Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the former Alexandra Mechanic’s Institute and Free Library, built in 1883, is a beautiful example of a Victorian Free Classical building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was originally designed as Alexandra’s Mechanics’ Institute with a billiard room extension added in 1892. The building has been lovingly restored, and features many features typical of Victorian Free Classical architecture. The style was ebullient and self confident as it expressed society’s growing prosperity and self confidence, and is mostly represented in civil, commercial and religious buildings, but spread to a certain degree to domestic structures as well. The parapet concealing the roof, decorative accents along the roofline and windows and doors with accentuated vertical proportions are all typical of the Victorian Free Classical architecture movement.

The Mechanics' Institute Movement began in British urban industrial cities in the early 1800s to enable men of the lower classes to improve themselves. A "mechanic" was a person applying skills and technology. During the Nineteenth Century, most towns in Victoria established a Mechanics' Institute or Athenaeum with a library and meeting hall. Common objects of the Mechanics' Institute Movement was to spread useful knowledge and provide rational (non alcoholic) recreation for the community.

The former Alexandra Mechanic’s Institute and Free Library is still used for its original literary purpose, and a modern extension, subtly attached to the historic building, doubles the library’s available floor space, allowing for a wider array of benefits.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the former Alexandra Mechanic’s Institute and Free Library, built in 1883, is a beautiful example of a Victorian Free Classical building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was originally designed as Alexandra’s Mechanics’ Institute with a billiard room extension added in 1892. The building has been lovingly restored, and features many features typical of Victorian Free Classical architecture. The style was ebullient and self confident as it expressed society’s growing prosperity and self confidence, and is mostly represented in civil, commercial and religious buildings, but spread to a certain degree to domestic structures as well. The parapet concealing the roof, decorative accents along the roofline and windows and doors with accentuated vertical proportions are all typical of the Victorian Free Classical architecture movement.

The Mechanics' Institute Movement began in British urban industrial cities in the early 1800s to enable men of the lower classes to improve themselves. A "mechanic" was a person applying skills and technology. During the Nineteenth Century, most towns in Victoria established a Mechanics' Institute or Athenaeum with a library and meeting hall. Common objects of the Mechanics' Institute Movement was to spread useful knowledge and provide rational (non alcoholic) recreation for the community.

The former Alexandra Mechanic’s Institute and Free Library is still used for its original literary purpose, and a modern extension, subtly attached to the historic building, doubles the library’s available floor space, allowing for a wider array of benefits.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

This part of the Piazza del Duomo towards the unfinished part of the Cathedral around the Piazza Jacopo della Quercia.

You can also see the bell tower on this side.

Today this classically-inspired building is an Apostolic church. It was built as the Order of the Eastern Star temple. Order of the Eastern Star is a fraternal organization for male Masons and their female relatives. The architect of this building was Alvin Harley, who also designed the Henry Clay Hotel (now the Milner Hotel) on Centre Street.

Note the half-fluted/half-unfluted columns

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

statues

One of my old contact prints from college. Taken mostly on Princes St. and where I used to stay in the Southside, around Clerk St. :)

Got loads of these, I might use the dark room to print more.

The car advert has graffiti on it to make it say "(Some) Men Are Back(ward!)" :)

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

statues

Standing in the middle of Memorial Square in the heart of Colac, facing Murray Street is the Colac War Memorial.

Built rather like a classical temple of Roman or Grecian origin, the war memorial is built of sandstone and was erected as a tribute to those who both fought and died in the Great War (1914 - 1918), but it has been supplemented with plaques to other conflicts that occurred in later times. The shrine is engraved "1914 The Shire's Tribute 1918" and features places where conflict took place during the Great War; Egypt, Gallipoli, Palestine, Flanders, Pozieres, Polygon Wood, Bullecourt, Paschendale, Viller Brettoneux and Mont St Quinton. The Colac War Memorial was unveiled by Lieutenant-General Sir Harry Chauvel (1865 - 1945) on the 15th November, 1924. The cost of the memorial was ₤3600.00 and it was built by the monument manufacturers Sale and Keape. There are the names of 1665 men who had enlisted during the war. Those who died as a result of the conflict have their names picked out in gold lettering. A pine tree taken as a cutting from the original Lone Pine tree in Galippoli has been planted at the rear of the shrine on a lush piece of lawn.

Located approximately 150 kilometres to the south-west of Melbourne, past Geelong is the small Western District city of Colac. The area was originally settled by Europeans in 1837 by pastoralist Hugh Murray. A small community sprung up on the southern shore of a large lake amid the volcanic plains. The community was proclaimed a town, Lake Colac, in 1848, named after the lake upon which it perches. The post office opened in 1848 as Lake Colac and was renamed Colac in 1854 when the city changed its name. The township grew over the years, its wealth generated by the booming grazing industries of the large estates of the Western District and the dairy industry that accompanied it. Colac has a long high street shopping precinct, several churches, botanic gardens, a Masonic hall and a smattering of large properties within its boundaries, showing the conspicuous wealth of the city. Today Colac is still a commercial centre for the agricultural district that surrounds it with a population of around 10,000 people. Although not strictly a tourist town, Colac has many beautiful surviving historical buildings or interest, tree lined streets. Colac is known as “the Gateway to the Otways” (a reference to the Otway Ranges and surrounding forest area that is located just to the south of the town).

Kylemore Abbey (Irish: Mainistir na Coille Móire) is a Benedictine nunnery founded in 1920 on the grounds of Kylemore Castle, in Connemara, County Galway, Republic of Ireland. The abbey was founded when Benedictine Nuns fled Belgium in World War I.

Originally called Kylemore Castle, it was built between 1863 and 1868 as a private home for the family of Mitchell Henry, a wealthy politician from Manchester, England. After the death of his wife Margaret in 1875, Mitchell did not spend much time there. He and his wife are both buried in the small mausoleum near the church in the grounds of the abbey. Notable features of the abbey are the neo-Gothic church (built between 1877 and 1881), a miniature replica of Norwich Cathedral, made from local green Connemara marble, and the Victorian walled garden.

The abbey houses a secondary girls' boarding school, Kylemore Abbey International Girls' School. The house and gardens are open to the public.

During our visit this year we were told that the school is closing in 2010. At present there are only two classes of students left in the school.

