Snapped at the i Site regional bus stop in The Square in Palmerston North on the service from Wellington to Auckland on Monday, 15 August 2016.

MANABUS NO. 12 CARJAM DETAILS:

Make: 2016 VOLVO

Model: B11R

Colour: Red

VIN: YV3T2T126GA175853

Plate: JTC904

Engine No: D11.367582.C11

Chassis: 175853

Seats: 67

CC rating: 10,800cc

Fuel Type: Diesel

Assembly Type: NZ Assembled/Built

Country of Origin: Sweden

NZ First Registration: 21 April 2016

Performed by Drum Feng at the Esplanade Outdoor Theatre during Moonfest 2018 for the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations.

Origin Factory by night. Muscatine, Iowa.

Batman: Arkham Origins - Downsampled from 3200x1800, Hide HUD, cheat engine, no clip, camera coordinates, SweetFX K-putt'e Config 1.3

Kalamegdan (Калемегдан) fortress, Belgrade, Serbia

Kalamegdan is a park-fortress in the center of Belgrade. The name has Turkish origin: kala (tower) and megdan (battlefield). The name recalls the turbulent history of the castle.

The first fortifications are from the 4-5th century. The city, called Singidunum, was defended be the Roman legion IV Flaviae. It was part of the limes , the military defense line of the Roman Empire.

The site was called Belgrade (white town) in the 9th century for the first time. The city kept changing masters, and it was a border town of the Byzantine Empire, the Bulgarian Empire, Hungary and Serbia. During the Turkish wars after the battle of Kosovo it became the seat of the Serbian state. It was also part of the principal Hungarian defense system against the Ottoman Empire. (The Danube river is the natural border of the Great Plains.)

In 1456, Hungarian and Serbian troops defended the castle during the Siege of Belgrade (Hungarian Nándorfehérvár). It's captain, János Hunyadi (Сибињанин Јанко) saved Central Europe from the Ottoman invasion for 70 years.

Belgrade was part of the Ottoman Empire between 1521 and 1867.

More about the Siege of Belgrade (1456) on Wikipedia:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Belgrade

MaxShuster.com | tumblr

Patrick Sobral est un auteur de BD né le 18 novembre 1972 à Limoges. Il fut décorateur sur porcelaine pendant 12 ans (comme quoi les stéréotypes sur Limoges ont la vie dure).

Suite au succès de sa première BD publiée (Les Légendaires) il a abandonné cette profession pour se consacrer exclusivement au métier de dessinateur/scénariste.

Model: Heckler & Koch HK23E General Purpose Machine Gun

Caliber: 5.56x45/.223

Rate of fire: 800 rounds per minute

Firing modes: Safe, single shot, 3 shot & fully automatic bursts

Features: Mechanical recoil buffer incorporated in the stock, adjustable 1200 meter sight, adjustable foldable bipod, belt feeding tray, front grip, quick change barrel & 22 caliber muzzle brake

Country of origin: West Germany

If the gun is accurate & the shooter has aim, tough luck for Super Mario & Luigi, they cannot avoid the Bullet Bills any longer

"Ely Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in the city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.

The cathedral has its origins in AD 672 when St Etheldreda built an abbey church. The present building dates back to 1083, and cathedral status was granted it in 1109. Until the Reformation it was the Church of St Etheldreda and St Peter, at which point it was refounded as the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Ely, continuing as the principal church of the Diocese of Ely, in Cambridgeshire. It is the seat of the Bishop of Ely and a suffragan bishop, the Bishop of Huntingdon. Architecturally it is outstanding both for its scale and stylistic details. Having been built in a monumental Romanesque style, the galilee porch, lady chapel and choir were rebuilt in an exuberant Decorated Gothic. Its most notable feature is the central octagonal tower, with lantern above, which provides a unique internal space and, along with the West Tower, dominates the surrounding landscape. Ely Cathedral is a major tourist destination, receiving around 250,000 visitors per year, and sustains a daily pattern of morning and evening services.

Ely is built on a 23-square-mile (60 km2) Kimmeridge Clay island which, at 85 feet (26 m), is the highest land in the Fens. Major rivers including the Witham, Welland, Nene and Great Ouse feed into the Fens and, until draining commenced in the 17th century, formed freshwater marshes and meres within which peat was laid down. There are two Sites of Special Scientific Interest in the city: a former Kimmeridge Clay quarry, and one of the United Kingdom's best remaining examples of medieval ridge and furrow agriculture.

The economy of the region is mainly agricultural. Before the Fens were drained, the harvesting of osier (willow) and sedge (rush) and the extraction of peat were important activities, as were eel fishing—from which the settlement's name may have been derived—and wildfowling. The city had been the centre of local pottery production for more than 700 years, including pottery known as Babylon ware. A Roman road, Akeman Street, passes through the city; the southern end is at Ermine Street near Wimpole and its northern end is at Brancaster. Little direct evidence of Roman occupation in Ely exists, although there are nearby Roman settlements such as those at Little Thetford and Stretham. A coach route, known to have existed in 1753 between Ely and Cambridge, was improved in 1769 as a turnpike (toll road). The present-day A10 closely follows this route; a southwestern bypass of the city was built in 1986. Ely railway station, built in 1845, is on the Fen Line and is now a railway hub, with lines north to King's Lynn, northwest to Peterborough, east to Norwich, southeast to Ipswich and south to Cambridge and London." - info from Wikipedia.

Summer 2019 I did a solo cycling tour across Europe through 12 countries over the course of 3 months. I began my adventure in Edinburgh, Scotland and finished in Florence, Italy cycling 8,816 km. During my trip I took 47,000 photos.

Now on Instagram.

Cropredy has ancient origins, a chapel in the church is dedicated to St Fremund, an anglo-saxon saint thought to be the son of King Offa. It's name combines the Old English croppe or hill and ridig, a small stream. The village is only a few miles from Banbury, in hilly country along the banks of the River Cherwell. Before the Dissolution of the Monasteries Cropredy belonged the Bishop of Lincoln. More recently Brasenose College, Oxford, has become a significant landlord giving it's name to the local pub.

Dramatic changes to centuries of agrarian life were heralded by the excavation of the Oxford canal which runs alongside the Cherwell south-east of the church. This busy waterway was superseded by the Great Western railway, the village even had it's own station until 1956.

Unusually Cropredy retains the ringing of the curfew bell, in Medieval times this was a signal to return home and 'cover their fires'. Roger Lupton local priest between 1487 and 1528 was so lost in dense fog that he could only find his way from nearby Chacombe by the ringing of Cropredy's bells. He founded a fund in gratitude which paid for the daily winding of the clock and tolling the bell morning, noon and night. The bell is still rung Tuesday and Thursday nights for five minutes after eight O'clock.

The village is best known for the Civil War 'Battle of Cropredy Bridge'. A rare Royalist victory at a time when the Parliamentary forces were in the ascendancy. In June 1644 the King slipped out of Oxford to avoid two Roundhead armies which were rapidly approaching. At this point the Earl of Essex chose to lead his army south and relieve the siege of Lyme Regis leaving Sir William Waller to pursue the King with half of the men. Waller shadowed the Royal army to Worcester only for the King to double back towards Banbury where the Parliamentary commander saw an opportunity to split the Royal forces which were strung out along the Daventry road. Waller's artillery crossed Cropredy bridge but were too far ahead of the infantry and were overrun. Fierce fighting followed but neither side achieved a significant advantage and a chance of capturing the King was lost. As children we were told stories of a phantom drummer boy.

Cropredy's most prominent claim to fame is their music festival founded when Fairport Convention played the village fete in 1976. Cropredy Music Festival grew from these modest beginnings and now attracts over 20,000 music fans every year.

St. Mary the Virgin is an impressive building constructed from the local rust-coloured ironstone. While part of the wall of the south aisle has been dated to c1050 the present church begins in the 13th century with significant 14th and 15th century additions. The south wall has two tomb recesses thought to be built for Simon de Cropredy and his son c1200. The church has an interesting 13th century parish chest and the chapel dedicated to the anglo-saxon saint Fremund has two 15th century screens, one of which has the initials AD which may stand for Alice Danvers. The nave arcading, tower and choir arches are Perpendicular in style with no capitals and continuous moulding from ground level. The tower is early 15th century with the belfry and parapets added 80 years later, There are eight bells, six from the late 17th century, two added in 2007 called Fairport and Villager. Fragments of a Doom survive above the chancel arch. The church has a 17th century pulpit and a rare pre-reformation eagle lectern which is said to have been hidden in the river before the Battle of Cropredy where it lost one of it's lion feet. The beak has a slot for collecting 'Peter's Pence'. There is a beautiful 15th century head of the Virgin Mary in stained glass which was found in the churchyard. There are two fonts, one Norman and one Victorian. In the tower is a magnificent clock by John Moore of Clerkenwell dated 1831.

Cropredy is just off the Daventry road a few miles from Banbury about an hour from Stratford-upon-Avon.

www.youtube.com/user/Cotswoldchurches

www.bwthornton.co.uk

Assassin's Creed: Origins

Ubisoft

Assassin's Creed Origins is an action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It is the tenth major installment in the Assassin's Creed series and the successor to 2015's Assassin's Creed Syndicate. It was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on October 27, 2017. The game is set in Ancient Egypt during the Ptolemaic period and recounts the secret fictional history of real-world events. The story explores the origins of the centuries-long conflict between the Brotherhood of Assassins, who fight for peace by promoting liberty and The Order of the Ancients—forerunners to the Templar Order—who desire peace through the forceful imposition of order. Origins received positive reviews from critics, who praised the story, voice acting, immersive world of Egypt and visuals, while criticizing some of the pacing and technical issues. Despite this, some critics called it the best installment of the series since 2013's Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.

DC Collectibles Arkham Origins Deathstroke action figure.

Hellfest 2017 Clisson 44

Le Hellfest, également appelé Hellfest Summer Open Air, est un festival de musique français spécialisé dans les musiques extrêmes, annuellement organisé au mois de juin à Clisson en Loire-Atlantique. Sa forte fréquentation le fait figurer parmi les plus importants festivals de musique français. Il est aussi l'un des plus grands festivals de metal en Europe et le premier en France.

Il trouve son origine dans un autre festival musical, le Furyfest, qui se tient de 2002 à 2005 dans différents lieux des Pays de la Loire ; le Hellfest en prend la suite en 2006 puis connaît, en quelques années, une hausse continue de sa fréquentation, passant de 22 000 pour la première édition à 152 000 entrées payantes en 2015.

