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The Rendille. Pushed away by their neighbours, they henceforth inhabit a vast territory : from the Kaisut Desert to the east to the shores of Lake Turkana to the west.They are semi-nomadic, that is to say both nomad and pastoralist. Clans live in temporary settlement called gobs. The Rendille never stay long at the same place to look for water sources and pasturing areas. They move 3 to 5 times a year. Women are in charge of taking the houses apart and putting them back in the new location. The Rendille favour camels rather than cattle, because they are better suited to the environment. The Rendille depend heavily on them for food, milk, clothing, trade and transport. The Rendille are skilled craftsmen and make many different decoration or ornaments. Like the Maasai with cows, camels are bled in order to drink their blood. Marriage is not allowed within one's own clan. Society is strongly bound by family ties. The Rendille still believe in their God, called Wak or Ngai. They also have fortune-tellers who predict the future, and perform sacrifices to make it rain. Special ceremonies take place at a child's birth. A ewe or goat is sacrificed if it is a girl, a ram if a boy. The girl is blessed 3 times while 4 for the boy. In the same way, mother drinks blood for 3 days for a babygirl, 4 days for a babyboy. The weeding ceremony takes time. The prospective groom must give the bridewealth to the bride's family: 4 female and 4 male camels.
Les Rendille. Repoussés par leurs voisins, ils habitent désormais un vaste territoire, qui va du Désert de Kaisut à l’est aux rives du Lac Turkana à l’ouest.Ils sont semi-nomades, c’est-à-dire à la fois nomades et pasteurs. Les clans vivent dans des installations temporaires appelées gobs. Les Rendille ne restent jamais longtemps au même endroit pour chercher des sources d’eau et des pâturages. Ils se déplacent 3 à 5 fois par an. Les femmes sont chargées de démonter les maisons et les replacer dans leur nouveau lieu d’habitat. Les Rendile privilégient les dromadaires au bétail, étant plus adaptés à leur environnement. Ils dépendent largement d’eux pour leur nourriture, lait, habits, commerce et transport. Les Rendille sont des artisans qualifiés et créent des décorations et ornements divers. Comme les Maasai avec les vaches, les dromadaires sont saignés pour boire le sang. Le mariage n’est pas autorisé à l’intérieur d’un même clan. La société est solidement lié par les attaches familiales.Les Rendille croient dans un Dieu qu’ils appellent Wak ou Ngai. Ils ont aussi des voyants qui prédisent l’avenir, et réalisent des sacrifices pour faire pleuvoir. Des cérémonies spéciales ont lieu à la naissance d’un enfant. Une brebis ou chèvre est sacrifiée si c’est une fille, un bélier si c’est un garçon. La fille est bénie 3 fois, 4 pour le garçon. De la même manière, la mère boit du sang pendant 3 jours pour une petite fille, 4 pour un petit garçon. La cérémonie du mariage prend du temps. Le futur époux doit payer le prix de la mariée à la famille de celle-ci : 4 dromadaires femelles et 4 mâles.
© Eric Lafforgue
Maison de thé Fujimi à Zoshigaya / Zoushigaya fujimi chaya / Fujimi Teahouse at Zoshigaya.
from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fuji sanjûrokkei)
Série des 36 vues du Mont Fuji
Oeuvre d'Utagawa Hiroshige (Japon, 1797-1858)
1858
Période Edo, Japon
Hiroshige hitsu
estampe (nishiki-e),
papier et encre
Oeuvre de la collection du musée d'art oriental de Venise, présentée dans l'exposition Hiroshige. De Edo à Kyoto vues célèbres du Japon, au palais Grimani du 20 septembre 2014 au 15 janvier 2015
www.palazzogrimani.org/mostre-ed-eventi/hiroshige/
Cette exposition très bien scénographiée dans les salles du palazzo Grimani permet de voir de nombreuses oeuvres (estampes) de Hiroshige appartenant aux collections du musée d'art oriental de Venise. Ce musée, dont le fond japonais est très riche, se trouve hébergé depuis de nombreuses années dans des locaux trop exigus au 3ème étage du palais Ca' Pesaro, le musée d'art moderne de Venise. Sa réinstallation dans un palais plus vaste a été sans cesse repoussée, ce qui l'oblige à exposer ses collections dans d'autres musées.
Album sur le musée d'art oriental (photos dalbera)
Vue du lac et de la ville d'Otsu depuis la salle dédiée à Kannon du temple de Miidera - Otsu (étape 54)
Série des 53 étapes ou relais du Tokaido (Route de la mer de l'Est)
Oeuvre d'Utagawa Hiroshige (Japon, 1797-1858)
1855
Période Edo, Japon
Hiroshige hitsu
estampe (nishiki-e),
papier et encre
Oeuvre de la collection du musée d'art oriental de Venise, présentée dans l'exposition Hiroshige. De Edo à Kyoto vues célèbres du Japon, au palais Grimani du 20 septembre 2014 au 15 janvier 2015
www.palazzogrimani.org/mostre-ed-eventi/hiroshige/
Cette exposition très bien scénographiée dans les salles du palazzo Grimani permet de voir de nombreuses oeuvres (estampes) de Hiroshige appartenant aux collections du musée d'art oriental de Venise. Ce musée, dont le fond japonais est très riche, se trouve hébergé depuis de nombreuses années dans des locaux trop exigus au 3ème étage du palais Ca' Pesaro, le musée d'art moderne de Venise. Sa réinstallation dans un palais plus vaste a été sans cesse repoussée, ce qui l'oblige à exposer ses collections dans d'autres musées.
Album sur le musée d'art oriental (photos dalbera)
www.flickr.com/photos/dalbera/sets/72157627615989247
Photo Annie Dalbéra
Voir une des séries des 53 relais ou étapes du Tokaido
4.5 x 6 x 5/8 inches. 22 gauge copper sheet. Lots of hammering with many tools, and, of course, several annealings.
A silver church frontal panel
Estimate: PHP 100,000 - 120,000
Mid 19th century
Pampanga
Repoussé silver set in a contemporary kamagong frame
31 x 69 cm (12 x 27 in)
Provenance:
Private collection, Manila
Formerly part of an elaborate church altar frontal covered and decorated with hand-hammered chased and repoussé silver, this whimsical panel features flourishing and bunched S-shaped acanthus leaves, centering an oval cartouche surrounded by scalloped fig leaves, and rosettes in all four corners. Framed in molded kamagong wood. The silver panel without the frame weighs approximately one kilogram.
Lot 158 of the Salcedo Auctions auction on 18 March 2023. Please see www.salcedoauctions.com for more information.
Vent de NW avec des rafales de 70 à 100km/heure, l'eau de ce côté-ci l'étang est repoussée, laissant place à la grève par endroits.
Rhyton with auroch bull protome and repousse floral designs. Seleucid (Hellenistic) 2nd Century BC, Gilded silver. From the Toledo Art Museum. Special Exhibit, Animal-Shaped Vessels from the Ancient World: Feasting with Gods, Heroes and Kings. Harvard Art Museum. Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Copyright 2018, James A. Glazier.
Minha Amada Filhinha Princesa, apareceu em frente de casa, muito doente, com "sarna negra", problemas renais e alérgicos; os moradores desta rua a repeliam e a repudiavam.
Minha adorada mãezinha e eu a levamos a vários veterinários.
Não há cura para os seus problemas renais e alérgicos, os veterinários conseguiram curá-la da "sarna negra"; ela mora conosco há 06 anos e vive bem porque toma vários antibióticos, corticóides e uma vez por mês passa por triagem médica, onde são feitos vários exames para podermos controlar estas doenças.
É um Doce de Menininha, muito meiga, dócil e querida!!
Agradeço a Deus por me dar esta Linda Filhinha!
***
My Beloved Princess Sweetheart, appeared in front of my house, very sick with "black scab", kidney problems and allergies; the inhabitants of this street repelled and repudiated her.
My adorable Mommy and I took her to several vets.
There is no cure for her kidney problems and allergies; veterinarians were able to cure her "black scab"; she lives with us for 06 years and lives well because she takes several antibiotics, steroids and once a month go through medical screening, where made several tests in order to control these diseases.
It is a Dulce of little girl, very tender, sweet and dear!
I thank God for giving me this beautiful little daughter!
***
Ma chérie princesse bien-aimée, est apparu en face de la maison, très malade "croûte noire", des problèmes rénaux et les allergies, les habitants de cette rue repoussés et répudiée.
Ma très chère maman et je l'ai emmenée à plusieurs vétérinaires.
Il n'existe aucun remède pour ses problèmes rénaux et les allergies, les vétérinaires ont réussi à guérir son «croûte noire», elle vit avec nous pour 06 ans et vit bien parce que cela prend plusieurs antibiotiques, des stéroïdes et une fois par mois passer le contrôle médical, où fait plusieurs tests afin de contrôler ces maladies.
Il s'agit d'une petite fille douce, très sucrée, douce et chère!
Je remercie Dieu de m'avoir donné cette belle petite fille!
***
***
***
Lindíssimo Vídeo, comovente. "O melhor amigo do homem"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3uk5wOQ_r4&feature=related
Um cão é um anjo que vem ao mundo ensinar o amor,
Amizade sem pedir nada em troca,
Quem mais pode dar amor incondicional
Afeição sem esperar retorno.
Proteção sem ganhar nada.
Um cão não se afasta,
Mesmo que você o agride,
Ele retorna cabisbaixo pedindo desculpas por algo,
Que talvez não tenha feito,
Lambendo suas mãos a suplicar perdão.
Obediência real,
Inteligência aparente,
Fidelidade vinte e quatro horas por dia.
E ainda existem pessoas que não gostam de cães,
E ainda os maltratam.
Nunca olharam dentro daqueles olhos para perceber quem estava ali.
Um AMIGO.
Que certamente será o ultimo a...
Te abandonar.
"Jamais creia que os animais sofrem menos do que os humanos."
Não os maltrate, ajude-os!
***
Video beautiful, moving! "The man's best friend"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3uk5wOQ_r4&feature=related
A dog is an angel who comes into the world to teach love,
Friendship without asking anything in return,
Who else can give unconditional love
Affection without expecting return.
Protection for nothing.
A dog does not depart
Even if you hit them,
He returns crestfallen apologizing for something,
That might not have done,
Licking your hands to beg forgiveness.
Obedience real
Intelligence apparent
Fidelity twenty-four hours a day.
And there are still people who dislike dogs,
And yet the abuse.
Never looked into those eyes to see who was there.
A FRIEND.
That will certainly be the last a. ..
Abandon you.
"Never believe that animals suffer less than humans."
Do not mistreat them, help them!
***
***
***
INFORMAÇÕES IMPORTANTES E URGENTES!
AÇÃO ANTI ENVENENAMENTO
O Veterinário Dr. Marcel Benedeti, deu esta dica de como agir em caso de suspeita de envenenamento de animais:
DAR ÁGUA MORNA SALGADA ou ÁGUA OXIGENADA 10 VOLUMES (1 COLHER DE SOPA), que em contato com o estômago faz o animal vomitar...e depois dar ATROVERAN (1 GOTA por KG de PESO de 6 em 6 hs) que é o melhor ANTÍDOTO para VENENOS como 1080 e CHUMBINHO.
MANTENHA SEMPRE ATROVERAN por perto e trnasmita para todas as pessoas que você conhece,
ISTO PODE SALVAR VIDAS!!!
***
IMPORTANT INFORMATIONS AND URGENT!
ACTION ANTI POISON
The Veterinarian Dr. Marcel Benedet, gave this tip on how to act case of suspected poisoning of animals:
DAR WARM SALT WATER or HYDROGEN PEROXIDE 10 VOLUME COUNTERS (1 TABLESPOON), with the stomach is the animal to vomit... and then give OCIMUM SELLOI around (1 DROP per KG from ) which is the best ANTIDOTE for POISONS as 1080 and LEAD or PELLET.
ALWAYS KEEP OCIMUM SELLOI around and transmits as everyone you know,
THIS CAN SAVE LIVES !!!
OS CUIDADOS DEVEM CONTINUAR...OS FERIADOS SEMPRE CONTINUAM, ...MUITAS PESSOAS VIAJAM e deixam seus ANIMAIZINHOS!!
OUTRAS PESSOAS NÃO VIAJAM, mas infelizmente as crianças ficam nas ruas USANDO FOGOS DE ARTIFÍCIO...estamos com inúmeros casos de animais afetados física e mentalmente!!
QUEM AMA E RESPEITA OS ANIMAIS....CUIDA!!
***
CARE MUST CONTINUE.... THE HOLIDAYS ALWAYS CONTINUE... ... MANY PEOPLE TRAVEL and leave their PETS!
OTHER PEOPLE DO NOT TRAVEL, but unfortunately the children are on the streets USING FIREWORKS ... we have numerous cases of animals affected physically and mentally!
WHO LOVES AND RESPECTS THE ANIMALS .... TAKE CARE!
***
***
Cuidado com os animais!!...***...Careful with the animals!!
CUIDADO COM OS ANIMAIS!
Meu dono... eu tenho medo, cuida de mim.
Meu dono, venho fazer um pedido.