I have discovered, recently, a new place to sit and chill in the City centre. I like to sit on the steps under/beside the Doric order columns of the National Galleries and feel the vibe of the city, listening to music, drinking coffee and smoking a roll-up. This my new favourite spot, I have another in the gardens on Princes St. at the top of a grassy knol kind of thing.

Here you can see the detail of my new jeans and Nike 6.0s. I shot this with Kodak colour film. Love the colours on my trainers. :)

via Instagram ift.tt/1TY2Lx1

This is the main atrium under the famous dome of the BC Legislative Assembly. The painting above represent the 4 major industries of BC.

This shot really shows off what only the TS-E can do. Tall architectural structures really shows off how both the tilt and the shift combine to make this shot possible.

I also took the same shot with the Samyang, but It didn't come close so this is first subject where I couldn't make the Samyang work as well as the tilt-shift.

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

The Yea Shire Hall in Yea’s main thoroughfare of High Street was originally a single storey building erected in 1877. The grander double storey Victorian Academic Classical building with a tower that stands on the site today was built in 1894 by architect L. J. Bishop. Its construction is of concrete with cement rendering. Its facilities include a ballroom, a stage, two dressing rooms and a supper room.

The Yea Shire Hall has aesthetic appeal and is of social significance, as it was the headquarters of the shire and council meetings, which were conducted in the building’s supper room. Today, the hall caters for the cultural, amusement, entertainment and recreation needs of the community. Remodelling was undertaken in 1894 and extensions in 1923 when the building’s kitchens were finally sewered. The office accommodation was converted to sewered toilet rooms in 1968.

The hall is typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with rounded windows and entrance inspired by Roman or Renaissance architecture. The construction date of 1894 and building’s name appear above the doorway on the pediment. The pedemented portico is inspired by a classical temple front, which may also have inspired the Corinthian topped columns that ornament the front. The façade itself, covered in cement render, has the ground floor as a base and the main floor treated like a piano nobile. Other typical attributes of the Victorian Academic Classical style include the balustrade ornamented parapet, which conceals the roof, and perhaps the building’s most impressive feature, the prominent central tower with its mansard roof. The tower employs classical motifs and garland boiseries and features a working clock.

Yea is a small country town located 109 kilometres (68 miles) north-east of Melbourne in rural Victoria. The first settlers in the district were overlanders from New South Wales, who arrived in 1837. By 1839, settlements and farms dotted the area along the Goulburn River. The town was surveyed and laid out in 1855 and named after Colonel Lacy Walter Yea (1808 – 1855); a British Army colonel killed that year in the Crimean War. Town lots went on sale at Kilmore the following year. Settlement followed and the Post Office opened on 15 January 1858. The town site was initially known to pioneer settlers as the Muddy Creek settlement for the Yea River, called Muddy Creek until 1878. When gold was discovered in the area in 1859 a number of smaller mining settlements came into existence, including Molesworth. Yea expanded into a township under the influx of hopeful prospectors, with the addition of several housing areas, an Anglican church (erected in 1869) and a population of 250 when it formally became a shire in 1873. Yea was promoted as something of a tourist centre in the 1890s with trout being released into King Parrot Creek to attract recreational anglers. A post office was built in 1890, followed by a grandstand and a butter factory (now cheese factory) in 1891. There was a proposal in 1908 to submerge the town under the Trawool Water Scheme but it never went ahead. Today Yea is a popular stopping point for tourists on their way from Melbourne to the Victorian snow fields and Lake Eildon, and is very popular with cyclists who traverse the old railway line, which has since been converted into a cycling trail.

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

Located near the top end of the main shopping strip, the Commercial Banking Company’s former Korumburra bank branch is a tribute to 1930s architectural style and stands out sharply amid its Victorian and Edwardian neighbours with its clean lines and bold brown brick and white painted colour scheme.

Like the Korumburra Masonic Hall around the corner, the Art Deco facade of the former bank branch, is extremely stripped back. The only piece of ornamentation identifying it as a branch of the Commercial Banking Company is the cartouche above the central window of the building, in which appear the letters CBC intertwined in classical script. Whilst the building now houses a firm of barristers and solicitors, when the building was occupied by its original owners there would not have been any more signage to advertise the business inside. There were identically designed and decorated branches in towns across South Gippsland to give uniformity and help with the recognition of the bank’s brand. There is still an existing example in Korumburra’s neighbouring town, Leongatha.

The building is very Inter-War Stripped Classical in style because of the limited decoration, its symmetrical façade, the division of the frontage into vertical bays indicating classical origin, vestigial classical columns and the element of the Art Deco style in its decoration. This Art Deco detailing is perhaps the building’s main attraction as it is very much in the “Egyptomania” or “Tutmania” style that gripped the world after the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922. The columns have stylised papyrus capitals and the portico they hold up is decorated in the same patterns which is so evocative of the Jazz Age. A similar design of papyrus flowers top each of the three windows appearing on the bank’s façade. The bank also features Functionalist Moderne metal windows.

The Commercial Banking Company began operations on 1 November 1834 as The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney. In 1848 it was incorporated by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament. 1981 saw the bank amalgamate with the National Bank of Australasia Limited.

Korumburra is a medium-sized dairy and farming town in country Victoria, located on the South Gippsland Highway, 120 kilometres south-east of Melbourne. Surrounded by rolling green hills, the town has a population of a little over 4,000 people. Korumburra has built itself on coal mining (after the discovery of a coal seam in 1870), local forestry and dairy farming. Whilst the coal seam has been used up, farming in the area still thrives and a great deal of dairy produce is created from the area. The post office in the area opened on the 1st of September in 1884, and moved to the township on the railway survey line on the 1st of November 1889, the existing office being renamed Glentress. The steam railway connecting it with Melbourne arrived in 1891. Whilst the train line has long since operating commercially, it has found a new life as the popular tourist railway the South Gippsland Railway which operates a heritage railway service between the major country centre of Leongatha and the small market town of Nyora.

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

Located near the top end of the main shopping strip, the Commercial Banking Company’s former Korumburra bank branch is a tribute to 1930s architectural style and stands out sharply amid its Victorian and Edwardian neighbours with its clean lines and bold brown brick and white painted colour scheme.