Sa programmation est avant tout centrée sur le hard rock et le metal pour les deux scènes principales, tandis que chacune des quatre autres scènes du festival est dédiée à un style plus particulier comme le black metal, le death metal, le punk hardcore, le doom metal ou le stoner rock, s'assurant ainsi la présence de groupes tels que Iron Maiden, Deep Purple, ZZ Top, Motörhead et KISS, tout autant que celle de Slayer, Megadeth, Sepultura, Cannibal Corpse ou Anthrax.

Programmation / Liste des groupes

(159 groupes) :

[Etats-Unis] A Day To Remember

[Etats-Unis] Aerosmith

[Etats-Unis] Agnostic Front

[Australie] Airbourne

[France] Alcest

[Royaume Uni] Alestorm

[Etats-Unis] Alter Bridge

[Etats-Unis] Animals As Leaders

[Finlande ] Apocalyptica

[France] Arkhon Infaustus

[Etats-Unis] Autopsy

[Suède] Avatar

[Etats-Unis] Baroness

[Pologne] Behemoth

[Autriche] Belphegor

[France] Betraying The Martyrs

[Canada] Beyond Creation

[Canada] Blood Ceremony

[Etats-Unis] Blue Oyster Cult

[Etats-Unis] Bongripper

[Royaume Uni] Booze&Glory

[Royaume Uni] Bright Curse

[Etats-Unis] Candiria

[France] Carcariass

[Etats-Unis] Chelsea Grin

[Etats-Unis] Chelsea Wolfe

[Etats-Unis] Clutch

[Canada] Comeback Kid

[Suisse] Coroner

[Allemagne] Corvus Corax

[Royaume Uni] Crippled Black Phoenix

[Etats-Unis] Crypt Sermon

[Canada] Cryptopsy

[Etats-Unis] D.r.i.

[Etats-Unis] Deafheaven

[France] Deathcode Society

[Pologne] Decapitated

[Royaume Uni] Deep Purple

[Australie] Deez Nuts

[France] Deluge

[Etats-Unis] DevilDriver

[Canada] Devin Townsend Project

[Norvège] Dodheimsgard

[Etats-Unis] Electric Wizard

[Norvège] Emperor

[Belgique] Emptiness

[Allemagne] Equilibrium

[Suède] Ereb Altor

[Suède] Evergrey

[Etats-Unis] Every Time I Die

[Etats-Unis] Exhumed

[Etats-Unis] Five Finger Death Punch

[Royaume Uni] Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes

[Etats-Unis] Ghost Bath

[Etats-Unis] Ghoul

[France] Harm Done

[Etats-Unis] Hate Eternal

[Royaume Uni] Hawkwind

[Etats-Unis] Helmet

[Etats-Unis] Hirax

[France] Igorrr

[Etats-Unis] Ill Nino

[Suède] In Flames

[Royaume Uni] Inglorious

[Autriche] Insanity Alert

[Etats-Unis] Integrity

[Etats-Unis] Jared James Nichols

[Norvège] Jorn

[France] Komintern Sect

[Allemagne] Kreator

[Brésil] Krisiun

[Etats-Unis] Leftover Crack

[France] Les Ramoneurs De Menhirs

[Etats-Unis] Linkin Park

[France] Los Disidentes Del Sucio Motel

[Suède] Marduk

[France] Mars Red Sky

[Etats-Unis] Metal Church

[Etats-Unis] Ministry

[Canada] Monarque

[Suisse] Monkey3

[France] Monolithe

[Etats-Unis] Monster Magnet

[France] Mortuary

[Etats-Unis] Motionless In White

[Tunisie] Myrath

[Etats-Unis] Nails

[Pays-Bas] No Turning Back

[Etats-Unis] Noothgrush

[Australie] Northlane

[Suisse] Nostromo

[Etats-Unis] Obituary

[Etats-Unis] Of Mice & Men

[Suède] Opeth

[Suède] Pain Of Salvation

[Etats-Unis] Pentagram

[France] Perturbator

[Royaume Uni] Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons

[Allemagne] Powerwolf

[Danemark] Pretty Maids

[Etats-Unis] Primitive Man

[Etats-Unis] Primus

[Etats-Unis] Prong

[Etats-Unis] Prophets Of Rage

[France] Putrid Offal

[Etats-Unis] Queensryche

[Etats-Unis] Rancid

[Royaume Uni] Ray Brower

[Etats-Unis] Red Fang

[France] Regarde Les Hommes Tomber

[Etats-Unis] Rob Zombie

[Suède] Sabaton

[Etats-Unis] Sanctuary

[Royaume Uni] Saxon

[Etats-Unis] Scour

[Etats-Unis] Seven Sisters Of Sleep

[Royaume Uni] Shvpes

[Pays-Bas] Sick Of Stupidity

[France] Sidilarsen

[Finlande ] Skepticism

[Royaume Uni] Skindred

[Etats-Unis] Slayer

[Etats-Unis] Slo Burn

[Royaume Uni] Slydigs

[Suède] Soilwork

[Etats-Unis] Steel Panther

[Etats-Unis] Subrosa

[Etats-Unis] Suicidal Tendencies

[France] Tagada Jones

[Pays-Bas] Textures

[Etats-Unis] The Bouncing Souls

[Royaume Uni] The Damned

[Australie] The Dead Daisies

[France] The Decline

[Etats-Unis] The Devil Wears Prada

[Etats-Unis] The Dillinger Escape Plan

[Allemagne] The New Roses

[Islande] The Vintage Caravan

[Etats-Unis] Trap Them

[Etats-Unis] Trapped Under Ice

[Finlande ] True Black Dawn

[France] Trust

[Finlande ] Turisas

[Iles Féroé] Tyr

[Italie] Ufomammut

[Etats-Unis] Ugly Kid Joe

[France] Ultra Vomit

[Suède] Valkyrja

[France] Verbal Razors

[France] Verdun

[Royaume Uni] Vodun

[France] Vortex Of End

[Etats-Unis] W.A.S.P.

[Etats-Unis] Wakrat

[Norvège] Wardruna

[Russie] Welicoruss

[Royaume Uni] While She Sleeps

[Espagne] Wormed

[Etats-Unis] Zeke

Jaisalmer, nicknamed "The Golden city", is a town in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is located 575 kilometres west of the state capital Jaipur. It is a World Heritage Site. It was once known as Jaisalmer state. The town stands on a ridge of yellowish sandstone, crowned by a fort, which contains the palace and several ornate Jain temples. Many of the houses and temples are finely sculptured. It lies in the heart of the Thar Desert (great Indian desert) and has a population of about 78,000. It is the administrative headquarters of Jaisalmer District.

ORIGIN OF NAME

Jaisalmer is named after Maharawal Jaisal Singh, a Rajput king who founded the city in 1156 AD. "Jaisalmer" means "the Hill Fort of Jaisal". Jaisalmer is sometimes called the "Golden City of India" because the yellow sand and the yellow sandstone used in every architecture of the city gives a yellowish-golden tinge to the city and its surrounding area.

LOCATION

District Jaisalmer is located within a rectangle lying between 26°.4’–28°.23' North parallel and 69°.20'–72°.42' east meridians. It is the largest district of Rajasthan and one of the largest in the country. The breadth (East-West) of the district is 270 km and the length (North-South) is 186 km. On the present map, district Jaisalmer is bounded on the north by Bikaner, on the west & south-west by the Pakistani border, on the south by Barmer and Jodhpur, and on the east by Jodhpur and Bikaner Districts. The length of international border attached to District JAISALMER is 471 km.

HISTORY

The majority of the inhabitants of Jaisalmer are Bhati Rajputs, named for Bhati, who was renowned as a warrior. The ruling family of the erstwhile Jaisalmer State belongs to Bhati Clan of Yadu Rajputs of Chandravanshi (Lunar) race who claim descent from Lord Krishna,the deified hero who ruled at Dwarka. In 1156 Rawal Jaisal, the sixth in succession from Deoraj, founded the fort and city of Jaisalmer,atop Trikuta Hill and began to levy taxes on the camel caravans travelling along the nearby route. Laden with exotic spices and precious silks, these trading caravans were en route to cities like Delhi or Sind, but had to pass directly through Jaisalmer. This strategic location continued to serve Jaisalmer well, as it lay right on the two main routes connecting India with Persia, Egypt and farther west. He later made it his capital as he moved from his former capital at Lodhruva (which is situated about 15 km to the north-west of Jaisalmer). In 1293, the Bhattis so enraged the Sultan of Delhi Ala-ud-din Khilji that his army captured and sacked the fort and city of Jaisalmer, so that for some time it was quite deserted.Some Bhatti's from the Royal family migrated to Jaisal (Now in Pakistan), a place near to Chiniot Distt and some migrated to Talwandi, now Nankana Sahib in Distt. Nankana Sahib (Punjab, Pakistan) and others settled in Larkana (in Sind, Pakistan)under the name of Bhutto. In Nankana Sahib, the Bhatti Clan can be traced from the lineage of Rai Bhoe and Rai Bular Bhatti. After this there is nothing to record until the time of Rawal Sahal Singh, whose reign marks an epoch in Jaisalmer's history in that he acknowledged the supremacy of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. Following the collapse of the Mughal Empire in the 18th century, Jaisalmer, like the rest of Rajputana, became subservient to the Marathas, until it came under the protection of the British East India Company following the British victory in the Third Anglo-Maratha War. In 1818, the Rawals of Jaisalmer signed a treaty with the British, which protected Jaisalmer from invasion provided it was not the aggressor and guaranteed the royal succession.

The Maharajas of Jaisalmer trace their lineage back to Jaitsimha, a ruler of the Bhati Rajput clan. The major opponents of the Bhati Rajputs were the powerful Rathor clans of Jodhpur and Bikaner. They used to fight battles for the possession of forts, waterholes or cattle. Jaisalmer was positioned strategically and was a halting point along a traditional trade route traversed by the camel caravans of Indian and foreign merchants. The route linked India to Central Asia, Egypt, Arabia, Persia, Africa and the West.

MEDIEVAL PERIOD

In the 13th century, Jaisalmer escaped direct Turkic conquest due to its geographical situation in the desert region. The Rawals of Jaisalmer agreed to pay an annual tribute to the Turkic Sultans of Delhi. The first siege of Jaisalmer occurred during the reign of Alauddin Khilji, the Turkic Sultan of Delhi. It was provoked by Bhatis' raid on a caravan filled with treasure. According to local ballads, the Bhatis defended the fort for seven years until the enemy army forces breached the ramparts. Bhatis, facing certain defeat, proclaimed the rite of jauhar. Later, Sultan Ferozshah also besieged Jaisalmer after the rulers of Jaisalmer raided his camp at Anasagar lake near Ajmer. The siege led to another jauhar. Jaitsimha's son Duda perished in the attack. Duda's descendants ruled over Jaisalmer for about two centuries. Duda's descendant Lunakarna had a fight with Humayun when the latter passed through Jaisalmer en route to Ajmer.

