View allAll Photos Tagged features
Created by Melbourne stained glass manufacturer Ferguson and Urie in 1880 for the opening of the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church, this non-figurative stained glass window features design elements typical of their work. It features a latticed "diaper" pattern containing stylised floral designs in yellow. It has a border of coloured squares dispersed with stylised flowers, also a common element of Ferguson and Urie's windows. Each lancet window features two diamond shaped panes, one at the top and one at the bottom of the window, and a central round pane of brightly coloured glass, once again featuring a stylised floral image. A round vent at the top features a Tudor Rose sitting in the middle of an eight pointed star of green and golden yellow.
The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church, which stands on busy Chapel Street in St Kilda East, is a well known and loved local landmark, not least of all because of its strikingly tall (33.5 metre or 110 foot) banded bell tower which can be spotted from far away. In the Nineteenth Century when it was built, it would have been even more striking for its great height and domineering presence. Designed by architect Albert Purchas, the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church is often referred to as his ecclesiastical tour-de-force, and it is most certainly one of his most dramatic and memorable churches.
The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church was constructed on a plot of land reserved in Chapel Street for the Presbyterian Church of Victoria in 1866. Initially services were held in a small hall whilst fundraising efforts advanced the erection of a church. The architect Albert Purchas was commissioned to design the church and the foundation stone for the western portion of the nave was finally laid in April 1877 by Sir James McCulloch. The first service was held in the church on the 1st of October 1877. The first clergyman of the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church was the Reverend John Laurence Rentoul (father to world renown and much loved Australian children's book illustrator Ida Rentoul Outhwaite). However, the swelling Presbyterian congregation of St Kilda and its surrounding districts quickly outgrew the initial Saint George's Presbyterian Church building, so Albert Purchas was obliged to re-design and enlarge the church to allow a doubling in capacity. Robert S. Ekins was the contractor and his tender was £3000.00. It is this imposing church building, reopened in 1880, that we see today. The "Australasian Sketcher with Pen and Pencil" noted that the total length of the building was 118 feet and 6 inches (36 metres), by 40 foot (12 metres) wide and that the striking octagonal tower to the north-west was 110ft 6 in high. It perhaps reflected better the wealth and aspirations of the congregation.
The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church is constructed on bluestone foundations and is built in an ornate polychromatic Gothic Revival style in the tradition of English designers like William Butterfield and John L. Pearson. Built of red brick building, it is decorated in contrasting cream bricks and Waurn Ponds freestone dressings. It features a slate roof with prominent roof vents, iron ridge cresting and fleche at the intersection of the nave and transepts. The front facade of the church is dominated by the slender, banded octagonal tower topped by a narrow spire. The entrance features a double arched portal portico. The facade also features a dominant triangular epitrochoidal (curved triangular form) rose window. The church, like its bluestone neighbour All Saints Church of England, is built to a T-shaped plan, with an aisleless nave, broad transepts and internal walls of cream brick, relieved with coloured brickwork. The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church was one of the first major church design in Melbourne in which polychrome brickwork was lavishly employed both externally and internally.
The inside of the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church is equally as grand as the exterior, with ornamental Gothic Revival polychromatic brickwork, a lofty vaulted ceiling, deal and kauri pine joinery and pulpit and reredos of Keene's cement. The building originally contained a complete set of Victorian stained glass windows by well known and successful Melbourne manufacturers Ferguson and Urie, all of which remain intact today except for one of the non-figurative windows which was replaced by a memorial window to Samuel Lyons McKenzie, the congregation’s beloved minister, who served from 1930 to 1948, in 1949. The earliest of the Ferguson and Urie windows are non-figurative windows which feature the distinctive diaper pattern and floral motifs of Fergus and Urie's work, and are often argued to be amongst the finest of their non-figurative designs. The large triple window in the chancel was presented by Lady McCulloch in memory of the ‘loved and dead’. Another, in memory of John Kane Smyth, the Vice-Consul for the United States of America in Melbourne, has the American Stars and Stripes on the top ventilator above it. An organ by Thomas C. Lewis of London, one of the leading 19th century English organ builders, was installed in the south transept in 1882. It was designed to blend with its architectural setting, with pipework styled to avoid the obstruction of windows. The action of this organ was altered in 1935, but the pipework, and the original sound, have been retained.
Over the years many spiritual and social activities were instituted at Saint George’s, Presbyterian Church some of short duration such as the Ladies’ Reading Club which operated between 1888 and 1893. There were segregated Bible classes for young men and women, the Presbyterian Women’s Missionary Union, formed in 1892, a cricket club and a floral guild. Guilds teaching physical culture for girls, boys and young men began in 1904. They were entirely financed by John Maclellan and the idea extended to other denominations throughout Victoria. John Maclellan died in 1936 and the guilds ceased at Saint George’s Presbyterian church through lack of funds although in 1977 the members of the girls’ guild were still holding bi-annual reunions and raising money for charity. Sadly, the Presbyterian congregations may have been large in the Nineteenth Century, but by St George's Presbyterian Church's 110th centenary, its doors had already closed during the week due to dwindling numbers and an ageing congregation as a result of the general decline in church attendances after the Second World War exacerbated by the changing nature of St Kilda and the decrease in numbers of residents living in the vicinity of the church. So it stood, forlorn and empty and seemingly nothing more than a relic of a glorious but bygone religious past. However in 1990, Saint Michael's Grammar School across the road leased the Victorian Heritage listed building during weekdays, and it was eventually sold to them in 2015. It now forms part of the school's performing-arts complex, and it has a wonderful new lease of life.
St George's Presbyterian Church is sometimes hired out for performances, and I had the pleasure of receiving an invitation to hear Handel's Messiah performed there in 2009. The ecclesiastical acoustics made the performance all the more magnificent. I remember as I sat on one of the original (hard) kauri pine pews, I looked around me and admired the stained glass and ornamental brickwork. I tried without success over several subsequent years to gain access to the church's interior, settling for photographs of the exterior instead, but it wasn't until 2018 that I was fortunate enough to gain entry to photograph the church's interior. The former St George's Presbyterian Church was opened up to the public for one Sunday morning only as part of Open House Melbourne in July 2018. It was a fantastic morning, and I am very grateful to the staff who manned the church for the day and watched bemused as I photographed the stained glass extensively and in such detail.
Albert Purchas, born in 1825 in Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales, was a prominent Nineteenth Century architect who achieved great success for himself in Melbourne. Born to parents Robert Whittlesey Purchas and Marianne Guyon, he migrated to Australia in 1851 to establish himself in the then quickly expanding city of Melbourne, where he set up a small architect's firm in Little Collins Street. He also offered surveying services. His first major building was constructing the mansion "Berkeley Hall" in St Kilda on Princes Street in 1854. The house still exists today. Two years after migrating, Albert designed the layout of the Melbourne General Cemetery in Carlton. It was the first "garden cemetery" in Victoria, and his curvilinear design is still in existence, unaltered, today. In 1854, Albert married Eliza Anne Sawyer (1825 - 1869) in St Kilda. The couple had ten children over their marriage, including a son, Robert, who followed in his father's footsteps as an architect. Albert's brother-in-law, Charles Sawyer joined him in the partnership of Purchas and Sawyer, which existed from 1856 until 1862 in Queens Street. The firm produced more than 140 houses, churches, offices and cemetery buildings including: the nave and transepts of Christ Church St Kilda between 1854 and 1857, "Glenara Homestead"in Bulla in 1857, the Melbourne Savings Bank on the corner of Flinders Lane and Market Street (now demolished) between 1857 and 1858, the Geelong branch of the Bank of Australasia in Malop Street between 1859 and 1860, and Beck's Imperial Hotel in Castlemaine in 1861. When the firm broke up, Albert returned to Little Collins Street, and the best known building he designed during this period was Saint. George's Presbyterian Church in St Kilda East between 1877 and 1880. The church's tall polychomatic brick bell tower is still a local landmark, even in the times of high rise architecture and development, and Saint, George's itself is said to be one of his most striking church designs. Socially, Albert was vice president of the Royal Victorian Institute of Architects for many years, before becoming president in 1887. He was also an inventor and philanthropist. Albert died in 1909 at his home in Kew, a wealthy widower and much loved father.
The stained glass firm of Ferguson and Urie was established by Scots James Ferguson (1818 – 1894), James Urie (1828 – 1890) and John Lamb Lyon (1836 – 1916). They were the first known makers of stained glass in Australia. Until the early 1860s, window glass in Melbourne had been clear or plain coloured, and nearly all was imported, but new churches and elaborate buildings created a demand for pictorial windows. The three Scotsmen set up Ferguson and Urie in 1862 and the business thrived until 1899, when it ceased operation, with only John Lamb Lyon left alive. Ferguson and Urie was the most successful Nineteenth Century Australian stained glass window making company. Among their earliest works were a Shakespeare window for the Haymarket Theatre in Bourke Street, a memorial window to Prince Albert in Holy Trinity, Kew, and a set of Apostles for the West Melbourne Presbyterian Church. Their palatial Gothic Revival office building stood at 283 Collins Street from 1875. Ironically, their last major commission, a window depicting “labour”, was installed in the old Melbourne Stock Exchange in Collins Street in 1893 on the eve of the bank crash. Their windows can be found throughout the older suburbs of Melbourne and across provincial Victoria.
Features
Colour: Tan
Outer Material: Genuine Leather
Closure: Zipper
Pattern: Solid
Services
Cash On Delivery available
30 Days Exchange Policy
Old Townsville railway station, formerly the Great Northern Railway Station, is a three-storey red brick structure on Flinders Street in Townsville CBD, Queensland, Australia. The original terminus for the Great Northern Railway, the station became important in the economic growth of Townsville during the early 20th century. The building is featured in a number of famous photos taken during victory celebrations following World War II. A new station to service Townsville was built in the early 21st century and the platform is used for displays of historical photographs and articles. The building still houses Queensland Rail administrative offices.
Constructed in a style similar to the great 19th century railway stations of Europe and Great Britain, the three-storey red brick structure is located on the corner of Flinders and Blackwood Streets at the western end of the Townsville central business district. The facade of the building features balustraded verandas on the first and second storeys of the building's facade, with two prominent gabled extrusions from the main structure which identify the passenger and administrative entrances the building. The facade of the building also features a large awning supported by large iron brackets. The main roof of the structure is hipped with a number of small side-structures at the eastern end of the building, which also feature hipped roofs. A four-storey brick addition was erected at the western end of the building in 1965 and features a distinctly different architectural style to the rest of the structure.
