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Hendrix finally got his cast off today, it has been 2 months since his triple osteotomy surgery for Legg-Perthes disease where two pins were placed. Firstly today we had the cast sawed off, then we had x-rays and finally we saw the surgeon. Hendrix only has to be non-weight baring for 2 weeks, then he can do some walking as tolerated. I cannot wait to give him a bath tonight!
For more info on Legg-Perthes Disease, click here:
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Author: Andreas Nierhaus, Curator of Architecture/Wien Museum
Last updated January 2014
Architecture in Vienna
Vienna's 2,000-year history is present in a unique density in the cityscape. The layout of the center dates back to the Roman city and medieval road network. Romanesque and Gothic churches characterize the streets and squares as well as palaces and mansions of the baroque city of residence. The ring road is an expression of the modern city of the 19th century, in the 20th century extensive housing developments set accents in the outer districts. Currently, large-scale urban development measures are implemented; distinctive buildings of international star architects complement the silhouette of the city.
Due to its function as residence of the emperor and European power center, Vienna for centuries stood in the focus of international attention, but it was well aware of that too. As a result, developed an outstanding building culture, and still today on a worldwide scale only a few cities can come up with a comparable density of high-quality architecture. For several years now, Vienna has increased its efforts to connect with its historical highlights and is drawing attention to itself with some spectacular new buildings. The fastest growing city in the German-speaking world today most of all in residential construction is setting standards. Constants of the Viennese architecture are respect for existing structures, the palpability of historical layers and the dialogue between old and new.
Culmination of medieval architecture: the Stephansdom
The oldest architectural landmark of the city is St. Stephen's Cathedral. Under the rule of the Habsburgs, defining the face of the city from the late 13th century until 1918 in a decisive way, the cathedral was upgraded into the sacral monument of the political ambitions of the ruling house. The 1433 completed, 137 meters high southern tower, by the Viennese people affectionately named "Steffl", is a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture in Europe. For decades he was the tallest stone structure in Europe, until today he is the undisputed center of the city.
The baroque residence
Vienna's ascension into the ranks of the great European capitals began in Baroque. Among the most important architects are Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt. Outside the city walls arose a chain of summer palaces, including the garden Palais Schwarzenberg (1697-1704) as well as the Upper and Lower Belvedere of Prince Eugene of Savoy (1714-22). Among the most important city palaces are the Winter Palace of Prince Eugene (1695-1724, now a branch of the Belvedere) and the Palais Daun-Kinsky (auction house in Kinsky 1713-19). The emperor himself the Hofburg had complemented by buildings such as the Imperial Library (1722-26) and the Winter Riding School (1729-34). More important, however, for the Habsburgs was the foundation of churches and monasteries. Thus arose before the city walls Fischer von Erlach's Karlskirche (1714-39), which with its formal and thematic complex show façade belongs to the major works of European Baroque. In colored interior rooms like that of St. Peter's Church (1701-22), the contemporary efforts for the synthesis of architecture, painting and sculpture becomes visible.
Upgrading into metropolis: the ring road time (Ringstraßenzeit)
Since the Baroque, reflections on extension of the hopelessly overcrowed city were made, but only Emperor Franz Joseph ordered in 1857 the demolition of the fortifications and the connection of the inner city with the suburbs. 1865, the Ring Road was opened. It is as the most important boulevard of Europe an architectural and in terms of urban development achievement of the highest rank. The original building structure is almost completely preserved and thus conveys the authentic image of a metropolis of the 19th century. The public representational buildings speak, reflecting accurately the historicism, by their style: The Greek Antique forms of Theophil Hansen's Parliament (1871-83) stood for democracy, the Renaissance of the by Heinrich Ferstel built University (1873-84) for the flourishing of humanism, the Gothic of the Town Hall (1872-83) by Friedrich Schmidt for the medieval civic pride.
Dominating remained the buildings of the imperial family: Eduard van der Nüll's and August Sicardsburg's Opera House (1863-69), Gottfried Semper's and Carl Hasenauer's Burgtheater (1874-88), their Museum of Art History and Museum of Natural History (1871-91) and the Neue (New) Hofburg (1881-1918 ). At the same time the ring road was the preferred residential area of mostly Jewish haute bourgeoisie. With luxurious palaces the families Ephrussi, Epstein or Todesco made it clear that they had taken over the cultural leadership role in Viennese society. In the framework of the World Exhibition of 1873, the new Vienna presented itself an international audience. At the ring road many hotels were opened, among them the Hotel Imperial and today's Palais Hansen Kempinski.
Laboratory of modernity: Vienna around 1900
Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06) was one of the last buildings in the Ring road area Otto Wagner's Postal Savings Bank (1903-06), which with it façade, liberated of ornament, and only decorated with "functional" aluminum buttons and the glass banking hall now is one of the icons of modern architecture. Like no other stood Otto Wagner for the dawn into the 20th century: His Metropolitan Railway buildings made the public transport of the city a topic of architecture, the church of the Psychiatric hospital at Steinhofgründe (1904-07) is considered the first modern church.
