Da’Marcus Baymon is a Dean’s Honored Graduate in the Section of Neurobiology, and will graduate with a bachelor of science in neurobiology from the School of Biological Sciences. He is being recognized for his scholastic achievement and leadership activities, as well as research that resulted in an undergraduate thesis performed under the direction of Professor John Mihic.

Da’Marcus transitioned to the Mihic laboratory after working with Dr. Josh Beckam in the Freshman Research Initiative. Research in the Mihic laboratory is focused on developing a better understanding of how ligand-gated ion channels function and how allosteric modulators act on these receptors, with a specific focus on molecular, biochemical and electrophysiological techniques to elucidate the processes underlying receptor activation and allosteric modulation. Da’Marcus studied a novel Drosophila cys-loop ligand-gated ion channel that activates spontaneously in the absence of any ligand. In order to do this, he had to learn how to isolate Xenopus oocytes, inject their nuclei with cDNAs, and then assay electrophysiological receptor function using a two-electrode voltage-clamp apparatus. He obtained useful data and will be a co-author on a manuscript that will be submitted on this topic.

Beyond the research lab, Da’Marcus has been active in the life of the College as a mentor to many younger students. Assistant Dean Susan Harkins and Assistant Director Cassandra Delgado-Reyes recruited him from the students in the Texas Interdisciplinary Plan to serve as a mentor to new students. He acted as an undergraduate teaching assistant in chemistry and later as an assistant coordinator in the Peer Leadership Academy, finally becoming the lead mentor for TIP. Da’Marcus was recognized as the 2012 Texas Parents’ Outstanding Student for his service, leadership, and academic excellence.

This fall, Da’Marcus will be attending the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to obtain an MD, with hopes of also pursuing a PhD in neuroscience. He’s selected a collection of books for his summer reading, including Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story by Ben Carson, M.D.; From Neuron to Brain: A Cellular and Molecular Approach to the Function of the Nervous System by Nichols, Martin, Wallace, and Fuchs; and The House of God by Samuel Shem.

Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States

The 858 West End Avenue House is one of an intact group of four residences designed by the architectural firm of Schneider & Herter and built by the firm of Schneider & Company as a speculative venture. 1 The rowhouse group is the sole surviving example of a type of site planning used on several comer plots along West End Avenue in the early 1890s where a group of houses facing the Avenue featured a prominent comer house and an additional house was built facing the side street behind the Avenue-facing houses. Treated as the centerpiece of the rehouse group, the comer house at No. 858 West End Avenue is representative of the many larger comer houses with side entrances and comer towers which once stood on West End Avenue.

The group of residences was built in 1892-93 during the first period of intense residential development for the comfortable professional class along the northern portion of West End Avenue where the suburban qualities of landscaped streets, the views of the Hudson River, and the amenities of nearby Riverside Park created a desirable residential area. The 858 West End Avenue House is distinguished by ornament characteristic of the mannerist aesthetic of the firm of Schneider & Herter, the juxtaposition of contrasting textures of rough, smooth-faced, and carved brownstone, and the emphasis on a lively roof line punctuated by a bell-shaped tower and chimneys. The quality and distinctiveness of the Queen Anne/Romanesque Revival style design of the 858 West End Avenue House reflects the desire for individuality in the appearance of houses within rowhouse groups and is representative of the eclectically-styled residential architecture of West End Avenue dating from the 1890s.

Development of the Upper West Side

Despite its long history beginning soon after the colonial Dutch settlement, the Upper West Side, known as Bloomingdale prior to its urbanization, remained largely undeveloped until the 1880s. In the early eighteenth century, Bloomingdale Road (later renamed the Boulevard and finally Broadway in 1898) was opened through rural Bloomingdale and provided the northern route out of the city which was then concentrated in the southern tip of Manhattan. The Upper West Side was included in the Randel Survey of 1811 (known as the Commissioners' Map) which established a uniform grid of avenues and cross streets in Manhattan as far north as 155th Street, although years elapsed before streets on the Upper West Side were actually laid out, some as late as the 1870s and 1880s, and the land was subdivided into building lots.

The city grew rapidly northward during the nineteenth century, but it was not until after Central Park (a designated New York City Scenic landmark) was laid out in 1857 that development began around the perimeter of the Park, setting off the first wave of real estate speculation on the Upper West Side.

Improved public transportation to the area contributed to the growth and sustained development of the Upper West Side. By 1880 the horse car line on Eighth Avenue had been replaced by street rail service up to 125th Street and the Elevated Railway on Ninth Avenue (renamed Columbus Avenue in 1890) had been completed. However, the biggest boost to the development of the West End (the area west of Broadway) was the creation, between 1876 and 1900, of Riverside Drive and Park (a designated New York City Scenic Landmark) located north of 72nd Street along the Hudson River. The presence of the park and drive, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, was an important factor in making this area desirable for high-quality residential development.

Development of the Wast End began slowly, due, to a large degree, to the hesitation of would-be residents, but by 1885 it had emerged as the area in the city experiencing the most intense real estate speculation. The expectation that the blocks along Riverside Drive and West End Avenue would be lined with mansions kept the value of these lots, as well as adjacent land, consistently higher and developers were willing to wait to realize profits from the potentially valuable sites. The real estate developers, including the West End Association, founded in 1884 by the prominent developer, W.E.D. Stokes, ultimately stimulated the demand for houses in the West End. Real estate brochures and the local press drew attention to the area, emphasizing the scenic quality of the setting, the nearness of parks, and the availability of public transportation.

West End Avenue (formerly Eleventh Avenue) was opened in 1880 from 72nd Street to 106th street and was paved with asphalt by 1893. West End Association members set twenty-year restrictive covenants governing West End Avenue which closed the avenue to commercial traffic and initially limited development to single-family houses, thus enhancing the desirability of the residential area. By 1890 the character of the avenue had emerged as completely residential and was promoted as a suburban-like setting with such amenities as grass plots and trees along the sidewalks. The absence of flats and apartment houses on the avenue provided the opportunity for various treatments of the comers with rowhouses and larger attached residences.

In the mid-1880s the most attractive areas for development along West End Avenue were located near the El stations and along the higher elevations of the hilly avenue. Construction of mid-size rowhouses, rather than the more grand type of mansions originally projected for West End Avenue, began in 1885 near 104th Street which was convenient to a Ninth Avenue El station and by 1895 the high plateau between West 99th and 104th Streets had been built up with three- and four-story rowhouses. The architectural tone of these private residences was set by the presence of costly mansions such as the W.F. Foster residence at 102th Street and Riverside Drive and the Bacon residence at 104th Street and Riverside Drive.

The Schneider & Company's Houses

The site at the northeast corner of West 102nd Street and West End Avenue appears to have been first sold for development purposes in 1881 and at that time an open-ended restrictive covenant was initiated which prevented the construction of a variety of commercial and industrial buildings. The property changed hands several times before Hannah O'Brien filed plans in 1890 to build five three-story limestone-fronted houses designed by Andrew Spence; within a year O'Brien lost control of the property and this project was abandoned.

Two New York architects, Ernest W. Schneider and Henry Herter, along with two partners — John Fish, a previous client, and Eugene Schultz— acquired the property and soon after filed plans for the construction of a group of four three-story residences with raised basements. Beside the comer house, facing West End Avenue, are two narrow houses, nearly identical in design. Situated across the rear of the three West End Avenue houses, facing West 102nd Street and enclosing the yard area, the fourth house has a freestanding side facade. The houses, built between May, 1892, and April, 1893, were appropriately finished on the interior with decorative mantels, hardwood trim, and horseshoe openings ornamented with fretwork dividing the music rooms from the parlors, as well as up-to-date plumbing and utility areas. The placement of the stairhall in the center of each house permitted large full-width front rooms on the upper floors.

The first house to be sold in the rowhouse group was No. 856 West End Avenue. In 1895 the remaining houses were divided among the investors and Schneider & Herter acquired title to No. 858 West End Avenue. The house was sold in 1897 but title reverted to Schneider & Herter in 1898; they soon resold the house. No. 854 West End Avenue had been sold in 1895 and the West 102nd Street House was sold in 1896.

The Schneider & Company development venture is the sole surviving example of a site development pattern that emerged on West End Avenue in which large comer parcels were purchased for the construction of rowhouse groups. By decreasing the depth of the avenue-facing houses, an additional house could be built on the plot facing the side street; the plan worked to the advantage of the developer who sought a maximum return on the expensive West End Avenue lots. Slightly larger and more prestigious comer houses, with highly visible design features such as comer towers, were characteristic of this site development plan. This scheme was particularly favored in the early 1890s when the area between 99th and 104th streets was developed. Rowhouse groups facing West End Avenue, with a side street-facing house (or houses) across the rear of these lots, were built at the southeast comers of West End Avenue and 99th, 100th, 102nd, and 103rd Streets; all of the groups except the Schneider & Company group have been demolished.

The rowhouse group at the southeast comer of 103rd Street and West End Avenue, designed by M.V.B. Ferdon in 1891, included five houses facing West End Avenue and one facing 103rd Street; only the house facing West 103rd Street remains standing. Another group of houses designed by M.V.B. Ferdon and built by Increase Grenell in 1892 at the northwest comer of West End Avenue and 104th Street (demolished) included a comer house very similar to the Schneider & Company house, featuring the entrance near the center of the 104th Street facade.

Picturesque Architecture on West End Avenue

Curing the intense period of rowhouse development on the Upper West Side, from 1885 to 1900, residential design was dominated by a reaction to the conformity and homogeneity of older Italianate style brownstone rowhouses found elsewhere in the city. The first wave of development along West End Avenue in the period between 1885 and 1895 produced a number of individually-designed houses and speculatively-built, yet distinctive, rowhouse groups which, along with houses in the West End as a whole, represent the culmination of single-family house construction in Manhattan. Many of the most prominent architects working in New York City designed these residences, often for speculative developers who invested in the area. The residences designed for West End Avenue were characteristic of the picturesque eclecticism of late-nineteenth-century architecture, drawing from a wide variety of stylistic sources and expressing the desire of architects and clients for originality, variety, and novelty in residential architecture.

There was a movement away from smooth brownstone as a facing material and a new emphasis on the sculptural and textural qualities of surfaces, as well as on the mixture of colors and materials.

Unusual, picturesque house design on West End Avenue had been initiated by the construction of two groups of houses with a "Dutch" flavor in 1885-86, designed by Frederick B. White and McKim, Mead & White. Clarence True and other architects continued to design residences for West End Avenue in unusual and picturesque revival styles which were executed with a high-degree of artistic experimentation. Strong rhythmic patterns, asymmetrical massing, and a lively streetscape were created by the profusion of bowfronts, bay and oriel windows, gables, turrets, chimneys, dormers, cornices, stoops, and ornamentation associated with the popular Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival styles as well as more exotic revival styles. These later rowhouses on West End Avenue, and throughout the Upper West Side, unlike their Italianate brownstone predecessors from earlier in the nineteenth century, were purposely designed to be distinguished from one another, while together forming visually coherent ensembles.

The houses designed by Schneider & Herter are representative of this picturesque design movement, and although based on the common hybrid of the Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival styles they are enlivened by unusual carved ornament. The treatment of each of the four houses individually within the easily recognizable group provided the architects with the opportunity to create variations on a theme. The high degree of modulation in the plane of the facades, through the use of recessed entrances as well as projecting bay windows and balconies (which afforded views of the river and park) adds depth and grandeur to the rowhouse designs. Schneider & Herter explored the range of surface effects achievable from smooth-faced and rough-cut brownstone, and incorporated both geometric and figural carving of the material.

The repetition of several ornamental elements unites the houses, including paired stringcourses, gridded panels of rough-faced stone, chamfered window surrounds in the smooth-faced facades, sheet-metal panels at the roofline, and elements of the carved stone program. The two smaller West End Avenue houses are identical except for the shape and detailing of the window openings. No. 858 West End Avenue has recessed balconies at the parlor and second stories that relate the comer house to the West End Avenue houses, while the longer West 102nd Street frontage is visually linked to the house at 254 West 102nd Street through the repetition of unusual columns flanking the entrances and the carved panels at the roofline. The round comer tower with a bell-shaped roof serves as the centerpiece of the group.

The design of picturesque rowhouses in New York was influenced by trends in the design of architectural ornament in the later nineteenth century, a time when ornament was treated by many architects as an opportunity for creative experimentation. European theorists such as Owen Jones, James K. Collings, and Christopher Dresser encouraged an abstract interpretation of vegetation executed with an emphasis on geometricized form and their publications influenced designers in the United States. At the same time, technological change also influenced the design of ornament. The availability of steam-powered tools encouraged the use of bold, machine-cut ornament while the growing use of terra cotta prompted the design of intricate ornament that could be easily reproduced.

The popularity of several revival styles, and the inventive blending of these styles, encouraged the architect/designer to adopt an individualized aesthetic in the design of architectural ornament. This trend can be seen in the abstracted naturalistic ornament developed by such recognized American innovators as Frank Fumess and Louis H. Sullivan, as well as in the pioneering work of architects like Henry Hobson Richardson, who developed a highly personal style drawing on Romanesque sources. Many architects working in New York City also developed identifiable personal styles, such as clarence True with his interpretation of the "Elizabethan Renaissance Revival" style.

Schneider & Herter developed a somewhat idiosyncratic and mannerist aesthetic characterized by a lack of reverence for the traditional placement of ornament, an unexpected combining of architectural styles, and asymmetry in the composition of facades and their detailing; these characteristics appear in the firm's early designs for tenements, rowhouses and synagogues. In the ornamental programs of several buildings, including the 858 West End Avenue House, Schneider & Herter combined incised, machine-cut ornament— recalling the earlier Neo-Grec style of incised ornament — with both abstracted naturalistic designs and romantic figurative carving. An uncommon approach to the composition and placement of ornament appears in the design of the entrance where the architects combined pilasters with the projecting balcony above to suggest an entrance portico.

Two flattened engaged baluster forms, with incised horizontal bands and necks at the bottom, are topped by capitals with carved shell forms above inscribed circles; animal masks extend from the upper portion of plain blocks above the capitals that support the projecting balcony. Framing the door to the east is a variation on this form, a cylindrical baluster with a capital, different from the flanking ones, of stalky acanthus leaves above which an elongated console bracket supports the balcony. A more subtle example of Schneider & Herter's unusual ornamental treatment appears in the placement of carved stones in the upper courses of the rusticated basement to cap undefined piers.

The Corner House on West End Avenue

The corner house type evolved on West End Avenue in response to the restrictive covenants that limited construction on this avenue to single-family dwellings, a departure from the development pattern found throughout much of the Upper West Side where flats or tenements were built on Avenue frontage and rowhouses were reserved for the side streets. Architects took advantage of the comer sites to punctuate the West End Avenue streetscape with slightly larger and often taller residences at the ends of blocks, which were often designed with comer towers or curved comer bays, whether built as "centerpieces" of rowhouse groups or as individual buildings. While a tower enhanced the presence of the comer residence, the house was often designed with an entrance near the center of the side street facade rather than a grand Avenue-facing entrance.

This was done for interior planning considerations, facilitating the placement of the stairhall near the center of the house which permitted full-width rooms at the front of the house.

Most of the comer houses built on West End Avenue were demolished during the redevelopment of the Avenue with apartment houses. Surviving examples of comer houses with side street entrances include the individually-designed and -built 520 West End Avenue (Leech) Residence (1892, a designated New York City landmark), the 858 West End Avenue House, the 560 West End Avenue House (1889-90, in the Riverside-West End Historic District), and several houses in the West End-Collegiate Historic District near the southern end of West End Avenue.

The 858 West End Avenue House has characteristics similar to many of these comer houses. The curved comer bay, topped with a bell-shaped roof and originally, a tall finial, extends a story above the other houses in the rowhouse group and serves as a focal point for the group. The roofline, highly visible in the avenue streetscape, features several tall chimneys, pinnacles, and a carved panel. The house is slightly longer than the adjacent houses, although the rear portion of the house is only two stories in height and forms a terrace at the rear, replicating the characteristic form of a rowhouse with a rear extension; a recessed porch with a service entrance at the end bay serves as an extension of the adjacent yard area. The presence of the entrance bay in the long street facade is enhanced by pilasters which frame the entrance, the recessed balcony at the second story, and the window group. A decorative panel extending above the roofline further provides a vertical counterpoint to the long facade.

Schneider & Herter

Ernest W. Schneider and Henry Herter began an architectural partnership in New York City around 1887; within a very short time they had a thriving business designing tenements, flats, and industrial buildings, primarily on the Lower East Side. Schneider & Herter worked repeatedly for a group of German-Jewish clients with ethnic backgrounds similar to theirs, the most prominent of whom were the real estate developers Jonas Weil and Bernard Mayer for whom the architects designed a number of multiple dwellings. This association led to the firm's commission for the Park East Synagogue, 163 East 67th Street (1889-90, a designated New York City Landmark), which Weil financed and led as president of the congregation. Schneider & Herter also designed Congregation Kol Israel Arshi at 20-22 Forsyth Street (1892, now owned by the Hellenic Orthodox Community).

The firm of Schneider & Herter had acted as architect-developers prior to its venture on the Upper West Side as Schneider & Co., designing and building a pair of French flats at 731-735 East 5th Street in 1890-91 and a French flat at 233-35 Delancey Street in 1891-92; the firm began a warehouse project at 141 West Broadway in 1893. Schneider & Herter later erected a five-story apartment building at 79-81 Perry Street in 1895 (in addition to designing several other buildings now within the Greenwich Village Historic District) and a pair of flats buildings at 309 and 317 West 93rd Street in 1901-02 (within the Riverside-West End Historic District).

The West End Avenue-102nd Street project was a departure from Schneider & Herter's usual work designing multiple dwellings, and was among the firm's first projects on the Upper West Side. Many of the firm's more than 100 multiple dwellings in Manhattan no longer stand, but those remaining exhibit the firm's individualistic approach to the use of ornament and facade compositions often featuring round-arched windows characteristic of the Romanesque Revival style.

Description

The comer house of the group of the four houses built by Schneider & Company, with the address of 858 West End Avenue, has a narrow seventeen-foot vide West End Avenue facade and a seventy-two-foot long 102nd Street facade. The house has three stories above a basement and is of brick construction with a brownstone veneer, rusticated at the basement and smooth-faced on the stories above. Dominating the design is an engaged cylindrical comer tower, which rises an additional story and is capped by a bell-shaped roof. The entrance bay, located in the center of the West 102nd Street facade, is emphasized by the use of a box stoop leading to the parlor-story entrance which is recessed behind engaged pilasters and surmounted by a shallow bow-fronted balcony.

A recessed balcony at the second story, an arched window group at the third story, and a carved panel with a lion head, which rises above the cornice and conceals the termination of the mansard portion of the roof, make this bay an important vertical counterpoint to the horizontal composition of the house that is accentuated by paired stringcourses. Rock-faced gridded panels in the upper portion of the third story, just below the classically-detailed cornice, add to the picturesque quality of the roof line; the mansard portion of the roof is covered with patterned sheet metal and the sheet-metal cornice is ornamented with sunflower motifs. The carved detailing of the house repeats forms used on other houses in the group, furthering the ensemble quality.

The first and second stories are extended in an additional curved bay at the eastern end of the 102nd Street facade, creating an open balcony at the third story. A short column and an implied pier with a carved impost block support the segmental arch (with a wrought iron gate) of the recessed service porch under this bay. A similar gate under an arch spans the entry to the rear yards between the comer house and No. 254 West 102nd Street. Beyond the curved return of the extension, the eastern elevation of the house is faced with brick, as is the eastern wall of the third story.

Alterations include the replacement of the original double-hung wood sash with aluminum sash and the panning of the original frames; the circular window next to the main entrance and the elliptical windows flanking the door in the bay above the main entrance remain unchanged. Two tall chimneys, pinnacles, and an elongated finial from the tower roof have been removed. The basement-level window grilles and the cast-iron fence on the areaway wall appear to have been added at an early date.

- From the 1990 NYCLPC Landmark Designation Report

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Two busses near the Lincoln Fields bus station in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The patterns in the tail lights are caused by the drive circuitry for the lights: power is regulated by rapidly switching the lights on and off (PWM etc.)

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Having owned the 2008 Kona Sutra for ten months, and just completed the first chain/cassette replacement, I thought it was about time for a long term review, to give other people an idea of what living with the Sutra has been like. My previous post explains why I chose the Sutra - I came up with what I thought was an impossibly eclectic list of requirements from a bicycle, and the Sutra ticked every single box.

