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Mussenden Temple is a small circular building located on cliffs near Castlerock in County Derry, Northern Ireland.
The temple was built in 1785 and forms part of the estate of Frederick Augustus Hervey, the 4th Earl of Bristol, Bishop of Derry.Built as a library and modeled from the Temple of Vesta in Italy, it is dedicated to the memory of Hervey’s cousin Frideswide Mussenden.
The Temple offers views westwards over Downhill Strand towards Magilligan Point and County Donegal, and to the east Castlerock beach towards Portstewart, Portrush and Fair Head.
Both Mussenden Temple and Downhill Beach were used in Game of Thrones as filming locations for Dragonstone. Remember the burning of the ancient gods by Melisandre on the beach? Well, that was here. And also where Stannis Baratheon pulls the flaming sword "Light-bringer" out of the flames
Moritzburg Castle (Schloss Moritzburg) or Moritzburg Palace is a Baroque palace in Moritzburg, in the German state of Saxony, about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) northwest of the Saxon capital, Dresden.
The castle has four round towers and lies on a symmetrical artificial island. It is named after Duke Moritz of Saxony, who had a hunting lodge built there between 1542 and 1546. The surrounding woodlands and lakes were a favourite hunting area of the electors and kings of Saxony.
In 1972 Moritzburg Castle was one of the locations of the Czechoslovak-German film Tři oříšky pro Popelku ("Three Nuts for Cinderella"), which became a popular fairy-tale movie in Central Europe.
The Tüshaus mill is a water mill near Dorsten-Deuten in North Rhine-Westphalia. The mill is located on the southern edge of the forest area of Üfter Mark, where the water of the Hammbach River from Rhade is stowed to the mill pond.
The history of the Tüshaus-Hof, to which the mill belongs, can be traced back to 1382. The lords of Lembeck, who held the water law in their territory, leased a whale mill driven by the water of the Hammbach in 1615 to a certain Mr. Tuschhaus.
However, the mill was not the first building on this site, as it was built on older foundations. Sheep were mainly kept in the extensive heathland surrounding the area. The wool was rolled in the Tüshaus mill by a hammer mill and sold as felt material to the region's cloth makers for further processing. The billing books include customers from Wesel, Recklinghausen, Westerholt, Dülmen, Münster and Dinxperlo.
The mill had already been increased in 1752 and expanded by a second mill wheel, so that since 1754 it also served the tenant Joan-Heinrich Tüshaus as an oil mill. The oil was obtained mainly from the rapeseed and linseed of the surrounding fields. In 1880 Albert Brosthaus was the Ölmüller, followed by Dumpe and Schetter. The old plants of the oil mill were replaced in 1914 by a modern hydraulic oil mill, which pressed the oil out of the seeds with 350 atü. The operation of the oil mill was discontinued around 1948 for economic reasons.
Cushendun (from Irish Cois Abhann Duinne, meaning 'beside the River Dun') is a small coastal village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits off the A2 coast road between Cushendall and Ballycastle. It has a sheltered harbour and lies at the mouth of the River Dun and Glendun, one of the nine Glens of Antrim. The Mull of Kintyre in Scotland is only about 15 miles away across the North Channel and can be seen easily on clear days. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 138 people.
It is part of Causeway Coast and Glens district.
The nearby hamlet of Knocknacarry is located approximately 0.6 miles to the west.
Cushendun village, was designed for Ronald McNeill, the Conservative MP and author later Lord Cushendun in the style of a Cornish village by the architect Clough Williams-Ellis. He is buried in the Church of Ireland graveyard near his nationalist cousin Ada or Ide McNeill, Roger Casement's friend and admirer who died in 1959.
Since 1954 most of the village and the parkland around Glenmona to the north has been owned by the National Trust. Cushendun's picturesque coastal setting in the heart of the Antrim Coast and Glens Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, together with its architectural inheritance, resulted in designation as a Conservation area in 1980.
The nearby caves of Cushendun have been used as backdrop in the series Game of Thrones.
