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Kapaleeshwarar temple was built in 7th century CE by the Pallavas. The original Kapaleeshwarar Temple was built where Santhome Church is located currently in Chennai. This original temple was demolished by the Portuguese and the present temple was built in the 16th century by the Vijayanagar Kings.
There are pretty much the only things I have built up right now. I'm reluctant to break up the M200 until I know exactly what I want to build next. I really want to attempt another sniper rifle, preferably a Remington 700, but light bley isn't the ideal colour.
Also, the M4 has undergone yet more changes! The most noticeable are the long ejection port and a new stock. I want to reduce the height of the hand guard area slightly but I can't bring myself to take it apart again just yet.
On the right-hand side you can see a green plate with some tan pieces on it; this is a MOC that I started late last year of a local building. Having never built a building based on a real-life building, progress is slow but I am determined to complete it some time this year, no matter the cost!
Well that's about it! Just lately I've been busy with college work and whatnot so I haven't really been in the building mood, but I'm sure I'll be back soon!
Press L to view larger and on black!
Fourth photo of mine to get Explored! Currently at #98!!
Well another last minute photo, thats something thats just never gonna change. Well this one took awhile to come up with but I knew I wanted to do something very minimalist. I was actually hoping to use a pure white bowl (we didn't have any) but then I figured the photo would have no real depth to it, though I'm sure it might be a little interesting if done correctly.
The number one issue I came across when I was shooting this was the reflection of the camera and the tripod in the milk. I fiddled around for a bit trying to hide it but in the end I photoshopped them out. Mainly because I realized that my whole idea was to white everything out so it was one of those things that was just easier to do in post that in camera. Also thank god we had Cheerios here hahaha, cause none of the other cereal we had here would have worked as nicely as that.
Strobist Info
Nikon SB-800 directly above the subject (and camera), aimed at the ceiling at 1/1 power.
Follow me on...
ChatGPT pointed out that in the first English translation, Chapter 6, Sections 4 through 11 had been translated rather roughly. I therefore retranslated those sections and uploaded the revised version as the Fourth Edition.
最初に翻訳した英語版は、第６章第４節から第１１節が、かなり荒い翻訳になっているとチャットGPTに指摘されたので、再翻訳し、第4版として、アップロードし直しました。
I have announced the publication of my novel. While the English, Spanish, and French versions are already out, the German translation is currently in progress.
My novel, B♭, is now available
I’m an Apple fan, so Apple products appear in the story. :)
.
The Japanese and English editions have already been published.
It can be found in the following Drive folder:
Drive folder for novel publication:
drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EUyKO4locQKzfKfvmlh0-uamF...
B♭
Mitsushiro Nakagawa, with ChatGPT 5.5
North Korea’s cryptocurrency system is hacked, and hundreds of millions of dollars are stolen.
At the end of that hidden flow of money, a group of Palestinian men and women from Gaza secretly infiltrates the United States.
Their purpose is to “restore” their lost homeland, Gaza, on American soil.
A hard-line immigration policy led by the Republican Party.
A smoldering current of xenophobia within the country.
A society breaking further apart.
Using all of it, a plan to collapse America from within begins to move forward in silence.
Republican presidential candidate Justin Bradford is shot during a speech. Almost at the same time, in Los Angeles, former President Owen Reed is also gunned down.
Two gunshots split the nation in two.
Yet Justin miraculously survives.
What keeps him alive is one of the rarest blood types in the world: Bombay blood.
The person able to provide that blood is Anaya Patel, a community art facilitator working in Brooklyn.
The blood of one woman touches the fate of a nation.
That coincidence, as if it had never truly been coincidence, begins to draw her toward the center of an enormous event.
Terrorism, elections, immigration, blood, memory, and prayer.
Those who believe in destruction, and those who have seen the emptiness left beyond it.
A plan that began as revenge gradually blurs the boundary between salvation and nothingness.
The night of Manhattan.
The light of Brooklyn.
Memories left behind by the river.
The city continues to shine as if nothing has happened.
Yet beneath its feet, a low sound no one can hear is still ringing.
What does revenge take away?
Whom does prayer save?
And where do human beings go, carrying what they have lost?
Trailer
Soundtrack
B♭ — My Novel Playlist
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack/pl.u-47...
B♭ — My Novel Playlist for Japanese
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-for-jap...
© 2026 Mitsushiro Nakagawa. All rights reserved.
The copyright of this work belongs to Mitsushiro Nakagawa.
No part of this work may be reproduced, reprinted, or modified without the author’s permission.
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J’ai publié la version française de mon roman.
Mon roman, B♭ (Si bémol), est désormais disponible.
Les versions japonaise, anglaise et espagnole ont déjà été publiées.
Comme je suis un fan d’Apple, des produits Apple apparaissent dans l’histoire. :)
Il est disponible dans le dossier Drive ci-dessous.
Drive folder for novel publication:
drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EUyKO4locQKzfKfvmlh0-uamF...
B♭
Mitsushiro Nakagawa, avec ChatGPT 5.5
Le système de cryptomonnaie de la Corée du Nord est piraté, et plusieurs centaines de millions de dollars sont dérobés.
Au bout du flux de cet argent, un groupe d’hommes et de femmes palestiniens originaires de Gaza s’infiltre secrètement aux États-Unis.
Leur objectif est de « reconstituer », sur le sol américain, la patrie perdue qu’est Gaza.
Une politique migratoire dure menée par les Républicains.
Un sentiment xénophobe qui couve au sein du pays.
Une société qui se divise peu à peu.
En exploitant tout cela, un plan destiné à faire s’effondrer l’Amérique de l’intérieur avance en silence.
Le candidat républicain à la présidence, Justin Bradford, est abattu en plein discours ; presque au même moment, à Los Angeles, l’ancien président Owen Reed est lui aussi victime d’une fusillade.
Deux coups de feu qui fendent la nation en deux.
Mais Justin survit miraculeusement.
Ce qui lui sauve la vie est un groupe sanguin extrêmement rare dans le monde : le sang Bombay.
La seule personne capable de lui donner ce sang est Anaya Patel, facilitatrice d’art communautaire active à Brooklyn.
Le sang d’une femme touche soudain au destin d’une nation.
Ce hasard, comme s’il n’avait finalement jamais été un hasard, attire peu à peu Anaya elle-même au centre d’un événement immense.
Terrorisme, élections, immigration, sang, mémoire, prière.
Ceux qui croient en la destruction, et ceux qui finissent par voir le vide laissé au-delà de la destruction.
Un plan né comme une vengeance brouille peu à peu la frontière entre salut et néant.
La nuit de Manhattan.
La lumière de Brooklyn.
Les souvenirs laissés au bord du fleuve.
La ville continue de briller comme si rien ne s’était passé.
Mais sous ses pieds, un son grave, que personne n’entend, continue de résonner.
Que prend la vengeance ?
Qui la prière sauve-t-elle ?
Et vers où les êtres humains se dirigent-ils, en portant avec eux ce qu’ils ont perdu ?
Trailer
Soundtrack
B♭ — My Novel Playlist
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack/pl.u-47...
B♭ — My Novel Playlist for Japanese
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-for-jap...
© 2026 Mitsushiro Nakagawa. Tous droits réservés.
Les droits d’auteur de cette œuvre appartiennent à Mitsushiro Nakagawa. Toute reproduction, republication ou modification, totale ou partielle, du contenu de cette œuvre sans l’autorisation de l’auteur est interdite.
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He publicado la edición en español de mi novela.
Mi novela, B♭, ya está disponible.
Soy fan de Apple, así que en la historia aparecen productos de Apple. :)
Las ediciones en japonés y en inglés ya han sido publicadas.
Puede encontrarse en la siguiente carpeta de Drive:
Carpeta de Drive para la publicación de la novela:
drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EUyKO4locQKzfKfvmlh0-uamF...
B♭
Mitsushiro Nakagawa, with ChatGPT 5.5
El sistema de criptomonedas de Corea del Norte es hackeado, y cientos de millones de dólares son robados.
Al final de ese flujo oculto de dinero, un group de hombres y mujeres palestinos originarios de Gaza se infiltra secretamente en los Estados Unidos.
Su propósito es “restaurar” su patria perdida, Gaza, sobre suelo estadounidense.
Una política migratoria de línea dura impulsada por el Partido Republicano.
Una corriente latente de xenofobia dentro del país.
Una sociedad que se fractura cada vez más.
Aprovechándolo todo, un plan para derrumbar a Estados Unidos desde dentro empieza a avanzar en silencio.
El candidato presidencial republicano Justin Bradford recibe un disparo durante un discurso. Casi al mismo tiempo, en Los Ángeles, el expresidente Owen Reed también es baleado.
Dos disparos dividen a la nación en dos.
Sin embargo, Justin sobrevive milagrosamente.
Lo que mantiene su vida es uno de los tipos de sangre más raros del mundo: la sangre Bombay.
La única persona capaz de donar esa sangre es Anaya Patel, una facilitadora de arte comunitario que trabaja en Brooklyn.
La sangre de una sola mujer toca el destino de una nación.
Aquella coincidencia, como si nunca hubiera sido realmente una coincidencia, comienza a arrastrarla hacia el centro de un acontecimiento inmenso.
Terrorismo, elecciones, inmigración, sangre, memoria y plegaria.
Quienes creen en la destrucción, y quienes han visto el vacío que queda más allá de ella.
Un plan que comenzó como venganza va desdibujando, poco a poco, la frontera entre la salvación y la nada.
La noche de Manhattan.
La luz de Brooklyn.
Los recuerdos abandonados junto al río.
La ciudad sigue brillando como si nada hubiera ocurrido.