Here's some specs, for the statophiles out there: Frame size C54cm Frame tubing Dedacciai COM 12.5 Butted Cromoly Fork Kona P2 700c TB Disc w/Lowrider Headset TH Crankarms FSA Gossamer MegaExo Chainrings 30/39/50 B/B FSA MegaExo Pedals Shimano PD-M520 SPD - Silver Chain Shimano HG53 --> Shimano HG93 XT Freewheel Shimano Deore (11-32, 9 Spd) --> Shimano XT M760 (11-32, 9spd) F/D Shimano Tiagra Triple R/D Shimano XT Shadow Shifters Shimano Bar-Con Handlebar FSA RD30 0S Stem FSA OS-190LX Grips Velo Wrap with Gel Brakes Avid BB7 Road Disc Brake Levers Shimano BLR-600 Front Hub Shimano M525 Disc Rear Hub Shimano M525 Disc Spokes DT Stainless 14g Tires Continental Contact 700 x 32C --> Schwalbe Marathon Plus 700x38c Rims Mavic A 317 Disc Saddle Selle Italia XO SE --> Brooks B17 Seatpost FSA SL-280 Seat Clamp Kona Clamp Rear Rack Tubus Logo Panniers Bikebins Computer Sigma DTS 1606 L Fenders SKS Chromoplastic

My primary (i.e. 99% of the time) use of the Sutra has been for commuting. I have covered over 2700 miles (4500km) in the time I have owned it. My commuting route through London is pretty tough on bikes - the roads south of the Thames are awful and full of potholes, through the City there is broken glass all over the place, and further north of the river there are speedbumps everywhere. When I first got the Sutra she was wearing Continental Contact tyres, and they were pretty poor for commuting. They punctured easily and transmitted the bumpiness of the road right up into my forearms. Not much fun. After one puncture too many I replaced the tyres with Schwalbe Marathon Pluses, in their largest diameter, and the difference was marked. The increased volume of air provides a lot more cushioning for the arms, and I have not had a single puncture yet, despite having pulled 6mm long pieces of glass out of the tyre surfaces. The tyres are relatively heavy, but then so is the rest of the bike, and extra weight makes you stronger!

The original rear rack was pretty flimsy, and it did not allow the attachment of the Bikebin panniers I bought to try and add some rigidity. I ended up having to angle grind chunks out of the rack to fit the panniers, which can't have improved their structural integrity. After a month of experiencing the odd sensation of the bike wagging its tail whenever I stood up to pedal hard, I bit the bullet and upgraded the rack to a Tubus Logo. It was a tight fit with the rear disc brake, but the difference was immense. Gone was the sensation of a jelly-like bike, to be replaced by a sensation of rigid stability. Whilst the rack was expensive, it made all the difference, and I would highly recommend it.

Speaking of the brakes, they have saved my life on more than one occasion, usually when a Taxi decides to perform an emergency stop to pick up a fare. The brakes stop consistently in all conditions, and so far I have not had to replace the pads, althoguh I think it will be time to do it soon. Not bad considering I have travelled almost five thousand kilometres in all weathers in the stop-start conditions of London. I was concerned that the brakes might be too powerful, but the modulation provided by the levers and the flex in the arm of the brake means that whilst the power is there if necessary, you have a lot of control over it. There is some disc drag, but this is owing more to my laziness than the brakes themselves, and seems to have little impact on cruising speeds.

Using the bike in all conditions has been excellent. The all-over fenders (something I have never fitted to a bike previously) really keep the rain off and eliminate spray from the road. I had to saw a bit of the front fender off to fit it over the larger tyres, and a little bit off the rear for the same reason, but after the modification they have been flawless.

I had heard reports of spokes snapping, and nothing happened to me until recently, when I noticed a detached spoke whilst replacing the rear cassette. I had no idea how long the spoke had been damaged for, and replaced it myself. The rear wheel is slightly askew, but it does not foul on anything, which is good considering the small tolerance between it and the fender. To be fair, I have been jumping off kerbs and sometimes it is impossible to miss a massive hole in the road when you are in busy traffic. An upgrade I am considering is a stronger rear wheel, although it is not pressingly urgent.

The ride of the bike is super smooth, and certainly not anything like the road bikes I am used to. I use my other road bike for triathlons, and whilst it is a lot more nimble, it is much less comfortable. The Sutra is comfortable all day long, owing in no small part to the Brooks B17 saddle, which took about two thousand miles to properly break in! It was worth it though - sitting on the bike is like sitting in an armchair (albeit a very odd armchair, but an armchair nonetheless). I tend to cruise at about 20mph on her, and my 10.5 mile commute to work takes about 37 minutes. I have started seeking out hills in preparation for some touring of Wales, and the sutra certainly loves to climb. The aggressive, mountain-bike-like frame geometry no doubt assists in this, and is confidence inspiring when climbing and descending. The bar-con shifters were a novelty for me, but they make a lot of sense, especially if replacement shifters were needed on a tour. There are even bosses on the downtube to fit truly old-school shifters in an emergency.

The weight of the bike was a shock initially - weighing in at 15kgs without the accessories, she weighs significantly more than my Specialized Hardrock mountain bike, which is saying something! Over time I have become accustomed to the weight, and now it feels normal. The main advantage of this is that when I ride anything else, it feels super light and goes very rapidly. This makes this bike an ideal training steed.

In conclusion, I have found a lot to love about the Kona Sutra - she's tough, strong and surprisingly fast. There were some niggles about fitting add-ons, but they were all easy to overcome, and the result has been a reliable bike that I think will keep delivering for years.

www.charlietyack.com

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Coming soon, two new modules from Pittsburgh Modular. From Rick at Pittsburgh:

"Dual Index: ($139 available in September) An 8hp high quality dual linear VCA with both offset gain and attenuation plus a mix out and room for my big fingers. This module is based on the Generator's Index circuit. Nice warm sound.

VCBend: ($139 available in September) A 6hp control voltage modulation module. This module takes the bipolar control voltage input and bends it to the amount of the CV input in relation to the Internal Voltage Reference pot. This module favours esoteric applications over precision. More often than not the output voltage does not resemble the input in any way. The control voltage output of this module is always positive. Both the control voltage input and VC input are attenuverted."

LINK to a discussion thread at Muff's: muffwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41337&postdays=... .

New module announcement initially posted on Pittsburgh Modular's Twitter page: twitter.com/pghmodular .

Main Line Brocklesby box, showing the modulation of the bell tone.

The Travel Agent lets you use road brake levers with mountain bike calipers, by effectively doubling the amount of cable pull. It's far cheaper than going to road calipers, and if I ever go back to flat bars, I can just keep using the same brakes.

Brake feel at the levers is basically every bit as good as it was before, with pretty smooth modulation. Same goes for feel at the 'cross levers.

please visit

sakamatra.blogspot.com

for more details

Sansui solid state stereophonic amplifier AU 777 A

www.youtube.com/user/sakamatra1

Specifications

Year 1969

Output power

Music power (IHF): 70W±1dB (8ohm)

Effective output: 30W/30W±1dB (8ohm)

THD 0.5% or less

Cross modulation distortion (60Hz:7kHz=4:1) 0.8% or less

Power Band Width (IHF) 20Hz - 50000Hz (0.5% of distortion)

Frequency characteristic 20Hz - 100,000Hz, ±1dB

Channel separation 20dB or more (1000Hz)

A hum and a noise (IHF) 100dB or more (closed circuit)

Input sensitivity/impedance 1V / 300kohm (an Output power, 1kHz)

Dumping factor 15 (8ohms)

Load impedance 4ohm-16ohm

Center channel Output voltage Flat output: 10V (1kHz)

High cut output (fo = 159Hz): 10V (50Hz)

Preamplifier parts

Output voltage Maximum output voltage: 4V

Output-power voltage: 1V

THD 0.1% (Output-power voltage)

Frequency characteristic 20Hz - 70,000Hz, and +0.5 -1.5 dB

A hum and a noise (IHF, maximum output voltage) Phono1, 2:80dB or more (closed circuit)

MIC: 85dB or more (closed circuit)

Tuner: 85dB or more (open circuit)

AUX: 85dB or more (open circuit)

Input sensitivity/impedance

(An Output-power voltage, 1kHz) Phono1:2mV±3dB /, 50kohm

Phono2:2mV±3dB /, 30kohm, 50kohm, 100kohm

MIC: 3.5mV±3dB /, 50kohm

Tuner: 140mV±3dB /, 100kohm

AUX: 140mV±3dB /, 100kohm

Tape Mon(Pin): 140mV±3dB /, 100kohm

Tape Recorder(Din): 140mV±3dB /, 100kohm

Sound-recording output Tape Rec(Pin): 150mV±3dB

Tape Recorder(Din): 30mV±3dB

Control Bass: 20Hz±15dB (3dB step)

Midrange: 1,500Hz±5dB (1dB step)

Treble: 20,000Hz±15dB (3dB step)

Loudness (volume 30dB): 50Hz+8dB, 10,000Hz+2.5dB

Switchpoint A high filter: 20,000Hz-18dB (12 dB/oct)

A low filter: 20Hz-26dB (12 dB/oct)

Muting: -20dB

Synthesis

Stream composition 31Tr, 5Di

Miscellaneous

Supply voltage 220V, 50Hz/60Hz

Dimensions

Width 435x height 155x depth of 334mm

Weight 12.5kg

Option The wood case made from a walnut

I became curious whether I could reverse-engineer and recreate the IR signal that my ST-E2 wireless flash transmitter produces. So, I put a photosensor on my roommate's oscilliscope to see what I could find.

His scope isn't quite up to the job. It's an older analog scope, with no memory. So I ended up setting up my camera in front of it to try and record the trace. Here's the result. I tried a bunch of different settings, but there's still more experimenting to be done. Each successful capture takes about 5 tries, to get everything aligned right. The scope here is set to 0.5V/div (not zeroed vertically), and 1ms/div. The photosensor pulls low when it sees light.

Looks to me like pulse modulation, something like 64 bits, 10KHz. Of course, it has to be pulse modulation; the transmitter transmits by firing a little flashbulb. I think I might have enough here to recreate at least the signal for the pilot button. Tomorrow.

Having owned the 2008 Kona Sutra for ten months, and just completed the first chain/cassette replacement, I thought it was about time for a long term review, to give other people an idea of what living with the Sutra has been like. My previous post explains why I chose the Sutra - I came up with what I thought was an impossibly eclectic list of requirements from a bicycle, and the Sutra ticked every single box.

Here's some specs, for the statophiles out there: Frame size C54cm Frame tubing Dedacciai COM 12.5 Butted Cromoly Fork Kona P2 700c TB Disc w/Lowrider Headset TH Crankarms FSA Gossamer MegaExo Chainrings 30/39/50 B/B FSA MegaExo Pedals Shimano PD-M520 SPD - Silver Chain Shimano HG53 --> Shimano HG93 XT Freewheel Shimano Deore (11-32, 9 Spd) --> Shimano XT M760 (11-32, 9spd) F/D Shimano Tiagra Triple R/D Shimano XT Shadow Shifters Shimano Bar-Con Handlebar FSA RD30 0S Stem FSA OS-190LX Grips Velo Wrap with Gel Brakes Avid BB7 Road Disc Brake Levers Shimano BLR-600 Front Hub Shimano M525 Disc Rear Hub Shimano M525 Disc Spokes DT Stainless 14g Tires Continental Contact 700 x 32C --> Schwalbe Marathon Plus 700x38c Rims Mavic A 317 Disc Saddle Selle Italia XO SE --> Brooks B17 Seatpost FSA SL-280 Seat Clamp Kona Clamp Rear Rack Tubus Logo Panniers Bikebins Computer Sigma DTS 1606 L Fenders SKS Chromoplastic

My primary (i.e. 99% of the time) use of the Sutra has been for commuting. I have covered over 2700 miles (4500km) in the time I have owned it. My commuting route through London is pretty tough on bikes - the roads south of the Thames are awful and full of potholes, through the City there is broken glass all over the place, and further north of the river there are speedbumps everywhere. When I first got the Sutra she was wearing Continental Contact tyres, and they were pretty poor for commuting. They punctured easily and transmitted the bumpiness of the road right up into my forearms. Not much fun. After one puncture too many I replaced the tyres with Schwalbe Marathon Pluses, in their largest diameter, and the difference was marked. The increased volume of air provides a lot more cushioning for the arms, and I have not had a single puncture yet, despite having pulled 6mm long pieces of glass out of the tyre surfaces. The tyres are relatively heavy, but then so is the rest of the bike, and extra weight makes you stronger!

The original rear rack was pretty flimsy, and it did not allow the attachment of the Bikebin panniers I bought to try and add some rigidity. I ended up having to angle grind chunks out of the rack to fit the panniers, which can't have improved their structural integrity. After a month of experiencing the odd sensation of the bike wagging its tail whenever I stood up to pedal hard, I bit the bullet and upgraded the rack to a Tubus Logo. It was a tight fit with the rear disc brake, but the difference was immense. Gone was the sensation of a jelly-like bike, to be replaced by a sensation of rigid stability. Whilst the rack was expensive, it made all the difference, and I would highly recommend it.

Speaking of the brakes, they have saved my life on more than one occasion, usually when a Taxi decides to perform an emergency stop to pick up a fare. The brakes stop consistently in all conditions, and so far I have not had to replace the pads, althoguh I think it will be time to do it soon. Not bad considering I have travelled almost five thousand kilometres in all weathers in the stop-start conditions of London. I was concerned that the brakes might be too powerful, but the modulation provided by the levers and the flex in the arm of the brake means that whilst the power is there if necessary, you have a lot of control over it. There is some disc drag, but this is owing more to my laziness than the brakes themselves, and seems to have little impact on cruising speeds.

Using the bike in all conditions has been excellent. The all-over fenders (something I have never fitted to a bike previously) really keep the rain off and eliminate spray from the road. I had to saw a bit of the front fender off to fit it over the larger tyres, and a little bit off the rear for the same reason, but after the modification they have been flawless.

I had heard reports of spokes snapping, and nothing happened to me until recently, when I noticed a detached spoke whilst replacing the rear cassette. I had no idea how long the spoke had been damaged for, and replaced it myself. The rear wheel is slightly askew, but it does not foul on anything, which is good considering the small tolerance between it and the fender. To be fair, I have been jumping off kerbs and sometimes it is impossible to miss a massive hole in the road when you are in busy traffic. An upgrade I am considering is a stronger rear wheel, although it is not pressingly urgent.

The ride of the bike is super smooth, and certainly not anything like the road bikes I am used to. I use my other road bike for triathlons, and whilst it is a lot more nimble, it is much less comfortable. The Sutra is comfortable all day long, owing in no small part to the Brooks B17 saddle, which took about two thousand miles to properly break in! It was worth it though - sitting on the bike is like sitting in an armchair (albeit a very odd armchair, but an armchair nonetheless). I tend to cruise at about 20mph on her, and my 10.5 mile commute to work takes about 37 minutes. I have started seeking out hills in preparation for some touring of Wales, and the sutra certainly loves to climb. The aggressive, mountain-bike-like frame geometry no doubt assists in this, and is confidence inspiring when climbing and descending. The bar-con shifters were a novelty for me, but they make a lot of sense, especially if replacement shifters were needed on a tour. There are even bosses on the downtube to fit truly old-school shifters in an emergency.

The weight of the bike was a shock initially - weighing in at 15kgs without the accessories, she weighs significantly more than my Specialized Hardrock mountain bike, which is saying something! Over time I have become accustomed to the weight, and now it feels normal. The main advantage of this is that when I ride anything else, it feels super light and goes very rapidly. This makes this bike an ideal training steed.

In conclusion, I have found a lot to love about the Kona Sutra - she's tough, strong and surprisingly fast. There were some niggles about fitting add-ons, but they were all easy to overcome, and the result has been a reliable bike that I think will keep delivering for years.

www.charlietyack.com

7.365 // Y3 // 05.03.2010

'He had a way of entering I shall never forget: offering a casual greeting and sometimes not even taking off his hat and coat, he would walk straight to the piano, his face strained with concentration, as if this had been the real point on his having come, and then with a strong attack would sound knotted chords and, his eyebrows raised high as he emphasized each modulating note, try out the preparations and resolutions he might have been considering on his way there. But this rush for the piano also had about it something of a yearning to find some hold, some shelter, as if the room and those filling it frightened him and he were seeking refuge there – and in himself as well, really – from the confusing and alien world into which he had strayed.'

-- Thomas Mann (spoken by Serenus Zeitblom, in Doctor Faustus)

LTE is a standard for wireless data communications technology and an evolution of the GSM/UMTS standards. The goal of LTE was to increase the capacity and speed of wireless data networks using new DSP (digital signal processing) techniques and modulations that were developed around the turn of the millennium. LTE stands for Long-Term Evolution, and is marketed by AT&T as as 4G LTE. LTE is a standard for wireless communication of high-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals, and is based on the GSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSPA network technologies, which increases the capacity and speed using a different radio interface together with core network improvements.

AT&T adds six LTE markets, unveils plan for 77 more

April 10, 2013 7:11 AM PDT

by Roger Cheng

Six more AT&T markets have access to its 4G LTE network, bringing its total to 182, the carrier said today.

Meanwhile, seven existing AT&T markets have snagged expanded LTE coverage. The company also unveiled plans to bring the super-fast wireless connection to 77 additional markets by the end of summer.

AT&T is racing to catch up to market leader Verizon Wireless, which offers LTE in nearly 500 markets and plans to wrap up its deployment by the middle of the year. With the increasing consumer awareness over 4G LTE and the need for a faster wireless connection, having the breadth of coverage has become a critical selling point for the carriers.

AT&T, meanwhile, argues it has the highest 4G LTE speeds and also touts its HSPA+ network, which it also calls 4G, as part of its broader high-speed coverage.

AT&T is still ahead both of Sprint Nextel, which has lagged in its LTE roll out, particularly in the big cities, and of T-Mobile, which has just begun to roll out its next-generation network.

Here are the new markets:

Jackson, TN.,

Kalamazoo, Mo., Napa, Calif.,

Orangeburg, SC, Rocky Mount-Wilson, NC,

and Santa Rosa-Petaluma, Calif.

And here are the planned markets:

Florence / Muscle Shoals, AL.,

Huntsville, AL.,

Monroeville / Evergreen, AL.,

Troy / Greenville, AL.,

Tuscaloosa, AL.,

Flagstaff, Ariz., Chico, Calif., Merced, Calif., Visalia, Calif., Dover, Del., Lake City, Fla., Ocala, Fla., Hancock, Ga., Jefferson / Commerce (Jackson County), Ga., Valdosta, Ga., Davenport, Iowa, Champaign, Ill., Rockford, Ill., Columbus, Ind., Fort Wayne, Ind., Manhattan, Kan., Topeka, Kan.,

Elizabethtown, KY.,

New Iberia, LA., Shreveport, LA.,

Cape Cod, Mass., Leonardtown, Md., Flint, Mich., Lansing, Mich., Muskegon, Mich., Saginaw, Mich, Duluth, Minn., Cape Girardeau, Mo., Columbia, Mo.,

Biloxi/Gulfport, MS., Corinth / New Albany, MS., Greenwood / Cleveland, MS., Meridian / Philadelphia, MS.,

Asheville, N.C., Goldsboro, N.C., Kinston, N.C.,

Portsmouth, N.H., Atlantic City, N.J. Millville, N.J., Southern NJ Shore Points, N.J., Farmington, N.M., Gallup, N.M., Batavia, N.Y., Cortland, N.Y., Seneca Falls, N.Y., Dayton, Ohio, Wooster, Ohio, Youngstown, Ohio, Salem, Ore., Williamsport, Penn.,

Anderson, SC.,

Chattanooga, TN., Cookeville, TN.,

Athens, TX, Brownsville-Harlingen, TX, Corsicana, Texas, Huntsville, TX, Laredo, TX, Lufkin-Nacogdoches, TX, McAllen, TX, Paris, TX, Sherman-Denison, TX, Texarkana, TX, Victoria, TX,

St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands,

Petersburg, VA., Roanoke, VA., Spokane, Wash., Huntington, WV, Morgantown, WV,

Laramie, Wyo.

Having owned the 2008 Kona Sutra for ten months, and just completed the first chain/cassette replacement, I thought it was about time for a long term review, to give other people an idea of what living with the Sutra has been like. My previous post explains why I chose the Sutra - I came up with what I thought was an impossibly eclectic list of requirements from a bicycle, and the Sutra ticked every single box.

