, or into Essex. In 1778 there were fifteen thousand men encamped on it, which did not occupy more than two thirds of the whole extent of it. Over this heath the high road from Maidstone goes through this parish and village into the Weald. The village is situated about half a mile from the heath, on the declivity of the hill, having the church and place-house on the east side of it, the prospect from which southward over the Weald, like the other situations on these hills, is very beautiful, and of great extent. The air is very healthy, the soil on the hill a loam, with the quarry stone close beneath, and below the hill a stiff strong clay, in a very miry country, and thick hedgerows interspersed with quantities of spreading oaks. About a mile below the hill the road crosses the river at Style-bridge.

 

ON COCKS-HEATH there grows THE PLANT, called Lunaria, or small moonwort.

 

The greatest part of this parish is within the bounds of the manor of East Farleigh, though the manor of Loose extends over some small part of it. The free holders of the former holding their lands in free socage tenure.

 

This place is not mentioned in Domesday, being most probably included in the description there given of the manor of East Farleigh.

 

LINTON-PLACE, antiently called Capell's-court, is the only place of consequence in this parish. It took its name originally from the family of Capell, who were proprietaries of it. They were usually called according to the custom of the time at Capell, and in Latin, De Capella, their principal residence being at Capell'scourt, in Ivechurch, in Romney-marsh, though they had large estates in several other parishes in this county. (fn. 1) One of them, John de Capella, in the reign of king Henry III. held lands in Boxley, as appears by the charter of inspeximus granted by that king to the abbey there.

 

Richard de Capell, his successor, died in the 15th year of king Richard II. in whose descendants this place remained till the reign of king Henry VI. when it was alienated by one of them to Richard Baysden, from which name in the reign of queen Elizabeth, it was sold to Sir Anthony Maney, of Biddenden, whose ancestors had resided there many generations. He removed his seat hither, and at his death was buried in this church, as was his son Walter Maney, esq. whose son, John Maney, was a person of great loyalty to king Charles I. in his troubles, in consideration of which he was first knighted, and afterwards created a baronet. After which he suffered much for his attachment to the king, having his estate plundered and sequestered. He bore for his arms, Party per pale, argent and sable; three chevronels between as many cinquefoils counterchanged. He passed away this seat and estate in the reign of king Charles II. to Sir Francis Withens, one of the justices of the king's bench, whose only daugh ter and heir Catherine, in 1710 carried it in marriage to Sir Thomas Twysden, bart. of East Peckham, and he died in 1712, leaving by her two daughters his coheirs. On his death his widow became intitled to this estate, and soon afterwards again carried it in marriage to brigadier-general George Jocelyn, who was a younger son of Sir Robert Jocelyn, bart. of Hertfordshire, and died in 1727; leaving by lady Twysden, three sons. The family of Jocelyn bore for their arms, Azure, a wreath, argent and sable, with four hawks bells towards the corners of the escutcheon, or. He alienated it to Robert Mann, esq. who built a small but elegant seat here, partly on the scite of the old mansion of Capell'scourt, which he pulled down, and resided in it till his death, in 1751. By his will he devised Linton place, with the parsonage and the advowson of the vicarage of Linton, among his other estates in this county, to his eldest son Edward Louisa, in tail male, with divers remainders over. He resided here and died unmarried in 1775, on which, by the above entail, it came to his next brother, Sir Horatio Mann, K. B. and baronet, envoy extraordinary at Florence, where he died in 1786, and his body being next year brought over to England, was interred in this church. In his lifetime he made over this seat, with his other estates in this parish, to his nephew Sir Horace Mann, who succeeded him likewise in the title of baronet, and he is the present possessor of it, and at times resides here.

 

THERE were formerly some lands in this parish which belonged to a family named Welldish, who had a chapel in this church called Welldish's chapel. Their arms were, as appears by their seals to some antient deeds, Argent, three talbots passant azure on a chief, or, a fox passant gules, which coat they bore, as is reported by tradition, to perpetuate the memory of one of their ancestors having been huntsman to William the Conqueror. After this estate had been many generations in this family, the greatest part of it was alienated to Walter Maney, esq. whose son, Sir John Maney, bart. of Linton, sold it, with the rest of his estate in this parish, in the reign of king Charles II. to Sir Francis Withins, since which it has passed in like manner as Linton-place, above-mentioned, to the Mann's, and is now in the possession of Sir Horace Mann, bart.