Pero bajo sus pies continúa resonando una nota grave que nadie puede oír.
¿Qué arrebata la venganza?
¿A quién salva la plegaria?
¿Y hacia dónde se dirigen los seres humanos, cargando con aquello que han perdido?
Tráiler
Banda sonora
B♭ — My Novel Playlist
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack/pl.u-47...
B♭ — My Novel Playlist for Japanese
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-for-jap...
© 2026 Mitsushiro Nakagawa. Todos los derechos reservados.
Los derechos de autor de esta obra pertenecen a Mitsushiro Nakagawa.
Ninguna parte de esta obra podrá ser reproducida, reimpresa ni modificada sin la autorización del autor.
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僕は僕の小説を発表しました。英語、スペイン語、フランス語は以下で発表済みです。
現在は、ドイツ語を翻訳中です。
僕の小説、【B♭（ビーフラット）】を公開しました。日本語と英語とスペイン語は公開済みです。
僕はアップルファンなので、アップル製品が登場します。:)
それは以下のドライブにあります。
Drive folder for novel publication: (小説専門の公開用ドライブ)
drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EUyKO4locQKzfKfvmlh0-uamF...
B♭
Mitsushiro Nakagawa, with ChatGPT 5.5
北朝鮮の仮想通貨システムがハッキングされ、数億ドルが奪取された。
その資金の流れの先で、ガザ出身のパレスチナ男女のグループが、密かにアメリカ合衆国へ潜入する。
彼らの目的は、失われた祖国ガザを、アメリカの地に「復元」することだった。
共和党による強硬な移民政策。
国内にくすぶる排外感情。
分断されていく社会。
そのすべてを利用し、アメリカを内側から崩壊させる計画が、静かに進行していく。
共和党大統領候補ジャスティン・ブラッドフォードが演説中に撃たれ、ほぼ同じ時刻、ロサンゼルスでは前大統領オーウェン・リードもまた銃撃される。
国家を二分する、ふたつの銃声。
だが、ジャスティンは奇跡的に生還する。
彼の命をつないだのは、世界でも極めて希少な血液型――ボンベイブラッド。
その血を提供できたのは、ブルックリンで活動するコミュニティアート・ファシリテーター、アナヤ・パテルだった。
ひとりの女性の血が、国家の運命に触れてしまう。
その偶然は、やがて偶然ではなかったかのように、彼女自身を巨大な事件の中心へ引き寄せていく。
テロ、選挙、移民、血、記憶、祈り。
破壊を信じる者と、破壊の果てに残る空虚を見てしまう者。
復讐として始まった計画は、いつしか救済と虚無の境界を曖昧にしていく。
マンハッタンの夜。
ブルックリンの光。
川辺に残された記憶。
都市は何事もなかったかのように輝き続けている。
だがその足元では、誰にも聞こえない低い音が鳴っている。
復讐は、何を奪うのか。
祈りは、誰を救うのか。
そして人は、失われたものを抱えたまま、どこへ向かうのか。
Trailer
Soundtrack
B♭ — My Novel Playlist
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack/pl.u-47...
B♭ — My Novel Playlist for Japanese
music.apple.com/jp/playlist/b-my-novel-soundtrack-for-jap...
© 2026 Mitsushiro Nakagawa. All rights reserved.
本作品の著作権は Mitsushiro Nakagawa に帰属します。内容の全部または一部を、著者の許可なく複製・転載・改変することを禁じます。
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#イギリス #uk #England #London #ロンドン #英語 ##novel #ネットフリックスへの挑戦 #ChallengetoNetflix #Netflix #ネットフリックス #B♭ #小説 #ビーフラット #千葉 #やちまた #八街 #八街市 #yachimata #yachimatacity #cityofyachimata #NewYork #ニューヨーク #マンハッタン #Manhattan #アメリカ #USA #Chiba #apple #アップル #MrLonely #BobbyVinton #oneokrock #thepilot #LUMIX #panasonic #ルミックス #G3 #パナソニック
#UnitedKingdom #UK #England #London #London #English #Novel #ChallengeToNetflix #ChallengeToNetflix #Netflix #Netflix #B♭ #Novel #BFlat #Chiba #Yachimata #Yachimata #YachimataCity #Yachimata #YachimataCity #CityOfYachimata #NewYork #NewYork #Manhattan #Manhattan #America #USA #Chiba #Apple #Apple #MrLonely #BobbyVinton #OneOkRock #ThePilot #LUMIX #Panasonic #Lumix #G3 #Panasonic
All belong to the same faction. The camo on the middle right is a Spetsnaz camo, with my own added twist. It will also go on the right guy. Not sure if I will put it on the legs. The left guys are more desert prepared, so I'm not sure if I should camo them. Knee pads by me.
Soon to be Modern Conflict Standards
-Sphinx
Canon EOSM50 and lenses- current kit
Canon EOSM50
Canon EF 75-300MM Zoom
Canon EF-M 55-200mm Zoom
Canon EF 50mm Prime
Canon 15-45mm IS STM
Canon 28mm IS STM Macro
Canon EF-EF-M adapter
The 55-200 has now been discontinued and the old 75-300 is heavy and poses challenges for someone who shakes like me but it still takes a good photo when you get it right
The current cathedral opened in 1853, though it's the fourth church on the site and accommodates Toronto's oldest congregation, established in 1797 in the then-town of York.
Designed by Frederick William Cumberland in the Gothic Revival style and built using local bricks detailed with Ohio sandstone (from Queenston, Ontario, not literally Ohio!), this is both the seat of the Anglican Church of Canada's Diocese of Toronto and the parish church of the historic St Lawrence neighbourhood.
Sixty metres long and 30 m wide, the cathedral has an atypical north-south orientation; the apsidal chancel (actually lath-and-plaster rather than stone), intricately painted and gilded by Gustaf Hahn, is at the liturgical east end but is geographically to the north.
After a brief hiatus, I have been doing some actual building. The RG-99b was one my first MOCs, looking back at photos made me want to revisit it. As for the direction Grey ship has taken, well I have been watching too much Yamato 2199.
The swollen Current River in Van Buren Missouri by Notley Hawkins Photography. Taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV camera with a Canon EF16-35mm f/4L IS USM lens at ƒ/18.0 with a 3.2 second exposure at ISO 200. Processed with Adobe Lightroom CC.
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©Notley Hawkins
Current owner since April 2008.
By far the star of the show for me, apparently this is one of just 3 taxed. A symphony in oh so 70s brown, this was a truly stunning car and was drawing a lot of attention, mainly from people wondering what on earth it was!
As the current of the river carried my kayak swiftly by you can just imagine my face witnessing this rare event! I bet he was out looking for nests to rob. Poor birds don't stand a chance. He was lifting up his nose as if to sniff my scent in the air much like a bear. I am becoming quite the stealthy river rat when I can sneak up on a Mink.
On Monday 20th July 2020, around 420 coaches descended on London and honked their horns from Earls Court, along the Chelsea Embankment, through Parliament Square and up to Tower Bridge. Their aim was to highlight to the Government the severe financial crisis the industry currently finds itself in with no prospect of any sort of recovery until at least next summer.
I witnessed the parade pass Chelsea Bridge with the lead vehicle passing at 11:00 and the final coach passing some 3 hours later!!
For this event I decided to focus on the coaches themselves.
i wanted to do a lot more with the previous cockfight piece i had done back in january but due to close calls with law enforcement i was unable to do everything i wanted to do. so i decided to re-work this theme on a legal wall i have.
this piece can either be viewed as a statement about the war, or a statement on the oil spill. its open to interpretation.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Family: Hominidae
Subfamily: Ponginae
Genus: Pongo
Lacépède, 1799
Type species
Pongo borneo
Lacépède, 1799 (= Simia pygmaeus Linnaeus, 1760)
Species
Pongo pygmaeus
Pongo abelii
The orangutans are the only exclusively Asian living genus of great ape. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage. They are generally not aggressive and live a mostly solitary life foraging for food. They are the largest living arboreal animals with longer arms than other great apes. Their hair is typically reddish-brown, instead of the brown or black hair typical of other great apes.
Native to Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are currently found only in rainforests on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, though fossils have been found in Java, the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Vietnam and China. There are only two surviving species, both of which are endangered: the Bornean Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) and the critically endangered Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii). The subfamily Ponginae also includes the extinct genera Gigantopithecus and Sivapithecus. The word "orangutan" comes from the Malay words "orang" (man) and "(h)utan" (forest); hence, "man of the forest".
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orangutan
(In Indonesian Orang-Utan means forest man.) This one is an old one.
A fairly colourful MOT history (over 20 fails in 2014) on this one; currently off the road as of late 2018. I imagine just passing through, as I've not seen it before and has been quite well traveled in recent years, 26k in the last 3 years.
..Plus a use for checkerplate that I've not seen before.
...in limbo with Canon...DH talking on phone to them now...busy with looking into rental for now. Fingers crossed that all will be well. Hopes up. Back soon...involved with all of this atm.
Taken not long before the big crash yesterday. The camera worked excellently, until it didn't. :)
***LATEST NEWS: Ten days from the time they get it...sooooo...overnight shipping here we come...and probably rental in the meantime...no more buying for my girls...DO hold me to that!
Excerpt from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choi_Hung_Estate:
Choi Hung Estate (彩虹邨; lit. 'rainbow estate') is a public housing estate in Ngau Chi Wan, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It was built by the former Hong Kong Housing Authority (屋宇建設委員會) and is now managed by the current Hong Kong Housing Authority. It received a Silver Medal at the 1965 Hong Kong Institute of Architects Annual Awards.
