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Orpheus: sculpture by Antonio Canova at the Museo Correr in Venice, Italy.
My museum collection : www.flickr.com/photos/9619972@N08/collections/72157702215...
Spišský hrad (Spiš Castle, German: Zipser Burg), municipality Žehra, district Spišská Nová Ves, Košický kraj (Košice region), Slovakia.
Spiš Castle is inscribed in the World Heritage list of the UNESCO as part of the World Heritage Site Levoča, Spišský Hrad and the Associated Cultural Monuments.
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The ruins of Spiš Castle (Slovak: Spišský hrad; Hungarian: Szepesi vár; German: Zipser Burg) in eastern Slovakia form one of the largest castle sites in Central Europe. The castle is situated above the town of Spišské Podhradie and the village of Žehra, in the region known as Spiš (Hungarian: Szepes, German: Zips, Polish: Spisz, Latin: Scepusium). It was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1993 (together with the adjacent locations of Spišská Kapitula, Spišské Podhradie and Žehra). This is one of the biggest European castles by area (41 426 m²).
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Slovakia holidays May 2016
Haidplatz in the old town of Regensburg, Bavaria.
Some background information:
Haidplatz is a central square in Regensburg. Its name harks back to the German word "Heide", which means "grassland". In fact the triangular place was built on a grassland in the west of the former Roman fortress Castra Regina.
In the Middle Ages the Haidplatz was the stage for knights’ tournaments. The dominating building is the early Gothic one on the right, which was built in 1250. It's named "Golden Cross" and used to be the castellated house of the patrician family Weltenburger. In the 16th century it functioned as an inn, hosting many princes and emperors. The most famous of them was Holy Roman Emperor Carl V from the House of Habsburg, who lodged there in three different years. During his last stay, he met Barbara Blomberg, the eighteen-year-old daughter of a girdle maker, with whom he had a love affair and who subsequently gave birth to a son. The child of Carl V and Barbara Blomberg was Don Juan d'Austria, the later victor of the Battle of Lepanto. Today the "Golden Cross" still serves as a hotel and café.
In the centre of the square you can see the baroque fountain of Lady Justice, which was built in 1656. Another noteworthy building is the yellow house on the right in front of the "Golden Cross". It’s called the "Thon-Diemer-Palais", because it used to be the home of the merchant family Thon-Diemer.
Regensburg with its population of about 140.000 inhabitants is located at the confluence of the rivers Danube and Regen at the northernmost bend in the Danube. It’s the captial of the Bavarian administrative region Upper Palatinate. The large medieval center of the city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The first settlements in Regensburg date to the Stone Age. The Celtic name Radasbona was the oldest name given to a settlement near the present city. Around AD 90 the Romans built a small fort in what would now be the suburbs.
In 179 the Roman fort Castra Regina ("fortress by the river Regen") was built for Legio III Italica during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. It was an important camp, which corresponded to what is today the core of Regensburg's old town.
In the early 6th century Regensburg was the seat of the Agilolfing ruling family and in 843 it became the seat of the Eastern Frankish ruler, Louis II the German. From about 530 to the first half of the 13th century Regensburg was the capital of Bavaria. From 1135 to 1146 a bridge across the Danube, the so-called "Steinerne Brücke", was built. This stone bridge opened major international trade routes between Northern Europe and Venice, and its construction started Regensburg's golden age as a city of wealthy trading families. Regensburg became the cultural center of southern Germany and was celebrated for its gold work and fabrics.
In 1245 Regensburg became a Free Imperial City and was a trade center before the shifting of trade routes in the late Middle Ages. In 1486 Regensburg became part of the Duchy of Bavaria, but its independence was restored by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1496.
From 1663 to 1806 the city was the permanent seat of the Reichstag of the Holy Roman Empire. But in 1803 Regensburg lost its status as a free city. It was handed over to the Archbishop of Mainz and Archchancellor of the Holy Roman Empire Carl von Dalberg in compensation for Mainz, which had become French under the terms of the Treaty of Lunéville in 1801. But already in 1810 Dalberg ceded Regensburg to the Kingdom of Bavaria.
Regensburg had little damage from the strategic bombing during World War II and therefore the nearly intact medieval city center is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. One of the few losses but definitely the most important cultural one was the devastation of the Romanesque church of Obermünster, which was destroyed in an air raid during March 1945 and never rebuilt.
Cloister of Kloster Walkenried (Walkenried Abbey), Göttingen district, southern Harz region, Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony), Germany.
Kloster Walkenried was the third Cistercian abbey on German territory, founded in 1127. Being experts in water technology, the Cistercian monks put great effort into cultivation and land development, and were also very active in mining, smelting and charcoal works.
Since the Cistercian monks of Walkenried are regarded as the "fathers of the Upper Harz Water Regale", Kloster Walkenried is part of the UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Site Mines of Rammelsberg, Historic Town of Goslar and Upper Harz Water Management System.
The Gothic church from 1290 used to be one of the largest churches in Northern Germany but was greatly damaged in the 17th to 19th centuries so today there are only some ruins remaining.
The Gothic claustral buildings, however, including the chapter house, the lay brothers' room, the lavatorium and the partially two-bayed cloister, are well preserved and today house a museum.
Harz short trip April/May 2018.
de.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BCbeck
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BCbeck
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La cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta è il duomo di Siena. Costruita in stile Romanico-Gotico italiano, è una delle più significative chiese realizzate in questo stile in Italia.
Nel luogo dove sorge la cattedrale, sarebbe sorto il castrum romano. Ancora nel Medioevo il toponimo era Piano Sancte Mariae e in questo luogo, tra l'attuale costruzione e la piazza che la circonda su due lati, sono stati effettuati degli scavi che hanno suffragato l'ipotesi di uno sviluppo dell'area in periodo longobardo e franco.
Si parla[senza fonte] di un accastellamento con quattro torri, di cui una sarebbe diventata la torre campanaria attuale. Questo edificio sarebbe stato fino al 913 la residenza del vescovo ed avrebbe contenuto una chiesa rivolta verso est, cioè verso l'attuale battistero. Nel XII secolo questa chiesa fu inglobata nella costruzione romanica che andava diventando la cattedrale, con la facciata rivolta a sud, cioè verso l'attuale "Facciatone", la facciata incompiuta del "duomo nuovo".
Finestra gotica sul fianco del duomoÈ tradizione, suffragata anche da deduzioni storiche[senza fonte], che il Duomo sia stato consacrato il 18 novembre 1179. Ci sono però opinioni contrastanti e notizie storiche che smentiscono questa datazione.[senza fonte] Infatti, solo nel XIII secolo (1229) il Duomo sarebbe stato trasformato in basilica, con la facciata rivolta ad ovest, verso l'ospedale di Santa Maria della Scala. I lavori vennero terminati solo alla fine del secolo successivo.
La cupola fu completata nel 1263 e il Rosso padellaio vi appose la "mela". La sua altezza è di 48 metri, inclusa la croce. L'attuale sistemazione dell'apice della cupola stessa è del 1667.
L'"Operaio del Duomo" che sovrintendeva all'amministrazione dei lavori era sempre scelto tra i canonici ma, dal 1258 agli inizi del Trecento, fu scelto tra i monaci dell'abbazia cistercense di San Galgano. Questi si erano segnalati come abili amministratori, tanto che lo stesso Comune di Siena gli aveva affidato gli uffici di Gabella e di Biccherna (gli uffici "entrate" e "uscite" della Repubblica di Siena).
Furono i monaci a chiamare Nicola Pisano e suo figlio Giovanni per i lavori. Giovanni lavorò alla facciata in quel periodo, utilizzando nella parte inferiore i rivestimenti marmorei (provenienti dalle vicine cave di Vallerano, comune di Murlo) che vediamo ancora oggi. Nicola creò il pulpito, terminato nel 1268.
