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The all new re-engineered and rigorously tested MakerBot Replicator+ 3D printer. Single PLA extruder. Large build volume. New, flexible build plate. Controlled via LCD screen and jog dial. On-board camera for remote monitoring. Connect it with USB cable, Wi-Fi, USB memory stick, or Ethernet. Internal power supply. See more at makerbot.creativetools.se
The Annunciation Cathedral in Voronezh, Russia, is a towering Eastern Orthodox cathedral constructed between 1998 and 2009, serving as the episcopal seat of the Voronezh diocese within the Russian Orthodox Church. The cathedral building stands at approximately 85 meters, reaching a total height of 97 meters including its bell tower, with five copper domes; it ranks among the tallest Orthodox churches worldwide. Designed in the Russian-Byzantine style by architect V. P. Shevelyov and patterned after the historic St. Vladimir's Cathedral in Kyiv, the cathedral was consecrated on September 18, 2011, by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, marking a significant revival of Orthodox architecture in the region following the Soviet era.
This modern structure replaces an earlier Annunciation Cathedral on the same site, which originated with a wooden church commissioned by Saint Mitrofan of Voronezh, the first bishop of the Voronezh Eparchy established in 1681, and built from 1684 to 1692 to bolster the Orthodox presence in the frontier area. This initial structure was replaced by a stone cathedral in Ukrainian Baroque style, constructed between 1718 and 1735. The cathedral became a focal point for veneration after Mitrofan's canonization in 1832, when Emperor Nicholas I attended the opening of his relics there, sparking widespread pilgrimages. The historic site evolved into the core of the Blagoveshchensky Mitrofansky Monastery by 1836, but the cathedral was demolished by Soviet authorities in the 1950s as part of anti-religious campaigns.
Today, the Annunciation Cathedral not only functions as a center for liturgical services, including regular divine liturgies led by Metropolitan Leonty of Voronezh and Liski (as of 2023), but also houses the relics of Saint Mitrofan, returned to the Church in 1989 after Bolshevik confiscation, alongside those of other local saints like Anthony of Voronezh and Tikhon of Zadonsk. A monument to Saint Mitrofan was unveiled in front of the cathedral in 2003, underscoring its role as a pilgrimage destination and symbol of enduring faith in Voronezh's history. The attached bell tower draws inspiration from designs by architect Giacomo Quarenghi, blending historical reverence with contemporary grandeur, while ongoing projects include embellishing reliquaries for the saints' remains.
Following the destruction of the original cathedral during the Soviet era, which cleared the site in the city center, reconstruction efforts for a new Annunciation Cathedral began in 1998 as part of the broader post-Soviet religious revival supported by the Russian Orthodox Church. On August 7, 1998, the Voronezh city administration allocated a plot in the central Pervomaysky Garden to the Voronezh Diocese for the project. The first stone was laid on August 28, 1998, during the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos, with Metropolitan Methodius of Voronezh and Lipetsk leading the ceremony, attended by regional and city leaders. Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia consecrated the foundation on October 15, 1998, during his visit to Voronezh, marking the official initiation under Church auspices.
Construction progressed steadily from 1998 to 2009, resulting in a five-domed structure designed in the Russo-Byzantine style by architect Vladimir Petrovich Shevelev. The design drew inspiration from the demolished 19th-century St. Vladimir's Cathedral in Voronezh, which had been built in a similar style influenced by Konstantin Thon, while the attached bell tower echoed the 18th-century design by Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi for the original Annunciation Cathedral. Key milestones included raising the main dome in November 2001, installing a 12-meter cross weighing nearly 5 tons on October 14, 2001, and mounting the 6-ton main bell on the belfry on March 23, 2002. The belfry was completed in 2003, and on December 4, 2003, a cross was raised atop its 84-meter spire.12 During this phase, on May 23-24, 2003, a bronze monument to St. Mitrofan of Voronezh—8.5 meters tall and weighing 8 tons, sculpted by I.P. Dikunov—was unveiled in the square before the cathedral to commemorate the city's first bishop.
Funding for the project relied primarily on public donations and charitable contributions, with significant support from local businesses such as the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant until 2003. In August 2003, the Regional Public Charitable Fund of St. Mitrofan was established by Metropolitan Sergius and Voronezh Oblast Governor Vladimir Kulakov to coordinate collections from residents and organizations, ensuring transparent budgeting. By 2009, the fund's board expanded to include high-ranking officials like Governor Alexey Gordeev, facilitating additional financing from enterprises; total expenditures reached approximately 450 million rubles. The cathedral was officially opened on December 6, 2009, with the first Divine Liturgy in the upper church led by Metropolitan Sergius, though full consecration by Patriarch Kirill occurred in 2011.