Choi Hung Estate is located in Ngau Chi Wan and is surrounded by several of eastern Kowloon Peninsula's major roads. To the north is Lung Cheung Road; to the south Prince Edward Road East; to the west Kwun Tong Bypass and to the east Clear Water Bay Road.
The Hong Kong government granted the land to the Hong Kong Housing Authority to build a large housing estate in 1958. The blocks of the estate were completed between 1962 and 1964. An opening ceremony was held in 1963 with the presence of then Hong Kong Governor, Sir Robert Brown Black. A signboard commemorating the ceremony is located in the estate's Lam Chung Avenue.
Accommodating nearly 43,000 people, it was the largest public housing estate at the time.
In November 2023 it was reported that Choi Hung Estate was earmarked for redevelopment meaning that 43,000 residents will require rehoming.
In October 2024, the redevelopment plan was revealed in the Wong Tai Sin District Council. It was proposed to demolish Tan Fung House, Pik Hoi House, Kam Pik House, Market and two former Sheng Kung Hui primary schools buildings in between 2028 and 2029 as the first phase, residents in the three blocks will be settled to the new blocks in Mei Tung Estate. Once the first phase is expected to complete in between 2035 and 2036, the blocks will settle the residents in Pak Suet House, Hung Ngok House, Kam Wan House and Kam Wah House when the next phase begins. The final phase is expected to begin in between 2042 and 2043, the residents in the last remaining blocks (Chi Mei House, Luk Ching House, Chui King House and Kam Hon House) will be settled to the new blocks in the second phase. The number of units will be increased to 9200 once the entire redevelopment plan is completed in between 2048 and 2049.
The estate has 11 residential blocks, one car park, and five schools, with various shops and restaurants on the ground floor of each block. Roads in the estate connect the blocks to each other and to major roads.
According to the 2016 by-census, Choi Hung Estate had a population of 18,435. The median age was 48 and the majority of residents (96 per cent) were of Chinese ethnicity. Cantonese was the predominant usual spoken language (93 per cent), followed by other varieties of Chinese excluding Mandarin (4.5 per cent), non-English and non-Chinese languages (2 per cent), Mandarin (0.5 per cent), and English (0.3 per cent).
The average household comprised 2.5 persons. The median monthly household income of all households (i.e. including both economically active and inactive households) was HK$15,290.
The estate is photogenic and has become a tourism hot-spot. The most photographed view of the estate includes the basketball court and rainbow apartments behind. Some journalists and researchers have been vocal against the growing Instagram popularity of the area, criticising that it is a shallow view of the complex social history of the council estate in Hong Kong, as well as driving away locals who want to use the space. Though some locals have also begun selling photos for profit to tourists. It has been suggested that the location is popular not only for the aesthetics, but also because it allows the photographers and selfie-takers to feel as if they are in the middle of the world - compared to the more detached equally-aesthetic Hong Kong skyline shots. In 2017, a photograph of the building was shortlisted for the Arcaid Award, an architecture photography prize.
Current keeper since 2001
I wasn't sure whether to capture this one - glad I did though, as it's a single owner car. It's also only on 33k; so despite being spotted locally it's no massive surprise that I've not noticed it before.
I'm almost tempted to leave a note if I see it again, I don't think it would be much use to me; but might be of interest to fellow enthusiasts as one to keep hold of..
The current building in Madeira Street (at the junction with Prince Regent Street), Leith, was designed by the architect William Burn and was completed in 1816. It has a notable neo-classical portico (with four large Ionic columns), above which is a clock tower surmounted by a slender spire. A pipe organ (by Wadsworth of Manchester) was added in 1880. The building was damaged by bombing during World War II (in 1941), but was repaired by 1950. It is a category A listed building.The church was designed to accommodate 1300 people.
William Burn was also responsible for several other notable buildings in Edinburgh, including the Edinburgh Academy and John Watson's College (now the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art).
The associated manse (presumably also by Burn) and known as "Leith Mount", stood on a substantial plot to the south-east of the church, on Ferry Road. The manse and its gardens and orchards were removed in 1920 to provide the site for Leith Theatre. The church connection dates to 1128, when King David I of Scotland granted lands for the construction of Holyrood Abbey. In 1493 Robert Bellenden, Abbot of Holyrood, built St Ninian's Chapel on the north-west bank of the Water of Leith, on lands owned by the Abbey. The small chapel was subsequently rebuilt after the Reformation. The replacement church opened in 1586, and later became the parish church of North Leith, which was created a quoad omnia parish, i.e. a civil and sacred parish, by a resolution of the Parliament of Scotland in 1606. A Dutch-style tower was added in 1675. The discovery of rot in this building in the 18th century led to extensive renovation and the construction of galleries within the building, but the church remained too small for the congregation, leading to its replacement by the current building in 1816 (then in fields just outside the built-up part of Leith). The Dutch-style tower of the old church still stands, although it was later incorporated into a mill. In the old churchyard of St.Ninians stands the altar tomb of Thomas Gladstones (1732 - 1809), a prosperous Leith merchant, and the grandfather of the famous Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone. Thomas Gladstones was a church elder for the 'Hill' district of Leith for over 40 years.
At the point of the Disruption of 1843 North Leith parish was "vacant" (having no fixed minister) which seemed an encouragement to many to leave. North Leith Free Church was built on the corner of Coburg Street and North Junction Street, east of the church. 600 members of the congregation left, together with all the elders. The first minister was Rev William MacKenzie. The church could hold 1000 people. In 1857 Rev Robert MacDonald replaced MacKenzie. He organised the building of a magnificent new free church on Ferry Road, south of the original church. This was completed in 1859 and could hold 1100 people. The 1844 site was redeveloped as tenements. The 1859 church was demolished in 1981. A datestone was salvaged and re-used in the current church halls. North Leith Free Church no longer exists in any form. Rev Robert MacDonald served as Moderator of the General Assembly for the Free Church in 1882.
North Leith Parish Church united with Bonnington Church in 1968, creating Leith North & Bonnington Church (using the Madeira Street building). In 1982, Leith North & Bonnington Church further united with Leith St Ninian's Ferry Road Church, creating the current congregation with the historic name North Leith Parish Church. Wikipedia
currently putting older work on ebay. These small pieces are ready to travel into all corners of the world: www.ebay.de/sch/inezzy/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg...
Pergamon /ˈpɜːrɡəmən/ or /ˈpɜːrɡəmɒn/ or Pergamum /ˈpɜːrɡəməm/ (Ancient Greek: τὸ Πέργαμον, to Pergamon, or ἡ Πέργαμος, hē Pergamos) was an ancient Greek city in Aeolis, currently located 26 kilometres (16 mi) from the Aegean Sea on a promontory on the north side of the river Caicus (modern-day Bakırçay). Today, the main sites of ancient Pergamon are to the north and west of the modern city of Bergama in Turkey.
Some[who?] ancient authors regarded it as a colony of the Arcadians, but the various origin stories all belong to legend. The Greek historians reconstructed a complete history for it due to confusion with the distant Teuthrania. It became the capital of the Kingdom of Pergamon during the Hellenistic period, under the Attalid dynasty, 281–133 BC. Pergamon is cited in the Book of Revelation as one of the seven churches of Asia.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pergamon
Unesco World Heritage List
This site rises high above the Bakirçay Plain in Turkey’s Aegean region. The acropolis of Pergamon was the capital of the Hellenistic Attalid dynasty, a major centre of learning in the ancient world. Monumental temples, theatres, stoa or porticoes, gymnasium, altar and library were set into the sloping terrain surrounded by an extensive city wall. The rock-cut Kybele Sanctuary lies to the north-west on another hill visually linked to the acropolis. Later the city became capital of the Roman province of Asia known for its Asclepieion healing centre. The acropolis crowns a landscape containing burial mounds and remains of the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires in and around the modern town of Bergama on the lower slopes.
Pergamon Museum BERLIN - Pergamon ALTAR
After getting Watchmen on my birthday (Monday), I once again fell in love with its complex characters, especially Rorschach and Dr. Manhattan.
I am currently working on remaking the team, starting with Rorschach. The lines I'm gonna paint black and will most likely paint the strap on the fedora purple. Though I can't decide what color the coat will be-- reddish brown or beige? If it's gonna be brown, then it's gonna be complicated to get my hands on it. The face underneath the mask is a plain, fleshy head. I'm not sure to make the facial details such as cheek bones a dark fleshy or black.
Any suggestions are welcomed!
crop of Current Wip.
by Diane M Kramer
aka She Wolf
cutting metal for backing.
work in progress.... been a while since i had chance to get into studio loft.... will hammer and glue later, and tone down the pinky areas....and texture the metal area once glued and nailed down. may tone it some too....
by Diane M Kramer
aka She Wolf
Currently preserved, Atlantean 658 carried this advert for those quality rags the Daily Record and Sunday Mail. Here it climbs Lothian Road passing the Usher Hall and the HMSO Stationers.
This image shows a new deposit in Gasa Crater, in the Southern mid-latitudes. The deposit is distinctively blue in enhanced-color images. This image was acquired in southern spring, but the flow that formed the deposit occurred in the preceding winter.
Current gully activity appears to be concentrated in winter and early spring, and may be caused by the seasonal carbon dioxide frost that is visible in gully alcoves in the winter.
Image is less than 1 km (less than 1 mi) across and is 253 km (157 mi) above the surface. For full images including scale bars, visit the source link.
www.uahirise.org/ESP_020661_1440
NASA/JPL/UArizona
using "Airdroid" remote, this is a picture of the front camera, triggered online via wifi. It is the current-outlet of my lamp in the living room.
Joking! It is the dwarf star next to our sun. Just some lightyears away.