La figura (forse derivata da Cimabue) del Cristo in croce, con le gambe avvitate, i piedi sovrapposti e trapassati da un unico chiodo e le braccia "ad ipsilon" è diventata un classico dell'iconografia. Sembra anche essere stata copiata da parte degli artisti che realizzarono gli affreschi scoperti di recente nella cripta sottostante il Duomo.
Nel 1313 viene terminato il campanile, alto circa 77 metri. Nel 1316 l'edificio venne ampliato sotto la direzione di Camaino di Crescentino, padre dello scultore Tino di Camaino.
Con Siena al massimo del suo splendore, dovette sembrare che il duomo fosse comunque troppo piccolo per la città. Si pensò quindi di ampliarlo in modo tale che l'attuale navata centrale diventasse solo il transetto e la facciata tornasse ad essere orientata a sud, in posizione molto più avanzata rispetto all'antico edificio. Il progetto fu affidato a Lando di Pietro (o "Lando di Piero") dopo la delibera del Consiglio Generale della Campana del 23 agosto 1339. I lavori passarono in seguito sotto la supervisione dello scultore ed architetto Giovanni di Agostino.
A causa della peste del 1348 e di alcuni crolli strutturali, nel giugno del 1357 si decise di interrompere i lavori, lasciando nell'attuale piazza Iacopo della Quercia i segni del fallimento: basamenti per le colonne e incastonamenti di queste nell'edificio dell'attuale Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana del Duomo, oltre alla facciata incompiuta (il "facciatone") dal quale è possibile oggi godere di un notevole panorama sulla città.
Dopo qualche anno, si affidarono di nuovo i lavori al capomastro Domenico di Agostino, fratello di Giovanni, morto nel 1366. Nel 1376, la costruzione della parte superiore della facciata venne affidata a Giovanni di Cecco (detto "Giovannino della Pietra"). Nel 1382 vennero alzate le volte della navata centrale e quest'anno può essere considerato quello di completamento del Duomo.
Nel 1870 un incendio distrusse la cupola estera in legno e parte della copertura lignea della navata che vennero ripristinate.
A Catedral de Siena ou Duomo di Siena, é a catedral medieval de Siena, na Itália.
A Catedral em si foi originalmente projetada e construída entre 1215 e 1263 no local de uma estrutura antiga. Tem a forma de uma cruz Latina, um cúpula e uma torre de sinos. A lanterna, no topo da cúpula, foi adicionada por Gian Lorenzo Bernini. O exterior e o interior são feitos de mármore preto e branco, as cores simbólicas de Siena, derivadas dos lendários cavalos dos fundadores da cidade, Senius e Aschius.
A fachada da Catedral foi construída em dois estágios. A parte inferior foi iniciada em 1284 e construída em estilo da Toscana, por Giovanni Pisano. A exuberante fachada representa profetas, filósofos e apóstolos. Em 1288, a janela em forma de rosa, um vitral redondo colocado em um limite quadrado foi instalado na área do coro, a partir de desenhos de Duccio. O trabalho na parte superior da fachada foram iniciados em 1376 por Giovanni di Cecco, a partir de um projeto inspirado na Catedral de Orvieto. A porta central de bronze é recente e data de 1958. Foi criada por Enrico Manfrini.
No canto esquerdo da fachada há uma inscrição do século XIV, marcando o túmulo de Giovanni Pisano. Ao lado está uma coluna com a loba amamentando Rômulo e Remo, símbolos de Siena. Conta a lenda que Senius e Aschius, filhos de Remo, fundaram Siena.
The Cathedral of Siena (Italian: Duomo di Siena), dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church and now to Santa Maria Assunta (Most Holy Mary of Assumption), is a medieval church in Siena, central Italy.
The cathedral itself was originally designed and completed between 1215 and 1263 on the site of an earlier structure. It has the form of a Latin cross with a slightly projecting transept, a dome and a bell tower. The dome rises from an octagonal base with supporting columns. The lantern atop the dome was added by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The nave is separated from the two aisles by semicircular arches. The exterior and interior are constructed of white and greenish-black marble in alternating stripes, with addition of red marble on the façade. Black and white are the symbolic colors of Siena, etiologically linked to black and white horses of the legendary city's founders, Senius and Aschius.
The origins of the first structure are obscure and shrouded in legend. There was a 9th century church with bishop's palace at the present location. In December 1058 a synod was held in this church resulting in the election of pope Nicholas II and the deposition of the antipope Benedict X.
In 1196 the cathedral masons’ guild, the Opera di Santa Maria, was put in charge of the construction of a new cathedral. By 1215 there were already daily masses said in the new church. There are records from 1226 onwards of the transport of black and white marble, probably for the construction of the façade and the bell tower. The vaults and the transept were constructed in 1259-1260. In 1259 Manuello di Ranieri and his son Parri carved some wooden choir stalls, which were replaced about 100 years later and have now disappeared. In 1264, Rosso Padellaio was paid for the copper sphere on top of the dome.
A second massive addition was planned in 1339. It would have more than doubled the size of the structure by means of an entirely new nave and two aisles ranged perpendicular to the existing nave and centred on the high altar. The construction was begun under the direction of Giovanni di Agostino, better known as a sculptor. Construction was halted by the Black Death in 1348. Basic errors in the construction were already evident by then, however, and the work was never resumed. The outer walls, remains of this extension, can now be seen to the south of the Duomo. The floor of the uncompleted nave now serves as a parking lot and museum, and, though unfinished, the remains are testament to Sienese power, ambition, and artistic achievement.
Underneath the choir of the Duomo, a narthex containing important late-13th century frescoes (probably about 1280) was found and excavated in 1999-2003. The frescoes depict scenes from the Old Testament and the life of Christ. This was part of the entrance of an earlier church. But when the baptistry was built, this under-church was filled with rubble. The narthex is now open to the public.
The façade of this cathedral was built in two stages. The lower part in polychrome marble was begun around 1284. It is built in Tuscan Gothic style by Giovanni Pisano, replete with gargoyles. Giovanni Pisano worked on the lower levels until 1296, when he suddenly left Siena. At that time, between 1270 and 1285, the nave of the church had been raised and a higher façade became necessary. Work at the façade continued for another fifteen years and was then stopped. Meanwhile in 1288, the rose window, a large circular stained-glass window, was installed in the choir, based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna.
The three portals, surmounted by lunettes and Gothic pediments, were designed by Giovanni Pisano. The columns between the portals are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.
Work on the upper part of the façade only resumed in 1376 under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco, working on a new elaborate design, inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. It was to be erected much higher than foreseen, because the nave had, once again, been raised. The division of the upper part does not match the division of the lower part. The pinnacles of the upper part do not continue over the columns flanking the central portal. The weight of the elegant side towers was reduced by adding windows.
The statues of the lavish façade were sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistants. They represent prophets, philosophers and apostles. The half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window are the work of other sculptors. Almost all the sculptures on view are copies. The originals are kept in the "Crypt of the Statues" in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.
The bronze central door is recent and dates from 1958. It was made by Enrico Manfrini. The scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin. The three large mosaics on the gables of the façade were made in Venice in 1878. The large central mosaic, the Coronation of the Virgin, is the work of Luigi Mussini. The smaller mosaics on each side, Nativity of Jesus and Presentation of Mary in the Temple, were made by Alessandro Franchi.
On the left corner pier of the façade, a 14th century inscription can be found, marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with the she-wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus, symbol of Siena (and also of the contrade Lupa). According to legend, Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus, founded Siena. They had stolen the statue of the she-wolf from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.
Museum
Archäologische Stätte Mykene.
Mykene auf den Peloponnes / GRIECHENLAND /
Goldmaske des Agamemmon ( Original im Achäologisches Nationalmuseum Athen )
Die von Heinrich schliemannin Mykene entdeckte
Totenmaske ( ca.1650 v. Chr. ) wird dem legendären König Agamemnon zugeschrieben.
