Lancaster Complex Stairwell

Isambard Complex Studio Ensuite

Saturday 9th November - Chandigarh

Chandigarh's Capitol Complex, designed by Le Corbusier.

Morning picture of our apartment complex; displaying a small pond within it's boundaries.

Legong is a form of Balinese dance. It is a refined dance form characterized by intricate finger movements, complicated footwork, and expressive gestures and facial expressions.

 

An extremely basic definition of legong is a dance traditionally performed by pre-pubescent girls in the palaces of feudal Bali.

 

One translation is that the word is made up of two words. Lega meaning happy and Ing wong meaning person – put them together and you get: “something that makes people happy”. Another one is oleg meaning dance and gong meaning gamelan, the music that accompanies the dance.

 

Legong probably originated in the 19th century as royal entertainment. Today the most common legong dance is Legong Keraton, so named by the Sultanate of Keraton Surakarta when the music and dance composer and genius I Wayan Lotring from Kuta was invited to perform in the 1920s with his Gamelan Pelegongan group in the keraton (palace) in Surakarta.

 

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Bali is an island and province of Indonesia. The province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nusa Ceningan. It is located at the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, between Java to the west and Lombok to the east. Its capital of Denpasar is located at the southern part of the island.

 

With a population of 3,890,757 in the 2010 census, and 4,225,000 as of January 2014, the island is home to most of Indonesia's Hindu minority. According to the 2010 Census, 83.5% of Bali's population adhered to Balinese Hinduism, followed by 13.4% Muslim, Christianity at 2.5%, and Buddhism 0.5%.

 

Bali is a popular tourist destination, which has seen a significant rise in numbers since the 1980s. It is renowned for its highly developed arts, including traditional and modern dance, sculpture, painting, leather, metalworking, and music. The Indonesian International Film Festival is held every year in Bali.

 

Bali is part of the Coral Triangle, the area with the highest biodiversity of marine species. In this area alone over 500 reef building coral species can be found. For comparison, this is about 7 times as many as in the entire Caribbean. There is a wide range of dive sites with high quality reefs, all with their own specific attractions. Many sites can have strong currents and swell, so diving without a knowledgeable guide is inadvisable. Most recently, Bali was the host of the 2011 ASEAN Summit, 2013 APEC and Miss World 2013.

 

HISTORY

ANCIENT

Bali was inhabited around 2000 BC by Austronesian people who migrated originally from Southeast Asia and Oceania through Maritime Southeast Asia. Culturally and linguistically, the Balinese are closely related to the people of the Indonesian archipelago, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Oceania. Stone tools dating from this time have been found near the village of Cekik in the island's west.

 

In ancient Bali, nine Hindu sects existed, namely Pasupata, Bhairawa, Siwa Shidanta, Waisnawa, Bodha, Brahma, Resi, Sora and Ganapatya. Each sect revered a specific deity as its personal Godhead.

 

Inscriptions from 896 and 911 don't mention a king, until 914, when Sri Kesarivarma is mentioned. They also reveal an independent Bali, with a distinct dialect, where Buddhism and Sivaism were practiced simultaneously. Mpu Sindok's great granddaughter, Mahendradatta (Gunapriyadharmapatni), married the Bali king Udayana Warmadewa (Dharmodayanavarmadeva) around 989, giving birth to Airlangga around 1001. This marriage also brought more Hinduism and Javanese culture to Bali. Princess Sakalendukirana appeared in 1098. Suradhipa reigned from 1115 to 1119, and Jayasakti from 1146 until 1150. Jayapangus appears on inscriptions between 1178 and 1181, while Adikuntiketana and his son Paramesvara in 1204.

 

Balinese culture was strongly influenced by Indian, Chinese, and particularly Hindu culture, beginning around the 1st century AD. The name Bali dwipa ("Bali island") has been discovered from various inscriptions, including the Blanjong pillar inscription written by Sri Kesari Warmadewa in 914 AD and mentioning "Walidwipa". It was during this time that the people developed their complex irrigation system subak to grow rice in wet-field cultivation. Some religious and cultural traditions still practised today can be traced to this period.

 

The Hindu Majapahit Empire (1293–1520 AD) on eastern Java founded a Balinese colony in 1343. The uncle of Hayam Wuruk is mentioned in the charters of 1384-86. A mass Javanese emigration occurred in the next century.

 

PORTUGUESE CONTACTS

The first known European contact with Bali is thought to have been made in 1512, when a Portuguese expedition led by Antonio Abreu and Francisco Serrão sighted its northern shores. It was the first expedition of a series of bi-annual fleets to the Moluccas, that throughout the 16th century usually traveled along the coasts of the Sunda Islands. Bali was also mapped in 1512, in the chart of Francisco Rodrigues, aboard the expedition. In 1585, a ship foundered off the Bukit Peninsula and left a few Portuguese in the service of Dewa Agung.

 

DUTCH EAST INDIA

In 1597 the Dutch explorer Cornelis de Houtman arrived at Bali, and the Dutch East India Company was established in 1602. The Dutch government expanded its control across the Indonesian archipelago during the second half of the 19th century (see Dutch East Indies). Dutch political and economic control over Bali began in the 1840s on the island's north coast, when the Dutch pitted various competing Balinese realms against each other. In the late 1890s, struggles between Balinese kingdoms in the island's south were exploited by the Dutch to increase their control.

 

In June 1860 the famous Welsh naturalist, Alfred Russel Wallace, travelled to Bali from Singapore, landing at Buleleng on the northcoast of the island. Wallace's trip to Bali was instrumental in helping him devise his Wallace Line theory. The Wallace Line is a faunal boundary that runs through the strait between Bali and Lombok. It has been found to be a boundary between species of Asiatic origin in the east and a mixture of Australian and Asian species to the west. In his travel memoir The Malay Archipelago, Wallace wrote of his experience in Bali:

 

I was both astonished and delighted; for as my visit to Java was some years later, I had never beheld so beautiful and well-cultivated a district out of Europe. A slightly undulating plain extends from the seacoast about ten or twelve miles inland, where it is bounded by a fine range of wooded and cultivated hills. Houses and villages, marked out by dense clumps of coconut palms, tamarind and other fruit trees, are dotted about in every direction; while between them extend luxurious rice-grounds, watered by an elaborate system of irrigation that would be the pride of the best cultivated parts of Europe.

 

The Dutch mounted large naval and ground assaults at the Sanur region in 1906 and were met by the thousands of members of the royal family and their followers who fought against the superior Dutch force in a suicidal puputan defensive assault rather than face the humiliation of surrender. Despite Dutch demands for surrender, an estimated 200 Balinese marched to their death against the invaders. In the Dutch intervention in Bali, a similar massacre occurred in the face of a Dutch assault in Klungkung.

 

AFTERWARD THE DUTCH GOVERNORS

exercised administrative control over the island, but local control over religion and culture generally remained intact. Dutch rule over Bali came later and was never as well established as in other parts of Indonesia such as Java and Maluku.

 

n the 1930s, anthropologists Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson, artists Miguel Covarrubias and Walter Spies, and musicologist Colin McPhee all spent time here. Their accounts of the island and its peoples created a western image of Bali as "an enchanted land of aesthetes at peace with themselves and nature." Western tourists began to visit the island.

 

Imperial Japan occupied Bali during World War II. It was not originally a target in their Netherlands East Indies Campaign, but as the airfields on Borneo were inoperative due to heavy rains, the Imperial Japanese Army decided to occupy Bali, which did not suffer from comparable weather. The island had no regular Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) troops. There was only a Native Auxiliary Corps Prajoda (Korps Prajoda) consisting of about 600 native soldiers and several Dutch KNIL officers under command of KNIL Lieutenant Colonel W.P. Roodenburg. On 19 February 1942 the Japanese forces landed near the town of Senoer [Senur]. The island was quickly captured.

 

During the Japanese occupation, a Balinese military officer, Gusti Ngurah Rai, formed a Balinese 'freedom army'. The harshness of war requisitions made Japanese rule more resented than Dutch rule. Following Japan's Pacific surrender in August 1945, the Dutch returned to Indonesia, including Bali, to reinstate their pre-war colonial administration. This was resisted by the Balinese rebels, who now used recovered Japanese weapons. On 20 November 1946, the Battle of Marga was fought in Tabanan in central Bali. Colonel I Gusti Ngurah Rai, by then 29 years old, finally rallied his forces in east Bali at Marga Rana, where they made a suicide attack on the heavily armed Dutch. The Balinese battalion was entirely wiped out, breaking the last thread of Balinese military resistance.

 

INDIPENDENCE FROM THE DUTCH

In 1946, the Dutch constituted Bali as one of the 13 administrative districts of the newly proclaimed State of East Indonesia, a rival state to the Republic of Indonesia, which was proclaimed and headed by Sukarno and Hatta. Bali was included in the "Republic of the United States of Indonesia" when the Netherlands recognised Indonesian independence on 29 December 1949.

 

CONTEMPORARY

The 1963 eruption of Mount Agung killed thousands, created economic havoc and forced many displaced Balinese to be transmigrated to other parts of Indonesia. Mirroring the widening of social divisions across Indonesia in the 1950s and early 1960s, Bali saw conflict between supporters of the traditional caste system, and those rejecting this system. Politically, the opposition was represented by supporters of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and the Indonesian Nationalist Party (PNI), with tensions and ill-feeling further increased by the PKI's land reform programs. An attempted coup in Jakarta was put down by forces led by General Suharto.

 

The army became the dominant power as it instigated a violent anti-communist purge, in which the army blamed the PKI for the coup. Most estimates suggest that at least 500,000 people were killed across Indonesia, with an estimated 80,000 killed in Bali, equivalent to 5% of the island's population. With no Islamic forces involved as in Java and Sumatra, upper-caste PNI landlords led the extermination of PKI members.

 

As a result of the 1965/66 upheavals, Suharto was able to manoeuvre Sukarno out of the presidency. His "New Order" government reestablished relations with western countries. The pre-War Bali as "paradise" was revived in a modern form. The resulting large growth in tourism has led to a dramatic increase in Balinese standards of living and significant foreign exchange earned for the country. A bombing in 2002 by militant Islamists in the tourist area of Kuta killed 202 people, mostly foreigners. This attack, and another in 2005, severely reduced tourism, producing much economic hardship to the island.

 

GEOGRAPHY

The island of Bali lies 3.2 km east of Java, and is approximately 8 degrees south of the equator. Bali and Java are separated by the Bali Strait. East to west, the island is approximately 153 km wide and spans approximately 112 km north to south; administratively it covers 5,780 km2, or 5,577 km2 without Nusa Penida District, its population density is roughly 750 people/km2.

 

Bali's central mountains include several peaks over 3,000 metres in elevation. The highest is Mount Agung (3,031 m), known as the "mother mountain" which is an active volcano rated as one of the world's most likely sites for a massive eruption within the next 100 years. Mountains range from centre to the eastern side, with Mount Agung the easternmost peak. Bali's volcanic nature has contributed to its exceptional fertility and its tall mountain ranges provide the high rainfall that supports the highly productive agriculture sector. South of the mountains is a broad, steadily descending area where most of Bali's large rice crop is grown. The northern side of the mountains slopes more steeply to the sea and is the main coffee producing area of the island, along with rice, vegetables and cattle. The longest river, Ayung River, flows approximately 75 km.

 

The island is surrounded by coral reefs. Beaches in the south tend to have white sand while those in the north and west have black sand. Bali has no major waterways, although the Ho River is navigable by small sampan boats. Black sand beaches between Pasut and Klatingdukuh are being developed for tourism, but apart from the seaside temple of Tanah Lot, they are not yet used for significant tourism.

 

The largest city is the provincial capital, Denpasar, near the southern coast. Its population is around 491,500 (2002). Bali's second-largest city is the old colonial capital, Singaraja, which is located on the north coast and is home to around 100,000 people. Other important cities include the beach resort, Kuta, which is practically part of Denpasar's urban area, and Ubud, situated at the north of Denpasar, is the island's cultural centre.

 

Three small islands lie to the immediate south east and all are administratively part of the Klungkung regency of Bali: Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan. These islands are separated from Bali by the Badung Strait.

 

To the east, the Lombok Strait separates Bali from Lombok and marks the biogeographical division between the fauna of the Indomalayan ecozone and the distinctly different fauna of Australasia. The transition is known as the Wallace Line, named after Alfred Russel Wallace, who first proposed a transition zone between these two major biomes. When sea levels dropped during the Pleistocene ice age, Bali was connected to Java and Sumatra and to the mainland of Asia and shared the Asian fauna, but the deep water of the Lombok Strait continued to keep Lombok Island and the Lesser Sunda archipelago isolated.

 

CLIMATE

Being just 8 degrees south of the equator, Bali has a fairly even climate year round.

 

Day time temperatures at low elevations vary between 20-33⁰ C although it can be much cooler than that in the mountains. The west monsoon is in place from approximately October to April and this can bring significant rain, particularly from December to March. Outside of the monsoon period, humidity is relatively low and any rain unlikely in lowland areas.

 

ECOLOGY

Bali lies just to the west of the Wallace Line, and thus has a fauna that is Asian in character, with very little Australasian influence, and has more in common with Java than with Lombok. An exception is the yellow-crested cockatoo, a member of a primarily Australasian family. There are around 280 species of birds, including the critically endangered Bali myna, which is endemic. Others Include barn swallow, black-naped oriole, black racket-tailed treepie, crested serpent-eagle, crested treeswift, dollarbird, Java sparrow, lesser adjutant, long-tailed shrike, milky stork, Pacific swallow, red-rumped swallow, sacred kingfisher, sea eagle, woodswallow, savanna nightjar, stork-billed kingfisher, yellow-vented bulbul and great egret.

 

Until the early 20th century, Bali was home to several large mammals: the wild banteng, leopard and the endemic Bali tiger. The banteng still occurs in its domestic form, whereas leopards are found only in neighbouring Java, and the Bali tiger is extinct. The last definite record of a tiger on Bali dates from 1937, when one was shot, though the subspecies may have survived until the 1940s or 1950s. The relatively small size of the island, conflict with humans, poaching and habitat reduction drove the Bali tiger to extinction. This was the smallest and rarest of all tiger subspecies and was never caught on film or displayed in zoos, whereas few skins or bones remain in museums around the world. Today, the largest mammals are the Javan rusa deer and the wild boar. A second, smaller species of deer, the Indian muntjac, also occurs. Saltwater crocodiles were once present on the island, but became locally extinct sometime during the last century.

 

Squirrels are quite commonly encountered, less often is the Asian palm civet, which is also kept in coffee farms to produce Kopi Luwak. Bats are well represented, perhaps the most famous place to encounter them remaining the Goa Lawah (Temple of the Bats) where they are worshipped by the locals and also constitute a tourist attraction. They also occur in other cave temples, for instance at Gangga Beach. Two species of monkey occur. The crab-eating macaque, known locally as "kera", is quite common around human settlements and temples, where it becomes accustomed to being fed by humans, particularly in any of the three "monkey forest" temples, such as the popular one in the Ubud area. They are also quite often kept as pets by locals. The second monkey, endemic to Java and some surrounding islands such as Bali, is far rarer and more elusive is the Javan langur, locally known as "lutung". They occur in few places apart from the Bali Barat National Park. They are born an orange colour, though by their first year they would have already changed to a more blackish colouration. In Java however, there is more of a tendency for this species to retain its juvenile orange colour into adulthood, and so you can see a mixture of black and orange monkeys together as a family. Other rarer mammals include the leopard cat, Sunda pangolin and black giant squirrel.

 

Snakes include the king cobra and reticulated python. The water monitor can grow to at least 1.5 m in length and 50 kg and can move quickly.

 

The rich coral reefs around the coast, particularly around popular diving spots such as Tulamben, Amed, Menjangan or neighbouring Nusa Penida, host a wide range of marine life, for instance hawksbill turtle, giant sunfish, giant manta ray, giant moray eel, bumphead parrotfish, hammerhead shark, reef shark, barracuda, and sea snakes. Dolphins are commonly encountered on the north coast near Singaraja and Lovina.

 

A team of scientists conducted a survey from 29 April 2011 to 11 May 2011 at 33 sea sites around Bali. They discovered 952 species of reef fish of which 8 were new discoveries at Pemuteran, Gilimanuk, Nusa Dua, Tulamben and Candidasa, and 393 coral species, including two new ones at Padangbai and between Padangbai and Amed. The average coverage level of healthy coral was 36% (better than in Raja Ampat and Halmahera by 29% or in Fakfak and Kaimana by 25%) with the highest coverage found in Gili Selang and Gili Mimpang in Candidasa, Karangasem regency.

 

Many plants have been introduced by humans within the last centuries, particularly since the 20th century, making it sometimes hard to distinguish what plants are really native.[citation needed] Among the larger trees the most common are: banyan trees, jackfruit, coconuts, bamboo species, acacia trees and also endless rows of coconuts and banana species. Numerous flowers can be seen: hibiscus, frangipani, bougainvillea, poinsettia, oleander, jasmine, water lily, lotus, roses, begonias, orchids and hydrangeas exist. On higher grounds that receive more moisture, for instance around Kintamani, certain species of fern trees, mushrooms and even pine trees thrive well. Rice comes in many varieties. Other plants with agricultural value include: salak, mangosteen, corn, kintamani orange, coffee and water spinach.

 

ENVIRONMENT

Some of the worst erosion has occurred in Lebih Beach, where up to 7 metres of land is lost every year. Decades ago, this beach was used for holy pilgrimages with more than 10,000 people, but they have now moved to Masceti Beach.

 

From ranked third in previous review, in 2010 Bali got score 99.65 of Indonesia's environmental quality index and the highest of all the 33 provinces. The score measured 3 water quality parameters: the level of total suspended solids (TSS), dissolved oxygen (DO) and chemical oxygen demand (COD).

 

Because of over-exploitation by the tourist industry which covers a massive land area, 200 out of 400 rivers on the island have dried up and based on research, the southern part of Bali would face a water shortage up to 2,500 litres of clean water per second by 2015. To ease the shortage, the central government plans to build a water catchment and processing facility at Petanu River in Gianyar. The 300 litres capacity of water per second will be channelled to Denpasar, Badung and Gianyar in 2013.

 

ECONOMY

Three decades ago, the Balinese economy was largely agriculture-based in terms of both output and employment. Tourism is now the largest single industry in terms of income, and as a result, Bali is one of Indonesia's wealthiest regions. In 2003, around 80% of Bali's economy was tourism related. By end of June 2011, non-performing loan of all banks in Bali were 2.23%, lower than the average of Indonesian banking industry non-performing loan (about 5%). The economy, however, suffered significantly as a result of the terrorist bombings 2002 and 2005. The tourism industry has since recovered from these events.

 

AGRICULTURE

Although tourism produces the GDP's largest output, agriculture is still the island's biggest employer; most notably rice cultivation. Crops grown in smaller amounts include fruit, vegetables, Coffea arabica and other cash and subsistence crops. Fishing also provides a significant number of jobs. Bali is also famous for its artisans who produce a vast array of handicrafts, including batik and ikat cloth and clothing, wooden carvings, stone carvings, painted art and silverware. Notably, individual villages typically adopt a single product, such as wind chimes or wooden furniture.

 

The Arabica coffee production region is the highland region of Kintamani near Mount Batur. Generally, Balinese coffee is processed using the wet method. This results in a sweet, soft coffee with good consistency. Typical flavours include lemon and other citrus notes. Many coffee farmers in Kintamani are members of a traditional farming system called Subak Abian, which is based on the Hindu philosophy of "Tri Hita Karana". According to this philosophy, the three causes of happiness are good relations with God, other people and the environment. The Subak Abian system is ideally suited to the production of fair trade and organic coffee production. Arabica coffee from Kintamani is the first product in Indonesia to request a Geographical Indication.

 

TOURISM

The tourism industry is primarily focused in the south, while significant in the other parts of the island as well. The main tourist locations are the town of Kuta (with its beach), and its outer suburbs of Legian and Seminyak (which were once independent townships), the east coast town of Sanur (once the only tourist hub), in the center of the island Ubud, to the south of the Ngurah Rai International Airport, Jimbaran, and the newer development of Nusa Dua and Pecatu.

 

The American government lifted its travel warnings in 2008. The Australian government issued an advice on Friday, 4 May 2012. The overall level of the advice was lowered to 'Exercise a high degree of caution'. The Swedish government issued a new warning on Sunday, 10 June 2012 because of one more tourist who was killed by methanol poisoning. Australia last issued an advice on Monday, 5 January 2015 due to new terrorist threats.

 

An offshoot of tourism is the growing real estate industry. Bali real estate has been rapidly developing in the main tourist areas of Kuta, Legian, Seminyak and Oberoi. Most recently, high-end 5 star projects are under development on the Bukit peninsula, on the south side of the island. Million dollar villas are being developed along the cliff sides of south Bali, commanding panoramic ocean views. Foreign and domestic (many Jakarta individuals and companies are fairly active) investment into other areas of the island also continues to grow. Land prices, despite the worldwide economic crisis, have remained stable.

 

In the last half of 2008, Indonesia's currency had dropped approximately 30% against the US dollar, providing many overseas visitors value for their currencies. Visitor arrivals for 2009 were forecast to drop 8% (which would be higher than 2007 levels), due to the worldwide economic crisis which has also affected the global tourist industry, but not due to any travel warnings.

 

Bali's tourism economy survived the terrorist bombings of 2002 and 2005, and the tourism industry has in fact slowly recovered and surpassed its pre-terrorist bombing levels; the longterm trend has been a steady increase of visitor arrivals. In 2010, Bali received 2.57 million foreign tourists, which surpassed the target of 2.0–2.3 million tourists. The average occupancy of starred hotels achieved 65%, so the island is still able to accommodate tourists for some years without any addition of new rooms/hotels, although at the peak season some of them are fully booked.

 

Bali received the Best Island award from Travel and Leisure in 2010. The island of Bali won because of its attractive surroundings (both mountain and coastal areas), diverse tourist attractions, excellent international and local restaurants, and the friendliness of the local people. According to BBC Travel released in 2011, Bali is one of the World's Best Islands, ranking second after Santorini, Greece.