The Annunciation Cathedral in Voronezh exemplifies the Russo-Byzantine architectural style, a revivalist approach that draws on medieval Russian Orthodox traditions blended with 19th-century imperial influences. This style is characterized by its emphasis on verticality, ornate detailing, and symbolic forms evoking ancient Byzantine and Kievan Rus' heritage. The cathedral's design was specifically modeled after the lost St. Vladimir's Cathedral in Kiev and the works of architect Konstantin Thon, such as the Grand Kremlin Palace and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, incorporating pseudo-Russian elements like bulbous domes and patterned brickwork to convey grandeur and spiritual elevation.
In terms of scale, the cathedral stands as one of the tallest Eastern Orthodox churches worldwide, reaching a height of 97 meters at its central dome. Its configuration features five prominent copper-colored domes arranged in a traditional cross plan, symbolizing the five wounds of Christ and providing a visual anchor in the skyline. This imposing structure not only dominates its surroundings but also underscores the post-Soviet resurgence of monumental religious architecture in Russia.
Situated at coordinates 51°40′34″N 39°12′39″E in the heart of Voronezh, the cathedral integrates seamlessly into the urban fabric of the city, serving as a focal point along the Voronezh River embankment and enhancing the area's historical and cultural landscape. Reconstructed between 1998 and 2009, it revives this style to reaffirm the Orthodox presence in a modern context.
The Annunciation Cathedral in Voronezh exhibits a classic five-dome configuration emblematic of Russian Orthodox architecture, consisting of a prominent central dome flanked by four smaller ones that together form the cathedral's distinctive silhouette. Constructed between 1998 and 2009 under the design of architect V. P. Shevelyov, the domes contribute to the structure's towering height of 97 meters, with the central dome installed in 2001 and all topped by stainless steel crosses coated in titanium since 2000. This layout draws inspiration from the late 19th-century St. Vladimir's Cathedral in Kyiv, emphasizing the Russo-Byzantine style's emphasis on verticality and symmetry.
The exterior facades reflect the building's cruciform plan, presenting a majestic and imposing presence that echoes the proportions of the demolished St. Vladimir's Cathedral while adhering to Russo-Byzantine principles of form and massing. The walls, built primarily of brick with stone accents typical of the style, feature subtle ornamental elements such as arched windows and decorative cornices that enhance the overall harmony without overwhelming the structure's clean lines. Portals at the main entrances are framed with classical detailing, inviting entry while maintaining the architectural restraint favored in post-Soviet reconstructions.
Attached to the main body of the cathedral is a prominent bell tower, designed to replicate the 18th-century structure originally conceived by Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi for the site's earlier cathedral. Rising to the full 97-meter height, the bell tower adopts a multi-tiered form with a flat Greek-style dome crowning its summit, supported by a drum on a pitched roof. Installed bells, starting with a 6-ton bass bell in 2002 produced locally in Voronezh, enable the tower to serve both acoustic and symbolic functions, its tiers adorned with simple neoclassical motifs that nod to Quarenghi's Baroque influences adapted to the Russo-Byzantine context.
The Annunciation Cathedral in Voronezh features a distinctive division into an upper and lower temple, reflecting traditional Orthodox architectural principles for multifunctional sacred spaces. The upper temple encompasses a vast, two-light volume with a cross-shaped plan under the main dome, centered around the principal altar dedicated to the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos. Below, the lower temple aligns with the crypt level and houses altars consecrated to the All-Merciful Savior and the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord, complemented by a lower aisle dedicated to Saints Dimitry of Rostov, Mitrofan of Voronezh, and Tikhon of Voronezh, which was solemnly dedicated on August 24, 2012, by Metropolitan Sergius of Voronezh and Borisoglebsk.
The interior is adorned in a classical Orthodox style, emphasizing spiritual elevation through iconography and decorative elements. The iconostasis comprises three tiers, with the central conch partially open to enhance visual connection to the altar; its royal doors form a deep semicircular portal embellished with intricate carving, plates of Pamir lapis lazuli, and gilded filigree overlays featuring vegetal motifs. The icons were crafted by Archimandrite Andrey (Tarasov) and artisans from the Holy Trinity Brotherhood in Shchigry, under the Kursk Diocese. A monumental mosaic deesis behind the altar replicates the 14th-century composition from Constantinople's Hagia Sophia, depicting Christ enthroned flanked by the Theotokos and John the Forerunner. Complementing these are extensive frescoes and wall paintings covering approximately 6,500 square meters across vaults and walls, executed by 15 artists over 11 years following the cathedral's initial opening in 2009; they follow a hierarchical scheme with Christ, the Theotokos, apostles, and angels in the upper registers bathed in golden light, biblical narratives midway, and scenes from the lives of Voronezh saints below, all integrated with liturgical furnishings such as candle stands and incense burners to support traditional services.