Aasleagh (in Irish Eas Liath) is the name of an Irish waterfall in the northern Connemara. He becomes by the river Erriff (Ir. In Oirimh) fed and is shortly before the mouth of the river in the Killary fjord northeast of the place Leenaun on the border of the counties Galway and Mayo. The name decreases to the originally Irish naming Eas Liath. Eas is the waterfall and liath the colour calls grey, translates „grey waterfall“.
The Aasleagh waterfall was exact like the place Leenaun, the film scenery for the film rotated in 1990 "The Field" with Richard Harris.
Aasleagh is under the spectacles of nature Connemaras a popular photo motive for the visitors. near the waterfall Lodge, a country house from the 18th century which is pursued today by the regional fishing management as fishing lodge is Aasleagh. The waters of the Erriff are famous for her salmons.
After the Ulster cycle of the Irish mythology should have disappeared both favorite horses of the hero Cú Chulainn, Liath Macha and Dub Sainglenn, from which Linn Liaith („grey pool“) appeared and after his death again in it. – argumentative – localisation associates this place with the Eas Liath.
Po-i-Kalan or Poi Kalan (Uzbek: Poi Kalon, Persian: پای کلان Pā-i Kalān, which means "The Foot of the Great"), is an Islamic religious complex located around the Kalan minaret in Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
The complex is located in the historic part of the city. Since 713, several ensembles of main mosques were built in this area, to the south of the Ark citadel. One of these complexes, burned down by Genghis Khan during the siege of Bukhara, was built in 1121 by the Karakhanid ruler Arslan-khan. The Kalan minaret is the only one of the structures of Arslan-han complex that was kept safe during that siege.
Little Italy located just south of historic downtown Troy on 4th Street from Ida to Division Streets.
Kinkaku-ji "Temple of the Golden Pavilion"), officially named Rokuon-ji, lit. "Deer Garden Temple"), is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan.
The garden complex is an excellent example of Muromachi period garden design. The Muromachi period is considered to be a classical age of Japanese garden design. The correlation between buildings and its settings were greatly emphasized during this period. It was a way to integrate the structure within the landscape in an artistic way. The garden designs were characterized by a reduction in scale, a more central purpose, and a distinct setting.
A minimalistic approach was brought to the garden design, by recreating larger landscapes in a smaller scale around a structure.
It is designated as a National Special Historic Site and a National Special Landscape, and it is one of 17 locations comprising the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto World Heritage Site. It is also one of the most popular buildings in Japan, attracting a large number of visitors annually.
The castle Romrod is a castle arrangement in Romrod near Alsfeld in theVogelsbergkreis in Hessen. The arrangement decreases to an older water castle of Messrs. von Romrod which originated probably in the 12th century. Later she fell to the landgraves of Hesse-Darmstadt who allowed to alter the castle to a hunting seat.
The first documentary mention Romrods is given from 1197 when in a document of the cloister of Fulda under abbot Heinrich III. of Kronberg Ludwig of Rumerot appears as a witness of a manors transference. The ministerial gender presumably belonged to the followers of the landgraves of Thuringia, however, is testified also in the Fuldaer sphere.
Kalkar is a municipality in the district of Kleve, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located near the Rhine, approx. 10 km south-east of Cleves. The most famous building of Kalkar is its church St. Nicolai, which has one of the most significant sacral inventory from the late Middle Ages in Europe or the Brick Gothic town hall build in 1446.
Kalkar was founded by Dirk VI of Cleves in 1230 and received city rights in 1242. It was one of the seven "capitals" of Cleves (called Kleve), until the line of the Duchy of Cleves died out in 1609, whereupon the city went over to the Margraviate of Brandenburg. Marie of Burgundy, Duchess of Cleves retired to Monreberg castle in Kalkar, where she founded a Dominican convent in 1455. Under her influence the city bloomed and artists were attracted to the favorable climate for cultural investment. She died at Monreberg castle in 1463.
The Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor) is a former city gate and one of the main symbols of Berlin and Germany. It is located west of the city center at the junction of Unter den Linden and Ebertstraße, immediately west of the Pariser Platz. It is the only remaining gate of a series through which Berlin was once entered. One block to the north stands the Reichstag building. The gate is the monumental entry to "Unter den Linden", the renowned boulevard of linden trees which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs. It was commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791. Having suffered considerable damage in World War II, the Brandenburg Gate was fully restored from 2000 to 2002 by the Berlin Monument Conservation Foundation. Today, it is regarded as one of Europe's most famous landmarks.