PRINCELY JAISALMER

On the eve of British Raj in India, Jaisalmer was subservient to the Marathas, until it came under the protection of the British East India Company following the British victory in the Third Anglo-Maratha War. In 1818, the Rawals of Jaisalmer signed a treaty with the British, which protected Jaisalmer from invasion provided it was not the aggressor and guaranteed the royal succession. Jaisalmer was one of the last states to sign a treaty with the British. During the British Raj, Jaisalmer was the seat of a princely state of the same name, ruled by the Bhati clan of Rajputs. The present descendant is Brijraj Singh. Though the city is under the governance of the Government of India, a lot of welfare work is carried out by him and his family.

Traditionally, the main source of income was the levies on the caravans. However, the glory of Jaisalmer faded when Bombay emerged as a port and the sea trade replaced the traditional land routes. The partition of India in 1947 lead to closing of all the trade routes on the Indo-Pak border and rendered Jaisalmer a drought-prone desert backwater on the international border. Ironically, skirmishes between India and Pakistan gave Jaisalmer a strategic importance and made it serviceable as an army supply depot. Later, the Rajasthan Canal served to revive the surrounding desert areas. Roads and railroads were then built, knitting the hitherto remote town with the rest of Rajasthan. Later, the Government of Rajasthan decided to promote Jaisalmer as a tourist destination.

GEOGRAPHY & CLIMATE

Jaisalmer has an average elevation of 229 metres. It is situated near the border of India and Pakistan in West Rajasthan, and covers an area of 5.1 km2. The maximum summer temperature is around 41.6 °C while the minimum is 25 °C. The maximum winter temperature is usually around 23.6 °C and the minimum is 7.9 °C. The average rainfall is 209.5 millimetres. Highest ever recorded temperature was 48.0 °C and the lowest ever recorded temperature being −5.9 °C.

Jaisalmer is almost entirely a sandy waste, forming a part of the Thar desert (great Indian desert). The general aspect of the area is that of an interminable sea of sand hills, of all shapes and sizes, some rising to a height of 150 feet. Those in the west are covered with log bushes, those in the east with tufts of long grass. Water is scarce, and generally brackish; the average depth of the wells is said to be about 250 feet. There are no perennial streams, and only one small river, the Kakni, which, after flowing a distance of 48 kilometres, spreads over a large surface of flat ground, and forms Lake Orjhil ("The Bhuj-Jhil"). The climate is dry and healthy. Throughout Jaisalmer only raincrops, such as bajra, jawar, motif, til, etc., are grown; spring crops of wheat, barley, etc., are very rare. Owing to the scant rainfall, irrigation is almost unknown.

Distances: Bikaner (330 km), Barmer (150 km), Jodhpur (293 km), Jaipur (568 km), Ahmedabad (636 km), Agra (802 km), New Delhi (874 km), Mumbai (1,177 km).

JAISALMER FORT

Built in 1156 by the Bhati Rajput ruler Jaisal, Jaisalmer Fort is situated on Meru Hill and Named as Trikoot Garh had seen the scene of many battles. Its massive sandstone walls are a tawny lion colour during the day, turning to a magical honey-gold as the sun sets. The famous Indian film director Satyajit Ray wrote a detective novel and later turned it into a film − Sonar Kella (The Golden Fortress) which was based on this fort. This is a living fort and about a quarter of city's population still live inside the fort. The main attractions inside the fort are: Raj Mahal (Royal palace), Jain temples and the Laxminath temple.

JAIN HERITAGE OF JAISALMER

Jaisalmer has been enriched by its Jain community, which has adorned the city with beautiful temples, notably the temples dedicated to the 16th Tirthankara, Shantinath, and 23rd Tirthankara, Parshvanath.

Jaisalmer boasts some of the oldest libraries of India which contain rarest of the manuscripts and artefacts of Jain tradition. There are many pilgrimage centres around Jaisalmer such as Lodarva (Lodhruva), Amarsagar, Brahmsar and Pokharan.

MUSEUMS

Desert Culture Centre & Museum

Jaisalmer Folklore Museum

Government Museum

jaisalmer fort palace museum

jaisalmer fort outsidre and insidery

GADSISAR LAKE

Gadsisar Lake – Excavated in 1367 by Rawal Gadsi Singh, it is a scenic rainwater lake surrounded by the small temples and shrines of Amar Sagar. Earlier, this lake was used to be the main water source of Jaisalmer. Due to an increased water demand for agriculture, the lake is increasingly threatened to dry out.

DESERT FESTIVAL

This is held over three days in January/February every year. This is the best time to visit Jaisalmer to witness performing arts like Kalbelia dances and folk songs and music.

WIKIPEDIA

www.facebook.com/catedraleseiglesias

© Álbum 2949

By Catedrales e Iglesias

By Cathedrals and Churches

Diócesis de Tula

www.catedraleseiglesias.com

Parroquia de San Francisco de Asís

Lugar: TEPEJI

Jardín Hidalgo

C.P. 42850

Tel. (773) 7-33-00-39 / 7-33-36-92 / 93 / 94

Apartado P. 20, Tepejii

C.P. 42850

La Parroquia y Ex Convento de San Francisco de Asís se encuentra en la plaza principal de la ciudad de Tepeji del Río de Ocampo, Hidalgo. Por su toponimia, Tepeji del Río (Tepexic) significa en náhuatl, en los peñascos o despeñadero del río, apelativo que, con seguridad se originó por su ubicación a orillas del río del mismo nombre.

La región que ocupa el actual estado de Hidalgo tiene sus más lejanos antecedentes hacia el año 6000 a.C., cuando se erigieron algunas construcciones atribuidas a las primeras etapas de la civilización huasteca. Entre el año 100 a.C. y el 300 d.C., se establecieron cerca de Tepeapulco algunos grupos procedentes de la cuenca de México y el centro de Veracruz, quienes fueron portadores de la cultura teotihuacana. A principios del siglo IX, esta civilización enfrentó su decadencia y desaparición, cuando su territorio fue invadido por los toltecas oriundos del norte, comandados por Huamac, quienes dieron origen a la cultura tolteca que tuvo su centro en Tula, desde donde extendieron su influencia hasta Yucatán e impulsaron el culto a Quetzalcóatl, el hombre-dios, descendiente de los teochichimecas y de Chimalma, su madre, quien pertenecía al antiguo linaje de los pueblos mesoamericanos civilizados.

Quetzalcóatl simboliza la unión de las dos corrientes generadoras de la época tolteca, los chichimecas poseedores de la fuerza y el valor de los guerreros ancestrales, y los nonohualcas, portadores de la sabiduría y civilización. Con este precedente se fundó Tollan Xicocotitlan, conocida como Tula.

En los alrededores de Tepeji del Río se encuentra aún inexplorada la zona arqueológica El Tesoro. Cuenta con una extensión aproximada de 15 hectáreas y ocupa la parte superior de una loma en cuyo extremo sur se ubica un pequeño montículo de tres metros de altura. El Tesoro presenta vestigios de cinco monumentos en torno a una plaza cuadrangular. El recinto ceremonial del sitio corresponde al periodo posclásico temprano, hacia el final del periodo tolteca que enfrentó en el año 1156, la destrucción de la ciudad de Tula por parte de los chichimecas de Xólotl.

Ya en una etapa posterior, los mexicas, en su peregrinar, pasaron por Hidalgo y estuvieron en Coatepec y Tula antes de llegar a Tenochtitlan. Desde ahí extendieron su imperio para dominar Apan y Tulancingo, aunque algunas poblaciones conservaron una relativa independencia que les permitió dar refugio a Ixtlixóchitl, nieto de Netzahualcóyotl y heredero del reino de Texcoco, cuando fue perseguido por motivos políticos.

Tras la conquista española, el desarrollo regional tuvo en la explotación de minas su principal actividad económica, lo que motivó el establecimiento de poblados y haciendas de beneficio de metales, e impulsó la labor de evangelización. Fue con este fin que, a mediados del siglo XVI, arribó la orden de los franciscanos a la región que habría de ocupar la ciudad de Tepeji, población que surgió de la unión de dos aldeas vecinas, los otomíes de Otlaxpa y los náhuatl de Tepexic. Como los pueblos vivían en conflicto, los misioneros franciscanos se propusieron construir en terreno neutral una iglesia y un convento como medida de pacificación, pero sobre todo de evangelización.

Para comprender la razón de ser de los conventos mexicanos, es necesario aludir al fenómeno de la evangelización. Evangelizar significa etimológicamente ¨propagar la buena nueva¨, sin embargo, en el fenómeno de la catequización en la Nueva España quedaron involucradas las tres instituciones que integraron la sociedad europea desde sus orígenes medievales. Así, el Estado, la Iglesia y el monacato, cada uno desde su posición estratégica, unieron sus esfuerzos para alcanzar la conversión y sumisión de los pueblos indígenas conquistados y en consecuencia, asegurar el poder y la gobernabilidad de los nuevos territorios para la corona española.

De esta manera se escogió, por órdenes del gobierno civil y bajo la dirección de los franciscanos de Tula, un lugar entre los dos pueblos. Alrededor de la nueva edificación se formó un nuevo pueblo llamado Tepeji del Río, por quedar ubicado en las cercanías de un caudaloso cuerpo de agua. Fue así que, el 8 de octubre de 1558, se fundaron Tepeji del Río y San Francisco del Río, en honor al patrono de la orden religiosa. En 1569, las dos poblaciones ascendían a tres mil quinientos tributarios.

La construcción de la Parroquia y Ex Convento de San Francisco de Asís fue iniciada por fray Diego Grado Cornejo en 1560, para 1586, el establecimiento estaba concluido.

El conjunto arquitectónico tiene distribuidos en su interior elementos de estilo clásico en donde se encuentran sobriamente conjugados restos de pintura mural con temas religiosos y obras de gran formato ejecutadas por Juan Correa y Francisco Martínez, del que se conserva, en la capilla anexa llamada del Sagrario, un lienzo fechado en 1718, con el tema de La Purísima.

En la fachada del conjunto se puede apreciar que el contrafuerte está reforzado con mampostería a lo largo del muro sur de la nave, mientras que sus puertas se caracterizan por la pureza de sus proporciones y la perfección de sus columnas.