With his consistent focus on the function of a building ("Something impractical can not be beautiful"), Wagner marked a whole generation of architects and made Vienna the laboratory of modernity: in addition to Joseph Maria Olbrich, the builder of the Secession (1897-98) and Josef Hoffmann, the architect of the at the western outskirts located Purkersdorf Sanatorium (1904) and founder of the Vienna Workshop (Wiener Werkstätte, 1903) is mainly to mention Adolf Loos, with the Loos House at the square Michaelerplatz (1909-11) making architectural history. The extravagant marble cladding of the business zone stands in maximal contrast, derived from the building function, to the unadorned facade above, whereby its "nudity" became even more obvious - a provocation, as well as his culture-critical texts ("Ornament and Crime"), with which he had greatest impact on the architecture of the 20th century. Public contracts Loos remained denied. His major works therefore include villas, apartment facilities and premises as the still in original state preserved Tailor salon Knize at Graben (1910-13) and the restored Loos Bar (1908-09) near the Kärntner Straße (passageway Kärntner Durchgang).
Between the Wars: International Modern Age and social housing
After the collapse of the monarchy in 1918, Vienna became capital of the newly formed small country of Austria. In the heart of the city, the architects Theiss & Jaksch built 1931-32 the first skyscraper in Vienna as an exclusive residential address (Herrengasse - alley 6-8). To combat the housing shortage for the general population, the social democratic city government in a globally unique building program within a few years 60,000 apartments in hundreds of apartment buildings throughout the city area had built, including the famous Karl Marx-Hof by Karl Ehn (1925-30). An alternative to the multi-storey buildings with the 1932 opened International Werkbundsiedlung was presented, which was attended by 31 architects from Austria, Germany, France, Holland and the USA and showed models for affordable housing in greenfield areas. With buildings of Adolf Loos, André Lurçat, Richard Neutra, Gerrit Rietveld, the Werkbundsiedlung, which currently is being restored at great expense, is one of the most important documents of modern architecture in Austria.
Modernism was also expressed in significant Villa buildings: The House Beer (1929-31) by Josef Frank exemplifies the refined Wiener living culture of the interwar period, while the house Stonborough-Wittgenstein (1926-28, today Bulgarian Cultural Institute), built by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein together with the architect Paul Engelmann for his sister Margarete, by its aesthetic radicalism and mathematical rigor represents a special case within contemporary architecture.
Expulsion, war and reconstruction
After the "Anschluss (Annexation)" to the German Reich in 1938, numerous Jewish builders, architects (female and male ones), who had been largely responsible for the high level of Viennese architecture, have been expelled from Austria. During the Nazi era, Vienna remained largely unaffected by structural transformations, apart from the six flak towers built for air defense of Friedrich Tamms (1942-45), made of solid reinforced concrete which today are present as memorials in the cityscape.
The years after the end of World War II were characterized by the reconstruction of the by bombs heavily damaged city. The architecture of those times was marked by aesthetic pragmatism, but also by the attempt to connect with the period before 1938 and pick up on current international trends. Among the most important buildings of the 1950s are Roland Rainer's City Hall (1952-58), the by Oswald Haerdtl erected Wien Museum at Karlsplatz (1954-59) and the 21er Haus of Karl Schwanzer (1958-62).
The youngsters come
Since the 1960s, a young generation was looking for alternatives to the moderate modernism of the reconstruction years. With visionary designs, conceptual, experimental and above all temporary architectures, interventions and installations, Raimund Abraham, Günther Domenig, Eilfried Huth, Hans Hollein, Walter Pichler and the groups Coop Himmelb(l)au, Haus-Rucker-Co and Missing Link rapidly got international attention. Although for the time being it was more designed than built, was the influence on the postmodern and deconstructivist trends of the 1970s and 1980s also outside Austria great. Hollein's futuristic "Retti" candle shop at Charcoal Market/Kohlmarkt (1964-65) and Domenig's biomorphic building of the Central Savings Bank in Favoriten (10th district of Vienna - 1975-79) are among the earliest examples, later Hollein's Haas-Haus (1985-90), the loft conversion Falkestraße (1987/88) by Coop Himmelb(l)au or Domenig's T Center (2002-04) were added. Especially Domenig, Hollein, Coop Himmelb(l)au and the architects Ortner & Ortner (ancient members of Haus-Rucker-Co) by orders from abroad the new Austrian and Viennese architecture made a fixed international concept.
MuseumQuarter and Gasometer
Since the 1980s, the focus of building in Vienna lies on the compaction of the historic urban fabric that now as urban habitat of high quality no longer is put in question. Among the internationally best known projects is the by Ortner & Ortner planned MuseumsQuartier in the former imperial stables (competition 1987, 1998-2001), which with institutions such as the MUMOK - Museum of Modern Art Foundation Ludwig, the Leopold Museum, the Kunsthalle Wien, the Architecture Center Vienna and the Zoom Children's Museum on a wordwide scale is under the largest cultural complexes. After controversies in the planning phase, here an architectural compromise between old and new has been achieved at the end, whose success as an urban stage with four million visitors (2012) is overwhelming.