Few of the building's original features remain intact. However, the former ticket hall features all its original fittings, including tiled floors and walls, as well as an honour board for railway workers who died during World War I. The female toilets on the ground floor also contain an original, though repainted, pressed metal ceiling. Most of the administrative areas of the building have been refitted over the years as office usage has changed. However, a large internal square stairwell with stick balustrading is still intact, as well as the large french doors with glass fanlights, which open onto the verandas on the upper levels of the structure.
Designed by an architectural draftsman in the government railway department, Vincent Price, the building was constructed between 1910 and 1913, and was officially opened on 24 December 1913. It replaced an existing station of significantly smaller scale only a few hundred metres to the west, near the corner of Flinders and Jones Streets. It was designed as a terminus for the Great Northern Railway and housed the general manager and other ancillary staff of the company. The station operated through the Second World War, playing a significant role in the movement of goods too and from Townsville (a major military base) during that period.
It has been placed on the state's its heritage register.
The station was closed when the Townsville railway station was opened in 2003.[3][4] At this time, rail tracks through the city centre were removed.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Townsville_railway_station
---
The Townsville Railway Station and North Yards Workshops were established in about 1880 shortly after the commencement of the Northern Railway running west from Townsville, and the establishment of the Northern Rail Division, one of four separate railway divisions of Queensland. At this time, the Townsville Station was on the edge of the yards, making this site the operating centre of the Northern Division. The early growth and evolution of the Northern Railway was reflected in several upgrades of the North Yards Workshops by 1902. Construction of the North Yards railway workshops began in 1880 with the construction of the first railway station and the Machine Shop in 1881. The present railway station, the second station in the complex, was constructed between 1910 and 1913. The North Yards Workshops were permanently closed in 1990 and the major train services, the Sunlander and the Inlander ceased to run to the Station prior to 2004 when a new station was constructed to the west of the Workshops.
During the second half of the nineteenth century in Queensland there was a proliferation of separate rail systems spreading west from several coastal centres. Queensland's geography made for a decentralised railway system, with lines penetrating the interior from a number of points along the coast. Earlier rail systems had been constructed, mostly in response to the requirements of pastoralists in the main pastoral areas. This second phase of construction saw railways spread into the new, isolated mining districts. Reflecting the growth of Queensland and the difficulty of dealing with such a vast state the Government divided the railways into three divisions in 1878. The divisions were the Southern, Central and Northern Division which was centred on Townsville.
The discovery of gold in 1869 at Ravenswood and in 1872 at Charters Towers was the main impetus for the construction of the Northern Railway from Townsville. With the development of each separate rail system came competing claims for the most suitable terminuses. In north Queensland there was competition between Bowen and Townsville. The first port in north Queensland had been established at Bowen in 1860, however, pastoralists and new mining settlements north and west of the Burdekin River were choosing to utilise the more convenient port at Townsville. Although Bowen had the better harbour, the Burdekin River proved too difficult a barrier. As well, Townsville's influential political connections convinced the government to make Townsville the railway terminus.
The Government, on 7 August 1877, gave approval for the construction of the first stage of the line from Townsville to the top of Mingela Range. Before the completion of the track to Reid River on 20 December 1880, development of a Townsville Railway Station and maintenance workshops, as part of the support system for the Great Northern Railway, was commenced. By 1882 the line had reached Charters Towers and by 1884 the line had terminated at Hughenden, the heart of the pastoral region. Townsville's success in gaining the terminus of the Northern Railway ensured the towns economic survival. Within a short time Townsville merchant firms such as Samuel Allen and Sons, Clifton Aplin (later Aplin Brown and Co) and Burns Philp overshadowed their Bowen rivals.
As the terminus of the Northern Line, the Townsville Railway Station and Workshops formed a complex group of support services. Buildings constructed during the first construction phase included a station, carriage shed, stores, goods sheds, weighbridges, turntables and lines into the workshops and the Machine Shop. By 1886 the importance of the maintenance section was illustrated by the number of support facilities established in the yards including wagon sheds, a bolt shed, tool shed, engine shed, carriage shed, coal store and smithy shop.
The Northern Railway quickly became Queenslands most profitable line, with major upgrading taking place only five years after its inception. There was also periodic redevelopment of the workshop buildings during the 1880s and 1890s to meet the growing demand for maintenance of rolling stock on the busy line. The Northern Railway became known as the Great Northern Railway in 1905. Until 1910, with the passing of the North Coast Railway Act, and the Great Western Railway Act, the Queensland railways existed as separate identities or divisions. Coastal shipping was the preferred method of travel along the Queensland coast, with the railways acting as a transport corridor to inland districts. The first major linking of different divisions in Queensland occurred in 1903 with the opening of the Gladstone to Rockhampton railway line, which united the Southern and Central Divisions.
The passing of the two railways Acts provided a major impetus for increased spending and construction works on the Queensland railways. New stations were built along the main lines in places such as Brisbane, Gympie and Townsville between 1910 and 1917. A corresponding development of improved locomotive technology, rollingstock, and railway infrastructure in general characterised this period, along with the construction of new rural branch lines throughout Queensland.
In spite of improvements and extensions to the infrastructure in the North Yards during the early years of the twentieth century the problem of too little space was not overcome. Maintaining rolling stock in the cramped conditions of the yard was difficult, although improvements in 1921 overcame the worst inefficiencies.
The completion of the North Coast line near Innisfail in December 1924 completed the projected main line between Brisbane and the Cairns railway system. However, even after completion and during subsequent upgrading of the Sunshine Route as it was known, track limitations on axle loads for locomotives, limited larger main line locomotives operating north of Townsville until the 1950s. As a result, Townsville remained the northern limit of the more modern engines.
During the early years of the Depression maintenance on the Northern Railway was reduced, however, deficiencies in the original construction of the line and the lack of maintenance were rectified during the late 1930s when the Queensland government established Relief Labour schemes to alleviate some of the problems of massive unemployment. Loan funding was channelled into deviations of the track, aimed at improving gradients on the line to enable locomotives to haul larger trains.
The North Yard again became cramped and reclamation work was begun across Ross Creek in 1935. The work was completed in 1939 and carriage and wagon shops were transferred to the South Yards. The removal of some of the maintenance activity to South Townsville saw changes of use of many of the North Yard buildings.
Upgrading work on the Great Northern Line prior to the Second World War enhanced the importance of the northern railway. New rolling stock was introduced, maintenance workshops, including Townsville were improved and a passenger service, the Sunshine Express, from Brisbane to Cairns, was introduced.
The significance of the Railway Station to the Townsville community has been demonstrated on a number of occasions. In 1910 the Mayor and community successfully partitioned the government to have the proposed new station located in Flinders Street rather than close to the mouth of Ross Creek. The role of the Railway Station and North Yards Workshops in World War 11 was recognised by the people of Townsville during the VP 50 Celebrations when thousands greeted a "troop" train at the station on 11 August 1995.
Within ten years of establishment, Northern Railway staff became involved in union activity. Continuing involvement in union disputation during the next fifty years changed the face of industrial life in Australia. Charters Towers Miners' Union, established in July 1886, began a dispute with a mining company over reduction of wages. The dispute spread to the Croydon and Etheridge fields in 1889. As prices for gold fell miners became concerned about retaining their jobs. These concerns spread to the sugar industry and into various other industries. As unemployment grew trade unionism spread across North Queensland. The Australia wide, 1890 Maritime Strike saw unionism strengthened in North Queensland as the strike spread to other industries including the railways.
Union activity in the North Yards was led by George Rymer after WW1. Rymer was employed on the Northern Railway and was a member of the Queensland Railway Union (QRU) and a member of the strike committee set up to assist unionists striking over a retrospective pay dispute in 1917. This strike was in serious breach of decisions made by the newly established Arbitration Court. The strikers, forced back to work under threat of dismissal were left with a feeling of discontent and resentment towards the Ryan Labor Government. A legacy which was to colour the northern railwaymen's attitude to Labor governments throughout the 1920s.
Northern railwaymen continued to seek better pay and conditions from Labor governments throughout the next two decades and conflict between the left and right of Labor politics saw the emergence of the Communist Party in north Queensland. During key strikes such as the 1919 Meatworkers Strike, the 1925 Railway Strike and the 1928 sugar dispute Townsville suffered serious economic difficulties and turmoil, particularly during the 1919 riot outside the gates of Stewart Creek Jail in protest over the arrest of some railway unionists.
The Northern Division, which had been established in 1878, was phased out in 1992 and management returned to Brisbane after 114 years.
Townsville Railway Station
The first railway station, built in 1880, was located in Flinders Street near the corner of Jones Street, about three blocks west of the present station building. The original plan during the construction of the Townsville Railway was to locate the station near Magazine Island at the mouth of Ross Creek. The idea was revived when plans were being drawn up for a new station in 1910. Commercial interests backed the Mayor who argued that Ross Creek would cut off the railway terminus from the city centre. The community successfully partitioned the government to have the building located in Flinders Street between the town centre along Flinders Street and the busy business district at West End.
Construction of the new terminus for the Great Northern Railway commenced in 1910 and the building opened on 24 December 1913. Vincent Price, an architectural draftsman in the Railway Department, prepared the drawings. The new terminus was an impressive and imposing building, built in the tradition of the grand railway stations of the 19th century in Britain, Europe and the United States. The building, which initially served as the headquarters of the Great Northern Railway with the letters GNR prominently displayed on the facade, contained the offices of the general manager and ancillary staff.
Subsequent changes to Townsville Railway Station have included the replacement of a large metal carriage shade which extended over three tracks with a smaller cantilever awning in 1969. The corrugated, galvanised iron roof and front awning was also replaced. A four storey, brick extension on the western end of the building was constructed in 1965. The main foyer retains original finishes on floor and ceiling. A World War 1 roll of honour board is located in the foyer. The interior of the upper floors has been modified including the partitioning of large rooms into smaller offices. While the General Managers office was moved into the new building in 1965 the upper floors of the station continue to be used as administrative offices.
In 1997 some of the interior was refurbished, including the pressed metal ceilings in the toilets and other ground floor rooms.