El templo presenta una fachada sobria y elegante con dos portadas con casetones, del más puro estilo renacentista. Su atrio está rodeado por muros almenados y conserva dos capillas posas y una capilla abierta, ricamente decoradas, mientras que su claustro, en regular estado de conservación, está formado en sus dos niveles por arcos rebajados. La construcción simula una gran fortaleza de muros gruesos apoyados en enormes contrafuertes.

Por su aspecto general, la iglesia recuerda a la de Atlixco, aunque la nave presenta una bóveda de cañón. El extradós de la bóveda no muestra ninguna señal de reconstrucción, salvo un antepecho festonado del siglo XVIII. El coro descansa sobre tres arcos. En el convento, una fina escalera de una sola rampa se levanta hasta el segundo piso, justo al este de la portería. Las arcadas del claustro se apoyan en cuatro gruesas columnas.

La puerta principal es muy pura en sus proporciones, perfecta en sus columnas y entablamientos, con arco y jambas tablereadas. Debido a sus características comunes, es de suponer que es obra del mismo diseñador que realizó las de Tula, Tlaxiaco (en la Mixteca Alta), y la puerta norte de Zempoala. Sin embargo, la de Tepeji resulta la más culta con su frontón partido en las esquinas. Mientras que la puerta de la fachada poniente parece de menor pureza debido al marcado énfasis de la imposta y las molduras de las pilastras laterales. Por otra parte, la esquina suroeste de la fachada sufrió ciertos cambios que la alejaron de una estricta simetría bilateral.

La capilla abierta es un espacio poco profundo cerrado por un muro trasero curvado. Por su hechura resulta característica de la arquitectura de mediados de siglo XVI en la que un gran pórtico de varios vanos precedía el santuario poligonal, que usualmente tenía el mismo ancho que uno de los vanos de la arquería. Esta capilla abierta presenta algunos elementos decorativos con reminiscencias góticas. Su arco de cinco centros o carpanel supone un despliegue de virtuosismo por parte de los diseñadores y artesanos que plasmaron en este sencillo arco la misma aguda y brillante ejecución de otros notables ejemplos de edificios construidos en la misma época. El alfiz y el arco rebajado descansan sobre medias columnas jónicas de fustes delgados y anchos capiteles. Los soportes muestran poca preocupación por la exactitud canónica, pero su inspiración es netamente clasicista con alfiz medieval.

Miss Malaika UK Beauty Of African Origin Ethnic Cultural Pageant Contest London 2006 With Ditshupo aka Dee Beautiful Botswanan Nurse in Springbok Animal Skin Dress with Zulu Beads

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Paul Davies (UK) is a theoretical physicist and cosmologist by profession, but these days he also works in astrobiology, a new field of research that seeks to understand the origin and evolution of life. At Arizona State University he established BEYOND: Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science.

Photo showing him at the ORIGIN Symposium I.

credit: rubra

Disability Rights Protesters outside Atos Origin HQ, London U.K. 09/05/2011

To kick-off the National Claimants Against Benefit Cuts's "Week of Action Against ATOS Origin", Disability rights campaigners, trade unionists and students demonstrated today outside the London HQ of Atos Origin to protest against the punitive medical testing of those claiming disability and sickness benefits. The new Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) has replaced Incapacity Benefit. Today's protest was the first of many protests this week in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Manchester, Liverpool, Plymouth and Truro.

Speakers gave their often harrowing accounts of those who have had their lives devastated by this unfair process designed to accomodate the governments policy of slashing the Welfare budget by 20%. There are many reports of the terminally ill being declared fit for work only to die weeks later, and there was one testimony from one young woman whose disabled brother was left in so much distress after ATOS declared him fit for work (which he clearly wasn't) and having his benfits stopped that he hung himself.

Protesters are angry that in spite of well documented criticisms of the Work Capability Assessment by Professor Malcolm Harrington who was commissioned by the government to review the W.C.A. process, ATOS have again been awarded a £300 million contract by DWP to continue making these flawed assesments which have already ruined many disabled peoples' lives and has already led to several suicides. On appeal - which takes about a year, in which time people's lives can deteriorate massively - around 70% of ATOS Origin's deeply-flawed assessments by unsympathetic staff who are paid by results, are overturned, leaving us to wonder how much money is this actually saving, and what is the appeals process costing, and in the meanwhile how much profound harm is being done to disabled people, their carers and their families, all of whom are experiencing huge amounts of increased stress?

According to NHS Information Centre incidents of self-harm, attempted suicide and actual suicide have increased in recent years since the introduction of the Welfare Reform Programme 2007 and ATOS Origin Work Capability Assessment regime.

Even though the National Audit Office estimated that for the year 2009-2010 fraud costs 0.6% of DWP's budget - massively below the levels stated by Chancellor George Osborne in the Comprehensive Spending Review, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Iain Duncan Smith, added to the recent wave of media disability hatred by saying in the Sun newspaper on December 1st 2011 "We have managed to create a block of people in Britain who do not add anything to the greatness of this country..." and “They have become conditioned to be users of services, not providers of money. This is a huge part of the reason we have this massive deficit. We have had to borrow vast sums of money. We went on this inflated spending spree."

This truly offensive and unfair meme was immediately pounced upon and wielded by right-wing newspapers in the UK, especially the Daily Mail, the Telegraph and more recently the Daily Express, who have all mounted nasty editorial campaigns portraying the weakest, most vulnerable members of our society as nothing more than workshy scroungers. This vilification of the Disabled is rapidly turning back the clock on hard-fought-for Disability Rights, as these newspapers are tapping directly into the ready willingness of some people to physically intimidate and bully disabled people, especially those with mental impairments, and it is reported elsewhere that incidences of bullying against the disabled has increased.

For more information contact press liason Linda Burnip of Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) on +441926 842253 or +447714 927 533

All photos © 2011 Pete Riches

Do not reproduce or reblog my images without my permission.

DC Collectibles

Miss Malaika UK Beauty Of African Origin Pageant Contest Ethnic Cultural Winners London 2006

DC Collectibles Arkham Origins Joker action figure.

Screenshot from Batman Arkham Origins - PC Video Game

Origin French Thai Somerville NJ

Le origini di Saracena si perdono nella foschia del passato ed acquistano sapore di leggenda.

Si vuole che discenda dall’Antica Sestio, fondata dagli Enotrii, come riferiscono Stradone, Stefano di Bisanzio e Padre Fiore, nella sua “Calabria Illustrata”, (così parla di Saracena) “Terra antichissima è la medesima che già fiorì col nome di Sestio, edificata dagli Enotrii”.

Secondo i calcoli del suddetto Padre Fiore, Sestio sarebbe stata fondata intorno al 2256 a.C., e nel 900 dell’era cristiana, venne conquistata dai Saraceni i quali vi fissarono la loro sede. Ma poco dopo, l’esercito imperiale di Costantinopoli assalì e distrusse la città. A ricordo di questa leggenda, raffigurata anche in un antico affresco sul frontespizio della cappella di S. Antonio e nella sacrestia di S. Maria del Gamio, nel timbro comunale e nel gonfalone di Saracena, viene raffigurata una donna che fugge, avvolta in un lenzuolo, con intorno la scritta: “Universitas terrae Saracinae”.

Castello baronale Ex Castello Baronale

Il nuovo paese, sorto successivamente intorno al castello baronale, cinto di mura e fortificato di quattro porte ( Porta del Vaglio, Porta S. Pietro, Porta Nuova e Porta dello Scarano ), con l’arrivo dei Normanni, diventò dominio feudale.

Il Feudo di Saracena, valutato quarantamila ducati, appartenne ai Duchi di S. Marco e poi ai Principi di Bisignano. Alla fine del 1600 fu acquistato all’asta pubblica, per 45.000 ducati, dal Duca Laurenzana Gaetani, il quale, intorno al 1613, lo cedette ai Signori Pescara di Diano. Dopo la morte del Duca Pescara, avvenuta nel 1515, il Feudo di Saracena passò sotto il dominio dei Principi Spinelli di Scalea, dove vi rimase fino al 1806. Ma, il 14 Agosto di questo stesso anno, per volere di Napoleone Bonaparte, fu emanata la legge eversiva della feudalità, con la quale questa veniva abolita. I suoi feudatari abitarono il maestoso castello fino al XIII secolo.

Edificato nel punto migliore del paese, abbracciava con la sua imponenza un ampio scorcio paesaggistico: le rive marine da quelle di Cerchiara fino a Capo dell’Alice, le montagne della Sila, la Valle di Cosenza e tutti i paesi che vi stanno intorno. Questo castello, originariamente era dimora di illustri personaggi, conteneva sale lussuosissime ricche di preziosi ornamenti; era bella a vedersi soprattutto la cosiddetta “ministalla”, cioè un ampio locale per cavalli.

Il Castello in seguito fu soggetto a devastazione, le mura e le torri furono distrutte e per poco compenso ne furono vendute le pietre, i mattoni e le travi. Un certo Leone Rotondaro acquistò l’intero edificio che fu restaurato ed adibito ad abitazione. Un manoscritto rinvenuto all’interno dello stesso castello ci fornisce notizie dettagliate sulla storia di quest’ultimo. Il manoscritto testimonia che il castello, di antichissima costruzione, era munito di torri e di molte uscite sotterranee ed era chiamato “Castello di Sestio” perché difendeva la città. Nel X secolo d.c. la città di Sestio, occupata dai Saraceni, fu presa dai Costantinopolitani (inviata dall’Imperatore d’Oriente) che distrussero la città. Gli abitanti che riuscirono a sfuggire all’assalto si rifugiarono ai piedi del castello e intorno ad esso costruirono case; nacque così un piccolo paese chiamato “Saracina” in onore della donna saracina che aveva tenuto le sorti della città. Questo paese fu fortificato, da mura e si fecero quattro porte con le torri, simili a quelle del castello per difendere il paese dagli assalti dei nemici. Anton Sanseverino alla fine dell’anno mille fece costruire il braccio che corrisponde all’attuale parrocchia di San Leone.

USD 74.28/pieceUSD 157.12/pieceUSD 85.71/pieceUSD 91.42/pieceUSD 67.69-73.63/pieceUSD 257.13/pieceUSD 121.42/pieceUSD 237.13/piece

Origine iocean X8 Mini MTK6582 1.3 GHz Quad Core android 4.4 Smartphone 5 polegada IPS écran 1 GB Ram 16 GB ROM 8MP...

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Greenish Warbler

The greenish warbler (Phylloscopus trochiloides) is a widespread leaf warbler with a breeding range in northeastern Europe and temperate to subtropical continental Asia. This warbler is strongly migratory and winters in India. It is not uncommon as a spring or early autumn vagrant in Western Europe and is annually seen in Great Britain. In Central Europe large numbers of vagrant birds are encountered in some years; some of these may stay to breed, as a handful of pairs does each year in Germany.

