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The great egret, also known as the common egret, large egret, or great white egret or great white heron is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and southern Europe. Recently it is also spreading to more northern areas of Europe. Wikipedia
Conservation status: Least Concern Encyclopedia of Life
Wingspan: 4.3 – 5.6 ft. (Adult)
Thanks to everyone that views and comments on my images - very much appreciated.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. On all my images, Use without permission is illegal.
For Macro Mondays' "Book" theme. About 1" (25mm) of the book is shown on each side of the lower spine.
I thought I'd practice some long exposure work. Included in this still life are my great-grandmother's clock from 1915, my grandmother's encyclopedias from the 1930s and a very old decoy that I gave as a gift to my parents.
Thanks to everyone that views and comments on my images - very much appreciated.
The great blue heron is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as far northwestern South America, the Caribbean and the Galápagos Islands. Wikipedia
Scientific name: Ardea herodias
Wingspan: 6 to 7 foot chesapeakebay.net
Family: Ardeidae
The great egret, also known as the common egret, large egret, or great white egret or great white heron is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and southern Europe. Recently it is also spreading to more northern areas of Europe. Wikipedia
Conservation status: Least Concern Encyclopedia of Life
Wingspan: 4.3 – 5.6 ft. (Adult)
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. On all my images, Use without permission is illegal.
Lugu Lake (Chinese: 泸沽湖; Pinyin: Lúgū Hú) is located in the North West Yunnan plateau in the centre of Ningliang Yi Autonomous County in the People's Republic of China. The middle of the lake forms the border between the Ninglang County of Yunnan Province and the Yanqing County of Sichuan province. The formation of the lake is thought to have occurred in a geological fault belonging to the geological age of the Late Cenozoic. It is an alpine lake at an elevation of 2,685 metres (8,809 ft) and is the highest lake in the Yunnan Province. The lake is surrounded by mountains and has five islands, four peninsulas, fourteen bays and seventeen beaches.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pompeii (/pɒmˈpeɪ(i)/, Latin: [pɔmˈpeːjjiː]) was an ancient city located in what is now the comune of Pompei near Naples in the Campania region of Italy. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area (e.g. at Boscoreale, Stabiae), was buried under 4 to 6 m (13 to 20 ft) of volcanic ash and pumice in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79.
Largely preserved under the ash, the excavated city offered a unique snapshot of Roman life, frozen at the moment it was buried,[1] and an extraordinarily detailed insight into the everyday life of its inhabitants, although much of the evidence was lost in the early excavations. It was a wealthy town, enjoying many fine public buildings and luxurious private houses with lavish decorations, furnishings and works of art which were the main attractions for the early excavators. Organic remains, including wooden objects and human bodies, were entombed in the ash and decayed leaving voids which archaeologists found could be used as moulds to make plaster casts of unique and often gruesome figures in their final moments of life. The numerous graffiti carved on the walls and inside rooms provide a wealth of examples of the largely lost Vulgar Latin spoken colloquially at the time, contrasting with the formal language of the classical writers.
Pompeii is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy, with approximately 2.5 million visitors annually.[2]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marken
Location of the municipality of Waterland in North Holland and the Netherlands.
Coordinates: 52°27′30″N 5°6′24″ECoordinates: 52°27′30″N 5°6′24″E
Marken (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈmɑrkə(n)]; Marken's dialect: Mereke) is a village with a population of 1,810 in the municipality of Waterland in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. Marken forms a peninsula in the Markermeer and was formerly an island in the Zuiderzee. The characteristic wooden houses of Marken are a tourist attraction.
Marken was an island in the Zuiderzee
For some time during the later 19th and early 20th centuries, Marken and its inhabitants were the focus of considerable attention by folklorists, ethnographers and physical anthropologists, who regarded the small fishing town as a relic of the traditional native culture that was destined to disappear as the modernization of the Netherlands gained pace.[5] Among them was Johann Friedrich Blumenbach who examined a skull from the island of humans which he called Batavus genuinus; and was the Belgian painter Xavier Mellery who stayed in Marken at the request of Decoster. Mellery was asked to perform illustrative work and delivered several intimist works.
The projects of Cornelis Lely was to incorporated the island into the markerwaard. The dike, built in 1941 in the north, is the first phase of that project which was stopped by the war.
In 1983, the Marker Museum about the history of the island was opened.
20160624 4737Sunset at Marken
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marken
Location of the municipality of Waterland in North Holland and the Netherlands.
Coordinates: 52°27′30″N 5°6′24″ECoordinates: 52°27′30″N 5°6′24″E
Marken (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈmɑrkə(n)]; Marken's dialect: Mereke) is a village with a population of 1,810 in the municipality of Waterland in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. Marken forms a peninsula in the Markermeer and was formerly an island in the Zuiderzee. The characteristic wooden houses of Marken are a tourist attraction.
Marken was an island in the Zuiderzee
For some time during the later 19th and early 20th centuries, Marken and its inhabitants were the focus of considerable attention by folklorists, ethnographers and physical anthropologists, who regarded the small fishing town as a relic of the traditional native culture that was destined to disappear as the modernization of the Netherlands gained pace.[5] Among them was Johann Friedrich Blumenbach who examined a skull from the island of humans which he called Batavus genuinus; and was the Belgian painter Xavier Mellery who stayed in Marken at the request of Decoster. Mellery was asked to perform illustrative work and delivered several intimist works.
The projects of Cornelis Lely was to incorporated the island into the markerwaard. The dike, built in 1941 in the north, is the first phase of that project which was stopped by the war.
In 1983, the Marker Museum about the history of the island was opened.
201702030697_1-6
Columbia Encyclopedia - PeopleChihuly, Dale Patrick (chĭhū'lē) 1941–, American glass artist, b. Tacoma, Wash.; grad. Univ. of Washington, Seattle (B.A., 1965), Rhode Island School of Design (RISD; M.F.A., 1967), Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison (M.S., 1967). Probably the foremost figure in the contemporary art-glass movement, Chihuly experimented with the medium while an undergraduate and studied the glassblower's art at a Venetian glass studio (1968). He founded (1969) the glass department at RISD, taught there for 11 years, and in 1971 established the influential Pilchuck Glass School near Seattle. Extremely prolific, Chihuly (working with a crew of technicians) creates glass sculptures in a rainbow of colors, sometimes opaque, translucent, or iridescent; and in an astonishing variety of semiabstract shapes, including baskets, sea and flower forms, globes, stumps, cylinders, and hanging garlands. His works range from miniatures to large architectural installations, such as the celebrated pieces in Chihuly over Venice (1996) and the works on the Bridge of Glass (2002) at the Museum of Glass: International Center for Contemporary Art in Tacoma, Wash.
Bibliography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bristol MMB 43 SS Great Britain.jpg
SS Great Britain in dry dock at Bristol in 2005.
History
Name:SS Great Britain
Owner:Great Western Steamship Company
Builder:William Patterson
Cost:
Projected: £70,000
Actual: £117,000
Laid down:July 1839
Launched:19 July 1843
Completed:1845
Maiden voyage:26 July 1845
In service:1845–1886
Homeport:Bristol, England
General characteristics
Type:Passenger steamship
Displacement:3,674 tons load draught
Length:322 ft (98 m)
Beam:50 ft 6 in (15.39 m)
Draught:16 ft (4.9 m)[1]
Installed power:2 × twin 88-inch (220 cm) cylinder, 6 ft (1.8 m) stroke, 500 hp (370 kW), 18 rpm inclined direct-acting steam engines
Propulsion:Single screw propeller
Sail plan:
Original: Five schooner-rigged and one square-rigged mast
After 1853: Three square-rigged masts
Speed:10 to 11 knots (19 to 20 km/h; 12 to 13 mph)
Capacity:
360 passengers, later increased to 730
1,200 tons of cargo
Complement:130 officers and crew (as completed)
SS Great Britain is a museum ship and former passenger steamship, which was advanced for her time. She was the longest passenger ship in the world from 1845 to 1854. She was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the Great Western Steamship Company's transatlantic service between Bristol and New York. While other ships had been built of iron or equipped with a screw propeller, Great Britain was the first to combine these features in a large ocean-going ship. She was the first iron steamer to cross the Atlantic, which she did in 1845, in the time of 14 days.
The ship is 322 ft (98 m) in length and has a 3,400-ton displacement. She was powered by two inclined 2 cylinder engines of the direct-acting type, with twin 88 in (220 cm) bore, 6-foot (1.8 m) stroke cylinders. She was also provided with secondary sail power. The four decks provided accommodation for a crew of 120, plus 360 passengers who were provided with cabins and dining and promenade saloons.
When launched in 1843, Great Britain was by far the largest vessel afloat. However, her protracted construction and high cost had left her owners in a difficult financial position, and they were forced out of business in 1846 having spent all their funds re-floating the ship after she was run aground at Dundrum Bay after a navigational error. In 1852 she was sold for salvage and repaired. Great Britain carried thousands of immigrants to Australia from 1852 until converted to sail in 1881. Three years later, she was retired to the Falkland Islands where she was used as a warehouse, quarantine ship and coal hulk until scuttled in 1937.[2]
In 1970, following a cash donation by Sir Jack Hayward that paid for the vessel to be towed back to the UK, Great Britain was returned to the Bristol dry dock where she was built. Now listed as part of the National Historic Fleet, she is an award-winning visitor attraction and museum ship in Bristol Harbour, with between 150,000 and 200,000 visitors annually.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Eurasian siskin (Spinus spinus) is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is also called the European siskin, common siskin or just siskin. Other (archaic) names include black-headed goldfinch, barley bird and aberdevine. It is very common throughout Europe and Eurosiberia. It is found in forested areas, both coniferous and mixed woodland where it feeds on seeds of all kinds, especially of alder and conifers.
It can be distinguished from other similar finches by the colour of the plumage. The upper parts are greyish green and the under parts grey-streaked white. Its wings are black with a conspicuous yellow wing bar, and the tail is black with yellow sides. The male has a mainly yellow face and breast, with a neat black cap. Female and young birds have a greyish green head and no cap. It is a trusting, sociable and active bird. The song of this bird is a pleasant mix of twitters and trills. For these reasons it is often raised in captivity.