 

In August 2010, the film Eat Pray Love was released in theatres. The movie was based on Elizabeth Gilbert's best-selling memoir Eat, Pray, Love. It took place at Ubud and Padang-Padang Beach at Bali. The 2006 book, which spent 57 weeks at the No. 1 spot on the New York Times paperback nonfiction best-seller list, had already fuelled a boom in Eat, Pray, Love-related tourism in Ubud, the hill town and cultural and tourist center that was the focus of Gilbert's quest for balance through traditional spirituality and healing that leads to love.

 

In January 2016, after music icon David Bowie died, it was revealed that in his will, Bowie asked for his ashes to be scattered in Bali, conforming to Buddhist rituals. He had visited and performed in a number of Southest Asian cities early in his career, including Bangkok and Singapore.

 

Since 2011, China has displaced Japan as the second-largest supplier of tourists to Bali, while Australia still tops the list. Chinese tourists increased by 17% from last year due to the impact of ACFTA and new direct flights to Bali. In January 2012, Chinese tourists year on year (yoy) increased by 222.18% compared to January 2011, while Japanese tourists declined by 23.54% yoy.

 

Bali reported that it has 2.88 million foreign tourists and 5 million domestic tourists in 2012, marginally surpassing the expectations of 2.8 million foreign tourists. Forecasts for 2013 are at 3.1 million.

 

Based on Bank Indonesia survey in May 2013, 34.39 percent of tourists are upper-middle class with spending between $1,286 to $5,592 and dominated by Australia, France, China, Germany and the US with some China tourists move from low spending before to higher spending currently. While 30.26 percent are middle class with spending between $662 to $1,285.

 

SEX TOURISM

In the twentieth century the incidence of tourism specifically for sex was regularly observed in the era of mass tourism in Indonesia In Bali, prostitution is conducted by both men and women. Bali in particular is notorious for its 'Kuta Cowboys', local gigolos targeting foreign female tourists.

 

Tens of thousands of single women throng the beaches of Bali in Indonesia every year. For decades, young Balinese men have taken advantage of the louche and laid-back atmosphere to find love and lucre from female tourists—Japanese, European and Australian for the most part—who by all accounts seem perfectly happy with the arrangement.

 

By 2013, Indonesia was reportedly the number one destination for Australian child sex tourists, mostly starting in Bali but also travelling to other parts of the country. The problem in Bali was highlighted by Luh Ketut Suryani, head of Psychiatry at Udayana University, as early as 2003. Surayani warned that a low level of awareness of paedophilia in Bali had made it the target of international paedophile organisations. On 19 February 2013, government officials announced measures to combat paedophilia in Bali.

 

TRANSPORTATION

The Ngurah Rai International Airport is located near Jimbaran, on the isthmus at the southernmost part of the island. Lt.Col. Wisnu Airfield is found in north-west Bali.

 

A coastal road circles the island, and three major two-lane arteries cross the central mountains at passes reaching to 1,750m in height (at Penelokan). The Ngurah Rai Bypass is a four-lane expressway that partly encircles Denpasar. Bali has no railway lines.

 

In December 2010 the Government of Indonesia invited investors to build a new Tanah Ampo Cruise Terminal at Karangasem, Bali with a projected worth of $30 million. On 17 July 2011 the first cruise ship (Sun Princess) anchored about 400 meters away from the wharf of Tanah Ampo harbour. The current pier is only 154 meters but will eventually be extended to 300–350 meters to accommodate international cruise ships. The harbour here is safer than the existing facility at Benoa and has a scenic backdrop of east Bali mountains and green rice fields. The tender for improvement was subject to delays, and as of July 2013 the situation remained unclear with cruise line operators complaining and even refusing to use the existing facility at Tanah Ampo.

 

A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed by two ministers, Bali's Governor and Indonesian Train Company to build 565 kilometres of railway along the coast around the island. As of July 2015, no details of this proposed railways have been released.

 

On 16 March 2011 (Tanjung) Benoa port received the "Best Port Welcome 2010" award from London's "Dream World Cruise Destination" magazine. Government plans to expand the role of Benoa port as export-import port to boost Bali's trade and industry sector. The Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry has confirmed that 306 cruise liners are heading for Indonesia in 2013 – an increase of 43 percent compared to the previous year.

 

In May 2011, an integrated Areal Traffic Control System (ATCS) was implemented to reduce traffic jams at four crossing points: Ngurah Rai statue, Dewa Ruci Kuta crossing, Jimbaran crossing and Sanur crossing. ATCS is an integrated system connecting all traffic lights, CCTVs and other traffic signals with a monitoring office at the police headquarters. It has successfully been implemented in other ASEAN countries and will be implemented at other crossings in Bali.

 

On 21 December 2011 construction started on the Nusa Dua-Benoa-Ngurah Rai International Airport toll road which will also provide a special lane for motorcycles. This has been done by seven state-owned enterprises led by PT Jasa Marga with 60% of shares. PT Jasa Marga Bali Tol will construct the 9.91 kilometres toll road (totally 12.7 kilometres with access road). The construction is estimated to cost Rp.2.49 trillion ($273.9 million). The project goes through 2 kilometres of mangrove forest and through 2.3 kilometres of beach, both within 5.4 hectares area. The elevated toll road is built over the mangrove forest on 18,000 concrete pillars which occupied 2 hectares of mangroves forest. It compensated by new planting of 300,000 mangrove trees along the road. On 21 December 2011 the Dewa Ruci 450 meters underpass has also started on the busy Dewa Ruci junction near Bali Kuta Galeria with an estimated cost of Rp136 billion ($14.9 million) from the state budget. On 23 September 2013, the Bali Mandara Toll Road is opened and the Dewa Ruci Junction (Simpang Siur) underpass is opened before. Both are ease the heavy traffic congestion.

 

To solve chronic traffic problems, the province will also build a toll road connecting Serangan with Tohpati, a toll road connecting Kuta, Denpasar and Tohpati and a flyover connecting Kuta and Ngurah Rai Airport.

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

The population of Bali was 3,890,757 as of the 2010 Census; the latest estimate (for January 2014) is 4,225,384. There are an estimated 30,000 expatriates living in Bali.

 

ETHNIC ORIGINS

A DNA study in 2005 by Karafet et al. found that 12% of Balinese Y-chromosomes are of likely Indian origin, while 84% are of likely Austronesian origin, and 2% of likely Melanesian origin. The study does not correlate the DNA samples to the Balinese caste system.

 

CASTE SYSTEM

Bali has a caste system based on the Indian Hindu model, with four castes:

 

- Sudra (Shudra) – peasants constituting close to 93% of Bali's population.

- Wesia (Vaishyas) – the caste of merchants and administrative officials

- Ksatrias (Kshatriyas) – the kingly and warrior caste

- Brahmana (Bramhin) – holy men and priests

 

RELIGION

Unlike most of Muslim-majority Indonesia, about 83.5% of Bali's population adheres to Balinese Hinduism, formed as a combination of existing local beliefs and Hindu influences from mainland Southeast Asia and South Asia. Minority religions include Islam (13.3%), Christianity (1.7%), and Buddhism (0.5%). These figures do not include immigrants from other parts of Indonesia.

 

Balinese Hinduism is an amalgam in which gods and demigods are worshipped together with Buddhist heroes, the spirits of ancestors, indigenous agricultural deities and sacred places. Religion as it is practised in Bali is a composite belief system that embraces not only theology, philosophy, and mythology, but ancestor worship, animism and magic. It pervades nearly every aspect of traditional life. Caste is observed, though less strictly than in India. With an estimated 20,000 puras (temples) and shrines, Bali is known as the "Island of a Thousand Puras", or "Island of the Gods". This is refer to Mahabarata story that behind Bali became island of god or "pulau dewata" in Indonesian language.

 

Balinese Hinduism has roots in Indian Hinduism and Buddhism, and adopted the animistic traditions of the indigenous people. This influence strengthened the belief that the gods and goddesses are present in all things. Every element of nature, therefore, possesses its own power, which reflects the power of the gods. A rock, tree, dagger, or woven cloth is a potential home for spirits whose energy can be directed for good or evil. Balinese Hinduism is deeply interwoven with art and ritual. Ritualizing states of self-control are a notable feature of religious expression among the people, who for this reason have become famous for their graceful and decorous behaviour.

 

Apart from the majority of Balinese Hindus, there also exist Chinese immigrants whose traditions have melded with that of the locals. As a result, these Sino-Balinese not only embrace their original religion, which is a mixture of Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism and Confucianism, but also find a way to harmonise it with the local traditions. Hence, it is not uncommon to find local Sino-Balinese during the local temple's odalan. Moreover, Balinese Hindu priests are invited to perform rites alongside a Chinese priest in the event of the death of a Sino-Balinese. Nevertheless, the Sino-Balinese claim to embrace Buddhism for administrative purposes, such as their Identity Cards.

 

LANGUAGE

Balinese and Indonesian are the most widely spoken languages in Bali, and the vast majority of Balinese people are bilingual or trilingual. The most common spoken language around the tourist areas is Indonesian, as many people in the tourist sector are not solely Balinese, but migrants from Java, Lombok, Sumatra, and other parts of Indonesia. There are several indigenous Balinese languages, but most Balinese can also use the most widely spoken option: modern common Balinese. The usage of different Balinese languages was traditionally determined by the Balinese caste system and by clan membership, but this tradition is diminishing. Kawi and Sanskrit are also commonly used by some Hindu priests in Bali, for Hinduism literature was mostly written in Sanskrit.

 

English and Chinese are the next most common languages (and the primary foreign languages) of many Balinese, owing to the requirements of the tourism industry, as well as the English-speaking community and huge Chinese-Indonesian population. Other foreign languages, such as Japanese, Korean, French, Russian or German are often used in multilingual signs for foreign tourists.

 

CULTURE

Bali is renowned for its diverse and sophisticated art forms, such as painting, sculpture, woodcarving, handcrafts, and performing arts. Balinese cuisine is also distinctive. Balinese percussion orchestra music, known as gamelan, is highly developed and varied. Balinese performing arts often portray stories from Hindu epics such as the Ramayana but with heavy Balinese influence. Famous Balinese dances include pendet, legong, baris, topeng, barong, gong keybar, and kecak (the monkey dance). Bali boasts one of the most diverse and innovative performing arts cultures in the world, with paid performances at thousands of temple festivals, private ceremonies, or public shows.

 

The Hindu New Year, Nyepi, is celebrated in the spring by a day of silence. On this day everyone stays at home and tourists are encouraged to remain in their hotels. On the day before New Year, large and colourful sculptures of ogoh-ogoh monsters are paraded and finally burned in the evening to drive away evil spirits. Other festivals throughout the year are specified by the Balinese pawukon calendrical system.

 

Celebrations are held for many occasions such as a tooth-filing (coming-of-age ritual), cremation or odalan (temple festival). One of the most important concepts that Balinese ceremonies have in common is that of désa kala patra, which refers to how ritual performances must be appropriate in both the specific and general social context. Many of the ceremonial art forms such as wayang kulit and topeng are highly improvisatory, providing flexibility for the performer to adapt the performance to the current situation. Many celebrations call for a loud, boisterous atmosphere with lots of activity and the resulting aesthetic, ramé, is distinctively Balinese. Often two or more gamelan ensembles will be performing well within earshot, and sometimes compete with each other to be heard. Likewise, the audience members talk amongst themselves, get up and walk around, or even cheer on the performance, which adds to the many layers of activity and the liveliness typical of ramé.

 

Kaja and kelod are the Balinese equivalents of North and South, which refer to ones orientation between the island's largest mountain Gunung Agung (kaja), and the sea (kelod). In addition to spatial orientation, kaja and kelod have the connotation of good and evil; gods and ancestors are believed to live on the mountain whereas demons live in the sea. Buildings such as temples and residential homes are spatially oriented by having the most sacred spaces closest to the mountain and the unclean places nearest to the sea.

 

Most temples have an inner courtyard and an outer courtyard which are arranged with the inner courtyard furthest kaja. These spaces serve as performance venues since most Balinese rituals are accompanied by any combination of music, dance and drama. The performances that take place in the inner courtyard are classified as wali, the most sacred rituals which are offerings exclusively for the gods, while the outer courtyard is where bebali ceremonies are held, which are intended for gods and people. Lastly, performances meant solely for the entertainment of humans take place outside the walls of the temple and are called bali-balihan. This three-tiered system of classification was standardised in 1971 by a committee of Balinese officials and artists to better protect the sanctity of the oldest and most sacred Balinese rituals from being performed for a paying audience.

 

Tourism, Bali's chief industry, has provided the island with a foreign audience that is eager to pay for entertainment, thus creating new performance opportunities and more demand for performers. The impact of tourism is controversial since before it became integrated into the economy, the Balinese performing arts did not exist as a capitalist venture, and were not performed for entertainment outside of their respective ritual context. Since the 1930s sacred rituals such as the barong dance have been performed both in their original contexts, as well as exclusively for paying tourists. This has led to new versions of many of these performances which have developed according to the preferences of foreign audiences; some villages have a barong mask specifically for non-ritual performances as well as an older mask which is only used for sacred performances.

 

Balinese society continues to revolve around each family's ancestral village, to which the cycle of life and religion is closely tied. Coercive aspects of traditional society, such as customary law sanctions imposed by traditional authorities such as village councils (including "kasepekang", or shunning) have risen in importance as a consequence of the democratisation and decentralisation of Indonesia since 1998.

 

WIKIPEDIA

The complex of Sultan Qalawun was built for the sultan by Amir 'Alam al-Din Sanjar al-Shuja'i in 1284-5 and consisted of the founder's mausoleum, madrasa, and a maristan (hospital). The complex was located on al-Mu'izz Street.

 

The mausoleum's central, domed plan is connected to the madrasa by a long entrance passage, and the plan of both spaces is shifted to accommodate the qibla orientation.

 

The mausoleum, which is separated from the madrasa by this long corridor, is accessible via a small courtyard surrounded by an arcade with shallow domes. The octagonal structure was roofed by a dome which was destroyed in the 18th century. The current concrete dome, which is a replica of that covering the Mausoleum of al-Ashraf Khalil ibn Qalawun (1288), was built by Max Herz Bey in 1903. The octagonal base is transformed into a circle by means of wooden muqarnas.

 

The elaborate interior decoration includes marble revetment, carved, painted, and gilded wood, carved marble, and stucco.

 

Source:

archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.jsp?site_id=2108

This card started life as a pop up card, but I soon decided to reinforce it and make it a stand alone card.

The flowers are die cut and are attached to the "towers" by wire.

Of course there had to be birds somewhere.

south american games

The Moscow Kremlin, commonly known as just the Kremlin, is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Kremlin Wall along with the Kremlin towers. In the complex is the Grand Kremlin Palace, which was one of the royal residences of the Tsar of Russia, and now is the residence of the president of the Russian Federation. The Moscow Kremlin overlooks the Moskva River to the south, Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square to the east, and Alexander Garden to the west.

 

In the Russian language, kreml' denotes a 'fortress within a city', and there are many historical cities with Kremlin of their own. However, the Moscow Kremlin, the best known, also serves an international-politics metonym that identifies the Government of Russia. During the Cold War (1947–1991), the term The Kremlin meant the Government of the Soviet Union and the term Kremlinology meant the study of the decisions of the Soviet leaders and of Russian and Soviet politics. When open to the public, the Kremlin of Moscow offers supervised tours of the Moscow Kremlin Museums.

Located at one of the busiest intersections in Toronto, Yonge & Steels, City Metal Works provided all the steel needs of this complex, From 36 inch high beams to steel stairs, canopies, railings, etc.

20150404

Canon DemiEE17

DNP Centuria 400 expired 2010

33830010

This is a center variation to the one I made several years back. Here actually what the center should've been to begin with (just kidding). Both are good. (I also unsunk 4 corners from the center to give even more shape.. not shown in photo). Diagrams coming soon hopefully. Updated design by me 12/2018.

(1994-L-08166): The Mach 6 Pilot Quiet Tunnel (Nozzle Test Chamber) in Room D-114. This tunnel exhausted into two vacuum spheres and used a third one to control test section pressure. This tunnel was donated to Texas A&M University in 2005.

 

NASA Media Usage Guidelines

 

Credit: NASA

Image Number: 1994-L-08166

Date: November 16, 1994

Cadet Shania Clayton, Valley Forge Military Academy and College, 3rd Regiment, Basic Camp, attempts the rock wall, Fort Knox, Ky., July 20, 2021. All Basic Camp Cadets train at the Forest Hills Climbing Complex (FHCC) to help build confidence in their gear as well as their abilities. | Photo by Kyle Crawford, CST Public Affairs Office

52 stacked images taken during a winter night on lake Huron.

Tower Complex - Update - 7/01/2016 - We have also been receiving many rumors about strange rumblings like earth tremors on nearby islands. Some have said that the Tower Complex actually looked like it was rising up from its foundations slightly then settling back down a few moments later. Also a nearby man made island had what looked like a small volcano and a shaft of what looked like fire go straight into the air but there was no smoke or ash. But the strangest rumor was that the four yellow and black towers actually tilted down like flower petals opening up and then returned to their upright position. We were able to get a picture of that for you.

 

We were able to overcome the weird interference we have been experiencing the past few days and we have found out this Tower Complex is owned by a company called Blackstone Electronics. We have not been able to receive anymore information at this time. Please stay tuned for more information as we receive it.

Architect Eižens Laube (1880-1967). In the early 20th century Lāčplēša Street was called Romanov Street (family name of Russian Czars). The complex of buildings was built in the style of National Romanticism, but it is also a harbinger of Functionalism (Art Nouveau), typical forms of which are visible in the cubic structure of the corner towers. The architectural bureau of Eižens Laube was situated in the central building of the block.

Fatehpur Sikri (Hindi: फ़तेहपुर सीकरी, Urdu: فتحپور سیکری‎) is a city and a municipal board in Agra district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. The city was founded in 1569 by the Mughal emperor Akbar, and served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1571 to 1585. After his military victories over Chittor and Ranthambore, Akbar decided to shift his capital from Agra to a new location 37 km WSW on the Sikri ridge, to honor the Sufi saint Salim Chishti. Here he commenced the construction of a planned walled city which took the next fifteen years in planning and construction of a series of royal palaces, harem, courts, a mosque, private quarters and other utility buildings. He named the city, Fatehabad, with Fateh, a word of Arabic origin in Persian, meaning "victorious." it was later called Fatehpur Sikri. It is at Fatehpur Sikri that the legends of Akbar and his famed courtiers, the nine jewels or Navaratnas, were born. Fatehpur Sikri is one of the best preserved collections of Indian Mughal architecture in India.

 

According to contemporary historians, Akbar took a great interest in the building of Fatehpur Sikri and probably also dictated its architectural style. Seeking to revive the splendours of Persian court ceremonial made famous by his ancestor Timur, Akbar planned the complex on Persian principles. But the influences of his adopted land came through in the typically Indian embellishments. The easy availability of sandstone in the neighbouring areas of Fatehpur Sikri, also meant that all the buildings here were made of the red stone. The imperial Palace complex consists of a number of independent pavilions arranged in formal geometry on a piece of level ground, a pattern derived from Arab and central Asian tent encampments. In its entirety, the monuments at Fatehpur Sikri thus reflect the genius of Akbar in assimilating diverse regional architectural influences within a holistic style that was uniquely his own.

 

The Imperial complex was abandoned in 1585, shortly after its completion, due to paucity of water and its proximity with the Rajputana areas in the North-West, which were increasingly in turmoil. Thus the capital was shifted to Lahore so that Akbar could have a base in the less stable part of the empire, before moving back to Agra in 1598, where he had begun his reign as he shifted his focus to Deccan. In fact, he never returned to the city except for a brief period in 1601. In later Mughal history it was occupied for a short while by Mughal emperor, Muhammad Shah (r. 1719 -1748), and his regent, Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan Barha, one of the Syed Brothers, was murdered here in 1720. Today much of the imperial complex which spread over nearly two mile long and one mile wide area is largely intact and resembles a ghost town. It is still surrounded by a five mile long wall built during its original construction, on three sides. However apart from the imperial buildings complex few other buildings stand in the area, which is mostly barren, except of ruins of the bazaars of the old city near the Naubat Khana, the 'drum-house' entrance at Agra Road. The modern town lies at the western end of the complex, which was a municipality from 1865 to 1904, and later made a "notified area", and in 1901 had a population of 7,147. For a long time it was still known for its masons and stone carvers, though in Akbar time it was known and 'fabrics of hair' and 'silk-spinning'. The village of Sikri still exists nearby.

 

ARCHITECTURE OF FATEHPUR SIKRI

Fatehpur Sikri sits on rocky ridge, 3 kilometres in length and 1 km wide, and palace city is surrounded by a 6 km wall on three side with the fourth being a lake at the time. Its architect was Tuhir Das and Dhruv Chawla and was constructed using Indian principles. The buildings of Fatehpur Sikri show a synthesis of various regional schools of architectural craftsmanship such as Gujarat and Bengal. This was because indigenous craftsmen were used for the construction of the buildings. Influences from Hindu and Jain architecture are seen hand in hand with Islamic elements. The building material used in all the buildings at Fatehpur Sikri, palace-city complex, is the locally quarried red sandstone, known as 'Sikri sandstone'. It is accessed through gates along the five-mile long fort wall, namely, Delhi Gate, the Lal Gate, the Agra Gate, Birbal's Gate, Chandanpal Gate, The Gwalior Gate, the Tehra Gate, the Chor Gate and the Ajmere Gate.

 

Some of the important buildings in this city, both religious and secular are:

 

IMPORTANT BUILDINGS

Buland Darwaza: Set into the south wall of congregational mosque, the Jama Masjid at Fatehpur Sikri, this stupendous piece of architecture is 55 metre high, from the outside, gradually making a transition to a human scale in the inside. The gate was added some five years later after the completion of the mosque ca. 1576-1577 as an 'victory arch', to commemorate the Akbar's successful Gujarat campaign. It carries two inscriptions in the archway, one of which reads: "Isa, Son of Mariam said: The world is a bridge, pass over it, but build no houses on it. He who hopes for an hour may hope for eternity. The world endures but an hour. Spend it in prayer, for the rest is unseen".