As festas estão chegando, sei que você gosta de viajar, então me deixe em lugar seguro antes de você ir.
Pois tenho medo de ficar sozinho, se eu não te ver eu vou te procurar e posso me perder.
Meu dono eu tenho pavor de fogos, eles fazem doer meus ouvidos, então NÃO ME AMARRE
coloque algodão no me ouvido para que eu não escute muito.
Me deixe perto de você, assim eu me sinto seguro.
Não me importo em ficar de coleira, desde que esteja com seu nome e seu telefone, para caso eu me assuste e fuja, quem me encontrar, me devolva a você.
MEU DONO - CUIDA DE MIM.
***
CAREFUL WITH THE ANIMALS!
My master ... I'm afraid, takes care of me.
My master, I have to make a request.
The holidays are coming, I know you like to travel, so let me safely before you go.
Because I'm afraid of being alone, if I do not see you I'll look and I can lose.
My master I'm terrified of fireworks, they make my ears hurt, then DO NOT TIE ME
put cotton in my ear that I do not listen much.
Let me close to you, so I feel safe.
I do not mind getting a leash, since that is your name and your phone so if I'm scared and run away, whom find me, will back me to you.
MY OWNER - TAKE CARE OF ME.
UM CASAL DE ANIMAIS
Pode originar em 10 anos em sucessivas gerações
com duas crias por ano
de 2 a 8 filhotes por cria
(ver números de crias por ano na relação acima)
POR FAVOR, CASTRE!!...EU IMPLORO!!
***
A COUPLE OF ANIMALS
May result in 10 years in successive generations
with two litters per year
of 2-8 offspring per litter
(see numbers of litters per year in the above list)
PLEASE, CASTRO !!...I BEG !!
(BR Press*) - URGENTE, 15.01.2011
Cuidados como vacinar os cães e gatos podem evitar proliferação da doença transmitida por meio da urina de ratos, que se mistura às águas de poças e enchentes.
Usar Vacinas Importadas, do Laboratório PFIZER.
***
(Press * BR) - URGENT, January 15, 2011
Care to vaccinate dogs and cats can prevent spread of the disease spread through the urine of rats, which combines with water puddles and flooding.
Using Imported Vaccines, Laboratory PFIZER.
C'est à cette époque (jusque fin septembre) que je les trouve particulièrement jolies, avec leur laine qui a déjà repoussé mais pas encore excessivement
It is now (until the end of September) that I find them particularly pretty, with their wool which has already grown back but not yet excessively
Since the antique shop was closed for Ascension Day—a major public holiday in Bruges marked by church services and processions, especially the veneration of the Holy Blood relic—I was left to admire this exquisite tableau from the street. The central object in the display is a beautifully preserved example of European tin-glazed earthenware, framed by other compelling artifacts.
🔍 Primary Object: Tin-Glazed Earthenware Plaque (Center)
This ceramic plaque is a striking example of 18th-century faience or delftware, likely produced in northern France (Rouen, Nevers, Lille), the Southern Netherlands, or even by Dutch Delft potters catering to francophone markets.
Decoration: A cobalt blue scene of three birds perched on a garland suspended above a basket of gourds or flowers, all rendered in vigorous brushstrokes. The imagery is set within a cartouche-shaped frame decorated in vibrant antimony yellow and edged with baroque scrolls and shell motifs.
Style & Iconography: The scalloped rim and shell ornaments evoke late Baroque and Rococo aesthetics (ca. 1725–1780). The birds may symbolize harmony or courtship, while the central basket suggests seasonal abundance or rustic festivity.
Technique: Hand-painted cobalt on an opaque white tin glaze, with yellow achieved through iron- or antimony-based pigments. The form is molded, not thrown, reflecting the complexity of French and Flemish faience production.
Nearby Objects of Interest:
Left: A repoussé gilded metal plaque, likely devotional, featuring a radiant female figure—possibly an allegorical representation of Faith or the Virgin Mary. 19th century.
Right: A utilitarian salt-glazed stoneware jar with loop handles—probably German (Westerwald) or Dutch, 18th–19th century. Its soft sheen and pitted surface contrast nicely with the delicate faience.
Foreground Right: A small brown-glazed bottle with incised details—possibly a miniature Bellarmine, or a piece of 19th-century English or German stoneware.
🎯 Conclusion:
This charming composition captures the breadth of European ceramic traditions—from the decorative exuberance of Rococo faience to the earthy utility of stoneware. That this was visible only through the window on a solemn Bruges feast day made it all the more dreamlike: an accidental still life, rich with material history and aesthetic contradiction.
This text is a collaboration with Chat GPT.
Sterling, Fine Silver, Copper, Steel, Brass, Green Topaz, Brooch made from multiple techniques. Sawing, piercing, Sweat and other soldering techniques, forging, wire work, chasing, repousse.
Silver, 8th-7th century B.C.E.
W. 18.4 cm.
The kingdom of Urartu that had spread east and south from the region of Lake Van in what is now eastern Turkey was known above all as the center of a vigorous metalworking industry. It utilized bronze, iron, and to a lesser extent silver and gold. Its metal artifacts were exported to lands as far away as Italy.
This crescent-shaped silver pectoral may have been worn around the neck of a high official. It has been suggested that gold, silver, and bronze pectorals connoted degrees of official rank in Urartian society.1 Two bronze statuettes in the Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin, depict male figures with crescent-shaped pectorals.2 Two bronze winged sphinxes, one in the British Museum and one in the Hermitage Museum, are shown wearing similar ornaments.3 A small couchant sphinx on a bronze candelabrum bearing an inscription naming an Urartian king as its owner also wears one.4 It would appear that both humans and non-human supernatural beings could be represented with this type of pectoral in Urartian art.
This pectoral's imagery is complex, featuring three sacred trees, so called, inhabited by striding fantastic winged quadrupeds. Two identical rows of two-legged winged creatures approach the central tree with drawn bows while two winged genii kneel on opposite sides of the crescent between pairs of raised rosettes. These motifs are most likely amuletic in function. Urartian imagery such as that seen here is found mainly on metal articles of personal use and chariot fittings, and seems to favor repetitive arrangements of individual elements that cannot be easily related to one another.5 Thus, we cannot tell with certainty whether the creatures with drawn bows are protecting or attacking the central sacred tree, or whether they are simply placed symmetrically with no specific relation to it.
A magnificent gold pectoral from Ziwiye in northwest Iran, dated to the seventh century B.C., is thought to have been inspired by the Urartian type in both shape and decoration.6 Distinctive but possibly derivative pectorals in precious metals have been found in Etruscan tombs; and it has been suggested that this type of ornament passed from the Etruscans to the Roman army.7 Other possibly related lunate pectorals dated to the mid-first millennium B.C. have been found in Eastern Europe.8 Also worth mentioning is a superb gold openwork crescent pectoral in the State Historical Museum in Kiev, clearly Greek in its artisanship and style, found in a South Russian Scythian tomb of the fourth century B.C.9 Richly decorated crescent pectorals are sometimes represented in Gandharan art. One notable example can be seen on a statue of the Buddhist goddess Hariti from Skarah Dheri.10 Similarly ornate pectorals of silver and brass appear to have been popular items of modern jewelry in the Swat Valley in Northwest Pakistan and may be descended from this ancient tradition.11
MLC
1. Merhav 1991, p. 164. This is the opinion of Hans-J. Kellner in one section of the catalogue. Merhav (p. 172) is not convinced.
2. Ghirshman 1964, p. 308, fig. 370; Merhav 1991, pp. 171-72, figs. 4-5.
3. British Museum: Merhav 1991 pp. 282-83, nos. a-b; also Ghirshman 1964, p. 309, fig. 371; Hermitage Museum: Piotrovsky 1967, pl. 3; also Merhav 1991, p. 173, fig. 7.
4. Merhav 1991, p. 173 , fig. 8, p. 262, no. 10a. This is in the Museum f Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg.
5. Ibid., pp. 312-14. This is the opinion of Peter Calmeyer, who wrote a section on Urartian iconography in the catalogue.
6. Ghirshman 1964, p. 311, fig. 376a-c.
7. Ibid., p. 310.
8. Ibid., figs. 374, 375.
9. Rolle 1980, pls. 14-18.
10. Ingholt 1957, pl. II.3; Dobbins 1967, pp. 268-72.
11. Kalter 1989, pp. 142-43, p. 98, figs. 131-33, p. 99, fig. 134, p. 100, fig. 137.
Text and image from the website of the Miho Museum.
L'entrée de Enoshima dans la province de Sagami / Entrance To Enoshima in Sagami Province (Sagami Enoshima iriguchi),
from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fuji sanjûrokkei)/
Série des 36 vues du Mont Fuji
Oeuvre d'Utagawa Hiroshige (Japon, 1797-1858)
1858
Hiroshige hitsu
Période Edo, Japon
estampe (nishiki-e),
papier et encre
Oeuvre de la collection du musée d'art oriental de Venise, présentée dans l'exposition Hiroshige. De Edo à Kyoto vues célèbres du Japon, au palais Grimani du 20 septembre 2014 au 15 janvier 2015
www.palazzogrimani.org/mostre-ed-eventi/hiroshige/
Cette exposition très bien scénographiée dans les salles du palazzo Grimani permet de voir de nombreuses oeuvres (estampes) de Hiroshige appartenant aux collections du musée d'art oriental de Venise. Ce musée, dont le fond japonais est très riche, se trouve hébergé depuis de nombreuses années dans des locaux trop exigus au 3ème étage du palais Ca' Pesaro, le musée d'art moderne de Venise. Sa réinstallation dans un palais plus vaste a été sans cesse repoussée, ce qui l'oblige à exposer ses collections dans d'autres musées.
Album sur le musée d'art oriental (photos dalbera)
Le château était composé de 4 tours d'angle dont le donjon, placé à l'angle NO du château.
Deux tours sont en élévation, la 4ème a disparu
Au XVIIème, l'escarpe est repoussée de 4 à 5m vers l'extérieur pour établir une fausse-braie flanquée d'une petite tour cylindrique à chaque angle de la plate forme.
Marie-Pierre Feuillet
Upper and lower boards made of wood and covered with goatskin, with a rectangular goatskin flap attached to the lower board to protect the fore-edge; two silver plaques have been attached to the upper and lower boards and are joined across the spine through use of 3 sets of 5 silver chains; upper-board silver plaque depicts the Adoration of the Magi in a central, rectangular field, with the figures and decorative elements in repoussé and gilded, with carefully incised details and blue, green, and yellow enamel employed for spatial and decorative effects; outer border is filled with grape-cluster motifs within a green-enamel background and semi-precious gems in the shape of rosettes and crosses; lower-board silver plaque incorporates the same decorative elements and design as the upper-board, but the central scene depicts the Ascension of Christ, with the heavenly background filled in with a marbled white enamel and the earthly background below in blue; inner boards lined with blue linen.
This manuscript was executed in 1475 by a scribe identified as Aristakes, for a priest named Hakob. It contains a series of 16 images on the life of Christ preceding the text of the gospels, as well as the traditional evangelist portraits, and there are marginal illustrations throughout. The style of the miniatures, which employ brilliant colors and emphasize decorative patterns, is characteristic of manuscript production in the region around Lake Van during the 15th century. The style of Lake Van has often been described in relation to schools of Islamic arts of the book. Numerous inscriptions (on fols. 258-60) spanning a few centuries attest to the manuscript's long history of use and revered preservation. The codex's later history included a re-binding with silver covers from Kayseri that date to approximately 1700. This jeweled and enameled silver binding bears a composition of the Adoration of the Magi on the front and the Ascension on the back.
To explore fully digitized manuscripts with a virtual page-turning application, please visit Walters Ex Libris.
Numerous bronze plates decorated with repoussé were found in the Roman countryside in 1872. Augusto Castellani recognised they were relevant to the decoration of the wooden bands of a tensa, a processional chariot for the transport of gods. An additional restoration was carried out with the inclusion of the missing wooden parts.
This was possibly a private wagon designed to transport wealthy Etruscan citizens. The decoration, ordered in six overlapping bands, refers to episodes from the life of Achilles, from his childhood (with scenes of the bath in the Styx, the education of Chiron, his life in Skyros) to adulthood (episodes of the Trojan cycle).
Etruscan
6th century BCE
Musei Capitolini, Rome
1. My Porter Nepal!, 2. Machhapuchhre - 6993m (Anapurna, Nepal), 3. Getting married with Lord Vishnu (Kathmandu, Nepal), 4. moon, clouds, mountains, Nepal, 5. Jai Nepal! (Pashupatinath, Nepal), 6. Kathmandu , Nepal,Himalayas,Everest, 7. A rainbow of colours, 8. Nepal, 9. Tea Pickers in Eastern Nepal, 10. Nepal, 11. Boudhanath Stupa Nepal, 12. Nepal, 13. Nepal, 14. Nepal 06/21, 15. Nepal 1, 16. All-Seeing Wisdom (Bodnath, Nepal), 17. Kathmandu , Nepal,Himalayas,Everest, 18. Kathmandu , Nepal , Himalayas ,Everest, 19. Nepal 04/21, 20. Farmer's Market, Eastern Terai, Nepal, 21. Kids - Kathmandu, Nepal, 22. Kathmandu , Nepal,Himalayas,Everest, 23. Kathmandu , Nepal,Himalayas,Everest, 24. Nepal, 25. nepal! 284, 26. nepal vista del pueblo, 27. Pashupatinath Holy Man, (Kathmandu, Nepal), 28. Nepal, 29. Nepal Blanket Vendor, 30. Golden flames, 31. Annapurna (left) and Machapuchare (right), 32. The Buddhist deity White Tara 1400-1500 Nepal Gilt copper repousse, 33. Butterfly and red flower, Annapurna region, Nepal, 34. Princess of Nepal kingdom, 35. Fashionable lifestyle (Pashupatinath, Nepal), 36. Knee-high to a grasshopper (Changu Narayan, Nepal)
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.