Here's some specs, for the statophiles out there: Frame size C54cm Frame tubing Dedacciai COM 12.5 Butted Cromoly Fork Kona P2 700c TB Disc w/Lowrider Headset TH Crankarms FSA Gossamer MegaExo Chainrings 30/39/50 B/B FSA MegaExo Pedals Shimano PD-M520 SPD - Silver Chain Shimano HG53 --> Shimano HG93 XT Freewheel Shimano Deore (11-32, 9 Spd) --> Shimano XT M760 (11-32, 9spd) F/D Shimano Tiagra Triple R/D Shimano XT Shadow Shifters Shimano Bar-Con Handlebar FSA RD30 0S Stem FSA OS-190LX Grips Velo Wrap with Gel Brakes Avid BB7 Road Disc Brake Levers Shimano BLR-600 Front Hub Shimano M525 Disc Rear Hub Shimano M525 Disc Spokes DT Stainless 14g Tires Continental Contact 700 x 32C --> Schwalbe Marathon Plus 700x38c Rims Mavic A 317 Disc Saddle Selle Italia XO SE --> Brooks B17 Seatpost FSA SL-280 Seat Clamp Kona Clamp Rear Rack Tubus Logo Panniers Bikebins Computer Sigma DTS 1606 L Fenders SKS Chromoplastic

My primary (i.e. 99% of the time) use of the Sutra has been for commuting. I have covered over 2700 miles (4500km) in the time I have owned it. My commuting route through London is pretty tough on bikes - the roads south of the Thames are awful and full of potholes, through the City there is broken glass all over the place, and further north of the river there are speedbumps everywhere. When I first got the Sutra she was wearing Continental Contact tyres, and they were pretty poor for commuting. They punctured easily and transmitted the bumpiness of the road right up into my forearms. Not much fun. After one puncture too many I replaced the tyres with Schwalbe Marathon Pluses, in their largest diameter, and the difference was marked. The increased volume of air provides a lot more cushioning for the arms, and I have not had a single puncture yet, despite having pulled 6mm long pieces of glass out of the tyre surfaces. The tyres are relatively heavy, but then so is the rest of the bike, and extra weight makes you stronger!

The original rear rack was pretty flimsy, and it did not allow the attachment of the Bikebin panniers I bought to try and add some rigidity. I ended up having to angle grind chunks out of the rack to fit the panniers, which can't have improved their structural integrity. After a month of experiencing the odd sensation of the bike wagging its tail whenever I stood up to pedal hard, I bit the bullet and upgraded the rack to a Tubus Logo. It was a tight fit with the rear disc brake, but the difference was immense. Gone was the sensation of a jelly-like bike, to be replaced by a sensation of rigid stability. Whilst the rack was expensive, it made all the difference, and I would highly recommend it.

Speaking of the brakes, they have saved my life on more than one occasion, usually when a Taxi decides to perform an emergency stop to pick up a fare. The brakes stop consistently in all conditions, and so far I have not had to replace the pads, althoguh I think it will be time to do it soon. Not bad considering I have travelled almost five thousand kilometres in all weathers in the stop-start conditions of London. I was concerned that the brakes might be too powerful, but the modulation provided by the levers and the flex in the arm of the brake means that whilst the power is there if necessary, you have a lot of control over it. There is some disc drag, but this is owing more to my laziness than the brakes themselves, and seems to have little impact on cruising speeds.

Using the bike in all conditions has been excellent. The all-over fenders (something I have never fitted to a bike previously) really keep the rain off and eliminate spray from the road. I had to saw a bit of the front fender off to fit it over the larger tyres, and a little bit off the rear for the same reason, but after the modification they have been flawless.

I had heard reports of spokes snapping, and nothing happened to me until recently, when I noticed a detached spoke whilst replacing the rear cassette. I had no idea how long the spoke had been damaged for, and replaced it myself. The rear wheel is slightly askew, but it does not foul on anything, which is good considering the small tolerance between it and the fender. To be fair, I have been jumping off kerbs and sometimes it is impossible to miss a massive hole in the road when you are in busy traffic. An upgrade I am considering is a stronger rear wheel, although it is not pressingly urgent.

The ride of the bike is super smooth, and certainly not anything like the road bikes I am used to. I use my other road bike for triathlons, and whilst it is a lot more nimble, it is much less comfortable. The Sutra is comfortable all day long, owing in no small part to the Brooks B17 saddle, which took about two thousand miles to properly break in! It was worth it though - sitting on the bike is like sitting in an armchair (albeit a very odd armchair, but an armchair nonetheless). I tend to cruise at about 20mph on her, and my 10.5 mile commute to work takes about 37 minutes. I have started seeking out hills in preparation for some touring of Wales, and the sutra certainly loves to climb. The aggressive, mountain-bike-like frame geometry no doubt assists in this, and is confidence inspiring when climbing and descending. The bar-con shifters were a novelty for me, but they make a lot of sense, especially if replacement shifters were needed on a tour. There are even bosses on the downtube to fit truly old-school shifters in an emergency.

The weight of the bike was a shock initially - weighing in at 15kgs without the accessories, she weighs significantly more than my Specialized Hardrock mountain bike, which is saying something! Over time I have become accustomed to the weight, and now it feels normal. The main advantage of this is that when I ride anything else, it feels super light and goes very rapidly. This makes this bike an ideal training steed.

In conclusion, I have found a lot to love about the Kona Sutra - she's tough, strong and surprisingly fast. There were some niggles about fitting add-ons, but they were all easy to overcome, and the result has been a reliable bike that I think will keep delivering for years.

www.charlietyack.com

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

please visit

sakamatra.blogspot.com

for more details

Specifications

Year 1973

Form : Solid-state 4ch control Integrated Amplifier

Circuit system

Power amplifier part

Perfect complimentary whole page hardwired-connection OCL circuitry

Power amplifier part

Music power (IHF)

120W (4ohms)

98W (8ohms)

Effective output (IHF)

42W/42W (4ohms)

35W/35W (8ohms)

Power Band Width

5Hz - 50kHz-3dB

Frequency characteristic

5Hz-100kHz+0 -3 dB

Distortion (at the time of an effective output) 0.2% or less

Cross modulation distortion (60Hz:7kHz=4:1) 0.2% or less (at the time of an effective output)

SN ratio (IHF) 110dB or more

Dumping factor 50 (at the time of an 8-ohm load intensity)

Input sensitivity/impedance 1V/50kohm

Input sensitivity/impedance

Phono : 2mV / 30kohm, 50kohm, 100kohm

Tuner, AUX : 100mV /, 80kohm

Tapes monitor Rec Out : 100mV / 10kohm

Playback : 100mV / 60kohm

Rec/Play(DIN) : 100mV / 60kohm, 50mV / 80kohm

An Output voltage/impedance Output power : 1V/200 ohm

Maximum output voltage : 3V

Phono maximum permissible input 100mV (1kHz)

Frequency characteristicDeflection of less than ±0.5dB from a Phono : RIAA standard curve

Tuner, AUX : 5Hz - 60kHz, and +0 -3 dB

Tone control

Bass :50Hz, ±16dB

Turnover frequency : 150Hz, 500Hz

Treble : 20kHz, ±14dB

Turnover frequency : 2kHz, 6kHz

Loudness control 100Hz : +10dB (Volume −30dB)

An Output-power voltage

/Output load impedance 600mV / 10 kohm

Maximum output voltage 2.5V

Frequency characteristic 10Hz-20kHz+0 -3 dB

The semiconductor used Transistor : 37 pieces

Diode : Seven pieces

Power source AC 100V, 50/60Hz

Power consumption At the time of an Output power : 70W

Dimensions

Width 410x height 140x depth of 300mm

Weight 10.3kg

source : audio-database.com

November Pageant Training Course for Ponds Femina Miss India 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Goa 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Kolkata 2013, Femina Miss India Bangalore 2013, Femina Miss India Indore 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Delhi 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Chandigarh 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Pune 2014, I am She 2013, Gladrags Megamodel 2012/2013 and Gladrags Mrs. India 2012/2013

Urvashi Rautela groomed and coached by The Tiara wins I am She Miss India Universe 2012 and ' I am Photogenic". Dipna Patel trained by The Tiara wins 3rd Runners up at IAM SHE Miss Universe India and the subtitle I am Fit. Gunjan Tyagi wins 2nd Runner Up at Gladrags South Mrs. India 2012. She will go on to participate in the Mrs. India All India in Mumbai later this year.

17 Winners in 14 Years! A Winner Every Year at The Tiara Pageant Training Studio

1. Winner of Young Turk 1998 Sandip Soparrkar , Ace Choreographer, Ballroom dance teacher,

2. Femina Miss India Earth 2002 Gauhar Khan,

3. Femina Miss India Universe 2005 Amrita Thapar

4. Femina Miss India World 2009 Pooja Chopra,

5.Gladrags Megamodel 2009 and Femina Miss India East 2011 and Bollywood Diva 2011 Ankita Mohapatra

6.Mr. India Earth 2009, Mann Sukhija

7.Miss India Intercontinental 2009 Sonia Jain

8. Femina Miss India International 2010 Neha Hinge

9.Gladrags Megamodel 2010 Arshina Trivedi

10.Femina Miss India South 2011 Shweta Dolli

11.Gladrags Manhunt 2011 First Runner Up Maitraya Kotecha

12.Miss Tourism Queen International of the year 2011 Urvashi Rautela

13.Miss India Worldwide 2011 1st Runner Up Anvita Sudarshan

14.Femina Style Diva 2011 Dipna Patel

15.Femina Miss India Earth 2012 Prachi

16.Mrs. India International 2012, 1st Runners Up Reet Sahu

17.Urvashi Rautela I am She Miss Universe India 2012.

ELIGIBILITY

If you are participating in:

Femina Miss India: Height 5.6” upwards, Age: 18 to 25

I am She: Height 5.6 upwards, Age: 18 to 27

Gladrags Mrs India Height 5.3 upwards, Age: 20 to 50

Gladrags Megamodel: 5.3” Upwards Age: 17 to 27

November 5th to December 10th 2012(Course Fee Rs 25,000)

Monday to Friday

To ensure that you have your seat please pay the booking amount of Rs 5000 which is an advance fee. This fee is non-refundable and non-transferable to another batch in another month. The remaining 20,000 has to be paid on the first day of class, For the hostel please call Mr. Anil Shinde 9822282817 .Meetings are only by appointment.

The Tiara is located only in Pune, we have no branches.

Course Details

• Filling up Forms and Registration Help

• Developing a Pageant Strategy

• Pageant & Ramp Walk

• Personality & Grooming

• Posture & Poise.

• Camera Facing Techniques & Portfolio Assistance ( Professional Portfolio Not Included)

• Public Speaking &Voice Modulation

• Modeling Technique & Body Language

• Making a Positive First Impression

• Wardrobe Analysis & Customized Wardrobe Assistance

• Diet, Nutrition & Fitness Assistance

. Confidence Building

• Mental Preparation

• Question Handling (Preliminary Round, Prejudging, On Stage and One-on-One)

• Personalize your answers so that you sound original

• Connecting with the Judges and Handling the Stage

• Platform Development

Don't be dismayed if you find that we are at Pune. You deserve the help of a Pageant professional; don't let location stand in the way of your dream. Assistance with accommodation provided. Limited seats. Reserve your spot now!

The Tiara,

Tel: +919823156193

ritika.ramtri@gmail.com

thetiara.net/

Prague Castle (Pražský hrad)

For more than a thousand years, has the Prague Castle been an important symbol of the Czech state. Founded in the 9th century, it became the permanent seat of the Czech rulers and, most recently, also of the Presidents. One of the largest castle complexes in the world consists of palaces, offices, churches and fortification buildings, gardens and picturesque corners. The castle covers an area of ​​45 hectares. The unique view to the Prague Castle is one of the most amazing panorama views in the world.

Prague Castle is the most important folk-cultural and historical monument, and is the symbol of the more than one thousand years of development of the Czech and all-Czech states. It is a monumental symbol of the palace, church, fortification, official and residential buildings which represent very valuable monuments, included in all style epochs. It covers an area of ​​45 hectares, was the seat of the Bohemian princes, kings and emperors, and since the Republic was founded in 1918, it was also the residence of the presidents. Since 1962, the Prague Castle has been known for its archaeological discoveries.

History

The initial phases of the Prague Castle are connected with the first historically documented Přemyslid Bořivoj (Bořivoj I (Czech pronunciation: [ˈbɔr̝ɪvɔj], Latin: Borzivogius, c. 852 – c. 889) was the first historically documented Duke of Bohemia from about 870 and progenitor of the Přemyslid dynasty.] The Duchy of Bohemia was at those times subordinated to Great Moravia.). This one transferred in the 80s of the 9th century his original seat from Levý Hradec to the place where on the raised spot above the river Vltava/Moldau already existed a Slavic castle and was very well situated.

The first princely palace apparently only consisted of wood. The first stone building and the oldest Christian sanctuary was the Virgin Mary Church. Its remains have been found between the Second Courtyard and the Bastion garden (original name of the garden: Na Baště). This Bořivoj church was soon reconstructed by the prince Spytihněv I, who was buried here in 915. The second church in the castle was the St. George Basilica founded by Prince Vratislaus I. The next Přemyslide, Prince Wenceslas (Saint), the third sanctuary - the St Veit Rotunda - in the twenties of the 10th century nearby had built which in the 11th century by Prince Spytihnev II was transformed into a huge basilica.

In 973, when the bishopric was established in Prague, the castle was not only the seat of the head of state, but also the seat of the Prague bishop, the highest representative of the church. At the same time arose the first monastery in Bohemia at St. George's basilica.

In the 10th century the castle occupied an area of ​​about 6 ha. In the Romanesque epoch the former fortress, especially after the year 1135 thanks to Soběslaus I, as the stony princely palace and the new masonry fortified with some towers were erected, was turned into a fortified medieval castle. Of the towers is the eastern blacktower best preserved.

Very significantly the Gothic period in the appearance of Prague Castle intervened, most of all Charles IV (1346 - 1378), who, with his father, John of Luxemburg (1310 - 1346), obtained from the pope the promotion of the Prague bishopric to the archbishopric and laid the foundations for the construction of St. Vitus Cathedral. Under Charles IV, the castle for the first time was turned into the imperial residence. Charles IV the defense of the Prague Castle had consolidated, the Royal Palace with the Chapel of All Saints he rebuilt generously. The roofs he had covered with gilded plates, which were the foundation for the binding of words "Golden Prague". Since 1382, Bohemian rulers ceased to occupy the Prague Castle for more than 100 years. The royal court was moved to the place of today's Community hall and back to the Prague castle it came only in 1483 under Wladislaus from the Jagiellonian dynasty.

Although the ruler already in 1490 moved to Ofen (Buda), he had the Prague castle renovated in the late Gothic style under the supervision of Benedikt Ried. He was the master builder of the magnificent Vladislav Hall, the largest secular vaulted room of the then Europe, with which the first Renaissance signs came to Prague. He carried out major construction works, including the construction of a new masonry, the defensive towers and the expansion of the Royal Palace. At his time, the Gothic died away and a new architectural style, the Renaissance, gradually prevailed.

The direct influence of the Italian art on the new style was most frequently observed in Prague under the reign of Ferdinand I (von Habsburg) and after his departure from Prague under the influence of the governor Ferdinand of Tyrol. At that time, the medieval castle was converted into a comfortable Renaissance castle with gardens. The typical Italian architecture of the Royal Pleasure palace arose in the northern King's garden.

For a large building activity in 1541 contributed a fire devastating the castle objects as well as the surrounding area quite a lot. Within the framework of the restoration, both the housing estates and the church buildings were rebuilt. Under the reign of the first Habsburgs, nobility palaces were added to the castle grounds (for example, the Pernstein Palace - later Lobkowicz Palace, Rosenberg Palace and others). Horse stable buildings were built in the north-west.

Under the reign of the Emperor Rudolph II (1576 - 1611), the Renaissance and Mannerism transformation of the castle, which for the second time became the center of the empire, and especially the center of European culture and science, reached its peak. On the second courtyard, new rooms were built for the collections of Rudolph - the new (now Spanish) hall and the Rudolph gallery. Also arose the connection tract between the northwestern and the southwestern part of the castle. Just here the famous Kunstkammer (Art chamber) and other rooms for Rudolph's collective activities were located. Additionally further horse stable properties were built for his rare Spanish horses. During the Rudolph times also the foundation stone of the famous Golden Alley was laid. Laboratories of the Rudolph-Alchymists were supposed to have been in the Powder tower above the Hirschgraben (Deer's ditch). The castle suffered again considerable damages when it was occupied by the Saxon army in 1631 and by the Swedes in 1648 not only was occupied but also plundered. After the Thirty Years' War, the Habsburgs did not care too much about the Prague royal seat.

Only Maria Theresia carried out an extensive reconstruction of the Prague Castle from 1755 - 1775 into a representative castle complex. The reason for the massive construction action were war damages, caused by the intense bombing of the castle during war conflicts at the beginning of her reign. The reconstruction was designed by the Viennese architect Nicolo Pacassi, who also planned the first courtyard with the monumental entrance gate. From the time of the Theresian reconstruction stems also the chapel of the Holy Cross on the 2nd castle forecourt and other buildings, especially the noblewomen institute. The south wing he imprinted the uniform monumental late Baroque facade of a representative seat. His plans influenced by Viennese Rococo and French Classicism the builders Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz and Anton Haffenecker brought into life.

In the 19th century, the castle fell into ruin, in several objects after the Josephine reforms the army settled. In connection with the stay of Ferdinand I the Good in the castle after his abdication in 1848 and further in connection with the preparation for the coronation of Franz Joseph I in the sixties it came to building modifications of several objects. After 1859, when the community for the completion of St Veit cathedral emerged, began first the repair, and then, under the influence of the architect Joseph Mocker, the work on the actual completion of St Veit's cathedral was started, completed in 1929.

In the years 1920 - 35, carried out extensive regulations of the Prague Castle as the seat of the Czechoslovak President the great Slovenian architect Josip Plečnik, who masterfully combined the valuable historical space with modern civilization claims. His modifications mainly concerned the 1st and 3rd court, the southern gardens of the castle, the fourth forecourt with the Bastion garden as well as numerous interiors. He created e.g. the pillared hall, private rooms of the presidential residence, including the Masaryk workroom. His pupil, Otto Rothmayer, brought to an end the incomplete solutions of some castle interior spaces after the Second World War in comparable quality.

In 1936, Pavel Janák and after him, in 1959, Jaroslav Fragner became castle architect.

After the year of change of 1989, the Prague Castle was opened to the public in many places. During the term of President Havel, at the castle it came to modulations of the interiors and to the expansion of two new entrances into the second courtyard after the project of the creator and designer Bořek Šípek. The puncture through the rampart of the Powder bridge in Hirschgraben was rewarded with a significant prize (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Also interesting is the modern greenhouse of the world-famous architect Eva Jiřičná. The Georgian Square (Jiřské náměstí) was re-paved and modulated. The Mosaic of the Last Judgment was renovated in collaboration with the specialists from the Getti Institute. In 1990, the Prague Castle was solemnly illuminated and this situation lasts from dusk to midnight until today. In the main tourist season, the lighting time even lasts an hour longer until 1 o'clock. The tradition of electric lighting, but on a much smaller scale, began in 1928, when the lamps were installed for the 10th anniversary of the elevation to a Republic. A little bit the present daylight resembles of those from the end of the sixties, but today it is much more detailed and in communist times it was only switched on at solemn occasions. At that time, illuminative days were state holidays or significant day of republic, which, however, did not lack recognition from the communist point of view.

In recent years the reconstruction and renovation work has been developed in many buildings of the castle and a considerable attention has been devoted to the archaeological investigation, which has been going on since 1925 and has brought many insights into the history of the castle. The investigation as well as the renovation of the individual rooms and objects is motivated by the idea of ​​invigorating them as much as possible by making them accessible to the public.

Prager Burg (Pražský hrad)

Die Prager Burg ist seit über tausend Jahren ein bedeutendes Symbol des tschechischen Staates. Gegründet im 9. Jahrhundert wurde sie zum ständigen Sitz der tschechischen Herrscher und zuletzt auch der Präsidenten. Einer der größten Burgkomplexe weltweit setzt sich aus Palästen, Amts-, Kirchen- und Fortifikationsgebäuden, aus Gärten und malerischen Ecken zusammen. Die Burg erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 Hektar. Der alleinige Blick auf die Prager Burg stellt einen der überwältigendsten Panoramablicke der Welt dar.

Die Prager Burg ist das bedeutendste Volkskultur- und Historiedenkmal, sie ist das Symbol der mehr als eintausendjährigen Entwicklung des böhmischen sowie gesamttschechischen Staats. Es ist ein monumentales Symbol der Palast-, Kirchen-, Fortifikations-, Amts- und Wohngebäude, die sehr wertvolle Denkmäler darstellen, einbezogen auf alle Stilepochen. Sie erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 ha, war der Sitz der böhmischen Fürsten, Könige und Kaiser und seit der Republikentstehung im Jahre 1918 war sie auch die Residenz der Präsidenten. Seit 1962 steht die Prager Burg mit ihren archäologischen Funden als bekanntester.