Central to the cathedral's interior is the veneration of relics, particularly those of Saint Mitrofan of Voronezh, the first bishop of the diocese, whose incorrupt remains were originally interred in the original Annunciation structure in 1703 and reconfirmed as miraculous in 1717 and 1832 during reconstructions. Following Soviet-era confiscation in 1929 and storage in the Voronezh Regional Museum after partial return to the Church in 1989, the relics were solemnly transferred to the reconstructed cathedral on December 5, 2009, via a grand procession involving thousands of pilgrims and clergy from the nearby Pokrovsky Cathedral, where they had been housed temporarily. Encased in ornate reliquaries, they now reside in the lower temple, drawing devotees for prayer and healing petitions during daily liturgies—the first of which occurred there on April 7, 2004—and major feasts, with the full consecration of the site by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow on September 18, 2011, underscoring their role in communal worship. The interior also enshrines a particle of the relics of Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk and the remains of Hieromartyr Peter (Zverev), enhancing the space's sanctity. This relic devotion connects symbolically to the external bronze monument of Saint Mitrofan, unveiled in 2003 directly before the cathedral, which serves as a focal point for pilgrims approaching the interior shrine.
During services, the sounds from the adjacent exterior bell tower enhance the liturgical atmosphere within, calling the faithful to prayer.
The Annunciation Cathedral serves as the principal cathedral of the Voronezh Metropolis within the Russian Orthodox Church, a status it has held since 1682 when it was established under the first Voronezh Bishop, Saint Mitrofan of Voronezh. As the seat of the diocesan bishop, currently Metropolitan Leontius of Voronezh and Liskinsk (appointed in 2024), it functions as the central hub for the ecclesiastical hierarchy in the region, overseeing spiritual leadership and major administrative activities for the diocese's clergy, monastics, and laity. Post-reconstruction in 2011, it has solidified its preeminent position among Voronezh's Orthodox churches, surpassing others like the Intercession and Holy Trinity cathedrals in its role as the primary site for hierarchical liturgies and diocesan gatherings.
The cathedral hosts the major patronal feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos on April 7 (March 25 in the Julian calendar), marked by solemn Divine Liturgies and processions that draw worshippers from across the metropolis. This feast underscores its dedication to the biblical event of the Archangel Gabriel's announcement to the Virgin Mary, with veneration centered on icons depicting the Annunciation, including those in the cathedral's iconostasis. Ongoing religious activities include daily services such as morning Hours, Divine Liturgy, Vespers, and Matins, conducted regularly in both the upper and lower temples to sustain the liturgical life of the community. Baptisms, a key sacrament, are performed on Tuesdays at 12:00 p.m., and on Thursdays and Sundays at 1:00 p.m., accommodating families seeking initiation into the Orthodox faith.
Pilgrimages to the cathedral are prominent, particularly those focused on the veneration of the Annunciation icon and the relics of Saint Mitrofan, which serve as a draw for devotees seeking spiritual intercession and healing. These activities reinforce the cathedral's role in fostering devotion within the Voronezh Diocese, where it remains the focal point for regional Orthodox pilgrimage and sacramental life following its late 20th-century reconstruction.
The all new re-engineered and rigorously tested MakerBot Replicator+ 3D printer. Single PLA extruder. Large build volume. New, flexible build plate. Controlled via LCD screen and jog dial. On-board camera for remote monitoring. Connect it with USB cable, Wi-Fi, USB memory stick, or Ethernet. Internal power supply. See more at makerbot.creativetools.se
The all new re-engineered and rigorously tested MakerBot Replicator+ 3D printer. Single PLA extruder. Large build volume. New, flexible build plate. Controlled via LCD screen and jog dial. On-board camera for remote monitoring. Connect it with USB cable, Wi-Fi, USB memory stick, or Ethernet. Internal power supply. See more at makerbot.creativetools.se
The all new re-engineered and rigorously tested MakerBot Replicator+ 3D printer. Single PLA extruder. Large build volume. New, flexible build plate. Controlled via LCD screen and jog dial. On-board camera for remote monitoring. Connect it with USB cable, Wi-Fi, USB memory stick, or Ethernet. Internal power supply. See more at makerbot.creativetools.se
ODC2 - Attempt to replicate something that has been on ODC explore
12/09/11
At first I thought, wow this will be fun, then I couldn't find an image that I thought I could replicate, then I thought it was a bit boring copying someone elses image...lol I went for a fairly easy one.......just because. Here is the link to the original by Iclower 19 www.flickr.com/photos/lclower19/5350194772/
“Any users, found to replicate, reproduce, circulate, distribute, download, manipulate or otherwise use my images without my written consent will be in breach of copyright laws as well as contract laws.”