 

The central portico comprises three arched entrances, with the largest one, in the centre, is known locally as the Horseshoe Gate, after the custom of nailing horseshoes to its large wooden doors for luck. Outside the giant steps of the Buland Darwaza to left is deep well.

 

Jama Masjid: It is a Jama Mosque meaning the congregational mosque, and was perhaps one of the first buildings to come up in the complex, as its epigraph gives AH 979 (AD 1571-72) as the date of its completion, with a massive entrance to the courtyard, the Buland-Darwaza added some five years later. It was built in the manner of Indian mosques, with iwans around a central courtyard. A distinguishing feature is the row of chhatri over the sanctuary. There are three mihrabs in each of the seven bays, while the large central mihrab is covered by a dome, it is decorated with white marble inlay, in geometric patterns.

 

Tomb of Salim Chishti: A white marble encased tomb of the Sufi saint, Salim Chisti (1478–1572), within the Jama Masjid's sahn, courtyard. The single-storey structure is built around a central square chamber, within which is the grave of the saint, under an ornate wooden canopy encrusted with mother-of-pearl mosaic. Surrounding it is a covered passageway for circumambulation, with carved Jalis, stone pierced screens all around with intricate geometric design, and an entrance to the south. The tomb is influenced by earlier mausolea of the early 15th century Gujarat Sultanate period. Other striking features of the tomb are white marble serpentine brackets, which support sloping eaves around the parapet.

 

On the left of the tomb, to the east, stands a red sandstone tomb of Islam Khan I, son of Shaikh Badruddin Chisti and grandson of Shaikh Salim Chishti, who became a general in the Mughal army in the reign of Jahangir. The tomb is topped by a dome and thirty-six small domed chattris, and contains a number of graves, some unnamed, all male descendants of Shaikh Salim Chisti.

 

Diwan-i-Aam : Diwan-i-Am or Hall of Public Audience, is a building typology found in many cities where the ruler meets the general public. In this case, it is a pavilion-like multi-bayed rectangular structure fronting a large open space. South west of the Diwan-i-Am and next to the Turkic Sultana's House stand Turkic Baths.

 

Diwan-i-Khas: the Diwan-i-Khas, or Hall of Private Audience, is a plain square building with four chhatris on the roof. However it is famous for its central pillar, which has a square base and an octagonal shaft, both carved with bands of geometric and floral designs, further its thirty-six serpentine brackets support a circular platform for Akbar, which is connected to each corner of the building on the first floor, by four stone walkways. It is here that Akbar had representatives of different religions discuss their faiths and gave private audience.

 

Ibadat Khana: (House of Worship) was a meeting house built in 1575 CE by the Mughal Emperor Akbar, where the foundations of a new Syncretistic faith, Din-e-Ilahi were laid by Akbar.

 

Anup Talao: A ornamental pool with a central platform and four bridges leading up to it. Some of the important buildings of the royal enclave are surround by it including, Khwabgah (House of Dreams) Akbar's residence, Panch Mahal, a five-storey palace, Diwan-i-Khas (Hall of Private Audience), Ankh Michauli and the Astrologer's Seat, in the south-west corner of the Pachisi Court.

 

Hujra-i-Anup Talao: Said to be the residence of Akbar's Muslim wife, although this is disputed due to its small size.

 

Mariam-uz-Zamani's Palace: The building of Akbar's Rajput wives, including Mariam-uz-Zamani, shows Gujarati influence and is built around a courtyard, with special care being taken to ensure privacy.

 

Naubat Khana: Also known as Naqqar Khana meaning a drum house, where musician used drums to announce the arrival of the Emperor. It is situated ahead of the Hathi Pol Gate or the Elephant Gate, the south entrance to the complex, suggesting that it was the imperial entrance.

 

Pachisi Court: A square marked out as a large board game, the precursor to modern day Ludo game where people served as the playing pieces.

 

Panch Mahal: A five-storied palatial structure, with the tiers gradually diminishing in size, till the final one, which is a single large-domed chhatri. Originally pierced stone screens faced the façade, and probably sub-divided the interior as well, suggesting it was built for the ladies of the court. The floors are supported by intricately carved columns on each level, totalling to 176 columns in all.

 

Birbal's House: The house of Akbar's favorite minister, who was a Hindu. Notable features of the building are the horizontal sloping sunshades or chajjas and the brackets which support them.

 

Recent excavation done by ASI in 2000 led to unearthing of an ancient jain city very near to the fort complex.

 

Other buildings included Taksal (mint), 'Daftar Khana (Records Office), Karkhanas (royal workshop), Khazana (treasury), Turkic styled Baths, Darogha's Quarters, stables, Caravan sarai, Hakim's quarters etc.

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

Fatehpur Sikri has a population of 28,757. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Fatehpur Sikri has an average literacy rate of 46%, lower than the national average of 74%: male literacy is 57%, and female literacy is 34%. In Fatehpur Sikri, 59% of the population is under 6 years of age.

 

ADMINISTRATIVE ESTABLISHMENT

Fatehpur Sikri is one of the fifteen Block headquarters in the Agra district it has 52 Gram panchayats (Village Panchayat) under it.

 

The Fatehpur Sikri, is a constituency of the Lok Sabha, Lower house of the Indian Parliament, and further comprises five Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) segments:

 

Agra Rural

Fatehpur Sikri

Kheragarh

Fatehabad

Bah

 

In all there are 12 villages of Sisodia Rajputs near Fatehpur Sikri fort in Agra district. These are Daultabad, Nayavas, Satha, korai, Behrawati, Byara, Undera, Kachora, Singarpur, Vidyapur, Onera, Arrua.

 

TRANSPORT

Fatehpur Sikri is about 39 km. from Agra. The nearest Airport is the Agra Airport (also known as Kheria Airport), 40 km from Fatehpur Sikri. The nearest railway station is the Fatehpur Sikri Railway Station, about one km. from the city centre . It is suitably connected to Agra and neighbouring centres by road, where regular bus services of UPSRTC ply, apart from Tourist buses and taxies.

 

WIKIPEDIA

The famous Buddhist caves at Ajanta, Maharashtra, India.

twitter.com/Memoire2cite #recherche #archives #Banlieue #socialhousing #logement #Collectif #Copropriété #Habitation #Habitat #HLM #Quartier #Béton #immeuble #Cité #Moderne #Europe #World #Mémoire2Cité #Mémoire2Ville @ Les 30 Glorieuses . com l' #Urbanisme d'Antan, et ses belles cartes postales @ mais aussi les clichés d'Archilaid, comme les "prix citron" de la France moche.. ou encore la laideur architecturale en Françe et Ailleurs. Dans le triste sillage des cités de banlieue construites ds les années 50, 60, 70... @ l'apres guerre.. dans l'urbanisation massive des territoires via l'industrialisation du logement @ le Logement Collectif* 50,60,70's dans tous ses états..Histoire & Mémoire de l'Habitat / Rétro-Villes / HLM / Banlieue / Renouvellement Urbain / Urbanisme @ De grandes barres d’immeubles, appelées les grands ensembles, sont le symbole de nos banlieues. Entrée Libre revient sur le phénomène de destruction de ces bâtiments banlieue89 ANRU1 ANRU2 bientot ANRU3 @ le Renouvellement urbain, la rénovation urbaine, des "Ensembles Tout Béton" qui reflètent aujourd’hui la misere www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCqHBP5SBiM L'urbanisation à marche forcée des années 60 est devenue synonyme de bétonnage et d'enlaidissement. Dans L'Express du 23 août 1971 @ "La loi du 7 juillet dernier relative à la liberté de la création, à l'architecture et au patrimoine a ainsi créé un label spécifique permettant de veiller sur cet héritage architectural récent, que le Comité du patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco vient lui aussi de mettre en lumière", ajoute la ministre de la Culture.

Pas un village, dans la plus reculée des provinces, qui ne soit atteint. C'est comme une lèpre qui, peu à peu, prolifère sur l'épiderme du paysage urbain français. Un des plus beaux du monde, disait-on. Agressive médiocrité des bâtiments publics, des écoles, des postes, des administrations, monotonie concentrationnaire des grands ensembles, prétention et passéisme débile des maisons individuelles : le bilan architectural des dix dernières années est, en France, catastrophique. Jamais on n'a autant construit. Jamais si mal, si pauvre, si triste. A de rares exceptions. Cela devient si flagrant à la lumière de l'été, que même l'O.r.t.f. s'en est ému. Après Vivre aujourd'hui, l'émission de Jacques Frémontier (dimanche, consacrée à "la rue"), La France défigurée, de Michel Péricart et Louis Bériot, a donné l'alerte : par milliers, des témoignages ont afflué. Les Français prennent conscience du mal et s'interrogent : "Comment, pourquoi, en est-on arrivé là ?" Spéculation Que "cet avachissement, cet avilissement de la qualité architecturale", comme le définit M. Michel Denieul, directeur de l'Architecture au ministère des Affaires culturelles, ne soit pas l'exclusivité de la France, personne ne le conteste. Le monde entier connaît un malaise architectural. Après avoir, des siècles durant, bâti pour le seigneur, le prince, le mécène, l'architecture ne sait pas encore bâtir pour la masse, le peuple, "l'innombrable", comme le dit l'architecte Emile Aillaud. En Grande-Bretagne, en Allemagne, en Italie, aux Etats-Unis, aussi, elle tâtonne. Ce n'est pas une consolation. Ni une raison suffisante pour admettre comme une fatalité la piètre architecture française. Ni pour excuser ceux qui l'ont laissée pousser comme les mauvaises graines, à tous les vents. Le premier des responsables, avant les architectes dépassés (voir page suivante l'opinion de Pierre Schneider) et les promoteurs avides, c'est l'Etat. Qui, par le jeu des servitudes, des permis de construire, etc., contrôle et, le plus souvent, paralyse la totalité de ce qui se bâtit en France. Qui est lui-même le premier client des architectes, le premier maître d'ouvrage des nouveaux édifices (hôpitaux, écoles, logements sociaux). Qui, à ce titre, aurait pu, et ne l'a pas fait, promouvoir une politique de l'habitation qui soit une politique d'embellissement. "Construire beaucoup, c'est une occasion d'embellir", dit Bertrand de Jouvenel.Au lieu de cela, que voit-on, en dépit de la réaction amorcée depuis quelques années par le ministère des Affaires culturelles ? La médiocrité primée, la création handicapée, la spéculation triomphante. Les grands ensembles sont une erreur, mais nous ne savons pas pourquoi. Colin Davidson, professeur à l'Ecole d'architecture de l'université de Montréal.Dans un vieux pays comme la France, pour lutter contre la laideur, il y a deux méthodes : une stratégie de choc qui favorise la qualité architecturale ; une stratégie défensive qui prévient la détérioration du patrimoine ancien. La première n'a jamais été définie. Comment s'étonner des résultats ? On ne s'est même jamais soucié d'en jeter les bases en pratiquant une politique d'urbanisme conséquente. "Une ville comme Paris, dit M. Denieul, se caractérise par une propension à accorder les permis de construire, quand ils sont demandés, au coup par coup. Et cela, faute de documents d'urbanisme suffisamment précis, souples et contraignants en même temps."Appréciation Contre ce système du n'importe quoi, n'importe où, n'importe comment, M. André Malraux avait voulu réagir. Il avait demandé à l'architecte urbaniste Gaston Leclaire d'étudier l'aménagement du quartier de la rotonde de La Villette, et spécialement des abords du bassin, appelé à devenir le pôle d'attraction d'un site urbain peu connu et insolite. L'étude a été menée à terme, mais ses conclusions sont restées lettre morte. De telles études, faites systématiquement, auraient pu freiner bien des désastres, non seulement à Paris, mais sur la Côte d'Azur, autre victime notoire d'une urbanisation désordonnée. Et servir de tremplin à une architecture raisonnée, sinon réussie, alors que celle dont nous souffrons n'est ni l'un ni l'autre. C'est aussi M. André Malraux qui, par la loi du 4 août 1962, dite des secteurs sauvegardés, tenta de consolider la stratégie défensive. De fait, à l'intérieur des quartiers préservés, au voisinage des monuments historiques on ne peut construire ni détruire n'importe quoi. Un immeuble tout en verre où se reflète la cathédrale d'Amiens ? Soit : le mélange des siècles n'est pas prohibé, au contraire, c'est la vie même des villes. A condition que les deux architectures soient, comme c'est le cas, bien intégrées l'une à l'autre. La R.a.t.p., en revanche, n'a pas reçu le droit de construire sur les quais de la Seine, déjà si meurtris, une tour de bureaux qui viendrait s'inscrire entre celles de Notre-Dame. Il y aurait donc sauvegarde sans le drame des dérogations laissées à l'appréciation des administrations. A cause d'une de ces dérogations, va s'élever, rue de l'Université, l'immeuble de bureaux réservé aux membres de l'Assemblée nationale. On le verra, de la place de la Concorde, se profiler derrière les deux étages de l'hôtel de Lassay, résidence du président de l'Assemblée. Dérogation aussi pour la barre massive des immeubles de Maine-Montparnasse et la tour de 200 m qui les couronnera : quand la maquette fut présentée devant la Commission des sites, un ministre et cinq préfets étaient présents pour l'appuyer de leur autorité politique. Il n'y eut pour ainsi dire pas de discussion. Quant à la tour de la Halle aux vins, autre pont aux ânes architectural, c'est l'enfant bâtard d'un grand projet : une flèche hélicoïdale, construite par l'architecte Edouard Albert, et couverte de mosaïque par Georges Braque. Hélas ! Albert et Braque sont morts, et les Parisiens n'ont sous les yeux que la tour sans génie d'Henri Coulomb. Bénédiction A Strasbourg, c'est le maire lui-même, M. Pierre Pflimlin, qui s'est obstiné à permettre la construction, à deux pas de la cathédrale, d'un complexe immobilier de 60 m de haut et de plus de 60 millions de Francs. La Commission départementale des sites, les Monuments historiques, la direction départementale de l'Equipement ont émis un avis défavorable. Les P.t.t. aussi, car cette tour fera écran aux liaisons hertziennes entre Strasbourg et Paris. Rien n'y a fait. M. Pflimlin a gagné. Les P.t.t. devront déplacer le relais de leurs ondes hertziennes, situé à Saverne, et la flèche rose de la cathédrale, point de ralliement de toute l'Alsace, se verra fâcheusement disputer le ciel. La Côte d'Azur regorge, hélas ! d'exemples tout aussi significatifs. Le dernier en date n'est pas le moins accablant. A Mandelieu-La Napoule, sur un terre-plein de 10 ha gagné sur la mer, vient d'être construit un "complexe" d'une quinzaine d'immeubles, hauts de sept étages, et d'une médiocrité affligeante, qui dépare un des plus beaux panoramas de la Côte, entre le massif de l'Esterel et les îles de Lérins. Avant de voir le jour, ce projet a reçu toutes les bénédictions officielles. Quinze organismes différents ont été consultés par le Conseil municipal, et, parmi eux, la Commission des sites. Pas un souffle de protestation ne s'est élevé. L'affaire est remontée à Paris. Finalement, le ministre de l'Equipement lui-même a signé le permis de construire et la concession d'endigage du port. Aujourd'hui, l'Association pour la défense des sites de Cannes et des environs distribue la photo du chantier à des milliers d'exemplaires. "Ce que nous voulons empêcher désormais." Et Mme Louise Moreau, élue maire de La Napoule aux dernières élections, est formelle : "Si, alors, j'avais été maire, je n'aurais jamais permis cela."

Répétition D'une part, l'Etat protège peu ou mal, d'autre part, loin de promouvoir la recherche et la qualité, il impose les normes d'une architecture concentrationnaire. Ainsi par le système des Cos (Coefficients d'occupation des sols), dans Paris et dans les grandes villes, où la pression de la rentabilité est énorme, on construit au maximum, même si c'est dépourvu de toute plausibilité, même si, du point de vue architectural. c'est une hérésie. "Il faudrait, dit M. Denieul, créer des zones de discontinuité : des Cos de 3 à un endroit, et, à d'autres, des Cos de 0 à 5, ce qui donnerait au faciès urbain un modelé, un relief. Au lieu de cela, le mot d'ordre est de 'bourrer' partout. Et le XVIe arrondissement de Paris, entre autres victimes, devient un immense chantier où se multiplient les surélévations intempestives." A quoi M. Jean Chapon, directeur du cabinet de M. Albin Chalandon, rétorque : "Il faut bâtir au maximum, sinon, où logera-t-on les milliers de gens qui affluent dans les villes ?" On touche, ici, au coeur du problème. Parce que les besoins étaient immenses et impérieux, on a construit beaucoup. Très vite. Sans se préoccuper du plaisir de vivre des futurs habitants. Comme si un environnement harmonieux était un luxe, cet environnement que les arbres et les champs fournissaient naturellement aux gens d'autrefois. Comme si l'on ne savait pas que la laideur monotone sécrète l'ennui, la morosité, le désespoir. Était-il impossible, au même prix, de construire bien ? Les réussites d'Emile Aillaud, par exemple, à Grigny-la-Grande-Borne, ou de Michel Andrault et de Pierre Parat à Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois prouvent le contraire. Même avec les crédits limités des H.l.m., même en respectant les normes étouffantes de l'urbanisme réglementaire, on peut créer des habitations à l'échelle de l'homme, du paysage, des architectures favorables à la détente et au bien-être. Ce n'est pas une question de crédits, ni de servitudes ni de préfabrication. C'est une question d'audace, d'invention. Malheureusement, les inventeurs, en cette époque de conformisme, sont rares, et on les encourage peu. Sauf dans les cas où l'obstination d'un créateur a réussi à vaincre les résistances pour modeler un univers vraiment neuf, on s'est contenté d'additionner, de juxtaposer les machines à vivre, les cités dortoirs, de confondre industrialisation et répétition, fonctionnalisme et monotonie. Multiplication "Quand je me promène autour de Paris, disait, peu de temps avant sa mort, le grand architecte américain Richard Neutra, j'ai l'impression que ceux qui bâtissent n'ont jamais été à l'école maternelle. Ils ne savent pas où le soleil se lève, ni où il se couche. Ils ont oublié que l'homme a besoin de chlorophylle comme les arbres et d'espace comme les oiseaux. Ils ne savent faire que des prisons." Le ministère de l'Equipement, pour sa part, est fier d'avoir mis au point un catalogue de grands ensembles --boîtes géantes et tours de tous calibres -- qui permet aux maires et aux offices d'H.l.m. de choisir sur photos et sur plans des immeubles types, spécialement étudiés par des architectes (certains sont renommés) qui en garantissent la qualité de la fabrication et le prix. Au ministère de l'Education nationale qui, à lui seul, dépense 3 milliards par an pour construire 4 millions de m2 (un C.e.s. par jour), on prône la préfabrication (sauf dans les établissements de l'enseignement supérieur). Chaque année, parmi les propositions des trente-cinq entreprises agréées, qui se sont engagées à ne pas dépasser le prix plafond de 520 Francs le m2, on choisit trois ou quatre types nouveaux de C.e.s. On les expérimente en petite série l'année suivante. Puis, on se lance dans la fabrication industrielle. En soi, le système pourrait être bon. S'il n'aboutissait pas à la multiplication de bâtiments déprimants. Même à Cajarc (Lot), cher à M. Georges Pompidou, le C.e.s. offense la vue. L'Education nationale, à qui incombe, entre autres tâches, le soin de former l'oeil et le goût des enfants, ne s'en émeut pas. "Elle n'accepte, dit un haut fonctionnaire, aucun conseil, et se drape dans sa dignité de gros consommateur d'architecture." Subvention Le ministère de l'Agriculture n'agit pas avec plus de discernement. Il n'impose pas de modèles. Mais les prix plafonds des bâtiments agricoles ont été calculés si bas (en partant de la tôle ondulée et du parpaing non enduit) que l'agriculteur qui souhaiterait construire convenablement ne peut le faire, sans risquer de perdre le bénéfice de la subvention. Ainsi, la campagne française s'est couverte peu à peu de bergeries et d'étables qu'on dirait échappées de bidonvilles. Aucun site n'est épargné. Ni la Bretagne ni la Lozère. Si le classement de Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises n'était pas intervenu à temps, un hangar de tôle ondulée serait venu boucher la perspective historique qui s'étend devant la Boisserie... Une grande part de ces diverses calamités est due à l'incompétence des maîtres d'ouvrage - fonctionnaires et élus - desquels dépend la commande publique. "Le sens de l'architecture est aussi rare chez eux que le bon sens", disait quelqu'un qui les pratique. Et Raymonde Moulin, dans sa récente étude sur l'Etat et les architectes, l'a noté : "L'intérêt pour la qualité architecturale appartient sinon à l'ordre du rêve, du moins de ce qui peut être considéré comme un hasard heureux." Les promoteurs privés ne sont pas plus royalistes que le roi. Pas plus que l'Etat, ils ne se soucient d'apporter aux Français le plaisir que procure un heureux agencement de l'espace. Pour la plupart, ils se contentent d'appâter avec du clinquant - baies vitrées, travertin dans le hall, céramique dans la salle de bains - et offrent des immeubles de (faux) prestige, mal insonorisés, mal compris, étriqués, qui n'ont que de lointains rapports avec l'architecture, même s'ils portent des signatures connues.

Impulsion Peut-on enrayer l'épidémie de laideur ? Alertés par les avertissements de la Commission du VIe Plan, les Pouvoirs publics semblent vouloir secouer leur torpeur. Pas question de définir une politique. "On ne peut imposer une architecture officielle, comme en U.R.S.S., se défend M. Chapon. Nous sommes en pays de liberté." Mais on éprouve la nécessité d'agir. Premier essai de stratégie dynamique : le plan-construction, lancé, en mai, conjointement par MM. Chalandon, Jacques Duhamel et François-Xavier Ortoli. Son objectif avoué : rechercher un habitat qui réponde mieux au besoin de l'homme d'aujourd'hui. En fait, il s'agit de trouver des remèdes à l'échec des grands ensembles.