These birds have an unusual migration pattern as every few years in winter they migrate southwards in large numbers. The reasons for this behaviour are not known but may be related to climatic factors and above all the availability of food. In this way overwintering populations can thrive where food is abundant. This small finch is an acrobatic feeder, often hanging upside-down like a tit. It will visit garden bird feeding stations.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Mount Susitna is a 4,140 feet (1,260 m) mountain in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the west bank of the lower Susitna River, about 33 miles (53 km) northwest of Anchorage, Alaska.[1] The mountain is a prominent landmark in the Anchorage, Alaska area and can be seen across the Knik Arm of the Cook Inlet from most of the city, especially at higher elevations.
Mount Susitna is often called The Sleeping Lady for its resemblance to a recumbent woman. The name is sometimes said to derive from a Dena’ina legend, in which a woman named Susitna belonging to a race of giants vows to sleep until world peace is achieved, but no such legend actually exists. The mountain's Dena'ina name is Dghelishla, meaning "Little Mountain"; in English it was simply named for the Susitna River which means Sandy River.[1] "Dgelishla" is also transliterated as "Dinglishna" in Alaska, such as in the name of the Dinglishna Hills, Alaska subdivision of Matanuska-Susitna Valley.
Old encyclopedia ( 1917) with an old ribbon bookmark.
A little under 4cm.
I really struggled with this theme, I took a LOT of photo's !
Happy Macro Monday.
Thank you for your views, faves and or comments, they are greatly appreciated !!!
Don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission !!!
© all rights reserved Lily aenee
Air Pollution
World Health Organization
www.who.int/health-topics/air-pollution#tab=tab_1
A new threat emerges for US lakes and rivers. Your lawn or toilet may be partly to blame.
USA Today
www.usatoday.com/story/news/2022/03/31/runaway-pollution-...
Noise Pollution
RESOURCE LIBRARY | ENCYCLOPEDIC ENTRY
www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/noise-pollution/
Thank you for your kind visit. Have a wonderful and beautiful day! ❤️ ❤️ ❤️
Cyclamen is a genus of 23 species of perennial flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. Cyclamen species are native to Europe and the Mediterranean Basin east to the Caucasus and Iran, with one species in Somalia. They grow from tubers and are valued for their flowers with upswept petals and variably patterned leaves.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Platanus orientalis, the Oriental plane, is a large, deciduous tree of the Platanaceae family, growing to 30 m (98 ft) or more, and known for its longevity and spreading crown. In autumn its deep green leaves may change to blood red, amber, and yellow.
The species' name orientalis means 'eastern' (in comparison, the 'western' plane (or American sycamore), the only other species known to Linnaeus, is named Platanus occidentalis). The tree was called platane in ancient Greek history and literature and by related names in continental Europe. Equally well known in Asia from Anatolia to India and usually called chinar or chenar.
The chinar tree can be found throughout the landscape of the Kashmir Valley in the Indian western Himalayas, planted across hillsides and cities, and is seen as a symbol for the region, locally known as bouin in Kashmiri and chinar in Hindustani. Excavations from the Burzahom archaeological site have revealed charcoal remains of the tree from the Neolithic period. Muslim Kashmiris believe that the chinar was brought to Kashmir valley by Islamic preachers from Iran in 14th century AD, while Hindu Kashmiris hold a view that the tree was traditionally planted near Hindu holy places in Kashmir and is associated with Hindu goddess Bhavani, from whom it derives its Kashmiri name bouin.
After the advent of Muslim rule, especially under the Mughals, chinar became a major garden and landscape tree, and dominates many historic gardens. The tree known for its elegance and exuberance has remained an attraction for artists and litterateurs. One tree believed to be planted in 1374 A.D at the Chattergam village by an Islamic mystic Syed Abul Qaim Hamadani who accompanied Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani from Iran to Kashmir, is believed by many in Kashmir to be the world's oldest surviving chinar tree. Planting of chinar trees in Kashmir was greatly patronised by the Mughals, and later by Dogra rulers.
Chinar trees are being felled rapidly in Kashmir, although a ban was enacted in 2009 to curb cutting. Chinar trees are now required to be registered, considered State Property, and painted white at their base. Naseem Bagh, a Mughal garden near Srinagar with over 700 chinar trees has been developed as a Chinar Heritage Park by the University of Kashmir.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Golfe du Morbihan" redirects here. For the similarly named gulf in the Kerguelen Islands, see Golfe du Morbihan (Kerguelen).
The Gulf of Morbihan is a natural harbour on the coast of the Département of Morbihan in the south of Brittany, France. This English name is taken from the French version: le golfe du Morbihan. It is more accurately called 'the Morbihan' directly from its Breton name which is Ar Mor Bihan, meaning 'the little sea' (Compare the Welsh y môr bychan), as opposed to the Atlantic Ocean outside, (Ar Mor Bras). Legend says that there are as many islands in the Gulf as there are days of the year. However, this is untrue and the gulf has about 40, depending on the tide. Many islands are private property, except the largest two, l'Île-aux-Moines and l'Île-d'Arz.
The area around the gulf features an extraordinary range of megalithic monuments. There are passage dolmens, stepped pyramids with underground dolmen chambers, stone circles, and giant menhirs, among others. The site best known to outsiders is Carnac, where remains of a dozen rows of huge standing stones run for over ten kilometers. The passage grave of Gavrinis, on a small island in the Gulf, is one of the most important such sites in Europe. Some of the ruins have been dated to at least 3300 BC — 200 years older than England's Stonehenge.
20160903 6849-Pano
On November 7, 1971 WP 920-D was involved in a tragic accident on the Highline at Westwood. Due to apparent tampering of the siding switch which resulted in a North train side swiping a South train which was in the siding. The resulting collision toppled the WP 920-D and trailing locomotives onto their sides while derailing the opposing trains locomotives. Two crew men lost their lives in the accident, and three others were severely injured.
WP 920-D is seen post recovery sitting on the Stockton roundhouse whiskers. The 920-D, with it's large steam era snow plow, will be trade in fodder for new GE U30Bs, and also solving the question I had to the fates of the remaining large steam era plows adapted for use on the first generation EMDs.
I would like to thank long time family friend, Frank Brehm, for helping me identify this locomotive and adding some detail to the incident. You can check out Frank's extensive encyclopedia of WP information on his website at: wplives.com/
Kodacolor Negative by Bob Black- John Black Collection. 1631
Celtic cross
The Rock of Cashel (Irish: Carraig Phádraig [ˈcaɾˠəɟ ˈfˠaːd̪ˠɾˠəɟ]), also known as Cashel of the Kings and St. Patrick's Rock, is an historic site located at Cashel, County Tipperary, Ireland.
According to local legends, the Rock of Cashel originated in the Devil's Bit, a mountain 20 miles (30 km) north of Cashel when St. Patrick banished Satan from a cave, resulting in the Rock's landing in Cashel. Cashel is reputed to be the site of the conversion of the King of Munster by St. Patrick in the 5th century.
The Rock of Cashel was the traditional seat of the kings of Munster for several hundred years prior to the Norman invasion. In 1101, the King of Munster, Muirchertach Ua Briain, donated his fortress on the Rock to the Church. The picturesque complex has a character of its own and is one of the most remarkable collections of Celtic art and medieval architecture to be found anywhere in Europe. Few remnants of the early structures survive; the majority of buildings on the current site date from the 12th and 13th centuries.
The oldest and tallest of the structure is the well preserved round tower (28 metres, or 90 feet), dating from c.1100. Its entrance is 12 feet (3.7 m) from the ground, necessitated by a shallow foundation (about 3 feet) typical of round towers. The tower was built using the dry stone method. Modern conservationists have filled in some of the tower with mortar for safety reasons.
Cormac's Chapel with parts of the cathedral on either side
Cormac's Chapel, the chapel of King Cormac Mac Carthaigh, was begun in 1127 and consecrated in 1134. It is a sophisticated structure, with vaulted ceilings and wide arches, drawing on contemporary European architecture and infusing unique native elements. The Irish Abbot of Regensburg, Dirmicius of Regensburg, sent two of his carpenters to help in the work and the twin towers on either side of the junction of the nave and chancel are strongly suggestive of their Germanic influence, as this feature is otherwise unknown in Ireland. Other notable features of the building include interior and exterior arcading, a barrel-vaulted roof, a carved tympanum over both doorways, the magnificent north doorway and chancel arch and the oldest stairs in Ireland. It contains one of the best-preserved Irish frescoes from this time period. The Chapel was constructed primarily of sandstone which has become waterlogged over the centuries, significantly damaging the interior frescoes. Restoration and preservation required the chapel be completely enclosed in a rain-proof structure with interior dehumidifiers to dry out the stone. It is now open for limited tours to the public.
Irish High Cross at the Rock of Cashel
The Cathedral, built between 1235 and 1270, is an aisleless building of cruciform plan, having a central tower and terminating westwards in a massive residential castle. The Hall of the Vicars Choral was built in the 15th century. The vicars choral were laymen (sometimes minor canons) appointed to assist in chanting the cathedral services. At Cashel, there were originally eight vicars choral with their own seal. This was later reduced to five honorary vicars choral who appointed singing-men as their deputies, a practice which continued until 1836. The restoration of the Hall was undertaken by the Office of Public Works as a project in connection with the European Architectural Heritage Year, 1975. Through it visitors now enter the site.
In 1647, during the Irish Confederate Wars, Cashel was sacked by English Parliamentarian troops under Murrough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin. The Irish Confederate troops there were massacred, as were the Catholic clergy, including Theobald Stapleton. Inchiquin's troops looted or destroyed many important religious artefacts.
In 1749, the main cathedral roof was removed by Arthur Price, the Anglican Archbishop of Cashel. Today, what remains of the Rock of Cashel has become a tourist attraction. Price's decision to remove the roof on what had been called the jewel among Irish church buildings was criticised before and since.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
#DoodlewashDecember2023 prompt: Hat.
Did you know that Cassius Marcellus Coolidge did 18 paintings of anthropomorphized dogs, in which 11 had dogs playing poker. Universally panned as ‘bad’ paintings, the most famous, ’A Friend in Need’, is one of the most recognized works of art today, still popular, and considered to be worth millions.
@sisters_.ink Watercolor on Hahnemühle Round Expression paper.