 

CHARITIES.

One of the family of MANEY, owners of Capell's-court, built and endowed an alms-house here for four poor families. Robert Mann, esq. of Linton-place, in 1749, rebuilt it, and encreased the original stipends of 13s. 4d. to each family to 20s.

 

LINTON is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Sutton.

 

The church, which is dedicated to St. Nicholas, is a small building with a spire steeple, situated on the east side of the village. The patronage of it was part of the antient possessions of the crown, and remained so till it was given to the college or hospital for poor travellers, in the west borough at Maidstone, founded by archbishop Boniface in the reign of Henry III. (fn. 2) Archbishop Walter Reynolds, about 1314, appropriated it to the use and support of the above hospital.

 

¶In the 19th year of king Richard II. archbishop Courtney, on his making the parish church of Maidstone collegiate, with the king's licence, gave and assigned among other estates, the advowson and patronage of this church of Lyllyngton, to that hospital appropriated, and of the king's patronage, held of the king in capite, to the master and chaplains of the abovementioned new collegiate church of Maidstone, to hold in free, pure, and perpetual alms for ever, for its better maintenance, to which appropriation Adam Mottrum, archdeacon of Canterbury, gave his assent. The collegiate church of Maidstone was dissolved by the act of the 1st year of king Edward VI. anno 1546, and was surrendered into the king's hands accordingly.

 

In the 8th year of king Richard II. this church was valued at 106s. 8d. per annum. In the year 1640, the vicarage of it was valued at thirty pounds per annum. In the year 1751, the clear yearly certified value of it was 61l. 7s. 8d. yearly income.

 

This vicarage is valued in the king's books at 7l. 13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 15s. 4d. The parsonage, as well as the advowson of the vicarage, were held by grant from the crown in the reign of queen Elizabeth, by Alexander Grygsby, gent. in which name they continued in 1640. In 1681, Francis Martin, gent. held them. About the year 1710, they were held by Wallace, and afterwards by Oliver, who died possessed of them in 1728; soon after which they were purchased by Robert Mann, esq. of Lintonplace. Since which they have passed in like manner as that seat to Sir Horace Mann, bart. the present owner of them.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol4/pp365-371

Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland Timo Soini meets Minister of Foreign Affairs, Education and Culture of Liechtenstein Aurelia Frick at Finlandia Hall.

 

The Session of the Committee of Ministers, to be held at Finlandia Hall on 17 May 2019, will mark the end of Finland’s Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. At the meeting, Finland will hand over the Presidency to France. More than 30 ministers from the member States of the Council of Europe will attend the meeting. The meeting will be chaired by Foreign Minister Timo Soini.

 

Ministry for Foreign Affairs provides photo material for media representatives, participants and organisers of the meeting. Please feel free to use the photos, considering the following restrictions: Not for commercial purposes nor reselling. When publishing the pictures, the name of the photographer and organization shall be mentioned as the source. No picture manipulation is permitted. The holder of the picture rights and/or the organisation shall at all times retain the copyright to the picture. When publishing the pictures, the publisher shall ensure the legality of the context where the pictures are used, obtain the permissions and consents required for their publication, and observe the generally established practices and decency. The publisher shall ensure that publication of the pictures does not insult anyone’s privacy or dignity.

 

Photo: Kimmo Räisänen / Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland

If you pass through Heybridge you won't fail to notice the huge warehouse built alongside the Chelmer and Blackwater navigation in 1866 for the Bentall agricultural works.

William Bentall came from a long line of yeoman farmers who were born and bred to the land. He designed a plough that would become the foundation of Heybridge’s main industry.

 

Bentall was farming in Goldhanger, just outside Heybridge, when he made his new plough for use on his own land. So successful was his design that he went on to re-equip his whole farm with them.

 

These ploughs were probably made by the local blacksmith but within a few years their reputation led to other farm owners asking Bentall to equip their farms too. In order to satisfy their demands, Bentall opened a small foundry and smithy on land opposite his farmhouse and demand grew so much that in around 1795 with the support of his wife, Bentall decided to concentrate his efforts on this manufacturing business. He enlarged his foundry facilities and launched the Goldhanger plough on the farming community.