Scotswood Bridge is one of the main bridges crossing the River Tyne in North East England. It links the west end of Newcastle upon Tyne on the north bank of the river with the MetroCentre and Blaydon in Gateshead on the south bank. It is situated 5.2 km (3.2 mi) upstream of the better-known city centre bridges.
The Chain Bridge
Scotswood Bridge over River Tyne Act 1829
The first bridge across the river at this location was the Old Scotswood Bridge, or "The Chain Bridge" as it was known locally. It was a suspension bridge with two stone towers, from which the road deck was suspended by chains. An act to authorise the building of the bridge was passed by Parliament in 1829 (10 Geo. 4. c. x) and designed by John Green, with construction beginning that year. It was opened on 16 April 1831.
The toll to cross the bridge was abolished on 18 March 1907. In 1931 the bridge needed to be strengthened and widened. The width was increased from 17 ft (5.2 m) to 19.5 ft (5.9 m) with two 6 ft (1.8 m) footpaths. The suspension cables and decking were also strengthened, allowing the weight limit to be raised to 10 tonnes (9.842 long tons; 11.02 short tons). The bridge eventually proved too narrow for the traffic it needed to carry and its increasing repair costs proved too much. After standing for 136 years, it was closed and demolished in 1967 after its replacement had been completed.
Current bridge
Scotswood Bridge Act 1962
A replacement for the Chain Bridge had been proposed as early as 1941. Permission was finally granted in 1960, and authorised by an act of Parliament, the Scotswood Bridge Act 1962. A new bridge was designed by Mott, Hay and Anderson and built by Mitchell Construction and Dorman Long. Construction commenced on 18 September 1964. It was built 43 m upstream of the Chain Bridge, which continued operating during the new bridge's construction. The bridge was opened on 20 March 1967. It is a box girder bridge, supported by two piers in the river and carries a dual carriageway road. Combined costs for demolition of the old bridge and construction of the new one were £2.5 million.
Scotswood Bridge carried the traffic of the Gateshead A69 western by-pass from 1970 up until the construction of Blaydon Bridge and the new A1 in 1990. Between June 1971 and January 1974 traffic on the bridge was limited to single file to enable strengthening work to take place, which was needed to address design concerns. It has required further strengthening and repairs a number of times since; between 1979 and 1980, in 1983 and in 1990.
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle is a cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is located on the River Tyne's northern bank, opposite Gateshead to the south. It is the most populous settlement in the Tyneside conurbation and North East England.
Newcastle developed around a Roman settlement called Pons Aelius, the settlement became known as Monkchester before taking on the name of a castle built in 1080 by William the Conqueror's eldest son, Robert Curthose. It was one of the world's largest ship building and repair centres during the industrial revolution. Newcastle was part of the county of Northumberland until 1400, when it separated and formed a county of itself. In 1974, Newcastle became part of Tyne and Wear. Since 2018, the city council has been part of the North of Tyne Combined Authority.
The history of Newcastle upon Tyne dates back almost 2,000 years, during which it has been controlled by the Romans, the Angles and the Norsemen amongst others. Newcastle upon Tyne was originally known by its Roman name Pons Aelius. The name "Newcastle" has been used since the Norman conquest of England. Due to its prime location on the River Tyne, the town developed greatly during the Middle Ages and it was to play a major role in the Industrial Revolution, being granted city status in 1882. Today, the city is a major retail, commercial and cultural centre.
Roman settlement
The history of Newcastle dates from AD 122, when the Romans built the first bridge to cross the River Tyne at that point. The bridge was called Pons Aelius or 'Bridge of Aelius', Aelius being the family name of Roman Emperor Hadrian, who was responsible for the Roman wall built across northern England along the Tyne–Solway gap. Hadrian's Wall ran through present-day Newcastle, with stretches of wall and turrets visible along the West Road, and at a temple in Benwell. Traces of a milecastle were found on Westgate Road, midway between Clayton Street and Grainger Street, and it is likely that the course of the wall corresponded to present-day Westgate Road. The course of the wall can be traced eastwards to the Segedunum Roman fort at Wallsend, with the fort of Arbeia down-river at the mouth of the Tyne, on the south bank in what is now South Shields. The Tyne was then a wider, shallower river at this point and it is thought that the bridge was probably about 700 feet (210 m) long, made of wood and supported on stone piers. It is probable that it was sited near the current Swing Bridge, due to the fact that Roman artefacts were found there during the building of the latter bridge. Hadrian himself probably visited the site in 122. A shrine was set up on the completed bridge in 123 by the 6th Legion, with two altars to Neptune and Oceanus respectively. The two altars were subsequently found in the river and are on display in the Great North Museum in Newcastle.
The Romans built a stone-walled fort in 150 to protect the river crossing which was at the foot of the Tyne Gorge, and this took the name of the bridge so that the whole settlement was known as Pons Aelius. The fort was situated on a rocky outcrop overlooking the new bridge, on the site of the present Castle Keep. Pons Aelius is last mentioned in 400, in a Roman document listing all of the Roman military outposts. It is likely that nestling in the shadow of the fort would have been a small vicus, or village. Unfortunately, no buildings have been detected; only a few pieces of flagging. It is clear that there was a Roman cemetery near Clavering Place, behind the Central station, as a number of Roman coffins and sarcophagi have been unearthed there.
Despite the presence of the bridge, the settlement of Pons Aelius was not particularly important among the northern Roman settlements. The most important stations were those on the highway of Dere Street running from Eboracum (York) through Corstopitum (Corbridge) and to the lands north of the Wall. Corstopitum, being a major arsenal and supply centre, was much larger and more populous than Pons Aelius.
Anglo-Saxon development
The Angles arrived in the North-East of England in about 500 and may have landed on the Tyne. There is no evidence of an Anglo-Saxon settlement on or near the site of Pons Aelius during the Anglo-Saxon age. The bridge probably survived and there may well have been a small village at the northern end, but no evidence survives. At that time the region was dominated by two kingdoms, Bernicia, north of the Tees and ruled from Bamburgh, and Deira, south of the Tees and ruled from York. Bernicia and Deira combined to form the kingdom of Northanhymbra (Northumbria) early in the 7th century. There were three local kings who held the title of Bretwalda – 'Lord of Britain', Edwin of Deira (627–632), Oswald of Bernicia (633–641) and Oswy of Northumbria (641–658). The 7th century became known as the 'Golden Age of Northumbria', when the area was a beacon of culture and learning in Europe. The greatness of this period was based on its generally Christian culture and resulted in the Lindisfarne Gospels amongst other treasures. The Tyne valley was dotted with monasteries, with those at Monkwearmouth, Hexham and Jarrow being the most famous. Bede, who was based at Jarrow, wrote of a royal estate, known as Ad Murum, 'at the Wall', 12 miles (19 km) from the sea. It is thought that this estate may have been in what is now Newcastle. At some unknown time, the site of Newcastle came to be known as Monkchester. The reason for this title is unknown, as we are unaware of any specific monasteries at the site, and Bede made no reference to it. In 875 Halfdan Ragnarsson, the Danish Viking conqueror of York, led an army that attacked and pillaged various monasteries in the area, and it is thought that Monkchester was also pillaged at this time. Little more was heard of it until the coming of the Normans.
Norman period
After the arrival of William the Conqueror in England in 1066, the whole of England was quickly subjected to Norman rule. However, in Northumbria there was great resistance to the Normans, and in 1069 the newly appointed Norman Earl of Northumbria, Robert de Comines and 700 of his men were killed by the local population at Durham. The Northumbrians then marched on York, but William was able to suppress the uprising. That same year, a second uprising occurred when a Danish fleet landed in the Humber. The Northumbrians again attacked York and destroyed the garrison there. William was again able to suppress the uprising, but this time he took revenge. He laid waste to the whole of the Midlands and the land from York to the Tees. In 1080, William Walcher, the Norman bishop of Durham and his followers were brutally murdered at Gateshead. This time Odo, bishop of Bayeux, William's half brother, devastated the land between the Tees and the Tweed. This was known as the 'Harrying of the North'. This devastation is reflected in the Domesday Book. The destruction had such an effect that the North remained poor and backward at least until Tudor times and perhaps until the Industrial Revolution. Newcastle suffered in this respect with the rest of the North.
In 1080 William sent his eldest son, Robert Curthose, north to defend the kingdom against the Scots. After his campaign, he moved to Monkchester and began the building of a 'New Castle'. This was of the "motte-and-bailey" type of construction, a wooden tower on top of an earthen mound (motte), surrounded by a moat and wooden stockade (bailey). It was this castle that gave Newcastle its name. In 1095 the Earl of Northumbria, Robert de Mowbray, rose up against the king, William Rufus, and Rufus sent an army north to recapture the castle. From then on the castle became crown property and was an important base from which the king could control the northern barons. The Northumbrian earldom was abolished and a Sheriff of Northumberland was appointed to administer the region. In 1091 the parish church of St Nicholas was consecrated on the site of the present Anglican cathedral, close by the bailey of the new castle. The church is believed to have been a wooden building on stone footings.
Not a trace of the tower or mound of the motte and bailey castle remains now. Henry II replaced it with a rectangular stone keep, which was built between 1172 and 1177 at a cost of £1,444. A stone bailey, in the form of a triangle, replaced the previous wooden one. The great outer gateway to the castle, called 'the Black Gate', was built later, between 1247 and 1250, in the reign of Henry III. There were at that time no town walls and when attacked by the Scots, the townspeople had to crowd into the bailey for safety. It is probable that the new castle acted as a magnet for local merchants because of the safety it provided. This in turn would help to expand trade in the town. At this time wool, skins and lead were being exported, whilst alum, pepper and ginger were being imported from France and Flanders.
