Vrijdag namiddag besteld, zelfde dag pakje aangekomen in Memphis om 12:03AM lokale tijd en maandag om 10h36 afgeleverd. Rapper moet dat niet gaan!

Handig is vooral de SMD box met 1400 capaciteiten 0805. Zo kan ik eenvoudiger optimaliseren, je moet nu eenmaal naar SMD overschakelen omdat bepaalde componenten niet meer beschikbaar zijn in DIL. Ook de afmetingen moeten kleiner.

 

Nu nog de SMD pcb tekenen. Doel is een nog betere IR detector te bouwen die heel gevoelig is, ook voor kleine donkere beestjes in volle vlucht, en dit overdag waarbij er ook nog veel zonlicht aanwezig is. Of het echt beter zal worden moeten we afwachten. Zodra er resultaten zijn komen er wel nieuwe beelden.

Components

Component view of an Aengus / Deane Jensen model 404 thumbwheel EQ that fits API consoles or API 500 series lunchboxes!

NON HINDUS

ARE NOT ALLOWED INSIDE THE TEMPLE

 

Lingaraj Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Harihara, a form of Shiva and is one of the oldest temples in Bhubaneswar, the capital of the East Indian state of Odisha (formerly Orissa). The temple is the most prominent landmark of the Bhubaneswar city and one of the major tourist attractions of the state.

 

The Lingaraj temple is the largest temple in Bhubaneswar. The central tower of the temple is 55 m tall. The temple represents the quintessence of the Kalinga Architecture and culminates the medieval stages of the architectural tradition at Bhubaneswar. The temple is believed to be built by the kings from the Somavamsi dynasty, with later additions from the Ganga rulers. The temple is built in the Deula style that has four components namely, vimana (structure containing the sanctum), jagamohana (assembly hall), natamandira (festival hall) and bhoga-mandapa (hall of offerings), each increasing in the height to its predecessor. The temple complex has 50 other shrines and is enclosed by a large compound wall.

 

Bhubaneswar is called the Ekamra Kshetra as the deity of Lingaraj was originally under a mango tree (Ekamra) as noted in Ekamra Purana, a 13th-century Sanskrit treatise. The temple is active in worship practises, unlike most other temples in Bhubaneswar and Shiva is worshipped as Harihara, a combined form of Vishnu and Shiva. The temple has images of Vishnu, possibly because of the rising prominence of Jagannath cult emnating from the Ganga rulers who built the Jagannath Temple in Puri in the 12th century.

 

Lingaraj temple is maintained by the Temple Trust Board and the Archeological Survey of India (ASI). The temple has an average of 6,000 visitors per day and receives lakhs of visitors during festivals. Shivaratri festival is the major festival celebrated in the temple and event during 2012 witnessed 200,000 visitors.

 

HISTORY

Lingaraj means "The king of Lingam", the symbol of Saivism. Shiva was worshipped as Kirtivasa and later as Harihara and is commonly referred as Tribhuvaneshwara (also called Bhubaneswar), the master of three worlds, namely, heaven, earth and netherworld). His consort is called Bhuvaneshvari.

 

The temple is more than 1100 years old, dating back in its present form to the last decade of the eleventh century, though there is evidence that part of the temple was built during the sixth century CE as the temple has been emphasized in some of the seventh century Sanskrit texts. Fergusson believes the temple might have been initiated by Lelat Indra Kesari who reigned from 615 to 657 CE. The Assembly hall (jagamohana), sanctum and temple tower wer built during the eleventh century, while the Hall of offering (bhoga-mandapa) was built during the twelfth century. The natamandira was built by the wife of Salini between 1099 and 1104 CE. By the time the Lingaraj temple was completely constructed, the Jagannath (form of Vishnu) cult had been growing in the region, which historians believe is evidenced by the co-existence of Vishnu and Shiva worship at the temple. The Ganga dynasty kings were ardent followers of Vaishnavism and built the Jagannath Temple at Puri in the 12th century.

 

The temple is believed to be built by the Somavanshi king Jajati Keshari, in 11th century CE. Jajati Keshari had shifted his capital from Jajpur to Bhubaneswar which was referred to as Ekamra Kshetra in the Brahma Purana, an ancient scripture. One of the Somavamsi queens donated a village to the temple and the Brahmins attached to the temple received generous grants. An inscription from the Saka year 1094 (1172 CE) indicates gifts of gold coins to the temple by Rajaraja II. Another inscription of Narasimha I from the 11th century indicates offer of beetel leaves as tambula to the presiding deity. Other stone inscriptions in the temple indicate royal grants from Chodaganga to village people.

 

ARCHITECTURE

The Lingaraj temple is the largest temple in Bhubaneswar. James Ferugsson (1808–86), a noted critic and historian, rated the temple as "one of the finest examples of purely Hindu temple in India". It is enshrined within a spacious compound wall of laterite measuring 160 m by 142 m. The wall is 2.3 m thick and surmounted by a plain slant coping. Alongside the inner face of the boundary wall, there is a terrace to protect the compound wall against outside aggression. The tower is 55 m high and the complex has 150 smaller shrines in its spacious courtyard. Each inch of the 55 m tall tower is sculpted. The door in the gate of the entrance porch is made of sandalwood.

 

The Lingaraja temple faces east and is built of sandstone and laterite. The main entrance is located in the east, while there are small entrances in the north and south. The temple is built in the Deula style that has four components namely, vimana (structure containing the sanctum), jagamohana (assembly hall), natamandira (festival hall) and bhoga-mandapa (hall of offerings). The dance hall was associated with the raising prominence of the devadasi system that existed during the time. The various units from the Hall of offering to the tower of the sanctum increase in height.

 

The bhogamandapa (Hall of offering) measures 13 m by 13 m from the inside, 17.15 m by 17.25 m from the outside and has four doors in each of the sides. The exterior walls of the hall has decorative sculptures of men and beast. The hall has a pyramidal roof made of up several horizontal layers arranged in sets of two with intervening platform. It bears an inverted bell and a kalasa in the top. The natamandira (festival hall) measures 12 m by 12 m from the inside, 15 m by 15 m from the outside, has one main entrance and two side entrances. The side walls of the hall has decortive sculptures displaying women and couples. It has a flat roof sloping in stages. There are thick pylons inside the hall. The jagamohana (assembly hall) measures 11 m by 9.1 m from the inside, 17 m by 15 m from the outside, entrances from south and north and has a 30 metres tall roof. The hall has a pyramidal roof made of up several horizontal layers arranged in sets of two with intervening platform as in the Hall of offering. The facade to the entrances are decorated with perforated windows with lion sitting on hind legs. The inverted bell above second unit is adorned by kalasa and lions. The rekha deula has a 60 m tall pyramidal tower over the sanctum and measures 6.7 m from the inside, 16 m from the outside over the sanctum. It is covered with decorative design and seated lion projecting from the walls. The sanctum is square in shape from the inside. The tower walls are sculpted with female figures in different poses.

 

RELIGIOUS SIGNIFICANCE

Bhubaneswar is called the Ekamra Kshetra as the deity of Lingaraj was originally under a mango tree (Ekamra). Ekamra Purana, a Sanskrit treatise of the 13th century mentions that the presiding deity was not seen as lingam (an aniconic form of Shiva) during the Satya and Treta yugas and only during the Dwapara and Kali yugas, it emerged as a lingam. The lingam in the temple is a natural unshaped stone that rests on a Sakti. Such a lingam is called Krutibasa or Swayambhu and is found in 64 places in different parts of India. With the advent of the Ganga dynasty in the early 12th century, who had Vaishnavaite orientation, a new movement started resulting in the synthesis of Saivism and Vaishnavism. The Ekamra was associated with Vaishanavite gods Krishna and Balaram during the period. It is attributed the raising prominence of Jagannath cult that became predominant during the construction of the temple. The Ganges remodelled the temple and introduced certain Vaishnavite elements like images of Vaishnava Dwarapalas namely Jaya and Prachanda, Jagannatha, Lakshmi Narayan and Garuda were installed. Tulsi leaves, which are favoured by Vishnu, was used along with Bela leaves for the worship of Lingaraj. Lingaraja was thus came to be known as Harihara, a combination of Shiva and Vishnu. The flag of the temple was fixed to a Pinaka bow instead of trident usually found in Shiva temples. The temple priests also changed the mark in their forehead from horizontal to a "U" sign with a dotted middle line. The Ganges also introduced certain fairs like Swing festival, Sun worship and mock quarell between priests after chariot festival, similar to the practises in Jagannath Temple in Puri. The influence of the Ganges dynasty has led to a cosmopolitan culture, that has reduced the status of Lingaraja temple as a distinct Saivite shrine.

 

FESTIVAL & WORSHIP PRACTISES

As per Hindu legend, an underground river originating from the Lingaraj temple fills the Bindusagar Tank (meaning ocean drop) and the water is believed to heal physical and spiritual illness. The water from the tank is thus treated sacred and pilgrims take a holy dip during festive occasions. The central deity of the temple, Lingaraj, is worshipped both as Shiva and Vishnu. The harmony between the two sects of Hinduism, Saivism and Vaishanvism, is seen in this temple where the deity is worshipped as Harihara, a combined form of Vishnu and Shiva.

 

Shivaratri is the main festival celebrated annually in Phalgun month when thousands of devotees visit the temple. Apart from a full day of fasting, bel leaves are offered to Lingaraj on this auspicious day. The main celebrations take place at night when devotees pray all night long. The devout usually break their fast after the Mahadipa (a huge lamp) is lit on the spire of the temple. Every year the chariot festival (Ratha-Yatra) of Lingaraja is celebrated on Ashokashtami. The deity is taken in a chariot to Rameshwar Deula temple. Thousands of devotees follow and pull brightly decorated chariots containing the idols of Lingaraj and his sister Rukmani. This chariot procession stays for five days at the Rameshwar Temple and then will be brought back. This festival commemorates Lord Lingaraj having slayed a demon. Thousands of bol bom pilgrims carry water from river Mahanadi and walk all the way to the temple during the month of Shravana every year. Sunian day is observed from royal times in the month of Bhandra, a day when temple servants, peasants and other holders of temple lands offer loyalty and tribute to Lingaraja. Candan Yatra (Sandalwood ceremony) is a 22-day festival celebrated in the temple when servants of the temple disport themselves in a specially made barge in Bindusagar tank. The deities and servants of the temples are anointed with sandalwood paste to protect from heat. Dances, communal feasts and merrymaking are arranged by the people associated with the temple.

 

The Lingaraja temple is active in worship practises, unlike the other ancient temples of Bhubaneshwar which are not active worship centres. Non Hindus are not allowed inside the temple, but it can be viewed from the viewing platform located outside the temple. The viewing platform and the back of the temple can be reached via a lineway located to the right of the main entrance of the temple. Sanctity of the temple is maitained by disallowing dogs, unbathed visitors, menstruating women and families that encountered birth or death in the preceding 12 days. In case of a foreign tresspass, the temple follows a purification ritual and dumping of prasad (food offering) in a well.

 

RELIGIOUS PRACTICES

The image of Lingaraja is abluted with water (called mahasnana) several times a day and decorated with flowers, sandal paste and cloth. Hemlock or hemlock flowers which are generally offered in other Shiva temples is not allowed in the Lingaraja temple. Bilva leaves (Aegle marmelos) and tulasi (Ocimum sanctum) are used in daily worship. Offerings of cooked rice, curries and sweet-meats are displayed in the bhogamandapa (hall of offering) and the divinity is invoked to accept them amidst scores of chanting of Sanskrit texts. Coconut, ripe plantains and kora-khai are generally offered to Lingaraja by the pilgrims. Bhang beverage is offered to Lingaraja by some devotees especially on the day of Pana Sankranti (Oriya new year).

 

The Lingaraja temple is open from 6 a.m. to about 9 p.m. and is intermittently closed during bhoga (food offering) to the deity. During early morning, lamps in the cella are lit to awaken Lingaraja from his sleep, ablution is performed, followed by adoration and arati (waving of light). The temple is closed at about 12 p.m. until about 3.30 P.M. A ceremony known as Mahasnana (ablution) is performed once the doors are closed, followed by pouring of Panchamrita (a mixture of milk, curdled milk, clarified butter, honey and ghee) upon the deity for purification. At about 1 P.M., a ripe plantain is divided into two, one half is offered to Sun god and the other half to Dwarapala (the guarding deities in the doorway). Between 1.00 and 1.30 P.M. the food offering called Ballabha Bhoga (breakfast containing curdled milk, curd and vegetables) is offered to the deity. The consecrated food is carried to the temple of Parvati and placed before her as an offering, a practice commonly observed by the orthodox Hindu housewives. At about 2 P.M., the Sakala Dhupa (morning's offering of food) takes place. After the food is offered to Lingaraja, the offerings are carried to the temple of Parvati to serve her. An offering called Bhanda Dhupa is carried out at 3.30 P.M. at the hall of offering. This food is later offered by the inmates to the pilgrims as Mahaprasad.