 

Au ministère des Affaires culturelles, dans la même foulée réformatrice on prépare deux projets de loi : l'un sur la profession d'architecte, l'autre sur les conditions de la commande publique. Toujours sous l'impulsion de M. Duhamel, la Fondation de France finance un concours d'architecture agricole qui sera lancé à l'automne en Franche-Comté, en Bourgogne et en Bretagne. Enfin, une étude a été menée pour voir de quelle façon on pourrait, dès l'école maternelle, sensibiliser les enfants aux problèmes de volumes et d'espaces. Il reste à convaincre l'Education nationale d'inscrire cet enseignement nouveau à ses programmes.A la direction de l'Architecture, malgré les faibles moyens financiers dont il dispose, M. Denieul souhaite influer plus directement sur la qualité de la construction, en développant les services de la création architecturale. Dans les trente prochaines années, la France va construire autant de logements qu'il en existe actuellement. Il est temps de se souvenir que le degré de civilisation d'un peuple se juge à la qualité des édifices qu'il laisse à la postérité. "La France n'est ni belle ni laide", Vasarely "La France n'est ni belle ni laide. C'est le point de vue où nous nous plaçons qui décide. Celui qui se promène à New York ne voit qu'une ville chaotique et sale. Mais si, le soir, on arrive de l'aéroport, on découvre les gratte-ciel illuminés qui émergent au-dessus du fog. C'est un spectacle inoubliable. La Courneuve ou Sarcelles, vues d'avion, présentent des aspects intéressants.""Remédier à la laideur est une tâche extrêmement complexe qui se place sur d'innombrables plans, sociologiques, psychologiques, esthétiques. Le gouvernement actuel est favorable à l'esthétique, mais peut-on imposer la beauté comme on a imposé la vaccination obligatoire ? Actuellement on construit partout des habitations du genre clapier. Ce phénomène est universel. Sarcelles et Saint-Denis ressemblent à Sydney ou à Tokyo." Le droit à la beauté, par Pierre Schneider Le mot "esthétique" a mauvaise presse. Mais l'esthétique, dans la bouche des architectes, c'est ce que font les autres... En réalité, jamais l'architecture n'a été plus préoccupée de beauté. Elle peut prendre les formes les plus diverses. Ici, elle est dans l'intense présence d'un édifice ; là, dans un agencement heureux de l'espace obtenu par des moyens insignifiants. Tantôt harmonieuse, tantôt agressive. L'élégance du chemin le plus court, mais aussi l'extravagance du chemin des écoliers : Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe ne nie pas Antonio Gaudi. L'essentiel est de ne pas se soumettre passivement aux idées reçues, d'exprimer son temps - fût-ce en s'efforçant de le réorienter. "Lorsqu'une oeuvre est à son maximum d'intensité, de proportions, de qualité d'exécution, de perfection, il se produit un phénomène d'espace indicible, les lieux se mettent à rayonner, physiquement. C'est du domaine de l'ineffable." Cette définition du beau est due au père du fonctionnalisme : Edouard Le Corbusier. L'absence de volonté créatrice se traduit par des formes inertes. Et l'inertie démoralise. Le jour n'est pas loin où le plus fanatique des technocrates sera contraint d'inclure le droit à la beauté dans ses frais généraux. A quelques exceptions près, l'histoire de l'architecture moderne - celle du dernier quart de siècle, surtout - ne s'est pas écrite en France. Pourquoi ? La raison la plus évidente est qu'elle n'a pas voulu ou su produire des architectes. La faute en incombe, en premier lieu, à l'Ecole des beaux-arts. La formation, ou plutôt la déformation qu'elle dispensait à ses élèves, était, depuis cent cinquante ans, résolument passéiste : on se référait à Versailles ou au Parthénon, oubliant que leur pouvoir de fascination venait de ce qu'ils avaient été, en leur temps, des bâtiments modernes. Le premier travail des élèves utilisant l'acier, le verre, fut présenté à l'Ecole en 1950.Vers 1956, un groupe d'élèves qui proposaient à Nicolas Untersteller, directeur de l'Ecole, d'organiser une exposition Mies Van der Rohe, s'entendirent répondre : "Je ne connais pas cette demoiselle." Un promoteur définit assez brutalement le produit de cet enseignement figé : "Les architectes ? Ils se croient des artistes. Ils ignorent la vie." Effectivement, l'Ecole n'a pas su assimiler la révolution industrielle. Vers 1840, un divorce s'opère entre architecte et ingénieur. Le premier n'a que mépris pour le second. Lorsque, au début du siècle, Fulgence Bienvenüe, ingénieur en chef du métropolitain, veut enseigner aux élèves de l'Ecole la technique du béton armé, ceux-ci le chahutent au cri de : "Tu nous prends pour des entrepreneurs ?" Bibliothèque nationale, Halles de Baltard, viaduc de Garabit - les chefs-d'oeuvre de la construction industrielle du XIXe siècle sont si peu considérés comme de l'architecture, que le premier d'entre eux à avoir été classé monument historique fut la tour Eiffel. Depuis quelques générations, les architectes apprenaient les techniques modernes, mais comme un mal nécessaire. "Un tuyau, ça se cache", dit l'un d'eux. Ils acceptaient de construire une usine ou une H.l.m. - il faut bien vivre - mais leur rêve restait de bâtir pour un prince. Aucune place n'était faite, dans l'enseignement, à l'économie, à la sociologie - en un mot à la donnée humaine qui est à la fois le grand problème de l'époque et sa chance de renouvellement : les nombres. Que pèsent ces rêveurs anachroniques en face de gens qui ont le sens des réalités - ceux-là mêmes qui les font travailler : les promoteurs ? Rien. Dans les pays anglo-saxons, l'architecte est respecté ; chez nous, c'est le pauvre type qui oublie un escalier. Un promoteur explique : "Comment je choisis un architecte ? C'est simple : je prends celui qui fait ce que je veux." Et ce qu'il veut, c'est ce qui se vend, c'est-à-dire le "standing". Il n'y a pas de grand architecte sans grand client, note l'architecte Michel Bezançon. Or, à l'encontre des Etats-Unis ou de l'Italie, en France, l'architecture ne se vend pas comme image de marque." M. Claude Alphandéry, P.d.g. de la Banque de la construction et des travaux publics, confirme : "Les gens d'affaires français ne considèrent pas encore l'architecture comme le bon signe extérieur de la réussite." Créer, dans ces conditions, tient du miracle. L'architecture abdique ou se condamne à périr de faim. Dans le secteur public, l'accueil à l'architecture vivante n'est pas meilleur que dans le privé. L'architecte, pour faire aboutir un projet, doit avoir l'obstination des personnages de Kafka. Un disciple connu de Le Corbusier se voit refuser une commande parce que, selon les mots du financier désolé, "il n'a personne dans sa manche". Savoir se débrouiller est plus important que savoir créer. "Le secteur public est démembré en parties qui doivent négocier entre elles", explique M. Alphandéry. D'excellentes réalisations, toutes dues à la volonté d'individus, soulignent d'autant plus cruellement la formidable indifférence des hommes politiques (qu'ils soient de droite ou de gauche) et des technocrates à "la dimension poétique". Les ministres se préoccupent de pouvoir proclamer à la fin de l'année qu'on a construit tant de logis, mais II ne vient à l'idée de personne de supposer que ces logis devraient, en toute justice, tomber sous le coup de la loi qui interdit de déposer des ordures sur la voie publique. Pourtant, il est des raisons d'espérer. La principale est l'apparition d'une génération d'architectes pour qui l'industrie n'est plus l'ennemi - pas plus que la panacée - mais un instrument. Un instrument qui, bien utilisé, peut libérer l'architecture de ses servitudes. Ici et là, surgissent des bâtiments, des ensembles dont la réussite démontre qu'aujourd'hui les contraintes techniques et budgétaires ne sont plus que l'alibi facile des médiocres. L'imagination est humainement nécessaire. Elle est techniquement possible. A nous de savoir l'exiger. www.lexpress.fr/culture/1971-architecture-et-urbanisme-la... Métamorphoses des villes : d'hier à aujourd'hui L'oeuvre de Le Corbusier classée au patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco Marseille, d'hier à aujourd'hui Lille d'hier à aujourd'hui... www.lexpress.fr/culture/en-images-l-oeuvre-de-le-corbusie... Dix-sept réalisations de l'architecte franco-suisse, dont dix situées en France, sont désormais inscrites au patrimoine mondial de l'organisation. Une proposition adoptée par consensus et sans changement par le comité en charge du classement. La troisième aura été la bonne. Après deux tentatives infructueuses, l'oeuvre architecturale de Le Corbusier a été inscrite au Patrimoine mondial, a annoncé dimanche l'Unesco. La décision a été prise lors de la 40e session du Comité du patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco à Istanbul. Cette réunion a été suspendue samedi en raison de la tentative de putsch militaire, avant de reprendre dimanche matin. Le classement porte sur dix-sept réalisations de l'architecte franco-suisse dans sept pays. Dix d'entre elles sont situées en France. Parmi elles figure la Maison de la Culture de Firminy A ces réalisations s'ajoutent les Maisons La Roche et Jeanneret à Paris, la Villa Savoye et loge du jardinier à Poissy, l'Immeuble locatif à la Porte Molitor à Boulogne-Billancourt, la Manufacture à Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, le couvent Sainte-Marie-de-la-Tourette à Eveux. Le Corbusier : hommage au virtuose de la modernité www.cotemaison.fr/chaine-d/deco-design/le-corbusier-un-ar... frontières françaises, d'autres créations de Le Corbusier ont également été classées. L'immeuble Clarté à Genève, la petite villa au bord du lac Léman à Corseaux (Suisse), la maison Guiette à Anvers (Belgique), les maisons de la Weissenhof-Siedlung à Stuttgart (Allemagne), la Maison du Docteur Curutchet à La Plata (Argentine), le musée national des beaux-Arts de l'Occident à Taito-Ku à Tokyo (Japon) et le complexe du capitole à Chandighar (Inde)."Cette bonne nouvelle survient après plus de dix ans de travail, de concertation et deux échecs", s'est félicité dans un communiqué Benoît Cornu, premier adjoint à Ronchamp (Haute-Saône), qui préside depuis 2016 l'Association des Sites Le Corbusier créée en 2010. Le Corbusier: hommage au virtuose de la modernité Interrogé par Le Monde, le même interlocuteur considère que Icomos, le Conseil international des monuments et des sites, avait par le passé jugé la série proposé "trop pléthorique et éclectique, et surtout, déploré l'absence du site de Chandigarh en Inde, qui révélait la dimension urbanistique de l'oeuvre". En intégrant ce site qui comprend un quartier, sa maison de la culture, son stade, sa piscine et son église -le plus grand conçu par l'architecte- les promoteurs du dossier de candidature ont tiré parti des expériences passées. La ministre de la Culture et de la Communication, Audrey Azoulay, s'est réjouie de la décision de l'Unesco, en relevant qu'elle soulignait "l'importance de la préservation et de la valorisation du patrimoine récent, de moins de cent ans". l'architecture moderne au rang d'art majeur. L'occasion de revisiter son oeuvre architecturale avec notamment la Cité radieuse à Marseille, sans oublier son parcours de peintre et de designer. L'Express Styles est aussi parti à la rencontre d'artistes comme India Mahdavi ou Ora-ïto qui s'en sont inspirés... Découverte ! L'architecte de tous les possibles est aussi celui de tous les paradoxes. Mort en eaux troubles - on a retrouvé son corps noyé sur la plage de Roquebrune-Cap-Martin le 27 août 1965 -, Le Corbusier est, aussi, l'homme solaire qui a accouché de la Cité radieuse et un "visionnaire persuadé de pouvoir apporter la joie de vivre", affirme Sylvie Andreu, directrice de collection du livre Cher Corbu... (1). Cinq décennies après sa disparition, son aura continue de briller et son héritage est intact, de la villa Savoye, à Poissy (Yvelines), à l'unité d'habitation de Firminy (Loire), en passant par la chapelle de Ronchamp en Franche- Comté ou la ville nouvelle de Chandigarh en Inde. Et pourtant, l'homme n'a pas que des admirateurs... La Cité radieuse à Marseille.La Cité radieuse à Marseille.SDP La ville nouvelle de Chandigarh, en Inde, construite en 1947.La ville nouvelle de Chandigarh, en Inde, construite en 1947.Narinder Nanu/AFP

Critiquant ses excès et sa mégalomanie, ses détracteurs lui reprochent également, encore aujourd'hui, son approche fonctionnaliste trop radicale et d'être à l'origine de l'urbanisme des banlieues. Autant dire que le mystère autour de Charles-Edouard Jeanneret- Gris, dit Le Corbusier - né en Suisse en 1887 -, reste entier. Qui était vraiment cet autodidacte insatiable et obstiné dont l'oeuvre attend toujours son classement à l'Unesco, au titre de sa "contribution exceptionnelle au mouvement moderne"? Un virtuose de l'architecture bien qu'il n'ait pas le diplôme (il a quitté l'école à 13 ans) ? Un grand designer ? Un peintre compulsif ("Le dessin est fait avant que je ne l'aie pensé") ? Un sculpteur majeur ?

De toute évidence, un artiste surdoué et protéiforme "qui a profon dément marqué le XXe siècle et bouleversé notre façon d'habiter, explique Sylvie Andreu. Il sera guidé toute sa vie par l'esprit nouveau de son époque et n'au ra de cesse de combattre les conservatismes". A partir du 29 avril 2015, l'exposition du Centre Pompidou propose une relecture de ses créations - plus de 300 dessins, tableaux, sculptures, photos, meubles, dont certaines pièces réalisées dès 1923 avec Pierre Jeanneret... - qui seront présentées via le prisme de la mesure du corps humain. La villa Savoye (1928-1931), à PoissyLa villa Savoye (1928-1931), à PoissyArcaid/Corbis

Empreinte du modulor dans le béton, visible a Rezé (Loire-Atlantique)Empreinte du modulor dans le béton, visible a Rezé (Loire-Atlantique)SDP "L'homme a toujours été au centre de ses préoccupations, explique Jacques Sbriglio, architecte urbaniste et commissaire de l'exposition organisée à Marseille, en 2013, Le Corbusier et la question du brutalisme. Il a inventé un langage et fait basculer l'architecture dans le XXe siècle. Chacune de ses réalisations inter - rogeait le rapport de l'homme aux usages quotidiens. Quand il dessinait les plans d'une ville, il indiquait l'échelle, mais aussi le temps de déplacement d'un point à un autre." Et Olivier Cinqualbre, commissaire de l'exposition du Centre Pompidou, d'ajouter : "La cellule d'habitation pensée par Le Corbusier est petite mais pratique, à taille humaine. Pour épouser les mouvements du corps, le mobilier devient réglable (dès 1929), modulable ou encastrable." La chapelle Notre-Dame-du-Haut (1950-1955), à RonchampLa chapelle Notre-Dame-du-Haut (1950-1955), à RonchampCalle Montes/Photononstop

Avant-gardiste, ce bâtisseur souhaite libérer l'individu des contraintes, du mal-logement, de l'inconfort. Car, ne l'oublions pas, au lendemain de la guerre, chaque mètre carré compte! Pour modifier la perception des volumes, il use en plus de couleurs franches. Là aussi, il connaît sa palette... Depuis qu'il s'est installé à Paris en 1917, il peint tous les jours et manie le nuancier avec finesse. Voilà qui explique sans doute qu'il ait autant d'influence auprès des créateurs tous azimuts : designers et stylistes de mode! La preuve, ci-contre, en cinq témoignages... . Le Corbusier. Mesures de l'homme, du 29 avril au 3 août 2015, Centre Pompidou, Paris (IVe), www.centre pompidou.fr

Chandigarh, 50 ans après Le Corbusier, du 11 novembre 2015 au 14 mars 2016 à la Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine, Paris (XVIe). www.citechaillot.fr

 

"Cher Corbu" Recueil de témoignages de 12 architectes contemporains sur le grand homme, dans lequel chacun lui écrit une lettre."Cher Corbu" Recueil de témoignages de 12 architectes contemporains sur le grand homme, dans lequel chacun lui écrit une lettre.SDP

 

(1) Cher Corbu..., un ouvrage collectif qui recueille le témoignage de 12 architectes contemporains sur le grand homme : de Paul Chemetov à Odile Decq en passant par Elisabeth de Portzamparc ou Claude Parent, qui lui ont chacun écrit une lettre. Bernard Chauveau éd., 48 p., 22,50 ?

Ils se sont inspirés du Corbusier...India Mahdavi, amoureuse d'innovation

India Mahdavi, architecte d'intérieur et designer. Vient de terminer le restaurant I Love Paris pour Guy Martin.India Mahdavi, architecte d'intérieur et designer. Vient de terminer le restaurant I Love Paris pour Guy Martin.SDP

L'Express Styles : Que représente pour vous le Corbusier ?

India Mahdavi : C'est un révolutionnaire et un provocateur, qui a fait renaître l'architecture moderne en mettant l'homme au centre de la vie et de la ville. Il a eu l'intelligence de s'interroger sur les modes de vie des gens bien avant tout le monde. Son rapport aux proportions m'a imprégnée. Sur mes chantiers, j'utilise aussi le Modulor. Ses références sont devenues les miennes. Il a cassé les normes bourgeoises de l'habitat. L'Express Styles : En quoi a-t-il inspiré vos créations ? India Mahdavi : J'aime beaucoup sa façon d'appliquer la couleur en aplats pour redessiner les volumes, rythmer les espaces, marquer les perspectives. C'était un formidable coloriste. L'ouvrage Le Corbusier. Polychromies architecturalesest d'ailleurs une de mes bibles. Il référence toutes les nuances et permet, grâce à une réglette, de les associer harmonieusement. C'est un outil dont je me sers sur tous mes chantiers.

L'Express Styles : Quelle est pour vous la pièce ou le bâtiment culte ? India Mahdavi : Le tabouret à poignées, en chêne, qu'il a conçu pour son cabanon, d'après une caisse à whiskys. On peut évidemment s'asseoir dessus, mais on peut surtout l'empiler pour séparer une pièce, le transformer en chevet ou en table basse. Il n'y a pas de meuble qui résume mieux son oeuvre. Le Corbusier : hommage au virtuose de la modernitéSDP Ora-ïto et sa fascination pour la minutie

Ora-ïto, architecte designer. Propriétaire du toit terrasse de la Cité radieuse à Marseille.Ora-ïto, architecte designer. Propriétaire du toit terrasse de la Cité radieuse à Marseille.SDP L'Express Styles : Que représente pour vous Le Corbusier ? Ora-ïto : Il est l'inventeur de la modernité. Pour chacune de ses réalisations, il a établi un vrai scénario de vie. La Cité radieuse en est le plus bel exemple. Tout y est pensé au millimètre près et à bonne hauteur grâce au Modulor-une grille de mesures qu'il a inventée et représentée par la silhouette d'un homme debout, le bras levé. C'était aussi un obsessionnel. D'ailleurs, quand il érige cette unité d'habitation, on le surnomme le "Fada". Mais il reste un grand monsieur qui m'a beaucoup influencé.

L'Express Styles : En quoi a-t-il inspiré vos créations ?

Ora-ïto : Je ne suis pas habité par Corbu, mais imprégné de ses concepts. Sa rigueur, sa façon d'organiser les espaces en lien avec les modes de vie et sa simplicité restent des valeurs essentielles. C'est le Steve Job de l'architecture !

L'Express Styles : Quelle est pour vous la pièce ou le bâtiment culte ? Ora-ïto : La villa Savoye à Poissy. Art déco, cette première maison de week-end est spectaculaire : une "boîte en l'air" montée sur pilotis, qui a tout pour elle. Elle est lumineuse, élégante et intemporelle.

Le Corbusier : hommage au virtuose de la modernitéSDP

Pierre Charpin, sensibilité des couleurs Pierre Charpin, designer. Prépare une exposition pour la galerie Kréo à Londres.Pierre Charpin, designer. Prépare une exposition pour la galerie Kréo à Londres.SDPL'Express Styles : Que représente pour vous Le Corbusier ?Pierre Charpin : Ce n'est pas un maître à penser, mais un grand architecte et aussi un étonnant plasticien doué d'une sensibilité aux formes hors pair. La chapelle de Ronchamp - tout en courbes et en harmonie avec le paysage - en est un des plus beaux exemples, le contraire d'un bâtiment standardisé. L'Express Styles : En quoi a-t-il inspiré vos créations ? Pierre Charpin : Je ne sais pas s'il m'a influencé, mais son travail sur les couleurs m'a beaucoup intéressé. Il utilise une gamme de coloris plus subtile et sophistiquée que celle des primaires. Comme lui, je n'aime pas les fausses couleurs et les demi-teintes, ni les objets trop lisses. J'apprécie sa façon d'appréhender le béton, notamment à la Cité radieuse. Il en a fait une surface vivante et pas si brutale que ça ! Pour y avoir séjourné, je suis frappé par la sophistication et la simplicité de ce grand vaisseau. Corbu fait partie, avec Sottsass, des gens qui comptent pour moi. C'est à la fois un théoricien et un être très sensible. L'Express Styles : Quelle est pour vous la pièce ou le bâtiment culte ? Pierre Charpin : Son cabanon de Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, de 3,66 mètres sur 3,66, est un modèle d'intelligence : il a optimisé chaque centimètre carré. Cette réalisation démontre à quel point il était libre. Eux aussi l'apprécient... Jérome Dreyfuss, créateur de sacs"Mes grands-parents étant les voisins de Jean Prouvé, à Nancy ; j'ai été sensible, très jeune, à l'architecture et à Corbu, qui a toujours eu une longueur d'avance. A chaque problème il trouvait une solution. Il avait cette capacité d'inventer des concepts et des principes de construction. Il était à la fois rationnel et créatif. Quand j'ai aménagé mon cabanon à Fontainebleau, j'ai optimisé chaque mètre carré. Chaque objet a sa fonction et sa raison d'être." www.jerome-dreyfuss.com Frédérique Dessemond, créatrice de la marque de bijoux Ginette NY "Je vis aujourd'hui à New York mais j'ai grandi - juqu'à 28 ans - à la Cité radieuse, dont je garde un souvenir ému. On vivait en autarcie, entre copains, c'était mieux que le Club Med ! Les appartements étaient très lumineux, remarquablement bien étudiés. J'ai conçu ma future boutique [66, rue des Saints-Pères, Paris VIe] à partir du Modulor. Et mes bijoux sont simples, faciles à vivre et sans ostentation, comme l'étaient ses réalisations." www.ginette-ny.com - www.ladepeche.fr/article/2010/11/02/940025-140-ans-en-arc... dreux-par-pierlouim.over-blog.com/article-chamards-1962-9... missionphoto.datar.gouv.fr/fr/photographe/7639/serie/7695...