Machine Shop
On 3 June 1881 the tender was accepted for the construction of the Machine Shop from prominent North Queensland builders, Rooney Brothers, for the sum of £118.18.0, labour only, to be completed within a two month period. The design of the machine shop was similar to those built by the Railway in other parts of Queensland, notably Rockhampton. The construction consisted of a heavy timber frame of a row of strutted timber posts through the centre supporting a trussed roof with continuous lantern, and floors of asphalt and concrete. The building when completed in 1881 was 75' (23m) long. Wooden flooring was installed in 1884. An extension of 36' (11m) was added to the north-eastern end of the building in 1895, as part of the workshop additions of the 1890s.
The expansion and reorganisation of the workshops in about 1901 included the extension of the Machine Shop at both ends. The construction matched the existing timber framing, wall cladding and fenestration. The two end walls of weatherboard and corrugated iron cladding were re-erected at the new ends of the building. A store building at the north-eastern end was relocated at the new ends of the building extended 44' (13.4m) to create more work space, with an extension to the wooden floor. At the south-western end another shed was removed, and an extension of 70' (21.4m) was constructed containing an engine and boiler room with a concrete floor, and a store for tyres with an ash floor.
Blacksmith's Shop
The original Blacksmith's Shop, constructed before 1900, was perpendicular to and behind the Machine Shop. By the time of its demolition in 1937, it had become the Tinsmiths' and Coppersmiths' Shop. Its demolition for extensions to the boiler shop, reinforced the northeast-southwest axis of the setout of the buildings. This Blacksmiths' Shop was constructed before 1932. To the north-west is a smaller building also labelled as Blacksmiths' Shop, which was constructed between 1940 and 1960, which later became the Spring Shop.
Motor Shop (Building No 38)
The Motor Shop was constructed between 1902 and 1932. By 1932 it was the Paint Shop, and it was proposed to become the Traffic Motor Shade in 1940. It had two roads (rail-lines) entering from the north-east. By 1960 it had become the Mechanics Shop.
Tender Shop
This building was constructed about 1902 as two separate Wagon Sheds, each measuring 150'x50'. A photograph of about 1916 shows people displaying splints and crutches presumably for WWI made in this building.
Carpenters Shop
By 1902, the Wagon Shop, and Carriage and Paint Shop each measuring 100'x50' (305x15.25m) sat behind the Machine Shop, and lined up with the two wagon sheds. In 1902, a 60' (length 48.8m) extension was also proposed on the end of the Wagon Shop for a sawmill which connected to the Machine Shop.
Boiler/Wheel Shop
The Boiler Shop was constructed before 1932. An extension of 90' to the north-east end in about 1940 forced the demolition of the original Blacksmiths' Shop. The building is now known as the Wheel Shop at the north-east end, and Metal Fabrication to the south-west end.
Garage and Motor Store
By 1932, there was a small Loco Store and a Motor Shop to the north-eastern end of the Machine Shop. By 1960, the Loco Store had become a long narrow building, probably combining parts of the earlier two buildings. There was a Storeman operating in here until the 1970s, when the operation was moved.
Wagon Repair Shops 1 and 2
The original Wagon Repair Shop was a brick building constructed in February 1889. By 1932 it is noted as the fitting Shop with two roads running its length, and a long repair pit shown to each road. A 90' extension was proposed for the building about 1940, but this does not seem to have gone ahead. By 1960 the building was noted as the Wagon Repair Shop. This building was demolished in June 1984.
Westinghouse Brake Shop
The Westinghouse Brakes Shop was constructed before 1932. For many years, Westinghouse was the only brand of braking system used for locomotives and rolling stock, hence the building's name. However in recent years, a second brand was also used, and it too was overhauled in this shop.
Breakdown Shed
The Breakdown Shed was constructed between 1940 and 1960. It housed the 20 ton breakdown truck which was full of equipment for assistance to breakdowns and derailments until the 1990s. The breakdown gang would travel west to Pentland as well as north and south.
Bosh/White Metal Shop
Possibly constructed in 1930. Originally used for Bosh, which was a bath of caustic soda with steam running through, which was used for cleaning parts before they were to be repaired. White metal was a low friction metal coating put onto a curved brass block which was the bearing system. This block sat in the axle box, which had oil-soaked wool in its base to oil the axel. If the bearing was not a good fit, the friction would ignite the wool.
Running Shed
Constructed about 1944. Here, damage parts were cut off wagons and carriages to prepare them for entering the Workshops.
Signal Cabin 'A'
This cabin was constructed prior to 1932. At this time, it was shown as having 12 levers. It controlled access to the North Yard Workshops. Also, at this time, to the south-west of the cabin are shown geometric garden plots running parallel to Flinders Street. To the south-west of the gardens was the overhead bridge also built before 1932, perhaps in 1899. This crossed the railway lines to connect to a bridge over the river. This bridge was destroyed in cyclone Althea in the 1970s.
Gatehouses
By 1932, there were 3 small buildings inside the main gates. The nearest and smallest was the Ambulance Cabin, and the other two noted as 'Checks'. By 1960 only the largest was shown, and labelled 'Office' or 'Ambulance Office'. There are presently two chamferboards buildings located in this position. The building closest to the entry was the Stores Distributor's Office. He would check stores arriving at the yards, and send them to the relevant shop. The second of the two small huts was the First Aid Attendant's Room.
Canteen, Store and Office
The canteen was built in 1945 and opened a week before the end of World War II. It probably replaced Railway Institute Dining Room (probably the former Chief Engineer's Office 1886) which had been next to the Motor Shop. The Canteen, Store and Office could all have been built about the same time, and were all existing by 1960. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the 'Railway Institute' as it was then known became on the well-known public dance halls of Townsville.
Strong Room
The Strong Room was built prior to 1932. It may have been associated with the Chief Engineer'' Office built in 1886, which was a rectangular timber building with encircling verandah. A building of this form was shown as the Railway Institute Dining Room by 1932, adjacent but not connected to the Strong Room on its north-east side. This Dining Room was replaced by the Canteen constructed at the end of World War Two. In 1932, the Strong Room had a Fibre Store connected to the rear, and to the south-west, in front of the Machine Shop was a Bandstand. The Townsville Railway Band were Queensland Champions in 1918-20 and 1930. By 1960, the bandstand had been demolished.
Bicycle Shed
By 1932, there were two Bicycle Sheds of similar size on either side of the entrance gates. By the 1960s, the south-western shed had been removed. The present bicycle Shed was constructed after 1960. The earlier sheds had included timber slats to stand the bikes in. During the 1930s when the yards were at their peak, most of the 1000 workers at the yards travelled by bicycle. Traffic in Flinders Street would be stopped at finishing time to allow the wave of bicycles to leave the yards.
Compressors
Possibly constructed about 1930. Building No.33 Possibly constructed about 1936.
Electrical Substation
Constructed during the 1960s, possibly in 1967. There was previously a small office constructed in this location before 1932.
Schedules Office
The Schedules Office was constructed after 1980. Here schedules were prepared for the carriages and wagons entering the workshops. It was the centre for the computer network of the yards, connected to terminals in each of the shops. It is now known as the Workshop Development Office. The WC was constructed before 1960. There was a similar sized WC shown next to the Strong Room in 1932.
Refrigeration Workshop
The existing building is part of the former Refrigeration Workshops. The building once extended towards the east, where a concrete slab remains. In this workshop service and repairs were done on train air-conditioners, water coolers, building air-conditioners and refrigerated containers. The workmen here wore white overalls and this shop was commonly known as "ice-cream factory". The hole in the north-east side, which resembles a servery, once contained louvres.
Toilet Block
A small WC is shown as being in this position by 1932. The present block was constructed before 1960.
Amenities Block
The Amenities Block was constructed during the 1960s. It currently has a lunch room and training areas on the upper level, and lockers and change rooms on the lower level.
Source: apps.des.qld.gov.au/heritage-register/detail/?id=600906
View the catalogue entry at Queensland State Archives:
Danai features Nnaji sculpt in Chocolate resin, and nude make up with golden highlighter inspired by Fenty Beauty and white tribal paint. Her eyes a hazel and lips nude. The needle felted afro hard cap wig is wool. You can have a choice of Busty or Andro body types and manicure.
*SOLD*
The Sanctury of the St Kilda Presbyterian Church features three beautiful 1880s Ferguson and Urie stained glass windows; Faith on the left, Charity in the middle and Hope on the right. All are executed in iridescent reds, yellows, greens and blues, to reflect the colour palate used in other Ferguson and Urie windows elsewhere around the church.
Built on the crest of a hill in a prominent position overlooking St Kilda and the bay is the grand St Kilda Presbyterian Church.
The St Kilda Presbyterian Church's interior is cool, spacious and lofty, with high ceilings of tongue and groove boards laid diagonally, and a large apse whose ceiling was once painted with golden star stenciling. The bluestone walls are so thick that the sounds of the busy intersection of Barkley Street and Alma Road barely permeate the church's interior, and it is easy to forget that you are in such a noisy inner Melbourne suburb. The cedar pews of the church are divided by two grand aisles which feature tall cast iron columns with Corinthian capitals. At the rear of the building towards Alma Road there are twin porches and a narthex with a staircase that leads to the rear gallery where the choir sang from. It apparently once housed an organ by William Anderson, but the space today is used as an office and Bible study area. The current impressive Fincham and Hobday organ from 1892 sits in the north-east corner of the church. It cost £1030.00 to acquire and install. The church is flooded with light, even on an overcast day with a powerful thunder storm brewing (as the weather was on my visit). The reason for such light is because of the very large Gothic windows, many of which are filled with quarry glass by Ferguson and Urie featuring geometric tracery with coloured borders. The church also features stained glass windows designed by Ferguson and Urie, including the impressive rose window, British stained glass artist Ernest Richard Suffling, Brooks, Robinson and Company Glass Merchants, Mathieson and Gibson of Melbourne and one by Australian stained glass artist Napier Waller.