 

A light refreshment known as Ballabha Dhupa is offered to the deity at around 4.30 P.M. At around 5 P.M., Dwipahar Dhupa (mid day meal) is offered. At around 7 P.M., another offering called Palia Badu is placed before the deity. Sandhya arati (waving of lights in the evening) is performed during that time. Another light meal called Sahana Dhupa is offered at around 8:30 P.M. After the meals, the ceremony of waving light (arati) is performed before the deity. At 9.30 P.M, the last service of the day, Bada Singara (the great decoration) is performed when the deity is decorated with flowers and ornaments after which a light food offering is made. A wooden palanquin is laid in the room, incense is lighted, drinking water is served and prepared betel is placed. Panchabaktra Mahadeva comes to the palanquin and returns to his own abode after the arati is performed. This is a bronze image of Mahadeva having five faces and Parvati in his lap. Each of these ceremonies is accompanied by ritual observances and recitations of mantras (Sanskrit texts) specified for each occasion.

 

TEMPLE STAFF & ADMINISTRATION

King Jajati Keshari, believed to be the founder of the Lingaraja temple, deputed Dravidian Brahmins as temple priests over the local Brahmins on account of their increased knowledge of Saivism. The focus was to enhance the temple practises from tribal rites to Sanskritic. While the exact number of castes involved in the nijogas (practises) is not known, Brahmins, tribal worshippers and inmates from Untouchable castes are believed to be part of the setup. Bose (1958) identified 41 services with the involvement of 22 separate castes and Mahaptra (1978) identified 30 services. It is understood from the records that kings and temple managers of different times introduced or discontinued certain services, fairs, offerings and caste-centred core services during their regime. As of 2012, the temple practised 36 different services (nijogas).

 

In modern times, the Lingaraja temple priests are from two communities, namely Brahman Nijog and Badu Nijog. The Badu are non-Brahmin servant groups, whose origin is not ascertained due to unavailability of authentic records, while they are described as Vadu in chapter 62 of the Ekamrapurana. The caste group of Badu is called Niyoga, which elects the officers every year during the Sandalwood festival. Every Badu undergoes three distinct rites, namely, ear-piercing, marriage and god-touching. Historically, the Badus performed five different temple duties - Paliabadu and Pharaka, which were considered important and Pochha, Pahada and Khataseja, which were considered inferior. From 1962, only Paliabadu and Pharaka practises are followed and the others are discontinued. The Badus also carry out ablution and dressing of the images of Siddhaganesh and Gopalini. The temple is maintained by the Temple Trust Board and the Archeological Survey of India (ASI). The temple is guarded by security personnel deputed by the Police Commissioner of Bhubaneswar and security guards appointed by the temple administration. The temple has an average of 6,000 visitors every day and receives lakhs of visitors during festivals. The Shivaratri festival during 2012 witnessed 200,000 visitors. As of 2011, the annual income of Lingaraja temple from hundis (donation boxes) is around INR1.2 million per annum. Another INR4 million is collected annually from other sources like rents from shops, cycle stands and agriculture lands. Starting 2011, the temple charges an amount for six types of religious worship (special pujas) carried out by the devotees.

 

WIKIPEDIA

 

these were left near the "shrine" - were they sacrifcial offerings?

these little focal pieces/ tiles/ pendants.... are such wonderful little canvasses for some of the texture and color combinations that i like to play with. I make them as pendants and magnets myself, but i have had a lot of folks asking me for more pieces that they can use in their own jewelry making, mosaics and crafting.... so i am trying to make more things available. Look for these soon in my shop

Persistent URL: floridamemory.com/items/show/255971

 

Local call number: C026895

 

Title: Clementine Fowler reading oscilloscope to test components manufactured at the Johnson Electronics Company plant in Casselberry

 

Date: January 1958

 

Physical descrip: 1 photoprint - b&w - 5 x 4 in.

 

Series Title: Department of Commerce Collection

 

Repository: State Library and Archives of Florida

500 S. Bronough St., Tallahassee, FL, 32399-0250 USA, Contact: 850.245.6700, Archives@dos.myflorida.com

My Main instrument Panel components; I designed using CAD and just received the results from the machine shop. Took a lot of help from David Allen to get this far.

 

3D Design

www.flickr.com/photos/24409839@N07/6849951075/in/datepost...

Images within this segment were taken while attending the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting

 

Please download and use these open source images for your own purposes. If you do, please reference Macroscopic Solutions.

 

Photography information: All of the images in this database were captured with the Macropod.

 

The Macropod is a rigid, portable photomacrography system, which allows the user to make razor sharp, fully focused photographs of small sized specimens at 18 to 26-megapixel resolution. It overcomes the extreme Depth of Field (DOF) limitations inherent in optics designed to image smaller specimens. Normally, lenses designed for macro will only render a very small fraction of the depth of targeted specimen in sharp focus at any one exposure. The Macropod allows the user to select and make multiple exposures in precise increments along the Z-axis (depth) such that each exposure’s area of sharp focus overlaps with the previous and next exposure. These source images are then transferred to a computer and merged by an image-stacking program. Zerene Stacker is used to find and stitch together only the focused pixels from each exposure into one image. The Macropod integrates industry-leading components in a novel and elegant way to achieve these results.

 

Contact information:

Dan Saftner

daniel@macroscopicsolutions.com

724 825 9426

 

Mark Smith

mark@macroscopicsolutions.com

410 258 6144

 

I'm pleased as punch to see this project completed (other than adding a lockable drawer in the empty slot about 1/3 the way down from top. Proper control of the audio/visual system in my office's main committee room has been a LONG time coming!

An early photo of my stubbie set up with options for hiking, rock and ice climbing.

Generator and magneto. Like the original system, the MZB does not need a battery to start or run. On this kit, the rotor hit the crank seal and the trigger unit plate, and had to be machined with a lathe to fit.

Los principales componentes que se necesitan para habilitar VoIP son los siguientes:

•Componentes VoIP del servidor front-end

•Componentes de integración con RTC

•Componentes VoIP de la red perimetral

 

Componentes VoIP del servidor front-end

 

Los principales componentes VoIP ubicados en...

 

www.servervoip.com/blog/componentes-voip/

Most components get harvested for repair, PCBs are sold and recycled.

The spare parts that can't be used are thrown away in domestic trash, like this broken glass lens.

A 3d diversion inspired by seier+seier+seier's fascinating photos of an agricultural building by German architect Hugo Häring.

 

Modeled in rhino3d using panelingtools. The timber structural components ended up being curved which isn't correct, but I'm not too bothered about that! All dimensions are guessed... Rendered in 3dstudio with vray as always.

 

It took me longer to figure out the shape of the component to be repeated than it did to model the entire barn, I ended up having to resort to a pen and paper!

This exclusive Eurobricks Pictorial Review of the 71001: LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 11 can be found in www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=85145

Peter Blau works with instruments to determine tribological properties of battery components at the High Temperature Materials Laboratory

Two engineers inspecting a component in the assembly line at SATU facility in Singapore

 

Please attribute copyright © Rolls-Royce PLC

Taken with the Leica m7, 35mm summicron and cinestill

Taken with a Zorki 1 camera in week 226 of my 52 film cameras in 52 weeks project:

 

52cameras.blogspot.com/

 

www.flickr.com/photos/tony_kemplen/collections/7215762311...

 

Rollei RPX 400 film developed in Ilfosol 3 1:14 for 18 minutes at 20 deg C

 

The intake cowls have been removed from the Rolls-Royce RB211-524H's on G-CIVL and are on pallets in the foreground.

 

Both inlet and exhaust sides of the RR engine have been sealed, presumably to stop damage from weather ingress?

Elementele de beton armat care se gasesc in medii preponderent umede, cu substante agresive (componenti organici, acid sulfuric, grasimi, saruri, acizi, etc.) trebuie protejate pentru a evita distrugerea betonului si corodarea armaturii.

Cuzinetii in forma de T Besaplast® – T-sunt foi de ...

 

www.hidroplasto.ro/hidroizolare-beton-armat.html

Topcon T message register camera (s/n 71T0048) with locked down with RE Auto Topcor 25mm (s/n 9366817)

 

The Topcon T is essentially a stripped down version of the Topcon RE Super. It is forms a component of the KS-20900 L1 message register camera made to order by Tokyo Kogaku (in 1971) for the U.S. telephone company Bell/AT&T The camera was designed to record telephone usage in the exchanges for billing purposes. The aperture is fixed a f/22, the focus at 0.6m (2 feet). The shutter speed was 1/60th and illumination of the message register occurred via electronic flash. The gelatine polarising filter, originally apparently factory installed at the correct angle, prevented glare from the flash.

 

© Dirk HR Spennemann 2012, All Rights Reserved

Formentera è una delle quattro isole principali componenti l'arcipelago delle Baleari, Spagna; assieme alla vicina Ibiza forma a sua volta una delle Isole Pitiuse. Caratterizzata da vegetazione tipicamente mediterranea, fu sfruttata dai Romani quale deposito di frumento, da cui deriva il nome di Formentera. La popolazione residente è di appena 5.553 abitanti, sparsa tra i centri principali dell'isola quali il capoluogo comunale Sant Francesc, La Savina, sede del porto, Es Pujols, principale centro turistico e Sant Ferran, centro abitato e meta hippy a partire dagli anni sessanta. Tale popolazione cresce a dismisura durante il periodo estivo, visto che l'isola è una delle mete preferite in Europa, grazie alla bellezza delle spiagge ed all'aspetto incontaminato della sua macchia mediterranea.

 

Formentera è una destinazione turistica molto popolare: grazie alla bellezza delle spiagge e alla sua vicinanza con Ibiza con cui è collegata da frequentissimi traghetti, offre, a differenza della sua dirimpettaia, una vita ed un turismo meno formale e meno legato al variopinto mondo delle discoteche. Negli ultimi anni è diventata meta di moltissimi turisti italiani che hanno instaurato la moda dell'aperitivo in riva al mare accompagnato da musica fino a tarda ora. Sono diversi i chioschi (chiringuito in spagnolo) che con il calar del sole si trasformano in discoteche. Formentera rimane uno dei luoghi del Mar Mediterraneo preferiti dai naturisti che continuano a frequentare la maggior parte delle spiagge dell'isola (Migjorn, Llevant, Ses Illetes, Espalmador, Platja de Llevant, Platja de Tramuntana, Platja de Sa Roqueta, etc..) grazie alla legislazione permissiva presente in Spagna, che di fatto permette il naturismo in molte zone del paese.

 

it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formentera

components, stock of m1 carbine, mag of mp-40, glue them on and there ya go :3

The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (in German: Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche, but mostly just known as Gedächtniskirche [ɡəˈdɛçtnɪsˈkɪʁçə]) is a Protestant church affiliated with the Evangelical Church in Berlin, Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusatia, a regional body of the Evangelical Church in Germany. It is located in Berlin on the Kurfürstendamm in the centre of the Breitscheidplatz.

 

The original church on the site was built in the 1890s. It was badly damaged in a bombing raid in 1943. The present building, which consists of a church with an attached foyer and a separate belfry with an attached chapel, was built between 1959 and 1963. The damaged spire of the old church has been retained and its ground floor has been made into a memorial hall.

 

The Memorial Church today is a famous landmark of western Berlin, and is nicknamed by Berliners "der hohle Zahn", meaning "the hollow tooth".

 

OLD CHURCH

The construction of the church was part of a Protestant church-building programme initiated by Kaiser Wilhelm II and his consort Augusta Victoria to counter the German labour movement and socialist movement by a return to traditional religious values. Wilhelm II decided to name the church in honor of his grandfather Kaiser Wilhelm I. The competition for the design was won by Franz Schwechten, member of the Bauakademie who had distinguished himself with the design of the Anhalter Bahnhof. Schwechten, a native Rhinelander, planned for a large church to be built in a Neo-Romanesque style modelled on the Bonn Minster with a Tuff stone facade. His design included 2,740 square metres of wall mosaic, a 113 metres-high spire (now 71 metres) and a nave which seated over 2,000 people.