Official Trailer - the Pruitt-Igoe Myth: an Urban History

www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7RwwkNzF68 - la dérive des continents youtu.be/kEeo8muZYJU Et la disparition des Mammouths - RILLIEUX LA PAPE & Dynacité - Le 23 février 2017, à 11h30, les tours Lyautey étaient foudroyées. www.youtube.com/watch?v=W---rnYoiQc …

Ginger CEBTP Démolition, filiale déconstruction du Groupe Ginger, a réalisé la maîtrise d'oeuvre de l'opération et produit les études d'exécution. L'emblématique ZUP Pruitt Igoe. vaste quartier HLM (33 barres de 11 étages) de Saint-Louis (Missouri) USA. démoli en 1972 www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq_SpRBXRmE … "Life is complicated, i killed people, smuggled people, sold people, but perhaps in here.. things will be different." ~ Niko Bellic - cité Balzac, à Vitry-sur-Seine (23 juin 2010).13H & Boom, quelques secondes plus tard, la barre «GHJ», 14 étages et 168 lgts, s’effondrait comme un château de cartes sous les applaudissements et les sifflets, bientôt enveloppés dans un nuage de poussière. www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9nBMHS7mzY … - "La Chapelle" Réhabilitation thermique de 667 logements à Andrézieux-Bou... youtu.be/0tswIPdoVCE - 11 octobre 1984 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xk-Je1eQ5po …

DESTRUCTION par explosifs de 10 tours du QUARTIER DES MINGUETTES, à LYON. les tours des Minguettes ; VG des tours explosant et s'affaissant sur le côté dans un nuage de fumée blanche ; à 13H15, nous assistons à l'explosion de 4 autres tours - St-Etienne Métropole & Montchovet - la célèbre Muraille de Chine ( 540 lgts 270m de long 15 allees) qui était à l'époque en 1964 la plus grande barre HLM jamais construit en Europe. Après des phases de rénovation, cet immeuble a été dynamité en mai 2000 www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB3z_Z6DTdc … - PRESQU'ILE DE GENNEVILLIERS...AUJOURD'HUI...DEMAIN... (LA video içi parcours.cinearchives.org/Les-films-PRESQU-ILE-DE-GENNEVI... … ) Ce film de la municipalité de Gennevilliers explique la démarche et les objectifs de l’exposition communale consacrée à la presqu’île, exposition qui se tint en déc 1972 et janvier 1973 - le mythe de Pruitt-Igoe en video içi nextcity.org/daily/entry/watch-the-trailer-for-the-pruitt... … - 1964, quand les loisirs n’avaient (deja) pas le droit de cité poke @Memoire2cite youtu.be/Oj64jFKIcAE - Devenir de la ZUP de La Paillade youtu.be/1qxAhsqsV8M v - Regard sur les barres Zum' youtu.be/Eow6sODGct8 v - MONTCHOVET EN CONSTRUCTION Saint Etienne, ses travaux - Vidéo Ina.fr www.ina.fr/video/LXF99004401 … via - La construction de la Grande Borne à Grigny en 1969 Archive INA www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&v=t843Ny2p7Ww (discours excellent en seconde partie) -David Liaudet : l'image absolue, c'est la carte postale" phothistory.wordpress.com/2016/04/27/david-liaudet-limage... … l'architecture sanatoriale Histoire des sanatoriums en France (1915-1945). Une architecture en quête de rendement thérapeutique..

passy-culture.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Les-15-Glori... … … & hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01935993/document … explosion des tours Gauguin Destruction par implosion des Tours Gauguin (quartier de La Bastide) de Limoges le dimanche 28 novembre 2010 à 11 heures. Limoges 28/11/2010 youtu.be/cd0ln4Nqqbs … 42 Roanne - c'etait le 11 novembre 2013 - Souvenirs des HLM quartier du Parc... Après presque 45 minutes de retard, les trois dernières tours Chanteclair sont tombées. Le tir prévu etait à 11h14 La vidéo içi www.leprogres.fr/loire/2013/11/01/roanne-les-3-dernieres-... … … www.leprogres.fr/loire/2013/11/01/roanne-une-vingtaine-de... …Besançon (25) - la Nouvelle cité d'HLM La Planoise en 1960 avec la video des premiers habitants de Planoise en juin 1968 www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVKAkJSsCGk … … … archive INA … BEGIN Japanology - les utopies de l'extreme et Kenzo Tange l'architecte japonnais - la video içi www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlAOtYFE4GM … 71 les Prés Saint-Jean a Chalon-sur-Saône - L'Implosion des 3 tours HLM de 15 etages le 5 décembre 2009 par FERRARI DEMOLITION içi www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDsqOjQJS8E … … … & là www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARQYQLORBBE … 21 DIJON Cité des Grésilles - c'etait l'implosion de la residençe HLM Paul Bur le 19 02 2010 www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAEuaq5mivM … … & la www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTUm-mky-sw … 59 - la technique dite du basculement - Destruction de l'immeuble Rhone a Lille avec pleins de ralentit içi video-streaming.orange.fr/actu-politique/destruction-de-l... … 21 Chenôve (le GRAND DIJON) - Implosion de la barre François RUDE le 3 nov 2010 (top video !!) www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClmeXzo3r5A … …Quand l histoire çe repete et çe repetera autant de fois que nesçessaire quand on voie la quantitée de barres 60 70's...dans le collimateur de l'ANRU2.. 77 MEAUX 3 grandes tours..& puis s'en vont.. Démolition Pierre Collinet Batiment Genêt, Hortensia et Iris - Reportage Journal le 26 juin 2011 youtu.be/fpPcaC2wRIc 71 CHALON SUR SAONE C'etait les Prés Saint Jean le 05 décembre 2009 , pour une implosion hlm hors du commun !!! Caméra mise à même le sol , à une vingtaine de mètres de la première tour .... www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVlC9rYU-gs … 78 les MUREAUX le 3 octobre 2010 ,Les dernières minutes de la Tour Molière aux Mureaux (Yvelines) et sa démolition par semi-foudroyage, filmés du quartier de la Vigne Blanche. www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2FDMxrLHcw …71 MACON LES GRANDES PERRIERES C'etait un 30 juin 2013, avec l'implosion de la barre HLM des Perrières par GINGER www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzYwTcCGUGA … … une video exceptionnelle ! c'etait Le Norfolk Court un ensemble résidentiel, le Norfolk Court, construit dans les années 1970, a été démoli à Glasgow en Ecosse le 9 mai 2016 . Il rate la démolition d'un immeuble au tout dernier moment LES PASSAGERS DU BUS EN PROFITE A SA PLAçE lol www.20minutes.fr/tv/t-as-vu/237077-il-rate-la-demolition-... … 69 LYON Quand La Duchère disait adieu à sa barre 230 le jeudi 2 juillet 2015 www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSwidwLw0NA … www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdLjUAK1oUk … www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DZ5RSLpYrM …Avenir Deconstruction : Foudroyage de 3 barres HLM - VAULX-EN-VELIN (69) www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E02NUMqDno Démolition du quartier Bachelard à Vaulx-en-Velin www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSAEBIYYpXY Démolition des tours du Pré de l'Herpe (Vaulx-en-Velin)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG5sD1G-QgU REPORTAGE - En sept secondes, un ensemble de 407 appartements à Vaulx-en-Velin a été détruit à l'explosif dans le cadre du renouvellement urbain... www.youtube.com/watch?v=Js6w9bnUuRM www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCj5D1NhxhI - St-QUENTIN LA ZUP (scic)- NOUMEA - NOUVELLE CALEDONIE historique de la cité Saint-Quentin içi www.agence-concept.com/savoir-faire/sic/

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Gt6STiH_pM …[VIDEOS] Trois tours de la cité des Indes de Sartrouville ont été démolies dans le cadre du plan de rénovation urbaine du quartier Mille quatre cent soixante-deux détonateurs, 312 kilos le 06/06/2010 à 11 heures. la belle video içi www.youtube.com/watch?v=fY1B07GWyDE VIGNEUX-SUR-SEINE, VOTRE HISTOIRE, VOS SOUVENIRS. içi www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o_Ke26mB48 … , Film des Tours et du quartier de la Croix Blanche, de 1966 à 1968. Les Tours en train de finir de se construire, ainsi que le centre commerciale. Destruction de la Tour 21, pour construire de nouveaux HLM... l'UNION SOCIALE POUR L HABITAT fete ses 90 ans "TOUT savoir tout voir, tout connaitre, sur le LOGEMENT SOCIAL des HLM aux HBM avec le Musée HLM" en ligne sur le WEB içi musee-hlm.fr/ www.banquedesterritoires.fr/lunion-sociale-pour-lhabitat-... … içi www.banquedesterritoires.fr/lunion-sociale-pour-lhabitat-... … De grandes barres d’immeubles, appelées les grands ensembles, sont le symbole de nos banlieues. Entrée Libre revient sur le phénomène de destruction de ces bâtiments qui reflètent aujourd’hui la misere www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCqHBP5SBiM twitter.com/Memoire2cite/status/1121877386491043840/photo... Avril 1993, 6 ans après l'implosion de la tour DEBUSSY des 4000, 30% seulement des travaux de rénovation ont été réalisés et le chômage frappe toujours 1/3 des hbts. C'est un échec. A Mantes la Jolie, 6 mois après la destruction des 4 tours du Val Fourré, www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta4kj05KJOM … Banlieue 89, Bacalan à Bordeaux 1986 - Un exemple de rénovation urbaine et réhabilitation de l'habitat dans un des quartiers de Bordeaux La Cité Claveau à BACALAN. A l'initiative du mouvementla video içi www.youtube.com/watch?v=IN0JtGBaA1o … L'assoçiation de ROLLAND CASTRO @ Le Plan Banlieue 89 - mode d'emploi - Archive INA - La video içi. TRANSFORMER LES PAYSAGES URBAINS AVEC UNE APPROCHE CULTURELLE www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw-_f-bT2TQ … SNCF les EDITIONS DU CABRI PRESENTE PARIS LA BANLIEUE 1960-1980 -La video Içi. www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDEQOsdGjsg … Içi la DATAR en 1000 clichés missionphotodatar.cget.gouv.fr/accueil - Notre Paris, 1961, Réalisation : André Fontaine, Henri Gruel Les archives filmées de la cinémathèque du ministère de 1945 à nos jours içi www.dailymotion.com/video/xgis6v?playlist=x34ije

31 TOULOUSE - le Mirail 1962 réalisation : Mario Marret construction de la ville nouvelle Toulouse le Mirail, commentée par l'architecte urbaniste Georges Candilis le film www.dailymotion.com/video/xn4t4q?playlist=x34ije Il existe de nos jours, de nombreux photographes qui privilégient la qualité artistique de leurs travaux cartophiles. A vous de découvrir ces artistes inconnus aujourd’hui, mais qui seront peut-être les grands noms de demain.Les films du MRU - Le temps de l'urbanisme, 1962, Réalisation : Philippe Brunet www.dailymotion.com/video/xgj2zz?playlist=x34ije … … … … -Les grands ensembles en images Les ministères en charge du logement et leur production audiovisuelle (1944-1966) MASSY - Les films du MRU - La Cité des hommes, 1966, Réalisation : Fréderic Rossif, Albert Knobler www.dailymotion.com/video/xgiqzr?playlist=x34i - Les films du MRU @ les AUTOROUTES - Les liaisons moins dangereuses 1972 la construction des autoroutes en France - Le réseau autoroutier 1960 Histoire de France Transports et Communications - www.dailymotion.com/video/xxi0ae?playlist=x34ije … - A quoi servaient les films produits par le MRU ministère de la Reconstruction et de l'Urbanisme ? la réponse de Danielle Voldman historienne spécialiste de la reconstruction www.dailymotion.com/video/x148qu4?playlist=x34ije … -les films du MRU - Bâtir mieux plus vite et moins cher 1975 l'industrialisation du bâtiment et ses innovations : la préfabrication en usine, le coffrage glissant... www.dailymotion.com/video/xyjudq?playlist=x34ije … - TOUT SUR LA CONSTRUCTION DE NOTRE DAME LA CATHEDRALE DE PARIS Içi www.notredamedeparis.fr/la-cathedrale/histoire/historique... -MRU Les films - Le Bonheur est dans le béton - 2015 Documentaire réalisé par Lorenz Findeisen produit par Les Films du Tambour de Soie içi www.dailymotion.com/video/x413amo?playlist=x34ije …

archipostcard.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-02-13T... -Créteil.un couple à la niaiserie béate exalte les multiples bonheurs de la vie dans les new G.E. www.youtube.com/watch?v=FT1_abIteFE … La Ville bidon était un téléfilm d'1 heure intitulé La Décharge.Mais la censure de ces temps de présidence Pompidou en a interdit la diffusion télévisuelle - museedelacartepostale.fr/periode-semi-moderne/ - archipostalecarte.blogspot.com/ - Hansjörg Schneider BAUNETZWOCHE 87 über Papiermoderne www.baunetz.de/meldungen/Meldungen_BAUNETZWOCHE_87_ueber_... … - ARCHITECTURE le blog de Claude LOTHIER içi leblogdeclaudelothier.blogspot.com/2006/ - - Le balnéaire en cartes postales autour de la collection de David Liaudet, et ses excellents commentaires.. www.dailymotion.com/video/x57d3b8 -Restaurants Jacques BOREL, Autoroute A 6, 1972 Canton d'AUXERRE youtu.be/LRNhNzgkUcY munchies.vice.com/fr/article/43a4kp/jacques-borel-lhomme-... … Celui qu'on appellera le « Napoléon du prêt-à-manger » se détourne d'ailleurs peu à peu des Wimpy, s'engueule avec la maison mère et fait péricliter la franchise ...que dire de RICARDO BOFFIL Les meilleures balades que j’ai fait autour de Paris je les ai faites dans l’application Plans. Je ne minore pas le rôle de Google Maps, révolution cartographique sans précédent et sans égale, qui aura réalisé nos fantasmes d’Aleph borgesien — l’idée d’un point d’où le monde serait visible en totalité — parachevé Mercator et permis d’explorer des parties du globe inconnues de Cook, Bougainville et Amundsen. Je n’oublie pas non plus cet exercice de cartographie au collège, qui nous avait démontré que nous étions à 3 cartes IGN de la capitale, et que le tissu urbain était de plus en plus serré à mesure que nous avancions vers le nord. Mais Plan possédait une fonctionnalité inédite, le Flyover, technologie à l’origine destinée aux pilotes de chasse, et qui fournissait des rendus 3D spectaculaire des bâtiments survolés — ainsi que des arbres et des déclivités du sol On quittait enfin les champs asphyxiants de la photographie aérienne pour des vues à l’oblique des villes visitées : après un siècle d’écrasement — la photographie aérienne est étroitement contemporaine du bombardement aérien — les villes reprenaient enfin de la vigueur et remontaient vers le ciel. J’avais d’ailleurs effectué moi-même une manœuvre de redressement similaire le jour où j’étais parti, à pied depuis Paris, visiter à Nanterre une exposition sur la photographie aérienne. J’étais à la quête des premières vues de Paris qu’avait prises Nadar depuis un ballon captif. À défaut de ces images, définitivement manquantes, j’avais parcouru, après la Grande Arche, les derniers kilomètres de la Voie Royale, cette prodigieuse perspective historique partie du Louvre — rare exemple de frise chronologique implémentée dans une structure urbanistique.J’avais en réalité un peu dévié de la ligne droite pour aller voir les tours Nuages d’Emile Aillaud, le Facteur Cheval du modernisme, dont je connaissais déjà les autres chefs d’œuvres d'architecture naïve, les nouilles chinoises de Grigny et le spaghetti de Pantin.C’était précisément l’usage que j’avais fait de l’application Plans : j’étais parti à la recherche de tous les groupements de tour qu’elle m’avait permis d’identifier, sur mon iPad. Je les faisais tourner avec deux doigts, comme un éclaireur qui marcherait autour d’un donjon, avant de les immortaliser, sous leur plus bel angle, par une capture d’écran.Un éclaireur autour d’un donjon : c’était exactement cela, qui m’avait fasciné. Les guerres territoriales entre Les Tarterêts de Corbeil et les Pyramides d’Evry avaient marqué mon enfance. La notion de cité, telle qu’elle avait été définie, à partir des années 80, dans le second âge des grands ensembles, l’âge du déclin, avait conservé un cachet médiéval. Ici, vivaient guetteurs et trafiquants, condottieres à la tête d’une écurie de go-fast et entretenant des chenils remplis de mâtins rares et dangereux. Ici, l’État central ne remplissait plus ses tâches régaliennes, ici la modernité laïque était entrée en crise. Mais ce que j’avais découvert, en collectionnant ces captures d’écran, c’était à quel point l’urbanisme de la banlieue parisienne était, strictement, d’obédience médiévale. On était passé, d’un seul mouvement et sans même s’en rendre compte de Château-Gaillard à la Cité 4000, du Donjon de Vincennes aux tours de Sarcelles, du château de Gisors aux choux fleurs de Créteil.J’ai même retrouvé la colonne détruite du désert de Retz dans le babylonien château d’eau de Noisiel.Des hauteurs de Rosny à celle de Chanteloup, du plateau de Clichy à la dalle d’Argenteuil, on avait bizarrement livré des pastiches inconscients de la grande architecture militaire médiévales : les environs de Paris s’étaient retrouvés à nouveau fortifiés, la vieille tour de Montlhéry n’était plus solitaire, et même les immeubles de briques rouges qui avaient succédé à l’enceinte de Thiers évoquaient des murailles.Et ce que j’avais initialement pris pour des anomalies, des accidents malheureux du post-modernisme, les grand ensembles voûtés et cannelés de Ricardo Boffil, étaient peut-être ce qui exprimait le mieux tout cela — ou du moins qui clôturaient avec le génie le plus clair cet âge des grands ensembles.Car c’était cela, ces Carcassonnes, ces Acropoles, ces Atlandides qui surnageaient avec le plus de conviction au milieu des captures d’écrans de ruines médiévales qui s’accumulaient sur mon bureau.Si décriées, dès leur construction, pour leur kitch intolérable ces mégastructures me sont soudain apparues comme absolument nécessaires.Si les Villes Nouvelles n’ont jamais existé, et persisteront dans la mémoire des hommes, elles le doivent à ces rêveries bizarres et grandioses, à ces hybridations impossibles entre les cités idéales de Ledoux et les utopies corbuséennes.L’Aqueduc de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, les Espaces d’Abraxas à Marne-la-Vallée, les Colonnes de Saint-Christophe à Cergy-Pontoise sont les plus belles ruines du Grand Paris. www.franceculture.fr/emissions/la-conclusion/ricardo-bofill immerssion dans le monde du logement social, l'univers des logements sociaux, des H.B.M au H.L.M - Retour sur l'histoire du logement collectif d'apres guerre - En Françe, sur l’ensemble du territoire avant, 4 millions d’immeubles étaient vétustes, dont 500.000 à démolir; au total 10% des logements étaient considérés comme insalubres et 40% réputés d’une qualité médiocre, et surpeuplés. C’est pour ces raisons que, à partir de 1954, le Ministre à la Reconstruction et au Logement évalue le besoin en logements à 2.000.660, devenant ainsi une priorité nationale. Quelques années plus tard à l’appel de l’Abbé Pierre, le journaliste Gilbert Mathieu, en avril 1957 publiait dans le quotidien Le Monde une série d’articles sur la situation dramatique du logement : Logement, notre honte et dénonçant le nombre réduit de logements et leur impitoyable état. Robert Doisneau, Banlieue après-guerre, 1943-1949 /Le mandat se veut triple : reconstruire le parc immobilier détruit durant les bombardements essentiellement du printemps/été 1944, faire face à l’essor démographique et enfin résorber l’habitat insalubre notamment les bidonvilles et les cités de transit. Une ambition qui paraît, dès le début, très élevée, associée à l’industrialisation progressive de la nation entre autre celle du secteur de la construction (voir le vidéo de l’INA du 17 juillet 1957 intitulée La crise du logement, un problème national. Cela dit, l’effort pour l’État français était d’une ampleur jamais vue ailleurs. La double nécessité de construire davantage et vite, est en partie la cause de la forme architecturale excentrique qui constituera les Grands Ensembles dans les banlieues françaises. Cinq caractéristiques permettent de mieux comprendre ce terme : la rupture avec le tissu urbain ancien, un minimum de mille logements, une forme collective (tours, barres) de quatre jusqu’à vingt niveaux, la conception d’appartements aménagés et équipés et enfin une gestion destinée pour la plupart à des bailleurs de logement social.Pour la banlieue parisienne leur localisation s’est opérée majoritairement dans la périphérie, tandis que dans les autres cas, plus de la moitié a été construite dans le centre ville, le plus souvent à la limite des anciens faubourgs. Architecture d’Aujourd’hui n° 46, 1953 p. 58-55 C’est le triomphe de l’urbanisme fonctionnel et rationaliste cher à Le Corbusier. Entre 1958 et 1973, cent quatre-vingt-quinze Zones à Urbaniser en Priorité (ZUP)

nrhp # 80003426- The Joanna Furnace Complex was an iron furnace that operated from 1792 to 1901 in Robeson Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Samuel Potts and Thomas Rutter III and named for Potts's wife Joanna.[2][3] The furnace and its associated buildings were listed as a historic district by the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

 

After the Civil War the charcoal-fired furnace was owned by Clement Grubb's son-in-law, L. Heber Smith, a Civil War Colonel who married Clement's daughter Ella Jane Brooke Grubb in 1868. It passed through several hands before Smith took ownership, probably after the war and before his marriage to Ella Jane. It is likely that the Grubbs assisted with the furnace's major technological upgrade in 1889, when Ella Jane was an heiress to her father's sizable estate that year. The furnace continued in operation under Smith until it was "blown out" after his death in 1898 at the age of 61. The furnace was acquired by Bethlehem Steel, who deeded it to the Hay Creek Valley Historical Association in 1979. The ruins have been preserved and are open to visitors.