The dialogue between old and new, which has to stand on the agenda of building culture of a city that is so strongly influenced by history, also features the reconstruction of the Gasometer in Simmering by Coop Himmelb(l)au, Wilhelm Holzbauer, Jean Nouvel and Manfred Wehdorn (1999-2001). Here was not only created new housing, but also a historical industrial monument reinterpreted into a signal in the urban development area.
New Neighborhood
In recent years, the major railway stations and their surroundings moved into the focus of planning. Here not only necessary infrastructural measures were taken, but at the same time opened up spacious inner-city residential areas and business districts. Among the prestigious projects are included the construction of the new Vienna Central Station, started in 2010 with the surrounding office towers of the Quartier Belvedere and the residential and school buildings of the Midsummer quarter (Sonnwendviertel). Europe's largest wooden tower invites here for a spectacular view to the construction site and the entire city. On the site of the former North Station are currently being built 10,000 homes and 20,000 jobs, on that of the Aspangbahn station is being built at Europe's greatest Passive House settlement "Euro Gate", the area of the North Western Railway Station is expected to be developed from 2020 for living and working. The largest currently under construction residential project but can be found in the north-eastern outskirts, where in Seaside Town Aspern till 2028 living and working space for 40,000 people will be created.
In one of the "green lungs" of Vienna, the Prater, 2013, the WU campus was opened for the largest University of Economics of Europe. Around the central square spectacular buildings of an international architect team from Great Britain, Japan, Spain and Austria are gathered that seem to lead a sometimes very loud conversation about the status quo of contemporary architecture (Hitoshi Abe, BUSarchitektur, Peter Cook, Zaha Hadid, NO MAD Arquitectos, Carme Pinós).
Flying high
International is also the number of architects who have inscribed themselves in the last few years with high-rise buildings in the skyline of Vienna and make St. Stephen's a not always unproblematic competition. Visible from afar is Massimiliano Fuksas' 138 and 127 meters high elegant Twin Tower at Wienerberg (1999-2001). The monolithic, 75-meter-high tower of the Hotel Sofitel at the Danube Canal by Jean Nouvel (2007-10), on the other hand, reacts to the particular urban situation and stages in its top floor new perspectives to the historical center on the other side.
Also at the water stands Dominique Perrault's DC Tower (2010-13) in the Danube City - those high-rise city, in which since the start of construction in 1996, the expansion of the city north of the Danube is condensed symbolically. Even in this environment, the slim and at the same time striking vertically folded tower of Perrault is beyond all known dimensions; from its Sky Bar, from spring 2014 on you are able to enjoy the highest view of Vienna. With 250 meters, the tower is the tallest building of Austria and almost twice as high as the St. Stephen's Cathedral. Vienna, thus, has acquired a new architectural landmark which cannot be overlooked - whether it also has the potential to become a landmark of the new Vienna, only time will tell. The architectural history of Vienna, where European history is presence and new buildings enter into an exciting and not always conflict-free dialogue with a great and outstanding architectural heritage, in any case has yet to offer exciting chapters.
Info: The folder "Architecture: From Art Nouveau to the Presence" is available at the Vienna Tourist Board and can be downloaded on www.wien.info/media/files/guide-architecture-in-wien.pdf.
Clarence Terrace, London. Built in 1823, designed by Decimus Burton under Nash's supervision, and constructed by James Burton. It was completely rebuilt in 1965, as apartments rather than terraced houses. It is grade 1 listed.
Marylebone, City of Westminster, London, England - Clarence Terrace, Outer Circle, Regents Park
January 2026
Frisco, NC. October 2023.
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A look at Conwy Castle, part of a UNESCO World Heritage site with the other North Wales Edward I castles, as well as with the Town Walls.
Didn't really come to Conwy for the castle, mainly for the Conwy Suspension Bridge and Aberconwy House. Also have been to two of the other castles in this UNESCO listing months earlier (Beaumaris and Caernarfon). Although did see Beaumaris once more during this second holiday in North Wales in summer 2018.
Conwy Castle (Welsh: Castell Conwy, English: Conway Castle) is a medieval fortification in Conwy, on the north coast of Wales. It was built by Edward I, during his conquest of Wales, between 1283 and 1289. Constructed as part of a wider project to create the walled town of Conwy, the combined defences cost around £15,000, a huge sum for the period. Over the next few centuries, the castle played an important part in several wars. It withstood the siege of Madog ap Llywelyn in the winter of 1294–95, acted as a temporary haven for Richard II in 1399 and was held for several months by forces loyal to Owain Glyndŵr in 1401.
Following the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642, the castle was held by forces loyal to Charles I, holding out until 1646 when it surrendered to the Parliamentary armies. In the aftermath the castle was partially slighted by Parliament to prevent it being used in any further revolt, and was finally completely ruined in 1665 when its remaining iron and lead was stripped and sold off. Conwy Castle became an attractive destination for painters in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Visitor numbers grew and initial restoration work was carried out in the second half of the 19th century. In the 21st century the ruined castle is managed by Cadw as a tourist attraction.