Geschichte

Die Anfangszeiten der Prager Burg sind mit dem ersten historisch belegten Přemysliden Bořivoj verbunden. Dieser übertrug in den 80er Jahren des 9. Jahrhunderts seinen ursprünglichen Sitz von Levý Hradec an den Ort, wo auf der erhabenen Stelle über der Moldau eine slawische Burgstätte bereits bestand und sehr gut gelegen war.

Der erste Fürstenpalast bestand offenbar aus Holz. Der erste Steinbau und das älteste christliche Heiligtum war die Jungfrau Maria Kirche. Ihre Reste wurden zwischen dem II. Vorhof und dem Basteigarten (Originalname des Gartens: Na Baště) gefunden. Diese Bořivoj-Kirche wurde durch den hier im Jahre 915 beigesetzten Fürsten Spytihněv I. bald umgebaut. Die zweite Kirche im Burgraum war die vom Fürsten Vratislaus I. gegründete St. Georg Basilika. Der nächste Přemyslide, der Fürst Wenzel (der Heilige), ließ in der Nähe in den 20er Jahren des 10. Jahrhunderts das dritte Heiligtum - die St. Veit Rotunde - bauen, die im 11. Jahrhundert vom Fürsten Spytihněv II. zu einer gewaltigen Basilika umgebaut wurde.

Im Jahre 973, als in Prag das Bistum gegründet wurde, war die Burg nicht nur der Sitz des Staatsoberhaupts, sondern auch der Sitz des Prager Bischofs, des höchsten Repräsentanten der Kirche. Zu demselben Zeitpunkt entstand an der St. Georg Basilika das erste Kloster in Böhmen.

Im 10. Jahrhundert nahm die Burg eine Fläche von ca. 6 ha in Anspruch. In der romanischen Epoche wurde die einstige Burgstätte, insbesondere nach dem Jahr 1135 dank Soběslaus I., als der steinige Fürstenpalast und das neue mit einigen Türmen verstärkte Mauerwerk aufgebaut wurden, zu einer festen mittelalterlichen Burg umgebaut. Von den Türmen ist der östliche Schwarzturm am besten erhalten.

Sehr bedeutend griff ins Aussehen der Prager Burg die Gotikzeit ein, insbesondere Karl IV. (1346 - 1378), der mit seinem Vater Johann von Luxemburg (1310 - 1346) vom Papst die Beförderung des Prager Bistums zum Erzbistum erwirkte und den Grundstein für den Bau der St. Veit Kathedrale legte. Unter Karl IV. wurde die Burg zum ersten Mal zur Kaiserlichen Residenz. Karl IV. ließ die Verschanzung der Prager Burg festigen, den Königspalast mit der Kapelle Aller Heiligen baute er großzügig um. Die Dächer ließ er mit vergoldeten Blechen decken, die das Fundament für die Wörterbindung „Goldenes Prag“ darstellten. Seit 1382 hörten böhmische Herrscher auf, die Prager Burg für mehr als 100 Jahre zu bewohnen. Der Königshof wurde an den Ort des heutigen Gemeindehauses umgezogen und zurück auf die Prager Burg kehrte er erst im Jahre 1483 unter Wladislaus aus der Jagiellonen-Dynastie.

Obwohl der Herrscher bereits 1490 nach Ofen (Buda) umsiedelte, ließ er die Prager Burg im spätgotischen Stil unter der Bauleitung von Benedikt Ried umbauen. Er war der Baumeister des großartigen Wladislaus-Saals, des größten weltlichen gewölbten Raums des damaligen Europas, mit dem die ersten Renaissancezeichen nach Prag kamen. Er führte großartige Bauregelungen einschließlich des Ausbaus eines neuen Mauerwerks, der Wehrtürme und der Erweiterung des Königspalastes durch. Zu seiner Zeit klang die Gotik aus und es setzte sich allmählich ein neuer Baustil durch, die Renaissance.

Der direkte Einfluss der italienischen Kunst des neuen Stils wurde in Prag unter der Regierung von Ferdinand I. (von Habsburg) und nach seinem Weggang von Prag unter der Wirkung des Statthalters Ferdinand von Tirol am meisten beobachtet. Damals wurde die mittelalterliche Burg in ein bequemes Renaissanceschloss mit Gärten umgewandelt. Im nördlichen Königsgarten entstand die typisch italienische Architektur des Königlichen Lustschlosses.

Zu einer großen Bauaktivität trug im Jahre 1541 ein Brand bei, der die Burgobjekte sowie die Umgebung ziemlich viel kaputt machte. Im Rahmen der Wiederherstellung wurden sowohl die Wohnräume als auch die Kirchenobjekte umgebaut. Unter der Regierung der ersten Habsburger kamen ins Burggelände auch Adelspaläste dazu (zum Beispiel der Pernstein-Palast - später Lobkowicz-Palast, Rosenberg-Palast und weitere). Im Nordwesten wurden Pferdestallgebäude erbaut.

Unter der Regierung des Kaisers Rudolph II. (1576 - 1611) erreichte der Renaissance- und Manierismusumbau der Burg, die zum zweiten Mal zum Zentrum des Reiches und insbesondere zum Zentrum der europäischen Kultur und Wissenschaft wurde, seinen Gipfel. Auf dem II. Vorhof wurden neue Räume für die Sammlungen Rudolphs erbaut - der Neue (heute Spanische) Saal und die Rudolph-Galerie. Es entstand auch der Verbindungstrakt zwischen dem Nordwest- und dem Südwestteil der Burg. Eben hier befanden sich die berühmte Kunstkammer und weitere Räume für die Sammeltätigkeit Rudolphs. Es wurden auch weitere Pferdestallobjekte für seine seltenen spanischen Pferde aufgebaut. Während der Rudolph-Zeiten wurde auch der Grundstein der berühmten Goldenen Gasse gelegt. Laboratorien der Rudolph-Alchymisten sollen im Pulverturm über dem Hirschgraben gewesen sein. Die Burg erlitt erneut erhebliche Schäden, als sie 1631 vom sächsischen Heer und 1648 von den Schweden besetzt und ausgeplündert wurde. Nach dem Dreißigjährigen Krieg kümmerten sich die Habsburger um den Prager königlichen Sitz nicht allzu sehr.

Erst Maria Theresia führte in den Jahren 1755 - 1775 einen umfangreichen Umbau der Prager Burg zu einem repräsentativen Schlosskomplex durch. Der Grund für die massive Bauaktion waren Kriegsschäden, verursacht durch die intensive Bombardierung der Burg bei Kriegskonflikten zu Beginn ihrer Regierung. Den Umbau entwarf der Wiener Architekt Nicolo Pacassi, der auch den I. Vorhof mit dem monumentalen Eingangstor projektierte. Aus der Zeit des theresianischen Umbaus stammt auch die Kapelle des Heiligen Kreuzes auf dem II. Burgvorhof und weitere Gebäude, insbesondere die Edeldamenanstalt. Dem Südflügel prägte er die einheitliche monumentale Spätbarockfassade eines Repräsentationssitzes ein. Seine durch das Wiener Rokoko und den französischen Klassizismus beeinflussten Pläne brachten die Baumeister Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz und Anton Haffenecker zustande.

Im 19. Jahrhundert verfiel die Burg, in mehreren Objekten ließ sich nach den josephinischen Reformen das Heer nieder. Zu Bauregelungen einiger Objekte kam es im Zusammenhang mit dem Aufenthalt von Ferdinand I. dem Guten auf der Burg nach seiner Abdikation im Jahre 1848 und weiter im Zusammenhang mit der Vorbereitung auf die vorgesehene Krönung von Franz Joseph I. in den 60er Jahren. Nach 1859, als die Gemeinde für die Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale entstand, begann zuerst die Reparatur und anschließend unter der Wirkung des Architekten Joseph Mocker wurde die Arbeit an der eigentlichen Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale aufgenommen, abgeschlossen im Jahre 1929.

In den Jahren 1920 - 35 führte ausgedehnte Regelungen der Prager Burg als des Sitzes des tschechoslowakischen Präsidenten der bedeutende slowenische Architekt Josip Plečnik durch, der den wertvollen historischen Raum mit modernen Zivilisationsansprüchen meisterlich zusammenfügte. Seine Regelungen betrafen vor allem den 1. und 3. Vorhof, die Südgärten der Burg, den 4. Vorhof mit dem Basteigarten sowie zahlreiche Innenräume. Er schuf z.B. die Säulenhalle, Privaträume der Präsidentenwohnung einschließlich des Arbeitszimmers Masaryks. Sein Schüler Otto Rothmayer brachte die unvollendeten Lösungen einiger Burginnenräume nach dem 2. Weltkrieg in vergleichbarer Qualität zu Ende.

Im Jahre 1936 ist Pavel Janák und nach ihm seit 1959 Jaroslav Fragner Burgarchitekt geworden.

Nach dem Wendejahr 1989 wurde die Prager Burg an vielen Stellen für die Öffentlichkeit geöffnet. Während der Amtszeit des Präsidenten Havel kam es auf der Burg zu Regelungen der Innenräume und zum Ausbau zweier neuer Eingänge in den 2. Vorhof nach dem Projekt des Bildners und Designers Bořek Šípek. Mit einem bedeutenden Preis wurde der Durchstich durch den Wall der Pulverbrücke im Hirschgraben belohnt (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Interessant ist auch das moderne Gewächshaus der weltberühmten Architektin Eva Jiřičná. Der Georg-Platz (Jiřské náměstí) wurde neu bepflastert und geregelt. In Zusammenarbeit mit den Fachleuten aus dem Getti-Institut wurde die Mosaik „des Letzten Gerichts“ renoviert. Im Jahre 1990 wurde die Prager Burg feierlich beleuchtet und dieser Zustand dauert von der Dämmerung bis zur Mitternacht bis heute. In der touristischen Hauptsaison dauert die Beleuchtungszeit sogar eine Stunde länger, bis 1 Uhr. Die Tradition der elektrischen Beleuchtung, jedoch im viel kleineren Umfang, begann im Jahre 1928, als die Lampen zum 10. Jubiläum der Republikentstehung installiert wurden. Ein wenig ähnelte die heutige feierliche Beleuchtung jener aus dem Ende der 60er Jahren, heute ist sie allerdings viel detaillierter und in den Kommunistenzeiten wurde sie nur bei feierlichen Gelegenheiten angemacht. Beleuchtungswürdige Tage waren damals Staatsfeiertage oder bedeutende Republiktage, denen allerdings aus der kommunistischen Sicht die Anerkennung nicht fehlte.

In den letzten Jahren entwickelte sich die Umbau- bzw. Renovierungstätigkeit in vielen Objekten der Burg und eine erhebliche Aufmerksamkeit wurde der archäologischen Untersuchung gewidmet, die bereits seit 1925 läuft und viele Erkenntnisse über die Burggeschichte brachte. Die Untersuchung sowie die Renovierung der einzelnen Räume und Objekte ist von der Idee motiviert, sie dadurch, dass sie der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht werden, möglichst viel zu beleben.

www.prague.eu/de/objekt/orte/31/prager-burg-prazsky-hrad

Armor Modeling Volume 3 by Kevin Townsend features the 1/48 M4 Sherman from Tamiya.

www.chaindata.nl/sound

Having owned the 2008 Kona Sutra for ten months, and just completed the first chain/cassette replacement, I thought it was about time for a long term review, to give other people an idea of what living with the Sutra has been like. My previous post explains why I chose the Sutra - I came up with what I thought was an impossibly eclectic list of requirements from a bicycle, and the Sutra ticked every single box.

Here's some specs, for the statophiles out there: Frame size C54cm Frame tubing Dedacciai COM 12.5 Butted Cromoly Fork Kona P2 700c TB Disc w/Lowrider Headset TH Crankarms FSA Gossamer MegaExo Chainrings 30/39/50 B/B FSA MegaExo Pedals Shimano PD-M520 SPD - Silver Chain Shimano HG53 --> Shimano HG93 XT Freewheel Shimano Deore (11-32, 9 Spd) --> Shimano XT M760 (11-32, 9spd) F/D Shimano Tiagra Triple R/D Shimano XT Shadow Shifters Shimano Bar-Con Handlebar FSA RD30 0S Stem FSA OS-190LX Grips Velo Wrap with Gel Brakes Avid BB7 Road Disc Brake Levers Shimano BLR-600 Front Hub Shimano M525 Disc Rear Hub Shimano M525 Disc Spokes DT Stainless 14g Tires Continental Contact 700 x 32C --> Schwalbe Marathon Plus 700x38c Rims Mavic A 317 Disc Saddle Selle Italia XO SE --> Brooks B17 Seatpost FSA SL-280 Seat Clamp Kona Clamp Rear Rack Tubus Logo Panniers Bikebins Computer Sigma DTS 1606 L Fenders SKS Chromoplastic

My primary (i.e. 99% of the time) use of the Sutra has been for commuting. I have covered over 2700 miles (4500km) in the time I have owned it. My commuting route through London is pretty tough on bikes - the roads south of the Thames are awful and full of potholes, through the City there is broken glass all over the place, and further north of the river there are speedbumps everywhere. When I first got the Sutra she was wearing Continental Contact tyres, and they were pretty poor for commuting. They punctured easily and transmitted the bumpiness of the road right up into my forearms. Not much fun. After one puncture too many I replaced the tyres with Schwalbe Marathon Pluses, in their largest diameter, and the difference was marked. The increased volume of air provides a lot more cushioning for the arms, and I have not had a single puncture yet, despite having pulled 6mm long pieces of glass out of the tyre surfaces. The tyres are relatively heavy, but then so is the rest of the bike, and extra weight makes you stronger!

The original rear rack was pretty flimsy, and it did not allow the attachment of the Bikebin panniers I bought to try and add some rigidity. I ended up having to angle grind chunks out of the rack to fit the panniers, which can't have improved their structural integrity. After a month of experiencing the odd sensation of the bike wagging its tail whenever I stood up to pedal hard, I bit the bullet and upgraded the rack to a Tubus Logo. It was a tight fit with the rear disc brake, but the difference was immense. Gone was the sensation of a jelly-like bike, to be replaced by a sensation of rigid stability. Whilst the rack was expensive, it made all the difference, and I would highly recommend it.

Speaking of the brakes, they have saved my life on more than one occasion, usually when a Taxi decides to perform an emergency stop to pick up a fare. The brakes stop consistently in all conditions, and so far I have not had to replace the pads, althoguh I think it will be time to do it soon. Not bad considering I have travelled almost five thousand kilometres in all weathers in the stop-start conditions of London. I was concerned that the brakes might be too powerful, but the modulation provided by the levers and the flex in the arm of the brake means that whilst the power is there if necessary, you have a lot of control over it. There is some disc drag, but this is owing more to my laziness than the brakes themselves, and seems to have little impact on cruising speeds.

Using the bike in all conditions has been excellent. The all-over fenders (something I have never fitted to a bike previously) really keep the rain off and eliminate spray from the road. I had to saw a bit of the front fender off to fit it over the larger tyres, and a little bit off the rear for the same reason, but after the modification they have been flawless.

I had heard reports of spokes snapping, and nothing happened to me until recently, when I noticed a detached spoke whilst replacing the rear cassette. I had no idea how long the spoke had been damaged for, and replaced it myself. The rear wheel is slightly askew, but it does not foul on anything, which is good considering the small tolerance between it and the fender. To be fair, I have been jumping off kerbs and sometimes it is impossible to miss a massive hole in the road when you are in busy traffic. An upgrade I am considering is a stronger rear wheel, although it is not pressingly urgent.

The ride of the bike is super smooth, and certainly not anything like the road bikes I am used to. I use my other road bike for triathlons, and whilst it is a lot more nimble, it is much less comfortable. The Sutra is comfortable all day long, owing in no small part to the Brooks B17 saddle, which took about two thousand miles to properly break in! It was worth it though - sitting on the bike is like sitting in an armchair (albeit a very odd armchair, but an armchair nonetheless). I tend to cruise at about 20mph on her, and my 10.5 mile commute to work takes about 37 minutes. I have started seeking out hills in preparation for some touring of Wales, and the sutra certainly loves to climb. The aggressive, mountain-bike-like frame geometry no doubt assists in this, and is confidence inspiring when climbing and descending. The bar-con shifters were a novelty for me, but they make a lot of sense, especially if replacement shifters were needed on a tour. There are even bosses on the downtube to fit truly old-school shifters in an emergency.

The weight of the bike was a shock initially - weighing in at 15kgs without the accessories, she weighs significantly more than my Specialized Hardrock mountain bike, which is saying something! Over time I have become accustomed to the weight, and now it feels normal. The main advantage of this is that when I ride anything else, it feels super light and goes very rapidly. This makes this bike an ideal training steed.

In conclusion, I have found a lot to love about the Kona Sutra - she's tough, strong and surprisingly fast. There were some niggles about fitting add-ons, but they were all easy to overcome, and the result has been a reliable bike that I think will keep delivering for years.

www.charlietyack.com

Priya D’Silva a winner all the way, trained by The Tiara makes it to Top 5 of Pond's Femina Miss India Pune 2013 and also wins Max Femina Miss Fashion Icon.

November Pageant Training Course for Ponds Femina Miss India 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Goa 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Kolkata 2013, Femina Miss India Bangalore 2013, Femina Miss India Indore 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Delhi 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Chandigarh 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Pune 2014, I am She 2013, Gladrags Megamodel 2012/2013 and Gladrags Mrs. India 2012/2013

Urvashi Rautela groomed and coached by The Tiara wins I am She Miss India Universe 2012 and ' I am Photogenic". Dipna Patel trained by The Tiara wins 3rd Runners up at IAM SHE Miss Universe India and the subtitle I am Fit. Gunjan Tyagi wins 2nd Runner Up at Gladrags South Mrs. India 2012. She will go on to participate in the Mrs. India All India in Mumbai later this year.

17 Winners in 14 Years! A Winner Every Year at The Tiara Pageant Training Studio

1. Winner of Young Turk 1998 Sandip Soparrkar , Ace Choreographer, Ballroom dance teacher,

2. Femina Miss India Earth 2002 Gauhar Khan,

3. Femina Miss India Universe 2005 Amrita Thapar

4. Femina Miss India World 2009 Pooja Chopra,

5.Gladrags Megamodel 2009 and Femina Miss India East 2011 and Bollywood Diva 2011 Ankita Mohapatra

6.Mr. India Earth 2009, Mann Sukhija

7.Miss India Intercontinental 2009 Sonia Jain

8. Femina Miss India International 2010 Neha Hinge

9.Gladrags Megamodel 2010 Arshina Trivedi

10.Femina Miss India South 2011 Shweta Dolli

11.Gladrags Manhunt 2011 First Runner Up Maitraya Kotecha

12.Miss Tourism Queen International of the year 2011 Urvashi Rautela

13.Miss India Worldwide 2011 1st Runner Up Anvita Sudarshan

14.Femina Style Diva 2011 Dipna Patel

15.Femina Miss India Earth 2012 Prachi

16.Mrs. India International 2012, 1st Runners Up Reet Sahu

17.Urvashi Rautela I am She Miss Universe India 2012.

ELIGIBILITY

If you are participating in:

Femina Miss India: Height 5.6” upwards, Age: 18 to 25

I am She: Height 5.6 upwards, Age: 18 to 27

Gladrags Mrs India Height 5.3 upwards, Age: 20 to 50

Gladrags Megamodel: 5.3” Upwards Age: 17 to 27

November 5th to December 10th 2012(Course Fee Rs 25,000)

Monday to Friday

To ensure that you have your seat please pay the booking amount of Rs 5000 which is an advance fee. This fee is non-refundable and non-transferable to another batch in another month. The remaining 20,000 has to be paid on the first day of class, For the hostel please call Mr. Anil Shinde 9822282817 .Meetings are only by appointment.

The Tiara is located only in Pune, we have no branches.

Course Details

• Filling up Forms and Registration Help

• Developing a Pageant Strategy

• Pageant & Ramp Walk

• Personality & Grooming

• Posture & Poise.

• Camera Facing Techniques & Portfolio Assistance ( Professional Portfolio Not Included)

• Public Speaking &Voice Modulation

• Modeling Technique & Body Language

• Making a Positive First Impression

• Wardrobe Analysis & Customized Wardrobe Assistance

• Diet, Nutrition & Fitness Assistance

. Confidence Building

• Mental Preparation

• Question Handling (Preliminary Round, Prejudging, On Stage and One-on-One)

• Personalize your answers so that you sound original

• Connecting with the Judges and Handling the Stage

• Platform Development

Don't be dismayed if you find that we are at Pune. You deserve the help of a Pageant professional; don't let location stand in the way of your dream. Assistance with accommodation provided. Limited seats. Reserve your spot now!