 

The foundation stone was laid on 22 March 1891, which was Wilhelm I's birthday. The church was dedicated on 1 September 1895, the eve of Day of Sedan. At that time, the entrance hall in the lower section had not yet been completed; that part of the church was not opened and consecrated until 22 February 1906. Construction costs mounted to 6.8 million gold mark, raised primarily through donations. The church design, quite unfamiliar in the Brandenburg region, inspired several architectural projects in the surrounding area, like the Romanisches Café building, also designed by Schwechten.

 

In World War II, on the night of 23 November 1943, the church was extensively damaged in an air raid. Yet it was by no means beyond repair. A remnant of the spire and much of the entrance hall survived intact, as did the altar and the baptistry. After the war, in 1947, the curatorium of the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche foundation (Stiftung) decided in favor of rebuilding the church, but the manner in which this should be done was contentiously debated until the late 1950s. In a two-phased design competition in 1956, the question of whether the secured remnant of the spire should be torn down or preserved was left open. The winner of the competition, architect Egon Eiermann, initially proposed, in both his submissions, for the remnant of the old spire to be torn down, in favor of a completely new construction. But that plan provoked a public outcry in which the ruined tower was characterized as the "heart of Berlin"; as a result Eiermann revised the design to preserve the tower. He had most of the remaining structure pulled down, in order to build the modern church that now occupies most of the site.

 

NEW CHURCH

The new church was designed by Eiermann and consists of four buildings grouped around the remaining ruins of the old church. The initial design included the demolition of the spire of the old church but following pressure from the public, it was decided to incorporate it into the new design. The four buildings comprise, on the west of the ruins, the new church with a foyer to its west, and to the east of the ruins, a tower with a chapel to its northeast. The plan of the church is octagonal while the plan of the tower is hexagonal. These components are sited on a plateau measuring 100 metres long and 40 metres wide. The new buildings are constructed of concrete, steel and glass. The walls of the church are made of a concrete honeycomb containing 21,292 stained glass inlays. The glass, designed by Gabriel Loire, was inspired by the colours of the glass in Chartres Cathedral. The predominant colour is blue, with small areas of ruby red, emerald green and yellow. The church is 35 metres in diameter and 20.5 metres high with a capacity of over 1,000. Because of the distinctive appearance of the new buildings, it is sometimes nicknamed "Lippenstift und Puderdose" (the lipstick and the powder box) by Berliners.

 

Inside the church, opposite the entrance, is a figure of the crucifixus which is suspended above the altar. This is made from tombak and was designed by Karl Hemmeter. The cross on the altar, by Peter Tauchnitz, is of gilt silver with 37 rock crystals. To the left of the altar is the baptismal font on a stand filled with Carrara marble which contains a majolica bowl for the holy water. To the right of the altar is an octagonal pulpit. Opposite the altar on a gallery is an organ containing about 5,000 pipes, which was built by Schuke. Plexiglas panels have been installed over the organ gallery to improve the acoustics. By the northeast wall of the church are three works of art. The first is a bronze plaque commemorating the Protestant martyrs who died during the Nazi regime between 1933 and 1945. It incorporates a Spanish wooden crucifix dating from the 13th century. The plaque was placed in the church on 20 July 1964, the 20th anniversary of an attempt to assassinate Hitler. Next to this is the Stalingrad Madonna, a symbol of hope and reconciliation. This is a charcoal drawing made by Kurt Reuber during the time he was trapped inside Stalingrad at Christmas 1942. Copies of this drawing have been sent to Coventry Cathedral and the Russian Orthodox Church in Stalingrad (now Volgograd). The third item of art is an icon of the Virgin Mary from Volgograd.

 

The tower is 12 metres in diameter and 53.5 metres high with a flat roof. Atop the tower is a pole carrying a gilded sphere above which is a gilded cross. It contains a belfry with six bronze bells cast from French cannon, booty from the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71. The foundation stone of the new church was laid on 9 May 1959, its roofing ceremony was carried out on 16 December 1960, the new bells were consecrated on 19 July 1961, the new church was consecrated on 17 December 1961 and the foyer and chapel were completed in December 1963.

 

BELLS OF THE NEW CHURCH

Different bells are rung on different occasions:

 

Devotions, family worship, baptisms and marriages: Bells 6, 5 and 4

Organ Vespers and funerals: Bells 6, 5, 4 and 3

Sunday worship: Bells 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2

Festive services: All bells (6-1)

 

SPIRE AND MEMORIAL HALL

The entrance hall in the base of the damaged spire was reopened to visitors, having been consecrated on 7 January 1987. Its floor contains a mosaic of the Archangel Michael fighting the dragon. The vault shows a procession of Hohenzollern princes, early and more recent. Other mosaics show important monarchs in medieval Germany, Reformation thinkers and Reformation princes. Bas-relief sculptures illustrate scenes from biblical stories, scenes from the life of Kaiser Wilhelm I and symbolic figures representing war and peace. In the north apse are 16 display panels which tell the story of the old church and its destruction. At the opposite end of the hall are three items which symbolise the history of the church. In the middle is a damaged statue of Christ which originally stood on the altar of the old church. To its right is the Cross of Nails which was made from nails in the roof timbers of Coventry Cathedral. This cathedral had been severely damaged in a German air raid on 14 November 1940. To the left of the statue of Christ is an icon cross which was given by the Russian Orthodox Church and handed over in 1988. Outside the hall are four sandstone figures made by Stefan Kaehne.

 

In December 2007, Charles Jeffrey Gray, a former British pilot who carried out World War II bombing raids over Germany, joined a campaign to rescue the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church from decay. After reading about the condition of the Church, Gray contacted Wolfgang Kuhla, the chairman of the church's advisory board, urging that its tower be restored. In response, a fund was launched to help raise the costs of its repair.

 

WIKIPEDiA

A worker sorts and stacks chair legs at the Longhua furniture factory. The chair legs are part of the “Stefan” chair sold by Ikea. The factory was visited by 2015 Forestry Asia Trade Mission delegates.

 

Learn more: news.gov.bc.ca/stories/2015-forestry-trade-mission-to-asia

Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States

 

An integral component of the highly-acclaimed International Style Seagram Building designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (a designated New York City Landmark), the Four Seasons Restaurant Ground Floor and First Floor Interiors have been praised by architectural critics as among the finest International Style interior spaces in the United States. Designed in 1958 by celebrated architect Philip Johnson and built in 1958-59 as an innovative first-class restaurant for Restaurant Associates, it opened amid much fanfare and was at that time the costliest restaurant ever constructed. The

  

interiors produced by Johnson and a stellar team of consultants are considered to be among Johnson's last projects to mirror the architectural theories of his mentor Mies van der Rohe. The designers used rich materials, installed with expert craftsmanship to accentuate their inherent beauty, innovative technology, and distinctive architectonic elements to shape the understated and elegantly proportioned interiors, which reflect the modular system employed in the design of the Seagram Building. The operations of the award-winning Four Seasons Restaurant were taken over in 1972 by Tom Margittai and Paul Kovi, who have kept the interior spaces in virtually intact condition and have been faithful to their original, influential design. Among the creative features of the restaurant is its seasonal' theme, which inspires the meals served as well as plantings and color-coded ' appointments. A cultural magnet for tourists and the city's elite, it is one of New York's premier dining spaces due to the architectural preeminence of its design, the richness of its exquisite interiors, its location in the the Seagram Building, and the restaurant's exceptional culinary reputation.

 

History of the Seagram Buildinq

 

The Seagram Building, erected in 1956-58, is the only building in New York City designed by architectural master Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Carefully related to the tranquil granite and marble plaza on its Park Avenue site, the elegant curtain wall of bronze and tinted glass enfolds the first fully modular modem office tower. Constructed at a time when Park Avenue was changing from an exclusive residential thoroughfare to a prestigious business address, the Seagram Building embodies the quest of a successful corporation to establish further its public image through architectural patronage. The president of Joseph E. Seagram & Sons, Samuel Bronfman, with the aid of his daughter Phyllis Lambert, carefully selected Mies, assisted by Philip Johnson, to design an office building later regarded by many, including Mies himself, as his crowning work and the apotheosis of International Style towers. The innovative, modular design of the building was a feat furthered by a coalition of talented consultants, a successful collaboration rarely realized in twentieth-century architecture, and by pioneering efforts of research and fabrication. Still virtually intact due to the foresighted maintenance plan of the Seagram Company, the building and plaza have inspired the work of many subsequent designers, affected New York's zoning regulations and real estate tax assessment, and provided a favorable environment for work and repose.

 

As one of the amenities of the building, the Seagram management from the beginning had the intent to provide large, elegant interior spaces with public access from the lobby. In discussions as early as 1956, several options were considered: a museum of crafts, a stylish automobile showroom (along the lines of Frank Lloyd Wright's Mercedes-Benz showroom further north on Park Avenue), and a first-class restaurant. Mies and Johnson began preliminary work on the overall design of the interior spaces prior to the selection of Restaurant Associates as the tenant.

 

Restaurant Associates

 

The Seagram Company decided that a first-class restaurant should occupy the space adjacent to the lobby of its new building, and in 1957 Seagram's leasing agent, Cushman & Wakefield, made arrangements with the firm of Restaurant Associates. Restaurant Associates, Inc. was founded in 1947 by A.F. Wechsler, leader of one of the world's largest companies which roasted coffee for commercial use. Holding a substantial interest in the restaurant chain that owned Rikers restaurants, Wechsler selected his son-in-law Jerome Brody (bom c.1924) as the president of R.A. Mr. Brody expanded the company's activities to include the operation of snack bars and cafeterias for outside interests? he also negotiated contracts to operate the food services at Newark Airport and the Lexington Hotel in New York, and purchased the tourist-enticing leone's. After their successful expansion into the first-class restaurant business with the Forum of the Twelve Caesars, Brody and vice-president Joseph Baum (bom c.1921), a prominent American restaurateur, dedicated themselves to establishing the Four Seasons Restaurant in the Seagram Building as a first-class restaurant with a seasonal theme.

 

Philip C. Johnson

 

When approached by Lambert regarding who should design of the restaurant interiors, Mies recommended Johnson. Critic, historian, and architect Philip Johnson (b. 1906) was graduated from Harvard University and became associated with the Museum of Modem Art soon after its founding in 1929, directing its innovative department of architecture and later designing its sculpture garden (1953) and two additions (1950, 1964). With the critic and historian Henry-Russell Hitchcock, he organized the momentous exhibition, "Modem Architecture" (1932), and coauthored The International Style (1932), a manifesto for the vanguard architecture of Walter Gropius, Le Corbusier, and Mies van der Rohe.

 

Johnson was responsible for inviting Le Corbusier and Mies to the United States. Completing his professional degree in architecture at Harvard in 1943, he subsequently designed several influential residences, including his own Glass House (1949). His association with Mies on the Seagram Building, particularly his design for the Four Seasons Restaurant Interiors (1958-59), was recognized by architectural critics as a highlight in Johnson's career. His later work includes many New York projects: Asia House (now the Russell Sage Foundation/Robert Sterling Foundation Building), 112 East 64th Street (1958- 60), located in the Upper East Side Historic District; New York State Theater at Lincoln Center (1964); New York State Pavilion (1964, with Richard Foster) for the World's Fair in Flushing; Elmer Holmes Bobst Library and Tisch Hall, New York University (1972, both with Richard Foster) ; and the American Telephone and Telegraph Building, 550 Madison Avenue (1980-84, with John Burgee). In 1978 the American Institute of Architects awarded him its highest honor, the Gold Medal.

 

Design Consultants

 

Johnson selected a stellar team of design consultants to work with him on the Four Seasons Interiors; in addition, he was aided by William Pahlmann, who was the principal designer for Restaurant Associates.

 

A graduate of the Parsons School of Design in New York and the Parsons School in Paris, leading interior designer William C. Pahlmann, F.A.I.D., (1900-87) worked as a stage designer and in 1931 established a New York office as a private interior consultant. He became head of the decorating department at Lord & Taylor in 1936; his designs there earned him the reputation as "the best known department store decorator in the U.S."