UNESCO considers Conwy to be one of "the finest examples of late 13th century and early 14th century military architecture in Europe", and it is classed as a World Heritage site. The rectangular castle is built from local and imported stone and occupies a coastal ridge, originally overlooking an important crossing point over the River Conwy. Divided into an Inner and an Outer Ward, it is defended by eight large towers and two barbicans, with a postern gate leading down to the river, allowing the castle to be resupplied from the sea. It retains the earliest surviving stone machicolations in Britain and what historian Jeremy Ashbee has described as the "best preserved suite of medieval private royal chambers in England and Wales". In keeping with other Edwardian castles in North Wales, the architecture of Conwy has close links to that found in the kingdom of Savoy during the same period, an influence probably derived from the Savoy origins of the main architect, James of Saint George.
Grade I listed building
History
Conwy Castle was begun in 1283 following the successful conquest of Snowdonia by the armies of Edward I of England. It was one of a defensive ring of castles erected around the North Wales coast from Aberystwyth to Flint, and in addition protected a walled town that was the largest of the medieval boroughs of North Wales. Work began with digging the rock-cut ditches, under the direction of Richard of Chester, master engineer. The design of the castle and supervision of building was under the control of James of St George, Master of the King's Works in Wales and the foremost secular architect of his age. Other subordinate master craftsmen included Henry of Oxford and Laurence of Canterbury, both master carpenters, and John Francis who, like James of St George, was from Savoy. The castle and town wall were substantially complete by 1287.
Modifications were made to the buildings in 1346-7 by Henry de Snelleston, mason to Edward, Prince of Wales (the Black Prince). This included replacing original roof trusses and strengthening the roofs by adding masonry arches. By the end of the C15 its military importance was diminishing and the castle slowly decayed. It was described as in poor condition in 1627, and in 1631 it was sold to Charles I's secretary of state, who assumed the title Viscount Conway of Conway Castle. During the Civil War the castle was repaired and fortified for the Royalists under the leadership of John Williams, exiled archbishop of York and a native of Conwy. The castle surrendered in 1646 and in 1655 the castle was 'disabled' by blowing up a portion of the bakehouse tower, making a substantial breach. The castle was restored to the Conway family after the Restoration, when some of the buildings, and the lead roofs, were taken down. Ownership passed to the Seymour family until, in 1865, it was given to the town. During this period there was some restoration and the bakehouse tower was rebuilt by the LNWR, whose railway line passed the foot of the castle. Since 1953, when more substantial conservation work began, the castle has been a guardianship monument in the care of the state.
Exterior
A castle whose compact design is dictated by the rocky outcrop on which its stands. Roughly rectangular in plan, it has a curtain wall with 8 higher round towers enclosing an outer ward on the W side, and smaller near-square inner ward to the E overlooking the river. Additional defence was provided by barbicans at E and W entrances. Walls are coursed rubble, with freestone dressings of pink sandstone. They are embattled with saddleback copings to the merlons, which also have arrow loops on the towers. The round towers have loops and openings of 2-light mullioned windows, although few of the mullions have survived, and higher round stair turrets. Many features are consistent throughout the building, including freestone fireplaces with raked stone hoods, and window seats.
The main entrance from the town is on the W side. It retains part of a ramp on the N side from the modern Castle Square. The gap over which the drawbridge was lowered has been covered by a timber platform. The entrance arch to the W barbican has a pointed arch with portcullis slots, flanked by round turrets with corbel tables. Inside the gateway are later stone steps to a gate passage, where there is a modern breach in the wall for visitor access, and the springers and draw-bar sockets of another gateway. The W barbican has an almost straight wall with 3 turrets. The town wall is attached to the southernmost turret.
Entrance to the E barbican was from the Water Gate. The outer steps have disappeared, probably lost when Thomas Telford built the suspension bridge in 1822-6, but they are shown on the Buck brothers' 1742 engraving of the castle. Steps inside the barbican have survived, but of the doorway in the barbican wall only the draw-bar sockets have survived. The faceted E barbican wall has 3 turrets similar to the W side.