The Tiara,

Tel: +919823156193

ritika.ramtri@gmail.com

thetiara.net/

Priya D’Silva a winner all the way, trained by The Tiara makes it to Top 5 of Pond's Femina Miss India Pune 2013 and also wins Max Femina Miss Fashion Icon.

November Pageant Training Course for Ponds Femina Miss India 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Goa 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Kolkata 2013, Femina Miss India Bangalore 2013, Femina Miss India Indore 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Delhi 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Chandigarh 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Pune 2014, I am She 2013, Gladrags Megamodel 2012/2013 and Gladrags Mrs. India 2012/2013

Urvashi Rautela groomed and coached by The Tiara wins I am She Miss India Universe 2012 and ' I am Photogenic". Dipna Patel trained by The Tiara wins 3rd Runners up at IAM SHE Miss Universe India and the subtitle I am Fit. Gunjan Tyagi wins 2nd Runner Up at Gladrags South Mrs. India 2012. She will go on to participate in the Mrs. India All India in Mumbai later this year.

17 Winners in 14 Years! A Winner Every Year at The Tiara Pageant Training Studio

1. Winner of Young Turk 1998 Sandip Soparrkar , Ace Choreographer, Ballroom dance teacher,

2. Femina Miss India Earth 2002 Gauhar Khan,

3. Femina Miss India Universe 2005 Amrita Thapar

4. Femina Miss India World 2009 Pooja Chopra,

5.Gladrags Megamodel 2009 and Femina Miss India East 2011 and Bollywood Diva 2011 Ankita Mohapatra

6.Mr. India Earth 2009, Mann Sukhija

7.Miss India Intercontinental 2009 Sonia Jain

8. Femina Miss India International 2010 Neha Hinge

9.Gladrags Megamodel 2010 Arshina Trivedi

10.Femina Miss India South 2011 Shweta Dolli

11.Gladrags Manhunt 2011 First Runner Up Maitraya Kotecha

12.Miss Tourism Queen International of the year 2011 Urvashi Rautela

13.Miss India Worldwide 2011 1st Runner Up Anvita Sudarshan

14.Femina Style Diva 2011 Dipna Patel

15.Femina Miss India Earth 2012 Prachi

16.Mrs. India International 2012, 1st Runners Up Reet Sahu

17.Urvashi Rautela I am She Miss Universe India 2012.

ELIGIBILITY

If you are participating in:

Femina Miss India: Height 5.6” upwards, Age: 18 to 25

I am She: Height 5.6 upwards, Age: 18 to 27

Gladrags Mrs India Height 5.3 upwards, Age: 20 to 50

Gladrags Megamodel: 5.3” Upwards Age: 17 to 27

November 5th to December 10th 2012(Course Fee Rs 25,000)

Monday to Friday

To ensure that you have your seat please pay the booking amount of Rs 5000 which is an advance fee. This fee is non-refundable and non-transferable to another batch in another month. The remaining 20,000 has to be paid on the first day of class, For the hostel please call Mr. Anil Shinde 9822282817 .Meetings are only by appointment.

The Tiara is located only in Pune, we have no branches.

Course Details

• Filling up Forms and Registration Help

• Developing a Pageant Strategy

• Pageant & Ramp Walk

• Personality & Grooming

• Posture & Poise.

• Camera Facing Techniques & Portfolio Assistance ( Professional Portfolio Not Included)

• Public Speaking &Voice Modulation

• Modeling Technique & Body Language

• Making a Positive First Impression

• Wardrobe Analysis & Customized Wardrobe Assistance

• Diet, Nutrition & Fitness Assistance

. Confidence Building

• Mental Preparation

• Question Handling (Preliminary Round, Prejudging, On Stage and One-on-One)

• Personalize your answers so that you sound original

• Connecting with the Judges and Handling the Stage

• Platform Development

Don't be dismayed if you find that we are at Pune. You deserve the help of a Pageant professional; don't let location stand in the way of your dream. Assistance with accommodation provided. Limited seats. Reserve your spot now!

The Tiara,

Tel: +919823156193

ritika.ramtri@gmail.com

thetiara.net/

Prague Castle (Pražský hrad)

For more than a thousand years, has the Prague Castle been an important symbol of the Czech state. Founded in the 9th century, it became the permanent seat of the Czech rulers and, most recently, also of the Presidents. One of the largest castle complexes in the world consists of palaces, offices, churches and fortification buildings, gardens and picturesque corners. The castle covers an area of ​​45 hectares. The unique view to the Prague Castle is one of the most amazing panorama views in the world.

Prague Castle is the most important folk-cultural and historical monument, and is the symbol of the more than one thousand years of development of the Czech and all-Czech states. It is a monumental symbol of the palace, church, fortification, official and residential buildings which represent very valuable monuments, included in all style epochs. It covers an area of ​​45 hectares, was the seat of the Bohemian princes, kings and emperors, and since the Republic was founded in 1918, it was also the residence of the presidents. Since 1962, the Prague Castle has been known for its archaeological discoveries.

History

The initial phases of the Prague Castle are connected with the first historically documented Přemyslid Bořivoj (Bořivoj I (Czech pronunciation: [ˈbɔr̝ɪvɔj], Latin: Borzivogius, c. 852 – c. 889) was the first historically documented Duke of Bohemia from about 870 and progenitor of the Přemyslid dynasty.] The Duchy of Bohemia was at those times subordinated to Great Moravia.). This one transferred in the 80s of the 9th century his original seat from Levý Hradec to the place where on the raised spot above the river Vltava/Moldau already existed a Slavic castle and was very well situated.

The first princely palace apparently only consisted of wood. The first stone building and the oldest Christian sanctuary was the Virgin Mary Church. Its remains have been found between the Second Courtyard and the Bastion garden (original name of the garden: Na Baště). This Bořivoj church was soon reconstructed by the prince Spytihněv I, who was buried here in 915. The second church in the castle was the St. George Basilica founded by Prince Vratislaus I. The next Přemyslide, Prince Wenceslas (Saint), the third sanctuary - the St Veit Rotunda - in the twenties of the 10th century nearby had built which in the 11th century by Prince Spytihnev II was transformed into a huge basilica.

In 973, when the bishopric was established in Prague, the castle was not only the seat of the head of state, but also the seat of the Prague bishop, the highest representative of the church. At the same time arose the first monastery in Bohemia at St. George's basilica.

In the 10th century the castle occupied an area of ​​about 6 ha. In the Romanesque epoch the former fortress, especially after the year 1135 thanks to Soběslaus I, as the stony princely palace and the new masonry fortified with some towers were erected, was turned into a fortified medieval castle. Of the towers is the eastern blacktower best preserved.

Very significantly the Gothic period in the appearance of Prague Castle intervened, most of all Charles IV (1346 - 1378), who, with his father, John of Luxemburg (1310 - 1346), obtained from the pope the promotion of the Prague bishopric to the archbishopric and laid the foundations for the construction of St. Vitus Cathedral. Under Charles IV, the castle for the first time was turned into the imperial residence. Charles IV the defense of the Prague Castle had consolidated, the Royal Palace with the Chapel of All Saints he rebuilt generously. The roofs he had covered with gilded plates, which were the foundation for the binding of words "Golden Prague". Since 1382, Bohemian rulers ceased to occupy the Prague Castle for more than 100 years. The royal court was moved to the place of today's Community hall and back to the Prague castle it came only in 1483 under Wladislaus from the Jagiellonian dynasty.

Although the ruler already in 1490 moved to Ofen (Buda), he had the Prague castle renovated in the late Gothic style under the supervision of Benedikt Ried. He was the master builder of the magnificent Vladislav Hall, the largest secular vaulted room of the then Europe, with which the first Renaissance signs came to Prague. He carried out major construction works, including the construction of a new masonry, the defensive towers and the expansion of the Royal Palace. At his time, the Gothic died away and a new architectural style, the Renaissance, gradually prevailed.

The direct influence of the Italian art on the new style was most frequently observed in Prague under the reign of Ferdinand I (von Habsburg) and after his departure from Prague under the influence of the governor Ferdinand of Tyrol. At that time, the medieval castle was converted into a comfortable Renaissance castle with gardens. The typical Italian architecture of the Royal Pleasure palace arose in the northern King's garden.

For a large building activity in 1541 contributed a fire devastating the castle objects as well as the surrounding area quite a lot. Within the framework of the restoration, both the housing estates and the church buildings were rebuilt. Under the reign of the first Habsburgs, nobility palaces were added to the castle grounds (for example, the Pernstein Palace - later Lobkowicz Palace, Rosenberg Palace and others). Horse stable buildings were built in the north-west.

Under the reign of the Emperor Rudolph II (1576 - 1611), the Renaissance and Mannerism transformation of the castle, which for the second time became the center of the empire, and especially the center of European culture and science, reached its peak. On the second courtyard, new rooms were built for the collections of Rudolph - the new (now Spanish) hall and the Rudolph gallery. Also arose the connection tract between the northwestern and the southwestern part of the castle. Just here the famous Kunstkammer (Art chamber) and other rooms for Rudolph's collective activities were located. Additionally further horse stable properties were built for his rare Spanish horses. During the Rudolph times also the foundation stone of the famous Golden Alley was laid. Laboratories of the Rudolph-Alchymists were supposed to have been in the Powder tower above the Hirschgraben (Deer's ditch). The castle suffered again considerable damages when it was occupied by the Saxon army in 1631 and by the Swedes in 1648 not only was occupied but also plundered. After the Thirty Years' War, the Habsburgs did not care too much about the Prague royal seat.

Only Maria Theresia carried out an extensive reconstruction of the Prague Castle from 1755 - 1775 into a representative castle complex. The reason for the massive construction action were war damages, caused by the intense bombing of the castle during war conflicts at the beginning of her reign. The reconstruction was designed by the Viennese architect Nicolo Pacassi, who also planned the first courtyard with the monumental entrance gate. From the time of the Theresian reconstruction stems also the chapel of the Holy Cross on the 2nd castle forecourt and other buildings, especially the noblewomen institute. The south wing he imprinted the uniform monumental late Baroque facade of a representative seat. His plans influenced by Viennese Rococo and French Classicism the builders Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz and Anton Haffenecker brought into life.

In the 19th century, the castle fell into ruin, in several objects after the Josephine reforms the army settled. In connection with the stay of Ferdinand I the Good in the castle after his abdication in 1848 and further in connection with the preparation for the coronation of Franz Joseph I in the sixties it came to building modifications of several objects. After 1859, when the community for the completion of St Veit cathedral emerged, began first the repair, and then, under the influence of the architect Joseph Mocker, the work on the actual completion of St Veit's cathedral was started, completed in 1929.

In the years 1920 - 35, carried out extensive regulations of the Prague Castle as the seat of the Czechoslovak President the great Slovenian architect Josip Plečnik, who masterfully combined the valuable historical space with modern civilization claims. His modifications mainly concerned the 1st and 3rd court, the southern gardens of the castle, the fourth forecourt with the Bastion garden as well as numerous interiors. He created e.g. the pillared hall, private rooms of the presidential residence, including the Masaryk workroom. His pupil, Otto Rothmayer, brought to an end the incomplete solutions of some castle interior spaces after the Second World War in comparable quality.

In 1936, Pavel Janák and after him, in 1959, Jaroslav Fragner became castle architect.

After the year of change of 1989, the Prague Castle was opened to the public in many places. During the term of President Havel, at the castle it came to modulations of the interiors and to the expansion of two new entrances into the second courtyard after the project of the creator and designer Bořek Šípek. The puncture through the rampart of the Powder bridge in Hirschgraben was rewarded with a significant prize (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Also interesting is the modern greenhouse of the world-famous architect Eva Jiřičná. The Georgian Square (Jiřské náměstí) was re-paved and modulated. The Mosaic of the Last Judgment was renovated in collaboration with the specialists from the Getti Institute. In 1990, the Prague Castle was solemnly illuminated and this situation lasts from dusk to midnight until today. In the main tourist season, the lighting time even lasts an hour longer until 1 o'clock. The tradition of electric lighting, but on a much smaller scale, began in 1928, when the lamps were installed for the 10th anniversary of the elevation to a Republic. A little bit the present daylight resembles of those from the end of the sixties, but today it is much more detailed and in communist times it was only switched on at solemn occasions. At that time, illuminative days were state holidays or significant day of republic, which, however, did not lack recognition from the communist point of view.

In recent years the reconstruction and renovation work has been developed in many buildings of the castle and a considerable attention has been devoted to the archaeological investigation, which has been going on since 1925 and has brought many insights into the history of the castle. The investigation as well as the renovation of the individual rooms and objects is motivated by the idea of ​​invigorating them as much as possible by making them accessible to the public.

Prager Burg (Pražský hrad)

Die Prager Burg ist seit über tausend Jahren ein bedeutendes Symbol des tschechischen Staates. Gegründet im 9. Jahrhundert wurde sie zum ständigen Sitz der tschechischen Herrscher und zuletzt auch der Präsidenten. Einer der größten Burgkomplexe weltweit setzt sich aus Palästen, Amts-, Kirchen- und Fortifikationsgebäuden, aus Gärten und malerischen Ecken zusammen. Die Burg erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 Hektar. Der alleinige Blick auf die Prager Burg stellt einen der überwältigendsten Panoramablicke der Welt dar.

Die Prager Burg ist das bedeutendste Volkskultur- und Historiedenkmal, sie ist das Symbol der mehr als eintausendjährigen Entwicklung des böhmischen sowie gesamttschechischen Staats. Es ist ein monumentales Symbol der Palast-, Kirchen-, Fortifikations-, Amts- und Wohngebäude, die sehr wertvolle Denkmäler darstellen, einbezogen auf alle Stilepochen. Sie erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 ha, war der Sitz der böhmischen Fürsten, Könige und Kaiser und seit der Republikentstehung im Jahre 1918 war sie auch die Residenz der Präsidenten. Seit 1962 steht die Prager Burg mit ihren archäologischen Funden als bekanntester.

Geschichte

Die Anfangszeiten der Prager Burg sind mit dem ersten historisch belegten Přemysliden Bořivoj verbunden. Dieser übertrug in den 80er Jahren des 9. Jahrhunderts seinen ursprünglichen Sitz von Levý Hradec an den Ort, wo auf der erhabenen Stelle über der Moldau eine slawische Burgstätte bereits bestand und sehr gut gelegen war.

Der erste Fürstenpalast bestand offenbar aus Holz. Der erste Steinbau und das älteste christliche Heiligtum war die Jungfrau Maria Kirche. Ihre Reste wurden zwischen dem II. Vorhof und dem Basteigarten (Originalname des Gartens: Na Baště) gefunden. Diese Bořivoj-Kirche wurde durch den hier im Jahre 915 beigesetzten Fürsten Spytihněv I. bald umgebaut. Die zweite Kirche im Burgraum war die vom Fürsten Vratislaus I. gegründete St. Georg Basilika. Der nächste Přemyslide, der Fürst Wenzel (der Heilige), ließ in der Nähe in den 20er Jahren des 10. Jahrhunderts das dritte Heiligtum - die St. Veit Rotunde - bauen, die im 11. Jahrhundert vom Fürsten Spytihněv II. zu einer gewaltigen Basilika umgebaut wurde.

Im Jahre 973, als in Prag das Bistum gegründet wurde, war die Burg nicht nur der Sitz des Staatsoberhaupts, sondern auch der Sitz des Prager Bischofs, des höchsten Repräsentanten der Kirche. Zu demselben Zeitpunkt entstand an der St. Georg Basilika das erste Kloster in Böhmen.

Im 10. Jahrhundert nahm die Burg eine Fläche von ca. 6 ha in Anspruch. In der romanischen Epoche wurde die einstige Burgstätte, insbesondere nach dem Jahr 1135 dank Soběslaus I., als der steinige Fürstenpalast und das neue mit einigen Türmen verstärkte Mauerwerk aufgebaut wurden, zu einer festen mittelalterlichen Burg umgebaut. Von den Türmen ist der östliche Schwarzturm am besten erhalten.

Sehr bedeutend griff ins Aussehen der Prager Burg die Gotikzeit ein, insbesondere Karl IV. (1346 - 1378), der mit seinem Vater Johann von Luxemburg (1310 - 1346) vom Papst die Beförderung des Prager Bistums zum Erzbistum erwirkte und den Grundstein für den Bau der St. Veit Kathedrale legte. Unter Karl IV. wurde die Burg zum ersten Mal zur Kaiserlichen Residenz. Karl IV. ließ die Verschanzung der Prager Burg festigen, den Königspalast mit der Kapelle Aller Heiligen baute er großzügig um. Die Dächer ließ er mit vergoldeten Blechen decken, die das Fundament für die Wörterbindung „Goldenes Prag“ darstellten. Seit 1382 hörten böhmische Herrscher auf, die Prager Burg für mehr als 100 Jahre zu bewohnen. Der Königshof wurde an den Ort des heutigen Gemeindehauses umgezogen und zurück auf die Prager Burg kehrte er erst im Jahre 1483 unter Wladislaus aus der Jagiellonen-Dynastie.

Obwohl der Herrscher bereits 1490 nach Ofen (Buda) umsiedelte, ließ er die Prager Burg im spätgotischen Stil unter der Bauleitung von Benedikt Ried umbauen. Er war der Baumeister des großartigen Wladislaus-Saals, des größten weltlichen gewölbten Raums des damaligen Europas, mit dem die ersten Renaissancezeichen nach Prag kamen. Er führte großartige Bauregelungen einschließlich des Ausbaus eines neuen Mauerwerks, der Wehrtürme und der Erweiterung des Königspalastes durch. Zu seiner Zeit klang die Gotik aus und es setzte sich allmählich ein neuer Baustil durch, die Renaissance.

Der direkte Einfluss der italienischen Kunst des neuen Stils wurde in Prag unter der Regierung von Ferdinand I. (von Habsburg) und nach seinem Weggang von Prag unter der Wirkung des Statthalters Ferdinand von Tirol am meisten beobachtet. Damals wurde die mittelalterliche Burg in ein bequemes Renaissanceschloss mit Gärten umgewandelt. Im nördlichen Königsgarten entstand die typisch italienische Architektur des Königlichen Lustschlosses.

Zu einer großen Bauaktivität trug im Jahre 1541 ein Brand bei, der die Burgobjekte sowie die Umgebung ziemlich viel kaputt machte. Im Rahmen der Wiederherstellung wurden sowohl die Wohnräume als auch die Kirchenobjekte umgebaut. Unter der Regierung der ersten Habsburger kamen ins Burggelände auch Adelspaläste dazu (zum Beispiel der Pernstein-Palast - später Lobkowicz-Palast, Rosenberg-Palast und weitere). Im Nordwesten wurden Pferdestallgebäude erbaut.

Unter der Regierung des Kaisers Rudolph II. (1576 - 1611) erreichte der Renaissance- und Manierismusumbau der Burg, die zum zweiten Mal zum Zentrum des Reiches und insbesondere zum Zentrum der europäischen Kultur und Wissenschaft wurde, seinen Gipfel. Auf dem II. Vorhof wurden neue Räume für die Sammlungen Rudolphs erbaut - der Neue (heute Spanische) Saal und die Rudolph-Galerie. Es entstand auch der Verbindungstrakt zwischen dem Nordwest- und dem Südwestteil der Burg. Eben hier befanden sich die berühmte Kunstkammer und weitere Räume für die Sammeltätigkeit Rudolphs. Es wurden auch weitere Pferdestallobjekte für seine seltenen spanischen Pferde aufgebaut. Während der Rudolph-Zeiten wurde auch der Grundstein der berühmten Goldenen Gasse gelegt. Laboratorien der Rudolph-Alchymisten sollen im Pulverturm über dem Hirschgraben gewesen sein. Die Burg erlitt erneut erhebliche Schäden, als sie 1631 vom sächsischen Heer und 1648 von den Schweden besetzt und ausgeplündert wurde. Nach dem Dreißigjährigen Krieg kümmerten sich die Habsburger um den Prager königlichen Sitz nicht allzu sehr.

Erst Maria Theresia führte in den Jahren 1755 - 1775 einen umfangreichen Umbau der Prager Burg zu einem repräsentativen Schlosskomplex durch. Der Grund für die massive Bauaktion waren Kriegsschäden, verursacht durch die intensive Bombardierung der Burg bei Kriegskonflikten zu Beginn ihrer Regierung. Den Umbau entwarf der Wiener Architekt Nicolo Pacassi, der auch den I. Vorhof mit dem monumentalen Eingangstor projektierte. Aus der Zeit des theresianischen Umbaus stammt auch die Kapelle des Heiligen Kreuzes auf dem II. Burgvorhof und weitere Gebäude, insbesondere die Edeldamenanstalt. Dem Südflügel prägte er die einheitliche monumentale Spätbarockfassade eines Repräsentationssitzes ein. Seine durch das Wiener Rokoko und den französischen Klassizismus beeinflussten Pläne brachten die Baumeister Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz und Anton Haffenecker zustande.