“The Eye Moment photos by Nolan H. Rhodes”
nrhodesphotos@yahoo.com
a capture to replicate a day long gone, devoid of anything from the 21st Century - well other than my camera!
The British Railways (BR) ex-WD Austerity 2-10-0 Class was a class of 25 2-10-0 steam locomotives of the WD Austerity 2-10-0 type purchased in 1948 from the War Department. BR officially listed them in running stock in 1948, though most were kept in store until 1949-1950. BR allocated them the numbers 90750-90774. They were mostly allocated to Scottish Region ex-LMS sheds. They were given the power classification 8F. They were withdrawn between 1961-1962.
Concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers rest on an old cattle farm now an area of critical environmental concern managed by the BLM in southwest Oregon, Sept. 26, 2018. BLM photo: Matt Christenson
A quiet oak savanna in southwest Oregon has a World War II story to tell.
It was the summer of 1942 when thousands of young American troops started arriving in Oregon to prepare for battle.
Only months prior, immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into WWII, the U.S. Army broke ground on Camp White, a massively ambitious training ground for troops north of Medford.
The national war effort was ramping up, and from the rationing at home to the drill sergeants yelling at new draftees, the task at hand was unified: Get America prepared for war as fast as possible.
At Camp White, in the heart of the Rogue River Valley, it got loud very quick.
Construction crews worked 24 hours a day until the base, consisting of 1,300 structures, was complete. Barracks, mess halls, a railroad, full electrical grid and sewer system were all built in six months.
And then the troops arrived.
The newly reinstated 91st Division went on 91-mile-long hikes.
They fired bazookas, mortars and tanks.
And they attacked concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers.
Despite creating what was then Oregon’s second most populous city at 40,000 people, there are now only a few lasting structures proving Camp White ever existed. Sadly, there are even fewer first-hand memories.
The pillboxes are still standing, though. They simultaneously represent a mostly forgotten military legacy and since 2013, an opportunity for historic preservation.
After decades of private cattle farming, Camp White’s pillboxes now rest on public land.
Read the full story about the Camp White pillboxes that rest on the northeast side of Upper Table Rock, an area of critical environmental concern for the BLM: www.facebook.com/notes/blm-oregon-washington/the-wwii-leg...
Replicate the web link for a possibility to win the reward: giveaway.amazon.com/p/53fbc84770742142 Premium quality plastic container to make use of with traveling toiletries, cosmetics or various other usages. Product: PP Weight: 96g Bundle: 1 x 50ml pump container (12.5 * 3.2 centimeters) 2 x 80ml flip-cap container (11 * 3.5 centimeters) 1 x 50ml
Concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers rest on an old cattle farm now an area of critical environmental concern managed by the BLM in southwest Oregon, Sept. 26, 2018. BLM video: Toshio Suzuki
A quiet oak savanna in southwest Oregon has a World War II story to tell.
It was the summer of 1942 when thousands of young American troops started arriving in Oregon to prepare for battle.
Only months prior, immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into WWII, the U.S. Army broke ground on Camp White, a massively ambitious training ground for troops north of Medford.
The national war effort was ramping up, and from the rationing at home to the drill sergeants yelling at new draftees, the task at hand was unified: Get America prepared for war as fast as possible.
At Camp White, in the heart of the Rogue River Valley, it got loud very quick.
Construction crews worked 24 hours a day until the base, consisting of 1,300 structures, was complete. Barracks, mess halls, a railroad, full electrical grid and sewer system were all built in six months.
And then the troops arrived.
The newly reinstated 91st Division went on 91-mile-long hikes.
They fired bazookas, mortars and tanks.
And they attacked concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers.
Despite creating what was then Oregon’s second most populous city at 40,000 people, there are now only a few lasting structures proving Camp White ever existed. Sadly, there are even fewer first-hand memories.