 

Praised for his colorful designs, he then became a military camoufleur as a captain in the Army Air Corps. Noted for both his eclecticism and innovativeness, Pahlmann "exercised a pervasive influence on American taste" and helped turn interior designing and decorating into an important component of the multi-billion-dollar home-furnishings industry. At the Four Seasons, he is credited with proposing the marble pool for the north dining room, its placement in the room with four trees at its comers, and the floral festoons at the windows. The New York chapter of the American Institute of Interior Designers granted him the Elsie de Wolfe Award in 1964.

 

Architect and lighting consultant Richard Kelly (c.1911-1977) designed the lighting for the Seagram Building and the Four Seasons Restaurant Interiors. While studying at Columbia College, Kelly supported himself by designing and selling light fixtures; after graduating in 1932, he opened his own office as a lighting consultant. During his career, Kelly, the "most outstanding lighting consultant in the country," collaborated with such prominent architects as Louis I. Kahn and Eero Saarinen, as well as Mies and Johnson.

 

He produced many exceptional lighting designs, including those for: the Seagram Building; Lincoln Center (except for the Metropolitan Opera), New York (1962-64); Dulles Airport, Chantilly, Va. (1958-62); General Motors Technical Center, Warren, Mich. (1945-56); Sculpture garden at the Museum of Modem Art, New York (1953) ; Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, or St. Louis Arch (1948-64); Philip Johnson Glass House, New Canaan, Conn. (1949); Eric Boissonnas House, New Canaan, Conn. (1956); Kneses Tiferith Israel Temple, Port Chester, N.Y. (1956); Toronto City Hall (1961-65); Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn. (1951-53); Mellon Center for British Art and Studies at Yale University, New Haven, Conn. (1969-74) ; Coming Glass Center, Coming, N.Y. (1950-51, 1955-56) ; Lake Shore Drive Apartments, Chicago (1948-51) ; and the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Tex. (1966-72). Kelly also published extensively on illumination.

 

Other consultants were Karl Linn, the landscape architect and a professor at the University of Pennsylvania; Everett Lawson Conklin, the horticulturist and award-winning floral designer; and Marie Nichols, a weaver who designed the aluminum chain draperies for the Four Seasons Interiors and had collaborated with Richard Kelly on several projects. Artist Richard Lippold designed the suspended gold-dipped brass sculptures in the Bar/Grill Room.

 

Still others were selected for their designs of movable features which, although significant to the history of the Four Seasons, are not included in this designation. The chairs were designed by Mies much earlier in his career and originally shown in Czechoslovakia in 1927. Additional chairs were designed by Charles Eames (1907-78), pull-up hassocks and small tabouret tables by Eero Saarinen (1910-61), two prominent architects and designers who collaborated on furniture designs for Knoll Associates as well as on architectural projects. Ada Louise and L. Garth Huxtable produced over sixty special designs for the silver holloware, glassware, and silver services—which are still in use at the Four Seasons.

 

Design and Construction

 

Having provided the Seagram Building with a unity between indoor and outdoor spaces, Mies carried the modular design, clearly evident on the building's exterior, into the interiors of the grand public rooms. Johnson used the structural system and generously proportioned volumes as his point of departure for the design of the restaurant interiors, substantially completed in 1958. His design took advantage of the space to create dramatic effects and elegant proportions achieved through varied ceiling heights, a controlled system of circulation through the rooms, and architectonic elements, such as the pool and the bar, which further define distinct volumes within the larger spaces.

 

The interplay of solid and void is artfully exemplified by the sturdy bar with its delicate sculpture above. These large public spaces were conceived to have elegant interiors to complement the Seagram Building itself: walls of the spacious rooms covered with expensive wood paneling washed in light from invisible sources and floor-to-ceiling windows screened by metallic chain curtains which ripple when the ventilation system is operating. The restrained ceiling, elegant staircases, ingenious lighting scheme, sculpture, and furnishings were carefully designed to create the sophisticated simplicity associated with the International Style. Johnson's early works were noticeably indebted to Mies's architectural theories, and this design is generally regarded as Johnson's last such project.

 

The Four Seasons Restaurant

 

Five dining rooms accommodate 400 persons. Its two wine "cellars" permit the Four Seasons to boast one of the largest wine collections in the country. Upon the opening of the restaurant in July of 1959, first-class service was assured by daily indoctrination for waiters by James Beard, the famous wine and food authority.

 

The seasonal theme inspired the Four Seasons to maintain its own herb garden, an innovative venture in American restaurants. Eclectic menus combine American bounty with international culinary concepts and techniques, making the Four Seasons a pioneer of what would later be called the "New American Cuisine." These concepts are reflected visually in the restaurant's decor. Rotated seasonally, the four trees at the comers of the marble pool complement the restaurant's logo, which determines the color scheme for each season. Thus auxiliary planting as well as appointments such as uniforms,

 

menus, and even ash trays were originally rotated every three months: pink for spring, green for summer, burnt orange for autumn, and brown for winter. Establishing an optimum micro-climate for plant survival allowed the designers to integrate interior planting from the beginning of the project.

 

The total cost of approximately $4.5 million for the Four Seasons, making it at that time the costliest restaurant ever built, included architectural alterations and furnishings, linens, uniforms, art, kitchen equipment, silver, service carts, china, glassware, menus and other printed matter, plants and flowers, and design and consultation fees. The Seagram Company underwrote part of the cost, including the installation of the air conditioning system, the walls, and the partitions.

 

The Seagram Company enhanced the International Style interiors by lending the restaurant several masterpieces of modem art. These features, while long associated with the restaurant spaces, are not part of this designation. Pablo Picasso's "The Three-Cornered Hat," a painted curtain completed in 1919 for Diaghilev's ballet "Le Tricorne" hangs in the restaurant lobby.

 

This dedication to modem art, continued over the years, includes works by Frank Stella and Jackson Pollock. In 1984 the current restaurant owners commissioned James Rosenquist for a painting later titled "Fish, Flowers, and Females for the Four Seasons," now displayed in the mezzanine dining room overlooking the Pool Room.

 

The Four Seasons opened to the public in July, 1959, and was followed, in the subsequent year, by a neighboring restaurant, The Brasserie, also designed by Johnson and Pahlmann (not included in this designation).

 

Description

 

located on portions of the first floor and the ground floor at the eastern end of the Seagram Building, the Four Seasons Restaurant Interiors are composed of several interior spaces, each with a distinct character and spatial quality but united by certain design elements. The Interiors of the Fours Seasons Restaurant include two major dining rooms, the Pool Room at the north side of the building and the Bar/Grill Room at the south side, linked by an Entrance Corridor/Lobby which adjoins the Lobby of the Seagram Building.

 

The East 52nd Street Entrance lobby located at the ground floor provides access to the Bar/Grill Room by means of a broad staircase. Two small, adjoining private dining rooms are situated behind a balcony that overlooks the Bar/Grill Room. Another dining room is located at the mezzanine level of the Pool Room. The restaurant is furnished with movable custom furniture, fixtures, and accessories which still adhere to the original designs.

 

The Entrance Corridor/Lobby:

 

The entrance to the Four Seasons Restaurant Interiors from the Seagram Building Lobby (a designated New York City Interior Landmark) is reached by broad travertine steps. A glass wall provides visual continuity between the two spaces, which share certain design features: walls and floors lined in travertine, ceilings composed of gray glass mosaic set in black cement, and engaged bronze piers of the building's structural system. The bronze-framed tripartite glass wall is bisected by a central meeting rail and contains paired glass doors. A flat bronze band intersects the lower portion of the wall. Bronze piers are located near the eastern wall of the corridor, flanking Picasso's painted curtain, "The Three-Cornered Hat" (not subject to this designation).

 

Designed to be illuminated from below, a row of raised alabaster panels, framed in bronze and protected by posts with suspended chain, is located along the floor beneath the curtain. Recessed light fixtures illuminate the space and incandescent recessed troffer lighting fixtures wash the eastern wall with light. Metal-framed glass doors at each end of the corridor lead to vestibules serving the major dining rooms. The vestibules have dropped ceilings formed by brass-colored egg-crate grids illuminated from above. The glazed eastern wall of the Pool Room vestibule reveals a wine "cellar," and the eastern wall of the Bar/Grill Room vestibule is lined in French walnut with openings to accommodate a coat- check area.

 

The Pool Room:

 

A lofty, square space with a twenty-foot high ceiling, the Pool Room is dominated at the center by a table-height twenty-foot square pool of white Carrara marble filled with continuously bubbling water. Cylindrical bronze planters holding trees sit on the floor at each of the four comers of the pool; the trees, which change seasonally, are illuminated from below with bucket lights set into the planters.

 

The western and northern walls are composed of continuous windows which rise above low travertine ledges. The windows are divided into vertical panels by bronze mullions; metal draperies of thin anodized aluminum chains are fitted into vertical channels in the mullions. The chains, in shades of brass, bronze, and copper, subtly ripple with the movement of air from diffusers set into the ledges below. Bronze bowl planters are suspended in front of the windows from nearly invisible wires. The southern wall, pierced by openings for the entrance and the kitchen, is lined with rectangular rawhide panels set on walnut. The bottom row of panels is gray, and those above are natural. Each wall in the room is punctuated by engaged bronze piers.

 

At the eastern end of the Pool Room is a rectangular mezzanine-level room reached by a broad central staircase. The base of the mezzanine is paneled in gray rawhide. The stairs and the edge of the mezzanine are lined with bronze railings composed of thin staggered rods, which, when viewed as one passes them, create the effect of movement. Panels of French walnut, designed and crafted to emphasize the prominent grain of the wood, are set behind the railings; they also pivot so that the mezzanine-level room may be either closed off or function as an extension of the Pool Room. The glazed northern wall is continued in the upper room, while the eastern wall, dominated by a large painting by James Rosenquist (not subject to this designation), and the southern wall of that room are covered in beige carpet panels.

 

The specially-designed ceiling is composed of square off-white panels of perforated aluminum layered over a recessed grid; the intersections of the grid are fitted with "darklites," a recessed incandescent fixture from which light is directed by bronze-finished reflectors. Recessed troffers wash the southern wall with light. The wall-to-wall carpeting has a grid pattern which echoes the overall geometry of the room. (Although not original, it was designed under the direction of Philip Johnson).

 

The Bar/Grill Room:

 

The Bar/Grill Room is divided into several different areas. A small lounge area located at the northwest comer of the room is separated from a bar area at the southwest comer of the room by a large, broad stairwell linking the space with the East 52nd Street Entrance Lobby. A dining area occupies the center of the room and a narrow balcony-level dining area, reached by stairs at each end, spans the eastern side of the room.

 

The Bar/Grill Room has some of the many architectural elements as the Pool Room, including the twenty-foot high specially-designed ceiling, window walls with metal draperies rising from travertine ledges at the west and south, French walnut paneling lining the northern and eastern walls, wall- to-wall carpet, and the balcony. The face of the balcony is now washed with light from below by a bay of incandescent lamps covered by a grid. Engaged bronze piers punctuate the walls. The carpeting is a darker version of the same design used in the Pool Room.

 

The stairwell between the bar and lounge areas is lined in bronze railings of thin, staggered rods. The bar area is dominated by a square walnut bar fitted with leather panels and surrounded by an ebonized oak floor. Two sculptures by Richard Lippold, composed of delicate groups of gold-dipped brass rods of varying lengths, are suspended from the ceiling by nearly invisible wires. Following his usual procedure, Lippold designed the sculptures specifically for their present locations to enhance the organization of the Bar/Grill Room. The larger sculpture contrasts dramatically with the solid walnut bar directly beneath it, creating an intimate space within the larger limits of the room. This juxtaposition is balanced by the smaller sculpture over the balcony.

 

The bar is separated from the dining area by a partition of laminated, cracked glass; this was installed in 1983 under the direction of Philip Johnson and replaced a trellis of climbing ivy. A French walnut service desk to the east of the entrance from the Corridor/Lobby and round planters (which replace the original wood planters) between the service desk and the partition also serve to define the dining area.