 

The plough achieved a reputation for outstanding excellence and Bentall found the village of Goldhanger restricting his growth. Raw materials had to be brought by sea to the Blackwater estuary and then transported by lighter and road to the foundry.

 

Bentall found land available beside the recently opened Chelmer and Blackwater canal at Heybridge, just three miles away, and in 1805 the first buildings were erected on this new site. Raw materials could now be brought directly up the canal in lighters to his new works.

 

The innovation continued and in the year following the move to Heybridge William Bentall introduced the first steam powered threshing machine followed by a selection of other agricultural implements. Bentall never took out patents on his designs but relied on customer satisfaction to ensure the continued success of his products. The Bentall name stood for quality and his factory ran at maximum capacity.

 

In 1814 the country was engaged in the Nepoleonic war and due to the restriction on importing wheat from Poland, vast areas of land were being broken up for grain production. The demands for agricultural equipment was at a peak. Finding no problem selling the output of his factory, Bentall was becoming a wealthy man.

  

In 1814, William Bentall had a son Edward Hammond Bentall who succeeded his father to run the management of the business twenty two years later.

 

Edward Hammond Bentall had inherited his father’s aptitude for engineering and had been born to a period of intense engineering expansion leading to an insatiable demand for the products coming out of the Heybridge works. His mother had already seen to it that he was taught the workings of the foundry and was taught to make a ploughshare.

 

At the age of 22, Edward had an inquiring mind and a sense of adventure as well as having inherited his father’s engineering genius. These qualities led to business into rapid expansion after years of gradual growth.

 

In order to safeguard this expanding business in 1839 Edward began to trade under the name of E.H.Bentall & Co adding status to the name and in 1841, a patent was taken out for an “improved” Goldhanger plough to protect the product against imitations.

 

Another new design was patented in 1843 and that was the Broad Share Cultivator which was a tremendous success when it was put on the market. Sales of Bentall products had been mainly in the local counties but this new plough began to find markets throughout Britain and across the seas in the Colonies.

 

Expansion went side by side with demand and new buildings were erected at the works and more staff trained. The quality however, never changed and the Broadshare plough was awarded a gold medal at the Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace in 1851.

 

Edward Bentall continued to further improve this plough until it gained three first prizes at the Royal Agricultural Society’s show in Warwick in 1859. The word of its reputation spread and orders started coming in from all over the world.

 

The next innovation at the Bentall works was for the design and manufacture of a semi automatic machine to produce nuts and bolts. These were a large proportion of the manufacturing costs and Bentall built a new workshop to supply his own factory and an eager outside market. By now, Bentalls were producing a range of products which also included turnip cutters, root pulpers and oilcake breakers. Over the coming years the business prospered and, by 1870, the works were producing some twenty thousand assorted pulpers, cutters and cake breakers as well as the manufacture of a wide range of ploughs, threshers and reaping machines

 

In 1871, the products were modified to enable them to be marketed in Europe and Edward Bentall became a very wealthy man. Edmund Ernest Bentall started to take over the management of the business from his father, Edward, in 1889. Edward Hammond Bentall died in 1898. Edmund had taken over a very successful business now nearing it’s centenary and in the early 20th century, under his leadership, Bentall’s rose to the challenge of the new internal combustion engine.

 

A Bentall designed engine with many advantages over other designs became a very important addition to the work’s output. It was a slow running machine with small fuel consumption and was also one of the cheapest petrol engines on the market. Designed for ease in repair, the engines found themselves used for purposes as varied as driving chaff-cutters, crushers, pumps and even milking machines. The Bentall engine won medals at the great Brussels Exhibition and the International Exhibition in Turin.

 

Edmund Bentall was a keen motorist, the first man to own and drive a motor car in Maldon and set about designing a car that would incorporate a Bentall design petrol engine.

 

When he began to work on the design of the engine, petrol engines for cars were made with separate cylinders and he based his design on this principle. Unfortunately, by the time the car came into production, the monobloc system had come into fashion but it was too late for Bentall to change the design as all the necessary jigs and tools had been made. The new monobloc engines had a smaller bore than the Bentall engine which was put at a disadvantage when the new system of horse power tax was devised. The Bentall engine had a diameter and stroke very nearly equal and attracted a higher rate of tax and few buyers were to be found willing to face paying the heavy road fund tax.