Like all leaf warblers, it was formerly placed in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but now belongs to the new leaf-warbler family Phylloscopidae. The genus name Phylloscopus is from Ancient Greek phullon, "leaf", and skopos, "seeker" (from skopeo, "to watch"). The specific trochiloides is from Ancient Greek trokhalos, "bowed", and -oides "resembling", from the similarity to the willow warbler, P. trochilus.

This is a typical leaf warbler in appearance, grayish-green above and off-white below. The single wing bar found in the southern and western populations distinguishes them from most similar species (except Arctic warbler P. borealis). It is slightly smaller than that species and has a thinner bill, without a dark tip to the lower mandible. A latitude-based analysis of wintering birds indicated that more northerly P. trochiloides are smaller, i.e. this species does not seem to follow Bergmann's rule.

Its song is a high jerky trill, in some populations containing a sequence of down- and more rarely up slurred notes.

It breeds in lowland deciduous or mixed forest; non-breeding birds in the warmer parts of its range may move to montane habitat in summer. Individuals from southeast of the Himalayas are for example quite often seen in Bhutan during the hot months, typically in humid Bhutan Fir (Abies densa) forest up to about 3,800 meters ASL or more, but they do not breed there and return again to the adjacent subtropical lowlands in winter.

The nest is on the ground in low shrub. Like its relatives, this small passerine is insectivorous.

It has a number of subspecies, of which P. t . viridianus is the most familiar in Europe. As it seems, it is a ring species, with populations diverging east- and westwards of the Tibetan Plateau, later meeting on the northern side. Their relationships are therefore fairly confusing:

Eastern group: greenish warblers

Phylloscopus trochiloides trochiloides: greenish warbler

Southern rim of the Himalaya eastwards from Nepal into W China.

Dusky greyish green above, often traces of second wing bar.

Phylloscopus trochiloides obscuratus: dull-green warbler

Intermediate between trochiloides and two-barred warbler.

Gansu and surroundings, China.

Western group: green warblers

Phylloscopus trochiloides viridanus: western greenish warbler

Breeds Western Siberia to north-east Europe; at east of range south to NW India.

Dull green above, with yellowish supercilium, throat, breast and faint wing bar.

The groups' origin lies probably in the Himalayan region, where trochiloides is found. This taxon is close to the parapatric obscuratus, and to plumbeitarsus which is geographically separated from obscuratus; they all can (and in the case of the former two do naturally) hybridize. P. t. plumbeitarsus is often split as distinct species, as it does not hybridize with viridianus in the narrow zone in the western Sayan Mountains where their ranges overlap.

But phylogenetically, the western taxa are even more distinct. However, there is some gene flow between trochiloides and viridianus also, with their hybrids being especially common in Baltistan; they were once considered another subspecies ludlowi. The green warbler P. nitidus, now by many considered a distinct species, is a mountain isolate that diverged from ancestral viridianus.

Song structure differs mainly between greenish warbler and two-barred warbler, which was formerly considered conspecific. The former has a fairly uniform, long, and warbling song. Around the Himalayas, song structure is similar, but songs are generally shorter. Two-barred warbler, on the other hand, has a long song that can be clearly divided into a warbling part, followed by series of up- and down slurred notes. The songs of obscuratus, and, interestingly, "ludlowi", are short, but contain the downslur elements too; in the latter, they uniquely appear at the start of the song.

West 169th Street - Washington Heights - Manhattan - NYC

Stitched Panorama

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camels

unedited-Not part of my personal collection

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Dassault Mirage IV was a French supersonic strategic bomber and deep-reconnaissance aircraft. Developed by Dassault Aviation, the aircraft entered service with the French Air Force in October 1964. For many years it was a vital part of the nuclear triad of the Force de Frappe, France's nuclear deterrent striking force. The Mirage IV was retired from the nuclear strike role in 1996, and the type was entirely retired from operational service in 2005.

During the 1960s, there were plans of export sales for the Mirage IV; in one proposal, Dassault would have entered a partnership with the British Aircraft Corporation to jointly produce a Mirage IV variant for the Royal Air Force and potentially for other export customers, but this project did not come to fruition. The Mirage IV was ultimately not adopted by any other operators.

Development

Origins

During the 1950s, France embarked on an extensive military program to produce nuclear weapons; however, it was acknowledged that existing French aircraft were unsuitable for the task of delivering the weapons. Thus, the development of a supersonic bomber designed to carry out the delivery mission started in 1956 as a part of the wider development of France's independent nuclear deterrent. In May 1956, the Guy Mollet government drew up a specification for an aerially-refuelable supersonic bomber capable of carrying a 3-metric-ton, 5.2-metre-long nuclear bomb 2,000 km (without aerial refuelling). According to aviation authors Bill Gunston and Peter Gilchrist, the specification's inclusion of supersonic speed was "surprising" to many at the time.

The final specifications, jointly defined by government authorities and Dassault staff, were approved on 20 March 1957. Sud Aviation and Nord Aviation both submitted competing proposals, both based on existing aircraft; Sud Aviation proposed the Super Vautour, a stretched Sud Aviation Vautour with 47 kilonewtons (10,500 lbf) thrust Atar engines and a combat radius of 2,700 kilometres (1,700 mi) at Mach 0.9. Dassault's proposal for what became the Mirage IV was chosen on the basis of lower cost and anticipated simpler development, being based upon a proposed early 1956 twin-engined night-fighter derived from the Dassault Mirage III fighter and the unbuilt Mirage II interceptor. In April 1957, Dassault were informed that they had won the design competition.

Dassault's resulting prototype, dubbed Mirage IV 01, looked a lot like the Mirage IIIA, even though it had double the wing surface, two engines instead of one, and twice the unladen weight. The Mirage IV also carried three times more internal fuel than the Mirage III. The aircraft's aerodynamic features were very similar to the III's but required an entirely new structure and layout. This prototype was 20 metres (67 ft) long, had a 11 metres (37 ft) wingspan, 62 square metres (670 sq ft) of wing area, and weighed approximately 25,000 kilograms (55,000 lb). It was considerably more advanced than the Mirage III, incorporating new features such as machined and chem-milled planks, tapered sheets, a small amount of titanium, and integral fuel tanks in many locations including the leading portion of the tailfin.

The 01 was an experimental prototype built to explore and solve the problems stemming from prolonged supersonic flight. The sizable technological and operational uncertainties (no plane had yet been found able to cruise at over Mach 1.8 for long periods of time) were only one part of the problem. The weapon-related issues were the other. It took 18 months to build the 01 in Dassault's Saint-Cloud plant near Paris. In late 1958, the aircraft was transferred to the Melun-Villaroche flight testing area for finishing touches and ground tests. On 17 June 1959, French General Roland Glavany, on a five-year leave from the French Air Force since 1954, took the 01 for its maiden flight.

For its third flight, on 20 June 1959, the 01 was authorised to fly over the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget airport in front of France's President Charles de Gaulle.[citation needed] On 19 September 1960, René Bigand (replacing Glavany as test pilot) increased the world record for speed on a 1000-kilometre closed circuit to 1,822 km/h (1,132 mph) around Paris and the Melun base. Flight 138, on 23 September, corroborated the initial performance and pushed the record on a 500 km closed circuit to an average of 1,972 km/h (1,225 mph), flying between Mach 2.08 and Mach 2.14. The Mirage IV 01 prototype underwent minor modifications during testing in the autumn of 1959, most noticeably, the tail was enlarged (slight reduction in height, large increase in chord).

Production

In order to increase range, studies were made of a significantly larger Mirage IVB design, powered by two Snecma license-built Pratt & Whitney J75 engines and having a wing area of 120 m² (1,290 sq ft) compared to 70 m² (750 sq ft) of the prototype IV, as well as a speed of Mach 2.4 and a gross weight of 64,000 kilograms (140,000 lb). The Mirage IVB proposal had been instigated as a response to interest by de Gaulle in ensuring that two-way (including the aircraft's return to France) strike missions could be flown. However, development of the aircraft was ultimately cancelled in July 1959 due to the greater cost involved, a decision having been taken to rely upon aerial refueling instead also being a factor.

With the Mirage IVB considered to be too expensive, the medium-sized Mirage IVA, slightly larger than the first prototype, was chosen for three more prototypes to be produced. This aircraft had a wing area of 77.9 square metres (839 sq ft) and weighed about 32,000 kilograms (70,000 lb)[12] On 4 April 1960, a formal order for 50 production Mirage IVA aircraft was issued. The three prototype aircraft were built between 1961 and 1963, with first flights on 12 October 1961, 1 June 1962, and 23 January 1963. By 1962, the second prototype had conducted simulated nuclear bombing runs in the trials range at Colomb-Bechar in southern Algeria. The third prototype was equipped with the navigation/bombing systems and flight refuelling probe. The fourth prototype Mirage IVA-04 was essentially representative of the production aircraft that would follow.

For production, various portions of the aircraft were subcontracted to Sud Aviation (wings and rear fuselage) and Breguet Aviation (tailfin), which was still a separate company from Dassault until 1967; Dassault manufactured the front fuselage and flight-control system internally. Manufacture of both the prototypes and subsequent production aircraft was often hindered by an explicit requirement that there would be no reliance upon foreign suppliers to maintain France's nuclear capabilities; due to this, the Mirage IV initially lacked an inertial navigation system as French industry could not yet produce this device.

On 7 December 1963, the first production Mirage IVA performed its maiden flight. A series of 62 aircraft was built, and they entered service between 1964 and 1968. Although Dassault had designed the Mirage IV for the low-level flight role right from the start, the final batch of 12 aircraft ordered in November 1964 differed from the earlier aircraft in several areas, including the flight controls, avionics, and structural details, for the purpose of providing improved low-level performance. It had been planned for this batch to be powered by the newer Pratt & Whitney/SNECMA TF106 turbofan engine. The improvements featured upon the last 12 Mirage IVs were later retroactively applied to the whole fleet.

In December 1963 Dassault proposed a Mirage IV-106 variant with 2 Snecma TF106 (license-built Pratt and Whitney) engines, an enlarged 105,000 gross-weight fuselage, terrain-avoidance radar, and armed with a proposed French version of the American Douglas GAM-87 Skybolt air-launched ballistic missile. This version would have been very costly, and ultimately was not ordered.