 

Two adjoining rooms are situated behind walnut-paneled doors at the northern and southern ends of the balcony; these doors have an ebonized surface on the side of the rooms. The rooms are smaller and more intimate than the large rooms. A vestibule behind the northern end of the balcony leads to the larger of the two rooms, which is rectangular, and joins the smaller, square room to the south by a wide doorway with a sliding ebonized door. Except for the outer wall of the southern room which has continuous windows and metal draperies, the walls are lined with rectangular panels of highly-polished hardwood set onto a dark wood surface. The ceiling is of the same grid-and-panel design used in the larger rooms, except that the surface is black and the panels are pierced with holes roughly one-inch wide and spaced apart in a random pattern, which are illuminated from above. The floors are carpeted. The vestibule at the northern end is similarly finished.

  

The East 52nd Street Entrance Lobby:

 

The lower Entrance Lobby is reached at its southeastern end from East 52nd Street through two sets of glass doors separated by a vestibule with a brass-colored egg-crate grid ceiling. The outer doors are etched with vertical stripes. The floor and walls are travertine and pierced with openings along the eastern, southern, and northern walls for restrooms, an office, and a coat-check area. The space is illuminated by recessed fixtures set into a low white ceiling. Engaged bronze piers and a ceiling beam bisect the room on a north-south axis. At the western side of the lobby is a broad staircase with one landing; this links the Lobby and the Bar/Grill area. It is lined with bronze railings. The two round planters replace the original wood planters.

 

Subsequent History

 

Immediately after its opening the Four Seasons received enthusiastic reviews, both architectural and culinary; critics said that the "spectacular, modem and audacious" restaurant design "combines its exceptional sumptuousness with exquisite refinement." When it opened, the restaurant had no peer "in conception, in scale, in the wealth of talent behind it."

 

In the early 1970s, Transylvanian-born Tom Margittai, then vice- president of Restaurant Associates, was given the responsibility of selling off the business of a foundering Four Seasons Restaurant. Instead, he and the director of the Four Seasons, Hungarian-born Paul Kovi, jointly purchased it from R.A. in 1972 with the goal of reviving the restaurant. They hired chef Joseph Renggli, a Swiss native, and soon the restaurant became, as "one of America's leading symbols of good taste," extremely popular with New York's elite. A recipient of twenty-two major awards, the Four Seasons has hosted many memorable parties for national celebrities, international gourmet societies, and wine inaugurals.

 

Experts Ada Louise and L. Garth Huxtable, involved with the restaurant from its planning stages, have noted that the new owners "have been faithful to the [original] concept." The design of these famous International Style interiors has been caringly maintained. Among the handful of physical changes was the removal of an ivy-covered screen and its replacement in 1983 by a laminated, cracked glass partition designed by Johnson.

 

- From the 1989 NYCLPC Landmark Designation Report

here's our first attempt at an overview of junto philosophy and components. still needs some unpacking. comments/suggestions welcome!

As a result of this graphics card dying I am now playing catch up with uploading my daily photos. Amazingly I fixed this card by oven-baking it for 10 minutes.

La Serrana de la Vera

es.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Serrana_de_la_Vera

 

La serrana de Tormantos, de la Vera o del Monfragüe es un personaje de un mito muy extendido por toda Extremadura, especialmente en la zona de Monfragüe por los riberos del Tajo y por el Valle del Jerte y la Vera, de donde se la supone originaria y donde pervive el personaje en toda su dimensión mítica, al igual que por otras zonas, donde es conocida por haberse extendido las versiones del romance de la Serrana por toda la Península Ibérica (incluyendo Portugal) y el Archipiélago Canario.

 

Se trataría de una hermosa mujer con apariencia de cazadora o de amazona de fuerza sobrehumana y ciertas características sobrenaturales que vive en los montes y lleva a los hombres con los que se cruza a su cueva para matarlos (a menudo después de emborracharlos o haberles hecho el amor) y guardar los huesos en la cueva.

 

Posee cierta relación con la tradición de las "serranillas" medievales, a lo que se añadirían otros componentes míticos para forjar el mito actual de la Serrana.

 

El personaje ha acabado derivando en diversas manifestaciones, pudiéndose distinguir entre la Serrana de la Vera como mito, la Serrana como personaje de los romances, la Serrana de las diversas interpretaciones de dicha tradición oral y la Serrana como personaje de la literatura (especialmente del Siglo de Oro).

 

En un ensayo de Caro Baroja sobre la Serrana se planteaba la cuestión de no muy difícil solución sobre si la Serrana era una realidad histórica mitificada o un mito transformado en realidad historificada. Multitud de estudiosos han interpretado a la Serrana de forma histórica e incluso han tratado de buscarle una identidad histórica de carne y hueso a la Serrana. Algo que en algunos casos ha asumido el pueblo, que, en las zonas donde el mito se halla más arraigado, lo mismo otorga características sobrenaturales a la Serrana parecidas a las de otros seres mitológicos de otras culturas, que habla de conocer la identidad de la Serrana, en qué época vivió, en qué casa o cuál era su familia. En cambio, algunos estudiosos actuales señalan su probable origen mítico primitivo, como ya apuntó Caro Baroja.

 

Isabel de Carvajal, La serrana de la Vera

Se atribuye la existencia de La serrana de la Vera al pueblo de Garganta la Olla, en el cual vivía familia Carvajal, a la que pertenecía Isabel. Esta iba a casarse con un sobrino del obispo de Plasencia, sin embargo, este hecho comprometía su carrera eclesiástica, y en el último momento la abandonó, condenando a Isabel y a su familia a la deshonra eterna. Desde aquel momento, y como venganza, Isabel abandonó su hogar y se lanzó a la sierra, donde repudió a todo hombre. Los arrastraba a la fuerza a su cueva, donde después de gozarlos los mataba. Cabe reseñar que en conmemoración a las víctimas que murieron a manos de la Serrana de la Vera, se erigió una cruz en lo alto de la torre de Garganta la Olla. Además, también en esta localidad, puede verse la casa de la familia Carvajal, donde vivió la Serrana hasta el momento de su deshonra.

 

La Serrana de los romances

El comienzo de los romances suele situar a la Serrana en Garganta la Olla en la Vera de Plasencia. En ciertas versiones se la localiza en las Sierras Garganta la Olla cerca de la linde con Piornal, pero nunca en dicha localidad. Así aparece en una versión cántabra, deSalceda, recogida por José María de Cossío:

‘’Entre Piornal y Garganta,/ no muy lejos de Plasencia,/ relatan viejos romances/ una historia verdadera…”

Otras versiones romancísticas que no presentan muchas diferencias con el resto la ubican, de forma más imprecisa, en Sierra Morena, quizá un añadido que concuerde con la rima “é-a” del romance. De hecho en la mayoría de las versiones andaluzas del romance se la ubica en tierra cacereña.

 

Normalmente en los romances no aparece caracterizada de forma monstruosa, sino como una hembra de gran belleza, aunque en algunas versiones andaluzas se afirma que posee cuerpo mitad yegua y mitad mujer, concordando con las versiones en que la serrana al final del romance desvela haber nacido de una unión entre ser humano y yegua:

“De cintura para arriba/ de persona humana era;/ de cintura para abajo/ tiene estatura de yegua...”

 

Suele llevar el pelo suelto y largo hasta los pies, aunque en otras versiones lleva la cabellera trenzada bajo la montera.

Son escasas las descripciones en que se la hace parecer fea o desproporcionada, como en la mencionada versión cántabra de Cossío:

“Es hombruna y zanquilarga,/ membruda y ojimorena…”

Viste falda corta y va provista con todos los pertrechos de una cazadora que recorre a pie los montes, ya arcos y flechas o bien una honda, o incluso una escopeta (en añadidos que se suponen más recientes).

 

En las versiones altoextremeñas se menciona cómo se complace en satisfacer sus necesidades naturales:

“Cuando tiene gana de agua/ se baja pa la ribera;/ cuando tiene ganas de hombres/ se sube a las altas peñas…”

No parece, sin embargo, ninfómana, aunque tratar de calmar su instinto sexual le traerá problemas, incluyendo su apresamiento.

 

Entonces aparece el “intruso” en el romance, que lo mismo puede ser un pastor que un leñador, un arriero o un soldado. Éste entra en los dominios de la serrana, que le corta el paso. Después lo conduce hasta su cueva, le manda hacer lumbre (en ocasiones con huesos de hombres que ella misma ha matado), le hace beber de una horrible calavera que anticipa el destino que le aguarda:

“--Bebe, serranillo, bebe,/ agua de esa calavera,/ que puede ser que algún día/ otros de la tuya beban.--…”

 

Le sirve de comida piezas que ella ha cazado por el monte. Tras la cena se toman una pausa en que el intruso toca la vihuela o el rabel. Unos romances omiten la posterior relación sexual, pero otros ponen bien de manifiesto el ímpetu erótico de la serrana, que se queda dormida tras el encuentro amoroso. Entonces el huésped, que tuvo la precaución de dejar la puerta entreabierta, trata de escapar:

 

“Dióme yesca y pedernal/ para que lumbre encendiera/ y mientras que la encendía/ aliña una grande cena./ De perdices y conejos/ su pretina saca llena,/ y después de haber cenado/ me dice: --Cierra la puerta.—/ Hago como que la cierro,/ y la dejé entreabierta:/ desnudóse y desnúdeme/ y me hace acostar con ella./ Cansada de sus deleites/ muy bien dormida se queda,/ y en sintiéndola dormida,/ sálgome la puerta afuera.”

Cuando la serrana despierta, el mozo se encuentra en plena huida. El mozo corre despavorido sin mirar atrás. De nada sirve que la serrana le tire la montera tirando con su honda o de alguna forma similar y le sugiera que pare a recogerla. Tampoco el mozo parece muy dispuesto a seguir las advertencias de la serrana de que no descubra su cueva. Pese a sus amenazas, se muestra decidido a denunciar a la serrana en cuanto regrese a un poblado.

Aquí en algunas ocasiones la serrana detalla su condición genética, fruto de una unión entre un pastor y una yegua. Sin embargo, en otras versiones esos versos se tornan en maldición amenazante dirigida al joven:

“--Anda, reanda, villano,/ que me quedas descubierta,/ que mi padre era un pastor/ y mi madre era una yegua;/ que mi padre comía pan/ y mi madre pacía yerba.”

“--Por Dios te pido, serrano,/ que no descubras mi cueva./ --No la descubriré, no,/ hasta que no esté en mi tierra./ --Te echaré una maldición/ si acaso la descubrieras:/ Tu padre será el caballo,/ tu madre será la yegua,/ y tú serás el potrillo/ que relinche por la sierra.”

En muchos romances éste es el final de la historia. En algunas versiones la serrana se suicida. En unas pocas se narra el apresamiento de la Serrana.

 

El romance de la Chancalaera hurdana sigue el mismo modelo que el de la Serrana, y posee su misma dimensión mítica.

 

La Serrana como mito

Probablemente debió de existir con anterioridad a los romances una leyenda sobre la Serrana. En dicha leyenda presentaría diferencias con la descrita en la mayoría de los romances. Ya en el siglo XVIII D. Pedro Vicente de Thegeda habló de una antigua leyenda sobre una criatura monstruosa de doble naturaleza, humana y animal (como tantas criaturas existentes en muchas culturas, como sirenas, esfinges, sátiros, faunos), que vivía en una cueva en la Sierra de Tormantos, aunque aún no daba el nombre de “serrana” a la criatura. En algunas versiones del romance es descrita como una criatura mitad yegua y mitad mujer, lo mismo que en otras se menciona que ésta nació fruto de la unión entre un pastor y una yegua, lo que concordaría con aquella descripción de ser mixto. En la Sierra de la Vera pasaba el verano, trasladándose al Puerto de La Serrana, en Monfragüe, en invierno, donde vivía en otra cueva.

En algunas versiones de la tradición oral altoextremeña moderna, de hecho, la Serrana aparece como un ser encantado, sujeto a diversas transformaciones en animales debido a una maldición.

Una posible prueba de la supuesta dimensión mitológica primitiva de la Serrana sería su parentesco con la Chancalaera hurdana.