(Sold piece, see profile for more Etsy info)
-= Déjà Vu =-
Re-visit the past for the first time with this unique bracelet by 19 Moons! This one of a kind work recalls the beauty of 20th century- a collage antique metal buttons, and antiquated technology given life anew. There are 8 objects in all mounted on the sturdy silver form: Four exquisitely detailed vintage buttons in gold, silver and bronze with various patterns, a 1920's watchdial, a 1940's typewriter key (V), a 1920's cash register key (4) and the centerpiece is a gorgeous 1930's ruby jewel watch movement inverted inside its art nouveau casing. The bracelet form and findings are a combination of sterling silver and pewter, finished with a fabulous art-nouveau toggle style clasp. A stunning ensemble of early 20th century design- and so unique! Don't miss this treasure for the wrist.
Size: 8.5" L (May be shortened by request)
Line: X-Machina
© 2008-2009 19 Moons, All Rights Reserved
Gold, 8th-7th century B.C.E., from Northwestern Iran, possibly Ziwiye
62.78.1a, b
In 1947 a treasure was reputedly found at a mound near the village of Ziwiye in northwestern Iran. Objects attributed to Ziwiye are stylistically similar to Assyrian art of the eighth and seventh centuries B.C. as well as to the art of contemporary Syria, Urartu, and Scythia. Many objects of gold, silver, bronze, ivory, and ceramic have since appeared on the antiquities market with the provenance of Ziwiye, although there is no way to verify this identification.
This plaque, perforated around the edge, was perhaps once attached to a garment of a wealthy lord or to the shroud of a prince. Its design is similar to contemporary art of Assyria, Urartu, and Scythian-style objects. The plaque was originally composed of seven registers decorated in repoussé and chasing; two were separated and are now in the collection of the Archaeological Museum, Tehran. The registers display the familiar composite creatures of the ancient Near East striding in groups of three toward a stylized sacred tree, the central motif. The human-headed, winged lion, seen in the first and third register, is a creature that also appears as a gate guardian on the doorjambs in the palace of Ashurnasirpal II at Nimrud. A sphinx struts along the second band, followed by winged lions and an ibex. The bodies of the fantastic creatures are composed of unusual combinations of animal and bird parts: in the uppermost register, the lions sport ostrich tails, while in the second, their tails are those of scorpions. The trees of life bear pomegranates, pine cones, and lotus flowers. Each scene is framed and separated by a delicate guilloche pattern.
Text from the Metropolitan Museum card.
The Statue of Liberty, officially titled Liberty Enlightening the World, dedicated on October 28, 1886, is a monument commemorating the centennial of the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence, given to the United States by the people of France to represent the friendship between the two countries established during the American Revolution. It represents a woman wearing a stola, a radiant crown and sandals, trampling a broken chain, carrying a torch in her raised right hand and a tabula ansata, where the date of the Declaration of Independence JULY IV MDCCLXXVI is inscribed, in her left arm. Standing on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, it welcomes visitors, immigrants, and returning Americans traveling by ship. Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi sculpted the statue and obtained a U.S. patent for its structure. Maurice Koechlin—chief engineer of Gustave Eiffel's engineering company and designer of the Eiffel Tower—engineered the internal structure. The pedestal was designed by architect Richard Morris Hunt. Eugène Viollet-le-Duc was responsible for the choice of copper in the statue's construction, and for the adoption of the repoussé technique, where a malleable metal is hammered on the reverse side.
The statue is made of a sheathing of pure copper, hung on a framework of steel (originally puddled iron) with the exception of the flame of the torch, which is coated in gold leaf (originally made of copper and later altered to hold glass panes). It stands atop a rectangular stonework pedestal with a foundation in the shape of an irregular eleven-pointed star. The statue is 151 ft (46 m) tall, but with the pedestal and foundation, it is 305 ft (93 m) tall.
Worldwide, the Statue of Liberty is one of the most recognizable icons of the United States. For many years it was one of the first glimpses of the United States for millions of immigrants and visitors after ocean voyages from around the world.
The statue is the central part of Statue of Liberty National Monument, administered by the National Park Service. The National Monument also includes Ellis Island.
Santo Niño
18th Century
Ivory, Wood and Silver
with base: H:17” x L:9” x W:4 1/2” (43 cm x 23 cm x 11 cm)
without base: H:12” x L:5” x W:3 1/2” (30 cm x 13 cm x 9 cm)
Opening bid: P 200,000
Provenance:
Property of a distinguished Manila gentleman
Purchased in Vigan, Ilocos Sur.
Lot 16 of the Leon Gallery / Asian Cultural Council auction on 20 February 2016. For more details, please go to www.leon-gallery.com
A charming and highly sophisticated image of the Sto. Niño or Holy Child categorized as a Salvador del Mundo or Savior of the World. The earliest prototypes of these images came from Flanders (the Netherlands); and the earliest extant example of this type in the Philippines is that of the Sto. Niño of Cebu believed to have been brought to the islands by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521.
The figure of the child Jesus stands with his weight on his right leg and his right foot thrust slightly forward. The left leg is relaxed and the left foot thrust back for balance. The body leans to the right with exceptionally naturalistic pose. The image exhibits much movement as can be detected by the gesticulating hands, and the undulating feet with the right foot slightly elevated to suggest arrested motion.
The Salvador wears a Tabard giving the whole a slightly medieval air. A tabard is a sleeveless jerkin consisting only of front and back pieces with a hole for the head. The tabard is made of silver worked in repoussé of interlocking, rhomboid shapes. The round collar is particularly noteworthy as it is beautifully chased in foliate shapes. Underneath, the child wears unbleached cotton undergarments consisting of pantaloons and a shirt with long sleeves that covers his arms. The tabard is seamed and closed at the back. The Christ child is shod in boots.
The head is exceptionally well carved with the face beautifully rendered. The face is slightly elongated. The forehead is broad and the eyebrows are arched and painted brown almost the color of coffee. Inset glass eyes. The nose is long and straight. The lips are thin and slightly pursed with the edges tilting upward in a slight intimation of a smile. Dimples appear on his cheeks. The lips are outlined in an orange-red tinge typical of most ivory images made in the Philippines. Navarro de Pintado (1986, p. 107) describes the color as “crimson,” but a closer analysis reveals that Gatbonton’s assessment of the “orange-ish” hue is more on point (1983, p. 27).
The Christ child wears a wig of fiber hair. On top of his head, he wears an imperial crown (Corona Imperial) made of repoussé silver fire-gilded in gold in the technique which has come to be known as dorado de fuego (or dorado al fuego). The orb is similarly gilded. Dorado de fuego or fire gilding is a time honored process by which an amalgam of gold is applied to metallic surfaces. The technique is highly dangerous and volatile because it involves the use of Mercury which, when melted, gives off toxic fumes. If absorbed (which is easily done by inhalation), the fumes can cause neurological and other bodily disorders and even death. The dorado de fuego technique have subsequently been supplanted by electroplating gold over nickel which is more economical and less dangerous.
The Salvador is mounted on an elaborate, rococo inspired base or peana. The base is original to the image which helps to date the piece to the 18th century. The Rococo is an artistic style that blossomed in the middle part of the 18th century as a reaction against the excessive regulation and symmetry of the baroque. The style derives its name from a combination of the French words rocaille (stone) and coquilles (shell). And the style manifested in curvilineal and asymmetrical shapes, light colors and a fondness for gold and gilding. The shape and form of this base, in fact, recalls the fanciful limestone grottos so popular during the period.
The image of the Sto. Niño or the Holy Child has been popular since the earliest days of the Spanish colonial period. This is evident in the writings of Manila’s first Archbishop, Domingo de Salazar, writing of Filipino craftsmen who “… are so skillful and clever that, as soon as they see any object made by a Spanish workman, they reproduce it with exactness.... they have produced marvelous work with both the brush and the chisel, and I think that nothing more perfect could be produced than some of their statues of the Child Jesus which I have seen.” 1
-Murvyn Rodriguez Callo
1 Text taken from the Gutenberg Project. The Gutenberg text says “Marble images of the Christ child” but I heavily suspect that Salazar probably was referring to ivory images.
List of Works Consulted:
Blair, E. H. and J. A. Robertson. The Philippine Islands, 1493–1898. www.gutenberg.org/files/13701/13701-h/13701 h.htm. October 11, 2004. Accessed January 15, 2016. www.gutenberg.org/files/13701/13701-h/13701 h.htm.
Finishing Techniques in Metalwork. 2016. Accessed January 14, 2016. www.philamuseum.org/booklets/7_42_77_1.html.
Jose, R. T. 1990. Images of Faith: Religious ivory carvings from the Philippines. Pasadena: Pacific Asia Museum.
Gatbonton, E. B. 1979. A Heritage of saints: Colonial santos in the Philippines. Hong Kong: Editorial Associates.
Gatbonton, E. B. 1983. Philippine religious carvings in ivory. Illus. by R. Figueroa. Manila: Intramurous Administration.
Navarro de Pintado, B. 1985. Marfiles cristianos del Oriente en Mexico [Christian oriental ivories in Mexico]. Mexico City: Fomento Cultural Banamex.
Wrought iron balconies lining the narrow streets of New Orleans historic Vieux Carré are one of the French Quarter’s most prominent and memorable features. Visitors photograph them, artists paint them and hotels and bars promote the French Quarter Decorative Balconies as an ideal perch to view the passing parade.
Bourbon Street balconies are particularly popular to both view the throngs of revelers on the street and as a stage on which to flash feminine charms in response to the chants and bribes of strings of colorful Mardi Gras beads from below.
A French Quarter balcony often serves as a means of expression for the buildings inhabitants. Sometimes a balcony will resemble a tropical garden teaming with ivy, bromeliads, begonias and ferns. Others use their elevated display cases to exhibit personal treasures — everything from art and antiques to suits of armor.
The French Quarter gained its Spanish architectural flavor when over 850 buildings, almost the entire French Quarter, burned down in 1788. The Baroness Micaela Almonaster de Pontalba added cast iron balconies to the fashionable row houses she built around Jackson Square after the Battle of New Orleans in 1814 starting a trend that spread throughout the French Quarter with balconies added to many existing buildings.
The adjective most often used to describe New Orleans French Quarter balconies is lacy. Lacy wrought iron strikes me personally as an oxymoron, but the unique characteristics of wrought iron, especially its strength, resistance to rust and malleability do make wrought iron the ideal material for balconies and other ornamental ironwork.
Prior to the industrial age, blacksmiths worked with wrought iron, made and refined in charcoal fires. Charcoal iron can withstand corrosion for hundreds of years as evidenced by many a two hundred year old French Quarter balcony. Traditional decorative ironwork is not easy to maintain. Repousse—shaped or decorated with patterns in relief formed by hammering and pressing on the reverse side—is often difficult to paint.
Once mild steel was introduced with its ability to be mass produced, wrought iron, and the craft skills associated with it, gradually disappeared. Most of the ironwork in the French Quarter is actually cast iron and dates to the 1850’s when this type of adornment became wildly popular.
Ganymede abducted by Zeus in the form of an Eagle. Gold flask with reposse decoration. Sassanian, 5th Century AD. Vienna, Austria. Copyright 2016, James A. Glazier.
Remarkable gold elliptical funeral diadems, leaves, wheels, cups, earrings, pendants and pins from Shaft Grave III, "Grave of the Women", Grave Circle A, Mycenae. 1600-1500 BC.
National Archaeological Museum, Athens.
Once part of a large cemetery outside the acropolis walls, Grave Circle A was discovered within the Mycenaean citadel by Heinrich Schliemann in 1876 under the supervision of the Greek Ephor of Antiquities Panagiotis Stamatakis.
The tombs in Grave Circle A contained a total of nineteen burials: nine males, eight females and two infants. With the exception of Grave II, which contained a single burial, all of the other graves contained between two and five inhumations.
The amazing wealth of the grave gifts reveals both the high social rank and the martial spirit of the deceased: gold jewelry and vases, a large number of decorated swords and other bronze objects, and artefacts made of imported materials, such as amber, lapis lazuli, faience and ostrich eggs. All of these, together with a small but characteristic group of pottery vessels, confirm Mycenae's importance during this period, and justify Homer's designation of Mycenae as 'rich in gold.'