Colonnaded footpath with sloping columns, carrying the road above, in Parc Güell (Park Güell), Barcelona, autonomous community Catalonia, Spain.
---quotation from en.wikipedia.org about Park Güell:---
Park Güell (Catalan: Parc Güell...) is a garden complex with architectural elements situated on the hill of El Carmel in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí and built in the years 1900 to 1914. It has an extension of 17.18 ha (0.1718 km²), which makes it one of the largest architectural works in south Europe. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Works of Antoni Gaudí".
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---quotation from en.wikipedia.org about Antoni Gaudí:---
Antoni Gaudí i Cornet (...25 June 1852 – 10 June 1926) was a Spanish Catalan architect and figurehead of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works reflect his highly individual and distinctive style and are largely concentrated in the Catalan capital of Barcelona, notably his magnum opus, the Sagrada Família.
Much of Gaudí's work was marked by his big passions in life: architecture, nature, religion. Gaudí studied every detail of his creations, integrating into his architecture a series of crafts in which he was skilled: ceramics, stained glass, wrought ironwork forging and carpentry. He introduced new techniques in the treatment of materials, such as trencadís, made of waste ceramic pieces.
After a few years under the influence of neo-Gothic art and Oriental techniques, Gaudí became part of the Catalan Modernista movement which was reaching its peak in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His work transcended mainstream Modernisme, culminating in an organic style inspired by nature. Gaudí rarely drew detailed plans of his works, instead preferring to create them as three-dimensional scale models and molding the details as he was conceiving them.
Gaudí’s work enjoys widespread international appeal and many studies are devoted to understanding his architecture. Today, his work finds admirers among architects and the general public alike. His masterpiece, the still-uncompleted Sagrada Família, is one of the most visited monuments in Spain. Between 1984 and 2005, seven of his works were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
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---quotation from en.wikipedia.org about Barcelona:---
Barcelona (...) is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, after Madrid, with a population of 1,620,943 within its administrative limits on a land area of 101.4 km² (39 sq mi). The urban area of Barcelona extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of around 4.5 million within an area of 803 km² (310 sq mi), being the sixth-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, London, the Ruhr, Madrid and Milan. About five million people live in the Barcelona metropolitan area. It is also the largest metropolis on the Mediterranean Sea. It is located on the Mediterranean coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs and is bounded to the west by the Serra de Collserola ridge (512 metres (1,680 ft)).
Founded as a Roman city, Barcelona became the capital of the County of Barcelona. After merging with the Kingdom of Aragon, Barcelona became the most important city of the Crown of Aragon. Besieged several times during its history, Barcelona has a rich cultural heritage and is today an important cultural centre and a major tourist destination. Particularly renowned are the architectural works of Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner, which have been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean is located in Barcelona. The city is known for hosting the 1992 Summer Olympics as well as world-class conferences and expositions and also many international sport tournaments.
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Costa Brava holiday April 2009.
The Kolonnadenhof (Colonnade Courtyard), was created in 1880 to frame the entrance to the Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery). Today, it is listed as part of the Museum Island UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Scan 0f an analog photo taken in 1987
Built in 90 AD by the Romans, the amphitheatre of Arles held more than 20,000 spectators of bloody gladiator fights and chariot races. In the 5th century after the fall of the Western Empire, the amphitheatre became a shelter for the people of Arles and was transformed into a fortress with four towers while the 3rd row of arches was lost.
Today during the Feria d'Arles in April and in September, bullfights take place in the Arena, attracting crowds of visitors.
Since 1981 the amphitheatre is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, together with other Roman and medieval buildings of the city.
Nell'area degli scavi archeologici di Pompei è stata portata alla luce l'antica città romana distrutta tragicamente a seguito di una delle eruzioni del vicino vulcano Vesuvio, avvenuta nell'anno 79.
Già alcuni anni prima - nel 62 - un terribile terremoto, premonitore della ben più grave catastrofe che si sarebbe abbattuta sulla città di lì a pochi anni, colpì Pompei e la città di Ercolano nonché altri centri della Campania.
Pompei fu gravemente danneggiata, ma subito cominciò l'opera di ricostruzione. Diciassette anni più tardi, mentre i lavori continuavano a procedere a ritmo sostenuto (ed anche se gli edifici pubblici erano ancora quasi tutti da restaurare), la città e i suoi abitanti vissero una tra le più grandi tragedie della storia antica che oggi, cristallizzata nel tempo e in quell'attimo, è stata riportata in superficie divenendo il secondo sito archeologico più visitato al mondo[1]. La città tornò alla luce nel 1748, grazie agli scavi voluti e finanziati da Carlo di Borbone.
Gli scavi di Pompei, con quelli di Ercolano ed Oplontis, sono riportati nella lista dei patrimoni dell'umanità dell'UNESCO
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Pompeia foi outrora uma cidade do Império Romano situada a 22 quilômetros da cidade de Nápoles, na Itália, no território do atual município de Pompeia. A antiga cidade foi destruída durante uma grande erupção do vulcão Vesúvio em 24 de agosto do ano 79 d.C.
A erupção do vulcão provocou uma intensa chuva de cinzas que sepultou completamente a cidade, que se manteve oculta por 1600 anos antes de ser reencontrada por acaso. Cinzas e lama moldaram os corpos das vítimas, permitindo que fossem encontradas do modo exato em que foram atingidas pela erupção do Vesúvio. Desde então, as escavações proporcionaram um sítio arqueológico extraordinário, que possibilita uma visão detalhada na vida de uma cidade dos tempos da Roma Antiga.
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Pompeii is a partly buried Roman town-city near modern Naples in the Italian region of Campania, in the territory of the comune of Pompei. Along with Herculaneum, its sister city, Pompeii was destroyed and completely buried during a long catastrophic eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius spanning two days in 79 AD. The eruption buried Pompeii under 4 to 6 meters of ash and pumice, and it was lost for nearly 1,600 years before its accidental rediscovery in 1599. Since then, its excavation has provided an extraordinarily detailed insight into the life of a city at the height of the Roman Empire. Today, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is one of the most popular tourist attractions of Italy, with approximately 2,500,000 visitors every year
Die Statuen nördlich des Eingangs des kleinen Hathor-Tempels der Nefertari (Tempel von Abu Simbel) zeigen Ramses II. und seine Gattin Nefertari als Hathor.
Complicated system of abutments, pinnacles, and buttresses as seen from a position near the roof. Visually compressed with the help of a medium telephoto lens.
We had the pleasure to be guided over the roof and through the attic storey of the wonderful cathedral. The oldest parts of this world famous building are from 1248 but the huge church was not finished before 1880. The site is a place of worship for ca. 1700 years now because the Romans built the first temple in this very place.
Blick vom Tal der Könige auf den pyramidenförmigen Berg El-Qurn (das Horn, 420m hoch). Einige Ägyptologen meinen, dass der Form des Berges zur Wahl des Tals der Könige als Begräbnisstätte der Pharaonen führte.
The ancient village of Skara Brae (Orkney, Scotland, UK), UNESCO World Heritage site.
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Skara Brae was built in two main
phases. Little is known about the
first, since further investigation would
require demolition of the later houses.
The building in front of you is one
of the earliest at Skara Brae. It has a
similar plan to the later houses, except
the box beds are built into the wall
rather than projecting into the room.
Right: The furniture was made from
local flagstones, which were readily
available and easy to shape.
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The National Library of Latvia (Latvijas Nacionālā bibliotēka) was founded in 1919. Its modern home south of the Daugava was designed by the American architect Gunnar Birkerts (b. 1925 in Riga) starting in 1989 and built 2008-2014. It has 13 floors and is 68 meters high.