The castle has 8 towers, of which 6 enclose the outer ward, one at the corners and one half way along each of the N and S walls, and 4 enclose the inner ward, of which 2 (stockhouse and bakehouse towers) are common to both inner and outer wards. In the outer ward the S wall is faceted and the W wall is narrower than the E. Otherwise the whole castle is rectangular in plan. The W wall of the outer ward has a pointed arch, below deep corbels of former machicolations. On the N side of the outer ward, both sections of wall have 2 loops and 2 latrine shafts, including one on the W side contained within a shallow projection and low round turret. Attached to the stockhouse tower, between inner and outer wards, is the town wall. The inner ward N wall has 2 loops and 2 low-level outlets of latrine shafts. On the S side each section of the outer ward has 3 windows, 2 loops to the cellar and latrine shaft at wall-walk level. The bakehouse tower between inner and outer wards is partly rebuilt in snecked stone, with a battered plinth of rock-faced stone, repairs carried out by LNWR in the 1870s of the deliberate breach made in 1655. The inner ward S wall has a doorway at ground-floor level above a battered rubble plinth (the only section not built directly on bedrock). At 1st-floor level are 2 loops, a larger opening centre-R, and a former doorway at the R end. Above 1st-floor level are 3 latrine shafts. The E wall, from the E barbican, has a shoulder-headed doorway, 4 1st-floor windows with stepped lintels, and deep corbelled machicolations, although the embattled parapet has not survived.
In the outer ward, the gate passage has portcullis slots and draw-bar sockets, and a high-level door on the S side, to stone steps up to the wall walk. The inner side of the wall is corbelled out at parapet level. The NW and SW towers form a pair. They each have 2 superimposed newel stairs restored in concrete. Both have fireplaces to 1st and 2nd floors. In addition the SW tower has a domed bread oven at ground floor, and latrine to the 1st floor. The kitchen tower in the centre of the N side of the outer ward has a ruined newel stair. The wall walk is corbelled out around its faceted inner side. The prison tower on the corresponding S side has a dungeon, but otherwise similar details to the other towers, including restored newel stairs and ruined fireplaces, except for a 2nd-floor fireplace with flat stone arch instead of a corbelled lintel.
Remains of buildings can be seen against each of the outer ward walls. Of the guard rooms to the W, flanking the gate passage, and kitchen and stables on the N, only footings have survived. Against the S wall is a long faceted range housing lesser hall and a small chamber in the W facet, great hall in the central facet, passage and chapel in the E facet. At the W end are stone steps leading down to a pointed cellar doorway with continuous chamfer. To its L is a pointed window, its tracery missing but originally 2-light. Further L is a similar former 2-light window to the great hall that retains fragments of bar tracery. In the E facet are the passage doorway, the dressings of which are mostly missing and with modern stone steps, and 2-light chapel window, also with fragments of bar tracery. The chapel has a similar former 3-light E window. Inside, this range has one transverse arch and the springers and haunches of 7 others, all inserted in the mid C14 to support the roof. The lesser hall has a fireplace in its W end wall; the small chamber between halls has a N fireplace; the great hall has a fireplace against the prison tower. Access to the prison tower is from the embrasure of one the S windows of the great hall. The cellar has a dividing wall below the chapel with doorway.
On the E side of the outer ward is a stone-lined well, approximately 91 feet deep. Behind the well was a drawbridge to a small gatehouse at the middle gate between inner and outer wards. The gatehouse is square in plan with narrow loop in the W wall. The middle gate has a doorway with shouldered lintel to each end of its passage, and draw-bar socket.
The other entrance to the inner ward, the E gate, has draw-bar sockets, and a passage giving access to mural stairs to the king's tower and chapel tower. The stockhouse and bakehouse towers are similar to the towers in the outer wards. The bakehouse tower has a domed oven behind the ground-floor fireplace, and restored newel stairs. The stockhouse tower has ruined newel stairs. The NE chapel tower has a restored conical slate roof. From the inner ward is a C19 restored doorway with red sandstone jamb to the ground floor. It also has a passage and doorway above the water gate on the outer (E) side. A mural stair leads to the 1st-floor chapel, where there is also a separate latrine. The rib-vaulted chapel is round with an apsidal sanctuary. The sanctuary has wall shafts and cusped arcading, incorporating sedilia on the S side, below 3 pointed windows with leaded glazing. On the S side is a squint from a small cell. On the N side of the chapel is a deep window seat, which also features a squint to the sanctuary. A restored mural stair leads to the upper chamber. The SW king's tower has a restored newel stair. At 1st-floor level is a small keeled tunnel-vaulted chamber.
Buildings are ranged against the walls of the inner ward, including the king's private apartments. Against the S wall are the 1st-floor king's chamber on the E and king's hall on the W (known as presence chamber and privy chamber respectively in a survey of 1627), with a passage to the bakehouse tower at the W end. This passage has a segmental-pointed arch. Two windows to its L have dressings mostly missing, and further L is a segmental-headed ground-floor doorway and another window. Entrance to the 1st-floor hall is by a doorway above the passage, which has a 2-light cusped square-headed window immediately to its L. Further L are 2 hall windows and a 3rd to the king's chamber, all square-headed with relieving arches, bar-tracery fragments and fragments of sunk spandrels. Next L is the wall over the passage to the E gate (later used as a buttery). From inside the passage the range has a ground-floor doorway with chamfered dressings and springers of a possible cambered arch, and at the L end a 1st-floor doorway with segmental head. The W wall of the hall has 2 1st-floor doorways with segmental heads. Inside, beneath the hall is a ground-floor fireplace to the W wall, and larger former corbelled 1st-floor fireplace in the S wall. One floor-length window reveal in the S wall has a short passage to a latrine. Hall and chamber have one complete and the springers of 3 other C14 stone transverse arches supporting the former roof. In the king's chamber the 1st-floor has floor-length S and E window reveals opening to mural passages to a latrine and the king's tower.