Shaft Grave III, the so-called "Grave of the Women," contained three female and two infant interments. The women were literally covered in gold jewelry and wore massive gold diadems, while the infants were overlaid with gold foil. A great number of gold roundels and other gold cut-out foils in various shapes with repousse decoration were initially embroidered onto, either the deceased's clothes, or their shrouds. The jewelry included large silver and bronze pins with rock crystal heads or with gold ornaments and sheething, a necklace of amber beads, gold earrings, and gold seals engraved with hunting or dueling scenes. Miniature gold vessels, faience vessels and gold scales were also found.
Bronze chariot inlaid with ivory
2nd quarter of the 6th century B.C.
Scenes from the life of the Greek hero Achilles
In 1902, a landowner working on his property accidentally discovered a subterranean built tomb covered by a tumulus (mound). His investigations revealed the remains of a parade chariot as well as bronze, ceramic, and iron utensils together with other grave goods. Following the discovery, the finds passed through the hands of several Italian owners and dealers who were responsible for the appearance of the chariot and related material on the Paris art market. There they were purchased in 1903 by General Luigi Palma di Cesnola, the first director of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Monteleone chariot is the best preserved example of its kind from ancient Italy before the Roman period. The relatively good condition of its major parts--the panels of the car, the pole, and the wheels--has made it possible to undertake a new reconstruction based on the most recent scholarship. Moreover, some of the surviving ivory fragments can now be placed with reasonable certitude. The other tomb furnishings acquired with the chariot are exhibited in two cases on the south wall of this gallery.
...On the Italian peninsula, the largest number of chariots come from Etruria and the surrounding regions. They are datable between the second half of the eighth and the fifth centuries B.C. and represent several varieties. None seems to have been used for fighting in battle. Most came to light in tombs; after serving in life, they were buried with their owners, male and also female. The Monteleone chariot belongs to a group of parade chariots, so called because they were used by significant individuals on special occasions. They have two wheels and were drawn by two horses standing about forty-nine inches (122 centimeters) apart at the point where the yoke rests on their necks. The car would have accommodated the driver and the distinguished passenger. The shape of the car, with a tall panel in front and a lower one at each side, provided expansive surfaces for decoration, executed in repoussé. The frieze at the axle, the attachment of the pole to the car, and the ends of the pole and yoke all have additional figural embellishment.
...The iconography represents a carefully thought-out program. The three major panels of the car depict episodes from the life of Achilles, the Greek hero of the Trojan War. In the magnificent central scene, Achilles, on the right, receives from his mother, Thetis, on the left, a shield and helmet to replace the armor that Achilles had given his friend Patroklos, for combat against the Trojan Hektor. Patroklos was killed, allowing Hektor to take Achilles' armor. The subject was widely known thanks to the account in Homer's Iliad and many representations in Greek art. The panel on the left shows a combat between two warriors, usually identified as the Greek Achilles and the Trojan Memnon. In the panel on the right, the apotheosis of Achilles shows him ascending in a chariot drawn by winged horses. The subsidiary reliefs partly covered by the wheels are interpreted as showing Achilles as a youth in the care of the centaur Chiron and Achilles as a lion felling his foes, in this case a stag and a bull. The central axis of the chariot is reinforced by the head and forelegs of the boar at the join of the pole to the car. The deer below Achilles' shield appears slung over the boar's back. The eagle's head at the front of the pole repeats the two attacking eagles at the top of the central panel, and the lion heads on the yoke relate to the numerous savage felines on the car. While the meaning of the human and animal figures allows for various interpretations, there is a thematic unity and a Homeric quality emphasizing the glory of the hero.
The three panels of the car represent the main artistic achievement. Scholarly opinion agrees that the style of the decoration is strongly influenced by Greek art, particularly that of Ionia and adjacent islands such as Rhodes. The choice of subjects, moreover, reflects close knowledge of the epics recounting the Trojan War. In the extent of Greek influence, the chariot resembles works of virtually all media from Archaic Etruria. Contemporary carved ambers reflect a similar situation. The typically Etruscan features of the object begin with its function, for chariots were not significant in Greek life of the sixth century B.C. except in athletic contests. Furthermore, iconographical motifs such as the winged horses in Achilles' apotheosis and the plethora of birds of prey reflect Etruscan predilections. The repoussé panels may have been produced in one of the important metal-working centers such as Vulci by a local craftsman well familiar with Greek art or possibly by an immigrant bronze-worker. The chariot could well have been made for an important individual living in southern Etruria or Latium. Its burial in Monteleone may have to do with the fact that this town controlled a major route through the Appenine Mountains. The vehicle could have been a gift to win favor with a powerful local authority or to reward his services. Beyond discussion is the superlative skill of the artist. His control of the height of the relief, from very high to subtly shallow, is extraordinary. Equally remarkable are the richness and variety of the decoration lavished on all of the figures, especially those of the central panel. In its original state, with the gleaming bronze and painted ivory as well as all of the accessory paraphernalia, the chariot must have been dazzling.
After the parts of the chariot arrived in the Museum in 1903, they were assembled in a presentation that remained on view for almost a century. During the new reconstruction, which took three years' work, the chariot was entirely dismantled. A new support was made according to the same structural principles as the ancient one would have been. The reexamination of many pieces has allowed them to be placed in their correct positions. Moreover, the bronze sheathing of the pole, which had been considered only partially preserved, has been recognized as substantially complete. The main element that has not been reconstructed is the yoke. Although the length is correct, the wooden bar simply connects the two bronze pieces.
[Met Museum]
In the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 5th Avenue, New York
Hakone - voyage nocturne à travers la montagne
L'étape d'Hakone était réputé difficile à l'époque avec des chemins très escarpés et dangereux
Oeuvre d'Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858)
gravure sur bois polychrome
Estampe n°11 de la série des 53 étapes du Tokaido
(Tokaido gojusan zue)
Le Tokaido est la route, reliant la capitale du shōgun, Edo, à la capitale impériale, Kyoto, c'est l'axe principal du Japon de l'époque. C'est également la plus importante des « Cinq Routes», les cinq artères majeures du Japon (Gokaidō), créées ou développées pendant l'ère Edo pour améliorer le contrôle du pouvoir central sur l'ensemble du pays. Wikipedia
1855
tate-e Tokaido (il existe plusieurs éditions du Tokaido, les numéros des étapes peuvent changer d'un ouvrage à l'autre)
Hiroshige hitsu
www.hiroshige.org.uk/hiroshige/tokaido_tate-e/tokaido_tat...
Oeuvre de la collection du musée d'art oriental de Venise, présentée dans l'exposition Hiroshige. De Edo à Kyoto vues célèbres du Japon, au palais Grimani du 20 septembre 2014 au 15 janvier 2015
Cette exposition très bien scénographiée dans les salles du palazzo Grimani permet de voir de nombreuses oeuvres (estampes) de Hiroshige appartenant aux collections du musée d'art oriental de Venise. Ce musée, dont le fond japonais est très riche, se trouve hébergé depuis de nombreuses années dans des locaux trop exigus au 3ème étage du palais Ca' Pesaro, le musée d'art moderne de Venise. Sa réinstallation dans un palais plus vaste a été sans cesse repoussée, ce qui l'oblige à exposer ses collections dans d'autres musées.
Album sur le musée d'art oriental (photos dalbera)
Liberty Enlightening the World (French: La liberté éclairant le monde), commonly known as the Statue of Liberty (French: Statue de la Liberté), has stood on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, welcoming visitors, immigrants, and returning Americans, since it was presented to the United States by the people of France. Dedicated on October 28, 1886, the gift commemorated the centennial of the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence and has since become one of the most recognizable national icons--a symbol of democracy and freedom.
The 151-foot (46-meter) tall statue was sculpted by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and stands atop Richard Morris Hunt's 154-foot (93-meter) rectangular stonework pedestal with a foundation in the shape of an irregular eleven-pointed star. Maurice Koechlin, chief engineer of Gustave Eiffel's engineering company and designer of the Eiffel Tower, engineered the internal structure. Eugène Viollet-le-Duc was responsible for the choice of copper and adoption of the repoussé technique, where a malleable metal is hammered on the reverse side. The Statue of Liberty depicts a woman clad in Roman Stola and holding a torch and tablet, and is made of a sheeting of pure copper, hung on a framework of steel with the exception of the flame of the torch, which is coated in gold leaf.
Affectionately known as Lady Liberty, the figure is derived from Libertas, ancient Rome's goddess of freedom from slavery, oppression, and tyranny. Her left foot, fitted in Roman sandals, tramples broken shackles, symbolizing freedom from opression and tyranny, while her raised right foot symbolizes Liberty and Freedom refusing to stand still. Her torch signifies enlightenment. The tablet in her hand represents knowledge and shows the date of the Declaration of Independence--July 4, 1776. The seven spikes on the crown represent the Seven Seas and seven continents. Visually the the Statue of Liberty draws inspiration from the ancient Colossus of Rhodes of the Greek Sun-god Zeus or Helios, and is referred to in the 1883 sonnet The New Colossus by Emma Lazarus, which was later engraved inside.
The Statue of Liberty National Monument was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1976.
Statue of Liberty National Monument New Jersey State Register (1971)
Statue of Liberty National Monument National Register #66000058 (1966)
Portait painted of Julian Assange wikileaks at the Abode of Chaos
Wall-paint by Thomas Foucher @ the Abode of Chaos
Tribute #1 to Julian Assange
(Creative Commons Paternity) original version free on Flickr 2592 x 3872
For those who have just arrived on Planet Earth, let me remind you that what we are experiencing since last Sunday evening is the “Pearl Harbor of Global Democracy” according to Hilary Clinton and the “9/11 of American Diplomacy” according to Barak Obama and his advisors. After 400,000 secret documents on the operating methods of the US army in Iraq, Assange has broken the sound barrier since Sunday with 250,000 diplomatic cables that concern 179 countries! Le Monde, Der Spiegel, El País, the Guardian and the New York Times… according to the latter, more than 1,200 journalists are picking their way through roughly half a billion words of extremely contemporary cables, the most recent of which dates from March 2010. For historians who normally have to wait 50 years before getting access to such material, this is a dream come true. In this case the diplomatic cables are not much older than 7 months. Their scope is colossal. Hence the US State Department’s cry of “murder”…
My dear little wolves and she-wolves, in truth, I tell you, Sunday night tens of thousands of writers put an end to their lives … Imagine you were a Sci-Fi or Anticipation writer, director of Sci-Fi – Fantasy Collection at Pocket, Denoël or Rivages.
According to Laurent COURAU, the mythical founder of the Spirale who is postponing his suicide, “Assange and Wikileaks have definitively relegated fiction to beneath reality and we are seeing a veritable incarnation of the cyber-punk imagination right now in this early 21st century”.
As I see it, Julian Assange is the natural son of Lorenz (Edward Norton), he is quite simply the “Black Swan” of the beginning of this century… he is breaking the seals one by one in the agora of the ethers that is Internet.
Last precaution: Julian Assange has placed a small encrypted file entitled Insurance History on the Swedish Server of Pirate Bay (specialist in the illegal download of music and film music). On Twitter, he recommends that his followers download the file and await his instructions…
thierry Ehrmann, www.ehrmann.org/en/propaganda.html
Abode Of Chaos / Demeure du Chaos 2010
Mur peint par Thomas Foucher @ la Demeure du Chaos
Hommage numéro 1 à Julian Assange . Wikileaks
Hommage numéro 2 à Julian Assange . Wikileaks
Hommage numéro 3 à Julian Assange . Wikileaks
Peinture: Thomas Foucher photo Abode of Chaos (creative communs)
©2010 www.AbodeofChaos.org
courtesy of Organ Museum
Pour ceux qui arriveraient sur la planère Terre, je leur rappelle que, ce que nous vivons depuis dimanche soir, est le « Pearl Harbor de la Diplomatie mondiale » cqfd Hillary Clinton et selon Obama et ses conseillers le « 11 septembre de la diplomatie américaine ». Après 400 000 documents confidentiels, relatifs au mode opératoire de l’armée américaine en Irak, il passe le mur du son avec depuis dimanche soir, 250 000 dépêches diplomatiques qui frappent plus de 179 pays ! Le Monde, Der Spiegel, El PAis, the Guardian et New York Times. Selon ce dernier, plus de 1 200 journalistes sont jour et nuit sur une base de données de près d’un demi milliard de mots… sur des dépêches diplomatiques ultra-récentes donts les dernières datent de mars 2010. C’est le rêve de l’historien qui doit normalement patienter jusqu’à 50 ans pour pouvoir accéder à de tels trésors. Ici les dépêches diplomatiques ont à peine plus de 7 mois. Tout y passe. D’où le département d’état américain qui hurle à l’assassin…
Mes p’tits loups, mes p’tites louves, en vérité, je vous le dis, dimanche soir des dizaines de milliers d’écrivains se sont donnés la mort… Imaginez une seconde que vous soyiez écrivain de SF ou d’Anticipation, directeur de Collection SF – Fantasy chez Pocket, Denoël ou Rivages.
Selon Laurent COURAU, fondateur mythique de la Spirale qui repousse son suicide, il déclare : « Assange et Wikileaks relèguent définitivement la fiction loin derrière la réalité et l’on assiste à la véritable incarnation de l’imaginaire cyber-punk dans ce début de XXIème siècle ».