@Hahnemuehle_USA #HahnemühleFineArt
#WorldWatercolorGroup
Menger sponge
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
An illustration of M4, the sponge after four iterations of the construction process
In mathematics, the Menger sponge (also known as the Menger cube, Menger universal curve, Sierpinski cube, or Sierpinski sponge)[1][2][3] is a fractal curve. It is a three-dimensional generalization of the one-dimensional Cantor set and two-dimensional Sierpinski carpet. It was first described by Karl Menger in 1926, in his studies of the concept of topological dimension.[4][5]
Construction
The construction of a Menger sponge can be described as follows:
Begin with a cube.
Divide every face of the cube into nine squares, like a Rubik's Cube. This sub-divides the cube into 27 smaller cubes.
Remove the smaller cube in the middle of each face, and remove the smaller cube in the center of the more giant cube, leaving 20 smaller cubes. This is a level-1 Menger sponge (resembling a void cube).
Repeat steps two and three for each of the remaining smaller cubes, and continue to iterate ad infinitum.
The second iteration gives a level-2 sponge, the third iteration gives a level-3 sponge, and so on. The Menger sponge itself is the limit of this process after an infinite number of iterations.
An illustration of the iterative construction of a Menger sponge up to M3, the third iteration
Properties
Hexagonal cross-section of a level-4 Menger sponge. (Part of a series of cuts perpendicular to the space diagonal.)
The n nth stage of the Menger sponge, M n M_{n}, is made up of 20 n {\displaystyle 20^{n}} smaller cubes, each with a side length of (1/3)n. The total volume of M n M_{n} is thus ( 20 27 ) n {\textstyle \left({\frac {20}{27}}\right)^{n}}. The total surface area of M n M_{n} is given by the expression 2 ( 20 / 9 ) n + 4 ( 8 / 9 ) n {\displaystyle 2(20/9)^{n}+4(8/9)^{n}}.[6][7] Therefore, the construction's volume approaches zero while its surface area increases without bound. Yet any chosen surface in the construction will be thoroughly punctured as the construction continues so that the limit is neither a solid nor a surface; it has a topological dimension of 1 and is accordingly identified as a curve.
Each face of the construction becomes a Sierpinski carpet, and the intersection of the sponge with any diagonal of the cube or any midline of the faces is a Cantor set. The cross-section of the sponge through its centroid and perpendicular to a space diagonal is a regular hexagon punctured with hexagrams arranged in six-fold symmetry.[8] The number of these hexagrams, in descending size, is given by a n = 9 a n − 1 − 12 a n − 2 {\displaystyle a_{n}=9a_{n-1}-12a_{n-2}}, with a 0 = 1 , a 1 = 6 {\displaystyle a_{0}=1,\ a_{1}=6}.[9]
The sponge's Hausdorff dimension is log 20/log 3 ≅ 2.727. The Lebesgue covering dimension of the Menger sponge is one, the same as any curve. Menger showed, in the 1926 construction, that the sponge is a universal curve, in that every curve is homeomorphic to a subset of the Menger sponge, where a curve means any compact metric space of Lebesgue covering dimension one; this includes trees and graphs with an arbitrary countable number of edges, vertices and closed loops, connected in arbitrary ways. Similarly, the Sierpinski carpet is a universal curve for all curves that can be drawn on the two-dimensional plane. The Menger sponge constructed in three dimensions extends this idea to graphs that are not planar and might be embedded in any number of dimensions.
The Menger sponge is a closed set; since it is also bounded, the Heine–Borel theorem implies that it is compact. It has Lebesgue measure 0. Because it contains continuous paths, it is an uncountable set.
Experiments also showed that cubes with a Menger sponge structure could dissipate shocks five times better for the same material than cubes without any pores.[10]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bristol MMB 43 SS Great Britain.jpg
SS Great Britain in dry dock at Bristol in 2005.
History
Name:SS Great Britain
Owner:Great Western Steamship Company
Builder:William Patterson
Cost:
Projected: £70,000
Actual: £117,000
Laid down:July 1839
Launched:19 July 1843
Completed:1845
Maiden voyage:26 July 1845
In service:1845–1886
Homeport:Bristol, England
General characteristics
Type:Passenger steamship
Displacement:3,674 tons load draught
Length:322 ft (98 m)
Beam:50 ft 6 in (15.39 m)
Draught:16 ft (4.9 m)[1]
Installed power:2 × twin 88-inch (220 cm) cylinder, 6 ft (1.8 m) stroke, 500 hp (370 kW), 18 rpm inclined direct-acting steam engines
Propulsion:Single screw propeller
Sail plan:
Original: Five schooner-rigged and one square-rigged mast
After 1853: Three square-rigged masts
Speed:10 to 11 knots (19 to 20 km/h; 12 to 13 mph)
Capacity:
360 passengers, later increased to 730
1,200 tons of cargo
Complement:130 officers and crew (as completed)
SS Great Britain is a museum ship and former passenger steamship, which was advanced for her time. She was the longest passenger ship in the world from 1845 to 1854. She was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the Great Western Steamship Company's transatlantic service between Bristol and New York. While other ships had been built of iron or equipped with a screw propeller, Great Britain was the first to combine these features in a large ocean-going ship. She was the first iron steamer to cross the Atlantic, which she did in 1845, in the time of 14 days.
The ship is 322 ft (98 m) in length and has a 3,400-ton displacement. She was powered by two inclined 2 cylinder engines of the direct-acting type, with twin 88 in (220 cm) bore, 6-foot (1.8 m) stroke cylinders. She was also provided with secondary sail power. The four decks provided accommodation for a crew of 120, plus 360 passengers who were provided with cabins and dining and promenade saloons.
When launched in 1843, Great Britain was by far the largest vessel afloat. However, her protracted construction and high cost had left her owners in a difficult financial position, and they were forced out of business in 1846 having spent all their funds re-floating the ship after she was run aground at Dundrum Bay after a navigational error. In 1852 she was sold for salvage and repaired. Great Britain carried thousands of immigrants to Australia from 1852 until converted to sail in 1881. Three years later, she was retired to the Falkland Islands where she was used as a warehouse, quarantine ship and coal hulk until scuttled in 1937.[2]
In 1970, following a cash donation by Sir Jack Hayward that paid for the vessel to be towed back to the UK, Great Britain was returned to the Bristol dry dock where she was built. Now listed as part of the National Historic Fleet, she is an award-winning visitor attraction and museum ship in Bristol Harbour, with between 150,000 and 200,000 visitors annually.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
New College
University of Oxford
Latin name Collegium Novum/ Collegium Beatae Mariae Wynton in Oxon
Motto Manners Makyth Man
Founder William of Wykeham
Established 1379; 646 years ago
Named for St. Mary
Sister colleges King's College, Cambridge
Warden Miles Young
Undergraduates 430 (2023)
Postgraduates 360
Major events Commemoration ball
Grace Benedictus benedicat. May the Blessed One give a blessing Benedicto benedicatur. Let praise be given to the Blessed One
Endowment £347.7 million (2021)
Website www.new.ox.ac.uk
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first colleges in the university to admit and tutor undergraduate students.
The college is in the centre of Oxford, between Holywell Street and New College Lane (known for Oxford's Bridge of Sighs). Its sister college is King's College, Cambridge. The choir of New College has recorded over one hundred albums, and has won two Gramophone Awards.
History
Despite its name, New College is one of the oldest of the Oxford colleges; it was founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, as "Saint Mary College of Winchester in Oxenford", with both graduates and undergraduates. It became known as "New College" because there was already a college dedicated to St Mary in Oxford (Oriel College).
Foundation
In 1379 William of Wykeham decided to found a college. He applied to King Richard II for a royal charter permitting the foundation. In addition, he wrote a charter of his own, requiring his college to have a warden and seventy scholars. He purchased the necessary land in separate lots from the City of Oxford, Merton College and Queen's College. The area had been the City Ditch, a dangerous place by the city's wall; it had been used within living memory for burials during the Black Death.
The college was founded the same year in conjunction with a feeder school, Winchester College (founded 1382, opened 1394). The two institutions have striking architectural similarities: both were the work of master mason William Wynford. The first stone was laid on 5 March 1380. The college had occupied the buildings by 14 April 1386. William of Wykeham then drew up the statutes of the college. The coat of arms of the college is William of Wykeham's. It features two black chevrons, one said to have been added when he became a bishop and the other possibly representing his skill with architecture, since the chevron was a device used by masons. Winchester College uses the same arms. The college's motto, created by William of Wykeham, is "Manners Makyth Man".
New College was established to have prayers said for William of Wykeham's soul. He instructed that there were to be ten chaplains, three clerks and a choir of 16 choristers on the foundation of the college.
As well as being one of the first Oxford colleges to take undergraduates and to appoint tutors to teach them, New College was the first in Oxford to be deliberately designed around a main quadrangle. The college was about as large as all of the (six) existing Oxford colleges combined.
"Discover The Complete And Up-To-Date Encyclopedia That Shows How To Use The Healing Power Of Plants With Scientific, Accurate And Reliable Accuracy"
Introducing:
The Encyclopedia Of Medicinal Plants With a List of Medicinal Plants That Heal
Over 470 plants botanically described and classified by diseases.
From: James Luke
Tuesday, 11:24 a.m.
Dear Friend,
Inside of this encyclopedia is a large number of natural treatments described in a simple, clear language, correctly illustrated, placing the healing virtues of medicinal plants and their practical application methods within the reach of everyone. Experienced advice for the therapeutic preparation of fomentations, infusions, ointments, baths... Many charts describing the most frequent disorders and the plants endowed with the active agents that can heal them.
In each chapter the most important plants for the treatment of the diseases of a certain organ or system appear. When a single plant has several applications, as often happens, it is included in the chapter corresponding to its main application.
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...There is detailed information on the use and preparation for each plant.
In this encyclopedia you will find...
Plants for the eyes
The ___, raw or in juices is very good for the sight and for the skin in infusions and poultices.
Plants for the nervous system
___: The flowers and the leaves of this plant taken in infusions help to control and heal stress, insomnia, depressions, alcoholism, and drug addiction.
___: This plant also calms the nerves, beautifies the skin and protects the heart, using its flowers in infusions, or adding an infusion of it to bath water is very effective for insomnia or nervousness. Steam baths of its flowers also soften and beautify the skin.