 

The car was a costly failure to the company and although around one hundred were sold it was considered that redesigning the engine would be too costly and car manufacture at Heybridge was discontinued. The experience was not wasted, however, and Bentalls continued to improve the design of small petrol and paraffin engines and produced the first horizontal petrol engine in this country and sold many thousands. It was also the start of a large trade in the manufacture of valves and, from 1904, formed an important part of the output of the factory. Bentalls were pioneers in valve manufacture and went on the produce over a million a year.

 

E. E. Bentall was an innovator in other ways and equipped the factory with it’s own generator for electric power. The business also saw the increasing use of the railway because of reduced cost and the barges disappeared.

 

By 1914, the works was employing some six to seven hundred hands with the works covering an area of about fourteen acres. Despite the losses due to the failed car manufacturing venture, the business continued to prosper with the output of agricultural machinery expanding each year.

 

During the years of the Great War, a large proportion of the work’s output was switched to production of shell cases and many million were made during the four years of fighting. Women workers were introduced into the works as moulders and the shop was equipped with pneumatic hoists so that they would not have to lift heavy weights.

 

The fortunes of the company took a disasterous turn at the end of the war. An association of engineering firms was formed under the name of Agricultural & General Engineers Ltd and Bentall was persuaded to to merge his firm into it. Although Bentall & Co was the largest company in the association and the whole of the share capital was turned over to the new group the company had only one vote on the board.

 

The association did well during the boom years following the war but things were not looking too good for the future. The boom was followed by a slump and the association tried to counter the shrinking trade by launching further ambitious schemes including the formation of new companies in the Dominions. The association failed and the venture ended in total loss. Bentall, being the largest shareholder was hardest hit. All his money that might have used to put Bentalls back on it’s feet was lost.

 

Bentalls were in for a difficult time and had to start almost all over again. Sales had fallen to an unprecedented low and confidence in Bentalls had taken a severe blow. In 1933, E. E. Bentall purchased the ordinary shares of the company from the receivers of A.G.E.Ltd with the help of a little capital borrowed from friends and began the task of rebuilding the company. Charles Bentall became managing director with his father as chairman.

 

Some years of hard work were ahead but with the help of loyal staff who were prepared to work for reduced wages the business showed yearly improvements and the company’s debts were finally paid. Bentalls was prospering once more. The revived company played an important role in the second world war. Production set up for the manufacture of small machine parts for the aircraft manufactured by Handley-Page. The works went on to also produce complete assemblies such as tail fins and bomb floor for the new Halifax bombers and before the war ended some one thousand men and women were employed in the works. Also, because of the difficulty in importing food stuffs during the war years, output of agricultural machinery doubled to meet demand.

 

In 1946 E.H.Bentall & Co was recognised as a public company with Charles Bentall as Chairman. It continued to produce increasing volumes of agricultural machinery and valves for combustion engines. Although trade with the coffee plantations had suffered during the war the business was recaptured and rose six fold. Bentall technicians travelled to many countries advising on mechanised coffee processing. The works were modernised with more buildings added and, in 1949, a new foundry was built to meet demand for products. The year also saw the purchase of Tamkin Bros & Co of Chelmsford and the manufacture of their products switched to the Heybridge works. In 1955, the year the firm celebrated it’s 150th anniversary, Charles Edward Bentall died.

 

Thanks to it's about Maldon

Having spent many happy days in Heybridge where my grandparents lived as a child this building always stood out as a fabulous structure and well over a hundred years later it is still going strong!!! The Victorians could teach us a thing or two!!

           

Springfield, Massachusetts USA

 

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#DrSeuss

 

Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel) born in Springfield, Massachusetts on March 2, 1904 was an American writer, cartoonist, animator, book publisher, and artist best known for authoring children's books.

 

The Pocket Book of Boners - 1931

 

The Cat in the Hat- 1957

 

How the Grinch Stole Christmas! - 1957

 

Green Eggs and Ham - 1960

 

The Lorax - 1971

 

Oh, the Places You'll Go! - 1990

 

#HowtheGrinchStoleChristmas! is a children's story by Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel written in rhymed verse with illustrations by the author. It follows #theGrinch a grouchy, solitary creature, his only companion is his unloved, but loyal dog, Max. The #Grinch attempts to put an end to Christmas by stealing Christmas-themed items from the homes of the nearby town Whoville on Christmas Eve. Despite his efforts, Whoville's inhabitants still celebrate the holiday, so the Grinch returns everything that he stole and is the guest of honor at the Whos' Christmas dinner.