The tower of St. Peter's Church (Svētā Pētera baznīca) offers an exquisite view of Riga. In view is the Daugava river which joins the Baltic just a few miles from here.
View of the Grote Markt, Bruges, Belgium
Some background information:
With a population of more than 117,000 Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country.
The Grote Markt is the central square of Brussels. It is surrounded by guildhalls, the city's Town Hall, and the Breadhouse. The Grote Markt is the most important tourist destination and most memorable landmark in Brussels. It measures 68 by 110 metres (223 by 360 feet) and is a stand-alone UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998. But of course it is also part of another UNESCO World Heritage Site, "the historic city of Bruges", which was admitted into the UNESCO list of Word Heritage Sites in 2000.
Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam, Bruges is sometimes referred to as "The Venice of the North" due to its many canals. The town still has a significant economic importance thanks to its port Zeebrugge. At one time, it was the "chief commercial city" of the world.
Bruges has its origins in the Pre-Roman Gaul era. However the first fortifications were built after Julius Caesar's conquest of the Menapii, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the whole region from the Gallo-Romans around the 4th century and administered it as the Pagus Flandrensis. In the 9th century the Viking incursions prompted Baldwin I, Count of Flanders, to reinforce the Roman fortifications. Shortly afterwards trade resumed with England and Scandinavia.
In 1128 Bruges received its city charter. New walls and canals were built. After gradual silting had caused the city to lose its direct access to the sea since about 1050, a storm in 1134 re-established this access through the creation of a natural channel at the Zwin. The new sea arm stretched all the way to Damme, a city that became the commercial outpost for Bruges.
The golden age of Bruges was the period of time between the 12th and the 15th century. Not only did Bruges have a strategic location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade and the southern trade routes, but became also included in the circuit of the Flemish and French cloth fairs at the beginning of the 13th century.
With the reawakening of town life in the twelfth century, a wool market, a woolens weaving industry and the market for cloth all profited from the shelter of city walls, where surpluses could be safely accumulated under the patronage of the counts of Flanders. The city's entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotland's wool-producing districts. English contacts brought Normandy grain and Gascon wines. Hanseatic ships filled the harbor, which had to be expanded beyond Damme to Sluys to accommodate the new cog-ships. In 1277 the first merchant fleet from Genoa appeared in the port. These Genoese merchants were the pioneers of the merchant colony that made Bruges the main link to the trade of the Mediterranean. In 1309 the Bourse opened, which was most likely the first stock exchange in the world.
Bruges became very wealthy, but the growing wealth gave rise to social upheavals, which were for the most part harshly contained by the militia. After a nocturnal massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by the members of the local Flemish militia in 1302, the population joined forces with the Count of Flanders against the French, culminating in the victory at the Battle of the Golden Spurs, fought near Kortrijk on 11th July. The statues of Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck, the leaders of the uprising, can still be seen on the market square.
In the 15th century, Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, set up court in Bruges, as well as Brussels and Lille, attracting a number of artists, bankers, and other prominent personalities from all over Europe. The weavers and spinners of Bruges were thought to be the best in the world and the population of Bruges grew to 200,000 inhabitants at this time. In the sequel the new Flemish-school oil-painting techniques gained world renown.
But the decline followed on the advancement. Around 1500, the Zwin channel, which had given the city its prosperity, started silting. The city soon fell behind Antwerp as the economic flagship of the Low Countries. During the 17th century, the lace industry took off, and various efforts to bring back the glorious past were made. The maritime infrastructure was modernized, and new connections with the sea were built, but without much success, as Antwerp became increasingly dominant. Bruges became impoverished and gradually faded in importance. Bit by bit its population dwindled from 200,000 to 50,000 by 1900.
The revival started in 1909, when the association "Bruges Forward: Society to Improve Tourism" was founded. Subsequently the original medieval city has experienced a renaissance. Restorations of residential and commercial structures, historic monuments, and churches have generated a surge in tourism and economic activity in the ancient downtown area. International tourism has boomed, and new efforts have resulted in Bruges being designated "European Capital of Culture" in 2002. Nowadays the city attracts some two million tourists annually.
But Bruges is not only popular for its historic appearance and high-quality lace, but also for its delicacies, such as beer, waffles, chocolate, seafood and chips. Therefore a visit to Bruges can always be not only a cultural, but also a gastronomic experience.
Holunder-Fingerwurz (Dactylorhiza sambucina) im Stora Alvaret. Die orange-blütige Varietät wird var. zimmermannii genannt und ist sehr selten, auf Öland kommt sie aber öfters vor.
Öland / Schweden, 21.05.2018
Visiting Naumburg Cathedral (Naumburger Dom), UNESCO World Heritage site since 2018 (ref. 1470).
Tiny little detail of a handrail decoration inside the church.
Wooden figures of the apostles James the Greater and Judas Thaddaeus inside of Kaplnka sv. Alžbety Durínskej (chapel of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia) at Spišský hrad (Spiš Castle, German: Zipser Burg), municipality Žehra, district Spišská Nová Ves, Košický kraj (Košice region), Slovakia.
Spiš Castle is inscribed in the World Heritage list of the UNESCO as part of the World Heritage Site Levoča, Spišský Hrad and the Associated Cultural Monuments.
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The ruins of Spiš Castle (Slovak: Spišský hrad; Hungarian: Szepesi vár; German: Zipser Burg) in eastern Slovakia form one of the largest castle sites in Central Europe. The castle is situated above the town of Spišské Podhradie and the village of Žehra, in the region known as Spiš (Hungarian: Szepes, German: Zips, Polish: Spisz, Latin: Scepusium). It was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1993 (together with the adjacent locations of Spišská Kapitula, Spišské Podhradie and Žehra). This is one of the biggest European castles by area (41 426 m²).
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Slovakia holidays May 2016
Wooden rack in the museum torture chamber of Spišský hrad (Spiš Castle, German: Zipser Burg), municipality Žehra, district Spišská Nová Ves, Košický kraj (Košice region), Slovakia.
Spiš Castle is inscribed in the World Heritage list of the UNESCO as part of the World Heritage Site Levoča, Spišský Hrad and the Associated Cultural Monuments.
---quotation from en.wikipedia.org:---
The ruins of Spiš Castle (Slovak: Spišský hrad; Hungarian: Szepesi vár; German: Zipser Burg) in eastern Slovakia form one of the largest castle sites in Central Europe. The castle is situated above the town of Spišské Podhradie and the village of Žehra, in the region known as Spiš (Hungarian: Szepes, German: Zips, Polish: Spisz, Latin: Scepusium). It was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1993 (together with the adjacent locations of Spišská Kapitula, Spišské Podhradie and Žehra). This is one of the biggest European castles by area (41 426 m²).
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Slovakia holidays May 2016
Manueline portal of the Panteão de D. Duarte (pantheon of King Duarte), better known as Capelas Imperfeitas (Unfinished Chapels) of Mosteiro de Santa Maria da Vitória (Monastery of Saint Mary of Victory), better known as Mosteiro da Batalha (Monastery of Batalha, literally Monastery of the Battle), Batalha, Portugal.
Batalha monastery is inscribed in the World Heritage List of the UNESCO.
---citation from whc.unesco.org---
The Monastery of the Dominicans of Batalha was built to commemorate the victory of the Portuguese over the Castilians at the battle of Aljubarrota in 1385. It was to be the Portuguese monarchy's main building project for the next two centuries. Here a highly original, national Gothic style evolved, profoundly influenced by Manueline art, as demonstrated by its masterpiece, the Royal Cloister.