Against the E wall of the inner ward are the passage to the E gate, and what was known in 1627 as the 1st-floor great chamber. The passage on the R has a pointed segmental arch, to the L of which the ground floor has a segmental-headed window and a small window further L. The 1st-floor great chamber was entered by a doorway at the R end over the passage, which has a cambered head. The chamber has one large square-headed W window under a relieving arch. Inside, fireplaces were built into the W walls, with tripartite lintel in the ground floor. The springers and haunches survive of 2 former transverse arches added in the mid C14 to support the roof.
Reasons for Listing
Listed grade I as one of the oustanding Edwardian medieval castles of Wales.
Scheduled Ancient Monument CN004
The view from Vicarage Gardens Car Park
I love outer space. There is so much to learn about it and it's so massive and astounding. The violence that occurs out there is masked by it's silence that travels through out the empty space. That's me trying to be poetic. I suck lol.
I'm thinking about doing a series with planets :)
Strobist: Bare 430EX II where my hand is located.
The Chennakeshava Temple, (Kannada: ಶ್ರೀ ಚೆನ್ನಕೇಶವ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನ) originally called Vijayanarayana Temple (Kannada: ವಿಜಯನಾರಾಯಣ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನ), was built on the banks of the Yagachi River in Belur, by the Hoysala Empire King Vishnuvardhana. Belur, which was an early Hoysala capital is in the Hassan district of Karnataka state, India. It is 40 km from Hassan city and 220 km from Bangalore. Chennakesava (lit, "handsome Kesava") is a form of the Hindu god Vishnu. Belur is well known for its marvelous temples built during the rule of the Hoysala dynasty, making it and nearby Halebidu favored tourist destinations in Karnataka state. These temple complexes have been proposed to be listed under UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
HISTORY
The temple was commissioned by King Vishnuvardhana in 1117 AD. Scholars are divided about the reasons for the construction of the temple. The military successes of Vishnuvardhana is considered a probable reason. Some scholars believe Vishnuvardhana commissioned the temple to surpass his overlord, King Vikramaditya VI of the Western Chalukya Empire (who ruled from Basavakalyan), after his initial military victories against the Chalukyas. According to another theory, Vishnuvardhana was celebrating his famous victory against the Chola dynasty of Tamil country in the battle of Talakad (1116 AD), which resulted in the annexation of Gangavadi (modern southern Karnataka) by the Hoysalas. Another theory points to Vishnuvardhana's conversion from Jainism to Vaishnavism (a sect of Hinduism) after coming under the influence of saint Ramanujacharya, considering this is a predominantly Vaishnava temple in sculptural iconography. The Hoysalas employed many noted architects and artisans who developed a new architectural tradition, which art critic Adam Hardy called the Karnata Dravida tradition. In all 118 inscriptions have been recovered from the temple complex, covering the period 1117 AD to the 18th century, giving historians details of the artists employed, grants made to the temple and renovations committed during later times.
TEMPLE COMPLEX
The main entrance to the complex is crowned by a Rayagopura (superstructure over entrance) built during the days of the Vijayanagar empire. Within the complex, the Chennakesava temple is at the centre, facing east, and is flanked by the Kappe Channigraya temple on its right, and a small Sowmyanayaki (form of the goddess Lakshmi) temple set slightly back. On its left, also set slightly back is the Ranganayaki (Andal) temple. Two main sthambha (pillar) exist here. The pillar facing the main temple, the Garuda (eagle) sthambha was erected in the Vijayanagar period while the pillar on the right, the Deepa sthambha (pillar with lamp) dates from the Hoysala period. This is the first great Hoysala temple, though according to the art critic and historian Settar, the artistic idiom and signature is still Western Chalukyan. Hence, the over-decoration which is seen in later Hoysala temples (including the Hoysaleswara temple at Halebidu and the Keshava temple at Somanathapura) is not visible here. According to Settar, during later years, the Hoysala art took an inclination towards craftsmanship, with a weakness for minutia. The Chennakesava temple has three entrances and their doorways have decorated sculptures called dvarapalaka (doorkeepers) on either side. While the Kappe Channigraya temple is smaller than the Chennakesava temple, it is architecturally significant, though it lacks any sculptural features. The Kappe Chennigraya temple became a dvikuta (two shrined temple) with the later addition of a shrine to its original plan. The original shrine has a star-shaped plan while the additional shrine is a simple square. The image inside is also that of Kesava ( a form of the god Krishna) and was commissioned by Shantala Devi, the noted queen of King Vishnuvardhana.