Im 19. Jahrhundert verfiel die Burg, in mehreren Objekten ließ sich nach den josephinischen Reformen das Heer nieder. Zu Bauregelungen einiger Objekte kam es im Zusammenhang mit dem Aufenthalt von Ferdinand I. dem Guten auf der Burg nach seiner Abdikation im Jahre 1848 und weiter im Zusammenhang mit der Vorbereitung auf die vorgesehene Krönung von Franz Joseph I. in den 60er Jahren. Nach 1859, als die Gemeinde für die Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale entstand, begann zuerst die Reparatur und anschließend unter der Wirkung des Architekten Joseph Mocker wurde die Arbeit an der eigentlichen Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale aufgenommen, abgeschlossen im Jahre 1929.

In den Jahren 1920 - 35 führte ausgedehnte Regelungen der Prager Burg als des Sitzes des tschechoslowakischen Präsidenten der bedeutende slowenische Architekt Josip Plečnik durch, der den wertvollen historischen Raum mit modernen Zivilisationsansprüchen meisterlich zusammenfügte. Seine Regelungen betrafen vor allem den 1. und 3. Vorhof, die Südgärten der Burg, den 4. Vorhof mit dem Basteigarten sowie zahlreiche Innenräume. Er schuf z.B. die Säulenhalle, Privaträume der Präsidentenwohnung einschließlich des Arbeitszimmers Masaryks. Sein Schüler Otto Rothmayer brachte die unvollendeten Lösungen einiger Burginnenräume nach dem 2. Weltkrieg in vergleichbarer Qualität zu Ende.

Im Jahre 1936 ist Pavel Janák und nach ihm seit 1959 Jaroslav Fragner Burgarchitekt geworden.

Nach dem Wendejahr 1989 wurde die Prager Burg an vielen Stellen für die Öffentlichkeit geöffnet. Während der Amtszeit des Präsidenten Havel kam es auf der Burg zu Regelungen der Innenräume und zum Ausbau zweier neuer Eingänge in den 2. Vorhof nach dem Projekt des Bildners und Designers Bořek Šípek. Mit einem bedeutenden Preis wurde der Durchstich durch den Wall der Pulverbrücke im Hirschgraben belohnt (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Interessant ist auch das moderne Gewächshaus der weltberühmten Architektin Eva Jiřičná. Der Georg-Platz (Jiřské náměstí) wurde neu bepflastert und geregelt. In Zusammenarbeit mit den Fachleuten aus dem Getti-Institut wurde die Mosaik „des Letzten Gerichts“ renoviert. Im Jahre 1990 wurde die Prager Burg feierlich beleuchtet und dieser Zustand dauert von der Dämmerung bis zur Mitternacht bis heute. In der touristischen Hauptsaison dauert die Beleuchtungszeit sogar eine Stunde länger, bis 1 Uhr. Die Tradition der elektrischen Beleuchtung, jedoch im viel kleineren Umfang, begann im Jahre 1928, als die Lampen zum 10. Jubiläum der Republikentstehung installiert wurden. Ein wenig ähnelte die heutige feierliche Beleuchtung jener aus dem Ende der 60er Jahren, heute ist sie allerdings viel detaillierter und in den Kommunistenzeiten wurde sie nur bei feierlichen Gelegenheiten angemacht. Beleuchtungswürdige Tage waren damals Staatsfeiertage oder bedeutende Republiktage, denen allerdings aus der kommunistischen Sicht die Anerkennung nicht fehlte.

In den letzten Jahren entwickelte sich die Umbau- bzw. Renovierungstätigkeit in vielen Objekten der Burg und eine erhebliche Aufmerksamkeit wurde der archäologischen Untersuchung gewidmet, die bereits seit 1925 läuft und viele Erkenntnisse über die Burggeschichte brachte. Die Untersuchung sowie die Renovierung der einzelnen Räume und Objekte ist von der Idee motiviert, sie dadurch, dass sie der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht werden, möglichst viel zu beleben.

www.prague.eu/de/objekt/orte/31/prager-burg-prazsky-hrad

I added more yellow-green and sprayed some soft (not masked, but sprayed at an angle) highlights.

Not sure if I was daring enough as it's not very visible.

I've also touched in the road wheels in different greens, and sprayed a few in hull red for primer.

Vivid Sydney 2014

This is a device which scatters light with sound.

Really.

They used to be in all laser printers that utilized HeNe lases before diodes became inexpensive and reliable. This means one can occasionally catch them on eBay for cheap. You can use them to switch beams on and off at MHz rates (ampltiude modulation), shift a laser frequency by several dozen MHz (frequency modulation) or deflect a laser beam by a controlled angle (acousto-optic deflection).

Armor Modeling Volume 1 by Kevin Townsend features the 1/48 Sturmgeschutz III Ausf G (early) from Tamiya. Includes instructions on OKB resin tracks and Monroe Perdu etched-paper Zimmerit.

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Here's a photo of the new Dreamboat, actually three Dreamboats, which are now in-stock.

"The dreamboat is a dual chaotic oscillator with 2x cv inputs, a gate output with adjustable threshold, and two sets of x and y outputs. There are two oscillator sections to the module, the top half is an audio rate chaotic oscillator and the lower half outputs lfo rate signals. With its five outputs, the Dreamboat allows you to connect to plenty of modules all at once, allowing all kinds of modulation and listening possibilities."

See our webpage for more details.

LINK: www.analoguehaven.com/snazzyfx/dreamboat/ .

The Dreamboat is Snazzy FX's first Eurorack module but several more are already planned.

Prague Castle (Pražský hrad)

For more than a thousand years, has the Prague Castle been an important symbol of the Czech state. Founded in the 9th century, it became the permanent seat of the Czech rulers and, most recently, also of the Presidents. One of the largest castle complexes in the world consists of palaces, offices, churches and fortification buildings, gardens and picturesque corners. The castle covers an area of ​​45 hectares. The unique view to the Prague Castle is one of the most amazing panorama views in the world.

Prague Castle is the most important folk-cultural and historical monument, and is the symbol of the more than one thousand years of development of the Czech and all-Czech states. It is a monumental symbol of the palace, church, fortification, official and residential buildings which represent very valuable monuments, included in all style epochs. It covers an area of ​​45 hectares, was the seat of the Bohemian princes, kings and emperors, and since the Republic was founded in 1918, it was also the residence of the presidents. Since 1962, the Prague Castle has been known for its archaeological discoveries.

History

The initial phases of the Prague Castle are connected with the first historically documented Přemyslid Bořivoj (Bořivoj I (Czech pronunciation: [ˈbɔr̝ɪvɔj], Latin: Borzivogius, c. 852 – c. 889) was the first historically documented Duke of Bohemia from about 870 and progenitor of the Přemyslid dynasty.] The Duchy of Bohemia was at those times subordinated to Great Moravia.). This one transferred in the 80s of the 9th century his original seat from Levý Hradec to the place where on the raised spot above the river Vltava/Moldau already existed a Slavic castle and was very well situated.

The first princely palace apparently only consisted of wood. The first stone building and the oldest Christian sanctuary was the Virgin Mary Church. Its remains have been found between the Second Courtyard and the Bastion garden (original name of the garden: Na Baště). This Bořivoj church was soon reconstructed by the prince Spytihněv I, who was buried here in 915. The second church in the castle was the St. George Basilica founded by Prince Vratislaus I. The next Přemyslide, Prince Wenceslas (Saint), the third sanctuary - the St Veit Rotunda - in the twenties of the 10th century nearby had built which in the 11th century by Prince Spytihnev II was transformed into a huge basilica.

In 973, when the bishopric was established in Prague, the castle was not only the seat of the head of state, but also the seat of the Prague bishop, the highest representative of the church. At the same time arose the first monastery in Bohemia at St. George's basilica.

In the 10th century the castle occupied an area of ​​about 6 ha. In the Romanesque epoch the former fortress, especially after the year 1135 thanks to Soběslaus I, as the stony princely palace and the new masonry fortified with some towers were erected, was turned into a fortified medieval castle. Of the towers is the eastern blacktower best preserved.

Very significantly the Gothic period in the appearance of Prague Castle intervened, most of all Charles IV (1346 - 1378), who, with his father, John of Luxemburg (1310 - 1346), obtained from the pope the promotion of the Prague bishopric to the archbishopric and laid the foundations for the construction of St. Vitus Cathedral. Under Charles IV, the castle for the first time was turned into the imperial residence. Charles IV the defense of the Prague Castle had consolidated, the Royal Palace with the Chapel of All Saints he rebuilt generously. The roofs he had covered with gilded plates, which were the foundation for the binding of words "Golden Prague". Since 1382, Bohemian rulers ceased to occupy the Prague Castle for more than 100 years. The royal court was moved to the place of today's Community hall and back to the Prague castle it came only in 1483 under Wladislaus from the Jagiellonian dynasty.

Although the ruler already in 1490 moved to Ofen (Buda), he had the Prague castle renovated in the late Gothic style under the supervision of Benedikt Ried. He was the master builder of the magnificent Vladislav Hall, the largest secular vaulted room of the then Europe, with which the first Renaissance signs came to Prague. He carried out major construction works, including the construction of a new masonry, the defensive towers and the expansion of the Royal Palace. At his time, the Gothic died away and a new architectural style, the Renaissance, gradually prevailed.

The direct influence of the Italian art on the new style was most frequently observed in Prague under the reign of Ferdinand I (von Habsburg) and after his departure from Prague under the influence of the governor Ferdinand of Tyrol. At that time, the medieval castle was converted into a comfortable Renaissance castle with gardens. The typical Italian architecture of the Royal Pleasure palace arose in the northern King's garden.

For a large building activity in 1541 contributed a fire devastating the castle objects as well as the surrounding area quite a lot. Within the framework of the restoration, both the housing estates and the church buildings were rebuilt. Under the reign of the first Habsburgs, nobility palaces were added to the castle grounds (for example, the Pernstein Palace - later Lobkowicz Palace, Rosenberg Palace and others). Horse stable buildings were built in the north-west.

Under the reign of the Emperor Rudolph II (1576 - 1611), the Renaissance and Mannerism transformation of the castle, which for the second time became the center of the empire, and especially the center of European culture and science, reached its peak. On the second courtyard, new rooms were built for the collections of Rudolph - the new (now Spanish) hall and the Rudolph gallery. Also arose the connection tract between the northwestern and the southwestern part of the castle. Just here the famous Kunstkammer (Art chamber) and other rooms for Rudolph's collective activities were located. Additionally further horse stable properties were built for his rare Spanish horses. During the Rudolph times also the foundation stone of the famous Golden Alley was laid. Laboratories of the Rudolph-Alchymists were supposed to have been in the Powder tower above the Hirschgraben (Deer's ditch). The castle suffered again considerable damages when it was occupied by the Saxon army in 1631 and by the Swedes in 1648 not only was occupied but also plundered. After the Thirty Years' War, the Habsburgs did not care too much about the Prague royal seat.

Only Maria Theresia carried out an extensive reconstruction of the Prague Castle from 1755 - 1775 into a representative castle complex. The reason for the massive construction action were war damages, caused by the intense bombing of the castle during war conflicts at the beginning of her reign. The reconstruction was designed by the Viennese architect Nicolo Pacassi, who also planned the first courtyard with the monumental entrance gate. From the time of the Theresian reconstruction stems also the chapel of the Holy Cross on the 2nd castle forecourt and other buildings, especially the noblewomen institute. The south wing he imprinted the uniform monumental late Baroque facade of a representative seat. His plans influenced by Viennese Rococo and French Classicism the builders Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz and Anton Haffenecker brought into life.

In the 19th century, the castle fell into ruin, in several objects after the Josephine reforms the army settled. In connection with the stay of Ferdinand I the Good in the castle after his abdication in 1848 and further in connection with the preparation for the coronation of Franz Joseph I in the sixties it came to building modifications of several objects. After 1859, when the community for the completion of St Veit cathedral emerged, began first the repair, and then, under the influence of the architect Joseph Mocker, the work on the actual completion of St Veit's cathedral was started, completed in 1929.

In the years 1920 - 35, carried out extensive regulations of the Prague Castle as the seat of the Czechoslovak President the great Slovenian architect Josip Plečnik, who masterfully combined the valuable historical space with modern civilization claims. His modifications mainly concerned the 1st and 3rd court, the southern gardens of the castle, the fourth forecourt with the Bastion garden as well as numerous interiors. He created e.g. the pillared hall, private rooms of the presidential residence, including the Masaryk workroom. His pupil, Otto Rothmayer, brought to an end the incomplete solutions of some castle interior spaces after the Second World War in comparable quality.

In 1936, Pavel Janák and after him, in 1959, Jaroslav Fragner became castle architect.

After the year of change of 1989, the Prague Castle was opened to the public in many places. During the term of President Havel, at the castle it came to modulations of the interiors and to the expansion of two new entrances into the second courtyard after the project of the creator and designer Bořek Šípek. The puncture through the rampart of the Powder bridge in Hirschgraben was rewarded with a significant prize (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Also interesting is the modern greenhouse of the world-famous architect Eva Jiřičná. The Georgian Square (Jiřské náměstí) was re-paved and modulated. The Mosaic of the Last Judgment was renovated in collaboration with the specialists from the Getti Institute. In 1990, the Prague Castle was solemnly illuminated and this situation lasts from dusk to midnight until today. In the main tourist season, the lighting time even lasts an hour longer until 1 o'clock. The tradition of electric lighting, but on a much smaller scale, began in 1928, when the lamps were installed for the 10th anniversary of the elevation to a Republic. A little bit the present daylight resembles of those from the end of the sixties, but today it is much more detailed and in communist times it was only switched on at solemn occasions. At that time, illuminative days were state holidays or significant day of republic, which, however, did not lack recognition from the communist point of view.

In recent years the reconstruction and renovation work has been developed in many buildings of the castle and a considerable attention has been devoted to the archaeological investigation, which has been going on since 1925 and has brought many insights into the history of the castle. The investigation as well as the renovation of the individual rooms and objects is motivated by the idea of ​​invigorating them as much as possible by making them accessible to the public.

Prager Burg (Pražský hrad)

Die Prager Burg ist seit über tausend Jahren ein bedeutendes Symbol des tschechischen Staates. Gegründet im 9. Jahrhundert wurde sie zum ständigen Sitz der tschechischen Herrscher und zuletzt auch der Präsidenten. Einer der größten Burgkomplexe weltweit setzt sich aus Palästen, Amts-, Kirchen- und Fortifikationsgebäuden, aus Gärten und malerischen Ecken zusammen. Die Burg erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 Hektar. Der alleinige Blick auf die Prager Burg stellt einen der überwältigendsten Panoramablicke der Welt dar.

Die Prager Burg ist das bedeutendste Volkskultur- und Historiedenkmal, sie ist das Symbol der mehr als eintausendjährigen Entwicklung des böhmischen sowie gesamttschechischen Staats. Es ist ein monumentales Symbol der Palast-, Kirchen-, Fortifikations-, Amts- und Wohngebäude, die sehr wertvolle Denkmäler darstellen, einbezogen auf alle Stilepochen. Sie erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 ha, war der Sitz der böhmischen Fürsten, Könige und Kaiser und seit der Republikentstehung im Jahre 1918 war sie auch die Residenz der Präsidenten. Seit 1962 steht die Prager Burg mit ihren archäologischen Funden als bekanntester.

Geschichte

Die Anfangszeiten der Prager Burg sind mit dem ersten historisch belegten Přemysliden Bořivoj verbunden. Dieser übertrug in den 80er Jahren des 9. Jahrhunderts seinen ursprünglichen Sitz von Levý Hradec an den Ort, wo auf der erhabenen Stelle über der Moldau eine slawische Burgstätte bereits bestand und sehr gut gelegen war.

Der erste Fürstenpalast bestand offenbar aus Holz. Der erste Steinbau und das älteste christliche Heiligtum war die Jungfrau Maria Kirche. Ihre Reste wurden zwischen dem II. Vorhof und dem Basteigarten (Originalname des Gartens: Na Baště) gefunden. Diese Bořivoj-Kirche wurde durch den hier im Jahre 915 beigesetzten Fürsten Spytihněv I. bald umgebaut. Die zweite Kirche im Burgraum war die vom Fürsten Vratislaus I. gegründete St. Georg Basilika. Der nächste Přemyslide, der Fürst Wenzel (der Heilige), ließ in der Nähe in den 20er Jahren des 10. Jahrhunderts das dritte Heiligtum - die St. Veit Rotunde - bauen, die im 11. Jahrhundert vom Fürsten Spytihněv II. zu einer gewaltigen Basilika umgebaut wurde.

Im Jahre 973, als in Prag das Bistum gegründet wurde, war die Burg nicht nur der Sitz des Staatsoberhaupts, sondern auch der Sitz des Prager Bischofs, des höchsten Repräsentanten der Kirche. Zu demselben Zeitpunkt entstand an der St. Georg Basilika das erste Kloster in Böhmen.

Im 10. Jahrhundert nahm die Burg eine Fläche von ca. 6 ha in Anspruch. In der romanischen Epoche wurde die einstige Burgstätte, insbesondere nach dem Jahr 1135 dank Soběslaus I., als der steinige Fürstenpalast und das neue mit einigen Türmen verstärkte Mauerwerk aufgebaut wurden, zu einer festen mittelalterlichen Burg umgebaut. Von den Türmen ist der östliche Schwarzturm am besten erhalten.

Sehr bedeutend griff ins Aussehen der Prager Burg die Gotikzeit ein, insbesondere Karl IV. (1346 - 1378), der mit seinem Vater Johann von Luxemburg (1310 - 1346) vom Papst die Beförderung des Prager Bistums zum Erzbistum erwirkte und den Grundstein für den Bau der St. Veit Kathedrale legte. Unter Karl IV. wurde die Burg zum ersten Mal zur Kaiserlichen Residenz. Karl IV. ließ die Verschanzung der Prager Burg festigen, den Königspalast mit der Kapelle Aller Heiligen baute er großzügig um. Die Dächer ließ er mit vergoldeten Blechen decken, die das Fundament für die Wörterbindung „Goldenes Prag“ darstellten. Seit 1382 hörten böhmische Herrscher auf, die Prager Burg für mehr als 100 Jahre zu bewohnen. Der Königshof wurde an den Ort des heutigen Gemeindehauses umgezogen und zurück auf die Prager Burg kehrte er erst im Jahre 1483 unter Wladislaus aus der Jagiellonen-Dynastie.

Obwohl der Herrscher bereits 1490 nach Ofen (Buda) umsiedelte, ließ er die Prager Burg im spätgotischen Stil unter der Bauleitung von Benedikt Ried umbauen. Er war der Baumeister des großartigen Wladislaus-Saals, des größten weltlichen gewölbten Raums des damaligen Europas, mit dem die ersten Renaissancezeichen nach Prag kamen. Er führte großartige Bauregelungen einschließlich des Ausbaus eines neuen Mauerwerks, der Wehrtürme und der Erweiterung des Königspalastes durch. Zu seiner Zeit klang die Gotik aus und es setzte sich allmählich ein neuer Baustil durch, die Renaissance.

Der direkte Einfluss der italienischen Kunst des neuen Stils wurde in Prag unter der Regierung von Ferdinand I. (von Habsburg) und nach seinem Weggang von Prag unter der Wirkung des Statthalters Ferdinand von Tirol am meisten beobachtet. Damals wurde die mittelalterliche Burg in ein bequemes Renaissanceschloss mit Gärten umgewandelt. Im nördlichen Königsgarten entstand die typisch italienische Architektur des Königlichen Lustschlosses.

Zu einer großen Bauaktivität trug im Jahre 1541 ein Brand bei, der die Burgobjekte sowie die Umgebung ziemlich viel kaputt machte. Im Rahmen der Wiederherstellung wurden sowohl die Wohnräume als auch die Kirchenobjekte umgebaut. Unter der Regierung der ersten Habsburger kamen ins Burggelände auch Adelspaläste dazu (zum Beispiel der Pernstein-Palast - später Lobkowicz-Palast, Rosenberg-Palast und weitere). Im Nordwesten wurden Pferdestallgebäude erbaut.