Like the Korumburra Masonic Hall around the corner, the Art Deco facade of the former bank branch, is extremely stripped back. The only piece of ornamentation identifying it as a branch of the Commercial Banking Company is the cartouche above the central window of the building, in which appear the letters CBC intertwined in classical script. Whilst the building now houses a firm of barristers and solicitors, when the building was occupied by its original owners there would not have been any more signage to advertise the business inside. There were identically designed and decorated branches in towns across South Gippsland to give uniformity and help with the recognition of the bank’s brand. There is still an existing example in Korumburra’s neighbouring town, Leongatha.

The building is very Inter-War Stripped Classical in style because of the limited decoration, its symmetrical façade, the division of the frontage into vertical bays indicating classical origin, vestigial classical columns and the element of the Art Deco style in its decoration. This Art Deco detailing is perhaps the building’s main attraction as it is very much in the “Egyptomania” or “Tutmania” style that gripped the world after the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922. The columns have stylised papyrus capitals and the portico they hold up is decorated in the same patterns which is so evocative of the Jazz Age. A similar design of papyrus flowers top each of the three windows appearing on the bank’s façade. The bank also features Functionalist Moderne metal windows.

The Commercial Banking Company began operations on 1 November 1834 as The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney. In 1848 it was incorporated by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament. 1981 saw the bank amalgamate with the National Bank of Australasia Limited.

Korumburra is a medium-sized dairy and farming town in country Victoria, located on the South Gippsland Highway, 120 kilometres south-east of Melbourne. Surrounded by rolling green hills, the town has a population of a little over 4,000 people. Korumburra has built itself on coal mining (after the discovery of a coal seam in 1870), local forestry and dairy farming. Whilst the coal seam has been used up, farming in the area still thrives and a great deal of dairy produce is created from the area. The post office in the area opened on the 1st of September in 1884, and moved to the township on the railway survey line on the 1st of November 1889, the existing office being renamed Glentress. The steam railway connecting it with Melbourne arrived in 1891. Whilst the train line has long since operating commercially, it has found a new life as the popular tourist railway the South Gippsland Railway which operates a heritage railway service between the major country centre of Leongatha and the small market town of Nyora.

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

This part of the Piazza del Duomo towards the unfinished part of the Cathedral around the Piazza Jacopo della Quercia.

You can also see the bell tower on this side.

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

Located near the top end of the main shopping strip, the Commercial Banking Company’s former Korumburra bank branch is a tribute to 1930s architectural style and stands out sharply amid its Victorian and Edwardian neighbours with its clean lines and bold brown brick and white painted colour scheme.

Like the Korumburra Masonic Hall around the corner, the Art Deco facade of the former bank branch, is extremely stripped back. The only piece of ornamentation identifying it as a branch of the Commercial Banking Company is the cartouche above the central window of the building, in which appear the letters CBC intertwined in classical script. Whilst the building now houses a firm of barristers and solicitors, when the building was occupied by its original owners there would not have been any more signage to advertise the business inside. There were identically designed and decorated branches in towns across South Gippsland to give uniformity and help with the recognition of the bank’s brand. There is still an existing example in Korumburra’s neighbouring town, Leongatha.

The building is very Inter-War Stripped Classical in style because of the limited decoration, its symmetrical façade, the division of the frontage into vertical bays indicating classical origin, vestigial classical columns and the element of the Art Deco style in its decoration. This Art Deco detailing is perhaps the building’s main attraction as it is very much in the “Egyptomania” or “Tutmania” style that gripped the world after the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922. The columns have stylised papyrus capitals and the portico they hold up is decorated in the same patterns which is so evocative of the Jazz Age. A similar design of papyrus flowers top each of the three windows appearing on the bank’s façade. The bank also features Functionalist Moderne metal windows.

The Commercial Banking Company began operations on 1 November 1834 as The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney. In 1848 it was incorporated by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament. 1981 saw the bank amalgamate with the National Bank of Australasia Limited.

Korumburra is a medium-sized dairy and farming town in country Victoria, located on the South Gippsland Highway, 120 kilometres south-east of Melbourne. Surrounded by rolling green hills, the town has a population of a little over 4,000 people. Korumburra has built itself on coal mining (after the discovery of a coal seam in 1870), local forestry and dairy farming. Whilst the coal seam has been used up, farming in the area still thrives and a great deal of dairy produce is created from the area. The post office in the area opened on the 1st of September in 1884, and moved to the township on the railway survey line on the 1st of November 1889, the existing office being renamed Glentress. The steam railway connecting it with Melbourne arrived in 1891. Whilst the train line has long since operating commercially, it has found a new life as the popular tourist railway the South Gippsland Railway which operates a heritage railway service between the major country centre of Leongatha and the small market town of Nyora.

Took this shot in the bustling heart of the town, where the grand Town Hall stands with its classical columns and British flag waving at the top. It's a focal point where people gather, contributing to the lively atmosphere. The historic building's façade, with its decorative windows and stonework, echoes a time when such halls were the cornerstone of community life.

Notre Dame de Paris ('Our Lady of Paris' in French) is a Gothic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, France.

Notre Dame de Paris ('Our Lady of Paris' in French) is a Gothic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in Paris, France, with its main entrance to the west. It is the cathedral of Paris and the seat of the Archbishop of Paris. Notre Dame de Paris is widely considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture. It was restored and saved from destruction by Viollet-le-Duc, one of France's most famous architects. The name Notre Dame means "Our Lady" in French. Notre Dame de Paris was one of the first Gothic cathedrals, and its construction spanned the Gothic period. Its sculptures and stained glass show the heavy influence of naturalism, unlike that of earlier Romanesque architecture.

Notre Dame de Paris was among the first buildings in the world to use the flying buttress [arched exterior supports]. The building was not originally designed to include the flying buttresses around the choir and nave. After the construction began and the thinner walls (popularized in the Gothic style) grew ever higher, stress fractures began to occur as the walls pushed outward. In response, the cathedral's architects built supports around the outside walls, and later additions continued as such.

The cathedral suffered desecration during the radical phase of the French Revolution in the 1790s, when much of its religious imagery was damaged or destroyed. During the 19th century, an extensive restoration project was completed, returning the cathedral to its previous state.

Newport, RI

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the former Alexandra Mechanic’s Institute and Free Library, built in 1883, is a beautiful example of a Victorian Free Classical building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was originally designed as Alexandra’s Mechanics’ Institute with a billiard room extension added in 1892. The building has been lovingly restored, and features many features typical of Victorian Free Classical architecture. The style was ebullient and self confident as it expressed society’s growing prosperity and self confidence, and is mostly represented in civil, commercial and religious buildings, but spread to a certain degree to domestic structures as well. The parapet concealing the roof, decorative accents along the roofline and windows and doors with accentuated vertical proportions are all typical of the Victorian Free Classical architecture movement.