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-----citation from en.wikipedia.org-----
Unfinished Chapels (Capelas Imperfeitas)
As Capelas Imperfeitas (The Unfinished Chapels) remain as a testimony of the fact that the monastery was never actually finished. They form a separate octagonal structure tacked on the choir of the church (via a retrochoir) and only accessible from the outside. It was commissioned in 1437 by King Duarte I as a second royal mausoleum for himself and his descendants. But he and his queen Leonor of Aragon are the only ones buried here. The original design, begun by Huguet, was altered by successive architects, especially Mateus Fernandes (who is buried inside the church). The octagonal rotunda has seven radiating hexagonal chapels. In the corners of the chapels stand the massive unfinished buttresses, that were intended to support the vault. These pillars, designed by Diogo Boitac, are decorated with Manueline motives carved in stone.
The portal rises to a monumental fifteen metres. It was originally built in Gothic style, but was transformed beyond recognition by Mateus Fernandes into a masterpiece of Manueline style (completed in 1509). It is completely decorated into a lacework of sumptuous and stylized Manueline motives : armillary, spheres, winged angels, ropes, circles, tree stumps, clover-shaped arches and florid projections. This homage of King Manuel I to his predecessor King D. Duarte mentions his motto Leauté faray tam yaserei (I will always be loyal). This motto is then repeated more than two hundred times in the arches, vaults and pillars of the chapels.
The Renaissance loggia, added at about 1533, was probably meant for musicians. It is ascribed to the architect João de Castilho.
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-----citation from en.wikipedia.org about Manueline style-----
Several elements appear regularly in these intricately carved stoneworks:
- elements used on ships: the armillary sphere (a navigational instrument and the personal emblem of Manuel I and also symbol of the cosmos), spheres, anchors, anchor chains, ropes and cables.
- elements from the sea, such as shells, pearls and strings of seaweed.
- botanical motifs such as laurel branches, oak leaves, acorns, poppy capsules, corncobs, thistles.
- symbols of Christianity such as the cross of the Order of Christ (former Templar knights), the military order that played a prominent role and helped finance the first voyages of discovery. The cross of this order decorated the sails of the Portuguese ships.
- elements from newly discovered lands (such as the tracery in the Claustro Real in the Monastery of Batalha, suggesting Islamic filigree work, influenced by buildings in India)
- columns carved like twisted strands of rope
- semicircular arches (instead of Gothic pointed arches) of doors and windows, sometimes consisting of three or more convex curves
- multiple pillars
- eight-sided capitals
- lack of symmetry
- conical pinnacles
- bevelled crenellations
- ornate portals with niches or canopies.
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Natur und Kultur in Mittelportugal (Nature and Culture in Mid-Portugal), Wikinger-Reisen, September 2011
Café am Finkenherd, Finkenherd (Finch trapping place), Quedlinburg in the Harz mountains, Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt), Germany.
According to legend, Finkenherd was the place where Heinrich I. (Henry the Fowler) was offered the royal crown in 919 while he was hunting finches.
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Henry the Fowler (German: Heinrich der Finkler or Heinrich der Vogler; Latin: Henricius Auceps) (876 – 2 July 936) was the Duke of Saxony from 912 and German king from 919 until his death. First of the Ottonian Dynasty of German kings and emperors, he is generally considered to be the founder and first king of the medieval German state, known until then as East Francia. An avid hunter, he obtained the epithet "the Fowler" because he was allegedly fixing his birding nets when messengers arrived to inform him that he was to be king.
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Quedlinburg is a beautiful medieval town in the north of the Harz mountains. With its many half-timbered houses, the Quedlinburg castle (which later became a house of secular canonesses) and the Romanesque Collegiate Church of St. Servatius it is inscribed in the World Heritage List of the UNESCO.
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Quedlinburg, in the Land of Sachsen-Anhalt, was a capital of the East Franconian German Empire at the time of the Saxonian-Ottonian ruling dynasty. It has been a prosperous trading town since the Middle Ages. The number and high quality of the timber-framed buildings make Quedlinburg an exceptional example of a medieval European town. The Collegiate Church of St Servatius is one of the masterpieces of Romanesque architecture. (...)
The importance of Quedlinburg rests on three main elements: the preservation of the medieval street pattern; the wealth of urban vernacular buildings, especially timber-framed houses of the 16th and 17th centuries, and the important Romanesque collegiate church of St Servatius. The original urban layout is remarkably well preserved: it is a classic example of the growth of European medieval towns. The history of the medieval and early modern town is perfectly illustrated by the street pattern of the present-day town. (...)
Situated in a hilly region to the north of the Harz Mountains, the villa Quitilingaburg is first mentioned in 922 in an official document of Henry I (the Fowler), who was elected German King in 919. He built a castle on what became known as the Castle Hill (Burgberg), one of the two sandstone hills that overlook the Harz valley, and this became one of his favourite residences. It became the capital of the East Franconian German Empire and was the place where many important political and religious assemblies and festivals took place. The town owes its wealth and importance during the Middle Ages to Henry I and his successors. German Kings are known to have stayed at Quedlinburg on 69 occasions between 922 and 1207.
On the death of Henry I in 936 his widow Mathilde remained in Quedlinburg at the collegiate church of St Servatius on the Castle Hill, founded by Henry's son and successor Otto I as a collegial establishment for unmarried daughters of the nobility. It was to become one of the most influential foundations of its type in the Holy Roman Empire. From 944 the abbesses (many of whom were members of the Imperial family and were buried in the crypt of the church) had the right to mint coins at Quedlinburg.
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Harz weekend June 2012
Siena è un comune di 54.391 abitanti della Toscana centrale, capoluogo dell'omonima provincia.
La città è universalmente conosciuta per il suo patrimonio artistico e per la sostanziale unità stilistica del suo arredo urbano medievale, nonché per il suo famoso Palio; il centro storico è stato infatti dichiarato dall'UNESCO patrimonio dell'umanità nel 1995.
Siena fu fondata come colonia romana al tempo dell'Imperatore Augusto e prese il nome di Saena Iulia.
All'interno del centro storico senese sono stati ritrovati dei siti di epoca etrusca, che possono far pensare alla fondazione della città da parte degli etruschi.
Il primo documento noto in cui viene citata la comunità senese risale al 70 e porta la firma di Tacito che, nel IV libro delle Historiae, riporta il seguente episodio: il senatore Manlio Patruito riferì a Roma di essere stato malmenato e ridicolizzato con un finto funerale durante la sua visita ufficiale a Saena Iulia, piccola colonia militare della Tuscia. Il Senato romano decise di punire i principali colpevoli e di richiamare severamente i senesi a un maggiore rispetto verso l'autorità.
Dell'alto Medioevo non si hanno documenti che possano illuminare intorno ai casi della vita civile a Siena. C'è qualche notizia relativa alla istituzione del vescovado e della diocesi, specialmente per le questioni sorte fra il Vescovo di Siena e quello di Arezzo, a causa dei confini della zona giurisdizionale di ciascuno: questioni nelle quali intervenne il re longobardo Liutprando, pronunziando sentenza a favore della diocesi aretina. Ma i senesi non furono soddisfatti e pertanto nell'anno 853, quando l'Italia passò dalla dominazione longobarda a quella franca, riuscirono ad ottenere l'annullamento della sentenza emanata dal re Liutprando. Pare, dunque, che al tempo dei Longobardi, Siena fosse governata da un gastaldo, rappresentante del re: Gastaldo che fu poi sostituito da un Conte imperiale dopo l'incoronazione di Carlo Magno. Il primo conte di cui si hanno notizie concrete fu Winigi, figlio di Ranieri, nel 867. Dopo il 900 regnava a Siena l'imperatore Ludovico III, il cui regno non durò così a lungo, dal momento che nel 903 le cronache raccontano di un ritorno dei conti al potere sotto il nuovo governo del re Berengario.