A mes yeux, Julian Assange est le fils naturel de Lorenz (Edward Norton), il est tout simplement le « Cygne Noir » du début de ce siècle, il brise les sceaux un par un dans l’agora des éthers qu’est l’Internet.
Avec la globalisation d’Internet, il faut s’attendre, selon mon vieux maître Paul Virillio à un accident général, un accident jamais vu, aussi étonnant que le temps mondial, ce temps jamais vu. Un accident général qui serait un peu ce qu’Epicure appelait « l’accident des accidents ».
Ce jour fut le 28 novembre 2010 où Internet est devenu l’incarnation de l’information à l’état brut, c’est aussi le jour où les citoyens du village “Glocal” de Mc Lhuan ont eu à leurs dispositions l’histoire en temps réel, apanage jusqu’à présent des puissants. C’est aussi la révélation de la phrase de Mathieu(x26) qui prends son plein sens “car il n’y a rien de caché qui ne doit être découvert ni de secret qui ne doivent être connu” …(page 183 Opus III Abode of Chaos Spirit)
Ultime précaution : Julian Assange a placé sur le serveur suédois de Pirate Bay (spécialisé dans les téléchargements illicites de musique et de films), un petit fichier crypté mystérieux, baptisé »Assurance historique ». Sur Twitter, il recommande à ses partisans de le télécharger et d’attendre les instructions.
thierry Ehrmann www.ehrmann.org/propaganda.html
DemeureduChaos.org
thierry Ehrmann blog.ehrmann.org/
The Abode of Chaos from Above,/La Demeure du Chaos vue du ciel:
www.flickr.com/photos/home_of_chaos/sets/72157624460145909/
Preview 2011 Borderline Biennial at the Abode of Chaos adult only version EN/FR
Averse à Ohashi (« le grand pont »)
Oeuvre d'Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858)
gravure sur bois polychrome
Estampe n°52 de la série des 100 vues d'Edo
(Meisho Edo hyakkei)
1856-1858
Hiroshige hitsu
Oeuvre de la collection du musée d'art oriental de Venise, présentée dans l'exposition Hiroshige. De Edo à Kyoto vues célèbres du Japon, au palais Grimani du 20 septembre 2014 au 15 janvier 2015
www.palazzogrimani.org/mostre-ed-eventi/hiroshige/
Cette exposition très bien scénographiée dans les salles du palazzo Grimani permet de voir de nombreuses oeuvres (estampes) de Hiroshige appartenant aux collections du musée d'art oriental de Venise. Ce musée, dont le fond japonais est très riche, se trouve hébergé depuis de nombreuses années dans des locaux trop exigus au 3ème étage du palais Ca' Pesaro, le musée d'art moderne de Venise. Sa réinstallation dans un palais plus vaste a été sans cesse repoussée, ce qui l'oblige à exposer ses collections dans d'autres musées.
Album sur le musée d'art oriental (photos dalbera)
Les stéréos d'indiens sont très cher ! Rare aujourd’hui, alors même si celle-ci est très loin des plus belles réalisées, je l'ai acheté pour... 5 € ! Et aux vues des rayures et défauts... j'ai repoussé longtemps sa mise en anaglyphe.
Toutes les stereoviews d’indiens après 1890 sont en général prises lors d'expositions internationales ou de semi-spectacle.( penser à ce négrier de Buffalo Bill) .D'une manière générale, il y a toujours un détail qui vous montre que bien qu'en liberté et armée, ces Indiens sont souvent sous bonne garde !
En fait, dans des camps, entouré de militaires... Après les avoir trompés, volé, massacré littéralement, les Indiens sont devenus aujourd'hui une des fiertés des Américains ! Bon que les réels descendants indiens aujourd'hui pourrissent dans des endroits sans culture des sols possible ni travail... On ne peut pas penser à tout non plus !
Alors danse des fantômes/des anciens ou de la pluie... Quelle importance, on ne voit pas vraiment grandes choses ! En arrière-plan, je pense à un atelier de tissage, très tendance déjà. Un atelier de poterie et sculpture ne doivent pas être bien loin... À l’extrême gauche, un couple avec ombrelle profite du spectacle monté derrière l'enclot en sécurité.
Enfant, j'ai toujours été du côté des Indiens, dans les westerns américains. Je ne sais pas réellement pourquoi ! Le cow-boy, lui, passait son temps à boire des minis verres de whiskies, se bagarrer entre eux pour des femmes à gros seins (cela ne devait pas encore me travailler ! ) et le pire a mangé tous les jours des flageolets avec du café chaud ! Petit, je n'avais pas droit au café et les flageolets, bon oui un jour ou deux mais pas toute la vie...
Alors que l'Indien perfide se fondait dans le décor, dissimulés derrière deux feuilles de thé, ils étaient capables de berner n’importe qui, même si l'arbre avançait des fois ! Et juste en posant une oreille sur une traverse de voie de chemin de fer, il vous donnait les horaires de passage à la minute près ! Sans parler des traces laissées dans le sable du désert ; il reconnaissait le poids, le sexe et vous donnait le N° de Sécurité sociale du cavalier.
Et je ne parle pas des signaux de fumer et de tam-tam...
Ni des stereoviews très cher !
www.cairn.info/zoos-humains-et-exhibitions-coloniales--97...
Indian stereos are very expensive! Rare today, so even if this one is very far from the most beautiful realized, I bought it for... 5 €! And in view of the scratches and defects... I have long postponed its anaglyph setting.
All Indian stereoviews after 1890 are usually taken at international exhibitions or semi-shows (think of this Buffalo Bill slaver). In a general way there is always a detail that shows you that although free and armed, these Indians are often under good guard!
In fact, in camps, surrounded by military... After deceiving them, stealing, literally slaughtering the Indians, today they have become one of the pride of the Americans! Good that real Indian descendants today rot in places without possible soil cultivation or labor... We can’t think of everything either!
Then dance ghosts/ elders or rain... How important, we don’t really see big things! In the background I think of a weaving workshop, very trendy already. A pottery and sculpture workshop should not be far away... On the far left a couple with parasel enjoy the show mounted behind the enclosure in safety.
As a child I was always on the side of the Indians, in the American westerns. I don’t really know why! The cowboy, he spent his time drinking minis glasses of whiskies, fighting with each other for women with big breasts (it wasn’t supposed to work me out yet! ) and the worst thing to eat every day is flageolets with hot coffee! Small I was not entitled to coffee and flageolets, good yes a day or two but not all life...
While the treacherous Indian melted into the scenery, hidden behind two tea leaves they were able to fool anyone, even if the tree moved sometimes! And just by placing an ear on a railway crossover, it gave you the timetable for passing to the minute ready! Not to mention the tracks left in the desert sand; it recognized the weight of the sex and gave you the social security number of the rider.
And I’m not talking about smoking signals and tam-tam...
Nor stereoviews very expensive!
Crown of the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception (Crown of the Andes, Columbia) c. 1660 (diadem), c. 1770 (arches), gold and emeralds, 34.3 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Cumdach (book shrine) of the Cathach, 1062–94 and late 14th century with later additions and repairs, bronze, gilt silver, wood, crystal, and glass, 19 x 25 x 5.25 cm (National Museum of Ireland)
Every city needs a giant allegorical statue of itself, and this is Portland's.
Situated at 1120 SW 5th Ave, the statue stands 36 feet (11m) tall and is the second-largest copper repoussé (beaten copper supported by an interior skeleton) statue in the United States after the Statue of Liberty.
Cumdach (book shrine) of the Cathach, 1062–94 and late 14th century with later additions and repairs, bronze, gilt silver, wood, crystal, and glass, 19 x 25 x 5.25 cm (National Museum of Ireland)
...En 1697, le traité de Ryswick restitue la Lorraine au duc Léopold, empereur du Saint-Empire, mais impose que Bitche soit rasée.
Chose faite en 1698.
Une enceinte de palissades se dressera progressivement jusqu'en 1788, avec 4 barrières de passage.
En 1844, le général Schneider, originaire de la région, ancien ministre de la guerre (1839-1840) fait réaliser des fortifications terminées en 1852.
Du fait du développement de la population, les portes sont repoussées vers l'extérieur par rapport à l'emplacement des anciennes.
Sauf la porte de Strasbourg, toujours au même endroit.
A partir de 1872, les portes seront démolies, sauf celle-ci, la seule encore en place mais que la route aujourd'hui contourne.
www.bitscherland.fr/Canton-de-Bitche/Bitche/fortification...
Cumdach (book shrine) of the Cathach, 1062–94 and late 14th century with later additions and repairs, bronze, gilt silver, wood, crystal, and glass, 19 x 25 x 5.25 cm (National Museum of Ireland)
This object is decorated with repoussé and filigree work.
Photographed at the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, Maryland.
Cumdach (book shrine) of the Cathach, 1062–94 and late 14th century with later additions and repairs, bronze, gilt silver, wood, crystal, and glass, 19 x 25 x 5.25 cm (National Museum of Ireland)
1909
Eric Otto Woldemar Ehrström
Repoussé copper door panel
Main doors
National Museum of Finland (1916)
Eric Otto Woldemar Ehrström ( February 5, 1881, Helsinki - October 11, 1934, Helsinki) was a Finnish art collector and ornamental artist specializing in metal enamelling . He also designed jewelry and glassware and practiced printmaking.
Ehrströn left high school and went on to study at the Finnish Art Association's drawing school in 1899. He was a student of Akseli Gallen-Kallela in Ruovesi, Kalela, between 1899-1900 and studied forging and metal repoussé and chasing in Paris from 1901 to 1902 and 1908. In Paris, he became acquainted with his wife Olga Gummer . She also had her own exhibition show at the Salon d'Automne in Paris.
Ehrström designed and manufactured a variety of small metal objects such as ashtrays, jars, cups, vases and various boxes using copper, brass, bronze or tin.
He worked on metalwork in several buildings, such as the Hvitträski artist's villa and the Suur-Merijoki mansion in Kannas Karelia.
Ehrström also designed jewelery, and in 1918 he designed the crown of the King of Finland, as well as the Finnish coat of arms and the seals of the authorities. In 1927 Ehrström lost his right hand in an accident, after which his wife Olga Gummerus-Ehrström, who himself was a versatile and talented artist, helped her husband in this work.
Ehrström was a teacher of metal sculpture and interior design at the Art Institute's Industrial School 1904-1905 and 1912-1919. In 1924 he wrote a handbook for the arts industry Konsthantverk: Teknisk rådgivare (published in Finnish as Art: Technical Guide ) as a textbook for students and craftsmen in craft schools.
In 1919 Ehrström, together with sculptor Emil Wikström , Gösta Serlachius, and Paavo Tynelli, together with Taidetakomo Taito, later founded Oy Taito Ab, with Ehrström as the head of the Department of Art and Design.
Like to see the pictures as LARGE as your screen? Just click on this Slideshow : www.flickr.com/photos/reurinkjan/sets/72157630983897338/s...
The street of loud hammering sounds of coppersmiths beating copper and brass. This beautiful copper street is located in the capital of Rushar county who bears the same name. Here they are making from big to small Temple roof ornaments and all the buddhists deities in copper, brass, and or bronze.
Repoussée d'une année, cette sixième édition de Monumenta confie la majestueuse nef du Grand Palais à un couple d'artistes d'origine russe, Ilya et Emilia Kabakov. Leur Étrange cité matérialise une forme d'utopie qui, après les désastres du XXe siècle, n'existerait que dans l'art. La Coupole, cette énorme structure en vitrail de seize mètres de haut, adopte une forme de coupole Art Nouveau renversée sur le côté, et fait écho à la verrière dentelée du Grand Palais. Un millier de tubes fluorescents changent de couleur lentement au rythme de la musique. C'est un véritable choc visuel, évoquant un immense radar cosmique, que l'on aperçoit après avoir contourné l'enceinte de la « ville », premier élément que le visiteur voit avant de pénétrer par une porte en ruines dans la cité elle-même, sorte de médina d'une blancheur céleste.
www.exponaute.com/magazine/2014/05/07/monumenta-visite-gu...
View of the Statue of Liberty from the ferry boat as we circle Liberty Island - New York City. I took this photo of the magnificent Statue of Liberty on my first trip to Liberty Island and New York City in October 2004. She is of utmost beauty and I was totally blown away by her magnifigance.
THE STATUE OF LIBERTY
Liberty Enlightening the World (French: La liberté éclairant le monde), known more commonly as the Statue of Liberty (Statue de la Liberté), is a large statue that was presented to the United States by France in 1886. It stands at Liberty Island, New York in New York Harbor as a welcome to all visitors, immigrants, and returning Americans. The copper-clad statue, dedicated on October 28, 1886, commemorates the centennial of the United States and is a gesture of friendship from France to America. Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi sculpted the statue, and Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (designer of the Eiffel Tower) engineered the internal structure. Eugène Viollet-le-Duc was responsible for the choice of copper in the statue's construction and adoption of the repoussé technique.