The Mechanics' Institute Movement began in British urban industrial cities in the early 1800s to enable men of the lower classes to improve themselves. A "mechanic" was a person applying skills and technology. During the Nineteenth Century, most towns in Victoria established a Mechanics' Institute or Athenaeum with a library and meeting hall. Common objects of the Mechanics' Institute Movement was to spread useful knowledge and provide rational (non alcoholic) recreation for the community.

The former Alexandra Mechanic’s Institute and Free Library is still used for its original literary purpose, and a modern extension, subtly attached to the historic building, doubles the library’s available floor space, allowing for a wider array of benefits.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

The earliest National Bank of Australia in Colac established its premises in the town's main thoroughfare at 28 Murray Street in a two storey brick building erected in 1865 to a design by the architect, Leonard Terry. In 1886 the Leonard Terry bank was demolished to make way for the present two storey stucco and brick building which was completed in August 1887.

Designed by self-trained local Colac architect Alexander Hamilton (1825 - 1901), the current National Bank of Australia building is a good example of transitional boom Classicism architecture. Builders Taylor and Ellis of Ballarat erected the bank at a cost of £3,500.00. The building, which stands detached and complete like the nearby Colac Shire Hall has an iron palisade fence. The design, with rusticated ground floor facade, Corinthian porch, unusual enframed windows and pronounced parapet entablature, is illustrative of trends in bank architecture in the mid 1880s in Victoria and is one of Mr. Hamilton's most significant and scholarly works.

The bank has seen many uses over the years, and was at one stage in its life a gentleman's club for wealthy local landowners to socialise in. Today the National Bank of Australia has moved to more modern premises in Colac, but the building houses professional suites as befits a building which such a fine architectural pedigree.

Alexander Hamilton was born in Moffat, Scotland, but migrated to Australia in 1852. Originally based in Melbourne, he went to the Western District town of Mortlake before moving in 1871 to Colac where he was amongst other professions a millwright, builder and an architect. Alexander Hamilton really concentrated on his profession as an architect when he arrived in Colac and made his name in the area as a number of older homesteads and buildings in the district were built under his instruction and supervision. These include "Illewarra House" which was built for for John Calvert in 1873, "Tarndwarncoort" for Alexander Dennis in 1877 and "Talindert" for James Manifold in 1890. Mr. Hamilton also designed the Presbyterian manse in Colac in 1883 and the Bank of Australasia in Beeac in 1888.

Located approximately 150 kilometres to the south-west of Melbourne, past Geelong is the small Western District city of Colac. The area was originally settled by Europeans in 1837 by pastoralist Hugh Murray. A small community sprung up on the southern shore of a large lake amid the volcanic plains. The community was proclaimed a town, Lake Colac, in 1848, named after the lake upon which it perches. The post office opened in 1848 as Lake Colac and was renamed Colac in 1854 when the city changed its name. The township grew over the years, its wealth generated by the booming grazing industries of the large estates of the Western District and the dairy industry that accompanied it. Colac has a long high street shopping precinct, several churches, botanic gardens, a Masonic hall and a smattering of large properties within its boundaries, showing the conspicuous wealth of the city. Today Colac is still a commercial centre for the agricultural district that surrounds it with a population of around 10,000 people. Although not strictly a tourist town, Colac has many beautiful surviving historical buildings or interest, tree lined streets. Colac is known as “the Gateway to the Otways” (a reference to the Otway Ranges and surrounding forest area that is located just to the south of the town).

Church of the Theotokos of Kazan was built in 1780s – 1790s under supervision of the architect Karl Blank, though the likely designers could be Vasily Bazhenov or Matvey Kazakov.

Ashford Castle is a medieval castle near Cong in County Mayo, Ireland on the shore of Lough Corrib.

The castle was built in 1228 by the Anglo-Norman de Burgo family following their defeat of the O'Connors, the Royal House of Connacht, who are still extant in the person of the O Connor Donn.The de Burgo's would build several such castles throughout the province, including one on the mouth of the River Corrib around which was to grow the City of Galway, but Ashford would remain their principal stronghold in the vastness of a wild and untamed province. The principal legacy of the native O'Connors is to be seen at the gates of the Estate in the form of the magnificent Romanesque Augustinian Abbey of Cong. It is in this Abbey that Ireland's last High King Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair died and from which came the greatest relic of his Court, the Cross of Cong created to hold a piece of the True Cross and now in the National Museum of Ireland.

After more than three and a half centuries under the de Burgo's, Ashford passed into the hands of a new master, when following a fierce battle between the forces of the de Burgo's and those of the English official Sir Richard Bingham, Lord President of Connaught, a truce was agreed and the castle fell to Bingham in 1589 who adds a fortified enclave within its precincts. In 1715 the estate of Ashford is established by the Browne Family (Baron Oranmore) and a lodge in the style of a 17th Century French chateau was added to the medieval splendour of the castle.

The Estate was purchased in 1852 by Sir Benjamin Guinness, he extended the estate to 26,000 acres, built new roads, planted thousands of trees and added two large victorian style extensions. On his death in 1868 the estate passed to his son Lord Ardilaun, an avid gardener who oversaw the development of massive woodlands and rebuilt the entire west wing of the castle. He also subsidised the operation of several steamboats, the most notable of which was the Lady Eglinton, which plied between the villages of the Upper Lough Corrib region and Galway City, thus opening the area to increased commerce. In a time of agitation by tenant farmers in the Land Wars of the late 19th Century, epitomised by the action of tenants at nearby Lough Mask House (home of Captain Charles Boycott) he was considered by many to be an 'improving' landlord. Although some of these were not always successful, particularly the Cong Canal also known as the "Dry Canal. It was built to link Lough Mask and Lough Corrib but was a failure, primarily due to its inability to hold water. Despite such setbacks the love borne by he and his wife Olive, daughter of the 3rd Earl of Bantry for the Castle and the estate was deep and best epitomised by that fact that when he was ennobled in 1880 he derived his title from the island of Ardilaun, which formed part of the Estate on Lough Corrib.