Siena si ritrova nel X secolo al centro di importanti vie commerciali che portavano a Roma e, grazie a ciò divenne un'importante città medievale. Nel XII secolo la città si dota di ordinamenti comunali di tipo consolare, comincia a espandere il proprio territorio e stringe le prime alleanze. Questa situazione di rilevanza sia politica che economica, portano Siena a combattere per i domini settentrionali della Toscana, contro Firenze. Dalla prima metà del XII secolo in poi Siena prospera e diventa un importante centro commerciale, tenendo buoni rapporti con lo Stato della Chiesa; i banchieri senesi erano un punto di riferimento per le autorità di Roma, ai quali si rivolgevano per prestiti o finanziamenti.
Alla fine del XII secolo Siena, sostenendo la causa ghibellina (anche se non mancavano, le famiglie senesi di parte guelfa, in sintonia con Firenze), si ritrovò nuovamente contro Firenze di parte guelfa: celebre è la vittoria sui toscani guelfi nella battaglia di Montaperti, del 1260, celebrata anche da Dante Alighieri. Ma dopo qualche anno i senesi ebbero la peggio nella battaglia di Colle Val d'Elsa, del 1269, che portò in seguito, nel 1287, alla ascesa del Governo
dei Nove, di parte guelfa. Sotto questo nuovo governo, Siena raggiunse il suo massimo splendore, sia economico che culturale.
Dopo la peste del 1348, cominciò la lenta decadenza della Repubblica di Siena, che comunque non precluse la strada all'espansione territoriale senese, che fino al giorno della caduta della Repubblica comprendeva un terzo della toscana. La fine della Repubblica Senese, forse l'unico Stato occidentale ad attuare una democrazia pura a favore del popolo, avvenne il 25 aprile 1555, quando la città, dopo un assedio di oltre un anno, dovette arrendersi stremata dalla fame, all'impero di Carlo V, spalleggiato dai fiorentini, che cedette in feudo il territorio della Repubblica ai Medici, Signori di Firenze, per ripagarli delle spese sostenute durante la guerra. Per l'ennesima volta i cittadini senesi riuscirono a tenere testa ad un imperatore, che solo grazie alle proprie smisurate risorse poté piegare la fiera resistenza di questa piccola Repubblica e dei suoi cittadini.
Dopo la caduta della Repubblica pochi senesi guidati peraltro dall'esule fiorentino Piero Strozzi, non volendo accettare la caduta della Repubblica, si rifugiarono in Montalcino, creando la Repubblica di Siena riparata in Montalcino, mantenendo l'alleanza con la Francia, che continuò ad esercitare il proprio potere sulla parte meridionale del territorio della Repubblica, creando notevoli problemi alle truppe degli odiati fiorentini. Essa visse fino al 31 maggio del 1559 quando fu tradita dagli alleati francesi, che Siena aveva sempre sostenuto, che concludendo la pace di Cateau-Cambrésis con l'imperatore Carlo V, cedettero di fatto la Repubblica ai fiorentini.
Lo stemma di Siena è detto "balzana". È uno scudo diviso in due porzioni orizzontali: quella superiore è bianca, quella inferiore nera,con la Lupa che allatta Senio e Ascanio. Secondo la leggenda, starebbe a simboleggiare il fumo nero e bianco scaturito dalla pira augurale che i leggendari fondatori della città, Senio e Ascanio, figli di Remo, avrebbero acceso per ringraziare gli dei dopo la fondazione della città di Siena. Un'altra leggenda riporta che la balzana derivi dai colori dei cavalli, uno bianco ed uno nero, che Senio e Ascanio usarono nella fuga dallo zio Romolo che li voleva uccidere e con i quali giunsero a Siena. Per il loro presunto carattere focoso che, si dice, rasenta la pazzia, anche i senesi sono definiti spesso "balzani".
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Siena (em português também conhecida como Sena) é uma cidade e sede de comuna italiana na região da Toscana, província do mesmo nome, com cerca de 52.775 (ISTAT 2003) habitantes. Estende-se por uma área de 118 km2, tendo uma densidade populacional de 447 hab/km2. Faz fronteira com Asciano, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Monteriggioni, Monteroni d'Arbia e Sovicille.
Siena é universalmente conhecida pelo seu património artístico e pela notável unidade estilística do seu centro histórico, classificado pela UNESCO como Património da Humanidade.
Segundo a mitologia romana, Siena foi fundada por Sénio, filho de Remo, e podem-se encontrar numerosas estátuas e obras de arte mostrando, tal como em Roma, os irmãos amamentados pela loba. Foi um povoamento etrusco e depois colónia romana (Saena Julia) refundada pelo imperador Augusto. Era, contudo, uma pequena povoação, longe das rotas principais do Império. No século V, torna-se sede de uma diocese cristã.
As antigas famílias aristocráticas de Siena reclamam origem nos Lombardos e à data da submissão da Lombardia a Carlos Magno (774). A grande influência da cidade como pólo cultural, artístico e político é iniciada no século XII, quando se converte num burgo autogovernado de cariz republicano, substituindo o esquema feudal.
Todavia, o esquema político conduziu sempre a lutas internas entre nobres e externas com a cidade rival de Florença. Data do século XIII a ruptura entre as facções rivais dos Guibelinos de Siena e dos Guelfos de Florença, que seria argumento para a Divina Comédia de Dante.
Em 4 de Setembro de 1260, os Guibelinos apoiaram as forças do rei Manfredo da Sicília e derrotaram os Guelfos em Montaperti, que tinham um exército muito superior em armas e homens. Antes da batalha, toda a cidade fora consagrada à Virgem Maria e confiada à sua protecção. Hoje, essa protecção é recordada e renovada, lembrando os sienenses da ameaça dos aliados da Segunda Guerra Mundial de bombardearam a cidade em 1944, o que felizmente não veio a acontecer.
Siena rivalizou no campo das artes durante o período medieval até o século XIV com as cidades vizinhas. Porém, devastada em 1348 pela Peste Negra, nunca recuperou o seu esplendor, perdendo também a sua rivalidade interurbana com Florença. A Siena actual tem um aspecto muito semelhante ao dos séculos XIII-XIV. Detém uma universidade fundada em 1203, famosa pelas faculdades de Direito e Medicina, e que é uma das mais prestigiadas universidades italianas.
Em 1557 perde a independência e é integrada nas formações políticas e administrativas da Toscana.
Siena também deu vários Papas, sendo eles: Alexandre III, Pio II, Pio III e Alexandre VII.
Os dois grandes santos de Siena são Santa Catarina (1347-1380) e São Bernardino (1380-1444). Catarina Benincasa, filha de um humilde tintureiro, fez-se irmã na Ordem Terceira dominicana (para leigos)e viveu como monja na casa dos pais. É famosa pelo intercâmbio interior com o próprio Cristo, que num êxtase lhe disse: "Eu sou aquele que é e tú és aquela que não é". Apesar da origem modesta, influenciou papas e príncipes com sua sabedoria e seu exemplo, conseguindo inclusive convencer o papa de então, contra a maioria dos cardeais, a regressar a Roma do exílio de Avinhon na França. Quanto ao franciscano São Bernardino, ele é célebre por ter sido o maior expoente, no Catolicismo, da via espiritual de invocação do Nome Divino, que encontra similares em todas as grandes religiões, do Budismo (nembutsu) ao Islã ([[dhikr]]) e ao Hinduísmo (mantra). Os sermões que Bernbardino fez na praça central de Siena provocaram tal fervor religioso e devoção ao nome de Jesus que o conselho municipal decidiu colocar o monograma do nome de Jesus (composto pelas letras IHS, significando "Jesus salvador dos homens")na fachada do prédio do governo. Do mesmo modo, muitos cidadãos o pintaram sobre as fachadas de suas casas, como até hoje se pode ver na cidade.
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Siena also widely spelled Sienna in English) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.
The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. It is one of the nation's most visited tourist attractions, with over 163,000 international arrivals in 2008.[1] Siena is famous for its cuisine, art, museums, medieval cityscape and the palio.