The pillboxes are still standing, though. They simultaneously represent a mostly forgotten military legacy and since 2013, an opportunity for historic preservation.
After decades of private cattle farming, Camp White’s pillboxes now rest on public land.
Read the full story about the Camp White pillboxes that rest on the northeast side of Upper Table Rock, an area of critical environmental concern for the BLM: www.facebook.com/notes/blm-oregon-washington/the-wwii-leg...
Take a virtual tour of the pillboxes via this 360-degree video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgHu5y-TtAw
Shakaland Village Shaka Zulu Kraal Cultural Replication of a Zulu “Umuzi” or Homestead Normanhurst Farm Nkwalini Kwazulu-Natal South Africa May 1998
Sadly, Shakaland has now permanently closed in 2025
www.southafrica.net/au/en/travel/article/aha-shakaland-ho...
RepRap is a self-replicating 3D printer. It builds its own gears and components. (detail photos)
The coiled polymer feed looks like an IV bag bobbing over the working tip. The dual print head is affectionately called Zaphod.
Scattered about are sci foo camp tents… and the ubiquitous “foo bar” beckons in the background, serving variable drafts.
Concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers rest on an old cattle farm now an area of critical environmental concern managed by the BLM in southwest Oregon, Sept. 26, 2018. BLM video: Stephen Haney and Matt Bonsi
A quiet oak savanna in southwest Oregon has a World War II story to tell.
It was the summer of 1942 when thousands of young American troops started arriving in Oregon to prepare for battle.
Only months prior, immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into WWII, the U.S. Army broke ground on Camp White, a massively ambitious training ground for troops north of Medford.
The national war effort was ramping up, and from the rationing at home to the drill sergeants yelling at new draftees, the task at hand was unified: Get America prepared for war as fast as possible.
At Camp White, in the heart of the Rogue River Valley, it got loud very quick.
Construction crews worked 24 hours a day until the base, consisting of 1,300 structures, was complete. Barracks, mess halls, a railroad, full electrical grid and sewer system were all built in six months.
And then the troops arrived.
The newly reinstated 91st Division went on 91-mile-long hikes.
They fired bazookas, mortars and tanks.
And they attacked concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers.
Despite creating what was then Oregon’s second most populous city at 40,000 people, there are now only a few lasting structures proving Camp White ever existed. Sadly, there are even fewer first-hand memories.
The pillboxes are still standing, though. They simultaneously represent a mostly forgotten military legacy and since 2013, an opportunity for historic preservation.
After decades of private cattle farming, Camp White’s pillboxes now rest on public land.
Read the full story about the Camp White pillboxes that rest on the northeast side of Upper Table Rock, an area of critical environmental concern for the BLM: www.facebook.com/notes/blm-oregon-washington/the-wwii-leg...
Take a virtual tour of the pillboxes via this 360-degree video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgHu5y-TtAw
The 3D model: www.thingiverse.com/thing:69491
The 3D printer: makerbot.creativetools.se
For more information creative-tools.com
I've had 3 printing at once, but never all four. Yet.
From left to right:
- RepRap Kossel
- RepRap Prusa i3
- Ultimaker 2
- MakerBot Replicator 1 XL
Replication of festoon lighting columns and oriental dragon lanterns at Peasholm Park completed by JW UK on behalf of Scarborough Borough Council
The Makerbot Replicator has two print heads for dual color or dual material prints, and sometimes you might want to print a single color design with the other color. Re-rendering the STL can be time consuming, so it is easier to just swap all of the tool head commands to use the other extruder. The older version of ReplicatorG has a "swap tool heads" menu option, but it doesn't adjust the X offset. For a small print this would be fine and the print would be shifted 50mm to one side. For a large print that nearly fills the build platform, however, this repositioning can cause part of the output to fall off the edge of the build platform.
I am bound and determined to replicate everything I miss from the old food groups that I used to eat!!!
What a crazy weekend! It began on Saturday May 22, 2010. I got up at 5:30 a.m. It was thick with wet fog after having rained the previous day. The ground was wet, perfect for my weekend planting. I went outside and did all my garden chores. I came in and shot a picture of the coconut cake I had made the night before (before it was entirely eaten!!!). I've been sick for about 3 weeks and I was still feeling under the weather but I thought it would be great to head north into Wisconsin for a short road trip. I thought it might be nice to see some new countryside. I didn't want to get out of the car, go anywhere specifically, or to shoot pictures. I have just been too tired... Dave (spincast1123) has been sick too but he was getting bored/stir crazy! He said "let's head up to The International Crane Foundation in Baraboo Wisconsin?" It was the beginning of a very LONG WEEKEND!!!! We crammed tons of things in and stayed over night. We went to: 1) Merrimac Ferry 2) The International Crane Foundation 3) Baraboo Zoo/Park 4) Trolls in Mt. Horeb 5) The cave at Blue Mound and 6) Little Norway. Way too much fun and beauty!!!!!!
Concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers rest on an old cattle farm now an area of critical environmental concern managed by the BLM in southwest Oregon, Sept. 25, 2018. BLM photo: Matt Christenson
A quiet oak savanna in southwest Oregon has a World War II story to tell.
It was the summer of 1942 when thousands of young American troops started arriving in Oregon to prepare for battle.
Only months prior, immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into WWII, the U.S. Army broke ground on Camp White, a massively ambitious training ground for troops north of Medford.
The national war effort was ramping up, and from the rationing at home to the drill sergeants yelling at new draftees, the task at hand was unified: Get America prepared for war as fast as possible.
At Camp White, in the heart of the Rogue River Valley, it got loud very quick.
Construction crews worked 24 hours a day until the base, consisting of 1,300 structures, was complete. Barracks, mess halls, a railroad, full electrical grid and sewer system were all built in six months.
And then the troops arrived.
The newly reinstated 91st Division went on 91-mile-long hikes.
They fired bazookas, mortars and tanks.
And they attacked concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers.
Despite creating what was then Oregon’s second most populous city at 40,000 people, there are now only a few lasting structures proving Camp White ever existed. Sadly, there are even fewer first-hand memories.
The pillboxes are still standing, though. They simultaneously represent a mostly forgotten military legacy and since 2013, an opportunity for historic preservation.
After decades of private cattle farming, Camp White’s pillboxes now rest on public land.
Read the full story about the Camp White pillboxes that rest on the northeast side of Upper Table Rock, an area of critical environmental concern for the BLM: www.facebook.com/notes/blm-oregon-washington/the-wwii-leg...
Concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers rest on an old cattle farm now an area of critical environmental concern managed by the BLM in southwest Oregon, Sept. 26, 2018. BLM video: Toshio Suzuki
A quiet oak savanna in southwest Oregon has a World War II story to tell.
It was the summer of 1942 when thousands of young American troops started arriving in Oregon to prepare for battle.
Only months prior, immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into WWII, the U.S. Army broke ground on Camp White, a massively ambitious training ground for troops north of Medford.
The national war effort was ramping up, and from the rationing at home to the drill sergeants yelling at new draftees, the task at hand was unified: Get America prepared for war as fast as possible.
At Camp White, in the heart of the Rogue River Valley, it got loud very quick.
Construction crews worked 24 hours a day until the base, consisting of 1,300 structures, was complete. Barracks, mess halls, a railroad, full electrical grid and sewer system were all built in six months.
And then the troops arrived.
The newly reinstated 91st Division went on 91-mile-long hikes.
They fired bazookas, mortars and tanks.
And they attacked concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers.
Despite creating what was then Oregon’s second most populous city at 40,000 people, there are now only a few lasting structures proving Camp White ever existed. Sadly, there are even fewer first-hand memories.
The pillboxes are still standing, though. They simultaneously represent a mostly forgotten military legacy and since 2013, an opportunity for historic preservation.
After decades of private cattle farming, Camp White’s pillboxes now rest on public land.
Read the full story about the Camp White pillboxes that rest on the northeast side of Upper Table Rock, an area of critical environmental concern for the BLM: www.facebook.com/notes/blm-oregon-washington/the-wwii-leg...
Take a virtual tour of the pillboxes via this 360-degree video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgHu5y-TtAw
Launched yesterday, from the brilliant mind of the creator of the Mclaren F1 Supercar is the GMA T.50.
The T.50 replicates the three-seat, central driving position seen in the F1 of 30 years ago, and reprises many of that vehicles central themes, incuding a high-output naturally-aspirated V12 engine. the T.50 uses a 4.0 L developed by Cosworth engineering in the UK. The V12 has peak power of 487 kW @ 11,500 rpm, and peak torque (low by current supercar standards) of 467 Nm @ 9,000 rpm.
This shortfall in torque is less of an issue due to the T.50's low 986 kg kerb weight. This is achieved via a lightweight an compact carbon-fibre monocoque body, and the inclusion of significant amounts of lightweight and strong titanium in the engine.
One very cool feature is the gullwing engine covers, seen previously on the deTomaso Mangusta back in the early 1970s.