 

The #CatintheHat is a children's story that centers on a tall anthropomorphic cat, who wears a red and white-striped hat and a red bow tie. The Cat shows up at the house of Sally and her unnamed brother one rainy day when their mother is away. Ignoring repeated objections from the children's fish, the Cat shows the children a few of his tricks in an attempt to entertain them.

 

Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden – amidst the Quadrangle, there are large, bronze statues of characters from Springfield native Dr. Seuss's books.

 

Springfield is home to five distinct museums at the Quadrangle, along with the ornate Springfield Public Library – an architecturally significant example of the City Beautiful movement. The Quadrangle's five distinct collections include the first American-made planetarium, designed and built (1937) by Frank Korkosz; the Dr Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden; the largest collection of Chinese cloisonne outside of China; and the original casting of Augustus Saint Gaudens's most famous sculpture, Puritan.

 

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The Big E – also known as The Eastern States Exposition, it is New England's collective, annual state fair. Held on a permanent fairgrounds approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Springfield's Metro Center, across the ornate Memorial Bridge in West Springfield, it attracts more than 1 million visitors per year during its 14- to 17-day run beginning in mid-September.

 

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Origin of the Name Massachusetts - Massachusetts was named for an Algonquian Indian word that means "a big hill place."

 

State Nickname - Bay State

 

State Motto - "Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem" - ( By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty)

 

State Song - All Hail to Massachusetts

 

State bird - Black-Capped Chickadee

 

State Game Bird - Wild Turkey

 

State Fish - Cod

 

State Dog - Boston terrier

 

State flower - Mayflower (also called the ground laurel or trailing arbutus)

(Epigaea regens)

 

State tree - American elm

 

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2-Days Springfield, Montpelier Vermont Maple tour from New York

 

Tour Code: 755-4783

 

Booked through TakeTours

 

Service provided by L & L Travel

 

Visiting:

 

The Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden in Springfield, Massachusetts

 

Riverdale Shops lunch break in West Springfield, Massachusetts

 

Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks in Montpelier, Vermont

 

Scenic New England Fall Foliage bus drive through Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont

 

Diner break and shopping in South Burlington Vermont

 

Holiday Inn Burlington overnight stay in South Burlington Vermont

 

Quechee Gorge in Hartford, Vermont

 

Montpelier, the capital of Vermont

 

Vermont State House in Montpelier, Vermont

 

Stowe Mountain gondola skyride in Stowe, Vermont

 

Ben & Jerry's Factory in Waterbury, Vermont

 

West Lebanon, New Hampshire lunch break

 

Connecticut - Welcome Center visit

  

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hashtag / metadata tags

#Springfield #SpringfieldMA #SpringfieldMass #SpringfieldMassachusetts #Massachusetts #Mass #Ma #CommonwealthofMassachusetts #CommonwealthMassachusetts #Commonwealth #NewEngland #Massachusettsan #BayStater #Massachusite #MassachusettsBayColony

#NewEngland #VisitNewEngland #US #USA

 

Photo

Springfield city, Hampden County, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts state, New England region, USA The United States of America country, North America continent

October 15th 2016

Its been a long time since I had uploaded anything on flickr....and that is not good. I am addicted :) . Had been down with conjunctivitis ( the worst type of infection ever known to human kind) cant do anything..had to sit at home for 4 days...such a waste.

 

This picture has been captured by Smita, who very humbly says " mala macro capture karta yet nahi'.Well by the looks of it..you can.

 

Let me know what you guys think....

 

Oh by the way I AM BACK. :D

The Buddhist vihara at Sanchi, famous for its Great Stupa is located at Sanchi Town in Raisen District of the state of Madhya Pradesh, India, it is located 46 km north-east of Bhopal.

 

The 'Great Stupa' at Sanchi is the oldest stone structure in India and was originally commissioned by the emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE. Its nucleus was a simple hemispherical brick structure built over the relics of the Buddha. It was crowned by the chatra, a parasol-like structure symbolising high rank, which was intended to honour and shelter the relics. The construction work of this stupa was overseen by Ashoka's wife, Devi herself, who was the daughter of a merchant of Vidisha. Sanchi was also her birthplace as well as the venue of her and Ashoka's wedding. In the 1st century BCE, four elaborately carved toranas (ornamental gateways) and a balustrade encircling the entire structure were added.