Plants for the throat
___: Its flowers and its leaves in infusions, mouth rinse, mouth gargles and compresses are medicine for tonsillitis, pharyngitis and laryngitis.
___: Anti-inflammatory and astringent, the decoction of ___ or crushed ___, may be applied in any of the following ways:
Mouth rinses and gargles for ailments of the mouth and the throat.
Eye washes or blocked up noses
Vaginal irrigations
Sitz baths, for ailments of the anus or rectum
Arm baths, for chilblains
Plants for the heart
___: In infusions and under medical supervision, all the parts of this plant have properties to strengthen the heart, increase the strength of the cardiac contractions and to fight angina pectoris.
___: The infusion of its flowers and also its fruit are very effective for the treatment of palpitations, hypertension and other nervous cardio circulatory ailments.
Plants for the arteries
____: The decoction of the leaves of this plant is a powerful vasodilator of the arteries to the brain, to fight senile ailments, ageing and memory loss. ____ that is extracted from this prodigious plant is one of the most frequently used drugs today in the treatment of failure of the blood supply to the brain, migraines, hemorrhages, etc.
____: In mexico, and many other parts of the world, infusions of ____ and their young stems are used for bronchial colds and respiratory ailments. The oil from its seeds is rich in unsaturated fatty acids, as well as in vitamin E, A, and B. Therefore, it is particularly indicated for reducing the cholesterol levels in the blood, as well as for diabetes, kidneys and skin diseases.
Plants for the veins
___: A decoction of ____ nuts or wood is indicated to fight varicose veins, hemorrhoids and the disorders of menopause, using it in decoctions. In sitz baths it also alleviates urination disorders, pertaining to the prostate syndrome, cystitis or urinary incontinence. Likewise, it can be highly advisable for cases of hemorrhoids.
____: The oil of this plant is recommended for oily skin and for cases of acne. A decoction of the bark of the young branches and the leaves is used as a medicine in the case of heavy legs, varicose veins, phlebitis, in tisanes, compresses, hip baths and friction massages.
Plants for the respiratory system
____: The decoction of the leaves and the flowers has extraordinary properties, using it in infusions or essences to calm coughs, respiratory and digestive ailments. In baths, rinses, gargles, compresses and friction massages, it heals mouth and anal ailments, rheumatism and headaches, depression, asthenia and exhaustion.
____: Infusions of the dried leaves and flowers, used in tisanes give results in the cases of voice loss, acute bronchitis, bronco-pneumonia, asthma, and emphysema. ____ is also very helpful when stopping smoking, since it cleans the bronchial tubes of secretions, encouraging their elimination.
Plants for the digestive system
____: The infusions and essences of this plant are very appropriate for digestive ailments, colic's, flatulence, etc. Compresses, washes and friction massages are highly indicated for rheumatism, healing of wounds and eye washes.
____: Infusions of its leaves and flowered tops have properties to calm pain, they are invigorating and aphrodisiacs. It is recommended in cases of dyspepsia, intestinal wind, digestive spasms and colic, gastric atonia, hepatitis and physical exhaustion.
Plants for the stomach
____: The juice from this plants leaves heals peptic ulcers. Poultices of the leaves heal skin ulcers. It also improves acne.
____: The whole plant in infusions, mouth rinses and cleansing's help digestion increasing the gastric juices, it fights bad breath, it expulses intestinal parasites and calms menstrual pains.
Plants for the intestine
____: The leaves and seeds are a laxative par excellence, efficient and safe, it stimulates the motility of the large intestine and decreases the permeability of the intestine mucus.
____: The leaves and fruit, in infusions, irrigations, gargles, sitz baths and compresses reduce inflammation of the skin and the mucus. It heals digestive disorders, diarrhea, colitis and other ailments of the female genital system.
Plants for the anus and the rectum
____: All the parts of this vine hold healing properties: The leaves in infusions are medicine for vein circulatory ailments, hemorrhoids, chilblains, varicose veins, and diarrhea. The sap of the vine shoots heals skin irritations and irritated eyes. The ____ cure is very suitable for cleaning the blood. The oil from ____ seeds is highly applicable for excess of cholesterol.
____: It improves hemorrhoids taking a sitz bath with the decoction of the leaves and young buds, which also decreases the desire to smoke when chewed slowly. Also in poultices it is very useful to heal wounds, ulcers and boils.
Plants for the male sexual organ
____: The seeds reduce inflammation of the bladder and the prostate and expel intestinal parasites. The pulp of baked or boiled ____ is ideal for those suffering from digestive problems and kidney ailments.
____: This plant is normally presented in pharmaceutical preparations, it invigorates without exciting and without creating dependence increasing the energy production in the cells, therefore it increases sexual capacity and spermatozoid production, invigorating the organism in general.
Plants for the metabolism
____: infusions of the leaves are very useful in slimming diets due to its diuretic, depurative and anti cholesterol action.
____: It fights obesity and cellulite. Its algae have the property of removing the appetite and it is a gentle laxative.
Plants for the locomotive system
____: Poultices of fresh leaves alleviate rheumatic pain and inflammatory of the joints.
____: In infusions, essences, baths, frictions massages, fomentations and compresses it has invigorating properties for exhaustion, kidney colic, and rheumatism.
Plants for the skin
____: From the pulp of its leaves, the gel or juice is obtained which, when applied locally, in compresses, lotions, creams or pharmaceutical preparations, exercises beneficial effects on: wounds, burns, eczema, psoriasis, acne, fungi and herpes. It beautifies the skin and improves the appearance of scars.
____: The leaves and flowers in infusions or oil are an excellent remedy for burns, it moderates the inflammatory reaction, it has a local anesthetic effect, digestive, balancer of the nervous system and antidepressant.
Plants for infectious diseases
____: All the parts of this plant are natural antibiotics against respiratory and urinary infections. It encourages the functions of the skin. It acts against baldness.
____: It is a plant that has multiple anti-infectious properties with healing powers for the nervous system, digestive, respiratory and genital-urinary systems.
More Testimonials
Thank you for the encyclopedia books "The Foods With Their Healing Power and Medicinal Plants". I am Learning lots of information from them. This will be of great benefit to me when referring to the healing powers of foods. I will use this information in my chiropractic office when teaching about healthy eating to my patients. It is good to know that there are books that can provide this type of vital information to those who are willing to benefit from the information. Again thanks for these incredible books.
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The Encyclopedia "Foods And Their Healing Power," Whose author is Dr. Jorge Pamplona Roger is a complete work, well structured, didactic and easy to understand for any kind of reader and of great value both for professionals and students in this field.
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It is my pleasure to recommend a set of books that I used and believe to be quite informational: Foods And Their Healing Power and Medicinal Plants. As a Fellow, in the Medical Fellowship Program at Wildwood Lifestyle Center and Hospital, I have found these books to be quite helpful. They provide accurate nutritional information for a wide array of foods found throughout the world and they include a list of medicinal plants with their properties and mechanisms of action. In addition, they are written without the usual heavy jargon, which makes them appealing to healthcare professionals, non-health care persons and children. The quality is superb and the material is presented in a colorful way. I have recommended them, on numerous occasions, to guests and patients at the Wildwood Lifestyle Center and Hospital. This set of books will complement the home and any other learning enviroments.
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Please feel free to use me as a reference if anyone medical or non-medical needs further insight on these very valuable tools. Thanks again and God bless you!
-Bobby E. Scales, MD
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The value of this encyclopedia lies in its rational and truly practical focus point for healing and preventing the diseases of your family, without the disadvantages that most medicines have.
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Tel. 786-307-4077
... just because I'm Kurdish ...
Iraqi Kurdistan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Capital
(and largest city) Erbil
36°11′N 44°00′E / 36.183, 44
Official languages Kurdish[1]
Government Parliamentary democracy
- President Massoud Barzani
- Prime Minister Nechervan Idris Barzani
- Deputy Prime Minister Omer Fattah Hussain
Formation of Autonomous Region
- Autonomy accord agreement signed March 11, 1970
- Autonomy accord collapsed March, 1974
- Gained de facto independence October, 1991
- The TAL recognized the autonomy of the KRG as full sovereignty. January 30, 2005
Area
- Total 80,000 km2 (117th)
30,888 sq mi
Population
- 2008 estimate 7,000,000 (108th)
- Density 40/km2 (166th)
15/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2007 estimate
- Total 27 billion (not ranked)
- Per capita $5,500 (not ranked)
HDI (As of 2006) n/a (n/a) (not ranked)
Currency Iraqi Dinar is the offical currency, American Dollar widely accepted in all business transactions (IQD)
Time zone (UTC+3)
- Summer (DST) (UTC+4)
Internet TLD Various
Calling code 964
Iraqi Kurdistan Region (Kurdish: هه رێمى كوردستان عێراق, Herêmi Kurdistan Iraq, Arabic:إقليم كردستان العراق , Iqlĩm Kurdistãn al-‘Irāq , also Southern Kurdistan and in Kurdish: باشووری کوردستان ) is an autonomous,[2] federally recognized political, ethnic and economic region of Iraq. It borders Iran to the east, Turkey to the north, and Syria to the west and the rest of Iraq to the South. Its capital is the city of Erbil, known in Kurdish as Hewlêr.
Etymology
The name Kurdistan literally means Land of the Kurds. The term Kurd in turn is derived from the Latin word Cordueni, i.e. the of the ancient Kingdom of Corduene, which became a Roman province in 66 BC.
In the Iraqi Constitution, it is referred to as Kurdistan Region.[3]. The regional government refers to it as Kurdistan-Iraq (or simply Kurdistan region) but avoids using Iraqi Kurdistan.[4] The full name of the local government is "Kurdistan Regional Government" (abbrev: KRG.)
Kurds also refer to the region as Kurdistana Başûr (South Kurdistan) or Başûrî Kurdistan (Southern Kurdistan or South of Kurdistan) referring to its geographical location within the whole of the greater Kurdistan region.
During the Baath Party administration in the '70s and '80s, the region was called "Kurdish Autonomous Region".