The major new party trick seen in the T.50 is the 8.5 kW electric fan-forced ground-effect aerodynamics. The fan is powered from a 48-Volt electrical systems (the generator sits at the end of the engine crankshaft). This permits stable, high-speed cornering without the resultant aerodynamic drag generated by large wings mounted on the top-side of the body.
The GMA T.50 is due in 2022, limited to 100 cars, and priced at 2.36M Pounds.
Concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers rest on an old cattle farm now an area of critical environmental concern managed by the BLM in southwest Oregon, Sept. 26, 2018. BLM photo: Matt Christenson
A quiet oak savanna in southwest Oregon has a World War II story to tell.
It was the summer of 1942 when thousands of young American troops started arriving in Oregon to prepare for battle.
Only months prior, immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into WWII, the U.S. Army broke ground on Camp White, a massively ambitious training ground for troops north of Medford.
The national war effort was ramping up, and from the rationing at home to the drill sergeants yelling at new draftees, the task at hand was unified: Get America prepared for war as fast as possible.
At Camp White, in the heart of the Rogue River Valley, it got loud very quick.
Construction crews worked 24 hours a day until the base, consisting of 1,300 structures, was complete. Barracks, mess halls, a railroad, full electrical grid and sewer system were all built in six months.
And then the troops arrived.
The newly reinstated 91st Division went on 91-mile-long hikes.
They fired bazookas, mortars and tanks.
And they attacked concrete pillboxes built to replicate Nazi bunkers.
Despite creating what was then Oregon’s second most populous city at 40,000 people, there are now only a few lasting structures proving Camp White ever existed. Sadly, there are even fewer first-hand memories.
The pillboxes are still standing, though. They simultaneously represent a mostly forgotten military legacy and since 2013, an opportunity for historic preservation.
After decades of private cattle farming, Camp White’s pillboxes now rest on public land.
Read the full story about the Camp White pillboxes that rest on the northeast side of Upper Table Rock, an area of critical environmental concern for the BLM: www.facebook.com/notes/blm-oregon-washington/the-wwii-leg...
The Ajanta Caves (Ajiṇṭhā leni; Marathi: अजिंठा लेणी) in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, India are about 30 rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments which date from the 2nd century BCE to about 480 or 650 CE. The caves include paintings and sculptures described by the government Archaeological Survey of India as "the finest surviving examples of Indian art, particularly painting", which are masterpieces of Buddhist religious art, with figures of the Buddha and depictions of the Jataka tales. The caves were built in two phases starting around the 2nd century BCE, with the second group of caves built around 400–650 CE according to older accounts, or all in a brief period of 460 to 480 according to the recent proposals of Walter M. Spink. The site is a protected monument in the care of the Archaeological Survey of India, and since 1983, the Ajanta Caves have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The caves are located in the Indian state of Maharashtra, near Jalgaon and just outside the village of Ajinṭhā 20°31′56″N 75°44′44″E), about 59 kilometres from Jalgaon railway station on the Delhi – Mumbai line and Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line of the Central Railway zone, and 104 kilometres from the city of Aurangabad. They are 100 kilometres from the Ellora Caves, which contain Hindu and Jain temples as well as Buddhist caves, the last dating from a period similar to Ajanta. The Ajanta caves are cut into the side of a cliff that is on the south side of a U-shaped gorge on the small river Waghur, and although they are now along and above a modern pathway running across the cliff they were originally reached by individual stairs or ladders from the side of the river 35 to 110 feet below.
The area was previously heavily forested, and after the site ceased to be used the caves were covered by jungle until accidentally rediscovered in 1819 by a British officer on a hunting party. They are Buddhist monastic buildings, apparently representing a number of distinct "monasteries" or colleges. The caves are numbered 1 to 28 according to their place along the path, beginning at the entrance. Several are unfinished and some barely begun and others are small shrines, included in the traditional numbering as e.g. "9A"; "Cave 15A" was still hidden under rubble when the numbering was done. Further round the gorge are a number of waterfalls, which when the river is high are audible from outside the caves.
The caves form the largest corpus of early Indian wall-painting; other survivals from the area of modern India are very few, though they are related to 5th-century paintings at Sigiriya in Sri Lanka. The elaborate architectural carving in many caves is also very rare, and the style of the many figure sculptures is highly local, found only at a few nearby contemporary sites, although the Ajanta tradition can be related to the later Hindu Ellora Caves and other sites.