 

from Wikipedia

Humayun's tomb (Persian: آرامگاه همایون‎‎ Maqbara e Humayun Turkish: Hümayun Kabri) is the tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun in Delhi, India. The tomb was commissioned by Humayun's son Akbar) in 1569-70, and designed by Mirak Mirza Ghiyas, a Persian architect chosen by Bega Begum. It was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent, and is located in Nizamuddin East, Delhi, India, close to the Dina-panah citadel also known as Purana Qila (Old Fort), that Humayun founded in 1533. It was also the first structure to use red sandstone at such a scale. The tomb was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993, and since then has undergone extensive restoration work, which is complete. Besides the main tomb enclosure of Humayun, several smaller monuments dot the pathway leading up to it, from the main entrance in the West, including one that even pre-dates the main tomb itself, by twenty years; it is the tomb complex of Isa Khan Niyazi, an Afghan noble in Sher Shah Suri's court of the Suri dynasty, who fought against the Mughals, constructed in 1547 CE.

 

The complex encompasses the main tomb of the Emperor Humayun, which houses the graves of Bega Begum herself, Hamida Begum, and also Dara Shikoh, great-great-grandson of Humayun and son of the later Emperor Shah Jahan, as well as numerous other subsequent Mughals, including Emperor Jahandar Shah, Farrukhsiyar, Rafi Ul-Darjat, Rafi Ud-Daulat and Alamgir II. It represented a leap in Mughal architecture, and together with its accomplished Charbagh garden, typical of Persian gardens, but never seen before in India, it set a precedent for subsequent Mughal architecture. It is seen as a clear departure from the fairly modest mausoleum of his father, the first Mughal Emperor, Babur, called Bagh-e Babur (Gardens of Babur) in Kabul (Afghanistan). Though the latter was the first Emperor to start the tradition of being buried in a paradise garden. Modelled on Gur-e Amir, the tomb of his ancestor and Asia's conqueror Timur in Samarkand, it created a precedent for future Mughal architecture of royal mausolea, which reached its zenith with the Taj Mahal, at Agra.

 

The site was chosen on the banks of Yamuna river, due to its proximity to Nizamuddin Dargah, the mausoleum of the celebrated Sufi saint of Delhi, Nizamuddin Auliya, who was much revered by the rulers of Delhi, and whose residence, Chilla Nizamuddin Auliya lies just north-east of the tomb. In later Mughal history, the last Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar took refuge here, during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, along with three princes, and was captured by Captain Hodson before being exiled to Rangoon. At the time of the Slave Dynasty this land was under the 'Kilo Kheri Fort' which was capital of Sultan Kequbad, son of Nasiruddin (1268–1287).

 

The Tombs of Battashewala Complex lie in the buffer zone of the World Heritage Site of the Humayun Tomb Complex; the two complexes are separated by a small road but enclosed within their own separate compound walls.

 

HISTORY

After his death on 20 January 1556, Humayun's body was first buried in his palace in Purana Quila at Delhi. Thereafter it was taken to Sirhind, in Punjab by Khanjar Beg, because it was feared that Hindu king Hemu, who had defeated Mughal forces in Agra and Delhi in Oct. 1556 and captured Purana Quila, will damage the tomb. In 1558, it was seen by his son, the then Mughal Emperor, Akbar. Akbar subsequently visited the tomb when it was about to be completed in 1571. The tomb of Humayun was built by the orders of Akbar (3rd emperor of mughal empire), Humayun's first wife and chief consort, and begun in 1565, nine years after his death, and completed in 1572 AD at a cost of 1.5 million rupees at the time. Arnav Deorukhar, one of Humayun's wives, was also very helpful. The cost for building the mausoleum was paid entirely by Empress Bega Begum. When Humayun had died in 1556, Bega Begum was so grieved over her husband's death that she dedicated her life thenceforth to a sole purpose: the construction of the most magnificent mausoleum in the Empire, at a site near the Yamuna River in Delhi for the memorial of the late Emperor. According to Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th-century detailed document written during the reign of Akbar, Haji Begum supervised the construction of the tomb after returning from Mecca and undertaking the Hajj pilgrimage. Humayun to Abd al-Qadir Bada'uni, one of the few contemporary historians to mention its construction, the architect of the tomb was the Persian architect, Mirak Mirza Ghiyas (also referred to as Mirak Ghiyathuddin) who was brought from Herat (northwest Afghanistan), and had previously designed several buildings in Herat, Bukhara (now Uzbekistan), and others elsewhere in India. Ghiyas, to whom the mausoleum's exquisite design is attributed was chosen to be the architect by Empress Bega Begum. Unfortunately, before the structure's completion, he died and so his son Sayyed Muhammad ibn Mirak Ghiyathuddin completed his father's design in 1571. An English merchant, William Finch, who visited the tomb in 1611, describes the rich interior furnishing of the central chamber (in comparison to the sparse look today). He mentioned the presence of rich carpets, and a shamiana, a small tent above the cenotaph, which was covered with a pure white sheet and with copies of the Quran in front along with his sword, turban and shoes.

 

The fortunes of the once famous Charbagh (Four-square) gardens, which spread over 13 hectares surrounding the monument, changed repeatedly over the years after its construction. The capital had already shifted to Agra in 1556, and the decline of the Mughals accelerated the decay of the monument and its features, as the expensive upkeep of the garden proved impossible. By the early 18th century, the once lush gardens were replaced by vegetable garden of people who had settled within the walled area. However, the capture of the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 together with the premises, and his subsequent sentencing to exile, along with execution of his three sons, meant that the monument’s worst days lay ahead, as the British took over Delhi completely. In 1860, the Mughal design of the garden was replanted to a more English garden-style, with circular beds replacing the fours central water pools on the axial pathways and trees profusely planted in flowerbeds. This fault was corrected in early 20th century, when on Viceroy, Lord Curzon's orders the original garden were restored in a major restoration project between 1903–1909, which also included lining the plaster channels with sandstone; a 1915 planting scheme, added emphasis to the central and diagonal axis by lining it with trees, though some trees were also planted on the platform originally reserved for tents. The 1882, the Official curator of ancient monument in India, published his first report, which mentioned that the main garden was let out to various cultivators, amongst them till late were the royal descendants, who grew cabbage and tobacco in it.

 

During the Partition of India, in August 1947 the Purana Qila together with Humayun's Tomb, became major refugee camps for Muslims migrating to the newly founded Pakistan, and was later managed by the government of India. These camps stayed open for about five years, and caused considerable damage not only to the extensive gardens, but also to the water channels and the principle structures. Eventually, to avoid vandalism, the cenotaphs within the mausoleum were encased in brick. In the coming years, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), took on responsibility for the preservation of heritage monuments in India, and gradually the building and its gardens were restored. Until 1985, four unsuccessful attempts were made to reinstate the original water features.

 

An important phase in the restoration of the complex, started around 1993, when the monument was declared a World Heritage Site. This brought new interest to its restoration, and a detailed research and excavation process began under the aegis of the Aga Khan Trust and the ASI, culminating in 2003, when much of the complex, and gardens were finally restored, with its historic fountains running once again after several centuries of disuse. The restoration has been a continuous process ever since, with subsequent phases addressing various aspects and monuments of the complex.

 

ARCHITECTURE

Turkish and Mughal rule in the Indian subcontinent, also introduced Central Asian and Persian styles of Islamic architecture in the region, and by the late 12th century early monuments in this style were appearing in and around Delhi, the capital of Delhi Sultanate. Starting with the Turkic Slave dynasty which built the Qutb Minar (1192 AD) and its adjacent Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque (1193 CE). North India was successive ruled foreign dynasties in the coming centuries giving rise to the Indo-Islamic architecture. While the prevailing style of architecture was trabeate, employing pillars, beams and lintels, this brought in the arcuate style of construction, with its arches and beams, which flourished under Mughal patronage and by incorporating elements of Indian architecture, especially Rajasthani architecture including decorative corbel brackets, balconies, pendentive decorations and indeed kiosks or chhatris, to developed a distinct, Mughal architecture style, which was to become a lasting legacy of the nearly four hundred years of the Mughal rule. The combination of red sandstone and white marble was previously seen in Delhi Sultanate period tombs and mosques, most distinctively in the highly decorative Alai Darwaza in the Qutub complex, Mehrauli, built in 1311 AD, under the Khilji dynasty. The high rubble built enclosure is entered through two lofty double-storeyed gateways on the west and south, 16 metres high with rooms on either side of the passage and a small courtyards on the upper floors. Six-sided stars that adorn the main gateway on the west, are also seen on the iwan of the main tomb structure, though it has been used as ornamental cosmic symbol. The mosque usually present alongside royal tombs, like the Taj, is conspicuously missing from the enclosure, which has only one other structure, the tomb of Emperor's favorite barber, now commonly known as Nai ka Gumbad (Dome-of-barber). The tomb built of rubble masonry and red sandstone, uses white marble as a cladding material and also for the flooring, lattice screens (jaalis), door frames, eaves (chhajja) and for the main dome. It stands on a vaulted terrace eight-metre high and spread over 12,000m². It is essentially square in design, though chamferred on the edges to appear octagonal, to prepare ground for the design of the interior structure. The plinth made with rubble core has fifty-six cells all around, and houses over 100 gravestones. Plus, the entire base structure is on a raised platform, a few steps high.Inspired by Persian architecture; the tomb reaches a height of 47 metres and is 91 metres wide, and was the first Indian building to use the Persian double dome on a high neck drum, and measures 42.5 metres, and is topped by 6 metres high brass finial ending in a crescent, common in Timurid tombs. The double or 'double-layered' dome, has its outer layer which supports the white marble exterior, while the inner part gives shape to the cavernous interior volume. As a contrast to the pure white exterior dome, rest of the building is made up of red sandstone, with white and black marble and yellow sandstone detailing, to relieve the monotony. The symmetrical and simple designed on the exterior is in sharp contrast with the complex interior floor plan, of inner chambers, which is a square 'ninefold plan', where eight two-storyed vaulted chambers radiate from the central, double-height domed chamber. It can be entered through an imposing entrance iwan (high arc) on the south, which is slightly recessed, while others sides are covered with intricate jaalis, stone lattice work. Underneath this white dome in a domed chamber (hujra), lies the central octagonal sepulcher, the burial chamber containing a single cenotaph, that of the second Mughal Emperor, Humayun aligned on the north-south axis, as per Islamic tradition, where in the head is placed to the north, while the face is turned sideways towards Mecca. The real burial chamber of the Emperor, however lies further away in an underground chamber, exactly beneath the upper cenotaph, accessible through a separate passage outside the main structure, which remains mostly closed to visiting public. This burial technique along with pietra dura, a marble and even stone inlay ornamentation in numerous geometrical and arabesque patterns, seen all around the facade is an important legacy of the Indo-Islamic architecture, and flourished in many later mausolea of the Mughal Empire, like the Taj Mahal, where again we find twin cenotaphs and exquisite 'pietra dura' craftsmanship. The main chamber also carries the symbolic element, a mihrab design over the central marble lattice or jaali, facing Mecca in the West, here instead of the traditional Surah 24, An-Noor of Quran which is inscribed on the mihrabs, this one is just an outline allowing light to enter directly into the chamber, from Qibla or the direction of Mecca, thus elevating the status of the Emperor, above his rivals and closer to divinity. This chamber with high ceiling is then encompassed by four main octagonal chambers on two floors, set at the diagonals with arched lobbies leading to them also connecting them, plus there are four auxiliary chambers in between suggesting that the tomb was built as a dynastic mausoleum. Collectively the concept of eight side chambers not only offers passage for circumambulation of the main cenotaph, a practice common in Sufism and also visible in many Mughal imperial mausoleums, it also the reflect the concept of Paradise in Islamic cosmology. Each of the main chambers has in turn eight more, smaller chambers radiating from them, and thus the symmetrical ground plan reveals itself to contain 124 vaulted chambers in all. Many smaller chambers too, contain cenotaphs of other members of the Mughal royal family and nobility, all within main walls of the tomb. Prominent among them cenotaphs of Hamida Begum herself, alongside Dara Shikoh. In all there are over 100 graves within the entire complex, including many on the first level terrace, earning it the name "Dormitory of the Mughals", since the graves are not inscribed their identification remains uncertain. The building was first to use its unique combination of red sandstone and white marble, and includes several elements of Indian architectural, like the small canopies, or chhatris surrounding the central dome, popular in Rajasthani architecture and which were originally covered with blue tiles.

 

CHAR BAGH GARDEN

While the main tomb took over eight years to build, it was also placed in centre of a 120,000 m2 Char Bagh Garden (Four Gardens), a Persian-style garden with quadrilateral layout and was the first of its kind in the South Asia region in such a scale. The highly geometrical and enclosed Paradise garden is divided into four squares by paved walkways (khiyabans) and two bisecting central water channels, reflecting the four rivers that flow in jannat, the Islamic concept of paradise. Each of the four square is further divided into smaller squares with pathways, creating into 36 squares in all, a design typical of later Mughal gardens. The central water channels appear to be disappearing beneath the tomb structure and reappearing on the other side in a straight line, suggesting the Quranic verse, which talks of rivers flowing beneath the 'Garden of Paradise'.

 

The entire tomb and the garden is enclosed within high rubble walls on three sides, the fourth side was meant to be the river Yamuna, which has since shifted course away from the structure. The central walkways, terminate at two gates: a main one in the southern wall, and a smaller one in the western wall. It has two double-storey entrances, the West gate which used now, while the South gate, which was used during Mughal era, now remains closed. Aligned at the centre on the eastern wall lies a baradari, literally a pavilion with twelve doors, which is a building or room with twelve doors designed to allow the free draught of air through it, finally on the northern wall lies a hammam, a bath chamber.

 

OTHER MONUMENTS

- Tomb and mosque of Isa Khan: Several monuments dot the pathway leading up to the tomb enclosure from the main entrance in the West. Prominent among them is one that pre-dates the main tomb itself, by twenty years. Constructed in 1547 CE, it is the tomb complex of Isa Khan Niyazi, an Afghan noble in Sher Shah Suri's court of the Suri dynasty, who fought against the Mughals. The octagonal tomb is positioned within an octagonal garden, which was built during his own lifetime and the reign of Islam Shah Suri, son of Sher Shah. It later served as a burial place for the entire family of Isa Khan. On the western side of the tomb lies a three-bay wide mosque, in red sandstone. The octagonal tomb bears a striking resemblance to other tombs of the Sur dynasty monuments in the Lodhi Gardens, in Delhi and demonstrates a marked progression in the development of the exquisite architectural style of the main tomb. Some of the architectural details present here were seen later in the main Humayun's tomb, though on a much grander scale, such as the tomb being placed in a walled garden enclosure.

 

- Bu Halima's Tomb and Garden: When entering the complex from the West, visitor's first enter a garden complex, known as Bu Halima's Garden, though little is known about her, and since the tomb or the raised platform where it once stood is not at the centre, it appears to be a later addition. Afsarwala Tomb and mosque: Standing southwest end of the complex, lies the Afsarwala tomb (Officer's Tomb) belonging to a nobleman (Afsar Indianized word for Officer) in Akbar's court. One of the marble graves inside the tomb is dated 1566-67 CE. The mosque itself can be dated to the same period judging from its siting, standing as it does adjacent to the tomb, rather than away from it.

 

- Araba Sarai: Literally meaning the sarai (resthouse) for the horses of Gari (vehicle), the structure stands adjacent to the Afsarwala mosque and was built by Bega Begum around 1560-1561 CE, ostensibly built for the craftsmen who came for the construction work. It could accommodate 300 Arabas.(in Persian ارابه means:Cart or Gari (vehicle)).

 

- Nila Gumbad: Standing outside the boundary of the complex is the tomb known as Nila Burj (now known as Nila Gumbad) or 'Blue Dome', so called because it carries striking blue glazed tiles. It was built by Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, son of Bairam Khan also a courtier in Mughal Emperor, Akbar's court, for his servant Miyan Fahim. Fahim, who not only grew up with his son, but later also died alongside one of Rahim's own sons, Feroze Khan, while fighting against the rebellion of Mughal general Mahabat Khan in 1625/26, during the reign of Jahangir. This structure is known for its unique architecture, as it is octagonal on the outside while square within; its ceiling is decorated with painted and incised plaster, it has a high neck dome and shows a conspicuous absence of a double dome feature, common to tombs of the period.

 

- Chillah Nizamuddin Aulia: Believed to be the residence of patron saint of Delhi, Nizamuddin Auliya (d. 1325 A.D), is located just outside the main complex, near the northeastern corner of the principle mausoleum and is an example of Tughlaq period architecture.

 

Yet further away from the tomb complex, lie Mughal-period monuments, Bada Bateshewala Mahal, the tomb of Muzaffar Husain Mirza, the grand nephew of Humayun, built 1603-4 on platform with five arches on each side, has its interior walls decorated with incised and painted plaster; the Chote Bateshewala Mahal once an arcaded octagonal building with a domed ceiling and stone jaalis. Both these monument now lie inside a commercial area facing the complex's parking lot. Another period structure is Barapula, a bridge with 12 piers and 11 arched openings, built in 1621 by Mihr Banu Agha, the chief eunuch of Jahangir’s court.

 

- Barber's Tomb: Towards the south-east corner, within the 'char bagh' garden, lies a tomb known as Nai-ka-Gumbad, or Barber's Tomb, belonging to royal barber, it is datable to 1590-91 CE, through an inscription found inside. Its proximity to the main tomb and the fact that it is the only other structure within the main tomb complex suggests its importance, however there are no inscriptions suggesting as to who is interred therein, the name Barbers tomb is the local name of the structure, hence still in use. The tomb stands on a raised platform, reached by seven steps from the south, it has a square plan and consists of a single compartment covered with a double-dome. Inside lie two graves each inscribed with verses from the Quran. Also, one of the graves is inscribed with the figure 999 which may stand for the Hijra year 1590-91. However in an 1820 watercolour now at British Library, the Persian caption beneath the structure reads, Maqbarah-i-Kokah i.e. "Tomb of Kaka", and Kokah or Kaka in Persian stand for foster-brother (mirak brother), Mirak (a Persian title as sir) though the identity of the person remains unknown, and it might be (incorrectly) referring to another nearby monument in the Chausath Khamba complex, the tomb Ataga Khan, the foster brother of Humayun, which lies in Nizamuddin West area and not to the east of the Humayun's tomb.

 

RESTAURATION

Before the restoration work was undertaken, vandalism and illegal encroachments were rampant at the site of the tomb, presenting a serious danger to the preservation of this invaluable treasure. At the main entrance of Humayun’s Tomb, dingy stalls had been put up under a very corrupt system of municipal patronage known as tehbazari, and all sorts of heavy vehicles were allowed to be parked illegally in these open spaces. On the Nila Gumbad side was a huge citadel of India’s vote bank politics - thousands of ‘slum dwellers’ were kept by an influential section of the political leadership to serve as ‘bonded voters’ during elections. The environment of the dargah of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya had also been ruthlessly degraded and the holy tank had become a messy cesspool.Restoration work by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC), in collaboration with Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), began around 1999 after research work, which started in 1997, and was completed in March 2003. Around 12 hectares of lawns were replanted, and over 2500 trees and plants, including mango, lemon, neem, hibiscus and jasmine cuttings, were planted in the gardens. Installation of a new water circulation system for the walkway channels was also undertaken. To ensure that water flowed naturally through the channels and pools on the 12-hectare site without the aid of hydraulic systems, the water channels were re-laid to an exacting grade of one centimetre every 40 metres (1:4000 slope). This eventually enabled water to flow through the watercourses in the gardens, and dormant fountains to start functioning once again. Other tasks in this mammoth restoration project included setting up a rainwater harvesting system using 128 ground water recharge pits, and desilting and revitalizing old wells that were discovered during the restoration work. This was first a privately funded collaborative effort under the aegis of the National Cultural Fund (NCF) by the ASI. Funding included a sum of $650,000 from the Aga Khan Trust for Culture of His Highness the Aga Khan, with help from the Oberoi Hotels Group. In addition, AKTC is conducting a more significant restoration at Babur's tomb, the resting place of Humayun's father in Kabul.

 

After the restoration work, the conditions in and around this complex underwent a sea-change. All the stalls and other intrusions were removed and the monuments and green spaces restored. Elegant gardens now surround the monuments, adding to their dignity and grace. When illuminated at night, the monument looks truly magnificent.

 

In 2009, as a part of the ongoing restoration work, the ASI and AKTC, after months of manual work using hand-tools, removed from the roof a thick layer of cement concrete that had been exerting pressure of about 1,102 tons on the structure. The cement concrete was originally laid in the 1920s to prevent water seepage, and led to a blockage in water passages. Subsequently, each time there was leakage, a fresh layer of cement was added, leading to an accumulated thickness of about 40 cm; this has now been replaced with a traditional lime-based roof layer. In the next phase, similar treatment was given to the tomb's first chabutra (plinth), which was originally paved with large blocks of quartzite stone, some weighing over a 1,000 kg. In the 1940s, an uneven settlement in the lower plinth had been corrected by covering it with a layer of concrete, adding to the disfigurement of the original Mughal flooring, which matched with that at the West Gate.