Opened in 1886, the St Kilda Presbyterian church was designed by the architects firm of Wilson and Beswicke, a business founded in 1881 by Ralph Wilson and John Beswicke (1847 - 1925) when they became partners for a short period. The church is constructed of bluestone with freestone dressings and designed in typical Victorian Gothic style. The foundation stone, which may be found on the Alma Road facade, was laid by the Governor of Victoria Sir Henry Barkly on 27 January. When it was built, the St Kilda Presbyterian Church was surrounded by large properties with grand mansions built upon them, so the congregation were largely very affluent and wished for a place of worship that reflected its stature not only in location atop a hill, but in size and grandeur.
The exterior facades of the church on Barkley Street and Alma Road are dominated by a magnificent tower topped by an imposing tower. The location of the church and the height of the tower made the spire a landmark for mariners sailing into Melbourne's port. The tower features corner pinnacles and round spaces for the insertion of a clock, which never took place. Common Victorian Gothic architectural features of the St Kilda Presbyterian Church include complex bar tracery over the windows, wall buttresses which identify structural bays, gabled roof vents, parapeted gables and excellent stone masonry across the entire structure.
I am very grateful to the Reverend Paul Lee for allowing me the opportunity to photograph the interior of the St Kilda Presbyterian Church so extensively.
The architects Wilson and Beswicke were also responsible for the Brighton, Dandenong, Essendon, Hawthorn and Malvern Town Halls and the Brisbane Wesleyan Church on the corner of Albert and Ann Streets. They also designed shops in the inner Melbourne suburbs of Auburn and Fitzroy. They also designed several individual houses, including "Tudor House" in Williamstown, "Tudor Lodge" in Hawthorn and "Rotha" in Hawthorn, the latter of which is where John Beswicke lived.
The stained glass firm of Ferguson and Urie was established by Scots James Ferguson (1818 – 1894), James Urie (1828 – 1890) and John Lamb Lyon (1836 – 1916). They were the first known makers of stained glass in Australia. Until the early 1860s, window glass in Melbourne had been clear or plain coloured, and nearly all was imported, but new churches and elaborate buildings created a demand for pictorial windows. The three Scotsmen set up Ferguson and Urie in 1862 and the business thrived until 1899, when it ceased operation, with only John Lamb Lyon left alive. Ferguson and Urie was the most successful Nineteenth Century Australian stained glass window making company. Among their earliest works were a Shakespeare window for the Haymarket Theatre in Bourke Street, a memorial window to Prince Albert in Holy Trinity, Kew, and a set of Apostles for the West Melbourne Presbyterian Church. Their palatial Gothic Revival office building stood at 283 Collins Street from 1875. Ironically, their last major commission, a window depicting “labour”, was installed in the old Melbourne Stock Exchange in Collins Street in 1893 on the eve of the bank crash. Their windows can be found throughout the older suburbs of Melbourne and across provincial Victoria.
BUSAN, SOUTH KOREA - MAY 25: Choi “Zeus” Woo-je of T1 poses at the League of Legends - Mid-Season Invitational Knockouts Features Day on May 25, 2022 in Busan, South Korea. (Photo by Lee Aiksoon/Riot Games)
Ripley features the likeness of Sigourney Weaver and comes with bandolier accessory plus the makeshift flamethrower/pulse rifle hybrid she jury-rigs to battle the Queen. Bishop features the likeness of Lance Henriksen and is based on the android’s appearance after the Alien Queen’s attack. He comes with an open Xenomorph egg and facehugger with bendable tail. The Xenomorph Warriors from Aliens: Genocide come in both black and red versions.
Each highly articulated, 7” scale figure is entirely authentic to the film version.
Read more:
The Huntress Fountain features a bronze figure of Diana the goddess of hunting shooting an arrow. The fountain was installed in 1906 and made by Countess Feodora Gleichen the first woman member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors. The Rose Garden Hyde Park London established by Henry VIII in 1536
The Huntress Fountain features a bronze figure of Diana the goddess of hunting shooting an arrow. The fountain was installed in 1906 and made by Countess Feodora Gleichen the first woman member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors. The Rose Garden Hyde Park London established by Henry VIII in 1536
Church of Saint Ildefonso
The Igreja de Santo Ildefonso is an 18th century church in Porto, Portugal, situated near Batalha Square. Completed in 1739, the church was built in a proto-Baroque style and features a retable by the Italian artist Nicolau Nasoni and a façade of azulejo tilework. The church is named in honour of the Visigoth Ildephonsus of Toledo, bishop of Toledo from 657 until his death in 667.
History
Prior to the building of the Church of Saint Ildefonso, a chapel, known as Santo Alifon, stood on the site. Its construction date is unknown, but several early texts mention its existence. The earliest known reference to the site and the original church is in a work by a bishop of Porto, Vicente Mendes, dated 1296.
The aged chapel, in danger of collapsing, was demolished in 1709, and construction began on the new church that year. The building took thirty years to complete, finally inaugurated and blessed on 18 July 1739. The first stage of construction was completed in 1730, when the main body was finished and the tympanum, bearing the date M DCC XXX (1730), was placed. The second construction phase, from 1730 to 1739, saw the erection of the two bell towers, and the façade and narthex were finalised.
The architect of the Igreja de Santo Ildefonso is unknown, though records exist giving the names of the carpenters, masons, and locksmith who worked on the building.
Extensively repaired following a severe storm in 1819, the church also suffered damage from artillery fire on 21 July 1833 during the Siege of Porto. Over the years the church has undergone structural modifications and improvements, including replacement stained glass windows in 1967, created by the artist Isolino Vaz. Nineteen graves were discovered in 1996, during renovation works to the narthex, an area that corresponds to the original chapel's churchyard.
Features and usage
Constructed of granite, the shape of the church's main body is that of an elongated octagon, with decorative plaster ceilings. The façade, also granite, is regular and mostly plain, with two bell towers and a rectangular recess where a figure of the church's patron stands. The bell towers include decorative cornices and dentils, and each tower is topped with masonry spheres, a stone cross, and a metalwork flag.
A monolithic obelisk stands to the left of the church, although it was initially erected on a set of steps extending towards Rua de 31 de Janeiro. Originally positioned to align with the bell tower of nearby Clérigos Church, it was moved to its present location when the steps were altered in 1924 to accommodate shops.
Two notable features of the church are the retable and the blue-and-white tiling. The artist and architect Nicolau Nasoni designed the retable, which was created and installed by architect Miguel Francisco da Silva in 1745. Approximately 11,000 azulejo tiles cover the façade of the church, created by the artist Jorge Colaço and placed in November 1932. The tiles depict scenes from the life of Saint Ildefonso and figurative imagery from the Gospels.
The church sits near Porto's Batalha Square, an historic, mostly pedestrianised public space that is frequented by tourists. The church receives many visitors each year, and holds mass daily.
Porto
Porto, also known as Oporto, is the second largest city of Portugal (after Lisbon).
The city has the status of global city. It located in the estuary of the Douro river, in northern Portugal. The city of Porto comprises 15 civil parishes. The historic centre of Porto was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. One of Portugal's most internationally famous products, Port wine, is named after the city because it is produced in, and shipped from the area or, more precisely, from Vila Nova de Gaia, a city just across the river which belongs to the same conurbation.
The Latin name of Porto, Portus Cale, is the origin of the name "Portugal" for the whole country. In Portuguese, the city is usually referred to with the definite article as "o Porto" (the port), hence the English name "Oporto".
Highlights
In recent years, UNESCO recognised its historic centre as a World Heritage Site. Among the architectural highlights of the city, Oporto Cathedral is the oldest surviving structure, together with the small romanesque Church of Cedofeita, the gothic Igreja de São Francisco (Church of Saint Francis), the remnants of the city walls and a few 15th-century houses. The baroque style is well represented in the city in the elaborate gilt work interior decoration of the churches of St. Francis and St. Claire (Santa Clara), the churches of Mercy (Misericórida) and of the Clerics (Igreja dos Clérigos), the Episcopal Palace of Porto, and others. The neoclassicism and romanticism of the 19th and 20th centuries also added interesting monuments to the landscape of the city, like the magnificent Stock Exchange Palace (Palácio da Bolsa), the Hospital of Saint Anthony, the Municipality, the buildings in the Liberdade Square and the Avenida dos Aliados, the tile-adorned São Bento Train Station and the gardens of the Crystal Palace (Palácio de Cristal). A guided visit to the Palácio da Bolsa, and in particular the Arab Room, is a major tourist attraction.
Many of the city's oldest houses are at risk of collapsing. The population in Porto municipality dropped by nearly 100,000 since the 1980s, but the number of permanent residents in the outskirts and satellite towns has grown strongly.
Azulejo
Azulejo is a form of Portuguese painted, tin-glazed, ceramic tilework. They have become a typical aspect of Portuguese culture, having been produced without interruption for five centuries. There is also a tradition of their production in former Portuguese colonies in Latin America.
In Portugal, azulejos are found on the interior and exterior of churches, palaces, ordinary houses and even train stations or subway stations. They constitute a major aspect of Portuguese architecture as they are applied on walls, floors and even ceilings. They were not only used as an ornamental art form, but also had a specific functional capacity like temperature control at homes. Many azulejos chronicle major historical and cultural aspects of Portuguese history.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - AUGUST 28: XSET poses at VALORANT Champions 2022 Istanbul Features Day on August 28, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Angel Franco/Riot Games)
The portrait of Paquius Proculo is a fresco currently preserved at the Naples National Archaeological Museum that was found in Pompeii.
The fresco depicts a pair of middle-class Pompeians, almost certainly husband and wife. They are commonly referred to as "Paquius Proculus and his wife", due to an inscription found on the outside of the house, although a graffito inside the house later revealed the man to be Terentius Neo. (The external inscription turned out to be an election advertisement for Paquius Proculus, a baker who had been elected duumviri some time prior to the eruption.)
The man in the fresco wears a toga, the mark of a Roman citizen; and holds a rotulus, suggesting he is involved in public and/or cultural affairs. The woman holds a stylus and wax tablet, emphasizing that she is educated and literate. It is suspected, based on the physical features of the couple, that they are Samnites, which may explain the desire to show off the status they have reached in Roman society.
BC Vintage Truck Museum - Cloverdale
This hidden gem in Cloverdale is home to one of the largest collections of vintage trucks in Canada.
This postwar pickup from International Harvester was built for durability and utility, but it didn’t skimp on style either.