Middle Ages
Throughout the Middle Ages, Newcastle was England's northern fortress, the centre for assembled armies. The Border war against Scotland lasted intermittently for several centuries – possibly the longest border war ever waged. During the civil war between Stephen and Matilda, David 1st of Scotland and his son were granted Cumbria and Northumberland respectively, so that for a period from 1139 to 1157, Newcastle was effectively in Scottish hands. It is believed that during this period, King David may have built the church of St Andrew and the Benedictine nunnery in Newcastle. However, King Stephen's successor, Henry II was strong enough to take back the Earldom of Northumbria from Malcolm IV.
The Scots king William the Lion was imprisoned in Newcastle, in 1174, after being captured at the Battle of Alnwick. Edward I brought the Stone of Scone and William Wallace south through the town and Newcastle was successfully defended against the Scots three times during the 14th century.
Around 1200, stone-faced, clay-filled jetties were starting to project into the river, an indication that trade was increasing in Newcastle. As the Roman roads continued to deteriorate, sea travel was gaining in importance. By 1275 Newcastle was the sixth largest wool exporting port in England. The principal exports at this time were wool, timber, coal, millstones, dairy produce, fish, salt and hides. Much of the developing trade was with the Baltic countries and Germany. Most of the Newcastle merchants were situated near the river, below the Castle. The earliest known charter was dated 1175 in the reign of Henry II, giving the townspeople some control over their town. In 1216 King John granted Newcastle a mayor[8] and also allowed the formation of guilds (known as Mysteries). These were cartels formed within different trades, which restricted trade to guild members. There were initially twelve guilds. Coal was being exported from Newcastle by 1250, and by 1350 the burgesses received a royal licence to export coal. This licence to export coal was jealously guarded by the Newcastle burgesses, and they tried to prevent any one else on the Tyne from exporting coal except through Newcastle. The burgesses similarly tried to prevent fish from being sold anywhere else on the Tyne except Newcastle. This led to conflicts with Gateshead and South Shields.
In 1265, the town was granted permission to impose a 'Wall Tax' or Murage, to pay for the construction of a fortified wall to enclose the town and protect it from Scottish invaders. The town walls were not completed until early in the 14th century. They were two miles (3 km) long, 9 feet (2.7 m) thick and 25 feet (7.6 m) high. They had six main gates, as well as some smaller gates, and had 17 towers. The land within the walls was divided almost equally by the Lort Burn, which flowed southwards and joined the Tyne to the east of the Castle. The town began to expand north of the Castle and west of the Lort Burn with various markets being set up within the walls.
In 1400 Henry IV granted a new charter, creating a County corporate which separated the town, but not the Castle, from the county of Northumberland and recognised it as a "county of itself" with a right to have a sheriff of its own. The burgesses were now allowed to choose six aldermen who, with the mayor would be justices of the peace. The mayor and sheriff were allowed to hold borough courts in the Guildhall.
Religious houses
During the Middle Ages a number of religious houses were established within the walls: the first of these was the Benedictine nunnery of St Bartholomew founded in 1086 near the present-day Nun Street. Both David I of Scotland and Henry I of England were benefactors of the religious house. Nothing of the nunnery remains now.
The friary of Blackfriars, Newcastle (Dominican) was established in 1239. These were also known as the Preaching Friars or Shod Friars, because they wore sandals, as opposed to other orders. The friary was situated in the present-day Friars Street. In 1280 the order was granted royal permission to make a postern in the town walls to communicate with their gardens outside the walls. On 19 June 1334, Edward Balliol, claimant to be King of Scotland, did homage to King Edward III, on behalf of the kingdom of Scotland, in the church of the friary. Much of the original buildings of the friary still exist, mainly because, after the Dissolution of the Monasteries the friary of Blackfriars was rented out by the corporation to nine of the local trade guilds.
The friary of Whitefriars (Carmelite) was established in 1262. The order was originally housed on the Wall Knoll in Pandon, but in 1307 it took over the buildings of another order, which went out of existence, the Friars of the Sac. The land, which had originally been given by Robert the Bruce, was situated in the present-day Hanover Square, behind the Central station. Nothing of the friary remains now.
The friary of Austinfriars (Augustinian) was established in 1290. The friary was on the site where the Holy Jesus Hospital was built in 1682. The friary was traditionally the lodging place of English kings whenever they visited or passed through Newcastle. In 1503 Princess Margaret, eldest daughter of Henry VII of England, stayed two days at the friary on her way to join her new husband James IV of Scotland.
The friary of Greyfriars (Franciscans) was established in 1274. The friary was in the present-day area between Pilgrim Street, Grey Street, Market Street and High Chare. Nothing of the original buildings remains.
The friary of the Order of the Holy Trinity, also known as the Trinitarians, was established in 1360. The order devoted a third of its income to buying back captives of the Saracens, during the Crusades. Their house was on the Wall Knoll, in Pandon, to the east of the city, but within the walls. Wall Knoll had previously been occupied by the White Friars until they moved to new premises in 1307.
All of the above religious houses were closed in about 1540, when Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries.
An important street running through Newcastle at the time was Pilgrim Street, running northwards inside the walls and leading to the Pilgrim Gate on the north wall. The street still exists today as arguably Newcastle's main shopping street.
Tudor period
The Scottish border wars continued for much of the 16th century, so that during that time, Newcastle was often threatened with invasion by the Scots, but also remained important as a border stronghold against them.
During the Reformation begun by Henry VIII in 1536, the five Newcastle friaries and the single nunnery were dissolved and the land was sold to the Corporation and to rich merchants. At this time there were fewer than 60 inmates of the religious houses in Newcastle. The convent of Blackfriars was leased to nine craft guilds to be used as their headquarters. This probably explains why it is the only one of the religious houses whose building survives to the present day. The priories at Tynemouth and Durham were also dissolved, thus ending the long-running rivalry between Newcastle and the church for control of trade on the Tyne. A little later, the property of the nunnery of St Bartholomew and of Grey Friars were bought by Robert Anderson, who had the buildings demolished to build his grand Newe House (also known as Anderson Place).
With the gradual decline of the Scottish border wars the town walls were allowed to decline as well as the castle. By 1547, about 10,000 people were living in Newcastle. At the beginning of the 16th century exports of wool from Newcastle were more than twice the value of exports of coal, but during the century coal exports continued to increase.
Under Edward VI, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, sponsored an act allowing Newcastle to annexe Gateshead as its suburb. The main reason for this was to allow the Newcastle Hostmen, who controlled the export of Tyne coal, to get their hands on the Gateshead coal mines, previously controlled by the Bishop of Durham. However, when Mary I came to power, Dudley met his downfall and the decision was reversed. The Reformation allowed private access to coal mines previously owned by Tynemouth and Durham priories and as a result coal exports increase dramatically, from 15,000 tons in 1500 to 35,000 tons in 1565, and to 400,000 tons in 1625.
The plague visited Newcastle four times during the 16th century, in 1579 when 2,000 people died, in 1589 when 1700 died, in 1595 and finally in 1597.
In 1600 Elizabeth I granted Newcastle a charter for an exclusive body of electors, the right to elect the mayor and burgesses. The charter also gave the Hostmen exclusive rights to load coal at any point on the Tyne. The Hostmen developed as an exclusive group within the Merchant Adventurers who had been incorporated by a charter in 1547.
Stuart period
In 1636 there was a serious outbreak of bubonic plague in Newcastle. There had been several previous outbreaks of the disease over the years, but this was the most serious. It is thought to have arrived from the Netherlands via ships that were trading between the Tyne and that country. It first appeared in the lower part of the town near the docks but gradually spread to all parts of the town. As the disease gained hold the authorities took measures to control it by boarding up any properties that contained infected persons, meaning that whole families were locked up together with the infected family members. Other infected persons were put in huts outside the town walls and left to die. Plague pits were dug next to the town's four churches and outside the town walls to receive the bodies in mass burials. Over the course of the outbreak 5,631 deaths were recorded out of an estimated population of 12,000, a death rate of 47%.
In 1637 Charles I tried to raise money by doubling the 'voluntary' tax on coal in return for allowing the Newcastle Hostmen to regulate production and fix prices. This caused outrage amongst the London importers and the East Anglian shippers. Both groups decided to boycott Tyne coal and as a result forced Charles to reverse his decision in 1638.
In 1640 during the Second Bishops' War, the Scots successfully invaded Newcastle. The occupying army demanded £850 per day from the Corporation to billet the Scottish troops. Trade from the Tyne ground to a halt during the occupation. The Scots left in 1641 after receiving a Parliamentary pardon and a £4,000,000 loan from the town.
In 1642 the English Civil War began. King Charles realised the value of the Tyne coal trade and therefore garrisoned Newcastle. A Royalist was appointed as governor. At that time, Newcastle and King's Lynn were the only important seaports to support the crown. In 1644 Parliament blockaded the Tyne to prevent the king from receiving revenue from the Tyne coal trade. Coal exports fell from 450,000 to 3,000 tons and London suffered a hard winter without fuel. Parliament encouraged the coal trade from the Wear to try to replace that lost from Newcastle but that was not enough to make up for the lost Tyneside tonnage.
In 1644 the Scots crossed the border. Newcastle strengthened its defences in preparation. The Scottish army, with 40,000 troops, besieged Newcastle for three months until the garrison of 1,500 surrendered. During the siege, the Scots bombarded the walls with their artillery, situated in Gateshead and Castle Leazes. The Scottish commander threatened to destroy the steeple of St Nicholas's Church by gunfire if the mayor, Sir John Marley, did not surrender the town. The mayor responded by placing Scottish prisoners that they had captured in the steeple, so saving it from destruction. The town walls were finally breached by a combination of artillery and sapping. In gratitude for this defence, Charles gave Newcastle the motto 'Fortiter Defendit Triumphans' to be added to its coat of arms. The Scottish army occupied Northumberland and Durham for two years. The coal taxes had to pay for the Scottish occupation. In 1645 Charles surrendered to the Scots and was imprisoned in Newcastle for nine months. After the Civil War the coal trade on the Tyne soon picked up and exceeded its pre-war levels.