[edit] History
[edit] Ottoman Period
Main articles: Ottoman Empire, Mamluk rule in Iraq, Mesopotamian campaign, and Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire
The area today known as Iraqi Kurdistan was formerly ruled by three principalities of Baban, Badinan and Soran. In 1831, the direct Ottoman rule was imposed and lasted until World War I, during which the Ottomans sided with Germany and the Central Powers.
[edit] British Mandate
During World War I the British and French divided Western Asia in the Sykes-Picot Agreement. The Treaty of Sèvres, which was ratified in the Treaty of Lausanne, led to the advent of modern Western Asia and Republic of Turkey. The League of Nations granted France mandates over Syria and Lebanon and granted the United Kingdom mandates over Iraq and Palestine (which then consisted of two autonomous regions: Palestine and Transjordan). Parts of the Ottoman Empire on the Arabian Peninsula became parts of what are today Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
[edit] Kurdish revolts
On December 1, 1918, during a meeting in Sulaymaniyah with Colonel Arnold Wilson, the Acting Civil Commissioner for Mesopotamia, Kurdish leaders called for British support for a united and independent Kurdistan under British protection. Between 1919 and 1922, Shaikh Mahmud Barzanji, an influential Kurdish leader based in Sulaymaniyah, formed a Kurdish government and led two revolts against the British rule. It took the British authorities two years to put down his uprisings. The first revolt began on May 22, 1919 with the arrest of British officials in Sulaymaniyah and it quickly spread to Mosul and Erbil. The British employed aerial bombardments, artillery, ground combat, and on one occasion, chemical gas, in an attempt to quell the uprising.[5] Then the British exiled Mahmoud to India. In July 1920, 62 tribal leaders of the region, called for the independence of Kurdistan under a British mandate. The objection of the British to Kurdish self-rule sprang from the fear that success of an independent Kurdish area would tempt the two Arab areas of Baghdad and Basra to follow suit, hence endangering the direct British control over all Mesopotamia. In 1922, Britain restored Shaikh Mahmoud to power, hoping that he would organize the Kurds to act as a buffer against the Turks, who had territorial claims over Mosul and Kirkuk. Shaikh Mahmoud declared a Kurdish Kingdom with himself as King, though later he agreed to limited autonomy within the new state of Iraq. In 1930, following the announcement of the admission of Iraq to the League of Nations, Shaikh Mahmoud started a third uprising which was suppressed with British air and ground forces.[6][7]
By 1927, the Barzani clan had become vocal supporters of Kurdish rights in Iraq. In 1929, the Barzani demanded the formation of a Kurdish province in northern Iraq. Emboldened by these demands, in 1931 Kurdish notables petitioned the League of Nations to set up an independent Kurdish government. Under pressure from the Iraqi government and the British, the most influential leader of the clan, Mustafa Barzani was forced into exile in Iran in 1945. Later he moved to the Soviet Union after the collapse of the Republic of Mahabad in 1946.[8]
[edit] Barzani Revolts 1960-1975 and their Aftermath
After the military coup by Abdul Karim Qasim in 1958, Barzani was able to return from exile and set up his own political party, Kurdistan Democratic Party, which was granted legal status in 1960. Soon afterwards, Qasim incited the Baradost and Zebari tribes against Barzani. In June 1961, Barzani led his first revolt against the Iraqi government with the aim of securing Kurdish autonomy. Due to the disarray in the Iraqi Army after the 1958 coup, Qasim's government was not able to subdue the insurrection. This stalemate irritated powerful factions within the military and is said to be one of the main reasons behind the Baathist coup against Qasim in February 1963. Abdul Salam Arif declared a ceasefire in February 1964 which provoked a split among Kurdish urban radicals on one hand and traditional forces led by Barzani on the other. Barzani agreed to the ceasefire and fired the radicals from the party. Despite this, the government in Baghdad tried once more to defeat Barzani's movement by force. This campaign failed in 1966, when Barzani forces defeated the Iraqi Army near Rawanduz. After this, Arif announced a 12-point peace program in June 1966, which was not implemented due to the overthrow of Arif in a 1968 coup by the Baath Party. The Baath government started a campaign to end the Kurdish insurrection, which stalled in 1969. This can be partly attributed to the internal power struggle in Baghdad and also tensions with Iran. Moreover, the Soviets pressured the Iraqis to come to terms with Barzani. A peace plan was announced in March 1970 and provided for broader Kurdish autonomy. The plan also gave Kurds representation in government bodies, to be implemented in four years.[9] Despite this, the Iraqi government embarked on an Arabization program in the oil rich regions of Kirkuk and Khanaqin in the same period.[10] In the following years, Baghdad government overcame its internal divisions and concluded a treaty of friendship with the Soviet Union in April 1972 and ended its isolation within the Arab world. On the other hand, Kurds remained dependent on the Iranian military support and could do little to strengthen their forces.
[edit] The Algiers Agreement
In 1974, Iraqi government began a new offensive against the Kurds and pushed them close to the border with Iran. Iraq informed Tehran that it was willing to satisfy other Iranian demands in return for an end to its aid to the Kurds. With mediation by Algerian President Houari Boumédiènne, Iran and Iraq reached a comprehensive settlement in March 1975 known as the Algiers Pact. The agreement left the Kurds helpless and Tehran cut supplies to the Kurdish movement. Barzani fled to Iran with many of his supporters. Others surrendered en masse and the rebellion ended after a few days. As a result Iraqi government extended its control over the northern region after 15 years and in order to secure its influence, started an Arabization program by moving Arabs to the oil fields in Kurdistan, particularly the ones around Kirkuk.[11] The repressive measures carried out by the government against the Kurds after the Algiers agreement led to renewed clashes between the Iraqi Army and Kurdish guerrillas in 1977. In 1978 and 1979, 600 Kurdish villages were burned down and around 200,000 Kurds were deported to the other parts of the country.[12]
[edit] Iran–Iraq War and Anfal Campaign
During the Iran–Iraq War, the Iraqi government again implemented anti-Kurdish policies and a de facto civil war broke out. Iraq was widely-condemned by the international community, but was never seriously punished for oppressive measures, including the use of chemical weapons against the Kurds, which resulted in thousands of deaths. (See Halabja poison gas attack.)
The Al-Anfal Campaign constituted a systematic genocide of the Kurdish people in Iraq. From March 29, 1987 until April 23, 1989, Iraqi army under the command of Ali Hassan al-Majid carried out a genocidal campaign against the Kurds, characterized by the following human rights violations: The widespread use of chemical weapons, the wholesale destruction of some 2,000 villages, and slaughter of around 50,000 rural Kurds, by the most conservative estimates. The large Kurdish town of Qala Dizeh (population 70,000) was completely destroyed by the Iraqi army. The campaign also included Arabization of Kirkuk, a program to drive Kurds out of the oil-rich city and replace them with Arab settlers from central and southern Iraq.[13] Kurdish sources report the number of dead to be greater than 182,000.[14]
[edit] After the Persian Gulf War
The Kurdistan Region was originally established in 1970 as the Kurdish Autonomous Region following the agreement of an Autonomy Accord between the government of Iraq and leaders of the Iraqi Kurdish community. A Legislative Assembly was established in the city of Erbil with theoretical authority over the Kurdish-populated governorates of Erbil, Dahuk and As Sulaymaniyah. In practice, however, the assembly created in 1970 was under the control of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein until the 1991 uprising against his rule following the end of the Persian Gulf War. Concern for safety of Kurdish refugees was reflected in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 which gave birth to a safe haven, in which U.S. and British air power protected a Kurdish zone inside Iraq.[15] (see Operation Provide Comfort). While the no-fly zone covered Dahuk and Erbil, it left out Sulaymaniyah and Kirkuk. Then following several bloody clashes between Iraqi forces and Kurdish troops, an uneasy and shaky balance of power was reached, and the Iraqi government withdrew its military and other personnel from the region in October 1991. At the same time, Iraq imposed an economic blockade over the region, reducing its oil and food supplies.[16] The region thus gained de facto independence, being ruled by the two principal Kurdish parties – the Kurdish Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan – outside the control of Baghdad. The region has its own flag and national anthem.
Elections held in June 1992 produced an inconclusive outcome, with the assembly divided almost equally between the two main parties and their allies. During this period, the Kurds were subjected to a double embargo: one imposed by the United Nations on Iraq and one imposed by Saddam Hussein on their region. The severe economic hardships caused by the embargoes, fueled tensions between the two dominant political parties: Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iraq (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) over control of trade routes and resources.[17] This led to internecine and intra-Kurdish conflict and warfare between 1994 and 1996. After 1996, 13% of the Iraqi oil sales were allocated for Iraqi Kurdistan and this led to a relative prosperity in the region.[18] Direct United States mediation led the two parties to a formal ceasefire in Washington Agreement in September 1998. It is also argued that the Oil for Food Program from 1997 onward had an important effect on cessation of hostilities.[19] Kurdish parties joined forces against the Iraqi government in the Operation Iraqi Freedom in Spring 2003. The Kurdish military forces known as peshmerga played a key role in the overthrow of the former Iraqi government.[20]
KDP and PUK have united to form an alliance with several smaller parties, and the Kurdish alliance has 53 deputies in the new Baghdad parliament, while the Kurdish Islamic Union has 5. PUK-leader Jalal Talabani has been elected President of the new Iraqi administration, while KDP leader Massoud Barzani is President of the Kurdistan Regional Government.
[edit] Politics
Main article: Kurdistan Regional Government
President George W. Bush talks to reporters as he welcomes Massoud Barzani, the President of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, to the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Oct 25, 2005.Since 1992, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has been based in Erbil. The KRG has a parliament, elected by popular vote, called the Iraqi Kurdistan National Assembly, and a cabinet composed of the KDP, the PUK and their allies (Iraqi Communist Party, the Socialist Party of Kurdistan etc.). Nechervan Idris Barzani has been prime minister of the KRG since 1999.
After the 2003 Invasion of Iraq Kurdish politicians were represented in the Iraqi governing council. On January 30, 2005 three elections were held in the region: 1) for Transitional National Assembly of Iraq 2) for Iraqi Kurdistan National Assembly and 3) for provincial councils.[21] The Law of Administration for the State of Iraq for the Transitional Period recognized the autonomy of the Kurdistan Regional Government during the interim between "full sovereignty" and the adoption of a permanent constitution.