🔧 Key Specs
• Engine: 220.5 cu in (3.6 L) Silver Diamond inline-six
• Horsepower: 85–93 hp
• Torque: 160–170 lb-ft
• Transmission: 3-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
️ Design & Features
• Rounded fenders and a bold grille gave it a rugged yet approachable look
• Wood-lined bed floors and body-color steel wheels were common on restored models
• Optional features included electric wipers, a radio, and even a clock
📈 Collector Appeal
• Restored examples have sold for anywhere from $9,700 to $38,000 depending on condition
• Known for its reliability and simplicity, it’s a favorite among classic truck enthusiasts...
Thank you for your visit and any faves or comments are always greatly appreciated!
~Sonja
Apart from the many features of this dial, including accurate representations of the phases of the Moon, position of the Sun above the horizon, equinoxes, various time measurements, including Babylonian and Sidereal time, the four figures either side perform on each hour. The skeleton dates back to the completion of the clock in 1410 and rings a death toll each hour while the Turk to his right turns and the representation of Avarice on the other side of the dial shakes his bag of money and Vanity at the far left looks in his mirror.
Peter
So here it is. The reason for my utter abandonment of the internet the last few weeks.
I've had a massive final project due for my art class at college and this is it. My tutor loves my dolls and I love taking photos of them so it seemed only natural that I use them.
This has been months in planning and sewing (grrr). I made all the outfits with the exception of Rich's ( his jeans were a commission from the amazing mouldsweets and there is actually a shirt to go with them but it wouldn't fit under the jacket so he's got not shirt on, ho-hum). I was so nervous about doing this though and I only just finished making Katsu's dress in time for the photo.
But now it's all finished and over with, thank god and I now have an enormous A2 print of this as my finished piece and in the words of my darling sister: "I can't believe you're actually being marked on your hobby."
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the glorious spiral galaxy NGC 5643, which is located roughly 40 million light-years away in the constellation Lupus, the Wolf. NGC 5643 is a grand design spiral, which refers to the galaxy’s symmetrical form with two large, winding spiral arms that are clearly visible. Bright-blue stars define the galaxy’s spiral arms, along with lacy reddish-brown dust clouds and pink star-forming regions.
As fascinating as the galaxy appears at visible wavelengths, some of NGC 5643’s most interesting features are invisible to the human eye. Ultraviolet and X-ray images and spectra of NGC 5643 show that the galaxy hosts an active galactic nucleus: an especially bright galactic core powered by a feasting supermassive black hole. When a supermassive black hole ensnares gas from its surroundings, the gas collects in a disk that heats up to hundreds of thousands of degrees. The superheated gas shines brightly across the electromagnetic spectrum, but especially at X-ray wavelengths.
NGC 5643’s active galactic nucleus isn’t the brightest source of X-rays in the galaxy, though. Researchers using ESA’s XMM-Newton discovered an even brighter X-ray-emitting object, called NGC 5643 X-1, on the galaxy’s outskirts. What could be a more powerful source of X-rays than a supermassive black hole? Surprisingly, the answer appears to be a much smaller black hole! While the exact identity of NGC 5643 X-1 is unknown, evidence points to a black hole that is about 30 times more massive than the Sun. Locked in an orbital dance with a companion star, the black hole ensnares gas from its stellar companion, creating a superheated disk that outshines the NGC 5643’s galactic core.
Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Riess, D. Thilker, D. De Martin (ESA/Hubble), M. Zamani (ESA/Hubble)
Text credit: European Space Agency
For more information: science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/hubble-images-a-grand-sp...
TOKYO, JAPAN - JUNE 09: (L-R) Jason "f0rsakeN" Susanto, Wang "Jinggg" Jing Jie and Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee of Paper Rex at VALORANT Masters Tokyo Features Day on June 9, 2023 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Lee Aiksoon/Riot Games)
BLM Winter Bucket List #23: Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona, for Spectacular Geologic Features and Superbowl 49
This month, Phoenix, Arizona, is a buzz with #superbowl news. As the state prepares for the big event, we’ll share information about beautiful public lands just outside of the city and others worth a day trip - like Vermilion Cliffs.
Located on the Colorado Plateau in northern Arizona, the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument includes the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness. This remote and unspoiled 280,000-acre Monument - a part of the BLM’s National Conservation Lands - is a geologic treasure, containing a variety of diverse landscapes from the Paria Plateau, Vermilion Cliffs, Coyote Buttes, and Paria Canyon.
Visitors enjoy scenic views of towering cliffs and deep canyons. The colorful swirls of cross-bedded sandstone in Coyote Buttes are an international hiking destination. A permit is required for hiking in Coyote Buttes North (the Wave), Coyote Buttes South, and for overnight trips within Paria Canyon.
Whether you’re heading to the #superbowl or just want an unforgettable outdoor experience, Vermilion Cliffs is a must see! bit.ly/vermilioncliffs
Photos by Bob Wick, BLM Wilderness Specialist
Experimentations with Sean Wood and Louis Commère of the Neurocomputational and Intelligent Signal Processing (NECOTIS) research group during an interdiciplinairy art, science and technologies research residency in 2015. The residency program is a collaboration between the Sporobole art center and Université de Sherbrooke.
The granular sampling system analyses and maps audio features such as the amplitude, balance, pitch, spectrum, frequencies, harmonics and percussiveness of sounds. Using a random walker algorithm, it generates endless compositions based on the relationships between the sound samples transposed in reconfigurable point clouds.
www.francois-quevillon.com/html/en/node/303
Expérimentations avec Sean Wood et Louis Commère du groupe NECOTIS (Neurosciences Computationnelles et Traitement Intelligent des Signaux ) dans le cadre d'une résidence de recherche en arts, sciences et technologies. Le programme de résidence est une collaboration entre le centre en art actuel Sporobole et l’Université de Sherbrooke.
Le système d'échantillonnage granulaire procède à l'analyse de caractéristiques sonores et à leur visualisation dans un espace à multiples dimensions. Le logiciel examine des paramètres tels que l'amplitude, l'équilibre, la hauteur, le spectre, les fréquences, les harmoniques, les passages à zéro et l'aspect percussif du son. En utilisant un algorithme de marche aléatoire (random walker), il génère ensuite des pièces infinies selon les relations entre les échantillons sonores transposés dans un nuage de points dont la structure est reconfigurable.
Special Thanks
CycleEXIF
www.cycleexif.com/bianchi-mini-velo
My collections were featured on the web.
...............................................................................................
GESSATO
www.gessato.com/bianchi-mini-velo-7-by-jin-buick-hidaka/
My collections were featured on the web.
...............................................................................................
Bianchi Mini Velo 7. "Shes So Charming!"
..............................................................................................
2012.5–
Headlamp : Kimura LH-05, Japan
Taillamp : Kimura TL-07V, Japan
Reflector : Kimura 30mm, Japan
Fenders : Honjo, Japan
Padlock Key : Henry Squire & Sons
Tool Roll : Vintage
Wooden Grip : Abici
Brakes : Linear Pull Brakes, Motolite, Paul Component
Brake Levers : Love Lever, Paul Component
Shifter Mounts : Thumbies, Paul Component
Shift Lever : Gran Compe
Stem : Nitto, Japan
Crankset : FSA F-Gimondi
Chain Ring : Sugino, Japan
Chain : Shimano, Japan
Rear Derailleur : DURA-ACE 25th Anniversary Shimano, Japan
Bicycle Frame Handle : Custom Made
2017.8– Replaced
Pedals : MKS Mikashima, Sylvan Touring Next, Japan
Quick Release : Vintage
Saddle : Order Made
Handlebar : Velo Orange
Aluminum Bottle : Vintage with Chain
Crank Cap : Sunxcd, Japan
Chain Guard : Dixna, Japan
Sprocket : 8Speed Shimano, Japan
Front Hub : White Industries
Rear Hub : White Industries
Rim : Alexrims
Spoke : Dt Swiss
Nipple : Dt Swiss
Bottom Bracket : Tange, Japan
Wire Basket : Vintage
Wire Basket Brass Font : Vintage
Wire Basket Leather Plate : Hermes Order Made
Bell : Vintage
Bag : La Maison du Chocola with Vintage Key
CGF Leather Sign Board : Hermes Order Made.
Red Rock Canyon State Park features scenic desert cliffs, buttes and spectacular rock formations. The park is located where the southernmost tip of the Sierra Nevada converge with the El Paso Range. Each tributary canyon is unique, with dramatic shapes and vivid colors.
Historically, the area was once home to the Kawaiisu Indians, who left petroglyphs in the El Paso mountains and other evidence of their inhabitation. The spectacular gash situated at the western edge of the El Paso mountain range was on the Native American trade route for thousands of years. During the early 1870s, the colorful rock formations in the park served as landmarks for 20-mule team freight wagons that stopped for water. About 1850, it was used by the footsore survivors of the famous Death Valley trek including members of the Arcane and Bennett families along with some of the Illinois Jayhawkers. The park now protects significant paleontology sites and the remains of 1890s-era mining operations, and has been the site for a number of movies.
After wet winters, the park's floral displays are stunning. The beauty of the desert, combined with the geologic features make this park a camper's favorite destination. Wildlife you may encounter includes roadrunners, hawks, lizards, mice and squirrels.
Created by Melbourne stained glass manufacturer Ferguson and Urie in 1880 for the opening of the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church, the four northern transept vestibule windows feature quotations from the Bible. Each window, like the other non-figurative windows around Saint George's Presbyterian Church, features design elements typical of their work. This lancet window in the western wall of the vestibule features a latticed "diaper" pattern containing stylised floral designs in yellow. It has a border of coloured squares dispersed with stylised flowers with an inner border of brightly coloured circles, also common element of Ferguson and Urie's windows. The quote "Come unto me all that labour and are heavy laden", comes from the Book of Matthew XI 28 - 29. Written in brilliant orange Gothic script against a black background, the Biblical quote appears in a panel midway down the lancet window.
The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church, which stands on busy Chapel Street in St Kilda East, is a well known and loved local landmark, not least of all because of its strikingly tall (33.5 metre or 110 foot) banded bell tower which can be spotted from far away. In the Nineteenth Century when it was built, it would have been even more striking for its great height and domineering presence. Designed by architect Albert Purchas, the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church is often referred to as his ecclesiastical tour-de-force, and it is most certainly one of his most dramatic and memorable churches.