The Castle remained in the hands of the family and its Iveagh Trust until it was sold to Noel Huggard in 1939; he opened the estate as a hotel, which it became renowned for the provision of its country pursuits, such as angling & shooting.

In 1951 the film director John Ford came to the west of Ireland to film what would become a movie classic The Quiet Man. Starring John Wayne and Maureen O Hara, Ashford Castle and its grounds, as well as nearby Cong formed the backdrop for much of the action in the film.

In 1970 Ashford Castle was bought by John Mulcahy who oversaw its complete restoration and expansion, doubling its size with the addition of a new wing in the early 1970s, building a golf course and developing the grounds and gardens. While in 1985 a group of Irish American investors, which included Chuck Feeney and Prescott Bush purchased Ashford. The Castle was sold on by these investors in 2008 and is now in the possession of the Galway-based property investor Gerry Barrett and his family.

In its time the castle has played host to many notable guests, including: HM King George V of the United Kingdom, his consort Queen Mary, Oscar Wilde (his father Sir William Wilde had an estate adjacent to Ashford and where the author, playwright and poet spent much of his childhood), U.S. President Ronald Reagan, HRH the Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy, John Wayne, HSH Prince Rainier III of Monaco & his consort HSH the Princess Grace.

The official site for the castle - www.ashford.ie/index.php

Athens, Greece

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

An example of a smaller, but impressive, Classical Revival mausoleum.

The Yea Shire Hall in Yea’s main thoroughfare of High Street was originally a single storey building erected in 1877. The grander double storey Victorian Academic Classical building with a tower that stands on the site today was built in 1894 by architect L. J. Bishop. Its construction is of concrete with cement rendering. Its facilities include a ballroom, a stage, two dressing rooms and a supper room.

The Yea Shire Hall has aesthetic appeal and is of social significance, as it was the headquarters of the shire and council meetings, which were conducted in the building’s supper room. Today, the hall caters for the cultural, amusement, entertainment and recreation needs of the community. Remodelling was undertaken in 1894 and extensions in 1923 when the building’s kitchens were finally sewered. The office accommodation was converted to sewered toilet rooms in 1968.

The hall is typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with rounded windows and entrance inspired by Roman or Renaissance architecture. The construction date of 1894 and building’s name appear above the doorway on the pediment. The pedemented portico is inspired by a classical temple front, which may also have inspired the Corinthian topped columns that ornament the front. The façade itself, covered in cement render, has the ground floor as a base and the main floor treated like a piano nobile. Other typical attributes of the Victorian Academic Classical style include the balustrade ornamented parapet, which conceals the roof, and perhaps the building’s most impressive feature, the prominent central tower with its mansard roof. The tower employs classical motifs and garland boiseries and features a working clock.

Yea is a small country town located 109 kilometres (68 miles) north-east of Melbourne in rural Victoria. The first settlers in the district were overlanders from New South Wales, who arrived in 1837. By 1839, settlements and farms dotted the area along the Goulburn River. The town was surveyed and laid out in 1855 and named after Colonel Lacy Walter Yea (1808 – 1855); a British Army colonel killed that year in the Crimean War. Town lots went on sale at Kilmore the following year. Settlement followed and the Post Office opened on 15 January 1858. The town site was initially known to pioneer settlers as the Muddy Creek settlement for the Yea River, called Muddy Creek until 1878. When gold was discovered in the area in 1859 a number of smaller mining settlements came into existence, including Molesworth. Yea expanded into a township under the influx of hopeful prospectors, with the addition of several housing areas, an Anglican church (erected in 1869) and a population of 250 when it formally became a shire in 1873. Yea was promoted as something of a tourist centre in the 1890s with trout being released into King Parrot Creek to attract recreational anglers. A post office was built in 1890, followed by a grandstand and a butter factory (now cheese factory) in 1891. There was a proposal in 1908 to submerge the town under the Trawool Water Scheme but it never went ahead. Today Yea is a popular stopping point for tourists on their way from Melbourne to the Victorian snow fields and Lake Eildon, and is very popular with cyclists who traverse the old railway line, which has since been converted into a cycling trail.

Standing in the middle of Memorial Square in the heart of Colac, facing Murray Street is the Colac War Memorial.

Built rather like a classical temple of Roman or Grecian origin, the war memorial is built of sandstone and was erected as a tribute to those who both fought and died in the Great War (1914 - 1918), but it has been supplemented with plaques to other conflicts that occurred in later times. The shrine is engraved "1914 The Shire's Tribute 1918" and features places where conflict took place during the Great War; Egypt, Gallipoli, Palestine, Flanders, Pozieres, Polygon Wood, Bullecourt, Paschendale, Viller Brettoneux and Mont St Quinton. The Colac War Memorial was unveiled by Lieutenant-General Sir Harry Chauvel (1865 - 1945) on the 15th November, 1924. The cost of the memorial was ₤3600.00 and it was built by the monument manufacturers Sale and Keape. There are the names of 1665 men who had enlisted during the war. Those who died as a result of the conflict have their names picked out in gold lettering. A pine tree taken as a cutting from the original Lone Pine tree in Galippoli has been planted at the rear of the shrine on a lush piece of lawn.

Located approximately 150 kilometres to the south-west of Melbourne, past Geelong is the small Western District city of Colac. The area was originally settled by Europeans in 1837 by pastoralist Hugh Murray. A small community sprung up on the southern shore of a large lake amid the volcanic plains. The community was proclaimed a town, Lake Colac, in 1848, named after the lake upon which it perches. The post office opened in 1848 as Lake Colac and was renamed Colac in 1854 when the city changed its name. The township grew over the years, its wealth generated by the booming grazing industries of the large estates of the Western District and the dairy industry that accompanied it. Colac has a long high street shopping precinct, several churches, botanic gardens, a Masonic hall and a smattering of large properties within its boundaries, showing the conspicuous wealth of the city. Today Colac is still a commercial centre for the agricultural district that surrounds it with a population of around 10,000 people. Although not strictly a tourist town, Colac has many beautiful surviving historical buildings or interest, tree lined streets. Colac is known as “the Gateway to the Otways” (a reference to the Otway Ranges and surrounding forest area that is located just to the south of the town).

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

Major Claude Martin was born in Lyon, France and serve as a chief architect for the Lucknow nawabs at the end of 18th century. His masterpiece is the college he has founded as a philanthropist. The architecture is a mix of indo-islamic and french influences. He is buried in a vault in the basement of this building.