 

THE MAUSOLEUM TODAY

Ill thought out construction plans like The Delhi Government's plans in 2006/2007 to build a new tunnel to connect East Delhi to Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Delhi in South Delhi, and to widen the roads near the tomb for the 2010 Commonwealth Games to connect National Highway-24 with Lodhi Road, also posed a serious threat to the monument. Urban planners feared that the historic monument would not have been able to withstand the vibrations ensuing from the construction work in such close proximity. Finally, the Archaeological Survey of India was able to halt the plans. During his visit to India in November 2010, US President Barack Obama visited this site.

 

On 30 May 2014, the finial of the tomb was knocked off the dome by a heavy storm which struck the city.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Sibiu (Romanian: [siˈbiw], antiquated Sibiiu; German: Hermannstadt [ˈhɛʁmanʃtat], Transylvanian Saxon dialect: Härmeschtat, Hungarian: Nagyszeben [ˈnɒcsɛbɛn]) is a city in Transylvania, Romania, with a population of 147,245.[1] Located some 275 km (171 mi) north-west of Bucharest,[2] the city straddles the Cibin River, a tributary of the river Olt. Now the capital of Sibiu County, between 1692 and 1791 and 1849–65 Sibiu was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania.

Sibiu is one of the most important cultural centres of Romania and was designated the European Capital of Culture for the year 2007, along with the city of Luxembourg.[3] Formerly the centre of the Transylvanian Saxons, the old city of Sibiu was ranked as "Europe's 8th-most idyllic place to live" by Forbes in 2008.[4]

The city administers the Păltiniș ski resort.

 

History[edit]

See also: Timeline of Sibiu

The first official record referring to the Sibiu area comes from 1191, when Pope Celestine III confirmed the existence of the free prepositure of the German settlers in Transylvania, the prepositure having its headquarters in Sibiu, named Cibinium at that time.[5]

In the 14th century, it was already an important trade centre. In 1376, the craftsmen were divided in 19 guilds. Sibiu became the most important ethnic German city among the seven cities that gave Transylvania its German name Siebenbürgen (literally seven citadels).[6][7] It was home to the Universitas Saxorum (Community of the Saxons), a network of pedagogues, ministers, intellectuals, city officials, and councilmen of the German community forging an ordered legal corpus and political system in Transylvania since the 1400s.[8][9] During the 18th and 19th centuries, the city became the second- and later the first-most important centre of Transylvanian Romanian ethnics. The first Romanian-owned bank had its headquarters here (The Albina Bank), as did the ASTRA (Transylvanian Association for Romanian Literature and Romanian's People Culture). After the Romanian Orthodox Church was granted status in the Habsburg Empire from the 1860s onwards, Sibiu became the Metropolitan seat, and the city is still regarded as the third-most important centre of the Romanian Orthodox Church. Between the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 and 1867 (the year of the Ausgleich), Sibiu was the meeting-place of the Transylvanian Diet, which had taken its most representative form after the Empire agreed to extend voting rights in the region.

After World War I, when Austria-Hungary was dissolved, Sibiu became part of Romania; the majority of its population was still ethnic German (until 1941) and counted a large Romanian community, as well as a smaller Hungarian one. Starting from the 1950s and until after 1990, most of the city's ethnic Germans emigrated to Germany and Austria. Among the roughly 2,000 who have remained is Klaus Johannis, the current President of Romania.

 

Geography[edit]

  

Topographic map of the Sibiu region

  

Panoramic view of Sibiu historic center, looking East.

Sibiu is situated near the geographical center of Romania at

WikiMiniAtlas

45.792784°N 24.152069°E. Set in the Cibin Depression, the city is about 20 km from the Făgăraș Mountains, 12 km from the Cibin Mountains, and about 15 km from the Lotru Mountains, which border the depression in its southwestern section. The northern and eastern limits of Sibiu are formed by the Târnavelor Plateau, which descends to the Cibin Valley through Gușteriței Hill.

The Cibin river as well as some smaller streams runs through Sibiu. The geographical position of Sibiu makes it one of the most important transportation hubs in Romania with important roads and railway lines passing through it.

 

City districts[edit]

The following districts are part of Sibiu. Some were villages annexed by the city but most were built as the city developed and increased its surface.

•Historic Center - Divided into the Upper Town and Lower Town

•Centru (Centre)

•Lupeni

•Trei Stejari

•Vasile Aaron

•Hipodrom I, II, III, IV

•Valea Aurie (Golden Valley)

•Tilișca

•Ștrand

•Turnișor (Little Tower; German: Neppendorf)

•Piața Cluj

•Țiglari

•Terezian

•Reșița

•Lazaret

•Gușterița (German: Hammersdorf)

•Broscărie

•Viile Sibiului

•Tineretului

•Veteranilor de Război

The Southern part, including the ASTRA National Museum Complex and the Zoo, also falls within the city limits.

 

Politics[edit]

  

Sibiu city council composition in 2004:

Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania

Social Democratic Party

National Liberal Party

Democratic Party

Although ethnic Germans make up less than 2% of Sibiu's population, Klaus Johannis, the former president of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania (FDGR/DFDR) and current president of Romania, served as mayor of Sibiu from 2000 to 2014. Johannis was overwhelmingly reelected in 2004 (with 88.7% of votes) and 2008 (with 83.3% of the votes cast) and his party gained an absolute majority in the city council in that year. After the 2014 presidential elections, the interim position for mayor of the city was filled by deputy mayor Astrid Fodor who in the 2016 local elections won the seat with a majority of votes.[18]

Despite winning the local elections with a majority of votes and a high approval rating, the current administration is beginning to be viewed as slow moving and lacking transparency. Another issue that is affecting the current administraiton's approval ratings is the lack of investments and innovations

 

Economy[edit]

Sibiu is an important economic hub for Romania, with a high rate of foreign investments. It is also an important hub for the manufacturing of automotive components and houses factories belonging to ThyssenKrupp Bilstein-Compa, Takata Corporation, Continental Automotive Systems, and NTN-SNR ball bearings. Other local industries are machine components, textiles, agro-industry, and electrical components (Siemens).

The city also contains Romania's second-largest stock exchange, the Sibiu Stock Exchange which is set to merge with the Bucharest Stock Exchange in 2018.[19]

The main industrial activities of Sibiu take place in two industrial zones located on the outskirts of the city:

•East industrial zone (East Economic Center), alongside the railway to Brașov and Râmnicu Vâlcea

•West industrial zone (West Economic Center),[20] near the exit to Sebeș, close to the Airport

A commercial zone located in the Șelimbăr commune plays an important role in the economy of Sibiu. It houses a mall and other large retailers.

Another factor that plays an important role in the economy of the city is tourism, which has been increasing at a steady rate since 2007.

 

Transport[edit]

  

Sibiu International Airport Location

Sibiu is well served in terms of transport and infrastructure. In 2010 a city bypass was opened, significantly reducing the road traffic inside the city.

Tursib[21] is the city's internal transportation system operator.

Air[edit]

  

Sibiu Airport, Blue Air flight.

Sibiu has one of the most modern international airports in Romania, with direct connections to Germany, Austria, United Kingdom, Italy and Spain while connections to other European countries being scheduled to start in summer 2018 Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland.

Road[edit]

Sibiu is an important node in the European road network, being on two different European routes (E68 and E81). At a national level, Sibiu is located on three different main national roads, DN1, DN7 and DN14.

The Romanian Motorway A1 will link the city with Pitești and the Romanian western border, near Arad. From the remaining 332 km of motorway towards the border with Hungary Nadlac, a total of 276 km is completed and the last 56 km are currently under construction, while the timeline for the segment towards Pitești is targeted for completion for the year 2025 (construction will start no sooner than 2019). Sibiu' s ring road as part of A1 motorway was completed on December 1, 2010.

Sibiu is also an important hub for the international bus links with the biggest passenger transporter in Romania, Atlassib, based here. Transport companies are also providing coach connections from Sibiu to a large number of locations in Romania.

  

Public bus transportation in Sibiu

Rail[edit]

Main article: Sibiu railway station

Sibiu is situated on the CFR-Romanian Railways Main Line 200 (Brasov - Făgăraș - Sibiu - Simeria - Arad - Romanian Western Border) and on Line 206 (Sibiu - Mediaș).

The city is served by five rail stations: the Main Station (Gara Mare), the Little Station (Gara Micǎ), Turnișor, Sibiu Triaj, Halta Ateliere Zonă . It has an important diesel-powered locomotives depot and a freight terminal.

Numerous Inter City trains (nicknamed Blue Arrows) connect Sibiu to other major cities in Romania: Cluj-Napoca, Brașov, Craiova, Timișoara and Bucharest.

Cycling[edit]

Over the last six years, Sibiu has enjoyed a revival of cycling. The bicycle way in the city span for 43 kilometers.

Bicycle rentals have offered a boost for the local economy with several small rental centers and a bigger rental center that is administered by the I'Velo Bike Sharing group.

Culture[edit]

Sibiu is one of Romania's most culturally lively cities. It has 3 theatres and a philharmonic orchestra along with other smaller private theatrical venues and a theatre studio housed by the Performing Arts and Acting section of Lucian Blaga University, where students hold monthly representations.

The Radu Stanca National Theatre[22] is one of the leading Romanian theatres. With origins dating back to 1787, it attracts some of the best-known Romanian directors, such as Gábor Tompa and Silviu Purcărete. It has both a Romanian-language and a German-language section, and presents an average of five shows a week.

The Gong Theatre is specialised in puppetry, mime and non-conventional shows for children and teenagers. It also presents shows in both Romanian and German.

The State Philharmonic of Sibiu[23] presents weekly classical music concerts, and educational concerts for children and teenagers. The concerts take place in the newly restored Thalia Hall, a concert and theatre hall dating from 1787, situated along the old city fortifications. Weekly organ concerts are organised at the Evangelical Cathedral during summers, and thematic concerts are presented by the Faculty of Theology choir at the Orthodox Cathedral.

The Sibiu International Theatre Festival is an annual festival of performing arts. Since 2016, it is the largest performance arts festival in the world.[24]

  

Brukenthal National Museum, Sibiu.

Museums and parks[edit]

Sibiu's museums are organised around two entities: the Brukenthal National Museum and the ASTRA National Museum Complex. The Brukenthal Museum consists of an Art Gallery and an Old Books Library located inside the Brukenthal Palace, a History Museum located in the old town hall building, a Pharmacy Museum located in one of the first apothecary shops in Europe, dating from the 16th century, a Natural History Museum and a Museum of Arms and Hunting Trophies.

The ASTRA National Museum Complex focuses on ethnography, and consists of a Traditional Folk Civilisation Museum, a 96-hectare open-air museum located in Dumbrava Forest south of Sibiu, a Universal Ethnography Museum, a Museum of Transylvanian Civilisation and a Museum of Saxon Ethnography and Folk Art. Also planned is a Museum of the Culture and Civilisation of the Romany People.

  

Bicycle riders in Sub Arini park, in Sibiu.

The Dumbrava Sibiului Natural Park stretches over 960 hectares and it is situated 4 km away from the center of the city in the southwest direction along the road towards Răşinari. Also, here you can find the Zoological Garden and Ethnography Museum.

There is a Steam Locomotives Museum close to the railway station, sheltering around 40 locomotives, two of which are functional.

The first park in the city was The Promenade, later called "The Disabled Promenade." established in 1791, today part of Parcul Cetății (Citadel Park). Current arrangement of the park, including the space between the walls, dates from 1928.

The Sub Arini Park, established in 1856 is one of the biggest and best-maintained parks in Romania. There are other green spaces in the city center, the best known being Astra Park, established in 1879.

  

Tineretului Park

Other parks:

Tineretului Park, Reconstrucției Park, Corneliu Coposu Park, Petöfi Sándor Park, Piața Cluj Park, Ștrand Park, Cristianului Park, Țițeica Park, Vasile Aaron Park, Lira Park.

The distribution of green space is good compared to other Romanian cities.

Events[edit]

  

Citadel Park, with the 16 century City wall

Several festivals are organised yearly in Sibiu, the most prestigious of them being the Sibiu International Theatre Festival, organized each spring at the end of May. Medieval Festival organized every year in August, reviving the medieval spirit of Transylvania. The Artmania Festival is held every Summer since 2006 and as of 2008 the Rockin' Transilvania Festival is also held in Sibiu. The oldest Jazz Festival in Romania is organized here, as well as the "Carl Filtsch" festival for young classical piano players, the "Astra Film" documentary film festival, the Transylvania calling Festival a Multi Cultural 6 day Open Air Music festival! 26–31 July 2007, a medieval arts festival and many more smaller cultural events.[25] Feeric Fashion Week is also hosted here.

European Cultural Capital[edit]

The designation as a European Cultural Capital for 2007, owed greatly to the excellent collaboration with Luxembourg, but also to what many regard as a miraculous social rebirth taking place in the city during the last years. The Cultural Capital status was expected to bring about an abrupt increase in quantity and quality of cultural events in 2007.

  

Tourism[edit]

In 2007, Sibiu was the European Capital of Culture (together with Luxembourg). This was the most important cultural event that has ever happened in the city, and a great number of tourists came, both domestic and foreign.

The city of Sibiu and its surroundings are one of the most visited areas in Romania. It holds one of the best preserved historical sites in the country, many of its medieval fortifications having been kept in excellent state. Its old center has begun the process for becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004. Sibiu and its surrounding area have many significant museums, with 12 institutions housing art collections, paintings, and exhibits in decorative arts, archeology, anthropology, history, industrial archeology and history of technology and natural sciences.

The city also lies close to the Făgăraș Mountains - a very popular trekking destination, close to the Păltiniș and Arena Platos ski resorts - popular winter holiday destinations, and it is at the heart of the former Saxon communities in Transylvania renowned for its fortified churches.

  

Fortified Lutheran church of Gușterița neighbourhood, 13th century

Since 2007, a traditional Christmas market is held for the first time in Sibiu, Romania. The first of its kind in Romania, it is inspired by Viennese Christmas markets, being a project developed by the Social Attaché of the Austrian Embassy in Romania, dr.h.c. Barbara Schöfnagel It was held in the "Lesser Square" (Piața Mică) with 38 small stalls, a small stage and an area dedicated to children, having several mechanical attractions installed there. Since 2008 the market is held in the "Grand Square" and grew to a number of about 70 stalls, a bigger stage was set up, where Christmas carols concerts are held. An ice skating rink and a children's workshop are also attractions which have been added in the following years.[26] It was the first Christmas Market in Romania,[27] but soon other Christmas markets emerged across the country. In 2013, the Sibiu Christmas markets was included in the "15 Of the Most Beautiful Christmas Markets in Europe"[28]

  

Main sights[edit]

  

Sibiu Lutheran Cathedral

  

Market in the Large Square, 1790, painting by Franz Neuhauser the Younger

  

Christmas Fair in the Large Square

  

Coopers Tower

  

The House with Caryatids on Mitropoliei Street, constructed in 1786

  

Pasajul Scărilor (Passage of the Stairs) in the Lower Town

Much of the city's aspect is due to its position, easily defensible, but allowing horizontal development. The old city of Sibiu lies on the right bank of the Cibin River, on a hill situated at about 200 m from the river. It consists of two distinct entities: the Upper Town and the Lower Town. Traditionally, the Upper Town was the wealthier part and commercial outlet, while the Lower Town served as the manufacturing area.

The Lower Town

(German: Unterstadt, Romanian: Orașul de jos) comprises the area between the river and the hill, and it developed around the earliest fortifications. The streets are long and quite wide for medieval city standards, with small city squares at places. The architecture is rather rustic: typically two-storey houses with tall roofs and gates opening passages to inner courts.

Most of the exterior fortifications were lost to industrial development and modern urban planning in the mid-late 19th century; only four towers still exist. A building associated with newer urbanism of the period is the Independența Highschool.

This area has the oldest church in the city, dating back to 1292.

The Upper Town (German: Oberstadt, Romanian: Orașul de sus) is organised around three city squares and a set of streets along the line of the hill. As the main area for burgher activities, the area contains most points of interest in the city.

Grand Square

(German: Großer Ring, Romanian: Piața Mare ) is, as its name suggests, the largest square of the city, and has been the center of the city since the 15th century. At 142 meters long and 93 meters wide, it is one of the largest ones in Transylvania.

Brukenthal Palace, one of the most important Baroque monuments in Romania, lies on the north-western corner of the square. It was erected between 1777 and 1787 as the main residence for the Governor of Transylvania Samuel von Brukenthal. It houses the main part of the National Brukenthal Museum, opened in 1817, making it one of the oldest museums in the world. Next to the palace is the Blue House or Moringer House, an 18th-century Baroque house bearing the old coat of arms of Sibiu on its façade.

  

Interior of the Sibiu Orthodox Cathedral

On the north side is the Jesuit Church, along with its dependencies, the former residence of the Jesuits in Sibiu. Also on the north side, at the beginning of the 20th century an Art Nouveau building was constructed on the west part, now it houses the mayor's office.

  

Liars Bridge in Lesser Square, erected in 1859

Next to the Jesuit Church on the north side is the Council Tower, one of the city's symbols. This former fortification tower from the 13th century has been successively rebuilt over the years. The building nearby used to be the City Council's meeting place; beneath it lies an access way between the Grand Square and the Lesser Square.

On the south and east sides are two- or three-storey houses, having tall attics with small windows known as the city's eyes. Most of these houses are dated 15th to 19th centuries, and most of them are Renaissance or Baroque in style.

Lesser Square (Small Square, German: Kleiner Ring) as its name implies, is a smaller square situated in the northern part of the Upper Town. After the 2007 rehabilitation there has been an increase in the number of small businesses such as pubs and restaurants in this area.

The square is connected to the other two squares and to other streets by small, narrow passages. The main access from the Lower City is through Ocnei Street, which divides the square in two. The street passes under the Liar's Bridge - the first bridge in Romania to have been cast in iron (1859).[29]

To the right of the bridge is another symbol of the city, The House of the Arts, a 14th-century arched building formerly belonging to the Butchers' Guild. On the left side of the bridge is the Luxemburg House, a Baroque four-storey building.

Huet Square

is the third of the three main squares of Sibiu. Its most notable feature is the Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral in its center. It is the place where the earliest fortifications have been built in the late 12th century or early 13th century. The buildings around this square are mainly Gothic. On the west side lies the Brukenthal Highschool, in place of a former 14th-century school.

  

The Thick Tower

The Fortifications

of Sibiu made the city one of the most important fortified cities in Central Europe. Multiple rings were built around the city, most of them out of clay bricks. The south-eastern fortifications are the best kept, and all three parallel lines are still visible. The first is an exterior earth mound, the second is a 10-meter-tall red brick wall, and the third line comprises towers linked by another 10-meter-tall wall. All structures are connected via a labyrinth of tunnels and passageways, designed to ensure transport between the city and lines of defense.

In the 16th century more modern elements were added to the fortifications, mainly leaf-shaped bastions. Two of these survived to this day, as the Haller Bastion (all the way down Coposu Boulevard) and "Soldisch Bastion".

The Passage of the Stairs, leads down to the lower section of Sibiu. It descends along some fortifications under the support arches. It is the most picturesque of the several passages linking the two sides of the old city.

Health

 

Health[edit]

  

Sibiu County Hospital

Sibiu is one of the important medical centers of Romania, housing many important medical facilities:

•County Hospital

•Academic Emergency Hospital;

•Hospital of Pediatrics;

•Military Emergency Hospital;

•CFR Hospital (Romanian Railways Hospital);

•"Dr. Gheorghe Preda" Psychiatry Hospital

•other smaller private clinics

The city also houses one of the largest private hospitals in the country, Polisano.

Education[edit]

  

Samuel von Brukenthal High School

Sibiu is an important centre of higher education, with over 23,000 students in four public and private higher institutions.[30][31][32][33]

The Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu was founded in 1990, with five faculties: Engineering and Sciences; Language Sciences; History and Law; Medicine; Food and Textile Processing Technology. Nowadays, there are 10 faculties and departments.

Sibiu also houses the Nicolae Bălcescu Land Forces Academy and the Military Foreign Language Center as well as two private universities, Romanian-German University and Alma Mater University.

In Sibiu there are 20 educational institutions on the secondary level, the most important of which are:

•Gheorghe Lazăr National College - sciences and informatics, first opened in 1692 as a Jesuit College

•

 

Gheorghe Lazăr National College

  

Samuel von Brukenthal National College - German language high school

•Octavian Goga National College - social sciences, sciences, informatics and linguistics

•Onisifor Ghibu Theoretical Highschool - informatics, sciences, sports, theater and linguistics

•Andrei Șaguna National College - training for school teacher and linguistics

•Constantin Noica Theoretical Highschool - sciences and linguistics

•Daniel Popovici Barcianu Highschool - agricultural sciences

•George Baritiu National College - economic sciences

•Nicolae Iorga Elementary school

•Regina Maria Elementary school

hdr

Mandala art print.

Victory Park, also known as the Victory Park Memorial Complex is a park located in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. It was planned in honor of the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.

 

The project was announced by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in a holiday address on Victory Day in 2019. When describing the park, he said that it will be the "practical embodiment of our admiration for the people's feat in that cruel war." It was also conceived during a visit by Russian president Vladimir Putin to Tashkent in October 2018. The Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Culture and the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan worked on the creation of the park as a joint project. The park was officially opened on 9 May 2020 with full military honors.

 

Buildings such as a "Museum of Glory" were erected on the park's territory while designs such as an entrance arch were being installed. Historical memorabilia such as emblems, war flags and maps were added to the architectural ensemble of the park.

 

The Ode to Fortitude monument was erected in memory of Zulfiya Zakirova, an Uzbek mother who lost five sons during the war. The monument is located in the center of the park.

 

The Museum of Glory (Uzbek: «Шон-шараф» музейи) or Shon-Sharaf State Museum in the park is erected in the form of a man-made mound, inside which is located the main pavilion of the park is an exhibition dedicated to the history of Uzbekistan's participation in World War II. The museum consists of six departments. All accompanying information about the exhibits is presented in Uzbek, Russian and English. The museum has more than 12.5 thousand artifacts. Separate sections dedicated to ministries and departments within the Armed Forces are organized. It is part of the Victory Park Memorial Complex, the head of which is an advisor to the Minister of Defense for Culture.