Proposed export variants

In 1963, the Australian government sought a replacement for the Royal Australian Air Force fleet of English Electric Canberra bombers, largely in response to the Indonesian Air Force's purchase of missile-armed Tupolev Tu-16 bombers. Dassault proposed a version of the Mirage IVA with Rolls-Royce Avon engines. Australian Air Marshall Frederick Scherger seriously considered purchase of the IVA in 1961 because it was considered to be proven hardware already in service (in contrast to the BAC TSR-2 which was still in development), before settling on the General Dynamics F-111C. The IVA was one of five aircraft types that were short listed for the role, but the F-111C was eventually selected.

In April 1965, the British Government cancelled the TSR-2 reconnaissance-strike aircraft. In response, Dassault and British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) proposed a modified Mirage IV variant as a replacement in July 1965. The aircraft, known as the Mirage IV* or Mirage IVS (S for Spey) would be re-engined with more powerful Rolls-Royce Spey turbofan engines with a total of 185 kilonewtons (41,700 lbf), larger (fuselage depth increased by 7.6 centimetres (3 in), had an approximately 0.61 metres (2 ft) forward fuselage extension, and was to weigh 36,000 kilograms (80,000 lb)), and use avionics planned for the TSR-2, although BAC preferred the French Antilope radar. Although designed by Dassault, the production was to be carried out jointly between Dassault and its subcontractors (wing, mid-fuselage, and tail) and BAC (front and rear fuselage). The final assembly location was not determined before this proposal was rejected. The Mirage IV* was to carry a bombload of up to 9,100 kilograms (20,000 lb). While the IV* was claimed to meet most of the Royal Air Force (RAF)'s requirements, and to be £1 million cheaper than the American-made F-111K was preferred (only to be cancelled in turn) and the Spey-engined Mirage abandoned.

The Mirage IV* met nearly every RAF requirement except for field length, and some claim it exceeded the F-111 slightly in speed and had at least equal range. The estimated cost was 2.321 million pounds per aircraft (for 50) or 2.067 million (for 110), less than the price of the F-111K. BAC claimed that the British government evaluation into the Mirage IV* was "relatively superficial". However, some British government officials, including Parliament members Julian Risdale and Roy Jenkins, questioned the Mirage IV*'s capacity to operate from unprepared airstrips or to operate at low level, or claimed that the F-111 was a superior aircraft "in a class of its own". However, Bill Gunston notes that low-level Mirage IV missions had been planned since 1963 and Mirage IVs operated regularly at low level since 1965, and argues that the ability of a strategic bomber to operate from unprepared airstrips is historically unimportant. RAF pilots who test-flew the Mirage IV were "favourably impressed" with its low altitude performance.

BAC and Dassault had also hoped to sell the Mirage IV* to France and to export the Mirage IV* to various nations, such as India, possibly Israel, and others; the lack of a British sale put an end to such possibilities. Some aviation journalists claim that the rejection of the Mirage IV* may have dampened French interest in joint Anglo-French cooperation.

Design

The Mirage IV shares design features and a visual resemblance to the Mirage III fighter, featuring a tailless delta wing and a single square-topped vertical fin. However, the wing is significantly thinner to allow better high-speed performance and has a thickness/chord ratio of only 3.8% at the root and 3.2% at the tip; this wing was the thinnest built in Europe at that time and one of the thinnest in the world. While being significantly smaller than an expensive medium bomber proposal for the role, the Mirage IV was roughly three times the weight of the preceding Mirage III.

The Mirage IV is powered by two Snecma Atar turbojets, fed by two air intakes on either side of the fuselage that had intake half-cone shock diffusers, known as souris ("mice"), which were moved forward as speed increased to trim the inlet for the shock wave angle. It can reach high supersonic speeds: the aircraft is redlined at Mach 2.2 at altitude because of airframe temperature restrictions, although it is capable of higher speeds. While broadly similar to the model used on the Mirage III, the Atar engine had a greater airflow and an elevated overspeed limit from 8,400 rpm to 8,700 rpm for greater thrust during high altitude supersonic flight. While the first Mirage IV prototype was fitted with double-eyelid engine nozzles, production aircraft featured a complicated variable geometry nozzle that automatically varied in response to the descent rate and airspeed.

The aircraft has 14,000 litres (3,700 gal (US)) of internal fuel, and its engines are quite thirsty, especially when the afterburner is active. Fuel was contained within integral tanks within the wings, as well as a double-skinned section of the fuselage between and outboard of the inlet ducts, underneath the ducts and engines, and forward of the main spar of the tail fin; this provided a total internal capacity of 6,400 kilograms (14,000 lb). A refueling probe is built into the nose; aerial refuelling was often necessary in operations as the Mirage IV only had the fuel capacity, even with external drop tanks, to reach the Soviet Union's borders, thus refuelling was required to allow for a 'round trip'. In the event of nuclear war between the major powers, it was thought that there would be little point in having the fuel to return as the host air bases would have been destroyed; instead, surviving Mirage IVs would have diverted to land at bases in nearby neutral countries following the delivery of their ordnance.

The two-man crew, pilot and navigator, were seated in tandem cockpits, each housed under separate clamshell canopies. A bombing/navigation radar is housed within an oblique-facing radome underneath the fuselage between the intakes and aft of the cockpit; much of the Mirage IV's onboard avionics systems, such as the radar communications, navigational instrumentation, and bombing equipment, were produced by Thomson-CSF. Other avionics elements were provided by Dassault itself and SFENA; one of the only major subsystems not of French origin onboard was the Marconi-built AD.2300 doppler radar. Free-falling munitions could also be aimed using a ventral blister-mounted periscope from the navigator's position.

The Mirage IV has two pylons under each wing, with the inboard pylons being normally used for large drop tanks of 2,500-litre (660 gal (US)) capacity. The outer pylons typically carried ECM and chaff/flare dispenser pods to supplement the internal jamming and countermeasures systems. On later aircraft, this equipment typically included a Barax NG jammer pod under the port wing and a Boz expendables dispenser under the starboard wing. No cannon armament was ever fitted aboard the type. The early Mirage IVA had a fuselage recess under the engines which could hold a single AN-11 or AN-22 nuclear weapon of 60 kt yield. The Mirage IV can carry 12 solid-fuel rockets diagonally down below the wing flaps, for rocket-assisted take off (RATO).

From 1972 onward, 12 aircraft were also equipped to carry the CT52 reconnaissance pod in the bomb recess. These aircraft were designated Mirage IVR for reconnaissance. The CT52 was available in either BA (Basse Altitude, low-level) or HA (Haute Altitude, high-altitude) versions with three or four long-range cameras; a third configuration used an infrared line scanner. The CT52 had no digital systems, relying on older wet-film cameras. The first operational use of the system took place during missions in Chad in September 1974.

During the 1980s, a total of 18 Mirage IVs were retrofitted with a centreline pylon and associated equipment to carry and launch the nuclear ASMP stand-off missile. The Mirage IVA could theoretically carry up to six large conventional bombs at the cost of drop tanks and ECM pods, such armament was rarely fitted in practice.

Operational history

Introduction and early operations

"We don't have fighter aircraft, we have fear-inducing aircraft"

French President Charles de Gaulle, speaking of the Mirage IV in 1963.

In February 1964 deliveries of the Mirage IV to the French Air Force started, with the first French Mirage IV squadron being declared operational on 1 October that year. The Mirage IV bomber force soon consisted of nine squadrons of four aircraft (2 pairs – one aircraft carrying the nuclear bomb, one a buddy-refuelling tanker) each. When fully built up, the force consisted of three wings. These wings were each divided into three bomber squadrons, each equipped with a total of four Mirage IVs, with each deployed at a different base to minimise the potential for an enemy strike to knock out the entire bomber force.

After establishment of its own deterrent force, the Force de Dissuassion, more commonly known as the Force de frappe, France withdrew from the military command structure of NATO in 1966. De Gaulle viewed the operational establishment of the Mirage IV fleet, a critical component of the independent Force de frappe, as highly influential to his decision to withdraw France from NATO, and that an independent French nuclear deterrent was necessary to ensure independence as a nation. From 1964 to 1971, the Mirage IV was France's sole means of delivering nuclear ordnance. At this point they were each armed with a single 60 kiloton nuclear bomb.

Alert status consisted of an active inventory of 36 Mirage IVs. At any one time 12 aircraft would be in the air, with a further 12 on the ground kept at four minutes' readiness and the final 12 at 45 minutes' readiness, each equipped with an onboard functional nuclear weapon. These 36 active aircraft would be rotated with 26 reserve aircraft; the latter were kept in an airworthy condition or were otherwise subject to maintenance activities. Within the first decade of the type entering service, in excess of 200,000 hours were flown and 40,000 aerial refuelling operations were performed by the Mirage IV fleet alone; at one point, Mirage IV operations were consuming up to 44 per cent of the French Air Force's total spare parts budget.

The primary objectives of the Mirage IVA force were major Soviet cities and bases. With aerial refueling], the plane was able to attack Moscow, Murmansk or various Ukrainian cities when sortieing from French bases. A justification of the Mirage IV given by Armée de l'air Brigadier General Pierre Marie Gallois, an architect of the French nuclear deterrent, was that: "France is not a prize worthy of ten Russian cities".

In order to refuel the Mirage IVA fleet, France purchased 14 (12 plus 2 spares) U.S. Boeing C-135F tankers. Mirage IVAs also often operated in pairs, with one aircraft carrying a weapon and the other carrying fuel tanks and a buddy refueling pack, allowing it to refuel its partner en route to the target. Even so, some sources state that some of the mission profiles envisioned were actually one-way, with the crew having no chance of returning after bombing a Soviet city. The inability for the Mirage IV to return after missions had been a point of controversy during the aircraft's early development.

Both flight and grounds crews received training principally by Strategic Air Forces Command 328, stationed at Bordeaux. Several Nord Noratlas were specially modified, having received the Mirage IV's radar, control consoles, and additional electrical generators, for the purpose of training navigators; these were later replaced by a pair of customised Dassault Falcon 20 outfitted with much of the Mirage IVP's avionics.

Transition and upgrades

Initially, the basic attack flight profile was "high-high-high" at a speed of Mach 1.85, engaging targets up to a maximum radius of 3,500 km (2,175 mi). In the late 1960s, when the threat of surface-to-air missile defences made high-altitude flight too hazardous, the Mirage IVA was modified for low-altitude penetration. Flying low, the maximum attack speed was reduced to 1,100 km/h (680 mph) and the combat radius was also decreased. By 1963, the majority of missions involving the Mirage IV were being planned as low-level flights. By 1964, Mirage IVAs were conducting training penetration runs at an altitude of 200 ft, without the assistance of terrain-following radar, which subjected pilots to considerable workload and those on board to high levels of turbulence.