Unter der Regierung des Kaisers Rudolph II. (1576 - 1611) erreichte der Renaissance- und Manierismusumbau der Burg, die zum zweiten Mal zum Zentrum des Reiches und insbesondere zum Zentrum der europäischen Kultur und Wissenschaft wurde, seinen Gipfel. Auf dem II. Vorhof wurden neue Räume für die Sammlungen Rudolphs erbaut - der Neue (heute Spanische) Saal und die Rudolph-Galerie. Es entstand auch der Verbindungstrakt zwischen dem Nordwest- und dem Südwestteil der Burg. Eben hier befanden sich die berühmte Kunstkammer und weitere Räume für die Sammeltätigkeit Rudolphs. Es wurden auch weitere Pferdestallobjekte für seine seltenen spanischen Pferde aufgebaut. Während der Rudolph-Zeiten wurde auch der Grundstein der berühmten Goldenen Gasse gelegt. Laboratorien der Rudolph-Alchymisten sollen im Pulverturm über dem Hirschgraben gewesen sein. Die Burg erlitt erneut erhebliche Schäden, als sie 1631 vom sächsischen Heer und 1648 von den Schweden besetzt und ausgeplündert wurde. Nach dem Dreißigjährigen Krieg kümmerten sich die Habsburger um den Prager königlichen Sitz nicht allzu sehr.

Erst Maria Theresia führte in den Jahren 1755 - 1775 einen umfangreichen Umbau der Prager Burg zu einem repräsentativen Schlosskomplex durch. Der Grund für die massive Bauaktion waren Kriegsschäden, verursacht durch die intensive Bombardierung der Burg bei Kriegskonflikten zu Beginn ihrer Regierung. Den Umbau entwarf der Wiener Architekt Nicolo Pacassi, der auch den I. Vorhof mit dem monumentalen Eingangstor projektierte. Aus der Zeit des theresianischen Umbaus stammt auch die Kapelle des Heiligen Kreuzes auf dem II. Burgvorhof und weitere Gebäude, insbesondere die Edeldamenanstalt. Dem Südflügel prägte er die einheitliche monumentale Spätbarockfassade eines Repräsentationssitzes ein. Seine durch das Wiener Rokoko und den französischen Klassizismus beeinflussten Pläne brachten die Baumeister Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz und Anton Haffenecker zustande.

Im 19. Jahrhundert verfiel die Burg, in mehreren Objekten ließ sich nach den josephinischen Reformen das Heer nieder. Zu Bauregelungen einiger Objekte kam es im Zusammenhang mit dem Aufenthalt von Ferdinand I. dem Guten auf der Burg nach seiner Abdikation im Jahre 1848 und weiter im Zusammenhang mit der Vorbereitung auf die vorgesehene Krönung von Franz Joseph I. in den 60er Jahren. Nach 1859, als die Gemeinde für die Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale entstand, begann zuerst die Reparatur und anschließend unter der Wirkung des Architekten Joseph Mocker wurde die Arbeit an der eigentlichen Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale aufgenommen, abgeschlossen im Jahre 1929.

In den Jahren 1920 - 35 führte ausgedehnte Regelungen der Prager Burg als des Sitzes des tschechoslowakischen Präsidenten der bedeutende slowenische Architekt Josip Plečnik durch, der den wertvollen historischen Raum mit modernen Zivilisationsansprüchen meisterlich zusammenfügte. Seine Regelungen betrafen vor allem den 1. und 3. Vorhof, die Südgärten der Burg, den 4. Vorhof mit dem Basteigarten sowie zahlreiche Innenräume. Er schuf z.B. die Säulenhalle, Privaträume der Präsidentenwohnung einschließlich des Arbeitszimmers Masaryks. Sein Schüler Otto Rothmayer brachte die unvollendeten Lösungen einiger Burginnenräume nach dem 2. Weltkrieg in vergleichbarer Qualität zu Ende.

Im Jahre 1936 ist Pavel Janák und nach ihm seit 1959 Jaroslav Fragner Burgarchitekt geworden.

Nach dem Wendejahr 1989 wurde die Prager Burg an vielen Stellen für die Öffentlichkeit geöffnet. Während der Amtszeit des Präsidenten Havel kam es auf der Burg zu Regelungen der Innenräume und zum Ausbau zweier neuer Eingänge in den 2. Vorhof nach dem Projekt des Bildners und Designers Bořek Šípek. Mit einem bedeutenden Preis wurde der Durchstich durch den Wall der Pulverbrücke im Hirschgraben belohnt (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Interessant ist auch das moderne Gewächshaus der weltberühmten Architektin Eva Jiřičná. Der Georg-Platz (Jiřské náměstí) wurde neu bepflastert und geregelt. In Zusammenarbeit mit den Fachleuten aus dem Getti-Institut wurde die Mosaik „des Letzten Gerichts“ renoviert. Im Jahre 1990 wurde die Prager Burg feierlich beleuchtet und dieser Zustand dauert von der Dämmerung bis zur Mitternacht bis heute. In der touristischen Hauptsaison dauert die Beleuchtungszeit sogar eine Stunde länger, bis 1 Uhr. Die Tradition der elektrischen Beleuchtung, jedoch im viel kleineren Umfang, begann im Jahre 1928, als die Lampen zum 10. Jubiläum der Republikentstehung installiert wurden. Ein wenig ähnelte die heutige feierliche Beleuchtung jener aus dem Ende der 60er Jahren, heute ist sie allerdings viel detaillierter und in den Kommunistenzeiten wurde sie nur bei feierlichen Gelegenheiten angemacht. Beleuchtungswürdige Tage waren damals Staatsfeiertage oder bedeutende Republiktage, denen allerdings aus der kommunistischen Sicht die Anerkennung nicht fehlte.

In den letzten Jahren entwickelte sich die Umbau- bzw. Renovierungstätigkeit in vielen Objekten der Burg und eine erhebliche Aufmerksamkeit wurde der archäologischen Untersuchung gewidmet, die bereits seit 1925 läuft und viele Erkenntnisse über die Burggeschichte brachte. Die Untersuchung sowie die Renovierung der einzelnen Räume und Objekte ist von der Idee motiviert, sie dadurch, dass sie der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht werden, möglichst viel zu beleben.

www.prague.eu/de/objekt/orte/31/prager-burg-prazsky-hrad

A DIY audio electronics development platform. Very easy to plug things in and out of the breadboards and Arduino. Seed Studio oscilloscope has proven to be a worthy tool. Now cooking: an arduino synthesizer, based on some simple bitwise modulation. Audio and video demos coming up, soon maybe...

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Still Life with Plaster cast, Bottle and vase with peony on chinese bench.

18 x 20

Oil on Linen

Impressed by the title? Very creative I know haha. Making some progress at the studio slowly but surely. The left half is beginning to develop more modulations in value and hue and right is trying to catch up. The colour relationships for the whole composition are relatively stabilized at this point and will remain somewhat the same. As always the structural drawing is continually being pushed to further accuracy to reality, but for now I'm keeping things simplified as it approaches a more complex finish. This is twenty-something hours in. About halfway.

November Pageant Training Course for Ponds Femina Miss India 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Goa 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Kolkata 2013, Femina Miss India Bangalore 2013, Femina Miss India Indore 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Delhi 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Chandigarh 2013, Ponds Femina Miss India Pune 2014, I am She 2013, Gladrags Megamodel 2012/2013 and Gladrags Mrs. India 2012/2013

Urvashi Rautela groomed and coached by The Tiara wins I am She Miss India Universe 2012 and ' I am Photogenic". Dipna Patel trained by The Tiara wins 3rd Runners up at IAM SHE Miss Universe India and the subtitle I am Fit. Gunjan Tyagi wins 2nd Runner Up at Gladrags South Mrs. India 2012. She will go on to participate in the Mrs. India All India in Mumbai later this year.

17 Winners in 14 Years! A Winner Every Year at The Tiara Pageant Training Studio

1. Winner of Young Turk 1998 Sandip Soparrkar , Ace Choreographer, Ballroom dance teacher,

2. Femina Miss India Earth 2002 Gauhar Khan,

3. Femina Miss India Universe 2005 Amrita Thapar

4. Femina Miss India World 2009 Pooja Chopra,

5.Gladrags Megamodel 2009 and Femina Miss India East 2011 and Bollywood Diva 2011 Ankita Mohapatra

6.Mr. India Earth 2009, Mann Sukhija

7.Miss India Intercontinental 2009 Sonia Jain

8. Femina Miss India International 2010 Neha Hinge

9.Gladrags Megamodel 2010 Arshina Trivedi

10.Femina Miss India South 2011 Shweta Dolli

11.Gladrags Manhunt 2011 First Runner Up Maitraya Kotecha

12.Miss Tourism Queen International of the year 2011 Urvashi Rautela

13.Miss India Worldwide 2011 1st Runner Up Anvita Sudarshan

14.Femina Style Diva 2011 Dipna Patel

15.Femina Miss India Earth 2012 Prachi

16.Mrs. India International 2012, 1st Runners Up Reet Sahu

17.Urvashi Rautela I am She Miss Universe India 2012.

ELIGIBILITY

If you are participating in:

Femina Miss India: Height 5.6” upwards, Age: 18 to 25

I am She: Height 5.6 upwards, Age: 18 to 27

Gladrags Mrs India Height 5.3 upwards, Age: 20 to 50

Gladrags Megamodel: 5.3” Upwards Age: 17 to 27

November 5th to December 10th 2012(Course Fee Rs 25,000)

Monday to Friday

To ensure that you have your seat please pay the booking amount of Rs 5000 which is an advance fee. This fee is non-refundable and non-transferable to another batch in another month. The remaining 20,000 has to be paid on the first day of class, For the hostel please call Mr. Anil Shinde 9822282817 .Meetings are only by appointment.

The Tiara is located only in Pune, we have no branches.

Course Details

• Filling up Forms and Registration Help

• Developing a Pageant Strategy

• Pageant & Ramp Walk

• Personality & Grooming

• Posture & Poise.

• Camera Facing Techniques & Portfolio Assistance ( Professional Portfolio Not Included)

• Public Speaking &Voice Modulation

• Modeling Technique & Body Language

• Making a Positive First Impression

• Wardrobe Analysis & Customized Wardrobe Assistance

• Diet, Nutrition & Fitness Assistance

. Confidence Building

• Mental Preparation

• Question Handling (Preliminary Round, Prejudging, On Stage and One-on-One)

• Personalize your answers so that you sound original

• Connecting with the Judges and Handling the Stage

• Platform Development

Don't be dismayed if you find that we are at Pune. You deserve the help of a Pageant professional; don't let location stand in the way of your dream. Assistance with accommodation provided. Limited seats. Reserve your spot now!

The Tiara,

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Captured 26 Nov 2021, 21:39 hrs ET, Springfield, VA, USA. Bortle 7 skies, Stellarvue SV80/9D doublet achromat refractor at f/5.68 (eff. fl 454mm), Orion Atlas AZ/EQ-G Pro mount. Mallincam DS10C camera, bin 1, exposure 120 seconds, gain 20, live stack of 20 subframes, dark and flat frames subtracted. Optolong LeNhance filter, UV/IR cut filter. Reprocessed in Siril and Photoshop on 14 June 2023.

Clouds: partly cloudy

Seeing: good

Transparency: good

Moon phase: 67%

FOV: 2.16 x 1.62 degrees before cropping.

Resolution: 2.1 arcsec/pixel.

Orientation: Up is Southwest.

Appearance: Dim nebulosity, adjacent bright star Gamma Cassiopeia. IC 59 is at 7 o'clock and IC 63 is at 10 o'clock.

From Stellarium:

IC 59 (a.k.a. Gamma Cas Nebula, LBN 620) is a reflection nebula. Magnitude +13.3, size 10 x 5 arcmin.

IC 63 (a.k.a. Ghost of Cassiopeia, LBN 622) is an HII region excited by Gamma Cas. Magnitude +13.3, size 10 x 3 arcmin.

From Wikipedia:

Gamma Cassiopeiae, Latinized from γ Cassiopeiae, is a star at the center of the distinctive "W" asterism in the northern circumpolar constellation of Cassiopeia. Although it is a fairly bright star with an apparent visual magnitude that varies from 1.6 to 3.0, it has no traditional Arabic or Latin name. It sometimes goes by the informal name Navi.

Gamma Cassiopeiae is a Be star, a variable star, and a binary star system. Based upon parallax measurements made by the Hipparcos satellite, it is located at a distance of roughly 550 light-years from Earth.

Gamma Cassiopeiae is an eruptive variable star, whose apparent magnitude changes irregularly between +1.6 and +3.0. It is the prototype of the class of Gamma Cassiopeiae variable stars. In the late 1930s it underwent what is described as a shell episode and the brightness increased to above magnitude +2.0, then dropped rapidly to +3.4. It has since been gradually brightening back to around +2.2. At maximum intensity, γ Cassiopeiae outshines both α Cassiopeiae (magnitude +2.25) and β Cassiopeiae (magnitude +2.3).

Gamma Cassiopeiae is a rapidly spinning star with a projected rotational velocity of 472 km s−1, giving it a pronounced equatorial bulge. When combined with the star's high luminosity, the result is the ejection of matter that forms a hot circumstellar disk of gas. The emissions and brightness variations are apparently caused by this "decretion disk".

The spectrum of this massive star matches a stellar classification of B0.5 IVe. A luminosity class of IV identifies it as a subgiant star that has reached a stage of its evolution where it is exhausting the supply of hydrogen in its core region and transforming into a giant star. The 'e' suffix is used for stars that show emission lines of hydrogen in the spectrum, caused in this case by the circumstellar disk. This places it among a category known as Be stars; in fact, the first such star ever to be so designated. It has 17 times the Sun's mass and is radiating as much energy as 34,000 Suns. At this rate of emission, the star has reached the end of its life as a late O-type main sequence star after a relatively brief 8 million years. The outer atmosphere has an intense effective temperature of 25,000 K, which is causing it to glow with a blue-white hue.

Gamma Cassiopeiae is the prototype of a small group of stellar sources of X-ray radiation that is about 10 times stronger than emitted from other B or Be stars. The character of the X-ray spectrum is Be thermal, possibly emitted from plasmas of temperatures up to least ten million kelvins, and shows very short term and long-term cycles. Historically, it has been held that these X-rays might be excited by matter originating from the star, from a hot wind or a disk around the star, accreting onto the surface of a degenerate companion, such as a white dwarf or neutron star. However, there are difficulties with either of these hypotheses. For example, it is not clear that enough matter can be accreted by a white dwarf, at the distance of the purported secondary star implied by the orbital period, sufficient to power an X-ray emission of nearly 1033 erg/s or 100 YW. A neutron star could easily power this X-ray flux, but X-ray emission from neutron stars is known to be non-thermal, and thus in apparent variance with the spectral properties.

Evidence suggests that the X-rays may be associated with the Be star itself or caused by some complex interaction between the star and surrounding decretion disk. One line of evidence is that the X-ray production is known to vary on both short and long time scales with respect to various UV line and continuum changes associated with a B star or with circumstellar matter close to the star. Moreover, the X-ray emissions exhibit long-term cycles that correlate with the light curves in the visible wavelengths.

Gamma Cassiopeiae exhibits characteristics consistent with a strong disordered magnetic field. No field can be measured directly from the Zeeman effect because of the star's rotation-broadened spectral lines. Instead, the presence of this field is inferred from a robust periodic signal of 1.21 days that suggests a magnetic field rooted on the rotating star's surface. The star's UV and optical spectral lines show ripples moving from blue to red over several hours, which indicates clouds of matter being held frozen over the star's surface by strong magnetic fields. This evidence suggests that a magnetic field from the star is interacting with the decretion disk, resulting in the X-ray emission. A disk dynamo has been advanced as a mechanism to explain this modulation of the X-rays. However, difficulties remain with this mechanism, among which is that there are no disk dynamos known to exist in other stars, rendering this behavior more difficult to analyze.

Gamma Cassiopeiae has two faint optical companions, listed in double star catalogues as components B and C. Star B is about 2 arc seconds distant and magnitude 11, and has a similar space velocity to the bright primary. Component C is magnitude 13, nearly an arc second distant.

Gamma Cassiopeiae A, the bright primary, is itself a spectroscopic binary with an orbital period of about 203.5 days and an eccentricity alternately reported as 0.26 and "near zero." The mass of the companion is believed to be about that of the Sun, but its nature is unclear. It has been proposed that it is a degenerate star or a hot helium star, but it seems unlikely that it is a normal star. Therefore, it is likely to be more evolved than the primary and to have transferred mass to it during an earlier stage of evolution.

The Chinese name Tsih, "the whip" (Chinese: 策; pinyin: cè), is commonly associated with this star. The name however originally referred to Kappa Cassiopeiae, and Gamma Cassiopeiae was just one of four horses pulling the chariot of legendary charioteer Wangliang. This representation was later changed to make Gamma the whip.

The star was used as an easily identifiable navigational reference point during space missions and American astronaut Virgil Ivan "Gus" Grissom nicknamed the star Navi after his own middle name spelled backwards.

This steampunk or Victorian necklace started with a bit of Victorian ceiling tin with a pebbled pattern. I shaped it to resemble a honeycomb section before riveting on the over-sized bee. The bee was previously treated to a patina to create the color modulations. He appears to be holding an antique watch works wearing its own time-induced patina. A retaining ring was riveted behind the bee and fishing gear was added to provide movement in the piece. All this steamy delight hangs from an 18" section of chain that once supported a pendulum in a cuckoo clock. I am a trained, if somewhat buggy, silversmith and have built this piece to last.

Armor Modeling Volume 5 by Kevin Townsend features the Tamiya 1/48 Matilda II and a kit bash of the Tamiya and Bandai Panzer II kits. Covers complete interior detailing of the Panzer

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Figure 4C from Modulation of the BRCA1 Protein and Induction of Apoptosis in Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cell Lines by the Polyphenolic Compound Curcumin Published in Breast Cancer: Basic and Clinical Research

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

Today's been a funny one... Modulation of mood all day.

A quiet two-for-one dinner with Feih at the Wesley Anne last night to celebrate my first discernible day of being free turned into rampantly hilarious Scattergories, and more cider was consumed than intended [though by my standards not really that much], leaving me feeling a bit groggy this morning at 4am when I awoke still semi-dressed...

Waking at a more reasonable hour, the raspy throat I've been cultivating the past few days was still hanging about, so I decided to take it easy on the getting out of bed side.

A pleasant call from Melissa to go through more ideas for images for a project I'm working on for her was a better way to start the day, so I decided that was the time to get "up and at 'em".

A quick shower, some email catching up; and a call back to one of the agencies I interviewed at yesterday revealed that the role I'd applied for they didn't feel I had the background for [product-wise]; but coincidentally, as I'd been thinking how much I'd rather take on a short term contract over another full-time permanent position just yet, it turns out they might have some data entry work until Christmas that they would like to interview me for...

So then I took more photos for Melissa, attempted a fairly uninspiring 365 [so uninspiring that I didn't use any of them in the end] and settled in to work on editing the shots I'd taken. Only one of the three images I need came to anything, so feeling raspy of throat and lacklustre of mood I ended up curling up on the couch to turn my brain off for a bit.

That's where All Saints, Crossing Jordan [ironically the last ever episode, considering I've never watched it before] and Stand Off came in. I so rarely watch TV that I don't even bother flicking channels much. I sort of just turn it on and leave it and let it gently numb my mind, then get up and walk away from it once my mind has de-zoned.

I'm sure the myeh-ness will have passed by morning. I hope so, I have too much I need to do...

Prague Castle (Pražský hrad)

For more than a thousand years, has the Prague Castle been an important symbol of the Czech state. Founded in the 9th century, it became the permanent seat of the Czech rulers and, most recently, also of the Presidents. One of the largest castle complexes in the world consists of palaces, offices, churches and fortification buildings, gardens and picturesque corners. The castle covers an area of ​​45 hectares. The unique view to the Prague Castle is one of the most amazing panorama views in the world.

Prague Castle is the most important folk-cultural and historical monument, and is the symbol of the more than one thousand years of development of the Czech and all-Czech states. It is a monumental symbol of the palace, church, fortification, official and residential buildings which represent very valuable monuments, included in all style epochs. It covers an area of ​​45 hectares, was the seat of the Bohemian princes, kings and emperors, and since the Republic was founded in 1918, it was also the residence of the presidents. Since 1962, the Prague Castle has been known for its archaeological discoveries.

History

The initial phases of the Prague Castle are connected with the first historically documented Přemyslid Bořivoj (Bořivoj I (Czech pronunciation: [ˈbɔr̝ɪvɔj], Latin: Borzivogius, c. 852 – c. 889) was the first historically documented Duke of Bohemia from about 870 and progenitor of the Přemyslid dynasty.] The Duchy of Bohemia was at those times subordinated to Great Moravia.). This one transferred in the 80s of the 9th century his original seat from Levý Hradec to the place where on the raised spot above the river Vltava/Moldau already existed a Slavic castle and was very well situated.