 

In September 2020, a resolution of the President "On measures to organize the activities of the Victory Park Memorial Complex" was adopted, according to which, the activities of the Victory Park Memorial Complex are organized under the Ministry of Defense. With this being the case, the complex is classified as a state institution and a legal entity. As such, it has its own development fund. The head of the complex considered to be a special advisor to the Minister of Defense is appointed and dismissed by the Minister of Defense in agreement with the Minister of Culture.

 

The Center for Spirituality and Enlightenment, the Department of Information and Mass Communications, the Military Band Service and the Central Song and Dance Ensemble of the Armed Forces are located on the territory of the Complex.

Species is determined by host plant. I've found these locally on Walnut and Redbud. This one was with several others on a thorny trailside shrub. (...not listed as a host for this treehopper.)

Read More

 

NCR Trail, Parkton

Baltimore County, Maryland

June 18, 2017

 

Wat Pho (Thai: วัดโพธิ์, IPA: [wát pʰoː]), also spelt Wat Po, is a Buddhist temple complex in the Phra Nakhon District, Bangkok, Thailand. It is on Rattanakosin Island, directly south of the Grand Palace. Known also as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, its official name is Wat Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklararm Rajwaramahaviharn (Thai: วัดพระเชตุพนวิมลมังคลารามราชวรมหาวิหาร; rtgs: Wat Phra Chettuphon Wimonmangkhlaram Ratchaworamahawihan; IPA: [wát pʰráʔ tɕʰê:t.tù.pʰon wíʔ.mon.maŋ.kʰlaː.raːm râːt.tɕʰá.wɔː.ráʔ.má.hǎː.wíʔ.hǎːn]). The more commonly known name, Wat Pho, is a contraction its older name Wat Photaram (Thai: วัดโพธาราม; rtgs: Wat Photharam).

 

The temple is first on the list of six temples in Thailand classed as the highest grade of the first-class royal temples. It is associated with King Rama I who rebuilt the temple complex on an earlier temple site, and became his main temple where some of his ashes are enshrined. The temple was later expanded and extensively renovated by Rama III. The temple complex houses the largest collection of Buddha images in Thailand, including a 46 m long reclining Buddha. The temple was also the earliest centre for public education in Thailand, and still houses a school of Thai medicine. It is known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage which is still taught and practiced at the temple.

 

HISTORY

Wat Pho is one of Bangkok's oldest temples. It existed before Bangkok was established as the capital by King Rama I. It was originally named Wat Photaram or Podharam, from which the name Wat Pho is derived. The name refers the monastery of the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, India where Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment. The older temple is thought to have been built or expanded some time in the reign of King Phetracha (1688–1703) of the Ayuthaya period on an even earlier temple site, but its founder is unknown. After the fall of Ayutthaya to the Burmese, King Taksin moved the capital to Thonburi where he located his palace beside Wat Arun on the opposite side of the river from Wat Pho, and the proximity of Wat Pho to this royal palace elevated it to the status of a wat luang (royal monastery).

 

In 1782, King Rama I moved the capital from Thonburi across the river to Bangkok and built the Grand Palace adjacent to Wat Pho. In 1788, he ordered the construction and renovation at the old temple site of Wat Pho, which had by then become dilapidated. The site, which was marshy and uneven, was drained and filled in before construction began. During its construction Rama I also initiated a project to remove Buddha images from abandoned temples in Ayutthaya, Sukhothai, as well other sites in Thailand, and many of these Buddha images were kept at Wat Pho. These include the remnants of an enormous Buddha image from Ayuthaya's Wat Phra Si Sanphet destroyed by the Burmese in 1767, and these were incorporated into a chedi in the complex. The rebuilding took over seven years to complete, and 12 years after work began, in 1801, the new temple complex was renamed Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklavas in reference to the vihara of Jetavana, and became the main temple for Rama I. The complex underwent significant changes in the next 260 years, particularly during the reign of Rama III (1824-1851 CE). In 1832, King Rama III began renovating and enlarging the temple complex, a process that took 16 years and seven months to complete. The ground of the temple complex was expanded to 22 acres, and most of the structures in Wat Pho were either built or rebuilt in this period, including the chapel of the reclining Buddha. He also turned the temple complex into a public center of learning by decorating the walls of the buildings with diagrams and inscriptions on various subjects.:90 These marble inscriptions have received recognition in the Memory of the World Programme launched by UNESCO on 21 February 2008. Wat Pho is regarded as Thailand’s first university and a center for traditional Thai massage. It served as a medical teaching center in the mid-19th century before the advent of modern medicine, and the temple remains a center for traditional medicine today where a private school for Thai medicine founded in 1957 still operates. The name of the complex was changed again to Wat Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklararm during the reign of King Rama IV. Apart from the construction of a fourth great chedi and minor modifications by Rama IV, there had been no significant changes to Wat Pho since. Repair work, however, is a continuing process, often funded by devotees of the temple. The temple was restored again in 1982 before the Bangkok Bicentennial Celebration.

 

THE TEMPLE COMPLEX

Wat Pho is one of the largest and oldest wats in Bangkok with an area of 50 rai, 80,000 square metres, and is home to more than one thousand Buddha images, as well as one of the largest single Buddha images at 46 m in length. The Wat Pho complex consists of two walled compounds bisected by Chetuphon Road running in the east–west direction. The larger northern walled compound, the phutthawat, is the part open to visitors and contains the finest buildings dedicated to the Buddha, including the bot with its four directional viharn, and the temple housing the reclining Buddha.< The southern compound, the sankhawat, contains the residential quarters of the monks and a school. The perimeter wall of the main temple complex has sixteen gates, two of which serve as entrances for the public (one on Chetuphon Road, the other near the northwest corner). The temple grounds contain 91 small chedis (stupas or mounds), four great chedis, two belfries, a bot (central shrine), a number of viharas (halls) and other buildings such as pavilions, as well as gardens and a small temple museum. Architecturally the chedis and buildings in the complex are different in style and sizes. A number of large Chinese statues, some of which depict Europeans, are also found within the complex guarding the gates of the perimeter walls as well as other gates within the compound. These stone statues were originally imported as ballast on ships trading with China. Wat Pho was intended to serve as a place of education for the general public. To this end a pictorial encyclopedia was engraved on granite slabs covering eight subject areas, namely history, medicine, health, custom, literature, proverbs, lexicography, and the Buddhist religion. These plaques, inscribed with texts and illustration on medicine, Thai traditional massage, and other subjects, are placed around the temple, for example, within the Sala Rai or satellite open pavilions. Dotted around the complex are 24 small rock gardens (Khao Mor) illustrating rock formations of Thailand, and one, called the Contorting Hermit Hill, contains some statues showing methods of massage and yoga positions. There are also drawings of constellations on the wall of the library, inscriptions on local administration, as well as paintings of folk tales and animal husbandry. These illustrations and inscriptions in Wat Pho have been registered by UNESCO in its Memory of the World Programme set up to promote, preserve and propagate the wisdom of the world heritage.

 

PHRA UBOSOT

Phra Ubosot (Phra Uposatha) or bot is the ordination hall, the main hall used for performing Buddhist rituals, and the most sacred building of the complex. It was constructed by King Rama I in the Ayuthaya style, and later enlarged and reconstructed in the Rattanakosin style by Rama III. The bot was dedicated in 1791, before the rebuilding of Wat Pho was completed. This building is raised on a marble platform, and the ubosot lies in the center of courtyard enclosed by a double cloister (Phra Rabiang).Inside the ubosot is a gold and crystal three-tiered pedestal topped with a gilded Buddha made of a gold-copper alloy, and over the statue is a nine-tiered umbrella representing the authority of Thailand. The Buddha image, known as Phra Buddha Theva Patimakorn and thought to be from the Ayutthaya period, was moved here by Rama I from Wat Sala Si Na (now called Wat Khuhasawa) in Thonburi. Rama IV later placed some ashes of Rama I under the pedestal of the Buddha image so that the public may pay homage to both Rama I and the Buddha at the same time. There are also ten images of Buddha's disciples in the hall, Moggalana on its left and Sariputta on its right, and a further eight Arahants below. The exterior balustrade surrounding the main hall has around 150 depictions in stone of the epic, Ramakien, the ultimate message of which is transcendence from secular to spiritual dimensions. The stone panels were recovered from a temple in Ayuthaya. The ubosot is enclosed by a low wall called kamphaeng kaew, which is punctuated by gateways guarded by mythological lions, as well as eight structures that house the bai sema stone markers that delineate the sacred space of the bot.

 

- Phra Rabiang - This double cloister contains around 400 images of Buddha from northern Thailand selected out of the 1,200 originally brought by King Rama I. Of these Buddha images, 150 are located on the inner side of the double cloister, another 244 images are on the outer side. These Buddha figures, some standing and some seated, are evenly mounted on matching gilded pedestals. These images are from different periods, such as Chiangsaen, Sukhothai, U-Thong, and Ayutthaya, but were renovated by Rama I and covered with stucco and gold leaves to make them look similar.

 

The viharn in the east contains an 8 metre tall standing Buddha, the Buddha Lokanatha, originally from Ayutthaya. In its antechamber is Buddha Maravichai, sitting under a bodhi tree, originally from Sawankhalok of the late Sukhothai period. The one on the west has a seated Buddha sheltered by a naga, the Buddha Chinnasri, while the Buddha on the south, the Buddha Chinnaraja, has five disciples seated in front listening to his first sermon. Both Buddhas were brought from Sukhothai by Rama I. The Buddha in the north viharn called Buddha Palilai was cast in the reign of Rama I. The viharn on the west also contains a small museum.

 

- Phra Prang - There are four towers, or phra prang, at each corner of the courtyard around the bot. Each of the towers is tiled with marbles and contains four Khmer-style statues which are the guardian divinities of the Four Cardinal Points.

 

PHRA MAHA CHEDI SI RAJAKARN

This is a group of four large stupas, each 42 metres high. These four chedis are dedicated to the first four Chakri kings. The first, in green mosaic tiles, was constructed by Rama I to house the remnants of the great Buddha from Ayuthaya, which was scorched to remove its gold covering by the Burmese. Two more were built by Rama III, one in white tiles to hold the ashes of his father Rama II, another in yellow for himself. A fourth in blue was built by Rama IV who then enclosed the four chedis leaving no space for more to be built.

 

VIHARN PHRANORN

The viharn or wihan contains the reclining Buddha and was constructed in the reign of Rama III emulating the Ayutthaya-style. The interior is decorated with panels of mural.

 

Adjacent to this building is a small raised garden (Missakawan Park) with a Chinese-style pavilion; the centrepiece of the garden is a bodhi tree which was propagated from the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi tree in Sri Lanka that is believed to have originally came from a tree in India where Buddha sat while awaiting enlightenment.

 

PHRA MONDOB

Phra Mondob or the ho trai is the Scripture Hall containing a small library of Buddhist scriptures. The building is not generally open to the public as the scriptures which are inscribed on palm leaves need to kept in a controlled environment for preservation. The library was built by Rama III. Guarding its entrance are figures of giants called Yak Wat Pho placed in niches beside the gates. Around Phra Mondob are three pavilions with mural paintings of the beginning of Ramayana.

 

OTHER STRUCTURES

- Phra Chedi Rai - Outside the Phra Rabiang cloisters are dotted many smaller chedis, called Phra Chedi Rai. Seventy-one of these small chedis were built by Rama III, each five metres in height. There are also four groups of five chedis that shared a single base built by Rama I, one on each corner outside the cloister. The 71 chedis of smaller size contain the ashes of the royal family, and 20 slightly larger ones clustered in groups of five contain the relics of Buddha.

- Sala Karn Parien - This hall is next to the Phra Mondob at the southwest corner of the compound, and is thought to date from the Ayutthaya period. It serves as a learning and meditation hall. The building contains the original Buddha image from the bot which was moved to make way for the Buddha image currently in the bot. Next to it is a garden called The Crocodile Pond.

- Sala Rai - There are 16 satellite pavilions, most of them placed around the edge of the compound, and murals depicting the life of Buddha may be found in some of these. Two of these are the medical pavilions between Phra Maha Chedi Si Ratchakarn and the main chapel. The north medicine pavilion contains Thai traditional massage inscriptions with 32 drawings of massage positions on the walls while the one to the south has a collection of inscriptions on guardian angel that protects the newborn.

- Phra Viharn Kod - This is the gallery which consists of four viharas, one on each corner outside the Phra Rabiang.

- Tamnak Wasukri - Also called the poet's house, this is the former residence of Prince Patriarch Paramanujita Jinorasa, a Thai poet. This building is in the living quarters of the monks in the southern compound and is open once a year on his birthday.

 

RECLINING BUDDHA

The chapel and the reclining Buddha (Phra Buddhasaiyas, Thai พระพุทธไสยาสน์) were built by Rama III in 1832. The image of the reclining Buddha represents the entry of Buddha into Nirvana and the end of all reincarnations. The posture of the image is referred to as sihasaiyas, the posture of a sleeping or reclining lion. The figure is 15 m high and 46 m long, and it is one of the largest Buddha statues in Thailand. The right arm of the Buddha supports the head with tight curls, which rests on two box-pillows richly encrusted with glass mosaics. The figure has a brick core, which was modelled and shaped with plaster, then gilded.

 

The soles of the feet of the Buddha are 3 m high and 4.5 m long, and inlaid with mother-of-pearl. They are each divided into 108 arranged panels, displaying the auspicious symbols by which Buddha can be identified, such as flowers, dancers, white elephants, tigers, and altar accessories. At the center of each foot is a circle representing a chakra or energy point. There are 108 bronze bowls in the corridor representing the 108 auspicious characters of Buddha. Visitors may drop coins in these bowls as it is believed to bring good fortune, and it also helps the monks to maintain the wat.

 

Although the reclining Buddha is not a pilgrimage centre, it remains an object of popular piety. An annual celebration for the reclining Buddha is held around the time of the Siamese Songkran or New Year in April, which also helps raise funds for the upkeep of Wat Pho.

 

THAI MASSAGE

The temple is considered the first public university of Thailand, teaching students in the fields of religion, science, and literature through murals and sculptures. A school for traditional medicine and massage was established at the temple in 1955, and now offers four courses in Thai medicine: Thai pharmacy, Thai medical practice, Thai midwifery, and Thai massage. This, the Wat Pho Thai Traditional Medical and Massage School, is the first school of Thai medicine approved by the Thai Ministry of Education, and one of the earliest massage schools. It remains the national headquarters and the center of education of traditional Thai medicine and massage to this day. Courses on Thai massage are held in Wat Pho, and these may last a few weeks to a year. Two pavilions at the eastern edge of the Wat Pho compound are used as classrooms for practising Thai traditional massage and herbal massage, and visitors can received massage treatment here for a fee.There are many medical inscriptions and illustrations placed in various buildings around the temple complex, some of which serve as instructions for Thai massage therapists, particularly those in the north medical pavilion. Among these are 60 inscribed plaques, 30 each for the front and back of human body, showing pressure points used in traditional Thai massage. These therapeutic points and energy pathways, known as sen, are engraved on the human figures, with explanations given on the walls next to the plaques. They are based on the principle of energy flow similar to that of Chinese acupuncture. The understanding so far is that the figures represent relationships between anatomical locations and effects produced by massage treatment at those locations, but full research on the diagrams has yet to be completed.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Ljubljana, Slovenia

Title: P.E. Complex Under Construction

Creator: Valdosta State University

Date: December 1980

Description: Early Construction of the Physical Ed. Complex.

Source: Spectator Negatives, 1980-1985. Valdosta State University Archives and Special Collections.

Subject: Physical education facilities -- Georgia -- Valdosta; College campuses -- Georgia -- Valdosta; Construction projects -- Georgia -- Valdosta;

Identifier:

Format: image/jpeg

Original Caption: The Hayden Island Complex on the Columbia River Includes Shopping Centers, Industry, Houseboats, and Condominiums. The Interstate Bridge Connects Vancouver, Wa., and Portland, Or 06/1973

 

U.S. National Archives’ Local Identifier: 412-DA-5536

 

Photographer: Falconer, David

 

Subjects:

Oregon (United States) state

Environmental Protection Agency

Project DOCUMERICA

 

Persistent URL: catalog.archives.gov/id/548023

  

Repository: Still Picture Records Section, Special Media Archives Services Division (NWCS-S), National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD, 20740-6001.

 

For information about ordering reproductions of photographs held by the Still Picture Unit, visit: www.archives.gov/research/order/still-pictures.html

 

Reproductions may be ordered via an independent vendor. NARA maintains a list of vendors at www.archives.gov/research/order/vendors-photos-maps-dc.html

   

Access Restrictions: Unrestricted

Use Restrictions: Unrestricted

 

Front side of it.. Update: Diagrams are in progress..Tweaked a few things before diagrams. The challenge was to get both sides; front & back aligned nicely, which was done back in March. The version displayed at USA last year had overlaps on the back side, thus solved now. I hope you have fun to fold it, as I have.

I took this photo just south of the Shinto Temple complex which was located on the northwestern side of Namsan Mountain. The ancient Seoul Wall can be see along the ridge crest on the left side of the photo.

Sex Complex live at Pyramid Atlantic, Silver Spring MD 5nov11. Event curated by DC Sonic Circuits.

Shamanistic entrance to a huge Shambala "power center" complex in a southern Gobi desert. Only women are allowed to enter between "breasts" with an offerings box suspended in the middle. A wish must be proclaimed aloud while passing through. One of the ladies in our party had stated she would like breasts like these but hopefully didnot truly wished to carry several tonnes of closely packed stones on her chest. :)

Mandala art print.

Eskil Roningsbakken during handstand balancing on the edge of a cliff 304

meters high with one of his assistants.

 

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OMG! These people are looking really crazy. Why they need to do so? Well

they all are really brave because its not very easy to do such a dangerous

job. It needs a lot of attention, will power and practice. Lets take a

looking at most stunning stunts of 2009.

 

The team of 70 skydivers made a massive leap in winged costumes at Lake

Elsinore, California in an attempt to set a new world record for number of

participants performing this complex figure. (SWNS)

 

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181 women parachuting from 31 countries joined together to set a new

record for women’s parachuting in Perris (Perris), California. (AP)

 

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Team paratroopers set a world record for the largest number of people who

came together in a free fall head down. 108 connections simultaneously

formed in the fall at a speed of 290 km / h over Illinois. (BARCROFT

MEDIA)

 

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Spouses Heather and Glenn Singlmen (Heather and Glenn Singleman) made a

leap from the top of the mountain Brent (Brento) in Italy, the winged

suits that allow them to fly in the air. (James Boole / BARCROFT MEDIA

LTD)

 

Russia ekstremal Valery Rozov hovers in the air over Mutnovsky volcano in

Kamchatka in Russia before opening the parachute. (REUTERS)

 

The members of the special team of military descend by parachute during

the 61-th anniversary of the Armed Forces Gireong (Gyeryong) military

headquarters in South Korea. (REUTERS)

 

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A bird flies in front of Austrian Hannes Arch in the second round of Red

Bull Air Race World Championship in San Diego in 2009 … (REUTERS)

 

And….. soon the collision. (REUTERS)

 

The British Harry Hunt (Gary Hunt) and Orlando Duque (Orlando Duque)

immersed in the Columbia River from a helicopter near the temple of

Poseidon on the eve of the eighth and final phase of the Red Bull Cliff

Diving World Series at Cape Sounion, Greece. (REUTERS)

 

Extreme climber Biet Kammelender, 50 years, during recovery, which he has

committed to become the first man conquering a vertical cliff “principle

of hope” to Bers wafers in Vorarlberg, Austria. (PETER MATHIS)

 

French climber Alain Robert, known as “Spider-Man”, stands on top of one

of the skyscrapers Petronas (Petronas Twin Towers) in Malaysia after the

successful ascent. (REUTERS)

 

A jump in the performance of Russian fans of parkour from the roof of the

building to the roof of an eight-story building in St. Petersburg.

 

(Embedded image moved to file: pic05185.jpg)Click Here To See More

 

Skiers with lights on their heads in Mount Cargo (Grouse Mountain) with a

view of Vancouver, British Columbia.

 

The two RAAF F-111S perform air room ‘Dump and fire’ ( ‘Dump and Burn’) at

the eighth annual airshow Defense Force in Townsville, Australia.

 

The maneuvering over the stadium after the ceremony Falcon 2009 U.S. Air

Force Academy near Colorado Springs.

 

B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber is frozen in time when the breaks sound barrier

during a test flight over the California desert.

 

Ring of the water vapor formed around the aircraft F/A-18F Super Hornet,

pilotirumeogo lieutenants Justin Halliganom and Michael Witt, in

overcoming the sound barrier at the airshow on the beach Jones (Jones

Beach), New York.

 

(Embedded image moved to file: pic31412.jpg)Click Here To See More

 

Ryan Newman (Ryan Newman) flies to slide upside down on the track after a

collision with Kevin Harvick (Kevin Harvick) in the course of the

competition Dickies 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Talladega

Superspeedway in Alabama.

 

Australian motocross star Robbie Meddison jump overcomes open SPAN Tower

of London Bridge.

 

The motocross freestylers perform synchronous jump at the World Freestyle

Motocross in Rostov-na-Donu.

 

(Embedded image moved to file: pic18228.jpg)Click Here To See More

 

Motorcyclist rides on the board set a schoolgirl during a “show courage”,

organized by the government primary school in Villupuram in the Indian

state of Tamil Nadu.

 

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Of the Seoul Police Agency Police special operations group splits hit beer

bottle during a demonstration of military skills.

 

(Embedded image moved to file: pic05982.jpg)Click Here To See More

 

Samsam Bubbleman tries to establish a record and inflate the biggest soap

puzyn in the world, using top-secret mix in Finsbury Park London.

 

(Embedded image moved to file: pic01845.jpg)Click Here To See More

 

The Snake Woman Lyuvsandordzh Iona has prolonged retention turning

Marinelli bend, which is supported through the mouth by the handle at the

top of the short pole and is considered the most difficult.

 

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Thanks Teiga, glad you've put them for your maekawa devil improvisations.