Carrowmore (Irish: An Cheathrú Mhór, 'the great quarter') is a large group of megalithic monuments on the Coolera Peninsula to the west of Sligo, Ireland. They were built in the 4th millennium BC, during the Neolithic (New Stone Age).
There are thirty surviving tombs, making Carrowmore one of the largest clusters of megalithic tombs in Ireland, and one of the 'big four' along with Carrowkeel, Loughcrew and Brú na Bóinne. Carrowmore is the heart of an ancient ritual landscape which is dominated by the mountain of Knocknarea to the west. It is a protected National Monument.
Placed on a small plateau at an altitude of between 36.5 and 59 metres above sea level Carrowmore is the focal point of a prehistoric ritual landscape which is dominated by the mountain of Knocknarea to the west with the great cairn of Miosgán Médhbh on top. To the east, in Carns townland, two large cairns overlook Lough Gill, and along the eastern boundary of the peninsula the Ballygawley Mountains have four passage tombs at their peaks.
Radiocarbon dates from the survey and excavation project in the 1970s, 80s and 90s by Professor Göran Bürenhult generated some controversy at the time, as Burenhult interpreted the dates to indicate that the monuments were erected and used by a hunter gatherer community.
For example, a sample taken from the chamber of Carrowmore 3 was claimed to indicate a date of 5400 BC. Burenhult's theory of Mesolithic tomb builders, first presented in 1982, received critical revision in the quarter century that followed. A source critical review and 25 new radiocarbon dates demonstrated that the Carrowmore monuments are shown to have spanned the era circa 3750 BC to circa 3000 BC. This data set is supported by palaeo-environmental studies in adjacent lakes conducted by Stolze, O'Connell, Ghilardi and others, showing farming activity coincident with or preceding monument use.
The Junkers Ju 52 (nicknamed Tante Ju ("Aunt Ju") and Iron Annie) is a German trimotor transport aircraft manufactured from 1931 to 1952. It saw both civilian and military service during the 1930s and 1940s. In a civilian role, it flew with over twelve air carriers including Swissair and Deutsche Luft Hansa as an airliner and freight hauler. In a military role, it flew with the Luftwaffe as a troop and cargo transport and briefly as a medium bomber. The Ju 52 continued in postwar service with military and civilian air fleets well into the 1980s.
Jaisalmer, nicknamed "The Golden city", is a town in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is located 575 kilometres west of the state capital Jaipur. It was once known as Jaisalmer state.
Jaisalmer is named after its founder Maharawal Jaisal Singh, a Rajput king in 1156 AD. "Jaisalmer" means "the Hill Fort of Jaisal". Jaisalmer is sometimes called the "Golden City of India" because the yellow sand and the yellow sandstone used in every architecture of the city gives a yellowish-golden tinge to the city and its surrounding area.
The town stands on a ridge of yellowish sandstone, crowned by a fort, which contains the palace and several ornate Jain temples. Many of the houses and temples are finely sculptured. It lies in the heart of the Thar Desert (great Indian desert) and has a population of about 78,000. It is the administrative headquarters of Jaisalmer District.
After my accident with my HD I have not been abel to shoot new photos. So when I don't have anything to show you I'm not so active here. Hopefully my love for Flickr will return again soon when I get some new photos to work with on my own.
Happy Halloween to you who celebrate this day.
And have a great weekend all...
The social flycatcher (Myiozetetes similis) is a passerine bird from the Americas, a member of the large tyrant flycatcher family (Tyrannidae).
It is sometimes split into two species with the social flycatcher, Myiozetetes texensis, from Costa Rica northwards to Mexico and the vermilion-crowned flycatcher, M. similis proper, from southwest Costa Rica across South America.