El mito se correspondería con el modelo femenino de divinidad de los montes, de los que la Serrana es numen guardián y protector. Por su espíritu agreste, su belleza y su afición a la caza podría asemejarse a una Diana o Artemisa. Por habitar en cavernas podría asimilarse a divinidades como Mari en la tradición vasca. Sin embargo sus criminales actuaciones le otorgan cierto perfil monstruoso, pese a su aspecto físico atractivo. Se la describe como una mujer recia, grande, o incluso gigantesca. También en ese aspecto está dotada de una fuerza sobrehumana. En Piornal identifican una enorme piedra como arrojada por la Serrana. Publio Hurtado cuenta cómo un hueco en forma de pie excavado en una roca cerca de Garganta la Olla es descrito como una enorme huella de la Serrana (existe de hecho otra leyenda sobre una huella de la Chancalaera en las Hurdes), contándose que al mismo tiempo que plantaba el pie allí plantaba el otro en un cerro que distaba de allí un kilómetro (lo que también la emparenta con la Chancalaera, a la que se le supone capaz de dar zancadas prodigiosamente largas). Estaría, por lo tanto, relacionada con criaturas mitológicas de diversas culturas a las que se le atribuye la formación de accidentes naturales.

Los pueblos donde más pervive la dimensión mitológica de la Serrana son Piornal y Garganta la Olla, donde se presentan sendas cuevas de la zona como vivienda de la Serrana.

Según algunas versiones la Serrana únicamente atacaba en los días de luna llena (como a veces ocurre en los casos de licantropía).

Hay además autores que opinan que esta leyenda se corresponde con un mito pastoril: el hecho de poseer dos cuevas según contaba D. Pedro Vicente de Thegeda, una en Tormantos y otra en los riberos del Tajo, que se ocupan en diferentes épocas del año, hacen pensar en la trashumancia tan practicada hasta hace poco en Extremadura. Esto explicaría el hecho de que en las inmediaciones del Puerto de La Serrana, muy cerca de Villarreal de San Carlos y del Monfragüe sean muy conocidos los romances y leyendas sobre este personaje. En esa zona sitúa otro historiador de la época, Antonio Ponz (1774) un total de 28 cruces, todas ellas pertenecientes, según la tradición de aquella época, a hombres muertos por la serrana, y que el historiador atribuye simplemente a la acción de los bandoleros, muy abundantes en otras épocas por la zona de Villareal. De hecho, Carlos III de España fundó Villareal con propósito de asentar población y acuartelar tropas que combatiesen a todos aquellos bandidos que se habían hecho amos y señores de aquellas tierras, siendo frecuentes los asaltos a todo el que se atreviese a pasar por ellas.

Incluso hay tradiciones que colocan a la Serrana directamente como una bandolera más, con su cueva ubicada en las cercanías del Salto del Gitano, lugar donde fue apresada, descubriéndose los grandes tesoros que guardaba en ella.

Todo esto, junto con el hecho de que la Sierra de Tormantos y el Monfragüe han estado unidos por vías pecuarias, recorridas durante mucho tiempo por ganado de la Mesta de uno a otro lado, hacen pensar que es un mito ligado a la cultura pastoril. Al igual que seguramente la trashumancia fue lo que extendió las versiones del romance de la Serrana por toda la geografía peninsular.

 

La Serrana literaria

La Serrana folclórica fue transformada en personaje literario por autores como Lope de Vega o Luis Vélez de Guevara, además de en la adaptación “a lo divino” de José de Valdivieso. Es conocida la habilidad de Lope de Vega para crear adaptaciones teatrales a partir de romances o leyendas.

En el proceso adaptativo el personaje ha sido transformado hasta resultar prácticamente irreconocible. El parecido es escaso, salvo en el nombre. Para otorgar credibilidad, atractivo y cierta profundidad psicológica al personaje, los autores tuvieron que reinventar la historia hasta crear una trama argumentativa verosímil, ubicarla en un marco espacial y temporal, darle el conveniente ambiente social, añadir intrigas amorosas… etc.

En “La Serrana de la Vera o de Plasencia”, de Lope de Vega, la acción se desarrolla en época del emperador Carlos I. Leonarda es el nombre de su protagonista. Pertenece a una noble familia de Plasencia. Debido a un desengaño amoroso, la hermosa doncella escapa a las sierras de la Vera, instalando su morada cerca del camino real a Talavera. Refugiada en lo abrupto de los montes, comete una serie de tropelías. No tardará en prenderla la justicia. La trama acaba con el perdón de la arrepentida mujer y con el consiguiente casamiento.

La Serrana de la Vera de Luis Vélez de Guevara, es posterior a la de Lope. Por consiguiente, es de suponer que el autor conocía tanto el romance como la obra de Lope de Vega, lo que le empujaría a tratar su obra de manera diferente, acercándose un poco más a la tradición y a una acción más acorde con la línea del romance. La protagonista en este caso se llama Gila, y es natural de Garganta la Olla. Esta mujer está provista de una serie de atributos por los que es conocida en toda la Vera. Ningún hombre osa competir con ella en deportes rurales: carreras de caballos, caza, lucha, salto, lanzamiento de barras, etc. Hasta presume de su “hombría” en algunos fragmentos de la obra, pese a que es de una extrema belleza femenina.

Su atractivo físico acaba llamando la atención de un capitán que se hospeda en casa de su padre Giraldo. Éste la seduce y más tarde la abandona. Tal desdén provoca que la aldeana planee una venganza contra él, una venganza que hace extensible a todos los hombres. Gila huye al monte y actúa en él como una bandolera. La obra tiene un final trágico, con la muerte de Gila tras cumplir su venganza. En la última parte de la obra se sigue bastante fielmente el romance.

 

Día de la Serrana de la Vera

Desde el año 2010, durante la primera semana de Agosto, en Garganta la Olla, se celebra el Día de la Serrana de la Vera, organizado por el grupo de trabajo que lleva el mismo nombre, y que transporta a la localidad a la Edad Media durante dos días. En ellos se llevan a cabo numerosos actos que exaltan la figura de La Serrana y su origen Garganteño. Hay que destacar la colaboración popular y el enorme crecimiento que esta festividad ha sufrido desde sus inicios, pasando de las recitaciones y pequeñas actuaciones que se llevaron a cabo en 2010, hasta la enorme cantidad de actos de 2012, que incluían una subida a la cueva, un mercadillo medieval, un museo rotatorio, y la representación de dos obras de teatro: " La taberna de la Emilia" basada en la recitación del romance, y una segunda dirigida por Jesús Fernández, que representa la vida, los actos y la condena de La Serrana. Toda esta fiesta ha tenido una gran repercusión mediática tanto a nivel local como comarcal, siendo el propósito del grupo de trabajo, el continuar estos actos hasta conseguir que sean declarados fiesta de interés cultural.

 

Versiones del romance

www.flickr.com/photos/26895569@N07/8139188914/

 

folkloreestremeno.wordpress.com/2013/03/16/la-serrana-de-...

 

Mmmm... salad. That's spinach, blue cheese, walnuts, and strawberries. The ingredients for DELICIOUSNESS.

 

Different from my usual shallow-depth-of-field, shallow-angle food photos.

 

I'm not sure what it is, but I'm not happy with this photo. There's something not quite there and I can't figure out what. It's good enough to post I guess.

The Lakshmana Temple is a Hindu temple built by Yashovarman located in Khajuraho, India. Dedicated to Vaikuntha Vishnu - an aspect of Vishnu.

 

LOCATION

This temple is located in the Western Temple complex in Khajuraho. Khajuraho is a small village in Chattarpur District of Madhya Pradesh, India

 

ARCHITECTURE

It is a Sandhara Temple of the Panchayatana Variety. The entire temple complex stands on a high platform (Jagati), as seen in image. The structure consists of all the elements of Hindu temple architecture. It has entrance porch (ardh-mandapa), Mandapa, Maha-Mandapa, Antarala and Garbhagriha.

 

Unlike other temples in Khajuraho, its sanctum is Pancharatha on plan (top-view). Its shikhara is clustered with minor urushringas (refer images of temple top i.e. shikhara).

 

The wall portion is studded with balconied windows with ornate balustrades.

 

It has two rows of sculptures (refer images of temple's outer wall) including divine figures, couples and erotic scenes.

 

The sanctum doorway is of seven sakhas (vertical panels). The central one being decorated with various incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The Lintel depicts goddess Lakshmi in the centre flanked by Brahma and Vishnu. The sanctum contains four-armed sculpture of Vishnu.

 

SCULPTURES

MAIN IDOL

Main image is of tri-headed & four-armed sculpture of Vaikuntha Vishnu.

 

The central head is of human, and two sides of boar (depicting Varaha) and lion (depicting Narshima).

_________________________________

 

The Khajuraho Group of Monuments is a group of Hindu and Jain temples in Madhya Pradesh, India, about 175 kilometres southeast of Jhansi. They are one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India. The temples are famous for their nagara-style architectural symbolism and their erotic sculptures.

 

Most Khajuraho temples were built between 950 and 1050 by the Chandela dynasty. Historical records note that the Khajuraho temple site had 85 temples by 12th century, spread over 20 square kilometers. Of these, only about 20 temples have survived, spread over 6 square kilometers. Of the various surviving temples, the Kandariya Mahadeva Temple is decorated with a profusion of sculptures with intricate details, symbolism and expressiveness of ancient Indian art.

 

The Khajuraho group of temples were built together but were dedicated to two religions - namely Hinduism and Jainism - suggesting a tradition of acceptance and respect for diverse religious views among Hindus and Jains.

 

LOCATION

Khajuraho group of monuments are located in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, in Chhatarpur district, about 620 kilometres southeast of New Delhi. The temples are in a small town also known as Khajuraho, with a population of about 20,000 people (2001 Census).

 

Khajuraho is served by Civil Aerodrome Khajuraho (IATA Code: HJR), with services to Delhi, Agra, Varanasi and Mumbai. The site is also linked by Indian Railways service, with the railway station located approximately six kilometres from the monuments entrance.

 

The monuments are about 10 kilometres off the east-west National Highway 75, and about 50 kilometres from the city of Chhatarpur, that is connected to Bhopal - the state capital - by the SW-NE running National Highway 86.

 

HISTORY

The Khajuraho group of monuments was built during the rule of the Rajput Chandela dynasty. The building activity started almost immediately after the rise of their power, throughout their kingdom to be later known as Bundelkhand. Most temples were built during the reigns of the Hindu kings Yashovarman and Dhanga. Yashovarman's legacy is best exhibited by Lakshmana temple. Vishvanatha temple best highlights King Dhanga's reign. The largest and currently most famous surviving temple is Kandariya Mahadeva built in the reign of King Ganda from 1017-1029 CE. The temple inscriptions suggest many of the currently surviving temples were complete between 970 to 1030 CE, with further temples completed during the following decades.

 

The Khajuraho temples were built about 35 miles from the medieval city of Mahoba, the capital of the Chandela dynasty, in the Kalinjar region. In ancient and medieval literature, their kingdom has been referred to as Jijhoti, Jejahoti, Chih-chi-to and Jejakabhukti.

 

Khajuraho was mentioned by Abu Rihan-al-Biruni, the Persian historian who accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni in his raid of Kalinjar in 1022 CE; he mentions Khajuraho as the capital of Jajahuti. The raid was unsuccessful, and a peace accord was reached when the Hindu king agreed to pay a ransom to Mahmud of Ghazni to end the attack and leave.

 

Khajuraho temples were in active use through the end of 12th century. This changed in the 13th century, after the army of Delhi Sultanate, under the command of the Muslim Sultan Qutb-ud-din Aibak, attacked and seized the Chandela kingdom. About a century later, Ibn Battuta, the Moroccan traveller in his memoirs about his stay in India from 1335 to 1342 CE, mentioned visiting Khajuraho temples, calling them “Kajarra” as follows:

 

...near (Khajuraho) temples, which contain idols that have been mutilated by the Moslems, live a number of yogis whose matted locks have grown as long as their bodies. And on account of extreme asceticism they are all yellow in colour. Many Moslems attend these men in order to take lessons (yoga) from them.

— Ibn Battuta, about 1335 CE, Riḥlat Ibn Baṭūṭah, Translated by Arthur Cotterell

 

Central Indian region, where Khajuraho temples are, remained in the control of many different Muslim dynasties from 13th century through the 18th century. In this period, some temples were desecrated, followed by a long period when they were left in neglect. In 1495 CE, for example, Sikandar Lodi’s campaign of temple destruction included Khajuraho. The remoteness and isolation of Khajuraho protected the Hindu and Jain temples from continued destruction by Muslims. Over the centuries, vegetation and forests overgrew, took over the temples.

 

In the 1830s, local Hindus guided a British surveyor, T.S. Burt, to the temples and they were thus rediscovered by the global audience. Alexander Cunningham later reported, few years after the rediscovery, that the temples were secretly in use by yogis and thousands of Hindus would arrive for pilgrimage during Shivaratri celebrated annually in February or March based on a lunar calendar. In 1852, Maisey prepared earliest drawings of the Khajuraho temples.