Claude Martin est un officier français né à Lyon qui devint l'architecte en chef des nawabs de Lucknow à la fin du 18e siècle. Son chef-d'oeuvre est le collège de la Martinière dont il fut le créateur et le mécène. Son architecture est un mélange d'influences françaises et indo-islamiques. Il est enterré dans un caveau au sous-sol du bâtiment.

© Jean-Christophe Huet

www.jeanchristophehuet.com

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

Hospital of Santa Maria della Scala

Santa Maria della Scala (also referred to as the Hospital, Ospedale, and Spedale) is located in Siena, Italy. Now a museum, it was once an important civic hospital dedicated to caring for abandoned children, the poor, the sick, and pilgrims. Revenues were earned partially from bequests and donations from the citizens of Siena, particularly the wealthy. The head of the hospital was the rector who managed the lay brothers responsible for its operation.

Santa Maria della Scala was one of Europe's first hospitals and is one of the oldest hospitals still surviving in the world. It played a major cultural role and is considered one of Siena's 3 main artistic hubs.

The Hospital partially gets its name from its position. Located across the Piazza del Duomo from Siena Cathedral, Santa Maria della Scala refers to its position across from the steps that lead into the Cathedral. The Hospital is made up of a complex of buildings. Those buildings have been enlarged and improved upon over the years, yet the Hospital's properties also once included much of the Via del Capitano and land outside the city walls as well as other, smaller hospitals. Around the 13th and 14th centuries, the Hospital organized its land into large agricultural estates. This is said to have "represented the largest concentration of land of the Sienese state". This agricultural land helped to financially support the Hospital's works.

Particular sections of note include the Church of the Santissima Annuziata, which was built at the end of the 13th century but then completely renovated towards the end of the 15th century, and the Pellegrinaio. The Pellegrinaio (or "Pilgrim's Hall") is the main hall where pilgrims were lodged. It also served as a location for public festivities. This hall, along with another specifically to house women was built around 1325. The church of the Santissima Annuziata, built during the 13th century, was enlarged during the second part of the 15th century, along with the "vertical expansion" of the Palazzo del Rettore.

In camera panoramic that went wrong on the left. Have attempted to fix it. Probably went onto the next photo at the time and didn't realise it at the time!

Melbourne’s “Argus” newspaper reported on the 19th of July 1881 that a new shire hall had been erected in Alexandra at a cost of about £3,000.00, and was considered to be one of the finest buildings of its class in the colony.

Located on Grant Street at the intersection of Perkins Street, the Alexandra Shire Hall is indeed very grand building, and is part of the north eastern Victorian town’s historical centre. It was designed by the Collins Street architect W. H. Ellerker, and whilst described by the “Argus” as Italianate in style, the hall is actually typical of the mid Victorian eclectic revival and modification of various stands of European Renaissance architecture that culminated in what was called the Academic Classical style. The building is symmetrical with large rounded windows and an arched entrance. The building date of 1881 may be found carved into the bluestone threshold of the main doors. The entire Grant Street façade is inspired by Roman architecture, with a pedimented portico derived from classical temple facades. A wonderful piece of Australiana, installed after Federation in 1901, may be found in a central cartouche in the apex of the grand gable; the Victorian coat-of-arms flanked by an emu and kangaroo, with “advance Australia” emblazoned on a ribbon below them.

Built by Thomas Carison, the Alexandra Shire Hall features a banqueting hall that could seat over 1,000 people and the grand room was often used as a ballroom for district gatherings and dances. It was the meeting place for the first shire councilors, who convened in the council chambers, and the Shire Hall also housed the office for the first shire secretary and engineer, who had their own offices in the complex.

The building narrowly avoided demolition in 1976 after there was a strong backlash by the citizens of Alexandra, who objected strongly to the proposal. Today the Shire Hall is enjoying a Renaissance as one of the focal points for Alexandra’s artistic scene.

Alexandra is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located at the junction of the Goulburn Valley Highway (B340) and Maroondah Highway (B360), 26 kilometres west of Eildon. The town was settled in the late 1860s, with a Post Office opening on 15 March 1867 (known until 24 April 1867) as Redgate. The town was originally known as Redgate, or Red Gate Diggings. The current name either derives from Alexandra of Denmark (Queen’s Consort to King Edward VII of England) when given a stature of her to the shire; or from three men named Alexander (Alesander, McGregor, Alexander Don, and Alexander Luckie) who discovered gold in the area in 1866. Charles Jones born Herefordshire also discovered Gold on the Luckie Mine in 1866. He bought a Hotel with John Henry Osborne and was the proprietor of the New York and London Hotel Grant Street Alexandra. The railway to Alexandra arrived in the town via Yea from Tallarook in 1909, and closed on November 18, 1978. The Rubicon Tramway connected Alexandra with the village of Rubicon, at the junction of the Rubicon and Royston Rivers. Today many tourists pass through Alexandra on their way to the Mount Buller ski resort from Melbourne. The town contains the Timber Tramway and Museum (located at the Alexandra Railway Station), and the National Trust classified post office and law courts. There is a local market on the second Saturday of each month from September to May, an annual art show at Easter, an agricultural show and rose festival in November, and the annual Truck, Rod and Ute Show in June.

A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

This part of the Piazza del Duomo towards the unfinished part of the Cathedral around the Piazza Jacopo della Quercia.

You can also see the bell tower on this side.

Construction on the Ballarat Mechanics' Institute on Sturt Street began in 1859. As a Gold Rush city with a growing population of miners, a number of eminent philanthropic citizens of Ballarat were anxious to provide working men with a chance to improve their work skills and their general education. It took the dedication of locals another decade to complete the Sturt Street facade, and a further decade for the billard room to be completed.

Built in the Classical style, the three storey Mechanics' Institute has a very restrained facade with minimal decoration. It features a beautiful bull nosed verandah edged with ornate cast iron lacework along the street to keep out the heat of the afternoon sun. Over the arched entrance, the letters of the Mechanic’s Institute are spelt in delicate, florid gilt letters. It also has a balcony extending from a scalloped niche on the first floor and a balconette on the upper floor. Crowning the building is the figure of Pallas Athena, the Greek Goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration civilization, law and justice, just warfare, mathematics, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, and skill.