TEMPLE PLAN
The building material used in the Chennakesava temple is chloritic schist, more commonly known as (soapstone) or potstone, and is essentially a simple Hoysala plan built with extraordinary detail. What differentiates this temple from other Hoysala temples of the same plan is the unusually large size of the basic parts of the temple. The temple is a ekakuta vimana design (single shrine) of 10.5 m by 10.5 m size. A large vestibule connects the shrine to the mandapa (hall) which is one of the main attractions of the temple. The mandapa has 60 "bays" (compartments). The superstructure (tower or Sikhara) on top of the vimana has been lost over time. The temple is built on a jagati (platform for circumabulation). There is one flight of steps leading to the jagati and another flight of steps to the mantapa. The jagati provides the devotee the opportunity to do a pradakshina (circumambulation) around the temple before entering it. The jagati carefully follows the staggered square design of the mantapa and the star shape of the shrine. The mantapa here was originally an open one. A visitor would have been able to see the ornate pillars of the open mantapa from the platform. According to art critic Gerard Foekema, the mantapa is perhaps the most magnificent one in all of medieval India. The open mantapa was converted into a closed one after about fifty years, during the Hoysala rule. This was done by erecting walls with pierced window screens. The window screens are on top of 2 m high walls. There are twenty eight such windows, with star-shaped perforations and bands of foliage, figures and mythological subjects. On one such screen, King Vishnuvardhana and his queen Shanatala Devi are depicted. Another icon depicts the king in a standing posture.
SHRINE
The vimana (shrine) is at the back of the mantapa. Each side of the vimana measures 10.5 m and has five vertical sections. Each vertical section comprises a large double storeyed niche in the centre and two heavy pillar-like sections on either side. The two pillar-like sections adjoining the niche are rotated about their vertical axis to produce a star-shaped plan for the shrine. The pillar-like section and the niche bear many ornate sculptures, belonging to an earlier style. There are some sixty large sculptures of deities from both Vaishnava and Shaiva faiths. From the shape of the vimana it has been inferred that the tower above it would have been of the Bhumija style when it existed and not the regular star shaped tower that followed the shape of the vimana. The Bhumija towers, which are intact on the miniature shrines at the entrance of the hall are actually a type of nagara (North Indian) tower, being curvilinear in shape. This shape of tower is quite uncommon in pure dravidian architecture. The shrine has a life size (about 6 ft) image of Keshava (a form of Vishnu) with four hands. Each hand holds an attribute; the discus (chakra), the mace (gadha), the lotus-flower (padma) and the conch (Shanka), in clockwise direction. The entrance to the shrine is flanked by life size sculptures of door guardians (dvarapalaka).
PILLARS & SCULPTURES
The pillars inside the hall are an attraction and the most popular one is the Narasimha pillar which at one time could have revolved on its ball bearings. According to the historian Kamath, there is a rich diversity about the pillar styles here. While all the forty eight pillars are unique and the many ceiling sections are well decorated, nothing surpasses the finish of the four central pillars and the ceiling they support. These pillars may have been hand chiseled while the others were lathe turned. All of these four pillars bear madanikas (Salabhanjika–celestial damsels). There are 42 of them in the temple complex, one each on the four central pillars inside the hall and the remaining 38 are outside, between the eaves on the outer walls of the hall. They are also called shilabalika and represent the ideal female form. They are depicted in various forms, such as dancers, musicians and drummers, and are rarely erotic in nature. Some madanikas that usually are popular with tourists are the Darpana Sundari (lit,"beauty with mirror"), "The lady with the parrot", "The huntress" and Bhasma mohini. Other interesting sculptures inside the mantapa are Sthamba buttalika (pillar with an image in frieze) which is more in the Chola style indicating that the Hoysalas may have employed Chola craftsman along with locals. These images have less decor than regular Hoysala sculptures, the mohini pillar being an example.
At the base of the outer walls are friezes of charging elephants (six hundred and fifty of them) which symbolize stability and strength, above which are lions which symbolize courage, and further up are horses which symbolize speed. Above the horses are panels with floral designs signifying beauty above which are sculptures with depictions from the Hindu epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. According to Kamath, this style of articulation is called horizontal treatment with friezes. Hoysala artisans preferred to be discreet about eroticism, mingling miniature erotic sculptures in not so conspicuous places such as recesses and niches. Sculptures depict daily life in a broad sense.
The doorways to the mantapa have on both sides an image of "Sala" slaying a lion. Historian Kamath claims this is a tiger. Though Sala is known to be the founder of the Hoysala empire in popular legend, there is no support for this theory from scholars such as D.M. Durrett, B.R. Joshi and Hayavadhana Rao. Normally this image is placed on the sukanasi (tower over the vestibule) adjoining the main tower. Legend has it that Sala killed the lion (or tiger) which was about to pounce on a meditating saint who sought Sala's help. Some historians speculate that the legend may have gained importance after King Vishnuvardhana's victory over the Chola dynasty in the battle of Talakad, the tiger being the royal emblem of the Cholas.