The Kurdistan Regional Government currently has constitutionally recognised authority over the provinces of Erbil, Dahuk, and As Sulaymaniyah, as well as de facto authority over half of Kirkuk (at-Ta'mim) province and parts of Diyala, Salah ad-Din and Ninawa provinces.
[edit] Economy
The Kurdistan region's economy is dominated by the oil industry, agriculture and tourism[22]. Due to relative peace in the region it has a more developed economy in comparison to other parts of Iraq.
Prior to the removal of Saddam Hussein, the Kurdistan Regional Government received approximately 13% of the revenues from Iraq's Oil-for-Food Program. By the time of the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, the program had disbursed $8.35 billion to the KRG. Iraqi Kurdistan's food security allowed for substantially more of the funds to be spent on development projects than in the rest of Iraq. By the program's end in 2003 $4 billion of the KRG's oil-for-food funds remained unspent.
Following the removal of Saddam Hussein's administration and the subsequent violence, the three provinces fully under the Kurdistan Regional Government's control were the only three in Iraq to be ranked "secure" by the US military. The relative security and stability of the region has allowed the KRG to sign a number of investment contracts with foreign companies. In 2006 the first new oil well since the invasion of Iraq was drilled in the Kurdistan region by the Norwegian energy company DNO. Initial indications are that the oil field contains at least 100 million barrels (16,000,000 m3) of oil and will be pumping 5,000 bpd by early 2007. The KRG has signed exploration agreements with two other oil companies, Canada's Western Oil Sands and the UK's Sterling Energy.
The stability of the Kurdistan region has allowed it to achieve a higher level of development than other regions in Iraq. In 2004 the per capita income was 25% higher than in the rest of Iraq. Two international airports at Erbil (see Erbil International Airport and Sulaymaniyah (see Sulaimaniyah International Airport) both operate flights to Middle Eastern and European destinations. The government continues to receive a portion of the revenue from Iraq's oil exports, and the government will soon implement a unified foreign investment law. The KRG also has plans to build a media city in Erbil and free trade zones near the borders of Turkey and Iran.
The region still gets a cut from Iraqi-Turkish trade, plus subsidies from the United States[citation needed] and Israel[citation needed].
Since 2003, the stronger economy of Kurdistan has attracted around 20,000 workers from other parts of Iraq.[23] According to Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, since 2003 the number of millionaires in the Kurdish city of Silêmani has increased from 12 to 2000, reflecting the financial and economic growth of the region.[24]
[edit] Geography
A popular waterfall near Erbil.The Iraqi Kurdistan is largely mountainous, with the highest point being a 3,611 m (11,847 ft) point known locally as Cheekah Dar (black tent). There are many rivers flowing and running through mountains of the region making it distinguished by its fertile lands, plentiful water, picturesque nature.
The mountainous nature of Kurdistan, the difference of temperatures in its various parts, and its wealth of waters, make Kurdistan a land of agriculture and tourism. In addition to various minerals, oil in particular, which for a long time was being extracted via pipeline only in Kurdistan through Iraq.
The largest lake in the region is Lake Dukan.
The term "Northern Iraq" is a bit of a geographical ambiguity in usage. "North" typically refers to the Kurdistan Region. "Center" and "South" or "Center-South" when individually referring to the other areas of Iraq or the rest of the country that is not the Kurdistan Region. Most media sources continually refer to "North" and "Northern Iraq" as anywhere north of Baghdad.
[edit] Governorates
Iraqi Kurdistan is divided among seven governorates of which currently three are under the control of the Kurdistan Regional Government. These governorates are called in Kurdish parêzge. Particularly in Iraqi government documents, the term governorate is preferred:
Autonomous Region KurdistanThe governorates wholly under the Kurdistan Regional Government are:
1. As Sulaymaniyah (Slêmanî)
2. Erbil (Hewlêr)
3. Dahuk (Duhok)
Main article: Kirkuk status referendum, 2008
The governorates claimed totally or in part by the Kurdistan Regional Government are:
4. Kirkuk (Kerkûk) - (all)
5. Diyala - Kifri Khanaqin and Baladrooz districts
6. Ninawa - Akra, Shekhan, Al-Shikhan, Al-Hamdaniya, Tel Kaif, Tall Afar and Sinjar districts
7. Salah ad Din - Tooz district
8. Wasit - Badrah district
A referendum was scheduled to be held on 15 November 2007 to determine whether these governorates, or parts of them, will be included in the Kurdish Regional Government. The referendum is intended to cover all districts of Kirkuk Governorate, the Khanaquin and Kifri districts of Diyala Governorate, the Touz-Khur-Mati district of Salah ad Din Governorate, and the Akra and Shekan districts of Ninewa Governorate. This referendum has been postponed, first to 31 December 2007, and subsequently for up to a further six months. Kurds insist that the referendum be held as soon as possible.
[edit] Demographics
Ethnic and religious distribution of Iraq.The population is about 5-6 million. 95% of these are Kurdish Muslims who are Sunnis. There are also significant numbers of Yazidis, Kakeyís, Jews and Christians. Kurds comprise the ethnic majority in the region (about 95%) while the Turkmen, Assyrians, Armenians and Arabs who reside particularly in the western part of the area make up the rest.
[edit] Culture
Main article: Kurdish culture
A Kurdish woman makes breadKurdish culture is a group of distinctive cultural traits practiced by Kurdish people. The Kurdish culture is a legacy from the various ancient peoples who shaped modern Kurds and their society, but primarily of two layers of indigenous (Hurrian), and of the ancient Iranic (Medes).
Among their neighbours, the Kurdish culture is closest to Iranian culture . For example they celebrate Newroz as the new year day, which is celebrated on March 21. It is the first day of the month of Xakelêwe in Kurdish calendar and the first day of spring.[25]
[edit] Music
Main article: Kurdish music
Traditionally, there are three types of Kurdish classical performers - storytellers (çîrokbêj), minstrels (stranbêj) and bards (dengbêj). There was no specific music related to the Kurdish princely courts, and instead, music performed in night gatherings (şevbihêrk) is considered classical. Several musical forms are found in this genre. Many songs are epic in nature, such as the popular lawiks which are heroic ballads recounting the tales of Kurdish heroes of the past like Saladin. Heyrans are love ballads usually expressing the melancholy of separation and unfulfilled love. Lawje is a form of religious music and Payizoks are songs performed specifically in autumn. Love songs, dance music, wedding and other celebratory songs (dîlok/narînk), erotic poetry and work songs are also popular.
[edit] Military
Main article: Peshmerga
Peshmerga is the term used by Kurds to refer to armed Kurdish fighters, they have been labelled by some as freedom fighters. Literally meaning "those who face death" (pêş front + merg death e is) the peshmerga forces of Kurdistan have been around since the advent of the Kurdish independence movement in the early 1920s, following the collapse of the Ottoman and Qajar empires which had jointly ruled over the area known today as Kurdistan.
Peshmerga forces also played a significant role with coalition troops in the war against the Ba'ath government in Northern Iraq.
I immaturely re-arranged a series of books so that the spines read something other than the intended phrase, 'World Book'. This is why I'm not allowed in libraries anymore.
Aufklärungspanzer 38(t) mit 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24
Specialized reconnaissance versions. Aufklärungspanzer 38(t) mit 2cm KwK 38 (50-70 built) and Aufklärungspanzer 38(t) mit 7.5cm KwK 37 (only 2 prototypes). (52 or 72 built 1944-45)
-tanks-encyclopedia
I finally found these pink pepper berries, so lovely to decorate with !
Don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission !!!
© all rights reserved Lily aenee
The Encyclopedias are from 1946 and 1949...
Taken for the AAW Challenge: Forgotten
Placed the old books which are very delicate on a black surface, natural light and edited the exposure..Used my small sony camera..
Photo inspired by Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries.
Two photos were combined. I created the fairy using a vintage doll and adding paper wings and susending with invisible wire.
Books - The Flickr Lounge
14/365 pictures in 2018
© All Rights Reserved. Please do not use or reproduce this image on Websites/Blog or any other media without my explicit permission.
The Encyclopedia Britannica is a relic from the past as everything is online now, and the online searches are more up-to-date and much faster.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Eurasian siskin (Spinus spinus) is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is also called the European siskin, common siskin or just siskin. Other (archaic) names include black-headed goldfinch, barley bird and aberdevine. It is very common throughout Europe and Eurosiberia. It is found in forested areas, both coniferous and mixed woodland where it feeds on seeds of all kinds, especially of alder and conifers.
It can be distinguished from other similar finches by the colour of the plumage. The upper parts are greyish green and the under parts grey-streaked white. Its wings are black with a conspicuous yellow wing bar, and the tail is black with yellow sides. The male has a mainly yellow face and breast, with a neat black cap. Female and young birds have a greyish green head and no cap. It is a trusting, sociable and active bird. The song of this bird is a pleasant mix of twitters and trills. For these reasons it is often raised in captivity.
These birds have an unusual migration pattern as every few years in winter they migrate southwards in large numbers. The reasons for this behaviour are not known but may be related to climatic factors and above all the availability of food. In this way overwintering populations can thrive where food is abundant. This small finch is an acrobatic feeder, often hanging upside-down like a tit. It will visit garden bird feeding stations.
Scan of a cover of the 1956 Grollier Encyclopedia. I used gradient layers to bring out the textural detail.
For your texturing and layering pleasure! Feel free to use in your own work, just don't resell or redistribute this original work as your own!
Mary of Teck
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mary of Teck
Queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions; Empress consort of India
Tenure6 May 1910 – 20 January 1936
Coronation22 June 1911
SpouseGeorge V of the United Kingdom
Issue
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, later Duke of Windsor
George VI of the United Kingdom
Mary, Princess Royal, Countess of Harewood
Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester
Prince George, Duke of Kent
Prince John
Full name
Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes
HouseHouse of Windsor
House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha
House of Württemberg
FatherFrancis, Duke of Teck
MotherPrincess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge
Born26 May 1867
Kensington Palace, London
Died24 March 1953 (aged 85)
Marlborough House, London
Burial31 March 1953
St George's Chapel, Windsor
Mary of Teck (Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes; 26 May 1867 – 24 March 1953) was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V. By birth, she was a princess of Teck, in the Kingdom of Württemberg, with the style Serene Highness. To her family, she was informally known as May, after her birth month.