 

NOMENCLATURE

The name Khajuraho, or Kharjuravāhaka, is derived from ancient Sanskrit (kharjura, खर्जूर means date palm, and vāhaka, वाहक means "one who carries" or bearer). Local legends state that the temples had two golden date-palm trees as their gate (missing when they were rediscovered). Desai states that Kharjuravāhaka also means scorpion bearer, which is another symbolic name for deity Shiva (who wears snakes and scorpion garlands in his fierce form).

 

Cunningham’s nomenclature and systematic documentation work in 1850s and 1860s have been widely adopted and continue to be in use. He grouped the temples into the Western group around Lakshmana, Eastern group around Javeri, and Southern group around Duladeva.

 

Khajuraho is one of the four holy sites linked to deity Shiva (the other three are Kedarnath, Kashi and Gaya). Its origin and design is a subject of scholarly studies. Shobita Punja has proposed that the temple’s origin reflect the Hindu mythology in which Khajuraho is the place where Shiva got married; with Raghuvamsha verse 5.53, Matangeshvara honoring ‘’Matanga’’, or god of love.

 

DESCRIPTION

The temple site is within Vindhya mountain range in central India. An ancient local legend held that Hindu deity Shiva and other gods enjoyed visiting the dramatic hill formation in Kalinjar area. The center of this region is Khajuraho, set midst local hills and rivers. The temple complex reflects the ancient Hindu tradition of building temples where gods love to play.

 

The temples are clustered near water, another typical feature of Hindu temples. The current water bodies include Sib Sagar, Khajur Sagar (also called Ninora Tal) and Khudar Nadi (river). The local legends state that the temple complex had 64 water bodies, of which 56 have been physically identified by archeologists so far.

 

All temples, except one (Chaturbhuja) face sunrise - another symbolic feature that is predominant in Hindu temples. The relative layout of temples integrate masculine and feminine deities and symbols highlight the interdependence. The art work symbolically highlight the four goals of life considered necessary and proper in Hinduism - dharma, kama, artha and moksha.

 

Of the surviving temples, 6 are dedicated to Shiva and his consorts, 8 to Vishnu and his affinities, 1 to Ganesha, 1 to Sun god, 3 to Jain Tirthanks. For some ruins, there is insufficient evidence to assign the temple to specific deities with confidence.

 

An overall examination of site suggests that the Hindu symbolic mandala design principle of square and circles is present each temple plan and design. Further, the territory is laid out in three triangles that converge to form a pentagon. Scholars suggest that this reflects the Hindu symbolism for three realms or trilokinatha, and five cosmic substances or panchbhuteshvara. The temple site highlights Shiva, the one who destroys and recycles life, thereby controlling the cosmic dance of time, evolution and dissolution. The temples have a rich display of intricately carved statues. While they are famous for their erotic sculpture, sexual themes cover less than 10% of the temple sculpture. Further, most erotic scene panels are neither prominent nor emphasized at the expense of the rest, rather they are in proportional balance with the non-sexual images. The viewer has to look closely to find them, or be directed by a guide. The arts cover numerous aspects of human life and values considered important in Hindu pantheon. Further, the images are arranged in a configuration to express central ideas of Hinduism. All three ideas from Āgamas are richly expressed in Khajuraho temples - Avyakta, Vyaktavyakta and Vyakta.

 

The Beejamandal temple is under excavation. It has been identified with the Vaidyanath temple mentioned in the Grahpati Kokalla inscription.

 

Of all temples, the Matangeshvara temple remains an active site of worship. It is another square grid temple, with a large 2.5 metres high and 1.1 metres diameter lingam, placed on a 7.6 metres diameter platform.

 

The most visited temple, Kandariya Mahadev, has an area of about 6,500 square feet and a shikhara (spire) that rises 116 feet. Jain templesThe Jain temples are located on east-southeast region of Khajuraho monuments. Chausath jogini temple features 64 jogini, while Ghantai temple features bells sculptured on its pillars.

 

ARCHITECTURE OF THE TEMPLES

Khajuraho temples, like almost all Hindu temple designs, follow a grid geometrical design called vastu-purusha-mandala. This design plan has three important components - Mandala means circle, Purusha is universal essence at the core of Hindu tradition, while Vastu means the dwelling structure.

 

The design lays out a Hindu temple in a symmetrical, concentrically layered, self-repeating structure around the core of the temple called garbhagriya, where the abstract principle Purusha and the primary deity of the temple dwell. The shikhara, or spire, of the temple rises above the garbhagriya. This symmetry and structure in design is derived from central beliefs, myths, cardinality and mathematical principles.

 

The circle of mandala circumscribe the square. The square is considered divine for its perfection and as a symbolic product of knowledge and human thought, while circle is considered earthly, human and observed in everyday life (moon, sun, horizon, water drop, rainbow). Each supports the other. The square is divided into perfect 64 sub-squares called padas.

 

Most Khajuraho temples deploy the 8x8 padas grid Manduka Vastupurushamandala, with pitha mandala the square grid incorporated in the design of the spires. The primary deity or lingas are located in the grid’s Brahma padas.

The architecture is symbolic and reflects the central Hindu beliefs through its form, structure and arrangement of its parts. The mandapas as well as the arts are arranged in the Khajuraho temples in a symmetric repeating patterns, even though each image or sculpture is distinctive in its own way. The relative placement of the images are not random but together they express ideas, just like connected words form sentences and paragraphs to compose ideas. This fractal pattern that is common in Hindu temples. Various statues and panels have inscriptions. Many of the inscriptions on the temple walls are poems with double meanings, something that the complex structure of Sanskrit allows in creative compositions. All Khajuraho temples, except one, face sunrise, and the entrance for the devotee is this east side.Above the vastu-purusha-mandala of each temple is a superstructure with a dome called Shikhara (or Vimana, Spire). Variations in spire design come from variation in degrees turned for the squares. The temple Shikhara, in some literature, is linked to mount Kailash or Meru, the mythical abode of the gods.In each temple, the central space typically is surrounded by an ambulatory for the pilgrim to walk around and ritually circumambulate the Purusa and the main deity. The pillars, walls and ceilings around the space, as well as outside have highly ornate carvings or images of the four just and necessary pursuits of life - kama, artha, dharma and moksa. This clockwise walk around is called pradakshina. Larger Khajuraho temples also have pillared halls called mandapa. One near the entrance, on the east side, serves as the waiting room for pilgrims and devotees. The mandapas are also arranged by principles of symmetry, grids and mathematical precision. This use of same underlying architectural principle is common in Hindu temples found all over India. Each Khajuraho temple is distinctly carved yet also repeating the central common principles in almost all Hindu temples, one which Susan Lewandowski refers to as “an organism of repeating cells”.

 

CONSTRUCTION

The temples are grouped into three geographical divisions: western, eastern and southern.

 

The Khajuraho temples are made of sandstone, with a granite foundation that is almost concealed from view. The builders didn't use mortar: the stones were put together with mortise and tenon joints and they were held in place by gravity. This form of construction requires very precise joints. The columns and architraves were built with megaliths that weighed up to 20 tons. Some repair work in the 19th Century was done with brick and mortar; however these have aged faster than original materials and darkened with time, thereby seeming out of place.

 

The Khajuraho and Kalinjar region is home to superior quality of sandstone, which can be precision carved. The surviving sculpture reflect fine details such as strands of hair, manicured nails and intricate jewelry.

 

While recording the television show Lost Worlds (History Channel) at Khajuraho, Alex Evans recreated a stone sculpture under 4 feet that took about 60 days to carve in an attempt to develop a rough idea how much work must have been involved. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone. They concluded that these temples would have required hundreds of highly trained sculptors.

 

CHRONOLOGY

The Khajuraho group of temples belong to Vaishnavism school of Hinduism, Saivism school of Hinduism and Jainism - nearly a third each. Archaeological studies suggest all three types of temples were under construction at about the same time in late 10th century, and in use simultaneously. Will Durant states that this aspect of Khajuraho temples illustrates the tolerance and respect for different religious viewpoints in the Hindu and Jain traditions. In each group of Khajuraho temples, there were major temples surrounded by smaller temples - a grid style that is observed to varying degrees in Hindu temples in Angkor Wat, Parambaran and South India.

 

The largest surviving Saiva temple is Khandarya Mahadeva, while the largest surviving Vaishnava group includes Chaturbhuja and Ramachandra.

 

Kandariya Mahadeva Temple plan is 109 ft in length by 60 ft, and rises 116 ft above ground and 88 ft above its own floor. The central padas are surrounded by three rows of sculptured figures, with over 870 statues, most being half life size (2.5 to 3 feet). The spire is a self repeating fractal structure.

 

ARTS AND SCULPTURE

The Khajuraho temples feature a variety of art work, of which 10% is sexual or erotic art outside and inside the temples. Some of the temples that have two layers of walls have small erotic carvings on the outside of the inner wall. Some scholars suggest these to be tantric sexual practices. Other scholars state that the erotic arts are part of Hindu tradition of treating kama as an essential and proper part of human life, and its symbolic or explicit display is common in Hindu temples. James McConnachie, in his history of the Kamasutra, describes the sexual-themed Khajuraho sculptures as "the apogee of erotic art": "Twisting, broad-hipped and high breasted nymphs display their generously contoured and bejewelled bodies on exquisitely worked exterior wall panels. These fleshy apsaras run riot across the surface of the stone, putting on make-up, washing their hair, playing games, dancing, and endlessly knotting and unknotting their girdles....Beside the heavenly nymphs are serried ranks of griffins, guardian deities and, most notoriously, extravagantly interlocked maithunas, or lovemaking couples."

 

The temples have several thousand statues and art works, with Kandarya Mahadeva Temple alone decorated with over 870. Some 10% of these iconographic carvings contain sexual themes and various sexual poses. A common misconception is that, since the old structures with carvings in Khajuraho are temples, the carvings depict sex between deities; however the kama arts represent diverse sexual expressions of different human beings. The vast majority of arts depict various aspects the everyday life, mythical stories as well as symbolic display of various secular and spiritual values important in Hindu tradition. For example, depictions show women putting on makeup, musicians making music, potters, farmers, and other folks in their daily life during the medieval era. These scenes are in the outer padas as is typical in Hindu temples.

 

There is iconographic symbolism embedded in the arts displayed in Khajuraho temples. Core Hindu values are expressed in multitude of ways. Even the Kama scenes, when seen in combination of sculptures that precede and follow, depict the spiritual themes such as moksha. In the words of Stella Kramrisch,

 

This state which is “like a man and woman in close embrace” is a symbol of moksa, final release or reunion of two principles, the essence (Purusha) and the nature (Prakriti).

— Stella Kramrisch, 1976

 

The Khajuraho temples represent one expression of many forms of arts that flourished in Rajput kingdoms of India from 8th through 10th century CE. For example, contemporary with Khajuraho were the publications of poems and drama such as Prabodhacandrodaya, Karpuramanjari, Viddhasalabhanjika and Kavyamimansa. Some of the themes expressed in these literary works are carved as sculpture in Khajuraho temples. Some sculptures at the Khajuraho monuments dedicated to Vishnu include the Vyalas, which are hybrid imaginary animals with lions body, and are found in other Indian temples. Some of these hybrid mythical art work include Vrik Vyala (hybrid of wolf and lion) and Gaja Vyala (hybrid of elephant and lion). These Vyalas may represent syncretic, creative combination of powers innate in the two.

 

TOURISM AND CULTURAL EVENTS

The temples in Khajuraho are broadly divided into three parts: the Eastern group, the Southern Group and the Western group of temples of which the Western group alone has the facility of an Audio guided tour wherein the tourists are guided through the seven eight temples. There is also an audio guided tour developed by the Archaeological Survey of India which includes a narration of the temple history and architecture.

 

The Khajuraho Dance Festival is held every year in February. It features various classical Indian dances set against the backdrop of the Chitragupta or Vishwanath Temples.

 

The Khajuraho temple complex offers a light and sound show every evening. The first show is in English language and the second one in Hindi. It is held in the open lawns in the temple complex, and has received mixed reviews.

 

The Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development has set up kiosks at the Khajuraho railway station, with tourist officers to provide information for Khajuraho visitors.