A new Guildhall was completed on the Sandhill next to the river in 1655, replacing an earlier facility damaged by fire in 1639, and became the meeting place of Newcastle Town Council. In 1681 the Hospital of the Holy Jesus was built partly on the site of the Austin Friars. The Guildhall and Holy Jesus Hospital still exist.
Charles II tried to impose a charter on Newcastle to give the king the right to appoint the mayor, sheriff, recorder and town clerk. Charles died before the charter came into effect. In 1685, James II tried to replace Corporation members with named Catholics. However, James' mandate was suspended in 1689 after the Glorious Revolution welcoming William of Orange. In 1689, after the fall of James II, the people of Newcastle tore down his bronze equestrian statue in Sandhill and tossed it into the Tyne. The bronze was later used to make bells for All Saints Church.
In 1689 the Lort Burn was covered over. At this time it was an open sewer. The channel followed by the Lort Burn became the present day Dean Street. At that time, the centre of Newcastle was still the Sandhill area, with many merchants living along the Close or on the Side. The path of the main road through Newcastle ran from the single Tyne bridge, through Sandhill to the Side, a narrow street which climbed steeply on the north-east side of the castle hill until it reached the higher ground alongside St Nicholas' Church. As Newcastle developed, the Side became lined with buildings with projecting upper stories, so that the main street through Newcastle was a narrow, congested, steep thoroughfare.
In 1701 the Keelmen's Hospital was built in the Sandgate area of the city, using funds provided by the keelmen. The building still stands today.
Eighteenth century
In the 18th century, Newcastle was the country's largest print centre after London, Oxford and Cambridge, and the Literary and Philosophical Society of 1793, with its erudite debates and large stock of books in several languages predated the London Library by half a century.
In 1715, during the Jacobite rising in favour of the Old Pretender, an army of Jacobite supporters marched on Newcastle. Many of the Northumbrian gentry joined the rebels. The citizens prepared for its arrival by arresting Jacobite supporters and accepting 700 extra recruits into the local militia. The gates of the city were closed against the rebels. This proved enough to delay an attack until reinforcements arrived forcing the rebel army to move across to the west coast. The rebels finally surrendered at Preston.
In 1745, during a second Jacobite rising in favour of the Young Pretender, a Scottish army crossed the border led by Bonnie Prince Charlie. Once again Newcastle prepared by arresting Jacobite supporters and inducting 800 volunteers into the local militia. The town walls were strengthened, most of the gates were blocked up and some 200 cannon were deployed. 20,000 regulars were billeted on the Town Moor. These preparations were enough to force the rebel army to travel south via the west coast. They were eventually defeated at Culloden in 1746.
Newcastle's actions during the 1715 rising in resisting the rebels and declaring for George I, in contrast to the rest of the region, is the most likely source of the nickname 'Geordie', applied to people from Tyneside, or more accurately Newcastle. Another theory, however, is that the name 'Geordie' came from the inventor of the Geordie lamp, George Stephenson. It was a type of safety lamp used in mining, but was not invented until 1815. Apparently the term 'German Geordie' was in common use during the 18th century.
The city's first hospital, Newcastle Infirmary opened in 1753; it was funded by public subscription. A lying-in hospital was established in Newcastle in 1760. The city's first public hospital for mentally ill patients, Wardens Close Lunatic Hospital was opened in October 1767.
In 1771 a flood swept away much of the bridge at Newcastle. The bridge had been built in 1250 and repaired after a flood in 1339. The bridge supported various houses and three towers and an old chapel. A blue stone was placed in the middle of the bridge to mark the boundary between Newcastle and the Palatinate of Durham. A temporary wooden bridge had to be built, and this remained in use until 1781, when a new stone bridge was completed. The new bridge consisted of nine arches. In 1801, because of the pressure of traffic, the bridge had to be widened.
A permanent military presence was established in the city with the completion of Fenham Barracks in 1806. The facilities at the Castle for holding assizes, which had been condemned for their inconvenience and unhealthiness, were replaced when the Moot Hall opened in August 1812.
Victorian period
Present-day Newcastle owes much of its architecture to the work of the builder Richard Grainger, aided by architects John Dobson, Thomas Oliver, John and Benjamin Green and others. In 1834 Grainger won a competition to produce a new plan for central Newcastle. He put this plan into effect using the above architects as well as architects employed in his own office. Grainger and Oliver had already built Leazes Terrace, Leazes Crescent and Leazes Place between 1829 and 1834. Grainger and Dobson had also built the Royal Arcade at the foot of Pilgrim Street between 1830 and 1832. The most ambitious project covered 12 acres 12 acres (49,000 m2) in central Newcastle, on the site of Newe House (also called Anderson Place). Grainger built three new thoroughfares, Grey Street, Grainger Street and Clayton Street with many connecting streets, as well as the Central Exchange and the Grainger Market. John Wardle and George Walker, working in Grainger's office, designed Clayton Street, Grainger Street and most of Grey Street. Dobson designed the Grainger Market and much of the east side of Grey Street. John and Benjamin Green designed the Theatre Royal at the top of Grey Street, where Grainger placed the column of Grey's Monument as a focus for the whole scheme. Grey Street is considered to be one of the finest streets in the country, with its elegant curve. Unfortunately most of old Eldon Square was demolished in the 1960s in the name of progress. The Royal Arcade met a similar fate.
In 1849 a new bridge was built across the river at Newcastle. This was the High Level Bridge, designed by Robert Stephenson, and slightly up river from the existing bridge. The bridge was designed to carry road and rail traffic across the Tyne Gorge on two decks with rail traffic on the upper deck and road traffic on the lower. The new bridge meant that traffic could pass through Newcastle without having to negotiate the steep, narrow Side, as had been necessary for centuries. The bridge was opened by Queen Victoria, who one year later opened the new Central Station, designed by John Dobson. Trains were now able to cross the river, directly into the centre of Newcastle and carry on up to Scotland. The Army Riding School was also completed in 1849.
In 1854 a large fire started on the Gateshead quayside and an explosion caused it to spread across the river to the Newcastle quayside. A huge conflagration amongst the narrow alleys, or 'chares', destroyed the homes of 800 families as well as many business premises. The narrow alleys that had been destroyed were replaced by streets containing blocks of modern offices.
In 1863 the Town Hall in St Nicholas Square replaced the Guildhall as the meeting place of Newcastle Town Council.
In 1876 the low level bridge was replaced by a new bridge known as the Swing Bridge, so called because the bridge was able to swing horizontally on a central axis and allow ships to pass on either side. This meant that for the first time sizeable ships could pass up-river beyond Newcastle. The bridge was built and paid for by William Armstrong, a local arms manufacturer, who needed to have warships access his Elswick arms factory to fit armaments to them. The Swing Bridge's rotating mechanism is adapted from the cannon mounts developed in Armstrong's arms works. In 1882 the Elswick works began to build ships as well as to arm them. The Barrack Road drill hall was completed in 1890.
Industrialisation
In the 19th century, shipbuilding and heavy engineering were central to the city's prosperity; and the city was a powerhouse of the Industrial Revolution. Newcastle's development as a major city owed most to its central role in the production and export of coal. The phrase "taking coals to Newcastle" was first recorded in 1538; it proverbially denotes bringing a particular commodity to a place that has more than enough of it already.
Innovation in Newcastle and surrounding areas included the following:
George Stephenson developed a miner's safety lamp at the same time that Humphry Davy developed a rival design. The lamp made possible the opening up of ever deeper mines to provide the coal that powered the industrial revolution.
George and his son Robert Stephenson were hugely influential figures in the development of the early railways. George developed Blücher, a locomotive working at Killingworth colliery in 1814, whilst Robert was instrumental in the design of Rocket, a revolutionary design that was the forerunner of modern locomotives. Both men were involved in planning and building railway lines, all over this country and abroad.
Joseph Swan demonstrated a working electric light bulb about a year before Thomas Edison did the same in the USA. This led to a dispute as to who had actually invented the light bulb. Eventually the two rivals agreed to form a mutual company between them, the Edison and Swan Electric Light Company, known as Ediswan.
Charles Algernon Parsons invented the steam turbine, for marine use and for power generation. He used Turbinia, a small, turbine-powered ship, to demonstrate the speed that a steam turbine could generate. Turbinia literally ran rings around the British Fleet at a review at Spithead in 1897.
William Armstrong invented a hydraulic crane that was installed in dockyards up and down the country. He then began to design light, accurate field guns for the British army. These were a vast improvement on the existing guns that were then in use.
The following major industries developed in Newcastle or its surrounding area:
Glassmaking
A small glass industry existed in Newcastle from the mid-15th century. In 1615 restrictions were put on the use of wood for manufacturing glass. It was found that glass could be manufactured using the local coal, and so a glassmaking industry grew up on Tyneside. Huguenot glassmakers came over from France as refugees from persecution and set up glasshouses in the Skinnerburn area of Newcastle. Eventually, glass production moved to the Ouseburn area of Newcastle. In 1684 the Dagnia family, Sephardic Jewish emigrants from Altare, arrived in Newcastle from Stourbridge and established glasshouses along the Close, to manufacture high quality flint glass. The glass manufacturers used sand ballast from the boats arriving in the river as the main raw material. The glassware was then exported in collier brigs. The period from 1730 to 1785 was the highpoint of Newcastle glass manufacture, when the local glassmakers produced the 'Newcastle Light Baluster'. The glassmaking industry still exists in the west end of the city with local Artist and Glassmaker Jane Charles carrying on over four hundred years of hot glass blowing in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Locomotive manufacture
In 1823 George Stephenson and his son Robert established the world's first locomotive factory near Forth Street in Newcastle. Here they built locomotives for the Stockton and Darlington Railway and the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, as well as many others. It was here that the famous locomotive Rocket was designed and manufactured in preparation for the Rainhill Trials. Apart from building locomotives for the British market, the Newcastle works also produced locomotives for Europe and America. The Forth Street works continued to build locomotives until 1960.