In appearance, the social flycatcher resembles a smaller boat-billed flycatcher or great kiskadee. The adult is 16–18 cm (6.3–7.1 in) long and weighs 24–27 g (0.85–0.95 oz). The head is dark grey with a strong white eyestripe and a usually concealed orange to vermilion crown stripe. The upperparts are olive-brown, and the wings and tail are brown with only faint rufous fringes. The underparts are yellow and the throat is white. Young birds have a paler eye mask, reduced crown stripe, and have chestnut fringes to the wing and tail feathers. The call is a sharp peeurrr and the dawn song is a chips-k’-cheery.
Volcán Atitlán is a large, conical, active stratovolcano adjacent to the caldera of Lake Atitlán in the Highlands of Guatemala. The volcano has been quite active historically, with more than a dozen eruptions recorded between 1469 and 1853, the date of its most recent eruption. Atitlán is part of the Central American Volcanic Arc. The arc is a chain of volcanoes stretching along Central America formed by subduction of the Cocos Plate underneath the Caribbean Plate. These volcanoes are part of the Ring of Fire around the Pacific Ocean.
Volcán Atitlán is few miles south of Volcán Tolimán, which rises from the southern shore of Lake Atitlán. Volcán San Pedro rises above Lake Atitlán northwest of Volcán Atitlán. A long narrow bay separates Volcán Atitlán and Volcán Toliman from Volcán San Pedro.
The Protestant Stiepeler village church, in the south of Bochum in the part of town of Stiepel situated, is a cultural monument of the Ruhr Area which counts with his about millennial history to the oldest still preserved buildings of Bochum.
The meaning of the church lies above all in the unusually extensive medieval mural paintings. In 1988 the church with the historical churchyard surrounding them was put by the city of Bochum under conservation of monuments and historic buildings.
On the 27th of April, 1001 Otto III awarded the main court belonging to the karolingish-ottonic imperial property which belonged to already about 900 A.D. in the register of the Benedictine's cloister Werden mentioned "villa stipula" in which to counts Liutger from the Saxon gender of the Billunger.
Seven years later received count Liutger Mrs. Imma who was descended from the gender of the Immedinger to establish the permission on the donation an own church by the mediation of emperor Heinrich II. The permission, from the inhabitant of Cologne archbishop Heribert presumably on the 6th of April, 1008 by endowment letter given, also contained the right to exercise without limitation the spiritual welfare. The church should have been donated by countess Imma to Stiepel, as it was also called, to honour of the virgin Maria, which popes Cornelius and the holy Cyprianus.
The Reformation began in Stiepel in 1596. However, only in 1610 the priest Henricu Cluvenbeck at that time of the Roman-Catholic church should totally have renounced and have passed to the Lutheran faith.
Since this time the Stiepeler village church is Protestant.
Source est installée à l’entrée principale du centre-ville, sur une terrasse aménagée à l’intersection du boulevard Robert-Bourassa et de la rue Wellington. La sculpture en acier inoxydable consiste en un entrelacement aléatoire de lettres tirées des alphabets latin, grec, chinois, arabe, cyrillique, hindi, hébreu et japonais, qui donne corps à un personnage monumental en position assise. L’œuvre est une allégorie de l’humanité : comme les cellules assemblées forment le corps humain, les lettres composent des mots, et les gens forment une communauté. Source représente ainsi la richesse des cultures que Montréal a accueillies au cours de ses presque quatre siècles d’existence. Symbole du passé, du présent et de l’avenir de la cité, la sculpture Source, vue à la lumière du jour ou sous son éclairage nocturne, invite les habitants à marcher, à rêver et à se rencontrer.
En créant Source pour le 375e anniversaire de la fondation de Montréal, l’artiste a voulu tenir compte de l’importance de l’eau dans l’histoire de la ville – tant pour le commerce que pour l’immigration et les communications –, mais aussi de l’importance de la place des peuples autochtones. Source, un mot identique en français et en anglais, fait référence à la naissance d’un cours d’eau, mais peut aussi représenter les racines de l’énergie et de la vitalité d’une ville : ses habitants et leurs origines, la fluidité et la créativité des idées, les cycles de mouvement et de renouvellement.
Source : artpublic.ville.montreal.qc.ca/oeuvre/source-10747/
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck, is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. Situated on the river Trave, it was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League ("Queen of the Hanse").