Historically, Mechanics' Institutes were educational establishments formed to provide adult education, particularly in technical subjects, to working men. As such, they were often funded by local industrialists on the grounds that they would ultimately benefit from having more knowledgeable and skilled employees. The Mechanics' Institutes were used as 'libraries' for the adult working class, and provided them with an alternative pastime to gambling and drinking in pubs.

Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey.

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A look around the Piazza del Duomo in Siena, mainly to look at Siena Cathedral (Duomo di Siena) but there was other buildings around the square and some sculptures to admire!

Piazza del Duomo in Siena flanks the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta with an "L" shape and with an ideal continuation in the missing nave of the "New Cathedral", today Piazza Jacopo della Quercia. In addition to the famous religious building, there is the museum complex of Santa Maria della Scala .

The square is located at the top of the hill of Santa Maria, near the oldest part of the Roman city, the Castelvecchio . The birth of the religious center can be referred, hypothetically and circumstantially, to the seventh century or so (although it can not be excluded that the hill hosted a sort of more ancient acropolis ), when the episcopal see and the cathedral were moved there from a place unspecified of Castelvecchio. The entire apiscopis pit was in fact included in the first circle of the early medieval walls , which passed more or less along the current via del Fosso di Sant'Ansano, that is on the back of the Santa Maria della Scala building .

With the construction of the Duomo , from the eleventh century, the square began to have the current configuration, which became mostly definitive only in the seventeenth century, when the ancient bishop's palace (eleventh century) was demolished, freeing the right flank of the cathedral, while on the northern side was demolished the loggia that connected the old Canonica to the Duomo itself.

The extraordinary façade of the Duomo visually dominates the square, with the light that illuminates it for most of the day without shadows from the surrounding buildings, which are however closely calibrated. It was built in the lower part between 1285 and 1296 by Giovanni Pisano in Gothic style with rayonnant influences, and in the upper part by Camaino di Crescentino and finished in 1317 . The steps that lift the cathedral are concluded in a proportionate platform that is the base of the monument, on which are located marble, in correspondence of the main entrances marble (today copies of the originals) representing the ceremonies of the initiation of Nastagio di Gaspare , datable to 1450 .

At the corners of the staircase two Lupe with the marble twins on columns are respectively works by Giovanni Pisano and Urbano da Cortona , both admitted to the nearby Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and replaced by copies. The right side of the building, the one that gives onto the square, is simpler, standing out the only Door of Forgiveness adorned with a bas-relief of the Madonna and Child by Donatello (also in copy).

The bell tower , with white and black bands, was built by incorporating part of the ancient tower of the Bisdomini, towards the end of the thirteenth century.

The opposite side of the cathedral façade is occupied by the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala , which owes its name to the steps of the Cathedral. Founded by the same canons to give hospitality to the pilgrims, assist the poor, the sick and welcome orphan children, it was one of the largest and most important structures of this kind in Tuscany between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its prestige is reflected today in the rich decoration of the complex, which in the meantime became a museum. Inside there are only a small part of the works of art owned by the hospital (many are in the National Gallery ), but sufficient to give an idea of ​​the ancient splendor. It also houses the National Archaeological Museum (in the basement) and the original pieces of the Fonte Gaia , both by Jacopo della Quercia and the nineteenth-century reconstruction by Tito Sarrocchi .

The north side of the square is occupied by the Archbishop's Palace , which today has an eighteenth-century facade, but camouflaged by the use of the Gothic-Sienese style of the fourteenth century. Here, up to the middle of the seventeenth century, the Canons and the rector of the Opera were seated, while the archbishop , as already mentioned, lived in a palace that was leaning against the right side of the cathedral.

The main facade of Siena Cathedral.

Siena Cathedral

Siena Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.

Previously the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, from the 15th century the Archdiocese of Siena, it is now that of the Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino.

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 a hexagonal 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 façade of Siena Cathedral is one of the most fascinating in all of Italy and certainly one of the most impressive features in Siena. Each of the cardinal points (west, east, north, and south) has their own distinct work; by far the most impressive of these is the west façade. Acting as the main entryway to the Duomo proper, it boasts three portals (see Portal (architecture)); the central one is capped by a bronze-work sun.

Built in two stages and combining elements of French Gothic, Tuscan Romanesque architecture, and Classical architecture, the west façade is a beautiful example of Sienanise workmanship. Work began on the lower part around 1284. Built using polychrome marble, the work was overseen by Giovanni Pisano whose work on the Duomo’s façade and pulpit was influenced by his father Nicola Pisano.

The lower portion of the façade is designed from Giovanni's original plans. Built in Tuscan Romanesque style it emphasizes a horizontal unity of the area around the portals at the expense of the vertical bay divisions. The three portals, surmounted by lunettes, are based on Giovanni Pisano’s original designs, as are much of the sculpture and orientation surrounding the entrances. The areas around and above the doors, as well as the columns between the portals, are richly decorated with acanthus scrolls, allegorical figures and biblical scenes.

Giovanni Pisano was able to oversee his work until about 1296 when he abruptly left Siena, reportedly over creative differences with the Opera del Duomo, the group that oversaw the construction and maintenance of the Siena cathedrals. Pisano's work on the lower façade was continued under the direction of Camaino di Crescentino, but a number of changes were made to the original plan. These included raising the façade due to the raising of the nave of the church and the instillation of a larger rose window based on designs by Duccio di Buoninsegna and commissioned by the city of Siena. Work on the west façade came to an abrupt end in 1317 when the Opera del Duomo redirected all efforts to the east façade.

Upper façade

There is debate as to when work on the upper façade was completed. Most scholars agree that it was finished sometime between 1360 and 1370, though when it began again is not known. The work continued to use Pisano's plans for the façade with some adaptations under the direction of Giovanni di Cecco. Di Cecco preferred more elaborate designs, most likely inspired by the Orvieto Cathedral. The façade needed to be much higher than foreseen as the nave had, once again, been raised.

The changes were probably needed to accommodate the raised nave and di Cecco's more elaborate design scheme, heavily influenced by French Gothic architecture, caused the apparent division of the upper portion of the cathedral. Most noticeably the pinnacles of the upper portion do not continue from the columns flanking the central portal as they normally would in such cathedrals. Instead they are substantially offset, resulting in a vertical discontinuity which is uncommon cathedrals of the time as it can lead to structural weakness. To adjust for this imbalance, the towers on each side of the cathedral were opened by adding windows, reducing the weight they needed to support. The upper portion also features heavy Gothic decoration, a marked contrast to the simple geometric designed common to Tuscan Romanesque architecture.