Shipbuilding
In 1296 a wooden, 135 ft (41 m) long galley was constructed at the mouth of the Lort Burn in Newcastle, as part of a twenty-ship order from the king. The ship cost £205, and is the earliest record of shipbuilding in Newcastle. However the rise of the Tyne as a shipbuilding area was due to the need for collier brigs for the coal export trade. These wooden sailing ships were usually built locally, establishing local expertise in building ships. As ships changed from wood to steel, and from sail to steam, the local shipbuilding industry changed to build the new ships. Although shipbuilding was carried out up and down both sides of the river, the two main areas for building ships in Newcastle were Elswick, to the west, and Walker, to the east. By 1800 Tyneside was the third largest producer of ships in Britain. Unfortunately, after the Second World War, lack of modernisation and competition from abroad gradually caused the local industry to decline and die.
Armaments
In 1847 William Armstrong established a huge factory in Elswick, west of Newcastle. This was initially used to produce hydraulic cranes but subsequently began also to produce guns for both the army and the navy. After the Swing Bridge was built in 1876 allowing ships to pass up river, warships could have their armaments fitted alongside the Elswick works. Armstrong's company took over its industrial rival, Joseph Whitworth of Manchester in 1897.
Steam turbines
Charles Algernon Parsons invented the steam turbine and, in 1889, founded his own company C. A. Parsons and Company in Heaton, Newcastle to make steam turbines. Shortly after this, he realised that steam turbines could be used to propel ships and, in 1897, he founded a second company, Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company in Wallsend. It is there that he designed and manufactured Turbinia. Parsons turbines were initially used in warships but soon came to be used in merchant and passenger vessels, including the liner Mauretania which held the blue riband for the Atlantic crossing until 1929. Parsons' company in Heaton began to make turbo-generators for power stations and supplied power stations all over the world. The Heaton works, reduced in size, remains as part of the Siemens AG industrial giant.
Pottery
In 1762 the Maling pottery was founded in Sunderland by French Huguenots, but transferred to Newcastle in 1817. A factory was built in the Ouseburn area of the city. The factory was rebuilt twice, finally occupying a 14-acre (57,000 m2) site that was claimed to be the biggest pottery in the world and which had its own railway station. The pottery pioneered use of machines in making potteries as opposed to hand production. In the 1890s the company went up-market and employed in-house designers. The period up to the Second World War was the most profitable with a constant stream of new designs being introduced. However, after the war, production gradually declined and the company closed in 1963.
Expansion of the city
Newcastle was one of the boroughs reformed by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835: the reformed municipal borough included the parishes of Byker, Elswick, Heaton, Jesmond, Newcastle All Saints, Newcastle St Andrew, Newcastle St John, Newcastle St Nicholas, and Westgate. The urban districts of Benwell and Fenham and Walker were added in 1904. In 1935, Newcastle gained Kenton and parts of the parishes of West Brunton, East Denton, Fawdon, Longbenton. The most recent expansion in Newcastle's boundaries took place under the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974, when Newcastle became a metropolitan borough, also including the urban districts of Gosforth and Newburn, and the parishes of Brunswick, Dinnington, Hazlerigg, North Gosforth and Woolsington from the Castle Ward Rural District, and the village of Westerhope.
Meanwhile Northumberland County Council was formed under the Local Government Act 1888 and benefited from a dedicated meeting place when County Hall was completed in the Castle Garth area of Newcastle in 1910. Following the Local Government Act 1972 County Hall relocated to Morpeth in April 1981.
Twentieth century
In 1925 work began on a new high-level road bridge to span the Tyne Gorge between Newcastle and Gateshead. The capacity of the existing High-Level Bridge and Swing Bridge were being strained to the limit, and an additional bridge had been discussed for a long time. The contract was awarded to the Dorman Long Company and the bridge was finally opened by King George V in 1928. The road deck was 84 feet (26 m) above the river and was supported by a 531 feet (162 m) steel arch. The new Tyne Bridge quickly became a symbol for Newcastle and Tyneside, and remains so today.
During the Second World War, Newcastle was largely spared the horrors inflicted upon other British cities bombed during the Blitz. Although the armaments factories and shipyards along the River Tyne were targeted by the Luftwaffe, they largely escaped unscathed. Manors goods yard and railway terminal, to the east of the city centre, and the suburbs of Jesmond and Heaton suffered bombing during 1941. There were 141 deaths and 587 injuries, a relatively small figure compared to the casualties in other industrial centres of Britain.
In 1963 the city gained its own university, the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, by act of parliament. A School of Medicine and Surgery had been established in Newcastle in 1834. This eventually developed into a college of medicine attached to Durham University. A college of physical science was also founded and became Armstrong College in 1904. In 1934 the two colleges merged to become King's College, Durham. This remained as part of Durham University until the new university was created in 1963. In 1992 the city gained its second university when Newcastle Polytechnic was granted university status as Northumbria University.
Newcastle City Council moved to the new Newcastle Civic Centre in 1968.
As heavy industries declined in the second half of the 20th century, large sections of the city centre were demolished along with many areas of slum housing. The leading political figure in the city during the 1960s was T. Dan Smith who oversaw a massive building programme of highrise housing estates and authorised the demolition of a quarter of the Georgian Grainger Town to make way for Eldon Square Shopping Centre. Smith's control in Newcastle collapsed when it was exposed that he had used public contracts to advantage himself and his business associates and for a time Newcastle became a byword for civic corruption as depicted in the films Get Carter and Stormy Monday and in the television series Our Friends in the North. However, much of the historic Grainger Town area survived and was, for the most part, fully restored in the late 1990s. Northumberland Street, initially the A1, was gradually closed to traffic from the 1970s and completely pedestrianised by 1998.
In 1978 a new rapid transport system, the Metro, was built, linking the Tyneside area. The system opened in August 1980. A new bridge was built to carry the Metro across the river between Gateshead and Newcastle. This was the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, commonly known as the Metro Bridge. Eventually the Metro system was extended to reach Newcastle Airport in 1991, and in 2002 the Metro system was extended to the nearby city of Sunderland.
As the 20th century progressed, trade on the Newcastle and Gateshead quaysides gradually declined, until by the 1980s both sides of the river were looking rather derelict. Shipping company offices had closed along with offices of firms related to shipping. There were also derelict warehouses lining the riverbank. Local government produced a master plan to re-develop the Newcastle quayside and this was begun in the 1990s. New offices, restaurants, bars and residential accommodation were built and the area has changed in the space of a few years into a vibrant area, partially returning the focus of Newcastle to the riverside, where it was in medieval times.
The Gateshead Millennium Bridge, a foot and cycle bridge, 26 feet (7.9 m) wide and 413 feet (126 m) long, was completed in 2001. The road deck is in the form of a curve and is supported by a steel arch. To allow ships to pass, the whole structure, both arch and road-deck, rotates on huge bearings at either end so that the road deck is lifted. The bridge can be said to open and shut like a human eye. It is an important addition to the re-developed quayside area, providing a vital link between the Newcastle and Gateshead quaysides.
Recent developments
Today the city is a vibrant centre for office and retail employment, but just a short distance away there are impoverished inner-city housing estates, in areas originally built to provide affordable housing for employees of the shipyards and other heavy industries that lined the River Tyne. In the 2010s Newcastle City Council began implementing plans to regenerate these depressed areas, such as those along the Ouseburn Valley.
Current global population (of this BLACK KITE) estimates run up to 6 million individuals. Unlike others of the group, black kites are opportunistic hunters and are more likely to scavenge...Wikipedia.
Personal note: The Canon 5dSR/100-400mmII makes a difference, now I am happy with this shot of this very common raptor captured in Japan; and if you hadn't noticed, this camera and lens is now my everyday walk around combo.
The Sheboygan River is really swollen with snow melt and recent rains. As I looked out our balcony windows I could see that he was really struggling to return to where he had launched. If he had continued in the other direction he would have been buffeted by Lake Michigan's waves.
A CORRENTE...
Chamei meu amigo
E disse-lhe assim:
- Vem amigo!...
Junte-se a mim
E aos outros também,
Formemos a corrente do bem
A exaltar o que é belo,
Sê, como eu, mais um elo
A torná-la resistente, forte,
Capaz de vencer a morte
Que o mal no mundo esparrama,
Acender a chama
Ardente da paz,
Do amor que refaz
As esperanças perdidas,
Salvemos as vidas!...
E ele me respondeu:
- Mas se só sobrarmos nós dois?
Lutando sem forças
Pra tombarmos depois?
Exangue,
Em sangue,
Vencidos na luta?
Eu, então, lhe respondi:
- Não importa a disputa,
A tormenta,
A gente se agüenta
Convictos no mesmo ideal,
Derrotarmos o mal
Que domina o mundo,
Imundo,
Onde o bem, já moribundo,
Agoniza
Ante o mal que enraíza
E se expande,
Grande,
Enorme,
Fétida massa informe
A cobrir toda Terra,
A incitar a guerra
Que aterra
Todas as esperanças,
O sorriso das crianças,
Os impulsos fraternais,
A alegria dos pais...