Because of its extensive Brick Gothic architecture, it is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. In 2005 it had a population of 213,983.
The old part of Lübeck is on an island enclosed by the Trave. The Elbe–Lübeck Canal connects the Trave with the Elbe River. Another important river near the town centre is the Wakenitz. The Autobahn 1 connects Lübeck with Hamburg and Denmark (Vogelfluglinie). The borough of Travemünde is a sea resort and ferry port on the coast of the Baltic Sea. Its central station links Lübeck to a number of railway lines, notably the line to Hamburg.
The Kaffal Schaschi mausoleum (Qaffol Shoshiy maqbarasi) is a tomb in Tashkent which was built for the imam Abu Bakr Kaffal Schaschi late in 926 A.D. Today the grave is not received any more. The Kaffal Schaschi mausoleum joins to the south immediately the complex of the Barak-Chan-Medresse.
The mausoleum, as well as it today looks, became from Gulam Husain, the architect of the Khans in 1542 A.D. built. In the 19th century the mausoleum was altered. It is an asymmetrical mausoleum with several domes and a main entrance (Hanaka). Such Hanakas were often built for travellers.
To the south of the main building, in a court, there are later tombs (Sagana). Beside the mausoleum a house is in the Chodscha Ahrori-vali lived. He was a follower of Kaffal Schaschi and Baha ud dinar of Naqschband and took the view that religious people may never beg. They should earn themselves money. He kept to Naqschbands election slogan: „Dil Ba eru dast Ba chor“ what means so much such as „the heart with God, the arms at the work.“
Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Ismā‘īl ibn Ibrāhīm ibn al-Mughīrah ibn Bardizbah al-Ju‘fī al-Bukhārī 19 July 810 – 1 September 870), or Bukhārī, commonly referred to as Imam al-Bukhari or Imam Bukhari, was a Persian Islamic scholar who was born in Bukhara (the capital of the Bukhara Region (viloyat) of Uzbekistan). He authored the hadith collection known as Sahih al-Bukhari, regarded by Sunni Muslims as one of the most authentic (sahih) hadith collections. He also wrote other books such as Al-Adab al-Mufrad.
Imam al-Bukhari was the great theologian of the East. He collected and recorded about 600 thousand hadith, i.e. legend based on cases of life or some sayings of the Prophet. Out of them, al-Bukhari selected as “flawless” about 7400 hadith to include into the famous “As-Sahih” which became the second most important book after the Koran for the majority of Sunni.
The mausoleum of Imam al-Bukhari presents in all of its magnificence. In the complex that occupies a vast territory, there are mausoleums, mosques, hotel for tourists and pilgrims, souvenir shops and religious literature.
The mausoleum of Imam al-Bukhari is one of the main pilgrimage sites in Uzbekistan. The visiting of three shrines in Samarkand – the mausoleums of al-Bukhari, Shakhi-Zinda and Rukhabad – within one day, is called “small Hajj”.
Zons, or Feste Zons (Fortress Zons) is an old city in the Rhein-Kreis Neuss, Germany. It is now a part of the city of Dormagen since 1975. In the southwest of the city wall is the round tower mill, the conversion from military-to the mill tower was still in the late Middle Ages. The walls are reinforced with dark basalt rocks.
The castle Raesfeld is a water castle in Raesfeld in district Borken, North Rhine-Westphalia. The history of the castle dates back to the beginnings of the 12th Century back. End of the 16th Century was the castle of the Lords of Raesfeld in the possession of derer von Velen. Mid-17th Century was to expand the empire, Count Alexander II of Velen the castle to the Royal Palace in the Renaissance style. In the first half of the 18th Century died out to the family of the von Velen Raesfeld, the castle was inhabited only irregularly, and fell gradually. At the beginning of the 19th Century were demolished parts of the plant or to the 20th Century used as an agricultural estate. After the Second World War were the state of North Rhine-Westphalia restored as a new owner. Today it is the location used for cultural events and a restaurant. Since 2007, we can marry here.
The Temple of the Inscriptions is the largest Mesoamerican stepped pyramid structure at the pre-Columbian Maya civilization site of Palenque, located in the modern-day state of Chiapas, Mexico.