 

HISTORY

MAURYA PERIOD

The 'Great Stupa' at Sanchi is the oldest structure and was originally commissioned by the emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE. Its nucleus was a hemispherical brick structure built over the relics of the Buddha. It was crowned by the chatra, a parasol-like structure symbolising high rank. A pillar of finely polished sandstone was also erected. The old stupa was later covered when it was expanded. The bottom part of the pillar still stands. The upper parts of the pillar are placed under a canopy nearby. The pillar has an Ashokan inscription (Schism Edict) and an inscription in the ornamental Sankha Lipi from the Gupta period.

 

SUNGA PERIOD

The original brick stupa was later covered with stone during the Sunga period. On the basis of Ashokavadana, it is presumed that the stupa may have been vandalized at one point sometime in the 2nd century BCE, an event some have related to the rise of the Sunga emperor Pushyamitra Sunga who overtook the Mauryan Empire as an army general. It has been suggested that Pushyamitra may have destroyed the original stupa, and his son Agnimitra rebuilt it. During the later rule of the Sunga, the stupa was expanded with stone slabs to almost twice its original size. The dome was flattened near the top and crowned by three superimposed parasols within a square railing. With its many tiers it was a symbol of the dharma, the Wheel of the Law. The dome was set on a high circular drum meant for circumambulation, which could be accessed via a double staircase. A second stone pathway at ground level was enclosed by a stone balustrade with four monumental gateways (toranas) facing the cardinal directions. The buildings which seem to have been commissioned during the rule of the Sungas are the Second and Third stupas (but not the highly decorated gateways, which are from the following Satavahana period, as known from inscriptions), and the ground balustrade and stone casing of the Great Stupa.

 

SATAVAHANA PERIOD

The gateways and the balustrade were built and colored, then appeared to have been commissioned by the Satavahana. An inscription records the gift of one of the top architraves of the Southern Gateway by the artisans of the Satavahana king Satakarni:

 

"Gift of Ananda, the son of Vasithi, the foreman of the artisans of rajan Siri Satakarni".

 

DC Sircar observes that palaeographically the Hathigumpha record is slightly later than Naneghat record whereas the letters of Sanchi inscription of Satakarni resemble the script of Hathigumpha inscription. Kharavela in his inscription mentions one Satakarni, who is identified as Satakarni II, who is also identical to the one who inscribed in Sanchi. If this is true, then the dating of Sanchi gateway and balustrade belong to the much earlier period of 180-160 BC.

 

Although made of stone, they were carved and constructed in the manner of wood and the gateways were covered with narrative sculptures. They showed scenes from the life of the Buddha integrated with everyday events that would be familiar to the onlookers and so make it easier for them to understand the Buddhist creed as relevant to their lives. At Sanchi and most other stupas the local population donated money for the embellishment of the stupa to attain spiritual merit. There was no direct royal patronage. Devotees, both men and women, who donated money towards a sculpture would often choose their favourite scene from the life of the Buddha and then have their names inscribed on it. This accounts for the random repetition of particular episodes on the stupa (Dehejia 1992). On these stone carvings the Buddha was never depicted as a human figure. Instead the artists chose to represent him by certain attributes, such as the horse on which he left his father’s home, his footprints, or a canopy under the bodhi tree at the point of his enlightenment. The human body was thought to be too confining for the Buddha.

 

Some of the friezes of Sanchi also show devotees in Greek attire (Greek clothing, attitudes, and musical instruments) celebrating the stupa.

 

LATER PERIODS

Further stupas and other religious Buddhist structures were added over the following centuries until the 12th century AD. Temple 17 is probably one of the earliest Buddhist temples as it dates to the early Gupta period. It consists of a flat roofed square sanctum with a portico and four pillars. The interior and three sides of the exterior are plain and undecorated but the front and the pillars are elegantly carved, giving the temple an almost ‘classical’ appearance (Mitra 1971).

 

Temple 45 was the last Buddhist temple built during the mid - late 9th century. Also at this time the monuments were enclosed within a wall. With the decline of Buddhism in India, the monuments of Sanchi went out of use and fell into a state of disrepair. In 1818, General Taylor of the Bengal Cavalry recorded a visit to Sanchi. At that time the monuments appear to have been left undisturbed for a long time and in generally good preservation.