The statue is of a female figure standing upright, dressed in a robe and a seven point spiked rays representing a nimbus (halo), holding a stone tablet close to her body in her left hand and a flaming torch high in her right hand. The tablet bears the words "JULY IV MDCCLXXVI" (July 4, 1776), commemorating the date of the United States Declaration of Independence.
The statue is made of a sheeting of pure copper, hung on a framework of steel (originally puddled iron) with the exception of the flame of the torch, which is coated in gold leaf. It stands atop a rectangular stonework pedestal with a foundation in the shape of an irregular eleven-pointed star. The statue is 151' 1" (46.5 m) tall, with the pedestal and foundation adding another 154 feet (46.9 m).
Worldwide, the Statue of Liberty is one of the most recognizable icons of the United States, and, more generally, represents liberty and escape from oppression. The Statue of Liberty was, from 1886 until the jet age, often one of the first glimpses of the United States for millions of immigrants after ocean voyages from Europe. The Statue of Liberty's obviously classical appearance (Roman stola, sandals, facial expression) derives from Libertas, ancient Rome's goddess of freedom from slavery, oppression, and tyranny. Broken shackles lie at her feet. The seven spikes in the crown represent the Seven Seas and seven continents. Her torch signifies enlightenment. The tablet in her hand shows the date of the nation's birth, July 4, 1776.
Since 1903, the statue, also known as "Lady Liberty," has been associated with Emma Lazarus's poem “The New Colossus” and has been a symbol of welcome to arriving immigrants. The interior of the pedestal contains a bronze plaque inscribed with the poem, which reads:
“Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
There are 354 steps inside the statue and its pedestal. There are 25 windows in the crown which comprise the jewels beneath the seven rays of the diadem. The tablet which the Statue holds in her left hand reads, in Roman numerals, "July 4, 1776" the day of America's independence from Britain. The Statue of Liberty was engineered to withstand heavy winds. Winds of 50 miles per hour cause the Statue to sway 3 inches (7.62 cm) and the torch to sway 5 inches (12.7 cm). This allows the Statue to move rather than break in high [wind load] conditions.
Source: Wikipedia
Cavendish Mews is a smart set of flats in Mayfair where flapper and modern woman, the Honourable Lettice Chetwynd has set up home after coming of age and gaining her allowance. To supplement her already generous allowance, and to break away from dependence upon her family, Lettice has established herself as a society interior designer, so her flat is decorated with a mixture of elegant antique Georgian pieces and modern Art Deco furnishings, using it as a showroom for what she can offer to her well heeled clients.
Today we are still in Mayfair, and only a short distance from Cavendish Mews, out the front of an imposing Palladian style mansion on the grand thoroughfare of Park Lane, opposite Hyde Park. Lettice gulps as she looks up at the cascading layer cake of columns, balustrades, balconies and rows of windows, most shaded from the afternoon sun by striped awnings. At one window not covered by an awning, a maid in her afternoon uniform of black moiré with a lace cap, cuffs and apron gazes out over the street below. Lettice catches her eye and smiles meekly at her, but the maid does not return it, looking both quizzically and critically at her standing on the steps leading up to the front door of the palatial residence, before retreating into the shadows within. Lettice’s heart begins to flutter. For nearly a year Lettice has been patiently awaiting the return of her beau, Selwyn Spencely, son of the Duke of Walmsford, after being sent to Durban by his mother, the Duchess of Walmsford, Lady Zinnia in an effort to destroy their relationship which she wants to end so that she can marry Selwyn off to his cousin, Pamela Fox-Chavers. Now Lettice has been invited to tea by Lady Zinnia, and it is the Park Lane mansion belonging to the Duke and Duchess of Walmsford that Lettice now stands before. Gulping again, she depresses the button next to the enormous white painted double front doors with black painted knockers. Deep within she can hear a bell ring, announcing her arrival. A tall and imperious looking bewigged footman in splendid Eighteenth Century style livery answers the door.
“The Honourable Lettice Chetwynd to see Her Grace.” Lettice says firmly, determined not to betray her nerves at being here.
“Is Her Grace expecting you, Miss Chetwynd?” and the footman asks, and when she affirms that she is, he steps aside, ushering her from the golden late afternoon light outside into the cool darkened marble hallway within.
Lettice feels that even the sound of her shallow breaths echo noisily off the marble of the lofty entrance hall as she enters it. The grand space is illuminated from skylights in a dome three storeys above, by a grand electrified crystal chandeliers hanging from vaulted ceilings and by sconces in the ornately carved columns about her. The footman politely asks her to wait whilst he strides silently up the sweeping carpeted spiral staircase with shining ostentatious silver banisters to the upper floors of the mansion. Lettice takes a seat in an elegant, gilded chair. The wine coloured velvet upholstery looks soft and comfortable, but Lettice quickly discovers that it is anything but that, feeling the hard horsehair beneath her as it forces her to sit up more straightly in her seat. “How very Lady Zinnia.” Lettice remarks bitterly as she waits. Somewhere, deep within the bowels of the house, behind one or more sets of tightly closed doors, the muffled sound of a clock chiming four o’clock makes its presence known. Lettice shivers, sighs and hopes that Lady Zinnia will not keep her waiting too long as part of a cruel joke of her own making. A short while later, the footman returns.
“Her Grace will see you now, Miss Chetwynd. Please follow me to the Cream Drawing Room.”
He leads her up the grand staircase to the second floor and then takes her through a suite of rooms with lofty, vaunted ceilings, polished parquet floors and walls lined with gilded columns. Each room is filled with gilt chairs and sofas upholstered in sumptuous satins and rich velvets, no doubt all as uncomfortable as the salon chair she has recently vacated. The walls of the chambers are hung with paintings of past generations of the Dukes of Walmsford and their families, all of them peering at Lettice with imperious gazes, silently judging her as an outsider by their dark, glazed and cold stares.
After what feels like an age to Lettice, they finally they stop before two rich mahogany doors inset with brightly polished brass. The footman knocks loudly upon the door three times.
“Miss Chetwynd, Your Grace.” the liveried footman announces as he turns the door handles, opens the doors and steps into the grand Cream Drawing Room with Lettice in his wake.
Lettice is awe struck for a moment by the room, which is even grander and more luxuriously appointed than those state rooms and apartments she has walked through thus far. Whether named for the furnishings, or whether the salon was decorated after being given its name, the White Drawing Room is decorated with white wallpaper featuring a very fine white Regency stripe, and the lofty space is full of sofas, chaises and chairs all upholstered in white or cram fabrics. Lettice suspects the pared back wallpaper design has been chosen deliberately, so as not to distract from the many gilt framed paintings hanging on them, not to draw attention away from any of the other fine pieces about the apartment. The furnishings are mostly Regency and show off the wealth of the former Dukes of Walmsford with their ornate gilding on chair arms and backs and table legs. Palladian console tables with marble surfaces featuring caryatids* covered in gold jostle for space with ornate ormolu** decorated Empire display cabinets and pedestals held aloft by swans with long necks. Across every surface and on each shelf in the cabinets stand pieces of porcelain from the Eighteenth Century, reflecting the current Duchess of Walmsford’s taste for mostly French ornaments. Vases, bowls, urns, ginger jars and figurines made by Veuve Perrin***, Limoges**** and Chelsea***** grace French polished mahogany and polished grey marble, each item carefully placed to show it off to its very best, whilst the cabinets burst with full dinner services of Sèrves***** covered in floral designs. The salon is flooded with light from the full length windows that overlook Park Lane, the ample sunlight, even on an autumnal London day creating additional brilliance, and the space is filled with the cloying scent of hothouse roses with cascade in ornate arrangements from some of the Duchess’ more impressive vases. The whole arrangement is designed to impress and intimidate visitors, and it achieves this with Lettice as she enters the room, mustering as much courage as she can to walk like the daughter of a viscount, yet feeling a sham amongst such excessive splendour, which even the King and Queen might well be jealous of.
And there, perching daintily on a gold and cream Regency stripe sofa adorned with glittering ormolu next to the crackling fire, sits the current Duchess of Walmsford herself, Lady Zinnia. Arrayed in a rose pink satin frock decorated with ornamental silk flowers, which like everything else around her oozes taste, wealth and status, Lady Zinnia still has the unbreakable steely hardness that sends a shiver down Lettice’s spine as she approaches her. Whilst the pale shade of her frock may not soften her look, it does successfully highlight her flawless pale skin. Several strands of perfect creamy white pearls cascade down the front of her outfit, whilst gold and large pearl droplets hang effortlessly from her lobes. Clusters of diamonds wink amongst her wavy tresses which are all deep blue black, save for the one signature streak of white shooting from her temple and disappearing like a silver trail amongst her darker waves.
“Your Grace.” Lettice utters, dropping an elegant and low curtsey before the Duchess.
Lady Zinnia’s pale white face with her high cheekbones and joyless calculating dark eyes appraise Lettice coldly as Lettice rises from the polished marquetry floor littered with expensive silk Chinese rugs. She purses her thin lips.
“Miss Chetwynd. Right on time.” Lady Zinna remarks as she glances away from Lettice dismissively to the ornate French Rococo clock adorned with porcelain roses sitting in the centre of the mantle. Her eyes dart back to Lettice who now stands before her hostess. “Please, do take a seat.” She indicates with a sweeping movement of her hand which artfully shows off a pearl and winking diamond bracelet at her wrist, to a chair matching the sofa on which she perches which is also drawn up to the fire opposite her.
Lettice does as she is bid, and lowers herself gingerly onto the edge of the walnut chair, feeling the smooth, cool metallic surface of the ormolu on the arms beneath her hands as she does. Glancing down she notices that the arms of both her chair and Lady Zinnia’s sofa are supported by gilded sphinxes. Lettice remembers the tutor who was hired at great expense by her father when she was a child to teach her the classics and smiles bitterly as she recalls him teaching her that the sphinx, with its head of a woman, haunches of a lion and wings of a bird is a treacherous and merciless being.
“Is something amusing, Miss Chetwynd?” Lady Zinnia asks, her clipped voice slicing the perfumed air between them.
“No, Your Grace.” Lettice replies. “I was just thinking, as I look around, how you have set this room in such a way that noting is left to chance. Everything is planned and placed with purpose.”
“How very adroit of you, Miss Chetwynd.” the Duchess replies. “But of course, as an interior designer of some moderate success, I should expect nothing less. You have a keen eye.”
“Thank you, Your Grace.” Lettice replies stiffly, allowing the slight cast by the titled woman to go unremarked upon. However as Lettice sits there, she now knows that this is to be tone of their meeting, and she silently seethes that even in defeat, Lady Zinnia will not be gracious.
“Now, knowing that in spite of the fact that you come from obscure and unremarkable aristocratic lineage,” Lady Zinnia remarks, eliciting a gasp of outrage from Lettice, much to her delight. “That your parents would have taught you the importance of timeliness,”
“Which they have.” Lettuce defends hotly.
“Admirably so, Miss Chetwynd. So, I have already ordered tea, coffee and cake for us.” Lady Zinnia indicates to the galleried gold rectangular Rococo tea table which stands between them, like a fortress, upon which sits a silver tea service and a cake plate on which stands a splendid looking Victoria sponge cake dusted with sugar and oozing jam and cream.
The Duchess takes up a small silver bell from the side table to her right and gives it two definite rings. The tinkle of the bell, high pitched and remarkably loud for such a dainty bell, pierces the charged, rose scented air between them. Immediately two more footmen in the Duke of Walmsford’s livery, different to the one who showed her upstairs, sweep through the White Drawing Room’s doors and stride across the room. They bow respectfully to Lady Zinnia and then turn in unison and nod their heads in acknowledgement of Lettice, before stopping between the two women, standing side by side in front of the tea table: hands behind their backs and heads lifted slightly, starting straight ahead impassively in complete silence and unmoving, as if they were mechanical and their mechanisms had wound down.
“Tea or coffee, Miss Chetwynd?” lady Zinnia asks.
“Tea, I think, Your Grace.” she replies.
One footman immediately springs to life, as if wound up again, and picks up the stylish silver teapot from the table with his white glove clad hand and pours tea into a dainty floral and gilt edged French porcelain teacup. The other footman takes up the cup and makes the few steps between his position and Lettice, and places the cup and saucer on the low occasional table to the right of her chair. Meanwhile the other footman has poured tea for the Duchess, which is then delivered to her in the same fashion as the tea was delivered to Lettice by the same footman.
“That’s a beautiful teapot, if I may say so, Your Grace.” Lettice admits begrudgingly.
“You may, Miss Chetwynd.” Lady Zinnia replies politely. “The set is Georg Jensen********. I bought it just before the war.”
The footman who had poured the tea starts slicing the Victoria sponge with a silver knife, whilst the other footman removes the teapot and coffee pot from the small silver tray on which they stand. He then picks up the tray which still holds a dainty milk jug and a sugar basket containing sugar lumps and a pair of silver sugar nips*********.
“You’ll forgive me, but I’ve forgotten how you took your tea when we had dinner at the Savoy*********, Miss Chetwynd.”
The footman walks over to Lettice, bows slight with a stiff back and holds out the tray to Lettice, in his glove clad hands, allowing her to add her own milk and sugar to suit her own tastes to her beverage.