To improve survivability, the French Air Force began dispersing Mirage IVs to pre-prepared rough strips during the 1960s; while the use of hardened bunkers had been assessed, it was found to be financially impractical. By the 1970s, it had become clear that vulnerability of the Mirage IV to air defences, even while flying at low altitudes, had made the delivery of gravity bombs such as the AN-11 or AN-22 impractical. Thus, it was decided to pass a greater share of the deterrent role onto land-based missiless and submarine-launched ballistic missiles alternatives; as a result, a single wing of Mirage IVs was stood down in 1976, partially due to fleet-wide attrition losses.

In 1973, it was reported that a force of 40 Mirage IVs would continue to perform as a part of France's nuclear deterrent until the 1980s, and that steady improvements were to be undertaken. In 1975, all Mirage IVs were progressively painted in a new green/grey camouflage scheme. In 1979, in response to the decreasing effectiveness of free-fall bombs used by both its strategic and tactical nuclear forces, development of the ASMP stand-off missile was initiated; the ASMP would possess a range of up to 400 km (250 mi) and was alternative armed with either a single 150 or 300 kiloton nuclear warhead. Various test launches of dummy and later live ASMPs were performed using the Mirage IV as the launch platform between 1981 and 1983.

In July 1984, a contract was formally issued for the upgrade of a total of 18 Mirage IVAs to carry the ASMP missile in the place of traditional bombs; these aircraft were redesignated Mirage IVP (Penetration). The conversion of Mirage IVAs to IVPs involved a large number of modifications and re-workings of the aircraft. A deep centerline pylon was added, which could accommodate either a single ASMP missile or a CT52 reconnaissance pod. The main radar and electronics suite were removed and replaced by newer counterparts; other modified systems included the navigation system, flight control system, and various elements of the cockpit. On 12 October 1982, the first modernised Mirage IVP performed its first flight; it re-entered active service on 1 May 1986.

In August 1985, a French proposal that would have seen Mirage IVPs stationed at air bases inside neighbouring West Germany was made public; this deployment would have marked a significant philosophical departure from traditional French nuclear defence policy. Aviation authors Bill Gunston and Peter Gilchrist allege that French officials had historically discounted the option of recovering Mirage IVs in friendly territory as unduly optimistic, as those nations might become unfriendly or hostile in the aftermath of a French nuclear attack.

Phase-Out

On 31 July 1996, the Mirage IVP was formally retired in its bomber capacity, the nuclear mission having been transferred from the Mirage IV to the newer Dassault Mirage 2000N. EB 2/91 was disbanded and EB 1/91 was redesignated Escadron de Reconnaissance Stratégique (Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron),[citation needed] using five remaining Mirage IVPs based at Mont-de-Marsan; the remaining aircraft were stored at Chateaudun. In the reconnaissance role, the Mirage IVP has seen service over Bosnia, Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan.

ES 1/91 Gascogne's surviving Mirage IVPs were retired in 2005 and are conserved and stored at the Centre d'Instruction Forces Aériennes Stratégiques (CIFAS) at Bordeaux Mérignac. The retirement of all reconnaissance-configured Mirage IVPs in 2005 meant that the French Air Force's Mirage F1CRs were for some time the only aircraft capable of carrying out aerial reconnaissance missions. The long term replacement for the Mirage IVP was Mirage 2000N aircraft outfitted with a modern PRNG Pod de Reconnaissance Nouvelle Génération (New Generation Reconnaissance Pod), equipped with digital camera equipment.

The Mirage IV had been popular with its crews, who found it enjoyable to fly. In addition, it required surprisingly little maintenance considering its age and complexity.

Royal Arch Mason veils made by MAC and SAC ready for the candidates. No lint rollers! Only use cello tape to remove lint..

The two middle veils were soon switched.

www.jttgrandchapter.org/resources/Lectures/The Veils.pdf

Part I

Comp Michael Post

As all companions have, we have gone through a particular ceremony in which we must pass to truly become a Royal Arch Mason. That ceremony is “Passing the Veils”. Why is this ceremony important and what does it represent?

The ceremony of “Passing the Veils” or the use of the Veils in Royal Arch ceremonies is as old as the Degree itself although it origins seem to be lost in the oral traditions of ancient times. The Veils in early ceremonies were three in number, later a fourth was added in some countries (Most all, if not all, American Chapters today work in this “four-Veiled” ceremony). There are some scholars however believe that this elaborate ceremony did not always belong to the Royal Arch but rather it was part of, or wholly the ceremony of Excellent Master or High Excellent Master’s degree (Ireland; Scotland, and Bristol, England). This Excellent Master degree can also be seen in the Allied Masonic Degrees in America.

So what does this intricate ceremony signify?

It could be said that masonically, passing of the Veils signifies the enlightenment that comes with Masonic progression. While some academics say it symbolizes the problems or suffering encountered by the Jews on their returning journey from exile. Others believe that it involves the Veils of the Tabernacle of Moses and related to those of the Temple of Solomon. And still others consider it as a reference to Jesus, tying it to among other things the Veil of the last Temple upon His death.

What is the lesson that should ultimately be discovered in this ceremony? As said before I believe it to be lost in the oral traditions of the past. What do you believe? What do you think is the truth behind the symbolism?

The problem with this topic is where to start. There are many avenues in which I can take this discussion, but where to start? Should I start with the colors of the Veil? Or perhaps why our Veil system of America is different of that of Scotland or the United Kingdom? Should I talk about the Tribes of Israel and there banner colors vs. the colors that are on the High Priest Ephod? Or should I discuss the Veils or coverings of the tabernacle vs. the Veil that separates the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place or the Holy of holies. But what about the journey we have made?

So let us begin with that journey, which we all have taken.

After we have all braved that rough and rugged road we come unto a tabernacle and we are met with resistance to enter, the first Veil. We explain to the Grand Master of the First Veil that we have come from captivity and our intent to help rebuild the temple and that we are the true descendents of the Giblimites that built the first temple. After that we are then challenged for entry, we recollect the lesson of the burning bush from which Moses spoke with the great I AM, with that we enter. We are given a sign and password. The sign is explained by a scripture reading from the book of Exodus 7: 10–12. The password is that of the three sons of Noah.

“These three names can allude to Noah’s Ark or the Ark of Safety. We could say that God was the architect, Noah was the builder and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth they were the craftsmen.”

We now come to a second Veil and are met with resistance. We then give the sign and password that we were divested with from the Grand Master of the First Veil. We are allowed to enter and although we are in fact Most Excellent Masters promoting the noble and glorious work of rebuilding the temple we are told that we cannot go further without the words and signs of the Grand Master of the Second Veil. We are given a sign and password. The sign is explained by a scripture reading from the book of Exodus 4: 6–7. The password is that of three builders of the Ark of the Covenant.

The Ark of the Covenant, or of Moses, is also known as the Ark of the Testimony. Along with Moses, Bezaleel (tribe of Judah) and Aholiab (tribe of Dan) were filled with spirit of God, wisdom, understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship and thus worked diligently until the tabernacle, Ark and all things belonging to it were made exactly as God had instructed.

Next we come to the Third Veil and again are met with resistance. We give the sign and password that we were divested with from the Grand Master of the Second Veil. Proving once again that we must be in fact Most Excellent Masters we promoting the noble and glorious work of rebuilding the temple we are permitted to enter but we can go no further without the words, signs and signet of the Grand Master of the Third Veil. The sign is thus explained by a scripture reading from the book of Exodus 4:9. The password is that of the three principles to build the Second Temple and replace or substitute the arch of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies. We are then given the Signet of Truth.

Alas, we come to the Grand Master of the Fourth Veil or Royal Arch Captain. We give the sign and password that we were divested with from the Grand Master of the Third Veil, we then present the Signet of Truth. We are then told to wait until the Grand Council is informed of or request to enter. The Grand Council recognizes or request and permits us to enter.

This completes our initial journey through the Veils.

PART 2

So now that we went through the journey of “Passing the Veils” where should we go? I guess a suitable place to go is; what is the right number of veils one should go through? Previously I stated, “The Veils in early ceremonies were three in number, later a fourth was added in some countries (and most all, if not all, American ( whether they are Prince Hall or otherwise) Chapters today work in this “four-Veiled” ceremony)”.

Comp. F. A. M. Taylor, Assistant Librarian for the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of England; wrote in 1932, “The veils were doubtless a part of early ceremony of the Arch Degree and the working of the same discontinued, I believe, at the Union in 1817.” He goes on to state, that it appears that the, “passing of the veils” was extensively in the early part of the 19th century. No account of what the ceremony was, or any records are to be found in minutes of the early English Chapters.

What should the proper system of veils that one should pass? What do the veils really represent? I think this is the basis of what we should look into. Depending on what you say the Veils represent you can state your argument.

Ernest Cooke, Provincial Grand Superintendent of Bristol (England), informs us that until 1929 only three veils were used in the Chapters of that Province. In 1932 after much research and careful consideration, the use of the fourth veil (White) was authorized. He based much of his argument on the fact that one, they were in use in the early Chapters. (There is no proof of this). And two, the description of the Tabernacle in Exodus is so definite.

A point of interest comes from the Comp. F. A. M. Taylor, Asst. Librarian of the English Grand Chapter in 1932. He states that it was the practice to have three “Masters of the Veils”, who were officers of the Chapter (Which officers, is not stated.). Being armed with a sword and bearing a banner of appropriate colour, were stationed at the Blue, Purple and Scarlet veils (The White veil is guarded by the RA. Captain (as it is in our Ritual)).

i. I will start off with the “traditional” three- Veiled system then unto the four -Veiled system. So the basic question is “Why three veils”? Before we go any further let’s break down what a veil is. If you go to Wikipedia or other website you can find various meanings of veil, from veils for women to headgear and so on, veils have several meanings. The word "veil" in the Hebrew speaks of a screen, something that conceals and separates. With that said lets break down these systems.

In the book, “Secret Societies of all Ages and Countries” by C.W. Heckethorn (1897) he mentions only three veils. “The Textbook of Freemasonry” (1870) which is irregular and an unauthorized publication, supposedly giving all the ceremonies of the Craft and the Royal Arch, the author states that the ceremony is sometimes dispensed with. Here reference is made to only three veils. A quote from “The Perfect Ceremonies of the Royal Arch Degree,” Lewis (1907) states, “The ceremony is said to follow the restoration to light. The ceremony is carried out with only three veils”.

ii (Italicized words done by me) I believe the original intent was to imitate the tabernacle of Moses. In that Tabernacle, properly there were three veils or curtains. It is said these veils were used to hide the glory of God's face or presence from the people or to separate a sinful man from a Holy God.