The structure was specifically built as the funerary monument for K'inich Janaab' Pakal, ajaw or ruler of Palenque in the 7th century whose reign over the polity lasted almost 70 years. Construction of this monument commenced in the last decade of his life, and was completed by his son and successor K'inich Kan B'alam II.
Within Palenque, the Temple of the Inscriptions is located in an area known as the Temple of the Inscriptions’ Court and stands at a right angle to the Southeast of the Palace.
The Temple of the Inscriptions has been significant in the study of the ancient Maya, owing to the extraordinary sample of hieroglyphic text found on the Inscription Tablets, the impressive sculptural panels on the piers of the building, and the finds inside the tomb of Pakal.
Himeji Castle is a hilltop Japanese castle complex located in Himeji, in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.
The castle is regarded as the finest surviving example of prototypical Japanese castle architecture, comprising a network of 83 buildings with advanced defensive systems from the feudal period. The castle is frequently known as Hakuro-jō ("White Egret Castle") or Shirasagi-jō ("White Heron Castle") because of its brilliant white exterior and supposed resemblance to a bird taking flight.
Himeji Castle dates to 1333, when Akamatsu Norimura built a fort on top of Himeyama hill. The fort was dismantled and rebuilt as Himeyama Castle in 1346, and then remodeled into Himeji Castle two centuries later. Himeji Castle was then significantly remodeled in 1581 by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who added a three-story castle keep. In 1600, Tokugawa Ieyasu awarded the castle to Ikeda Terumasa for his help in the Battle of Sekigahara, and Ikeda completely rebuilt the castle from 1601 to 1609, expanding it into a large castle complex.
Several buildings were later added to the castle complex by Honda Tadamasa from 1617 to 1618. For over 400 years, Himeji Castle has remained intact, even throughout the extensive bombing of Himeji in World War II, and natural disasters such as the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake.
Himeji Castle is the largest and most visited castle in Japan, and it was registered in 1993 as one of the first UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the country. The area within the middle moat of the castle complex is a designated Special Historic Site and five structures of the castle are also designated National Treasures. Along with Matsumoto Castle and Kumamoto Castle, Himeji Castle is considered one of Japan's three premier castles. In order to preserve the castle buildings, it underwent restoration work for several years and reopened to the public on March 27, 2015. The works also removed decades of dirt and grime, restoring the formerly gray roof to its original brilliant white color.
Urgut is a town in the Samarqand Region of Uzbekistan and the capital of Urgut District. It is known for the grove of plane trees, some of which are more than 1000 years old. Urgut is located in mountainous areas.
Urgutlik (also known as Urguti in Tajik) people are a subgroup of ethnic Uzbeks who track their ancestry to people from a town of Urgut. There are almost 500,000 people who describe themselves as Urgutlik. Urgutlik people frequently use Tajik words in their daily conversation. Majority of the population speak Tajik and Uzbek.
Urguti people are heavily involved in basic mercantile trading in their respective locations and in farming. In the town craftsmanship is also well-known which has been maintained traditionally throughout the centuries.
Urgut's biggest market with varied and relatively inexpensive merchandise attracts folks even from Samarkand, the capital of the Region.
Sonnenuntergang über einer alten Eisenbahnbrücke bei Dannenberg (Wendland, Niedersachsen). Aufgenommen am 13. November 2016.
Urgut is a town in the Samarqand Region of Uzbekistan and the capital of Urgut District. It is known for the grove of plane trees, some of which are more than 1000 years old. Urgut is located in mountainous areas.
Urgutlik (also known as Urguti in Tajik) people are a subgroup of ethnic Uzbeks who track their ancestry to people from a town of Urgut. There are almost 500,000 people who describe themselves as Urgutlik. Urgutlik people frequently use Tajik words in their daily conversation. Majority of the population speak Tajik and Uzbek.
Urguti people are heavily involved in basic mercantile trading in their respective locations and in farming. In the town craftsmanship is also well-known which has been maintained traditionally throughout the centuries.
Urgut's biggest market with varied and relatively inexpensive merchandise attracts folks even from Samarkand, the capital of the Region.