Lettice shudders as she remembers the dinner at the Savoy that Selwyn had organised with her. He had intended it to be a romantic evening for he and Lettice in honour of his birthday. However, when Lettice arrived in the main dining room, she was confronted not with the smiling face of her beau, but the haughty and cruel spectre of Lady Zinnia. It was there that Lettice learned about the pact Lady Zinnia had made with her son before packing him off to Durban for a year.
“That’s because I didn’t have tea with you that evening, Your Grace.” Lettice replies awkwardly as he drops first one and then a second lump of sugar in her tea, stirring the contents of her cup to dissolve the sugar before adding a small amount of milk.
“That’s right! You left directly after the caviar, didn’t you, Miss Chetwynd?” Lady Zinnia smiles cruelly. “You really did miss a fine repast that evening.”
“I’ll have to take your word for it, Your Grace.”
The footman who cut the cake places a generous slice each onto two dainty floral plates that match the teacups. As the other footman allows Lady Zinnia to help herself to sugar and milk for her tea, he takes up a plate and places it on the table next to Lettice’s teacup and saucer.
“I’m not all that hungry, Your Grace.”
Lady Zinnia looks up with her hard gaze from her teacup, still holding the now empty sugar nips aloft, seemingly unconcerned that the bowing footman at her side cannot straighten up again until she has replaced them in the bowl. “I seem to remember you saying that at the Savoy too, Miss Chetwynd. I must say, I find a woman who has little appetite rather tiresome, however pretty and charming she may be.” She continues to hold the sugar nips in her hand, suddenly taking great interest in the elegant repousse work*********** on the curved handle as she continues. “You Bright Young Things************ are so tiresome, worrying about being rake thin.”
The tray in the bent footman’s hands begins to quiver a little, causing the sugar basket and milk jug to rattle ever so slightly as he strains to maintain his stiff back and bent stance. Lady Zinnia’s eyes flick to him angrily, causing him to make a frightened intake of breath as he tries not to move.
“In my day.” Lady Zinnia goes on. “We ate as much as we could muster, and then simply tightened our stays a little more.” She sighs with irritation, and still holding the sugar tongs, pointing them accusingly at Lettice as she adds. “But of course you young flappers have all eschewed your corsets in favour of all those filly undergarments from Paris that have become so much in vogue, haven’t you.”
The tray in the footman’s hands tremble again. With a slow, and purposefully languid movement, Lady Zinnia replaces the tongs in the sugar basket and picks up the milk jug, pouring a decent amount into her cup, turning her brackish looking tea an insipid pale brown.
Replacing the jug to the tray she turns her attention to the young footman. “Get out!” she hisses through barred white teeth, her breath so forceful in its vehemence that Lettice can see it blows the young man’s fringe out of place.
The young footman starts in fright, making the silverware in his hands rattle all the more.
“Poole!” Lady Zinnia addresses the other footman.
“Yes, Your Grace?” he asks, standing stiffly to attention, his hands quickly placed behind hi back again as he stares ahead of him, rather than at Lady Zinnia.
“Poole, see to it that this pathetic excuse for a third footman doesn’t come back until he can serve me in the correct way a Duchess of the Realm should be served, or I’ll have you both reprimanded.” She looks Poole up and down appraisingly, seemingly pleased by his unflappability. “Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Your Grace!” Poole replies.
“Good!” She returns her attentions to the other footman. “And you! Just be grateful that you are only going to receive a reprimand and dock in your wages, and aren’t thrown out on your ear with no reference.” She pauses as she replaces her cup and saucer on the side table and picks up her cake plate and fork. “I shan’t be so lenient a second time.”
“Yes… yes Your Grace.” the footman replies quickly before depositing the silver tray back onto the tea table and joining his companion as the pair make a hasty retreat, far less composed and sleek as their arrival.
As the doors are closed behind them, lady Zinnia returns her attentions to Lettice. “Pardon that little…” She pauses and toys with her fork, sticking it into the tip of her sponge cake as she considers her words. “Unpleasantness, Miss Chetwynd. It’s so hard to find decent footmen with proper backbone amongst the pool of domestics available since the end of the war. Standards amongst servants are slipping. I’m sure your parents would agree with me.”
Lettice doesn’t reply, instead taking up her cup and saucer and sipping her tea.
Picking up where she had left off before berating her servants, Lady Zinnia continues, “And of course you left your birthday present for Selwyn behind at the Savoy as well. But don’t worry, I made sure to have it put aside for when he returns.”
Once again, Lettice does not rise to the Duchess’ bait and bites her tongue rather than replying.
Lady Zinnia slices her fork delicately through the light and fluffy Victoria sponge on her plate.
“You must despise me, Miss Chetwynd.” she says before slipping a small mouthful between her red painted lips.
“No, not at all, your Grace.”
“What?” Lady Zinnia replies, her eyes widening in surprise. “Not even a little, Miss Chetwynd? Are you a saint walking upon the earth?”
“No, Your Grace.” Lettice replies. “The truth is that I don’t hate you, because I don’t think of you.” she lies, lifting her cup to her lips partly to hide any sign of emotion that might suggest otherwise, and partly to prevent her from saying what she would really like to, to the Duchess.
An almost imperceptible ripple runs through Lady Zinnia’s composure and the woman’s thin lips move slightly as she chews, revealing themselves like a bright blood red gash across her perfect, white face. Lettice smiles behind the lip of her cup, knowing that her remark has hit its mark perfectly and irritated her titled hostess.
“Oh, I find that hard to believe, Miss Chetwynd.” Lady Zinnia answers after a momentary pause. “Everyone who meets me, thinks about me. It’s only natural that they should.”
“I’m sorry to disappoint you, Your Grace, but as we don’t move in the same circles, me being so much younger than you,” Lettice replies, determined to show Lady Zinnia up for her almost unbelievable conceitedness. “I must confess I haven’t.”
“Oh come now, Miss Chetwynd,” Lady Zinnia scoffs. “Are you telling me that even though it was I, who has separated you and my son and prevented you from seeing him for a year, that you didn’t think of me?”
Determined not to give her the satisfaction of knowing how much Lettice has thought of her, she continues her plucky lie to Lady Zinnia. “Indeed no. I have felt Selwyn’s absence over the last year, very keenly. However, it is him I have been thinking of, Your Grace.” She gives Lady Zinnia a dismissive look and crumples her nose up in distaste. “Not you. However, I’ve been busy distracting myself by attending balls and functions to make Selwyn’s absence less obvious.”
“Yes, I’ve seen you in the society pages, Miss Chetwynd.”
“And I’m sure your spies have kept you well informed too, Your Grace.”
“My spies!” laughs Lady Zinnia. “My, how you young people develop such fanciful ideas!”
Ignoring her remark, Lettice goes on, Tthen of course I have had my work to keep me occupied as well.”
“Ah yes!” Lady Zinnia acknowledges. “You’ve done some work for Gladys Caxton, I believe. Her ward’s flat here in London if I’m not mistaken.”
“Indeed, Your Grace. And I’ve designed a room for the wife of the godson of Sir John Nettleford-Hughes, at Arkwright Bury in Wiltshire.”
“Oh yes, Miss Chetwynd. My sources,” she emphasises the last word to draw Lettice’s attention to her choice of words. “Tell me that I am to expect a most favourable article about it by Henry Tipping****** in Country Life******* this month.”
“As I said, Your Grace,” Lettice replies. “Your spies keep you well informed as to the comings and goings in my life.”
The two women fall into an awkward silence again.,,,,,,,
“Anyway, the year of separation you have enforced upon Selwyn and I is almost at an end, without incident,” Lettice dares to say as her boldness grows. “And I am very much looking forward to seeing your son returned from Durban, and arranging for the formal announcement of our engagement.”
The Duchess doesn’t say anything.
“I imagine that is why you have summoned me here today. To concede defeat?” Lettice allows herself a triumphant smile. “After a year of enforced separation, one during which both of us have held to your wish that we not correspond with one another, Selwyn is returning to me and we will pick up just as we left off.” A thought comes into her head. “You might even consider giving me back the book I left at the Savoy. After all, it is my gift to give Selwyn, not yours, Your Grace.”
The stony silence and scrutinising stare Lettice receives in return unnerves her. She wonders what on earth is going on inside the mind behind those cold and dark eyes. However, she doesn’t have long to wait as the Duchess picks up her silver bell again, this time giving it three definite rings: two short ones and one long one, rather like a signal. She deposits the bell back on the table and takes another mouthful of cake. Her tongue darts out of her bitter mewl of a mouth and snatches up a crumb of cake that has lodged itself on her bottom lip.
The door to the White Drawing Room is suddenly opened again, by Poole the footman, and in bustles a woman in a smart printed cotton frock of sprigged flowers with a pale pink silk cardigan worn over the top of the bodice. Glass beads jangle about her throat, glinting in the light as she moves towards the two seated ladies. As Lettice expects, as the woman draws closer, she can see that she is quite plain looking. Lettice considers that it is likely that all the females on the Duchess’ household staff will be quite plain, to avoid any light being drawn away from the titled woman herself. The woman appears middle aged and has her straight, mousey brown hair tied in a neat chignon at the back of her neck. She approaches the Duchess and drops her a deep, respectful curtsey before rising, never releasing a buff coloured card folder that she hugs over her chest.
“Your Grace, you rang?” she asks in a soft, pleasant and well educated voice, which reminds Lettice a little of one of her less favourite nannies when growing up.
“Miss Chetwynd, may I present Miss Carroway, my Secretary.” Lady Zinnia announces.
“Carroway, Miss Chetwynd.” She sweeps her well manicured hand out in the direction of where Lettice sits.
Miss Carroway turns her head and looks towards Lettice with soft brown and kind eyes. “How do you do, Miss Chetwynd.”
“How do you do, Miss Carroway.” Lettice replies, a little perplexed as to why Lady Zinnia has summoned her secretary.
“Do you have it, Carroway?” Lady Zinnia asks.
“Right here, Your Grace.” She releases her arms from around her and relinquishes the thin buff folder to her employer.
Lady Zinnia puts aside her slice of cake, accepts the proffered folder, opens it and looks at the contents inside. Her hands skim over whatever is inside, whilst her eyes flit over it quickly.
“I think you’ll find everything is in order, Your Grace.”
“Yes,” Lady Zinnia remarks rather distractedly as she continues to inspect the contents.
“Will that be all, Your Grace?” Miss Carroway asks.
“Yes, thank you, Carroway.” Lady Zinnia replies with a dismissive shallow wave, as though shaking something irritable from her left hand.
Miss Carroway retreats quickly and as she approaches the doors, Poole opens them again for her from outside and closes them behind her after she has scuttled out.
“What’s this then?” Lettice asks once the doors as closed again.
“This, my dear Miss Chetwynd, is what I summoned you here today to speak of.” Lady Zinnia replies in a very businesslike fashion.
“I thought I had come here so that we could discuss Selwyn’s imminent return to England.” Lettice retorts.
“And so we will, Miss Chetwynd, but perhaps the conversation may not be quite what you imagined or planned it to be.” she replies enigmatically.
“What do you mean, Lady Zinnia?” Lettice asks, the assured smile curling the Duchess’ lips upwards curdling her stomach. “What is in that folder, and how does it concern Selwyn?”
“What is in this folder pertains to you both, Miss Chetwynd.” Lady Zinnia replies, the smile, cold and unfriendly, broadening on her face. “You see, as you have noted, my sources,” Once again she emphasises her choice of words. “Are spread far and wide, and one of my contacts in Durban was approached independently by a very reliable source who had access to and presented him with these.” Lady Zinnia withdraws a dozen pages from the folder and leans forward with them.
Lettice leans forward herself and grasps the papers over the tea table before settling back in her seat. Looking at them she sees that they are photos, cut from articles in newspapers, magazines or journals. She cannot help but emit a gasp as she sees Selwyn’s handsome, smiling face peering out from them. It is one of the few times in the last twelve months since she has seen a new photograph of him, with news from Durban society generally not worthy enough to be printed in London newspapers, and the Durban papers impossible to obtain in London. It is then as she spreads them out across her lap, that she notices that aside from Selwyn’s appearance, they all have something else in common.
“You see, Miss Chetwynd, what this source provided is photographic proof that when Selwyn comes home, he won’t be returning alone.”
Lettice’s head spins as she looks down at the smiling face of a young girl, laughing and cheerful, on Selwyn’s arm in each and every photograph. She looks to be about Lettice’s age, with light coloured hair coiffured into styles using large exotic flowers, dressed in fashionable looking gowns. There are photographs of her standing beside Selwyn, dancing with him, taking with him, and there is even one of the two of them riding horses together, whilst another shows the pair of them in fancy dress costumes: he as Sinbad the Sailor and she as Columbine according to the typed caption printed below.
“The young lady in these photos is Kitty Avendale,” Lady Zinnia goes on. “She’s the daughter of an Australian adventurer and thrill seeker turned Kenyan diamond mine owner. The jewels you see her wearing all come from his, by all accounts, very generous diamond mine.” She takes a sip of her tea.
Lettice’s mouth suddenly feels very dry.