The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church was constructed on a plot of land reserved in Chapel Street for the Presbyterian Church of Victoria in 1866. Initially services were held in a small hall whilst fundraising efforts advanced the erection of a church. The architect Albert Purchas was commissioned to design the church and the foundation stone for the western portion of the nave was finally laid in April 1877 by Sir James McCulloch. The first service was held in the church on the 1st of October 1877. The first clergyman of the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church was the Reverend John Laurence Rentoul (father to world renown and much loved Australian children's book illustrator Ida Rentoul Outhwaite). However, the swelling Presbyterian congregation of St Kilda and its surrounding districts quickly outgrew the initial Saint George's Presbyterian Church building, so Albert Purchas was obliged to re-design and enlarge the church to allow a doubling in capacity. Robert S. Ekins was the contractor and his tender was £3000.00. It is this imposing church building, reopened in 1880, that we see today. The "Australasian Sketcher with Pen and Pencil" noted that the total length of the building was 118 feet and 6 inches (36 metres), by 40 foot (12 metres) wide and that the striking octagonal tower to the north-west was 110ft 6 in high. It perhaps reflected better the wealth and aspirations of the congregation.
The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church is constructed on bluestone foundations and is built in an ornate polychromatic Gothic Revival style in the tradition of English designers like William Butterfield and John L. Pearson. Built of red brick building, it is decorated in contrasting cream bricks and Waurn Ponds freestone dressings. It features a slate roof with prominent roof vents, iron ridge cresting and fleche at the intersection of the nave and transepts. The front facade of the church is dominated by the slender, banded octagonal tower topped by a narrow spire. The entrance features a double arched portal portico. The facade also features a dominant triangular epitrochoidal (curved triangular form) rose window. The church, like its bluestone neighbour All Saints Church of England, is built to a T-shaped plan, with an aisleless nave, broad transepts and internal walls of cream brick, relieved with coloured brickwork. The former Saint George's Presbyterian Church was one of the first major church design in Melbourne in which polychrome brickwork was lavishly employed both externally and internally.
The inside of the former Saint George's Presbyterian Church is equally as grand as the exterior, with ornamental Gothic Revival polychromatic brickwork, a lofty vaulted ceiling, deal and kauri pine joinery and pulpit and reredos of Keene's cement. The building originally contained a complete set of Victorian stained glass windows by well known and successful Melbourne manufacturers Ferguson and Urie, all of which remain intact today except for one of the non-figurative windows which was replaced by a memorial window to Samuel Lyons McKenzie, the congregation’s beloved minister, who served from 1930 to 1948, in 1949. The earliest of the Ferguson and Urie windows are non-figurative windows which feature the distinctive diaper pattern and floral motifs of Fergus and Urie's work, and are often argued to be amongst the finest of their non-figurative designs. The large triple window in the chancel was presented by Lady McCulloch in memory of the ‘loved and dead’. Another, in memory of John Kane Smyth, the Vice-Consul for the United States of America in Melbourne, has the American Stars and Stripes on the top ventilator above it. An organ by Thomas C. Lewis of London, one of the leading 19th century English organ builders, was installed in the south transept in 1882. It was designed to blend with its architectural setting, with pipework styled to avoid the obstruction of windows. The action of this organ was altered in 1935, but the pipework, and the original sound, have been retained.
Over the years many spiritual and social activities were instituted at Saint George’s, Presbyterian Church some of short duration such as the Ladies’ Reading Club which operated between 1888 and 1893. There were segregated Bible classes for young men and women, the Presbyterian Women’s Missionary Union, formed in 1892, a cricket club and a floral guild. Guilds teaching physical culture for girls, boys and young men began in 1904. They were entirely financed by John Maclellan and the idea extended to other denominations throughout Victoria. John Maclellan died in 1936 and the guilds ceased at Saint George’s Presbyterian church through lack of funds although in 1977 the members of the girls’ guild were still holding bi-annual reunions and raising money for charity. Sadly, the Presbyterian congregations may have been large in the Nineteenth Century, but by St George's Presbyterian Church's 110th centenary, its doors had already closed during the week due to dwindling numbers and an ageing congregation as a result of the general decline in church attendances after the Second World War exacerbated by the changing nature of St Kilda and the decrease in numbers of residents living in the vicinity of the church. So it stood, forlorn and empty and seemingly nothing more than a relic of a glorious but bygone religious past. However in 1990, Saint Michael's Grammar School across the road leased the Victorian Heritage listed building during weekdays, and it was eventually sold to them in 2015. It now forms part of the school's performing-arts complex, and it has a wonderful new lease of life.
St George's Presbyterian Church is sometimes hired out for performances, and I had the pleasure of receiving an invitation to hear Handel's Messiah performed there in 2009. The ecclesiastical acoustics made the performance all the more magnificent. I remember as I sat on one of the original (hard) kauri pine pews, I looked around me and admired the stained glass and ornamental brickwork. I tried without success over several subsequent years to gain access to the church's interior, settling for photographs of the exterior instead, but it wasn't until 2018 that I was fortunate enough to gain entry to photograph the church's interior. The former St George's Presbyterian Church was opened up to the public for one Sunday morning only as part of Open House Melbourne in July 2018. It was a fantastic morning, and I am very grateful to the staff who manned the church for the day and watched bemused as I photographed the stained glass extensively and in such detail.
Albert Purchas, born in 1825 in Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales, was a prominent Nineteenth Century architect who achieved great success for himself in Melbourne. Born to parents Robert Whittlesey Purchas and Marianne Guyon, he migrated to Australia in 1851 to establish himself in the then quickly expanding city of Melbourne, where he set up a small architect's firm in Little Collins Street. He also offered surveying services. His first major building was constructing the mansion "Berkeley Hall" in St Kilda on Princes Street in 1854. The house still exists today. Two years after migrating, Albert designed the layout of the Melbourne General Cemetery in Carlton. It was the first "garden cemetery" in Victoria, and his curvilinear design is still in existence, unaltered, today. In 1854, Albert married Eliza Anne Sawyer (1825 - 1869) in St Kilda. The couple had ten children over their marriage, including a son, Robert, who followed in his father's footsteps as an architect. Albert's brother-in-law, Charles Sawyer joined him in the partnership of Purchas and Sawyer, which existed from 1856 until 1862 in Queens Street. The firm produced more than 140 houses, churches, offices and cemetery buildings including: the nave and transepts of Christ Church St Kilda between 1854 and 1857, "Glenara Homestead"in Bulla in 1857, the Melbourne Savings Bank on the corner of Flinders Lane and Market Street (now demolished) between 1857 and 1858, the Geelong branch of the Bank of Australasia in Malop Street between 1859 and 1860, and Beck's Imperial Hotel in Castlemaine in 1861. When the firm broke up, Albert returned to Little Collins Street, and the best known building he designed during this period was Saint. George's Presbyterian Church in St Kilda East between 1877 and 1880. The church's tall polychomatic brick bell tower is still a local landmark, even in the times of high rise architecture and development, and Saint, George's itself is said to be one of his most striking church designs. Socially, Albert was vice president of the Royal Victorian Institute of Architects for many years, before becoming president in 1887. He was also an inventor and philanthropist. Albert died in 1909 at his home in Kew, a wealthy widower and much loved father.
The stained glass firm of Ferguson and Urie was established by Scots James Ferguson (1818 – 1894), James Urie (1828 – 1890) and John Lamb Lyon (1836 – 1916). They were the first known makers of stained glass in Australia. Until the early 1860s, window glass in Melbourne had been clear or plain coloured, and nearly all was imported, but new churches and elaborate buildings created a demand for pictorial windows. The three Scotsmen set up Ferguson and Urie in 1862 and the business thrived until 1899, when it ceased operation, with only John Lamb Lyon left alive. Ferguson and Urie was the most successful Nineteenth Century Australian stained glass window making company. Among their earliest works were a Shakespeare window for the Haymarket Theatre in Bourke Street, a memorial window to Prince Albert in Holy Trinity, Kew, and a set of Apostles for the West Melbourne Presbyterian Church. Their palatial Gothic Revival office building stood at 283 Collins Street from 1875. Ironically, their last major commission, a window depicting “labour”, was installed in the old Melbourne Stock Exchange in Collins Street in 1893 on the eve of the bank crash. Their windows can be found throughout the older suburbs of Melbourne and across provincial Victoria.
Features Ice King's throne and the prison for captured princesses
Please support the project here: lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/38958
TOKYO, JAPAN - JUNE 09: Alexander "jawgemo" Mor of Evil Geniuses at VALORANT Masters Tokyo Features Day on June 9, 2023 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Lee Aiksoon/Riot Games)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 26: Hwang "Kingen" Seong-hoon of DRX poses at the League of Legends World Championship Semifinals Features Day on October 26, 2022 in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by Fernando Decillis/Riot Games)
Warner Bros Studio Tour London: The Making of Harry Potter
Warner Bros Studio, Aerodrome Way, Leavesden, Watford, Herts, WD25 7LS
A great day out for every fan of the boy wizard.
The Making of Harry Potter studio tour, covering 150,000 square foot, on two soundstages opened on the 31st March 2012, with stars galore at the red carpet launch at the Leavesden Studios where all eight movies were produced.
The home for many film productions, including several James Bond features, before a relatively new production company arrived there to make a film about a young boy who on his 11th birthday discovers he is a wizard.
Over the next ten years, the cast and crew of over 4,000 in total used more and more of the studios as the popularity of the books and films grew. The three young stars lived, grew up, went to school and turned into adults there on those stages.
Your tour begins in the foyer, with a flying Ford Anglia hanging from the ceiling and the walls adorned with huge photos of the cast, along with a few props.
Passing by the set of the cupboard under the stairs, you enter a room with a number of vertical TV screens showing Potter movie posters from around the world, followed by a short video sequence showing the rise of Harry’s popularity, the production teams discovery of the stories and the enormous worldwide success of the books and films.
Moving into the cinema, a short film introduced by Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, talking about their experiences growing up on a film set for ten years, with clips from all eight films. The film ends with them standing in front of the main doors to the Great Hall and they walk in through the doors and invite you to follow them.
The screen at this point slowly rises to reveal the actual main doors to the Great Hall, surrounded with stone statues and carvings. What a wizard way to start the tour.