This Platform of Venus is dedicated to the planet Venus. In its interior archaeologists discovered a collection of large cones carved out of stone, the purpose of which is unknown. This platform is located north of El Castillo, between it and the Cenote Sagrado.
Chichen Itza was one of the largest Maya cities, with the relatively densely clustered architecture of the site core covering an area of at least 5 square kilometres (1.9 sq mi). Smaller scale residential architecture extends for an unknown distance beyond this. The city was built upon broken terrain, which was artificially levelled in order to build the major architectural groups, with the greatest effort being expended in the levelling of the areas for the Castillo pyramid, and the Las Monjas, Osario and Main Southwest groups.
The site contains many fine stone buildings in various states of preservation, and many have been restored. The buildings were connected by a dense network of paved causeways, called sacbeob.Archaeologists have identified over 80 sacbeob criss-crossing the site, and extending in all directions from the city.
The architecture encompasses a number of styles, including the Puuc and Chenes styles of the northern Yucatán Peninsula. The buildings of Chichen Itza are grouped in a series of architectonic sets, and each set was at one time separated from the other by a series of low walls. The three best known of these complexes are the Great North Platform, which includes the monuments of El Castillo, Temple of Warriors and the Great Ball Court; The Osario Group, which includes the pyramid of the same name as well as the Temple of Xtoloc; and the Central Group, which includes the Caracol, Las Monjas, and Akab Dzib.
South of Las Monjas, in an area known as Chichén Viejo (Old Chichén) and only open to archaeologists, are several other complexes, such as the Group of the Initial Series, Group of the Lintels, and Group of the Old Castle.
The Krämerbrücke, here a look inside the Krämerbrücke, is a bridge in the Thuringian city of Erfurt in Germany which is covered with inhabited, half timbered buildings on both sides. It is unique in Europe north of the Alps. The footbridge spans the Breitstrom, a branch of Gera River, connecting Benediktsplatz and Wenigemarkt.
The bridge was built next to a ford and was part of the west-eastern trade route Via Regia. Originally constructed from wood, it was first mentioned in 1117 after its destruction by one of the many fires. Its first documentary evidence as “pons rerum venalium” dates back to 1156. Already on this wooden bridge grocers had erected stands on both sides.
Because of repeated fires in 1175, 1178, 1213, 1222, 1245, 1265, and 1293 the municipal administration acquired all bridge rights from the monasteries in 1293 in order to build a stone bridge, which was finished in 1325 with uninhabited half-timbered stands on top of it. At both bridgeheads stone churches with gate passages were erected, at the western end St. Benedicti and at the eastern end St. Aegidien, which had existed as a bridge chapel in beforehand (first mentioned in 1110).
The 79 m long arch bridge has been erected in lime- and sandstonework and since then consists of six visible barrel vaults with diametres from 4.8 m to 7.8 m.
After a city fire in 1472, which destroyed nearly half of the city and the stands on the bridge, it was reconstructed in its current form with then 62 half-timbered buildings. To make the three-storey houses of 13 m to 15 m height habitable, the deepness of the buildings was extended by the wooden “Sprengwerke” next to the arch vaults. The width of the bridge finished in 1486 since then amounts to 26 m with a space of 5.5 m between the two rows of houses. At the latest since 1510 the name Krämerbrücke (which means "grocers' bridge") was commonly used.
Till the 18th century the number of houses on the bridge had been reduced to 38, due to unification and reconstruction caused by fires. The church St. Benedicti was sold in 1807 and demolished in 1810 in order to build a new house. In 1895 its tower had to give place to the newly built “Rathausbrücke” (town hall bridge), which crosses the river parallel. For this project it was discussed to pull down the entire bridge.
Because of its special importance for the history of Erfurt and history of architecture in general, the Krämer Bridge was granted special preservation in GDR-times. All buildings were restored from 1967 to 1973 and extensive repair works were done to the vaults in 1985/1986 and 2002. Since then the bridge may be used by cars up to a weight of 11 tons.
A nice view from Weehawken Township, New Jersey, to Manhattan on an rainy night. In front of the picture the U.S.S. Intrepid Museum.