Her father, who was of German extraction, married into the British Royal Family, and "May" was born and brought up in the United Kingdom. At the age of 24 she was betrothed to Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale, the second in line to the British throne, but six weeks after the announcement of the engagement he unexpectedly died of pneumonia. The following year she became engaged to Albert Victor's next surviving brother, George, who subsequently became king. Before her husband's accession, she was successively Duchess of York, Duchess of Cornwall, and Princess of Wales. As his queen consort from 1910, she supported her husband through World War I, his ill-health, and major political changes arising from the aftermath of the war and the rise of socialism and nationalism. After George's death in 1936, her eldest son Edward became King-Emperor, but to her dismay he abdicated the same year in order to marry twice-divorced American socialite Mrs. Wallis Simpson. She supported her second son, Albert, who succeeded to the throne as George VI, until his death in 1952. She died the following year, at the beginning of the reign of her granddaughter, Elizabeth II. Briefly, there were three queens in the country: Mary; her daughter-in-law, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother; and Elizabeth II.
Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Engagements
3 Duchess of York
4 Princess of Wales
5 Queen consort
6 Queen Mother
7 Legacy
8 Titles, styles, honours and arms
8.1 Titles and styles
8.2 Honours
8.3 Arms
9 Ancestry
10 Issue
11 See also
12 Notes and sources
13 References
14 External links
[edit]Early life
Princess Victoria Mary ("May") of Teck was born on 26 May 1867 at Kensington Palace, London. Her father was Prince Francis, Duke of Teck, the son of Duke Alexander of Württemberg by his morganatic wife, Countess Claudine Rhédey von Kis-Rhéde. Her mother was Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge, the third child and younger daughter of Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge, and Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel. She was baptised in the Chapel Royal of Kensington Palace on 27 July 1867 by Charles Thomas Longley, Archbishop of Canterbury, and her three godparents were Queen Victoria, the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII and May's father-in-law), and Princess Augusta, the Duchess of Cambridge.[1]
May's upbringing was "merry but fairly strict".[2] She was the eldest of four children, the only girl, and "learned to exercise her native discretion, firmness and tact" by resolving her three younger brothers' petty boyhood squabbles.[3] They played with their cousins, the children of the Prince of Wales, who were similar in age.[4] May was educated at home by her mother and governess (as were her brothers until they were sent to boarding schools).[5] The Duchess of Teck spent an unusually long time with her children for a lady of her time and class,[2] and enlisted May in various charitable endeavours, which included visiting the tenements of the poor.[6]
Although her mother was a grandchild of King George III, May was only a minor member of the British Royal Family. Her father, the Duke of Teck, had no inheritance or wealth, and carried the lower royal style of Serene Highness because his parents' marriage was morganatic.[7] However, the Duchess of Teck was granted a Parliamentary Annuity of £5000, and received about £4000 a year from her mother, the Duchess of Cambridge.[8] Despite this, the family was deeply in debt and lived abroad from 1883, in order to economise.[9] The Tecks travelled throughout Europe, visiting their various relations. They stayed in Florence, Italy, for a time, where May enjoyed visiting the art galleries, churches and museums.[10]
In 1885, the Tecks returned to London, and took up residence at White Lodge, in Richmond Park. May was close to her mother, and acted as an unofficial secretary, helping to organise parties and social events. She was also close to her aunt, the Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (née Princess Augusta of Cambridge), and wrote to her every week. During World War I, the Crown Princess of Sweden helped pass letters from May to her aunt, who lived in enemy territory in Germany until her death in 1916.[11]
[edit]Engagements
Princess Victoria Mary shortly before her marriage to the Duke of York in 1893
In December 1891, May was engaged to her second cousin, once-removed, Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale, the eldest son of the Prince of Wales.[12] The choice of May as bride for the Duke owed much to Queen Victoria's fondness for her, as well as to her strong character and sense of duty. However, the Duke of Clarence and Avondale died six weeks later during the worldwide influenza pandemic that swept through Britain in the winter of 1891–2.[13]
Albert Victor's brother, Prince George, Duke of York, now second in line to the throne, evidently became close to May during their shared period of mourning, and Queen Victoria still favoured May as a suitable candidate to marry a future king.[14] In May 1893, George proposed, and May accepted. They were soon deeply in love, and their marriage was a success. George wrote to May every day they were apart and, unlike his father, never took a mistress.[15]
[edit]Duchess of York
See also: Wedding of Prince George, Duke of York, and Princess Mary of Teck
May married Prince George, Duke of York, on 6 July 1893 at the Chapel Royal, St. James's Palace, in London.[16] The new Duke and Duchess of York lived in York Cottage on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, and in apartments in St. James's Palace. York Cottage was a modest house for royalty, but it was a favourite of George, who liked a relatively simple life.[17] They had six children: Edward, Albert, Mary, Henry, George, and John.
Princess Victoria Mary, The Duchess of Cornwall and York. Ottawa, 1901
The Duchess loved her children, but she put them in the care of a nanny, as was usual in upper-class families at the time. The first nanny was dismissed for insolence and the second for abusing the children. This second woman, anxious to suggest that the children preferred her to anyone else, would pinch Edward and Albert whenever they were about to be presented to their parents, so that they would start crying and be speedily returned to her. On discovery, she was replaced by her effective and much-loved assistant, Mrs. Bill.[18]
Sometimes, Queen Mary appears to have been a distant mother. At first, she failed to notice the nanny's abuse of the young Princes Edward and Albert,[19] and her youngest son, Prince John, was housed in a private farm on the Sandringham Estate, in the care of Mrs. Bill, perhaps to hide his epilepsy from the public. However, despite her austere public image and her strait-laced private life, Mary was a caring mother in many respects, revealing a fun-loving and frivolous side to her children and teaching them history and music. Edward wrote fondly of his mother in his memoirs: "Her soft voice, her cultivated mind, the cosy room overflowing with personal treasures were all inseparable ingredients of the happiness associated with this last hour of a child's day ... Such was my mother's pride in her children that everything that happened to each one was of the utmost importance to her. With the birth of each new child, Mama started an album in which she painstakingly recorded each progressive stage of our childhood".[20] He expressed a less charitable view, however, in private letters to his wife after his mother's death: "My sadness was mixed with incredulity that any mother could have been so hard and cruel towards her eldest son for so many years and yet so demanding at the end without relenting a scrap. I'm afraid the fluids in her veins have always been as icy cold as they are now in death."[21]
As Duke and Duchess of York, George and May carried out a variety of public duties. In 1897, she became the Patron of the London Needlework Guild in succession to her mother. The Guild, initially established as The London Guild in 1882, was renamed several times, and was named after Mary between 1914 and 2010.[22]
On 22 January 1901, Queen Victoria died, and May's father-in-law, Albert Edward, ascended the throne as King Edward VII. For most of the rest of that year, George and May were styled TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York. For eight months they toured the British Empire, visiting Gibraltar, Malta, Egypt, Ceylon, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Mauritius, South Africa and Canada. No royal had undertaken such an ambitious tour before. She broke down in tears at the thought of leaving her children, who were to be left in the care of their grandparents, for such a lengthy period of time.[23]
[edit]Princess of Wales
The Princess of Wales at court, 1902
On 9 November 1901, nine days after arriving back in Britain and on the King's sixtieth birthday, George was created Prince of Wales. The family moved their London residence from St James's Palace to Marlborough House. As Princess of Wales, May accompanied her husband on trips to Austria-Hungary and Württemberg in 1904. The following year, she gave birth to her last child, John. It was a difficult labour, and although May recovered quickly, her newborn son suffered respiratory problems.[24]
From October 1905 the Prince and Princess of Wales undertook another eight month tour, this time of India, and the children were once again left in the care of their grandparents.[25] They passed through Egypt both ways and on the way back stopped in Greece. The tour was almost immediately followed by a trip to Spain for the wedding of King Alfonso XIII to Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg, at which the bride and groom narrowly avoided assassination.[26] Only a week after returning to Britain, May and George went to Norway for the coronation of King Haakon VII and Queen Maud (George's sister).
[edit]Queen consort
King George V and Queen Mary
Queen Mary with her daughter Princess Mary during World War I.
On 6 May 1910, Edward VII died. The Prince of Wales ascended the throne as George V, and Mary became queen consort. When her husband asked her to drop one of her two official names, Victoria Mary, she chose to be called Mary, preferring not to take the name of her husband's grandmother, Queen Victoria.[27] Queen Mary was crowned with the King on 22 June 1911 at Westminster Abbey. Later in the year, the new King and Queen travelled to India for the Delhi Durbar held on 12 December 1911, and toured the sub-continent as Emperor and Empress of India, returning to Britain in February.[28] The beginning of Mary's period as consort brought her into conflict with the Dowager Queen Alexandra. Although the two were on friendly terms, Alexandra could be stubborn; she demanded precedence over Mary at the funeral of Edward VII, was slow in leaving Buckingham Palace, and kept some of the royal jewels that should have been passed to the new queen.[29]
During World War I, Queen Mary instituted an austerity drive at the palace, where she rationed food, and visited wounded and dying servicemen in hospital, which she found a great emotional strain.[30] After three years of war against Germany, and with anti-German feeling in Britain running high, the Russian Imperial Family, which had been deposed by a revolutionary government, was refused asylum, possibly in part because the Tsar's wife was German-born.[31] News of the Tsar's abdication provided a boost to those in Britain who wished to replace the monarchy with a republic.[32] After republicans used the couple's German heritage as an argument for reform, George abandoned his German titles and renamed the Royal House from the German "Saxe-Coburg and Gotha" to the English "Windsor". Other royals anglicised their names; the Battenbergs became the Mountbattens, for example. The Queen's relatives also abandoned their German titles, and adopted the British surname of Cambridge (derived from the Dukedom held by Queen Mary's British grandfather). The war ended in 1918 with the defeat of Germany and the abdication and exile of the Kaiser.