 

WESTERN REDISCOVERY

A British officer in 1818, General Taylor, was the first known Western historian to document (in English) the existence of Sanchi (Sāñcī). Amateur archaeologists and treasure hunters ravaged the site until 1881, when proper restoration work was initiated. Between 1912 and 1919 the structures were restored to their present condition under the supervision of Sir John Marshall.Today, around fifty monuments remain on the hill of Sanchi, including three stupas and several temples. The monuments have been listed among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1989.

 

CHETIYAGIRI VIHARA AND THE SACRED RELICTS

The bone relics (dhatu) of Buddhist Masters along with the reliquaries, obtained by Maisey and Cunningham were divided by them and taken to England as personal trophies.Maisey's family sold the objects to Victoria and Albert Museum where they stayed for a long time. The Buddhists in England, Sri Lanka and India, lead by the Mahabodhi Society demanded that they be returned. Some of the relics of Sariputta and Moggallana were sent back to Sri Lanka, where they were publicly displayed in 1947. Almost entire population of Sri Lanka visited them. They were later returned to India. A new temple Chetiyagiri Vihara was constructed to house the relics, in 1952. In a nationalistic sense, this marked the formal reestablishment of the Buddhist tradition in India. Some of the relics were obtained by Burma.

 

INSCRIPTIONS

Sanchi, especially Stupa 1, has a large number of Brahmi inscriptions. Although most of them are small and mention donations, they are of great historical significance. James Prinsep in 1837, noted that most of them ended with the same two Brahmi characters. Princep took them as "danam" (donation), which permitted the decipherment of the Brahmi script,. An analysis of the donation records shows that while a large fraction of the donors were local (with no town specified), a number of them were from Ujjain, Vidisha, Kurara, Nadinagar, Mahisati, Kurghara, Bhogavadhan and Kamdagigam.The inscriptions include those from Maurya, Shunga/Satavahana (175 BC-15 AD), Kushana (100-150 AD), Gupta (600-800 AD, see Sanchi inscription of Candragupta II). The Ye Dharma Hetu inscription in Temple 45 may be dated to 9th century.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Gim Huay Neo, Managing Director, Centre for Nature and Climate, World Economic Forum, Marc Benioff, Chair and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Salesforce, USA; Member of Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum, Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson, HCLTech, India, Andrew Forrest, Chairman and Founder, Fortescue Metals Group, Australia, Fawn Sharp, President, National Congress of American Indians, USA, Al Gore, Vice-President of the United States (1993-2001); Chairman and Co-Founder, Generation Investment Management, USA; Member of Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum and Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego, President of Colombia and Yo-Yo Ma, Cellist, USA; Cultural Leader; Member of Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum during in the "Leading the Charge through Earth's New Normal" session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2023 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, 18 January. Congress Centre - Plenary Hall. Copyright: World Economic Forum/ Benedikt von Loebell

Natalya Bex & Friends doing their bit for a good cause during USC 2013 at Santa Pod.

For single mother Tumaini, raising two children in one of the poorest areas of Tanzania is struggle enough. Affording them an education was a constant source of worry until her bright eldest daughter Upendo was accepted to receive a free education The School of St Jude.

“My neighbours all tell me how different I look, they say I’m smiling and I’m looking beautiful." Tumaini says.

"I tell them it’s because of St Jude’s.”

For quicksil7er ( www.flickr.com/photos/26700938@N05/ ) . If you haven't seen this amazing stream, check it out. The Carl Zeiss Planar T* 1.4/85 wide open makes one heck of a thin slice of focus area! This shot was taken with the camera placed on some skid marks on the street - no Photoshop post work other than the words. Nikon D700 + Carl Zeiss 85mm The journey is the reward. Please, no group invitations or badges.

Welcome 2011!

 

This is Leo's first shot for the 52 Weeks for Dogs group.

 

Just like his sisters 12 Months for Dogs first shot of the year, I wanted to showcase his new pretty purple Dog Tag.

 

It's incredibly hard to get a nice shot of the pups with the tag facing the right way... So I had to cheat with this one and photoshop the tag so it's facing the camera... Naughty me...

 

I just love the way he's looking straight at the camera (or me). He's such a goofy little man!

 

Leo is a Blue Great Dane, almost 11 months old.

 

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