The first veil was the eastern gate which opened into the courtyard. Those who came to present offerings to God (this is where the Brazen Alter was) could pass through this veil or gate (Ex. 40:33). This “Passover Veil” separates the courtyard of Moses' tabernacle from the world.

The next veil allowed only the priests to enter the Holy Place (Ex. 40:28). This was the first veil into the tabernacle. The Holy place is the place of testimony, of spiritual bread, and the offering up of the prayers and praises. This “Pentecost Veil” separates the courtyard from the Holy Place.

The last veil was only for the High Priest, who once a year could enter into the Holy of Holies (Ex. 40:21). This was the place that the Ark of the Covenant rested. This Holy place was where the High Priest would give up offering and provoke the ineffable name of Deity. In the Tabernacle there was a table, but no chair for Aaron or any of the priests to sit on, for their work was never finished. Although there was no chair; there was one seat, the Mercy-seat reserved for The Almighty Himself who sat there between the cherubim. The “Tabernacles Veil” separates the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place where God "sat" on the mercy seat.

“I will commune with thee from above the Mercy Seat, from between the two cherubim’s which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel."

Exodus 25:17-22

Another correlation to these three veils above is the three annual feasts of Israel (which some believe, four have been achieved or celebrated).

“Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty.”

Deuteronomy 16:16

However, I will not go into more detail about them during this paper... lol (Research is a beautiful thing. I implore you to do some more, let me know how it goes!)

So here we have several questions. If the veils were representing those of the tabernacle, Why do we have four veils? Is there or should there be a three or four Veils?

If you look at the veils of the tabernacle there are three. But what of the “true” veil of the Tabernacle. There are four colors to it; does this represent the meaning of the veils as we see it today? So why do we have four veils? Why are there three Masters of the Veils and not four? Why is the “fourth veil” guarded by the Royal Arch Captain and not another Master of the veil?

The meaning of the four horns on an altar.

hoshanarabbah.org/blog/tag/horns-of-the-altar/

Exodus 29:12, Horns of the altar. The four horns of the altar of sacrifice was the place where the blood of atonement was sprinkled (also Lev 4:4, 17, 18, 25, 30, 34; 8:15; 9:9; 16:18).

But there’s more. Horn is the Hebrew word qeren meaning “horn, hill or ray.” This word is used to describe the rays of light rays emanating from the face of Moses after his encounter with YHVH (Exod 34:29) and the horns of an animal (Ps 69:31). In ancient cultures, the horn was a metaphor for physical strength or spiritual power (Deut 33:17; 2 Sam 22:3; Ps 18:2). Elsewhere, YHVH is referred to as man’s “horn of salvation” meaning he is the strength of our salvation. The Hebrew word for salvation is yesha meaning “deliverance, rescue, safety, welfare, victory, prosperity.” The root of yesha is the verb yasha meaning “to save, to deliver, to give victory.” Not only is YHVH called our “horn of salvation” in the Tanakh, but this designation is applied to Yeshua as well in the Testimony of Yeshua (Luke 1:69). Interestingly, Yeshua is a derivative of the Hebrew name Yehoshua (or Joshua), which also derives from yasha.

It should be evident from this quick study that the horns of the altar are a picture of Yeshua, who is the horn or strength of our salvation and who shed his blood for our sins on the altar of the cross.

This being the case, why then are there four horns on the altar? This is likely symbolic of the four attributes of Yeshua, even as the four colors of cloth used throughout the tabernacle prophetically symbolize the same thing. Crimson speaks to Yeshua’s humanity, purple to his kingship, blue to his divinity, and white to his sinlessness or righteousness.

Additionally, the Jewish sages view the four horns as symbolizing the four corners of the earth, for, in Hebraic thought, the earth is nothing more than a large altar dedicated to Elohim. (See The ArtScroll Tehilim/Psalms commentary on this verse and notes at Ps 118:27.) The horns on the four corners of the altar could also prophetically point to the fact that Yeshua came to save all humans (who would trust in him) from the four corners of the earth.

Flores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, an island arc with an estimated area of 14,300 km² extending east from the Java island of Indonesia. The population was 1,831,000 in the 2010 census and the largest town is Maumere. Flores is Portuguese (as well as Spanish) for "flowers".

Flores is located east of Sumbawa and Komodo and west of Lembata and the Alor Archipelago. To the southeast is Timor. To the south, across the Sumba strait, is Sumba and to the north, beyond the Flores Sea, is Sulawesi.

On 12 December 1992, an earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale occurred, killing 2,500 people in and around Maumere, including islands off the North coast.

HOMO FLORESIENSIS

In September 2004, at Liang Bua Cave in western Flores, paleoanthropologists discovered small skeletons that they described as a previously unknown hominin species, Homo floresiensis. These are informally named hobbits and appear to have stood about 1 m tall. The most complete individual (LB1) is dated as 18,000 years old.

HISTORY

Portuguese traders and missionaries came to Flores in the 16th century, mainly to Larantuka and Sikka. Their influence is still discernible in Sikka's language, culture and religion.

The Dominican order was extremely important in this island, as well as in the neighbouring islands of Timor and Solor. When in 1613 the Dutch attacked the Fortress of Solor, the population of this fort, led by the Dominicans, moved to the harbor town of Larantuka, on the eastern coast of Flores. This population was mixed, of Portuguese and local islanders descent and Larantuqueiros, Topasses (people that wear heats) or, as Dutch knew them, the 'Black Portuguese' (Swarte Portugueezen).

The Larantuqueiros or Topasses became the dominant sandalwood trading people of the region for the next 200 years. This group used Portuguese as the language for worship, Malay as the language of trade and a mixed dialect as mother tongue. This was observed by William Dampier, an English privateer visiting the Island in 1699:

These [the Topasses] have no Forts, but depend on their Alliance with the Natives: And indeed they are already so mixt, that it is hard to distinguish whether they are Portuguese or Indians. Their Language is Portuguese; and the religion they have, is Romish. They seem in Words to acknowledge the King of Portugal for their Sovereign; yet they will not accept any Officers sent by him. They speak indifferently the Malayan and their own native Languages, as well as Portuguese.

In 1846, Dutch and Portuguese initiated negotiations towards delimiting the territories but these negotiations led nowhere. In 1851 the new governor of Timor, Solor and Flores, Lima Lopes, faced with an impoverished administration, agreed to sell eastern Flores and the nearby islands to the Dutch in return for a payment of 200,000 Florins. Lima Lopes did so without the consent of Lisbon and was dismissed in disgrace, but his agreement was not rescinded and in 1854 Portugal ceded all its historical claims on Flores. After this, Flores became part of the territory of Dutch East Indies.

During World War II a Japanese invasion force landed at Reo on 14 May 1942 and occupied Flores.

After the war Flores became part of independent Indonesia.

ADMINISTRATION

Flores is part of the East Nusa Tenggara province. The island along with smaller minor islands are split into eight regencies (local government districts); from west to east these are: Manggarai Barat (West Manggarai), Manggarai Tengah (Central Manggarai), Manggarai Timur (East Manggarai), Ngada, Nagekeo, Ende, Sikka and Flores Timur (East Flores). Flores has 39.1% of the East Nusa Tenggara provincial population as of 2010, and the most Indonesians of all islands in the province.

It is the island with the 9th most Indonesians. Among all islands containing Indonesian territory, it is the 10th most populous after Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, New Guinea, Bali, Madura, Lombok, and Timor.

FLORA AND FAUNA

The west coast of Flores is one of the few places, aside from the island of Komodo itself, where the Komodo dragon can be found in the wild, and is part of Komodo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Kelimutu National Park is the second national park designated on Flores to protect endangered species. The Flores giant rat is also endemic to the island, and Verhoeven's giant tree rat was formerly present. These giant rodents are considered examples of island gigantism.

Flores was also the habitat of several extinct dwarf forms of the proboscidean Stegodon, the most recent (Stegodon florensis insularis) disappearing approximately 12,000 years ago. It is speculated by scientists that limited resources and an absence of advanced predators made the few megafaunal species that reached the island subject to insular dwarfism.

CULTURE

There are many languages spoken on the island of Flores, all of them belonging to the Austronesian family. In the centre of the island in the districts of Ngada, Nagekeo, and Ende there is what is variously called the Central Flores Dialect Chain or the Central Flores Linkage. Within this area there are slight linguistic differences in almost every village. At least six separate languages are identifiable. These are from west to east: Ngadha, Nage, Keo, Ende, Lio and Palu'e, which is spoken on the island with the same name of the north coast of Flores. Locals would probably also add So'a and Bajawa to this list, which anthropologists have labeled dialects of Ngadha.

The peoples of Flores are almost entirely Roman Catholic Christians, whereas most other Indonesians are Muslim. As a consequence, Flores may be regarded as surrounded by a religious border. The prominence of Catholicism on the island results from its colonisation by Portugal. In other parts of Indonesia with significant Christian populations, such as the Maluku Islands and Sulawesi, the geographical divide is less rigid and Muslims and Christians sometimes live side by side. Flores thereby also has less religious violence that has sporadically occurred in other parts of Indonesia. There are several churches on the island.

TOURISM

The most famous tourist attraction in Flores is Kelimutu, a volcano containing three colored lakes, located in the district of Ende close to the town of Moni. These crater lakes are in the caldera of a volcano, and fed by a volcanic gas source, resulting in highly acidic water. The colored lakes change colors on an irregular basis, depending on the oxidation state of the lake from bright red through green and blue.

There are snorkelling and diving locations along the north coast of Flores, most notably Maumere and Riung. However, due to the destructive practice of local fishermen using bombs to fish, and locals selling shells to tourists, combined with the after effects of a devastating tsunami in 1992, the reefs have slowly been destroyed.

Labuan Bajo (on the western tip of Flores) is a town often used by tourists as a base to visit Komodo and Rinca. Labuanbajo also attracts scuba divers, as whale sharks inhabit the waters around Labuanbajo.

The Luba and Bena villages include traditional houses in Flores, Bena is also noted for its Stone Age megaliths.

Larantuka, on the isle's eastern end, is known for its Holy Week festivals.

ECONOMY

In addition to tourism, the main economic activities on Flores are agriculture, fishing and seaweed production. The primary food crops being grown on Flores are rice, maize, sweet potato and cassava, while the main cash crops are coffee, coconut, candle nut and cashew. Flores is one of the newest origins for Indonesian coffee. Previously, most Arabica coffee (Coffea arabica) from Flores was blended with other origins. Now, demand is growing for this coffee because of its heavy body and sweet chocolate, floral and woody notes.

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