Teck-Cambridge Family
Francis, Duke of Teck[show]
Adolphus, Marquess of Cambridge[show]
Alexander, Earl of Athlone[show]
Two months after the end of the war, Queen Mary's youngest son, John, died at the age of thirteen. She described her shock and sorrow in her diary and letters, extracts of which were published after her death: "our poor darling little Johnnie had passed away suddenly ... The first break in the family circle is hard to bear but people have been so kind & sympathetic & this has helped us [the King and me] much."[33] Her staunch support of her husband continued during the latter half of his reign. She advised him on speeches, and used her extensive knowledge of history and royalty to advise him on certain matters affecting his position. He appreciated her discretion, intelligence and judgement.[34] She maintained an air of self-assured calm throughout all her public engagements in the years after the war, a period marked by civil unrest over social conditions, Irish independence and Indian nationalism.[35]
In the late 1920s, George V became increasingly ill with lung problems, exacerbated by his heavy smoking. Queen Mary paid particular attention to his care. During his illness in 1928, one of his doctors, Sir Farquhar Buzzard, was asked who had saved the King's life. He replied, "The Queen".[36] In 1935, King George V and Queen Mary celebrated their silver jubilee, with celebrations taking place throughout the British Empire. In his jubilee speech, George paid public tribute to his wife, having told his speechwriter, "Put that paragraph at the very end. I cannot trust myself to speak of the Queen when I think of all I owe her."[37]
[edit]Queen Mother
George V died on 20 January 1936, after his physician, Lord Dawson of Penn, gave him an injection of morphine and cocaine which may have hastened his death.[38] Queen Mary's eldest son, Edward, Prince of Wales, ascended the throne as Edward VIII. She was now officially Queen Mother, though she did not use that title and was instead known as Her Majesty Queen Mary.
Within the year, Edward caused a constitutional crisis by announcing his desire to marry his twice-divorced American mistress, Mrs. Wallis Simpson. Queen Mary disapproved of divorce, which was against the teaching of the Anglican Church, and thought Mrs. Simpson wholly unsuitable to be the wife of a king. After receiving advice from the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Stanley Baldwin, as well as the Dominion governments, that he could not remain king and marry Mrs. Simpson, Edward abdicated. Though loyal and supportive of her son, Queen Mary could not comprehend why Edward would neglect his royal duties in favour of his personal feelings.[39] Mrs. Simpson had been presented formally to both King George V and Queen Mary at court,[40] but Queen Mary later refused to meet her either in public or privately.[41] Queen Mary saw it as her duty to provide moral support for her second son, the reserved and stammering Prince Albert, Duke of York, who ascended the throne upon Edward's abdication, taking the name George VI. When Mary attended the coronation, she became the first British dowager queen ever to do so.[42] Edward's abdication did not lessen her love for him, but she never wavered in her disapproval of the damage she believed had been done to the Crown.[15][43]
Queen Mary with her granddaughters, Princesses Margaret (front) and Elizabeth
Queen Mary took an interest in the upbringing of her granddaughters, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, and took them on various excursions in London, to art galleries and museums. (The Princesses' own parents thought it unnecessary for them to be taxed with any demanding educational regime.)[44]
During World War II, George VI wished his mother to be evacuated from London. Although she was reluctant, she decided to live at Badminton House, Gloucestershire, with her niece, Mary Somerset, Duchess of Beaufort, the daughter of her brother, Lord Cambridge.[45] Her personal belongings were transported from London in seventy pieces of luggage. Her household, which comprised fifty-five servants, occupied most of the house, except for the Duke and Duchess's private suites, until after the war. The only people to complain about the arrangements were the royal servants, who found the house too small,[46] though Queen Mary annoyed her niece by having the ancient ivy torn from the walls as she considered it unattractive and a hazard. From Badminton, in support of the war effort, she visited troops and factories, and directed the gathering of scrap materials. She was known to offer lifts to soldiers she spotted on the roads.[47] In 1942, her youngest surviving son, Prince George, Duke of Kent, was killed in an air crash while on active service. Queen Mary finally returned to Marlborough House in June 1945, after the war in Europe had resulted in the defeat of Nazi Germany.
Queen Mary was an eager collector of objects and pictures with a royal connection.[48] She paid above-market estimates when purchasing jewels from the estate of Dowager Empress Marie of Russia[49] and paid almost three times the estimate when buying the family's Cambridge Emeralds from Lady Kilmorey, the mistress of her late brother Prince Francis.[50] In 1924, the famous architect Sir Edwin Lutyens created Queen Mary's Dolls' House for her collection of miniature pieces.[51] Indeed, she has sometimes been criticised for her aggressive acquisition of objets d'art for the Royal Collection. On several occasions, she would express to hosts, or others, that she admired something they had in their possession, in the expectation that the owner would be willing to donate it.[52] Her extensive knowledge of, and research into, the Royal Collection helped in identifying artefacts and artwork that had gone astray over the years.[53] The Royal Family had lent out many objects over previous generations. Once she had identified unreturned items through old inventories, she would write to the holders, requesting that they be returned.[54]
In 1952, King George VI died, the third of Queen Mary's children to predecease her; her eldest granddaughter, Princess Elizabeth, ascended the throne as Queen Elizabeth II. Queen Mary died the next year of lung cancer (referred to publicly as "gastric problems"[55]) at the age of 85, only ten weeks before Elizabeth's coronation. Queen Mary let it be known that, in the event of her death, the coronation was not to be postponed. Her remains lay in state at Westminster Hall, where large numbers of mourners filed past her coffin. She is buried beside her husband in the nave of St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.[56]
Artist Don Li-Leger and three volunteers built this house out of thousands of used, discarded and otherwise unwanted reference books – most of them donated to, and collected by, the Rotary club in South Surrey.
The art installation will stand for the month of October in the forested public space outside Newton rec centre.
His formal description of “Encyclopedia House” calls for “an unusual art project” to make use of a plethora of no-longer-used encyclopedia sets, textbooks and other reference books that exist in the age of digital information.
the art project will address topics such as housing and fundamental needs, neighbourhood development, changing sources of knowledge, and recycling.
The books are affixed to each other with screws, making the structure sturdy enough to satisfy city officials.
The house will be a focal point for several events this month, including Sources’ homelessness march on Oct. 16, the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on Oct. 17 and some reading groups with local children.
The Encyclopedia Britannica is a relic from the past as everything is online now, and the online searches are more up-to-date and much faster.
Torii
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Torii (disambiguation).
Main article: Mon (architecture)
The famous torii at Itsukushima Shrine, a Ryōbu-style torii.
A torii (鳥居?, literally bird abode, /ˈtɔəri.iː/) is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the profane to the sacred (see sacred-profane dichotomy).[1] The presence of a torii at the entrance is usually the simplest way to identify Shinto shrines, and a small torii icon represents them on Japanese road maps.[note 1] They are however a common sight at Japanese Buddhist temples too, where they stand at the entrance of the temple's own shrine, called chinjusha (鎮守社?, tutelary god shrine) and are usually very small.
Their first appearance in Japan can be reliably pinpointed to at least the mid-Heian period because they are mentioned in a text written in 922.[1] The oldest existing stone torii was built in the 12th century and belongs to a Hachiman Shrine in Yamagata prefecture. The oldest wooden torii is a ryōbu torii (see description below) at Kubō Hachiman Shrine in Yamanashi prefecture built in 1535.[1]
Torii were traditionally made from wood or stone, but today they can be also made of reinforced concrete, copper, stainless steel or other materials. They are usually either unpainted or painted vermilion with a black upper lintel. Inari shrines typically have many torii because those who have been successful in business often donate in gratitude a torii to Inari, kami of fertility and industry. Fushimi Inari-taisha in Kyoto has thousands of such torii, each bearing the donor's name.[2]
The Japanese torii is derived from the Indian Torana which also inspired the Chinese Paifang.[3]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bristol MMB 43 SS Great Britain.jpg
SS Great Britain in dry dock at Bristol in 2005.
History
Name:SS Great Britain
Owner:Great Western Steamship Company
Builder:William Patterson
Cost:
Projected: £70,000
Actual: £117,000
Laid down:July 1839
Launched:19 July 1843
Completed:1845
Maiden voyage:26 July 1845
In service:1845–1886
Homeport:Bristol, England
General characteristics
Type:Passenger steamship
Displacement:3,674 tons load draught
Length:322 ft (98 m)
Beam:50 ft 6 in (15.39 m)
Draught:16 ft (4.9 m)[1]
Installed power:2 × twin 88-inch (220 cm) cylinder, 6 ft (1.8 m) stroke, 500 hp (370 kW), 18 rpm inclined direct-acting steam engines
Propulsion:Single screw propeller
Sail plan:
Original: Five schooner-rigged and one square-rigged mast
After 1853: Three square-rigged masts
Speed:10 to 11 knots (19 to 20 km/h; 12 to 13 mph)
Capacity:
360 passengers, later increased to 730
1,200 tons of cargo
Complement:130 officers and crew (as completed)
SS Great Britain is a museum ship and former passenger steamship, which was advanced for her time. She was the longest passenger ship in the world from 1845 to 1854. She was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the Great Western Steamship Company's transatlantic service between Bristol and New York. While other ships had been built of iron or equipped with a screw propeller, Great Britain was the first to combine these features in a large ocean-going ship. She was the first iron steamer to cross the Atlantic, which she did in 1845, in the time of 14 days.
The ship is 322 ft (98 m) in length and has a 3,400-ton displacement. She was powered by two inclined 2 cylinder engines of the direct-acting type, with twin 88 in (220 cm) bore, 6-foot (1.8 m) stroke cylinders. She was also provided with secondary sail power. The four decks provided accommodation for a crew of 120, plus 360 passengers who were provided with cabins and dining and promenade saloons.
When launched in 1843, Great Britain was by far the largest vessel afloat. However, her protracted construction and high cost had left her owners in a difficult financial position, and they were forced out of business in 1846 having spent all their funds re-floating the ship after she was run aground at Dundrum Bay after a navigational error. In 1852 she was sold for salvage and repaired. Great Britain carried thousands of immigrants to Australia from 1852 until converted to sail in 1881. Three years later, she was retired to the Falkland Islands where she was used as a warehouse, quarantine ship and coal hulk until scuttled in 1937.[2]
In 1970, following a cash donation by Sir Jack Hayward that paid for the vessel to be towed back to the UK, Great Britain was returned to the Bristol dry dock where she was built. Now listed as part of the National Historic Fleet, she is an award-winning visitor attraction and museum ship in Bristol Harbour, with between 150,000 and 200,000 visitors annually.