“The output from his mines put the fortunes of the Duke of Walmsford in the shadows.” Lady Zinnia continues. “Mr. Richard Avendale may indeed be richer than the King himself. Of course it’s a bit hard to tell exactly quite how wealthy he is, even with access to some of his business ledgers. He’s a very discreet man: most admirable in an Australian, I must say. Kitty is twenty-three, which I think is also, your age, Miss Chetwynd. She’s Mr. Avendale’s only daughter - indeed his only surviving child - which makes her an heiress of some interest to many young men, but she seems to have tipped her hat towards Selwyn.”
Lettice looks at the smiling faces of Selwyn and Kitty in the photos in disbelief.
“The… the fact… the fact that they have been photographed together is no proof that Selwyn and Kitty are involved romantically.” Lettice manages to say, albeit without the conviction she hoped for. “If that were the case, I’d be engaged to half the eligible bachelors in London, and a few married men too.”
“That’s true,” Lady Zinnia agrees. “But you’ll find that if you feel behind a couple of those photos, the proof of the seriousness of their relationship.”
Lettice looks up uncomprehendingly at the Duchess. The older woman indicates with a bejewelled hand for Lettice to feel behind the back of the photographs. As she does, Lettice feels a few have a thin margin of paper folded up behind the bottom of some of them. She picks up one of Selwyn and Kitty posed together holding champagne glasses aloft and folds down the paper.
“Mr. Selwyn Spencely, son of the Duke of Walmsford, and Miss Kitty Avendale, only daughter of diamond mine millionaire Richard Avendale, engaged.” she reads. She lets the paper slip from her fingers into her lap, and blindly scrambles for another one. This one shows Selwyn standing behind a seated Kitty. “Mr. Selwyn Spencely and Miss Kitty Avendale, engaged.” She grasps another, showing Selwyn and Kitty dancing together. “The happy couple.” she reads. She drops it in her lap, unable to read any more as the tears mist her vision as they flood her eyes.
“So, there you have it, Miss Chetwynd.” Lady Zinnia says in triumph. “Incontrovertible proof. Selwyn has forsaken you, and forgotten your, foolish dalliance,” She smiles cruelly. “And he’s proposed to a peerless match greater than even I had hoped for.”
“No. No, he… No. No.” Lettice begins.
“Of course, Bertrand doesn’t mind, now that Pamela has gone against both his and my original plans and gotten herself engaged to that banker’s son, Jonty Knollys.” She sighs. “He may not have a title, or pedigree that Selwyn presented, but he is certainly from a wealthy family, so she could have done worse for herself.”
“No. No! No!” Lettice stammers in disbelief as the tears fall from her eyes, creating wet splotches on the newspaper clippings.
“And you, my dear Miss Chetwynd,” Lady Zinna rises from her seat elegantly. “You can still make a suitable match: one with a man more befitting your station, such as a viscount, or earl’s son, and all this nonsense you’d planned with Selwyn will all be swept under the carpet and quickly forgotten about.” She smiles piteously at the crumpled form of Lettice collapsed and tearful on the chair before her. “You’re young and pretty, and have a good enough lineage that will have country squires lining up to accept your hand. Give up this London life and move to the country near your parent’s estate, and you’ll soon forget Selwyn.”
Just at that moment, the clock on the mantle chimes the three quarter hour prettily.
“Goodness!” Lady Zinnia exclaims. “Is that the time? I’m so sorry, but this rather difficult conversation took a little longer than I imaged that it would, Miss Chetwynd. I’m afraid I really must go and get dressed. It’s awfully tiresome, but I’m having luncheon with the Queen today, and well, you can’t refuse a royal invitation can you? Would you excuse me?”
Without waiting for a response, the Duchess turns on her heels and walks towards the doors of the White Drawing Room, her heels sinking into the luxurious silk carpet.
As she starts to walk on the bare parquet floor, her Louis heels announcing to the footman outside of her approach, she pauses and turns back. “You may stay here as long as you need to, Miss Chetwynd, and when you feel composed enough to leave, then Poole will show you out. Have some more tea. There’s plenty left in the pot. I find tea in a crisis always helps.”
As Lettice cries piteously, her sobs echoing around the well-appointed White Drawing Room, Lady Zinnia quietly instructs her footman before slipping away. The doors close behind her, and Lettice is left alone to weep and wail and process this seismic shift in everything she has been planning for, for the last year.
*A caryatid is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking the place of a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on her head. The Greek term karyatides literally means "maidens of Karyai", an ancient town on the Peloponnese. Caryatids are sometimes called korai (“maidens”). Similar figures, bearing baskets on their heads, are called canephores (from kanēphoroi, “basket carriers”); they represent the maidens who carried sacred objects used at feasts of the gods. The male counterparts of caryatids are referred to as atlantes.
**Ormolu is the gilding technique of applying finely ground, high-carat gold–mercury amalgam to an object of bronze, and objects finished in this way. The mercury is driven off in a kiln, leaving behind a gold coating. The French refer to this technique as "bronze doré"; in English, it is known as "gilt bronze". The technique was banned in the Nineteenth Century on account of its toxicity.
***Veuve Perrin was a factory in Marseille, France, that manufactured Faïence wares between 1748 and 1803.
****Limoges porcelain is hard-paste porcelain produced by factories in and around the city of Limoges, France. Beginning in the late Eighteenth Century, Limoges was produced but the name Limoges does not refer to a particular manufacturer. By about 1830 Limoges, which was close to the areas where suitable clay was found, had replaced Paris as the main centre for private porcelain factories, although the state-owned Sèvres porcelain near Paris remained dominant at the very top of the market. Limoges has maintained this position to the present day.
****Chelsea porcelain is the porcelain made by the Chelsea porcelain manufactory, the first important porcelain manufactory in England, established around 1743–45, and operating independently until 1770, when it was merged with Derby porcelain. It made soft-paste porcelain throughout its history, though there were several changes in the "body" material and glaze used. Its wares were aimed at a luxury market, and its site in Chelsea, London, was close to the fashionable Ranelagh Gardens pleasure ground, opened in 1742.
*****The Manufacture nationale de Sèvres is one of the principal European porcelain factories. It is located in Sèvres, Hauts-de-Seine, France. It is the continuation of Vincennes porcelain, founded in 1740, which moved to Sèvres in 1756. It has been owned by the French crown or government since 1759. Its production is still largely based on the creation of contemporary objects today. It became part of the Cité de la céramique in 2010 with the Musée national de céramique, and since 2012 with the Musée national Adrien Dubouché in Limoges.
******Henry Tipping (1855 – 1933) was a French-born British writer on country houses and gardens, garden designer in his own right, and Architectural Editor of the British periodical Country Life for seventeen years between 1907 and 1910 and 1916 and 1933. After his appointment to that position in 1907, he became recognised as one of the leading authorities on the history, architecture, furnishings and gardens of country houses in Britain. In 1927, he became a member of the first committee of the Gardens of England and Wales Scheme, later known as the National Gardens Scheme.
*******Country Life is a British weekly perfect-bound glossy magazine that is a quintessential English magazine founded in 1897, providing readers with a weekly dose of architecture, gardens and interiors. It was based in London at 110 Southwark Street until March 2016, when it became based in Farnborough, Hampshire. The frontispiece of each issue usually features a portrait photograph of a young woman of society, or, on occasion, a man of society.
********Georg Arthur Jensen was a Danish silversmith and founder of Georg Jensen A/S (also known as Georg Jensen Sølvsmedie). Jensen made his first piece of jewelry in 1899, a silver and silver and gilt "Adam and Eve" belt buckle. In 1901, Jensen abandoned ceramics and began again as a silversmith and designer with the master, Mogens Ballin. This led Jensen to make a landmark decision, when in 1904, he risked what small capital he had and opened his own little silversmithy at 36 Bredgade in Copenhagen. Jensen's training in metalsmithing along with his education in the fine arts allowed him to combine the two disciplines and revive the tradition of the artist craftsman. Soon, the beauty and quality of his Art Nouveau creations caught the eye of the public and his success was assured. The Copenhagen quarters were greatly expanded and before the end of the 1920s, Jensen had opened retail in Berlin (1909), London (1921), and New York City (1924). The New York retail store, Georg Jensen Inc. (New York, NY), was founded and operated independently as a family business by Frederik Lunning, a successful salesman of Georg Jensen products first in Odense, then in Copenhagen. The first store, 1924-1935, was incorporated as Georg Jensen Handmade Silver, followed in 1935-1978 by the large Fifth Avenue department store selling many goods aside from Jensen silver, incorporated as Georg Jensen Inc
*********Sugar tongs, also known as sugar nips, are small serving utensils used at the table to transfer sugar pieces from a sugar bowl to a teacup. The tongs appeared at the end of the Seventeenth Century, and were very popular by 1800, with half of the British households owning them.
**********The Savoy Hotel is a luxury hotel located in the Strand in the City of Westminster in central London. Built by the impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte with profits from his Gilbert and Sullivan opera productions, it opened on 6 August 1889. It was the first in the Savoy group of hotels and restaurants owned by Carte's family for over a century. The Savoy was the first hotel in Britain to introduce electric lights throughout the building, electric lifts, bathrooms in most of the lavishly furnished rooms, constant hot and cold running water and many other innovations. Carte hired César Ritz as manager and Auguste Escoffier as chef de cuisine; they established an unprecedented standard of quality in hotel service, entertainment and elegant dining, attracting royalty and other rich and powerful guests and diners. The hotel became Carte's most successful venture. Its bands, Savoy Orpheans and the Savoy Havana Band, became famous. Winston Churchill often took his cabinet to lunch at the hotel. The hotel is now managed by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. It has been called "London's most famous hotel". It has two hundred and sixty seven guest rooms and panoramic views of the River Thames across Savoy Place and the Thames Embankment. The hotel is a Grade II listed building.
***********Repoussé from the French, meaning “pushed back,” refers to any type of ornamentation in which the design is raised in relief on the reverse or interior side of the metal material at hand.
This very grand and imposing drawing room full of treasures may appear like something out of a historical stately country house, but it is in fact part of my 1:12 miniatures collection and includes items from my childhood, as well as those I have collected as an adult.
Fun things to look for in this tableau include:
The Victoria sponge (named after Queen Victoria) on the pedestal cake plate and its slices on the plates are made by Polly’s Pantry Miniatures in America. The silver tea service on its galleried tray are made by Warwick Miniatures in Ireland, who are well known for the quality and detail applied to their pieces.
The gilt Empire suite with its crem and gold striped upholstery, the gilt galleried central tea table, the Regency corner cabinet, the Regency gilt swan round side tables and matching swan pedestals are made by the high-end miniature furniture maker, Bespaq. The Palladian console tables at the back to the left and right of the photograph, with their golden caryatids and marble was commissioned by me from American miniature artisan Peter Cluff. Peter specialises in making authentic and very realistic high quality 1:12 miniatures that reflect his interest in Georgian interior design. His work is highly sought after by miniature collectors worldwide. This pair of tables are one-of-a-kind and very special to me.
The elegant ornaments that decorate the surfaces of Lady Zinnia’s palatial Cream Drawing Room very much reflect the Eighteenth Century and early Nineteenth Century spirit of the room.
On the centre of the mantlepiece stands a Rococo carriage clock that has been hand painted and gilded with incredible attention to detail by British 1:12 miniature artisan, Victoria Fasken. The clock is flanked by a porcelain pots of yellow, white and blue petunias which have been hand made and painted by 1:12 miniature ceramicist Ann Dalton.
Next to them stand two porcelain vases of pink and white asters which have been made by M.W. Reutter Porzellanfabrik in Germany, who specialise in making high quality porcelain miniatures. All the pieces in the corner cabinet in the background are also made by M.W. Reutter Porzellanfabrik. The pieces comprise two different 1:12 miniature dinner and tea sets. The vase containing the pink roses on the console table to the right of the photo is also a M.W. Reutter Porzellanfabrik piece, as is the vase closest to us on the round side table to the left of the photo, the two large lidded urns on the swan pedestals, the pedestal cake plate on which the Victoria sponge stands, and Lettice’s and the Duchess’ cups and plates.
Also standing on the mantlepiece are two miniature diecast lead Meissen figurines: the Lady with the Canary and the Gentleman with the Butterfly, hand painted and gilded by me.
The painted fruit bowl on the right-hand console table has been painted by miniature artisan Rachel Munday. Her pieces are highly valued by miniature collectors for their fine details.
The remaining vases you see around the room are all miniature Limoges vases from the 1950s and 1960s. They all feature small green Limoges marks to their bottoms.
The Regency style fireplace , the black painted hearth and fire surround I acquired from Kathleen Knight’s Doll’s House Shop in the United Kingdom.
The pink and yellow roses were made by hand by the team at Beautifully Handmade Miniatures in Kettering.
All the paintings around Lady Zinnia’s Cream Drawing Room in their gilded frames are 1:12 artisan pieces made by Amber’s Miniatures in the United States and Marie Makes Miniatures in the United Kingdom. The striped wallpaper is beautiful hand impressed paper given to me by a friend, which inspired the whole “Cavendish Mews – Lettice Chetwynd” series.
The Georgian style rug on the floor has been woven by Pike, Pike and Company in the United Kingdom.