Façade sculpture

While most of the sculpture decorating the lower level of the lavish façade was sculpted by Giovanni Pisano and assistant depicting prophets, philosophers and apostles, the more Gothic statuary adorning the upper portion—including the half-length statues of the patriarchs in the niches around the rose window—are works of later, unattributed, sculptors. Almost all the statuary adorning the cathedral today are copies. The originals are kept in the Crypt of the Statues in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.

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.

The bronze central door is a recent addition to the cathedral, replacing the original wooden one. The large door, known as the Porta della Riconoscenza, was commissioned in 1946 near the end of the German occupation of Siena. Sculpted by Vico Consorti and cast by Enrico Manfrini, the scenes on the door represent the Glorification of the Virgin, Siena’s patron saint.

On the left corner pier of the façade is a 14th-century inscription marking the grave of Giovanni Pisano. Next to the façade stands a column with a statue of the Contrade Lupa, a wolf breast-feeding Romulus and Remus. According to local legend Senius and Aschius, sons of Remus and founders of Siena, left Rome with the statue, stolen from the Temple of Apollo in Rome.

This part of the Piazza del Duomo towards the unfinished part of the Cathedral around the Piazza Jacopo della Quercia.

You can also see the bell tower on this side.

Located near the top end of the main shopping strip, the Commercial Banking Company’s former Korumburra bank branch is a tribute to 1930s architectural style and stands out sharply amid its Victorian and Edwardian neighbours with its clean lines and bold brown brick and white painted colour scheme.

Like the Korumburra Masonic Hall around the corner, the Art Deco facade of the former bank branch, is extremely stripped back. The only piece of ornamentation identifying it as a branch of the Commercial Banking Company is the cartouche above the central window of the building, in which appear the letters CBC intertwined in classical script. Whilst the building now houses a firm of barristers and solicitors, when the building was occupied by its original owners there would not have been any more signage to advertise the business inside. There were identically designed and decorated branches in towns across South Gippsland to give uniformity and help with the recognition of the bank’s brand. There is still an existing example in Korumburra’s neighbouring town, Leongatha.

The building is very Inter-War Stripped Classical in style because of the limited decoration, its symmetrical façade, the division of the frontage into vertical bays indicating classical origin, vestigial classical columns and the element of the Art Deco style in its decoration. This Art Deco detailing is perhaps the building’s main attraction as it is very much in the “Egyptomania” or “Tutmania” style that gripped the world after the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922. The columns have stylised papyrus capitals and the portico they hold up is decorated in the same patterns which is so evocative of the Jazz Age. A similar design of papyrus flowers top each of the three windows appearing on the bank’s façade. The bank also features Functionalist Moderne metal windows.

The Commercial Banking Company began operations on 1 November 1834 as The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney. In 1848 it was incorporated by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament. 1981 saw the bank amalgamate with the National Bank of Australasia Limited.

Korumburra is a medium-sized dairy and farming town in country Victoria, located on the South Gippsland Highway, 120 kilometres south-east of Melbourne. Surrounded by rolling green hills, the town has a population of a little over 4,000 people. Korumburra has built itself on coal mining (after the discovery of a coal seam in 1870), local forestry and dairy farming. Whilst the coal seam has been used up, farming in the area still thrives and a great deal of dairy produce is created from the area. The post office in the area opened on the 1st of September in 1884, and moved to the township on the railway survey line on the 1st of November 1889, the existing office being renamed Glentress. The steam railway connecting it with Melbourne arrived in 1891. Whilst the train line has long since operating commercially, it has found a new life as the popular tourist railway the South Gippsland Railway which operates a heritage railway service between the major country centre of Leongatha and the small market town of Nyora.

Vietnam War Memorial, Washington D.C.

San Francisco City Hall and the building next door.

Downtown at sunset yesterday

Located near the top end of the main shopping strip, the Commercial Banking Company’s former Korumburra bank branch is a tribute to 1930s architectural style and stands out sharply amid its Victorian and Edwardian neighbours with its clean lines and bold brown brick and white painted colour scheme.

Like the Korumburra Masonic Hall around the corner, the Art Deco facade of the former bank branch, is extremely stripped back. The only piece of ornamentation identifying it as a branch of the Commercial Banking Company is the cartouche above the central window of the building, in which appear the letters CBC intertwined in classical script. Whilst the building now houses a firm of barristers and solicitors, when the building was occupied by its original owners there would not have been any more signage to advertise the business inside. There were identically designed and decorated branches in towns across South Gippsland to give uniformity and help with the recognition of the bank’s brand. There is still an existing example in Korumburra’s neighbouring town, Leongatha.

The building is very Inter-War Stripped Classical in style because of the limited decoration, its symmetrical façade, the division of the frontage into vertical bays indicating classical origin, vestigial classical columns and the element of the Art Deco style in its decoration. This Art Deco detailing is perhaps the building’s main attraction as it is very much in the “Egyptomania” or “Tutmania” style that gripped the world after the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922. The columns have stylised papyrus capitals and the portico they hold up is decorated in the same patterns which is so evocative of the Jazz Age. A similar design of papyrus flowers top each of the three windows appearing on the bank’s façade. The bank also features Functionalist Moderne metal windows.

The Commercial Banking Company began operations on 1 November 1834 as The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney. In 1848 it was incorporated by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament. 1981 saw the bank amalgamate with the National Bank of Australasia Limited.

Korumburra is a medium-sized dairy and farming town in country Victoria, located on the South Gippsland Highway, 120 kilometres south-east of Melbourne. Surrounded by rolling green hills, the town has a population of a little over 4,000 people. Korumburra has built itself on coal mining (after the discovery of a coal seam in 1870), local forestry and dairy farming. Whilst the coal seam has been used up, farming in the area still thrives and a great deal of dairy produce is created from the area. The post office in the area opened on the 1st of September in 1884, and moved to the township on the railway survey line on the 1st of November 1889, the existing office being renamed Glentress. The steam railway connecting it with Melbourne arrived in 1891. Whilst the train line has long since operating commercially, it has found a new life as the popular tourist railway the South Gippsland Railway which operates a heritage railway service between the major country centre of Leongatha and the small market town of Nyora.