The first princely palace apparently only consisted of wood. The first stone building and the oldest Christian sanctuary was the Virgin Mary Church. Its remains have been found between the Second Courtyard and the Bastion garden (original name of the garden: Na Baště). This Bořivoj church was soon reconstructed by the prince Spytihněv I, who was buried here in 915. The second church in the castle was the St. George Basilica founded by Prince Vratislaus I. The next Přemyslide, Prince Wenceslas (Saint), the third sanctuary - the St Veit Rotunda - in the twenties of the 10th century nearby had built which in the 11th century by Prince Spytihnev II was transformed into a huge basilica.

In 973, when the bishopric was established in Prague, the castle was not only the seat of the head of state, but also the seat of the Prague bishop, the highest representative of the church. At the same time arose the first monastery in Bohemia at St. George's basilica.

In the 10th century the castle occupied an area of ​​about 6 ha. In the Romanesque epoch the former fortress, especially after the year 1135 thanks to Soběslaus I, as the stony princely palace and the new masonry fortified with some towers were erected, was turned into a fortified medieval castle. Of the towers is the eastern blacktower best preserved.

Very significantly the Gothic period in the appearance of Prague Castle intervened, most of all Charles IV (1346 - 1378), who, with his father, John of Luxemburg (1310 - 1346), obtained from the pope the promotion of the Prague bishopric to the archbishopric and laid the foundations for the construction of St. Vitus Cathedral. Under Charles IV, the castle for the first time was turned into the imperial residence. Charles IV the defense of the Prague Castle had consolidated, the Royal Palace with the Chapel of All Saints he rebuilt generously. The roofs he had covered with gilded plates, which were the foundation for the binding of words "Golden Prague". Since 1382, Bohemian rulers ceased to occupy the Prague Castle for more than 100 years. The royal court was moved to the place of today's Community hall and back to the Prague castle it came only in 1483 under Wladislaus from the Jagiellonian dynasty.

Although the ruler already in 1490 moved to Ofen (Buda), he had the Prague castle renovated in the late Gothic style under the supervision of Benedikt Ried. He was the master builder of the magnificent Vladislav Hall, the largest secular vaulted room of the then Europe, with which the first Renaissance signs came to Prague. He carried out major construction works, including the construction of a new masonry, the defensive towers and the expansion of the Royal Palace. At his time, the Gothic died away and a new architectural style, the Renaissance, gradually prevailed.

The direct influence of the Italian art on the new style was most frequently observed in Prague under the reign of Ferdinand I (von Habsburg) and after his departure from Prague under the influence of the governor Ferdinand of Tyrol. At that time, the medieval castle was converted into a comfortable Renaissance castle with gardens. The typical Italian architecture of the Royal Pleasure palace arose in the northern King's garden.

For a large building activity in 1541 contributed a fire devastating the castle objects as well as the surrounding area quite a lot. Within the framework of the restoration, both the housing estates and the church buildings were rebuilt. Under the reign of the first Habsburgs, nobility palaces were added to the castle grounds (for example, the Pernstein Palace - later Lobkowicz Palace, Rosenberg Palace and others). Horse stable buildings were built in the north-west.

Under the reign of the Emperor Rudolph II (1576 - 1611), the Renaissance and Mannerism transformation of the castle, which for the second time became the center of the empire, and especially the center of European culture and science, reached its peak. On the second courtyard, new rooms were built for the collections of Rudolph - the new (now Spanish) hall and the Rudolph gallery. Also arose the connection tract between the northwestern and the southwestern part of the castle. Just here the famous Kunstkammer (Art chamber) and other rooms for Rudolph's collective activities were located. Additionally further horse stable properties were built for his rare Spanish horses. During the Rudolph times also the foundation stone of the famous Golden Alley was laid. Laboratories of the Rudolph-Alchymists were supposed to have been in the Powder tower above the Hirschgraben (Deer's ditch). The castle suffered again considerable damages when it was occupied by the Saxon army in 1631 and by the Swedes in 1648 not only was occupied but also plundered. After the Thirty Years' War, the Habsburgs did not care too much about the Prague royal seat.

Only Maria Theresia carried out an extensive reconstruction of the Prague Castle from 1755 - 1775 into a representative castle complex. The reason for the massive construction action were war damages, caused by the intense bombing of the castle during war conflicts at the beginning of her reign. The reconstruction was designed by the Viennese architect Nicolo Pacassi, who also planned the first courtyard with the monumental entrance gate. From the time of the Theresian reconstruction stems also the chapel of the Holy Cross on the 2nd castle forecourt and other buildings, especially the noblewomen institute. The south wing he imprinted the uniform monumental late Baroque facade of a representative seat. His plans influenced by Viennese Rococo and French Classicism the builders Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz and Anton Haffenecker brought into life.

In the 19th century, the castle fell into ruin, in several objects after the Josephine reforms the army settled. In connection with the stay of Ferdinand I the Good in the castle after his abdication in 1848 and further in connection with the preparation for the coronation of Franz Joseph I in the sixties it came to building modifications of several objects. After 1859, when the community for the completion of St Veit cathedral emerged, began first the repair, and then, under the influence of the architect Joseph Mocker, the work on the actual completion of St Veit's cathedral was started, completed in 1929.

In the years 1920 - 35, carried out extensive regulations of the Prague Castle as the seat of the Czechoslovak President the great Slovenian architect Josip Plečnik, who masterfully combined the valuable historical space with modern civilization claims. His modifications mainly concerned the 1st and 3rd court, the southern gardens of the castle, the fourth forecourt with the Bastion garden as well as numerous interiors. He created e.g. the pillared hall, private rooms of the presidential residence, including the Masaryk workroom. His pupil, Otto Rothmayer, brought to an end the incomplete solutions of some castle interior spaces after the Second World War in comparable quality.

In 1936, Pavel Janák and after him, in 1959, Jaroslav Fragner became castle architect.

After the year of change of 1989, the Prague Castle was opened to the public in many places. During the term of President Havel, at the castle it came to modulations of the interiors and to the expansion of two new entrances into the second courtyard after the project of the creator and designer Bořek Šípek. The puncture through the rampart of the Powder bridge in Hirschgraben was rewarded with a significant prize (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Also interesting is the modern greenhouse of the world-famous architect Eva Jiřičná. The Georgian Square (Jiřské náměstí) was re-paved and modulated. The Mosaic of the Last Judgment was renovated in collaboration with the specialists from the Getti Institute. In 1990, the Prague Castle was solemnly illuminated and this situation lasts from dusk to midnight until today. In the main tourist season, the lighting time even lasts an hour longer until 1 o'clock. The tradition of electric lighting, but on a much smaller scale, began in 1928, when the lamps were installed for the 10th anniversary of the elevation to a Republic. A little bit the present daylight resembles of those from the end of the sixties, but today it is much more detailed and in communist times it was only switched on at solemn occasions. At that time, illuminative days were state holidays or significant day of republic, which, however, did not lack recognition from the communist point of view.

In recent years the reconstruction and renovation work has been developed in many buildings of the castle and a considerable attention has been devoted to the archaeological investigation, which has been going on since 1925 and has brought many insights into the history of the castle. The investigation as well as the renovation of the individual rooms and objects is motivated by the idea of ​​invigorating them as much as possible by making them accessible to the public.

Prager Burg (Pražský hrad)

Die Prager Burg ist seit über tausend Jahren ein bedeutendes Symbol des tschechischen Staates. Gegründet im 9. Jahrhundert wurde sie zum ständigen Sitz der tschechischen Herrscher und zuletzt auch der Präsidenten. Einer der größten Burgkomplexe weltweit setzt sich aus Palästen, Amts-, Kirchen- und Fortifikationsgebäuden, aus Gärten und malerischen Ecken zusammen. Die Burg erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 Hektar. Der alleinige Blick auf die Prager Burg stellt einen der überwältigendsten Panoramablicke der Welt dar.

Die Prager Burg ist das bedeutendste Volkskultur- und Historiedenkmal, sie ist das Symbol der mehr als eintausendjährigen Entwicklung des böhmischen sowie gesamttschechischen Staats. Es ist ein monumentales Symbol der Palast-, Kirchen-, Fortifikations-, Amts- und Wohngebäude, die sehr wertvolle Denkmäler darstellen, einbezogen auf alle Stilepochen. Sie erstreckt sich auf einer Fläche von 45 ha, war der Sitz der böhmischen Fürsten, Könige und Kaiser und seit der Republikentstehung im Jahre 1918 war sie auch die Residenz der Präsidenten. Seit 1962 steht die Prager Burg mit ihren archäologischen Funden als bekanntester.

Geschichte

Die Anfangszeiten der Prager Burg sind mit dem ersten historisch belegten Přemysliden Bořivoj verbunden. Dieser übertrug in den 80er Jahren des 9. Jahrhunderts seinen ursprünglichen Sitz von Levý Hradec an den Ort, wo auf der erhabenen Stelle über der Moldau eine slawische Burgstätte bereits bestand und sehr gut gelegen war.

Der erste Fürstenpalast bestand offenbar aus Holz. Der erste Steinbau und das älteste christliche Heiligtum war die Jungfrau Maria Kirche. Ihre Reste wurden zwischen dem II. Vorhof und dem Basteigarten (Originalname des Gartens: Na Baště) gefunden. Diese Bořivoj-Kirche wurde durch den hier im Jahre 915 beigesetzten Fürsten Spytihněv I. bald umgebaut. Die zweite Kirche im Burgraum war die vom Fürsten Vratislaus I. gegründete St. Georg Basilika. Der nächste Přemyslide, der Fürst Wenzel (der Heilige), ließ in der Nähe in den 20er Jahren des 10. Jahrhunderts das dritte Heiligtum - die St. Veit Rotunde - bauen, die im 11. Jahrhundert vom Fürsten Spytihněv II. zu einer gewaltigen Basilika umgebaut wurde.

Im Jahre 973, als in Prag das Bistum gegründet wurde, war die Burg nicht nur der Sitz des Staatsoberhaupts, sondern auch der Sitz des Prager Bischofs, des höchsten Repräsentanten der Kirche. Zu demselben Zeitpunkt entstand an der St. Georg Basilika das erste Kloster in Böhmen.

Im 10. Jahrhundert nahm die Burg eine Fläche von ca. 6 ha in Anspruch. In der romanischen Epoche wurde die einstige Burgstätte, insbesondere nach dem Jahr 1135 dank Soběslaus I., als der steinige Fürstenpalast und das neue mit einigen Türmen verstärkte Mauerwerk aufgebaut wurden, zu einer festen mittelalterlichen Burg umgebaut. Von den Türmen ist der östliche Schwarzturm am besten erhalten.

Sehr bedeutend griff ins Aussehen der Prager Burg die Gotikzeit ein, insbesondere Karl IV. (1346 - 1378), der mit seinem Vater Johann von Luxemburg (1310 - 1346) vom Papst die Beförderung des Prager Bistums zum Erzbistum erwirkte und den Grundstein für den Bau der St. Veit Kathedrale legte. Unter Karl IV. wurde die Burg zum ersten Mal zur Kaiserlichen Residenz. Karl IV. ließ die Verschanzung der Prager Burg festigen, den Königspalast mit der Kapelle Aller Heiligen baute er großzügig um. Die Dächer ließ er mit vergoldeten Blechen decken, die das Fundament für die Wörterbindung „Goldenes Prag“ darstellten. Seit 1382 hörten böhmische Herrscher auf, die Prager Burg für mehr als 100 Jahre zu bewohnen. Der Königshof wurde an den Ort des heutigen Gemeindehauses umgezogen und zurück auf die Prager Burg kehrte er erst im Jahre 1483 unter Wladislaus aus der Jagiellonen-Dynastie.

Obwohl der Herrscher bereits 1490 nach Ofen (Buda) umsiedelte, ließ er die Prager Burg im spätgotischen Stil unter der Bauleitung von Benedikt Ried umbauen. Er war der Baumeister des großartigen Wladislaus-Saals, des größten weltlichen gewölbten Raums des damaligen Europas, mit dem die ersten Renaissancezeichen nach Prag kamen. Er führte großartige Bauregelungen einschließlich des Ausbaus eines neuen Mauerwerks, der Wehrtürme und der Erweiterung des Königspalastes durch. Zu seiner Zeit klang die Gotik aus und es setzte sich allmählich ein neuer Baustil durch, die Renaissance.

Der direkte Einfluss der italienischen Kunst des neuen Stils wurde in Prag unter der Regierung von Ferdinand I. (von Habsburg) und nach seinem Weggang von Prag unter der Wirkung des Statthalters Ferdinand von Tirol am meisten beobachtet. Damals wurde die mittelalterliche Burg in ein bequemes Renaissanceschloss mit Gärten umgewandelt. Im nördlichen Königsgarten entstand die typisch italienische Architektur des Königlichen Lustschlosses.

Zu einer großen Bauaktivität trug im Jahre 1541 ein Brand bei, der die Burgobjekte sowie die Umgebung ziemlich viel kaputt machte. Im Rahmen der Wiederherstellung wurden sowohl die Wohnräume als auch die Kirchenobjekte umgebaut. Unter der Regierung der ersten Habsburger kamen ins Burggelände auch Adelspaläste dazu (zum Beispiel der Pernstein-Palast - später Lobkowicz-Palast, Rosenberg-Palast und weitere). Im Nordwesten wurden Pferdestallgebäude erbaut.

Unter der Regierung des Kaisers Rudolph II. (1576 - 1611) erreichte der Renaissance- und Manierismusumbau der Burg, die zum zweiten Mal zum Zentrum des Reiches und insbesondere zum Zentrum der europäischen Kultur und Wissenschaft wurde, seinen Gipfel. Auf dem II. Vorhof wurden neue Räume für die Sammlungen Rudolphs erbaut - der Neue (heute Spanische) Saal und die Rudolph-Galerie. Es entstand auch der Verbindungstrakt zwischen dem Nordwest- und dem Südwestteil der Burg. Eben hier befanden sich die berühmte Kunstkammer und weitere Räume für die Sammeltätigkeit Rudolphs. Es wurden auch weitere Pferdestallobjekte für seine seltenen spanischen Pferde aufgebaut. Während der Rudolph-Zeiten wurde auch der Grundstein der berühmten Goldenen Gasse gelegt. Laboratorien der Rudolph-Alchymisten sollen im Pulverturm über dem Hirschgraben gewesen sein. Die Burg erlitt erneut erhebliche Schäden, als sie 1631 vom sächsischen Heer und 1648 von den Schweden besetzt und ausgeplündert wurde. Nach dem Dreißigjährigen Krieg kümmerten sich die Habsburger um den Prager königlichen Sitz nicht allzu sehr.

Erst Maria Theresia führte in den Jahren 1755 - 1775 einen umfangreichen Umbau der Prager Burg zu einem repräsentativen Schlosskomplex durch. Der Grund für die massive Bauaktion waren Kriegsschäden, verursacht durch die intensive Bombardierung der Burg bei Kriegskonflikten zu Beginn ihrer Regierung. Den Umbau entwarf der Wiener Architekt Nicolo Pacassi, der auch den I. Vorhof mit dem monumentalen Eingangstor projektierte. Aus der Zeit des theresianischen Umbaus stammt auch die Kapelle des Heiligen Kreuzes auf dem II. Burgvorhof und weitere Gebäude, insbesondere die Edeldamenanstalt. Dem Südflügel prägte er die einheitliche monumentale Spätbarockfassade eines Repräsentationssitzes ein. Seine durch das Wiener Rokoko und den französischen Klassizismus beeinflussten Pläne brachten die Baumeister Anselmo Lurago, Anton Kunz und Anton Haffenecker zustande.

Im 19. Jahrhundert verfiel die Burg, in mehreren Objekten ließ sich nach den josephinischen Reformen das Heer nieder. Zu Bauregelungen einiger Objekte kam es im Zusammenhang mit dem Aufenthalt von Ferdinand I. dem Guten auf der Burg nach seiner Abdikation im Jahre 1848 und weiter im Zusammenhang mit der Vorbereitung auf die vorgesehene Krönung von Franz Joseph I. in den 60er Jahren. Nach 1859, als die Gemeinde für die Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale entstand, begann zuerst die Reparatur und anschließend unter der Wirkung des Architekten Joseph Mocker wurde die Arbeit an der eigentlichen Fertigstellung der St. Veit Kathedrale aufgenommen, abgeschlossen im Jahre 1929.

In den Jahren 1920 - 35 führte ausgedehnte Regelungen der Prager Burg als des Sitzes des tschechoslowakischen Präsidenten der bedeutende slowenische Architekt Josip Plečnik durch, der den wertvollen historischen Raum mit modernen Zivilisationsansprüchen meisterlich zusammenfügte. Seine Regelungen betrafen vor allem den 1. und 3. Vorhof, die Südgärten der Burg, den 4. Vorhof mit dem Basteigarten sowie zahlreiche Innenräume. Er schuf z.B. die Säulenhalle, Privaträume der Präsidentenwohnung einschließlich des Arbeitszimmers Masaryks. Sein Schüler Otto Rothmayer brachte die unvollendeten Lösungen einiger Burginnenräume nach dem 2. Weltkrieg in vergleichbarer Qualität zu Ende.

Im Jahre 1936 ist Pavel Janák und nach ihm seit 1959 Jaroslav Fragner Burgarchitekt geworden.

Nach dem Wendejahr 1989 wurde die Prager Burg an vielen Stellen für die Öffentlichkeit geöffnet. Während der Amtszeit des Präsidenten Havel kam es auf der Burg zu Regelungen der Innenräume und zum Ausbau zweier neuer Eingänge in den 2. Vorhof nach dem Projekt des Bildners und Designers Bořek Šípek. Mit einem bedeutenden Preis wurde der Durchstich durch den Wall der Pulverbrücke im Hirschgraben belohnt (Arch. Josef Pleskot). Interessant ist auch das moderne Gewächshaus der weltberühmten Architektin Eva Jiřičná. Der Georg-Platz (Jiřské náměstí) wurde neu bepflastert und geregelt. In Zusammenarbeit mit den Fachleuten aus dem Getti-Institut wurde die Mosaik „des Letzten Gerichts“ renoviert. Im Jahre 1990 wurde die Prager Burg feierlich beleuchtet und dieser Zustand dauert von der Dämmerung bis zur Mitternacht bis heute. In der touristischen Hauptsaison dauert die Beleuchtungszeit sogar eine Stunde länger, bis 1 Uhr. Die Tradition der elektrischen Beleuchtung, jedoch im viel kleineren Umfang, begann im Jahre 1928, als die Lampen zum 10. Jubiläum der Republikentstehung installiert wurden. Ein wenig ähnelte die heutige feierliche Beleuchtung jener aus dem Ende der 60er Jahren, heute ist sie allerdings viel detaillierter und in den Kommunistenzeiten wurde sie nur bei feierlichen Gelegenheiten angemacht. Beleuchtungswürdige Tage waren damals Staatsfeiertage oder bedeutende Republiktage, denen allerdings aus der kommunistischen Sicht die Anerkennung nicht fehlte.

In den letzten Jahren entwickelte sich die Umbau- bzw. Renovierungstätigkeit in vielen Objekten der Burg und eine erhebliche Aufmerksamkeit wurde der archäologischen Untersuchung gewidmet, die bereits seit 1925 läuft und viele Erkenntnisse über die Burggeschichte brachte. Die Untersuchung sowie die Renovierung der einzelnen Räume und Objekte ist von der Idee motiviert, sie dadurch, dass sie der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht werden, möglichst viel zu beleben.

www.prague.eu/de/objekt/orte/31/prager-burg-prazsky-hrad

Figure 4A from Modulation of the BRCA1 Protein and Induction of Apoptosis in Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cell Lines by the Polyphenolic Compound Curcumin Published in Breast Cancer: Basic and Clinical Research

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 2.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com

Hu Zhengyan (c. 1584-1674) was a Chinese traditional painter, calligrapher, seal carver and publisher during the transition of the Ming and Qing dynasties. He produced China’s first printed publication in color, and was famous for his incredible techniques achieving gradation and modulation of shades in woodblock prints.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: rawpixel

The PSS-480 is another great FM home synthesizer with adjustable Attack, Decay, Frequency, Feedback, Modulation, and Volume, and 5 banks for storing your favorite settings. Effects include Vibrato, Sustain, Reverb, Portamento, and Duet. This synth has MIDI in and out, as well as programmable drummer, 5 song memory for both chords and melody, and a feature-packed Auto Accompaniment with intro, ending, 3 fill-ins, and Orchestration controls for Rhythm, Bass, Chord, and Orchestra. There are 100 PCM Styles and 100 FM Voices. There are hours and hours of fun to be had exploring all of the features of this little instrument! And the sound quality is actually very good for what it is.