Monstro voraz que tudo consome,
Que semeia a fome
Nas populações combalidas,
Derrotadas, vencidas...
Que triste sorte,
A subjugação ou a morte
Onde antes havia paz.
Mal que se exprime
No crime,
Na violência,
No atentado à inocência
Das crianças ainda puras,
Na segregação das criaturas
Pelas origens raciais,
Nas injustiças sociais...
Nos vícios em que o homem se afoga,
No tráfico maldito da droga,
Que cresce,
Enriquece,
Mas enlutece a família,
Pois, quem segue sua trilha,
Emurchece,
Apodrece,
Definha...
E a culpa é tua
E também minha,
Que ficamos de braços cruzados,
Calados,
Vendo tudo acontecer...
Na politicagem vergonhosa,
Na intolerância religiosa,
Mãe de tantos conflitos.
Vem amigo!
Unamos nossos gritos
Mas, num ecoar doce e singelo,
Sê, como eu, mais um elo
A formar a nossa corrente,
Forte, resistente,
Capaz de fazer ouvir sua voz,
Sua vontade resoluta.
Afinal, Se Deus é por nós,
Quem será contra nós nesta luta?...
1. flickr.com/photos/96006596@N00/4432735862/, 2. 060923, 3. 羊たち, 4. Untitled, 5. Flower market, 6. Untitled, 7. Green stairs, 8. island man, 9. Which do you choose?, 10. old books and..., 11. love antique, 12. slim legs, 13. lovely basket, 14. peaceful, 15. g × g, 16. cold water*, 17. beautiful window*, 18. deep green*, 19. step*, 20. 7*, 21. Feb*, 22. Untitled, 23. Untitled, 24. Untitled, 25. Untitled, 26. Ladder, 27. Ready to fall, 28. Snuggle, 29. Mist, 30. Bird of Paradise, 31. afternoon tea, 32. Untitled, 33. Untitled, 34. tegami, 35. monet, 36. Untitled
Archway resp. arcade of the Château de Hautefort, connecting its western with its eastern wing, Dordogne, France
Some background information:
The Château de Hautefort (in English: "Hautefort Castle") is situated on a plateau in the northern part of the French department of Dordogne. It overlooks the village of Hautefort and is located approximately 34 kilometers (21 miles) northeast of the town of Périgueux. The building complex is the largest Baroque castle in southwestern France and one of the most significant castles in the Périgord region. Located in the far eastern part of the White Périgord (in French: "Périgord blanc"), the castle was classified as a historic monument in 1958. Since 1967, its French formal gardens and the landscaped park have also been listed as historic monuments.
As early as the 9th century, a fortress was located at the site of the present-day Hautefort Castle, belonging to the viscounts of Limoges. In 1030, the castle became the property of Guy de Lastours after he defeated the rebellious viscounts at Arnac on behalf of the Count of Périgord. Following his death in 1046, his sole daughter Aloaarz brought the property into her marriage with Aymar de Laron, who adopted the Lastours name.
Through the marriage of Agnes de Lastours in 1160, the castle passed to the family of her husband, Constantin de Born. Constantin and his brother Bertran de Born, quarreled over the castle, as they supported opposing factions of the English princes Henry the Young King and Richard the Lionheart. Bertran sided with Prince Henry, while Constantin aligned himself with Richard's camp. In 1182, Bertran managed to expel Constantin from the castle, but in the following year, after Henry's death, Richard the Lionheart laid siege to the fortress. After eight days, he captured it, took Bertran prisoner, and demolished the fortifications.
However, King Henry II of England granted Bertran his freedom and even restored the castle to him. In 1184, the rebuilding of the castle began. By 1196, Bertran retired to the Cistercian Abbey of Dalon and became a monk, while the grounds passed to his son. At that time, the structure consisted of a large donjon and several smaller towers connected by curtain walls and battlements.
In the course of the Hundred Years' War, English soldiers occupied the castle in 1355 and forced its owners to recognize the English king as their liege lord. However, in 1406, the castle returned to French control. Shortly before, the last male representative of the family, Bertrand, had died, and the property passed to his sole daughter, Marthe. Her son Antoine, from her second marriage to Hélie de Gontaut, adopted the name of the Hautefort lordship when he became the new lord of the castle. In 1588, the northwestern entrance wing of the castle was altered and fortified – perhaps influenced by the French Wars of Religion. This renovation likely replaced a less defensible Renaissance-style structure.
In 1614, under François de Hautefort, the seigneurie was elevated to a marquisate. Accordingly, he sought to replace the outdated structure with a representative château. In 1633, the marquis commissioned Nicolas Rambourg, an architect from Périgueux, to undertake a major renovation of the estate. When François passed away in 1640, the work was far from complete, leaving the task of continuing the project to his successor, his grandson Jacques-François. Jacques-François' sister, Marie, gained fame at the Parisian royal court as the platonic companion of King Louis XIII.
The death of Nicolas Rambourg in 1649 temporarily halted construction, but in 1651, the inauguration of a château chapel on the ground floor of the new logis was celebrated. In 1669, the marquis resumed the renovation project, enlisting the Parisian architect Jean Maigret. Maigret completed the château as a symmetrical three-wing complex in the style of classical Baroque, adding the current south tower and relocating the chapel there in 1670. Although the second marquis died in 1680, Maigret's work on the château continued until 1695. During the renovations, the defensive elements that had still been present at the beginning of the 17th century were gradually dismantled.
During the French Revolution, the citizens of Hautefort prevented the château's destruction. From 1793 to 1795, the estate was used as a prison. But after the revolutionary period, Sigismonde Charlotte Louise de Hautefort, the daughter of the last marquis, Louis Frédéric Emmanuel, regained control of the family seat. In 1853, the redesign of the château's gardens was commissioned and the plans were drawn up by Paul de Lavenne, one of the most renowned landscape architects in France at the time. He reimagined the baroque gardens on the terraces surrounding the château and designed a large English landscape garden with broad sightlines into the surrounding countryside.
After the death of Maxence de Hautefort in 1887, his second wife sold the estate in 1890 to wealthy industrialist Bertrand Artigues. Artigues undertook various restoration projects and demolished the old outbuildings to the northwest of the château. Despite these efforts, the structural condition of the château remained poor. After Bertrand Artigues passed away in 1908, his heirs sold the château in 1913 to a real estate speculator. Between then and 1925, the speculator sold off all the furnishings and interior elements, including paneling and parquet floors. Subsequently, the parceled estate was sold off piece by piece.
In 1929, Baron Henry de Bastard and his wife Simone, the daughter of banker and patron David David-Weill, purchased the château. They began extensive restoration work in 1930, which continued until 1965. The couple undertook a complete restoration of both the interior and exterior of the buildings and also worked to restore the baroque garden parterres based on historical plans. While the flowerbeds were replanted, the design created by Paul de Lavenne was preserved.
After the death of the baron in 1957, his widow opened the château to the public. However, this decision proved disastrous for the estate. In 1968, a major fire broke out, caused by a carelessly discarded cigarette butt from a visitor. The fire devastated the main northeastern wing, including its interiors and furnishings. Only the side wings with their round towers at the ends remained intact. But the baroness wasted no time and began restoration work as early as September of the same year. Using old photographs, the destroyed wing and its rooms were faithfully reconstructed and refurnished.
Today, the Château de Hautefort, along with its park and large sections of the French gardens, can be visited for an admission fee. Visitors can explore the interior rooms, including the grand reception hall, the château lord’s bedroom, Marie de Hautefort’s room in the Louis Quinze style, the chapel, and the kitchen. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that the palace has also served as a film location for several productions. The last one was the movie "Ever After" from 1998, starring Drew Barrymore and Anjelica Huston.
My current collection/fleet of Kelvin Central Buses/KCB Network models. Officially commissioned (Code 1) models had been made depicting both Kelvin Scottish and Central Scottish vehicles, as both were part of the Scottish Bus Group. Having been brought up in the 1990’s to a bus driver father my interest (or obsession) is focused more on operators of that time, KCB Network being one of them. Thankfully George, at Sunrise Models and Transfers, sells waterslide transfers sets which allow me to recreate almost any operator in Scotland past or present by repainting a model and applying his transfers. I have also been able to build up a collection of First Bus models, including First Kelvin the successor to KCB. The destination screens show a number of places across Strathclyde which KCB served including Shotts at their easternmost limit, Balloch and Clydebank in the west, Carluke, Caldercruix and Hillhouse in Hamilton. KCB Network would be bought over by another employee/management owned operator and rival, Strathclyde Buses. Kelvin vehicles would keep their livery and were cascaded into Glasgow depots, forming Kelvin units within established Strathclyde depots. This sale occurred approximately one year before First Group would themselves buy the newly combined company of 1,600 vehicles and 2,000 staff.
I was so inspired by the cover of the current USA Philatelic catalog I saw at the Post Office - it features the most beautiful Cherry Blossom Centennial postage stamp!
I'm also taking the on-line Tim Holtz class and wanted to try the brushless watercolor technique with some of my distress inks. Using the cherry blossom stamp from an older HA set called CL228 Asian Elements I inked it up with spun sugar, worn lipstick, walnut stain and peeled paint distress inks, spritzed with water and stamped on a piece of watercolor paper repeating several times. I then added a few single flower images from this same set that were not misted as heavily with water. Afterwards I painted a "sky" in the background using a combination of water and tumbled glass distress inks.
Sentiment is from CL342 Everyday Sayings. After distressing edges with antique linen and walnut stain distress inks piece was mounted with foam tape on an eggshell base stamped in HA soft sand with S5507 Envie pattern and distressed with pumice stone distress ink.
Hope everyone has a great weekend! I'll be back later to comment in the pool:)
TFL and for all your sweet comments!