Siena, like other Tuscan hill towns, was first settled in the time of the Etruscans (c. 900–400 BC) when it was inhabited by a tribe called the Saina. The Etruscans were an advanced people who changed the face of central Italy through their use of irrigation to reclaim previously unfarmable land, and their custom of building their settlements in well-defended hill-forts. A Roman town called Saena Julia was founded at the site in the time of the Emperor Augustus. The first document mentioning it dates from AD 70. Some archaeologists assert that Siena was controlled for a period by a Gaulish tribe called the Saenones.
The Roman origin accounts for the town's emblem: a she-wolf suckling infants Romulus and Remus. According to legend, Siena was founded by Senius, son of Remus, who was in turn the brother of Romulus, after whom Rome was named. Statues and other artwork depicting a she-wolf suckling the young twins Romulus and Remus can be seen all over the city of Siena. Other etymologies derive the name from the Etruscan family name "Saina," the Roman family name of the "Saenii," or the Latin word "senex" ("old") or the derived form "seneo", "to be old".
Siena did not prosper under Roman rule. It was not sited near any major roads and lacked opportunities for trade. Its insular status meant that Christianity did not penetrate until the 4th century AD, and it was not until the Lombards invaded Siena and the surrounding territory that it knew prosperity. After the Lombard occupation, the old Roman roads of Via Aurelia and the Via Cassia passed through areas exposed to Byzantine raids, so the Lombards rerouted much of their trade between the Lombards' northern possessions and Rome along a more secure road through Siena. Siena prospered as a trading post, and the constant streams of pilgrims passing to and from Rome provided a valuable source of income in the centuries to come.
The oldest aristocratic families in Siena date their line to the Lombards' surrender in 774 to Charlemagne. At this point, the city was inundated with a swarm of Frankish overseers who married into the existing Sienese nobility and left a legacy that can be seen in the abbeys they founded throughout Sienese territory. Feudal power waned however, and by the death of Countess Matilda in 1115 the border territory of the Mark of Tuscia which had been under the control of her family, the Canossa, broke up into several autonomous regions.
Siena prospered as a city-state, becoming a major centre of money lending and an important player in the wool trade. It was governed at first directly by its bishop, but episcopal power declined during the 12th century. The bishop was forced to concede a greater say in the running of the city to the nobility in exchange for their help during a territorial dispute with Arezzo, and this started a process which culminated in 1167 when the commune of Siena declared its independence from episcopal control. By 1179, it had a written constitution.
This period was also crucial in shaping the Siena we know today. It was during the early 13th century that the majority of the construction of the Siena Cathedral (Duomo) was completed. It was also during this period that the Piazza del Campo, now regarded as one of the most beautiful civic spaces in Europe, grew in importance as the centre of secular life. New streets were constructed leading to it, and it served as the site of the market and the location of various sporting events (perhaps better thought of as riots, in the fashion of the Florentine football matches that are still practised to this day). A wall was constructed in 1194 at the current site of the Palazzo Pubblico to stop soil erosion, an indication of how important the area was becoming as a civic space.
In the early 12th century a self-governing commune replaced the earlier aristocratic government. The consuls who governed the republic slowly became more inclusive of the poblani, or common people, and the commune increased its territory as the surrounding feudal nobles in their fortified castles submitted to the urban power. Siena's republic, struggling internally between nobles and the popular party, usually worked in political opposition to its great rival, Florence, and was in the 13th century predominantly Ghibelline in opposition to Florence's Guelph position (this conflict formed the backdrop for some of Dante's Commedia).
On 4 September 1260 the Sienese Ghibellines, supported by the forces of King Manfred of Sicily, defeated the Florentine Guelphs in the Battle of Montaperti. Before the battle, the Sienese army of around 20,000 faced a much larger Florentine army of around 33,000. Prior to the battle, the entire city was dedicated to the Virgin Mary (this was done several times in the city's history, most recently in 1944 to guard the city from Allied bombs). The man given command of Siena for the duration of the war, Bonaguida Lucari, walked barefoot and bareheaded, a halter around his neck, to the Duomo. Leading a procession composed of all the city's residents, he was met by all the clergy. Lucari and the bishop embraced, to show the unity of church and state, then Lucari formally gave the city and contrade to the Virgin. Legend has it that a thick white cloud descended on the battlefield, giving the Sienese cover and aiding their attack. The reality was that the Florentine army launched several fruitless attacks against the Sienese army during the day, then when the Sienese army countered with their own offensive, traitors within the Florentine army killed the standard bearer and in the resulting chaos, the Florentine army broke up and fled the battlefield. Almost half the Florentine army (some 15,000 men) were killed as a result. So crushing was the defeat that even today if the two cities meet in any sporting event, the Sienese supporters are likely to exhort their Florentine counterparts to “Remember Montaperti!”.
The limits on the Roman town, were the earliest known walls to the city. During the 10th and 11th centuries, the town grew to the east and later to the north, in what is now the Camollia district. Walls were built to totally surround the city, and a second set was finished by the end of the 13th century. Much of these walls still exist today.[2]
Siena's university, founded in 1240 and famed for its faculties of law and medicine, is still among the most important Italian universities. Siena rivalled Florence in the arts throughout the 13th and 14th centuries: the important late medieval painter Duccio di Buoninsegna (1253–1319) was a Sienese, but worked across the peninsula, and the mural of "Good Government" by Ambrogio Lorenzetti in the Palazzo Pubblico, or town hall, is a magnificent example of late-Medieval/early Renaissance art as well as a representation of the utopia of urban society as conceived during that period. Siena was devastated by the Black Death of 1348, and also suffered from ill-fated financial enterprises. In 1355, with the arrival of Charles IV of Luxembourg in the city, the population rose and suppressed the government of the Nove (Nine), establishing that Dodici (Twelve) nobles assisted by a council with a popular majority. This was also short-lived, being replaced by the Quindici (Fifteen) reformers in 1385, the Dieci (Ten, 1386–1387), Undici (Eleven, 1388–1398) and Twelve Priors (1398–1399) who, in the end, gave the city's seigniory to Gian Galeazzo Visconti of Milan in order to defend it from the Florentine expansionism.
In 1404 the Visconti were expelled and a government of Ten Priors established, in alliance with Florence against King Ladislas of Naples. With the election of the Sienese Pius II as Pope, the Piccolomini and other noble families were allowed to return to the government, but after his death the control returned into popular hands. In 1472 the Republic founded the Monte dei Paschi, a bank that is still active today and is the oldest surviving bank in the world. The noble factions returned in the city under Pandolfo Petrucci in 1487, with the support of Florence and of Alfonso of Calabria; Petrucci exerted an effective rule on the city until his death in 1512, favouring arts and sciences, and defending it from Cesare Borgia. Pandolfo was succeeded by his son Borghese, who was ousted by his cousin Raffaello, helped by the Medici Pope Leo X. The last Petrucci was Fabio, exiled in 1523 by the Sienese people. Internal strife resumed, with the popular faction ousting the Noveschi party supported by Clement VII: the latter sent an army, but was defeated at Camollia in 1526. Emperor Charles V took advantage of the chaotic situation to put a Spanish garrison in Siena. The citizens expelled it in 1552, allying with France: this was unacceptable for Charles, who sent his general Gian Giacomo Medici to lay siege to it with a Florentine-Imperial army.
The Sienese government entrusted its defence to Piero Strozzi. When the latter was defeated at the Battle of Marciano (August 1554), any hope of relief was lost. After 18 months of resistance, it surrendered to Spain on 17 April 1555, marking the end of the Republic of Siena. The new Spanish King Philip, owing huge sums to the Medici, ceded it (apart a series of coastal fortress annexed to the State of Presidi) to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, to which it belonged until the unification of Italy in the 19th century. A Republican government of 700 Sienese families in Montalcino resisted until 1559.