Walking through into the Great Hall we are told that we were now walking on the actual stone floor used in the films and seeing the actual tables where the actors ate their feasts. Dummies down each side of the hall wear the actual costumes used in the films. At the far end of the hall is the teachers’ table area, with more amazing costumes worn by Professors Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagall, Moody, Trelawney and Flitwick, as well as Hagrid and Filch too.
Leaving the Great Hall you enter the first of two vast sound stages. This includes sets for the Gryffindor Common Room and Dormitory, Dumbledore’s Office, Potions Classroom, Hagrid’s Hut, Burrow’s Kitchen and parts of the Ministry of Magic, also Umbridge’s gaudy pink, feline office. Each filled to the brim with props and costumes.
Props can be seen everywhere, with a massive cage in the centre, chock-a-block with goblets, chandeliers, wands and armour. A huge glass case contains the wands of 24 of the major characters – less than 1 percent of the total number of wands made for the films. The ornate doors to a Gringott’s vault and to the Chamber of Secrets are seen after passing a wall dedicated to the paintings produced to decorate the walls of Hogwarts.
Below the giant swinging pendulum of the Hogwarts castle clock there are several huge touch screens containing an interactive Marauders Map.
There are sections of the soundstage dedicated to various movie-making crafts. The hair and makeup section, costumes section, animal department, graphic design and production.
The final section in this first soundstage is dedicated to the Special Effects department with three huge video screens showing all the tricks and techniques, including greenscreen footage and CGI. Props attached to their motion rigs, include the Gringott’s Vault Cart and Mad-Eye Moody’s Recumbent Broomstick.
In separate room you can have a go on a broomstick or drive the Ford Anglia yourself, using the greenscreen technology.
The Backlot about half way round the tour is an open air section between the two soundstages where refreshments are available, including Butterbeer the popular wizarding beverage.
Also featured on the backlot are the Knight Bus, another Ford Anglia, Hagrid’s motorbike/sidecar, the Riddle family tombstone, a section of the rickety wooden Hogwarts Bridge, Potter’s burnt out cottage from Godric’s Hollow and Number 4 Privet Drive.
Entering the second soundstage you pass some of the giant chess pieces from the first movie. A number of video screens here progressively show what it was like to work in the creature shop, cleverly leading you from one screen to the next, past models of Fawkes, a snapping Monster Book of Monsters and a giant animatronic head of Hagrid. The next room has the life size (i.e., ENORMOUS!) model of Aragog the spider and one of three animatronic Buckbeak models.
Walking around the corner (WOW) you are transported into another world entirely. The dark lighting and cobbled street can only mean one thing – you have entered Diagon Alley. The shops using the original sets have been rebuilt– Flourish & Blotts, Eeylops Owl Emporium, Potage’s Cauldron Shop and of course Ollivander’s Wand Shop, each and every one them is crammed full of detail. At the other end of the street is Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, with the bright orange shopfront standing out from the crowd of blackness and featuring a moving model of one of the red-haired twins doffing his hat.
At the end of Diagon Alley you move onto the Art and Design department with walls covered with architectural drawings and detailed plans, accurate down to the millimetre, for many of the props and sets already seen. A draftsman’s table serves as a projection screen for another video about the work of the art department.
Moving on, up the ascending path are walls full of concept paintings and artwork, also intricate cardboard models of Hogsmead and the Hogwarts.
You are only looking at a model of the model though, as entering the next room, there, spread over at least 15 square metres is the most amazing, complex and elaborate model built to a 1:24 scale. It has a bigger footprint than the average house.
The last part of the tour is a fitting tribute to the crew and cast of the most popular film franchise of all time. A much tidier recreation of the interior of Ollivander’s Wand shop, with over 4,000 wand boxes lining its shelves – one for every single person who worked on the films.
Exit through the Gift Shop.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 06: Zdravets "Hylissang" Iliev Galabov (L) and Ivan "Razork" Martin of Fnatic pose at the League of Legends World Championship Groups Features Day on October 6, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Lance Skundrich/Riot Games)
My eyes went to her immediately as I got on the subway to return home from downtown. Not only was her fur hat hard to miss, but it was obvious that her beautiful features would photograph well. She was chatting with her seatmate who was obviously a friend.
A crowded subway car is not the ideal place to initiate a 100 Strangers encounter, but I’ve been fortunate to have a few turn out quite well. After pondering it for a few minutes I thought I would ask if she was by chance getting g off at my station and hope she didn’t think I was some kind of creep. “Yes, I am” she said. I told her briefly about my project and she said “I have no problem at all in having you photograph me.” I thanked her, told her I would do it outside on the streetcar platform once we got there, then left her and her friend to finish their conversation.
We walked off the subway car together and on our way down the platform to the stairs I told her a bit more about the project and gave her my contact card. We shook hands. Meet Erin.
I was familiar with the streetcar platform because I’ve made a couple of Strangers portraits under the shelter where the indirect light worked well. I explained my minimal needs: “Look right into the lens and give any expression that feels comfortable and natural.” Erin took off her backpack and straightened her colorful scarf with no direction from me and positioned where I suggested and I took the photos.
We chatted a bit and I found out that Erin is 31 and a native Torontonian. Her background is varied and fascinating. She identified herself as a yoga instructor and meditater who trains other yoga instructors as well as making Kurdish music, singing in languages too numerous to list, and is a circus stilt-walker. She has a strong spiritual quality about her which was confirmed when I read her bio on the website of her yoga studio (www.yogarta.com) where her mission is described as “spreading kindness, compassion, and peace.” When asked how she got involved in Kurdish music she said “it started appearing in my dreams. You could say I didn’t find it; it found me.” When I asked if she had a personal philosophy to share with the project photographers she simply said “Be happy.”
I’m quite certain that the man on the yogarta website is Erin’s partner who she identified as being Iranian. She said they were leaving on a trip to Istanbul in the next few weeks and commented on what a fascinating city it is.
When I asked about her easy acceptance of my request to participate in my photo project she said “Why not? You will find that people are generally really nice and want to help each other.” Meeting Erin was a real pleasure and I twice expressed concern that I was taking too much of her time and each time she said “Use what time you need to do your photos. I don’t mind.” How often do we hear that message?
Almost as an afterthought I lifted my camera and backed away to get a full-length photo showing her beautiful outfit.
Thanks again, Erin, for being so generous with your time and for trusting the intentions of a complete stranger on the subway who wanted to take your photo. I’m used to people expressing initial uncertainty (which I fully understand) so I was struck by your immediate trust. You are #711 in Round 8 of my 100 Strangers project.
Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by the other photographers in our group at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page.
BOX DATE: None
APPROXIMATE RELEASE DATE: 2011
MANUFACTURER: M.G.A.
DOLLS IN LINE: Cloe; Yasmin; Jade; Sasha
BODY TYPE: 2010; pink painted panties; articulated elbows, wrists, bust, and legs
HEAD MOLD: 2001; parted lips; pierced ears
SPECIAL FEATURES: Glow in the dark hair
PERSONAL FUN FACT: Rock Cloe is one of those dolls that always makes me emotional. She was one of my very last Christmas presents from Dad, in 2011. Prior to the night that Dad purchased her for me, I had never really considered getting any dolls from the Rock line. They were easily overlooked compared to some of the more "tempting" lines like the Masquerade gals. Anyways, the story behind this Cloe is one of the most notorious ones in my doll collecting history. This was the very first year I had started collecting dolls again after a five year hiatus. It took me some time to get used to the way the dolls had changed after such a long break. I also had lost some of my identity as a collector, and therefore was very prone to listening to other collector's opinions, rather than forming my own. Of course, I found myself in the trap of thinking that the new dolls "weren't good enough." But that inner kid in me honestly was drawn to them. One of the first Bratz lines that really caught my eye was the 2010 Party collection. It all started with me finding Yasmin on clearance at Wal-Mart, and later Jade and Sasha on sale at Toys 'R' Us. One afternoon, a few days before Christmas, I casually mentioned to Dad that I was missing Party Cloe. We were on our way to do grocery shopping when this topic was brought up. Dad immediately said that the groceries could wait, and off we went on the quest to find Party Cloe. Long story short, after many hours and countless stores (and even eBay searches), Party Cloe could not be located. Dad did not want me to go home empty handed that night, so he bought me not one, but seven Bratz dolls. He did always know how to do overkill! I first got the set of Wild Wild West dolls at one store. But then on our last two stops of the evening, I spotted this lone Rock Cloe at a Wal-Mart. For the first time, I found myself intrigued by her teal highlighted hair and her rad outfit. Dad said he would get me Cloe too, and after stopping at Toys 'R' Us before heading home, he let me complete the line. I want to preface this by saying that we were very broke at the time, so it meant all that much more to me that Dad splurged on so many Bratz dolls for me, to ensure that I was happy that Christmas. There was a brief time that I felt disenchanted by the dolls. This was when I was heavily scrutinizing all my dollies and focusing on their "flaws." Since Cloe had such gross nylon hair and wasn't the same quality as the Bratz I grew up with, at some point I dismissed her. But after Dad's passing, I realized how ungrateful I had behaved, and I decided that from then on, I was going to love and appreciate my dolls to the fullest. It did take sometime for this mentality to feel natural, but now I see no flaws when I look at this Cloe. I love everything about her, even that nylon hair. She was the first doll I ever attempted to flat iron (besides some nappy haired American Girls). It took me quite a few treatments to finally get it perfect, but now her hair feels almost as wonderful as saran. Even if I had not managed to sort out her locks, Cloe would always be a treasured possession of mine. She will forever be a reminder of that last Christmas with Dad, his generosity, and the way I felt rediscovering my passion for dolls that year!
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - AUGUST 27: Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee (L) and Benedict "Benkai" Tan of Paper Rex at VALORANT Champions 2022 Istanbul Features Day on August 27, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Angel Franco/Riot Games)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 26: Kim "Zeka" Geon-woo of DRX poses at the League of Legends World Championship Semifinals Features Day on October 26, 2022 in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by Fernando Decillis/Riot Games)
TOKYO, JAPAN - JUNE 09: Jake "Boaster" Howlett of Fnatic at VALORANT Masters Tokyo Features Day on June 9, 2023 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Lee Aiksoon/Riot Games)
One of the significant features of the MiG-25 Foxbat was its enormous Tumansky R-15(B) turbojet engines, providing it with Mach 3 speed. A significant drawback to these engines was their fuel consumption, which limited their range. For the new long-range interceptor, the massive Tumansky engines were replaced with two Solov’yov D-30F6 (D-30F6S, izdeliye 48) afterburning turbofan engines. The D-30F6 engines were more powerful than the Foxbat's R-15(B) engines, but the Foxhound was heavier, fully loaded, by about 5 tons. To preserve the Foxbat’s engines, the aircraft was limited to Mach 2.83 at high altitude, which, as it turned out, was the maximum speed of the Foxhound. Compared to the R-15(B) engines, the D-30F6 engines performed better at low altitudes and were one of the few reliable engines produced by the Soviet Union.