Other important sculptures here are the Narasimha (a form of Vishnu) image in the south western corner, Gajasurasamhara (Hindu god Shiva slaying demon in form of elephant) on the western side, the winged Garuda, a consort of the god Vishnu standing facing the temple, dancing Kali (a form of Durga), a seated Ganesha (son of Shiva), a boy with an umbrella and a king (the Vamana Avatar or incarnation of Vishnu), Ravana shaking Mount Kailash, Durga slaying demon Mahishasura, standing Brahma, Varaha (avatar of Vishnu), Shiva dancing on demon (Andhakasura), Bhairava (avatar of Shiva), Pandava prince Arjuna shooting a fish seeing its reflection, and the Sun god Surya. The sculptural style of the wall images bear similarities with wall sculptures in contemporary temples of northern Karnataka and adjacent Maharashtra.
ARTISTS
The Hoysala artists, unlike other medieval artists, preferred to sign their work in the form of inscriptions. In doing so, they sometimes revealed details about themselves, their families, guilds and place of origin. Stone inscriptions and copper plate inscriptions provide more information about them. Ruvari Mallitamma was a prolific artist to whom more than 40 sculptures are attributed. Dasoja and his son Chavana who were from Balligavi in modern Shimoga district made important contributions. Chavana is credited with the work on five madanikas and Dasoja accomplished four of them. Malliyanna and Nagoja created birds and animals in their sculptures. Artists such as Chikkahampa and Malloja are credited with some of the sculptures in the mantapa.
WIKIPEDIA
From Wikipedia: "Avebury is a Neolithic henge monument containing three stone circles, around the village of Avebury in Wiltshire, in southwest England." Avebury contains the largest stone circle in Europe, and was constructed around 2600 B.C.
In this photo the short, uniform bollards (2nd & 3rd from right stone, etc.) were placed at suspected locations of henge stones that are no longer present.
Avebury is one of Britain's most important prehistoric sites, renowned for the standing stones that punctuate the village and represent the remains of one of the largest Neolithic stone circles ever constructed.
The present village of Avebury was built partially within the old stone circle, which is itself surrounded by earthworks forming a circular ditch, a massive undertaking. Almost half the stones of the outer circle remain in some form, mostly on the western side closer to the heart of the village. The huge roughly hewn monoliths are impressive, not least for the effort that must have been required to transport them and erect them here in a standing position.
South of the main circle and village is the Avenue which extends outwards for some distance towards West Kennett. The Avenue is lined on both sides by more standing stones, many of which are missing and generally smaller than those in the circle, but it still makes for a dramatic approach to the site.
My first encounter with Avebury was through a spooky television series in the 1970s called 'Children of the Stones' which was filmed on location here. The memory of the eerie atmosphere of the mysterious stones had stayed with me ever since.
For more on the site see the article below:-
Once again, a series of abstract photos leading me back to the Gas Giant planets circling a far away sun
The sPHENIX detector under assembly. This image shows the complete array of outer hadronic calorimeter sectors surrounding a superconducting solenoid magnet at the core of the detector. sPHENIX is a radical makeover of the PHENIX experiment, one of the original detectors designed to collect data at Brookhaven Lab’s Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. It includes many new components that significantly enhance scientists’ ability to learn about quark-gluon plasma (QGP), an exotic form of nuclear matter created in RHIC’s energetic particle smashups
There's no fooling some of my contacts and while I didn't expect anyone to get the exact island, Chris was nearest with Harris. It is the Outer Hebrides - not Harris but a bit further south on the island of Eriskay, now connected to South Uist by a causeway. The beaches on Uist were of almost silver sand, while those on Harris were much more golden for some reason. It was just off Eriskay that the SS Politician ran aground in 1941 with its famous cargo of whisky - the story of which gave rise to the film "Whisky Galore". Pictured above is the ferry heading to Barra.
We stayed on 3 islands - North Uist, Harris and Skye, using a Calmac "Island hopscotch" ferry ticket and staying in small b&bs. Each island has it's own character and beautiful scenery. Plenty more pictures to come!
MS Amadea is a cruise ship owned by Amadea Shipping Company and operated under charter by the Germany-based Phoenix Reisen. Originally built in 1991 by the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shipyard in Nagasaki, Japan.
Seen arriving at Outer Harbor, South Australia on 27 January 2008.
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It Is Only Through Inner Peace (2)
It is only through inner peace
That we can have true outer freedom.
Sri Chinmoy, Enthusiasm, part 3, 2002
An American Pitbull enjoying the beach in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
The Home for Outer Banks Real Estate
Beach, surf, and a pod of Dolphins off shore at 8am.
Illford Delta 100 FILM, Medium format.
Prints available at zacharymassengill.smugmug.com
Outer Banks Furniture (12,500 square feet)
5000 South Croatan Highway, Outer Banks Mall, Nags Head, NC
This location opened in spring 2016 (previously located here) and closed in 2021; it was originally a Peoples Drug, which opened in May 1983 and closed in August 1991. It became a The Book Market in 1992, which relocated here in 1997, a Sears Hometown Store in April 1997, which relocated here in spring 2016, and a Mattress Warehouse on November 17th, 2023.