The picturesque city remains an important cultural centre, especially for humanist disciplines
Gable relief of a house on Wenceslas Square (Czech: Václavské náměstí), New Town (Nové Město), Prague (Praha), Czech Republic.
The Historic Centre of Prague is inscribed in the World Heritage List of the UNESCO.
Citation from whc.unesco.org/en/list/616
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Built between the 11th and 18th centuries, the Old Town, the Lesser Town and the New Town speak of the great architectural and cultural influence enjoyed by this city since the Middle Ages. The many magnificent monuments, such as Hradcani Castle, St Vitus Cathedral, Charles Bridge and numerous churches and palaces, built mostly in the 14th century under the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV.
Prague is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe in terms of its setting on both banks of the Vltava River, its townscape of burger houses and palaces punctuated by towers, and its individual buildings.
The Historic Centre represents a supreme manifestation of Medieval urbanism (the New Town of Emperor Charles IV built as the New Jerusalem). The Prague architectural works of the Gothic Period (14th and 15th centuries), of the High Baroque of the 1st half of the 18th century and of the rising modernism after the year 1900, influenced the development of Central Europe, perhaps even all European architecture. Prague represents one of the most prominent world centres of creative life in the field of urbanism and architecture across generations, human mentality and beliefs.
Prague belongs to the group of historic cities which have preserved the structure of their development until the present times. Within the core of Prague, successive stages of growth and changes have respected the original grand-scale urban structure of the Early Middle Ages. This structure was essentially and greatly enlarged with urban activities in the High Gothic period with more additions during the High Baroque period and in the 19th century. It has been saved from any large-scale urban renewal or massive demolitions and thus preserves its overall configuration, pattern and spatial composition.
In the course of the 1100 years of its existence, Prague’s development can be documented in the architectural expression of many historical periods and their styles. The city is rich in outstanding monuments from all periods of its history. Of particular importance are Prague Castle, the Cathedral of St Vitus, Hradćany Square in front of the Castle, the Valdgtejn Palace on the left bank of the river, the Gothic Charles Bridge, the Romanesque Rotunda of the Holy Rood, the Gothic arcaded houses round the Old Town Square, the High Gothic Minorite Church of St James in the Stark Mĕsto, the late 19th century buildings and town plan of the Nave Mĕsto.
As early as the Middle Ages, Prague became one of the leading cultural centres of Christian Europe. The Prague University, founded in 1348, is one of the earliest in Europe. The milieu of the University in the last quarter of the 14th century and the first years of the 15th century contributed among other things to the formation of ideas of the Hussite Movement which represented in fact the first steps of the European Reformation. As a metropolis of culture, Prague is connected with prominent names in art, science and politics, such as Charles IV, Petr Parléř, Jan Hus, Johannes Kepler, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Kafka, Antonín Dvořák, Albert Einstein, Edvard Beneš (co-founder of the League of Nations) and Václav Havel.
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Spišský hrad (Spiš Castle, German: Zipser Burg), municipality Žehra, district Spišská Nová Ves, Košický kraj (Košice region), Slovakia.
Spiš Castle is inscribed in the World Heritage list of the UNESCO as part of the World Heritage Site Levoča, Spišský Hrad and the Associated Cultural Monuments.
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The ruins of Spiš Castle (Slovak: Spišský hrad; Hungarian: Szepesi vár; German: Zipser Burg) in eastern Slovakia form one of the largest castle sites in Central Europe. The castle is situated above the town of Spišské Podhradie and the village of Žehra, in the region known as Spiš (Hungarian: Szepes, German: Zips, Polish: Spisz, Latin: Scepusium). It was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1993 (together with the adjacent locations of Spišská Kapitula, Spišské Podhradie and Žehra). This is one of the biggest European castles by area (41 426 m²).
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Slovakia holidays May 2016
Door in Levoča, historical region Spiš, Prešovský kraj, Slovakia.
Levoča is a town in eastern Slovakia with a well preserved historical town center. Together with the nearby Spiš Castle, the church of Žehra and other associated monuments, Levoča is inscribed in the World Heritage List of the UNESCO.
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The old town is picturesquely sited and still surrounded by most of its ancient walls. In associating the town with Spiš Castle and Žehra in June 2009 as the renamed World Heritage Site of "Levoča, Spišský Hrad, and the Associated Cultural Monuments", UNESCO cites the town's historic center, its fortifications, and the works of Master Paul of Levoča preserved in the town.
The main entrance to the old town is via the monumental Košice Gate (15th century) behind which is located the ornate baroque Church of the Holy Spirit and the New Minorite Monastery (c. 1750).
The town square (Námestie Majstra Pavla - Master Paul’s Square) boasts three major monuments; the quaint Old Town Hall (15th-17th century) which now contains a museum, the domed Evangelical Lutheran Church (1837) and the 14th century Roman Catholic Church of St. James (in Slovak: Chrám svätého Jakuba, often mistakenly referred to in English as St. Jacob's). It houses a magnificently carved and painted wooden Gothic altar, the largest in Europe, (18.62 m (61.09 ft) in height), created by Master Paul around 1520. The square is very well preserved (despite one or two modern incursions) and contains a number of striking buildings which were the townhouses of the local nobility in the late Middle Ages. Also notable in the square is the wrought iron "Cage of Shame", dating back to the 17th century, used for public punishment of miscreants. A plaque on one of the houses records the printing and publication in the town of the most famous work of Comenius, the Orbis Pictus. Other buildings on the square house a historical museum and a museum dedicated to the work of Master Paul.
Behind the square on Kláštorská Street are the 14th-century church and remains of the old monastery of the Minorites, now incorporated into a Church grammar school. Nearby is the town's Polish Gate, a Gothic construction of the 15th century.
From the 16th century to the end of 1922, Levoca was the administrative center of the province of Szepes (Spiš). Between 1806 - 1826, the Hungarian architect from Eger Antal Povolny built a grandiose administration building, the Large Provincial House, as the seat of the town's administration. He adjusted its Classicist style to Levoca's Renaissance character by emphasizing the building's horizontal lines. The House is considered the most beautiful Provincial House in the former Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it is reconstructed and it is a seat of the administration.
The State Regional Archives (Štátny oblastný archív) are in a tan stone building on the north side of the square at nám. Majstra Pavla 60.
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Slovakia holidays May 2016.
Blick über die Ruinen der Lagerräume, Wirtschaftgebäude und die Aussenmauer aus ungebrannten Lehmziegel des eigentlichen Tempels von Ramesseum zu den Saff-Gräbern oberhalb von Scheich Abd el-Qurna.
View of the "Leaning Tower of Lübeck" - no, of course this is the Holstentor (Holsten Gate), Hanseatic City of Lübeck, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
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The Holsten Gate ("Holstein Tor", later "Holstentor") is a city gate marking off the western boundary of the old center of the Hanseatic city of Lübeck. This Brick Gothic construction is one of the relics of Lübeck’s medieval city fortifications and the only remaining city gate, except for the Citadel Gate ("Burgtor"). Because its two round towers and arched entrance are so well known it is regarded today as a symbol of this German city, and together with the old city centre (Altstadt) of Lübeck it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.
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The old city center of Lübeck is in great parts inscribed in the World Heritage List of the UNESCO. A plan of the inscribed zones can be found here: whc.unesco.org/download.cfm?id_document=102311
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Lübeck – the former capital and Queen City of the Hanseatic League – was founded in the 12th century and prospered until the 16th century as the major trading centre for northern Europe. It has remained a centre for maritime commerce to this day, particularly with the Nordic countries. Despite the damage it suffered during the Second World War, the basic structure of the old city, consisting mainly of 15th- and 16th-century patrician residences, public monuments (the famous Holstentor brick gate), churches and salt storehouses, remains unaltered.
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Sightseeing tour with Seppo and Merja on 15 September 2013.