Even with these new engines, the range of the Foxhound was still insufficient for patrolling the vast borders of the Soviet Union. Therefore, it was necessary to develop an inflight-refuelling (IFR) system for the MiG-31. NPP Zvezda developed the IFR along with the K-36 ejection seat for the new aircraft to be used with the Ilyushin Il-78 three-point tanker. The first Foxhound to be equipped with the new IFR system was 363 Blue, and the Gorky plant received the production code izdeliye 01DZ for the IFR-capable version but did not affect the service designation, which remained the MiG-31 without a suffix. 100 01DZ variants were produced. In this image, a MiG-31 01DZ (368 Blue, ex-363 Blue) with its probe extended approaches an Il-78 tanker for refuelling tests. For this model, I used the IFR probe from my MiG-29 model. This seemed appropriate because the IFR probe used on the Foxhound was the same one used on the MiG-29SMT Fulcrum.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 26: Zeng "Yagao" Qi of JD Gaming poses at the League of Legends World Championship Semifinals Features Day on October 26, 2022 in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by Fernando Decillis/Riot Games)
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the field of stars that is NGC 1786. The globular cluster is located in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a small satellite galaxy of the Milky Way Galaxy that is approximately 160,000 light-years away from Earth. NGC 1786 itself is in the constellation Dorado. It was discovered in the year 1835 by Sir John Herschel.
The data for this image comes from an observing program that compares old globular clusters in nearby dwarf galaxies — the LMC, the Small Magellanic Cloud, and the Fornax dwarf spheroidal galaxy — to globular clusters in the Milky Way galaxy. Our galaxy contains over 150 of these old, spherical collections of tightly-bound stars, which astronomers have studied in depth — especially with Hubble images like this one, which show them in previously unattainable detail. Being very stable and long-lived, globular clusters act as galactic time capsules, preserving stars from the earliest stages of a galaxy’s formation.
Astronomers once thought that stars in a globular cluster all formed together at about the same time, but the study of old globular clusters in our galaxy uncovered multiple populations of stars with different ages. To use globular clusters as historical markers, we must understand how they form and where these stars of varying ages come from. This observing program examined old globular clusters like NGC 1786 in these external galaxies to see if they, too, contain multiple populations of stars. This research can tell us more about how the LMC originally formed, but also the Milky Way Galaxy, too.
Text credit: European Space Agency
Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, M. Monelli; Acknowledgment: M. H. Özsaraç
For more information: science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/hubble-digs-up-galactic-...
Phone differentiation used to be about radios and antennas and things like that...We think, going forward, the phone of the future will be differentiated by software
Steve Jobs | WSJ
online.wsj.com/article/SB121842341491928977.html?mod=rss_...
Background CC Image: www.flickr.com/photos/phatcontroller/274082495. This citation appears in the top left of the image.
Installed in 1950, the Ezekiel Oddy memorial stained glass window was a gift to the St Kilda Presbyterian Church from his wife, Mary. The window was designed by Australian stained glass artist and muralist Napier Waller (1893 – 1972). Looking out onto the church's sideway, the left-hand stained glass window features Jesus with the children, whilst the right-hand pane shows Jesus restoring Peter. Jesus with the children comes from the Book of Matthew, where Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these." The window depicts Jesus embracing a young girl clutching a toddler in her arms, whilst two other small children play at Jesus' feet; the youngest of which stares directly at the window's observer. A number of children's faces appear above Jesus, and two ghostly disciples peer out from behind Jesus' shoulders. Jesus restoring Peter comes from the Book of John. Jesus is surrounded by his flock, with Peter in front of him tending his sheep as he was bid by Jesus. Saint Peter appears holding a large gold key amongst the other Apostles above Jesus' head. Both windows are of note for the quality of their stylised faces, typical of Napier Waller's work, and for the leaf patterns that appear at the bottom of each window. The window's octofoil features the Lamb of God holding a Christian banner. This is a typical symbol for Agnus Dei. Around the Lamb of God appear the words; "such is the Kingdom of God" which reflects the verse in the Book of Matthew that mentions Jesus and the children; "feed my sheep" which is from the verse in which Jesus restores Peter from the Book of John. The palate of these windows are wonderfully light and pale in comparison to all the other older nave windows of the St Kilda Presbyterian Church, and even though the window faces a tall building on the other side of the laneway, it still allows plenty of light to penetrate the church and illuminate the window.
Built on the crest of a hill in a prominent position overlooking St Kilda and the bay is the grand St Kilda Presbyterian Church.
The St Kilda Presbyterian Church's interior is cool, spacious and lofty, with high ceilings of tongue and groove boards laid diagonally, and a large apse whose ceiling was once painted with golden star stenciling. The bluestone walls are so thick that the sounds of the busy intersection of Barkley Street and Alma Road barely permeate the church's interior, and it is easy to forget that you are in such a noisy inner Melbourne suburb. The cedar pews of the church are divided by two grand aisles which feature tall cast iron columns with Corinthian capitals. At the rear of the building towards Alma Road there are twin porches and a narthex with a staircase that leads to the rear gallery where the choir sang from. It apparently once housed an organ by William Anderson, but the space today is used as an office and Bible study area. The current impressive Fincham and Hobday organ from 1892 sits in the north-east corner of the church. It cost £1030.00 to acquire and install. The church is flooded with light, even on an overcast day with a powerful thunder storm brewing (as the weather was on my visit). The reason for such light is because of the very large Gothic windows, many of which are filled with quarry glass by Ferguson and Urie featuring geometric tracery with coloured borders. The church also features stained glass windows designed by Ferguson and Urie, British stained glass artist Ernest Richard Suffling, Brooks, Robinson and Company Glass Merchants, Mathieson and Gibson of Melbourne and one by Australian stained glass artist Napier Waller.
Opened in 1886, the St Kilda Presbyterian church was designed by the architects firm of Wilson and Beswicke, a business founded in 1881 by Ralph Wilson and John Beswicke (1847 - 1925) when they became partners for a short period. The church is constructed of bluestone with freestone dressings and designed in typical Victorian Gothic style. The foundation stone, which may be found on the Alma Road facade, was laid by the Governor of Victoria Sir Henry Barkly on 27 January. When it was built, the St Kilda Presbyterian Church was surrounded by large properties with grand mansions built upon them, so the congregation were largely very affluent and wished for a place of worship that reflected its stature not only in location atop a hill, but in size and grandeur.
The exterior facades of the church on Barkley Street and Alma Road are dominated by a magnificent tower topped by an imposing tower. The location of the church and the height of the tower made the spire a landmark for mariners sailing into Melbourne's port. The tower features corner pinnacles and round spaces for the insertion of a clock, which never took place. Common Victorian Gothic architectural features of the St Kilda Presbyterian Church include complex bar tracery over the windows, wall buttresses which identify structural bays, gabled roof vents, parapeted gables and excellent stone masonry across the entire structure.
I am very grateful to the Reverend Paul Lee for allowing me the opportunity to photograph the interior of the St Kilda Presbyterian Church so extensively, and to Kieran, the former church organist who gave me such great information on the St Kilda Presbyterian Church, including that of the beautiful Napier Waller window.
The architects Wilson and Beswicke were also responsible for the Brighton, Dandenong, Essendon, Hawthorn and Malvern Town Halls and the Brisbane Wesleyan Church on the corner of Albert and Ann Streets. They also designed shops in the inner Melbourne suburbs of Auburn and Fitzroy. They also designed several individual houses, including "Tudor House" in Williamstown, "Tudor Lodge" in Hawthorn and "Rotha" in Hawthorn, the latter of which is where John Beswicke lived.
Mervyn Napier Waller (1893 – 1972) was an Australian artist. Born in Penshurst, Victoria, Napier was the son of William Waller, contractor, and his wife Sarah, née Napier. Educated locally until aged 14, he then worked on his father's farm. In 1913 he began studies at the National Gallery schools, Melbourne, and first exhibited water-colours and drawings at the Victorian Artists' Society in 1915. On 31 August of that year he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force, and on 21 October at the manse of St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Carlton, married Christian Yandell, a fellow student and artist from Castlemaine. Serving in France from the end of 1916, Waller was seriously wounded in action, and his right arm had to be amputated at the shoulder. Whilst convalescing in France and England Napier learned to write and draw with his left hand. After coming home to Australia he exhibited a series of war sketches in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Hobart between 1918 and 1919 which helped to establish his reputation as a talented artist. Napier continued to paint in water-colour, taking his subjects from mythology and classical legend, but exhibited a group of linocuts in 1923. In 1927 Napier completed his first major mural for the Menzies Hotel, Melbourne. Next year his mural 'Peace after Victory' was installed in the State Library of Victoria. Visiting England and Europe in 1929 to study stained glass, the Wallers travelled in Italy where Napier was deeply impressed by the mosaics in Ravenna and studied mosaic in Venice. He returned to Melbourne in March 1930 and began to work almost exclusively in stained glass and mosaic. In 1931 he completed a great monumental mosaic for the University of Western Australia; two important commissions in Melbourne followed: the mosaic façade for Newspaper House (completed 1933) and murals for the dining hall in the Myer Emporium (completed 1935). During this time he also worked on a number of stained-glass commissions, some in collaboration with his wife, Christian. Between 1939 and 1945 he worked as an illustrator and undertook no major commissions. In 1946 he finished a three-lancet window commemorating the New Guinea martyrs for St Peter's Church, Eastern Hill. In 1952-58 he designed and completed the mosaics and stained glass for the Hall of Memory at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra. On 25 January 1958 in a civil ceremony in Melbourne Waller had married Lorna Marion Reyburn, a New Zealand-born artist who had long been his assistant in stained glass.