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Der Tempelbezirk von Khajuraho umfasst eine Gruppe von etwa 20 Tempeln im Zentrum und in der näheren Umgebung der Stadt Khajuraho im indischen Bundesstaat Madhya Pradesh. Sie zählen zum UNESCO-Welterbe.

 

GESCHICHTE

Nahezu alle Tempel Khajurahos wurde von den Herrschern der Chandella-Dynastie zwischen 950 und 1120 erbaut. Die Chandellas waren ein zwischen dem 10. und 16. Jahrhundert regierender Rajputen-Klan, welcher sich um 950 in Gwalior festsetzte. Im 10. und 11. Jahrhundert waren die Chandellas die führende Macht in Nordindien, wenngleich sie formell noch bis 1018 Vasallen der Pratihara waren.

 

Nach dem Niedergang der Dynastie im 12. Jahrhundert wurden die Tempel kaum noch oder gar nicht mehr benutzt und blieben dem Wuchs des Dschungels überlassen. Der politisch, militärisch und wirtschaftlich bedeutungslos gewordene Ort lag abseits aller Wege und blieb somit auch in der Zeit des islamischen Vordringens in Nordindien von Zerstörungen verschont. Im 18. und 19. Jahrhundert zählte die einstmals bedeutsame Stadt nur noch etwa 300 Einwohner. Im 19. Jahrhundert wurden die Tempel von den Briten 'wiederentdeckt'. Zu Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts begannen systematische Sicherungs- und Restaurierungsarbeiten, die schließlich zur Wiederherstellung dieses einzigartigen Architektur-Ensembles führten.

 

TEMPEL

Ursprünglich gab es in Khajuraho etwa 80 Tempelbauten verstreut auf einer Gesamtfläche von ca. 21 Quadratkilometer, heutzutage sind davon nur noch etwa 20 erhalten, von denen die meisten in zwei Gruppen stehen. Die Mehrzahl der Tempel ist den hinduistischen Hauptgöttern geweiht, einige den Jaina-Tirthankaras. Buddhistische Bauten gab es wohl nicht, jedenfalls wurden keine buddhistischen Skulpturen entdeckt.

 

Alle Tempel stehen auf 1,50 bis 3 Meter hohen Plattformen (jagatis), die das Bauwerk vor Witterungseinflüssen (Monsunregen) und freilaufenden Tieren schützten. Hinzu kommt eine Sockelzone, die bei den späteren Tempeln (ab ca. 950) mehrfach gestuft ist und durchaus nochmals 3 Meter hoch sein kann. Plattform und Sockel tragen natürlich auch zu einer 'Erhöhung' des aufstehenden Bauwerks im übertragenen Sinn bei.

 

Die Mehrzahl der Tempeleingänge sind nach Osten, also in Richtung der aufgehenden Sonne ausgerichtet, d. h. die Cella (garbhagriha) liegt im Westen. Bei zwei Tempeln ist es umgekehrt: sie orientieren sich nach Westen, d. h. in Richtung der untergehenden Sonne (Lalguan-Mahadeva-Tempel und Chaturbuja-Tempel). Beide Ausrichtungen sind bei indischen Tempeln seit Jahrhunderten möglich und üblich. Die vorderen zwei Begleitschreine des Lakshmana-Tempels liegen einander gegenüber und sind nach Süden bzw. Norden ausgerichtet.

 

WESTGRUPPE (Hindu-Tempel)

- Matangeshvara-Tempel (ca. 950)

- Varaha-Tempel (ca. 950)

- Lakshmana-Tempel (ca. 950)

- Devi-Tempel

- Vishvanatha-Tempel (ca. 1000)

- Nandi-Schrein

- Parvati-Schrein

- Jagadambi-Tempel

- Chitragupta-Tempel

- Kandariya-Mahadeva-Tempel (1. Hälfte 11. Jh.)

 

OSTGRUPPE (Jain-Tempel)

- Parsvanatha-Tempel (ca. 960)

- Adinatha-Tempel (ca. 1050)

- Shantinatha-Tempel

- Ghantai-Tempel (ca. 990)

 

EINZELTEMPEL (Hindu-Tempel)

- Chausath-Yogini-Tempel (ca. 875)

- Lalguan-Mahadeva-Tempel (ca. 920)

- Brahma-Tempel (ca. 930)

- Khakra-Math-Tempel (ca. 980)

- Vamana-Tempel (ca. 1050)

- Javari-Tempel (ca. 1100)

- Chaturbuja-Tempel (ca. 1120)

- Duladeo-Tempel (ca. 1120)

 

ARCHITEKTUR

Die Tempel von Khajuraho bieten die Möglichkeit, auf engstem Raum die Entwicklung der indischen Baukunst in einer Zeitspanne von etwa 200 Jahren zu verfolgen − von kleinen (wenig gegliederten, einräumigen und geschlossenen) Tempeln hin zu großen (stark gegliederten, mehrräumigen und offenen) Bauten. Auch die Höhe der Bauten erfährt während dieser Zeit eine enorme Steigerung. Gemeinsam ist nahezu allen Bauten (Ausnahme: Chausath-Yogini-Tempel), dass sie über Dachaufbauten (Shikhara-Türme oder Pyramidendächer) verfügen, die von gerippten amalaka-Steinen und kalasha-Krügen bekrönt werden.

 

FRÜHZEIT

Abgesehen vom Chausath-Yogini-Tempel, dem ältesten und vollkommen anderen baulichen Traditionen verpflichteten Tempelbau in Khajuraho, bestehen die frühen Tempel nur aus einer − von einem gestuften Pyramidendach bedeckten − Cella (garbhagriha), der im Fall des Brahma-Tempels noch ein Portalvorbau (antarala), im Fall des Varaha-Tempels und des Matangesvara-Tempels jeweils ein kleiner offener Vorraum (mandapa) vorgesetzt ist. Die Außenwände sind nur geringfügig gegliedert und überwiegend steinsichtig.

 

BLÜHTZEIT

Die Blütezeit der Tempelarchitektur in Khajuraho beginnt mit dem Lakshmana-Tempel (ca. 930−950), der wahrscheinlich vom Maladevi-Tempel in Gyaraspur und von früheren Tempelbauten in Rajasthan beeinflusst ist, die ihrerseits wiederum allesamt auf die beim Bau des Kalika-Mata-Tempels in Chittorgarh (ca. 700) erstmals entwickelten baulichen Innovationen zurückgeführt werden können. Diese sind im Wesentlichen: mehrere hintereinander liegende, aber harmonisch miteinander verbundenen Bauteile (mandapas, antarala und garbhagriha); gleiche Grundfläche von großer Vorhalle (mahamandapa) und Sanktumsbereich; Cella als eigenständiger Baukörper im Innern; Pfeiler − und nicht mehr Wände − als tragende Stützelemente für die Dachaufbauten − dadurch wurde es möglich, die Räume nach außen hin durch balkonähnliche Vorbauten zu öffnen; mehrfache Abstufung und Gliederung der verbliebenen Wandteile außen wie innen − dadurch treten sie gar nicht mehr als 'Wand' in Erscheinung; Fortsetzung der Außenwandgliederung im Dachaufbau.

 

Beim Lakshmana-Tempel ist die Cella als eigener, innenliegender Baukörper gestaltet und von einem Umgang (pradakshinapatha) umgeben. Der gesamte Sanktumsbereich sowie seine vier Nebenschreine werden − erstmals in Khajuraho − von steil und hoch aufragenden Shikhara-Türmen überhöht; die weniger wichtigen Vorhallen werden auch weiterhin von den insgesamt flacheren, pyramidenförmigen Dächern bedeckt, so dass eine architektonische Steigerung der Tempel − einem Gebirge durchaus vergleichbar − hin zur Cella erreicht wird.

 

Die wichtigsten Nachfolgebauten des Lakshmana-Tempels sind der Vishvanatha-Tempel (ca. 1000) und der Kandariya-Mahadeva-Tempel (ca. 1050), bei denen wegen der vielfältigen architektonischen Gliederungen und des dichten Skulpturenprogramms eine Stein- bzw. Wandsichtigkeit nicht mehr wahrzunehmen ist.

 

SKULPTUREN

Auch im Hinblick auf die Entwicklung der indischen Skulptur bieten die Tempel von Khajuraho einen Überblick über ca. 200 Jahre indischer Kunstgeschichte − von den in Architekturelemente eingebundenen und eher unbewegt und statisch erscheinenden Reliefdarstellungen der Frühzeit bis hin zu den beinahe freiplastisch gearbeiteten und durch ihre Posenvielfalt nahezu lebendig wirkenden Figuren.

 

FRÜHZEITLICHE SKULPTUREN

Die nur wenig gegliederten Außenwände der frühen Tempel von Khajuraho zeigen kaum figürlichen oder ornamentalen Schmuck. Dieser ist, noch stark reliefgebunden, auf die Portale (Lalguan-Mahadeva-Tempel, Brahma-Tempel) sowie auf einige Fensternischen (Matangeshvara-Tempel) beschränkt. Erotische Skulpturen sind in den frühen Tempeln noch nicht zu finden.

 

SKULPTUREN DER BLÜHTEZEIT

Auch hier ist es der Lakshmana-Tempel, der für Khajuraho neue Zeichen setzt: Während die Außenwände der Vorhallen nur wenig figürliche Reliefs zeigen, sind die Wände des Sanktums überreich mit Skulpturen geschmückt. Darunter finden sich Götterfiguren (devas oder devis), „schöne Mädchen“ (surasundaris) und Liebespaare (mithunas); auch die ersten erotischen Skulpturen sind in den unteren (erdnahen) Feldern der Mittelregister sowie im Figurenfries der Plattform zu sehen. Die mittleren Felder zeigen dagegen zärtliche Liebespaare mit kleineren Begleitfiguren, die oberen Götterfiguren. Eine Hierarchie der Figurenanordnung ist also deutlich wahrnehmbar. Bei den unmittelbaren Nachfolgebauten (Vishvanatha-Tempel, Jagadambi-Tempel und Kandariya-Mahadeva-Tempel) nimmt die Anzahl der Figuren und somit auch der erotischen Darstellungen zu.

 

Bei den Jain-Tempeln und den späteren Hindu-Tempeln sind kaum noch erotisch-sexuelle Darstellungen zu finden; hier überwiegt die Anzahl der Götterfiguren manchmal sogar die der „schönen Mädchen“.

 

ARCHÄOLOGISCHES MUSEUM

Zu den Sehenswürdigkeiten im Bereich des Tempelbezirks von Khajuraho gehört auch das im Ortskern gelegene Archäologische Museum (auch Rani Durgavati-Museum genannt). Es beherbergt einige sehr schöne Skulpturen, die im Rahmen der Ausgrabungs- und Restaurierungsarbeiten gefunden und hierher verbracht wurden, weil sie keinem der erhaltenen Tempelbauten direkt zuzuordnen waren.

 

WIKIPEDIA

STS028-078-036 Omaha, Nebraska, and Council Bluffs, Iowa, U.S.A. August 1989

Visible in this northeast-looking, low-oblique photograph are Omaha on the west bank of the Missouri River and Council Bluffs on the east bank. Omaha, the largest city in Nebraska, sits in the heart of the United States farming region and is one of the largest livestock markets and meat processing centers in the world. Much of the city’s industry is devoted to food processing and the manufacture of farm machinery, fertilizers, computer components, telephone equipment, furniture, clothing, insecticides, soap, cans, chemicals, paint, oil refinery equipment, and airplane and automobile parts. It is the home of many insurance companies and a center for medical research and treatment. Council Bluffs, an important trade and industrial center, manufactures processed foods, cast iron pipes, farm equipment, electronic equipment, and fabricated metals. The confluence of the Missouri River and Platte River is discernible south of Omaha.

The front element of the lens (bottom left) has a huge aperture and has a sweet spot of focus. The two smaller components appear to be three-element "anastigmat" focussing sections.

According to the NYT, Given the four components of class: Occupation, Education, Income and Wealth, I am firmly lodged in the Upper-Middle.

 

As is typical... I don't feel upper-middle class.

On November 6, 2012, employees from MTA New York City Transit loaded subway cars onto flatbed trucks for transportation to the Rockaway Peninsula. The cars will be used to create shuttle trains that will operate on the A Line in the Rockaways until full service can be restored.

 

Photo: MTA New York City Transit / Leonard Wiggins.