HISTORY
Like the other ancient Buddhist monasteries, Ajanta had a large emphasis on teaching, and was divided into several different caves for living, education and worship, under a central direction. Monks were probably assigned to specific caves for living. The layout reflects this organizational structure, with most of the caves only connected through the exterior. The 7th-century travelling Chinese scholar Xuanzang informs us that Dignaga, a celebrated Buddhist philosopher and controversialist, author of well-known books on logic, lived at Ajanta in the 5th century. In its prime the settlement would have accommodated several hundred teachers and pupils. Many monks who had finished their first training may have returned to Ajanta during the monsoon season from an itinerant lifestyle.
The caves are generally agreed to have been made in two distinct periods, separated by several centuries.
CAVES OF THE FIRST (SATAVAHANA) PERIOD
The earliest group of caves consists of caves 9, 10, 12, 13 and 15A. According to Walter Spink, they were made during the period 100 BCE to 100 CE, probably under the patronage of the Satavahana dynasty (230 BCE – c. 220 CE) who ruled the region. Other datings prefer the period 300 BCE to 100 BCE, though the grouping of the earlier caves is generally agreed. More early caves may have vanished through later excavations. Of these, caves 9 and 10 are stupa halls of chaitya-griha form, and caves 12, 13, and 15A are vihāras (see the architecture section below for descriptions of these types). The first phase is still often called the Hinayāna phase, as it originated when, using traditional terminology, the Hinayāna or Lesser Vehicle tradition of Buddhism was dominant, when the Buddha was revered symbolically. However the use of the term Hinayana for this period of Buddhism is now deprecated by historians; equally the caves of the second period are now mostly dated too early to be properly called Mahayana, and do not yet show the full expanded cast of supernatural beings characteristic of that phase of Buddhist art. The first Satavahana period caves lacked figurative sculpture, emphasizing the stupa instead, and in the caves of the second period the overwhelming majority of images represent the Buddha alone, or narrative scenes of his lives.
Spink believes that some time after the Satavahana period caves were made the site was abandoned for a considerable period until the mid-5th century, probably because the region had turned mainly Hindu
CAVES OF THE LATER OR VAKATAKA PERIOD
The second phase began in the 5th century. For a long time it was thought that the later caves were made over a long period from the 4th to the 7th centuries CE, but in recent decades a series of studies by the leading expert on the caves, Walter M. Spink, have argued that most of the work took place over the very brief period from 460 to 480 CE, during the reign of Emperor Harishena of the Vakataka dynasty. This view has been criticized by some scholars, but is now broadly accepted by most authors of general books on Indian art, for example Huntington and Harle.
The second phase is still often called the Mahāyāna or Greater Vehicle phase, but scholars now tend to avoid this nomenclature because of the problems that have surfaced regarding our understanding of Mahāyāna.
Some 20 cave temples were simultaneously created, for the most part viharas with a sanctuary at the back. The most elaborate caves were produced in this period, which included some "modernization" of earlier caves. Spink claims that it is possible to establish dating for this period with a very high level of precision; a fuller account of his chronology is given below. Although debate continues, Spink's ideas are increasingly widely accepted, at least in their broad conclusions. The Archaeological Survey of India website still presents the traditional dating: "The second phase of paintings started around 5th – 6th centuries A.D. and continued for the next two centuries". Caves of the second period are 1–8, 11, 14–29, some possibly extensions of earlier caves. Caves 19, 26, and 29 are chaitya-grihas, the rest viharas.
According to Spink, the Ajanta Caves appear to have been abandoned by wealthy patrons shortly after the fall of Harishena, in about 480 CE. They were then gradually abandoned and forgotten. During the intervening centuries, the jungle grew back and the caves were hidden, unvisited and undisturbed, although the local population were aware of at least some of them.
REDISCOVERY
On 28 April 1819, a British officer for the Madras Presidency, John Smith, of the 28th Cavalry, while hunting tiger, accidentally discovered the entrance to Cave No. 10 deep within the tangled undergrowth. There were local people already using the caves for prayers with a small fire, when he arrived. Exploring that first cave, long since a home to nothing more than birds and bats and a lair for other larger animals, Captain Smith vandalized the wall by scratching his name and the date, April 1819. Since he stood on a five-foot high pile of rubble collected over the years, the inscription is well above the eye-level gaze of an adult today. A paper on the caves by William Erskine was read to the Bombay Literary Society in 1822. Within a few decades, the caves became famous for their exotic setting, impressive architecture, and above all their exceptional, all but unique paintings. A number of large projects to copy the paintings were made in the century after rediscovery, covered below. In 1848 the Royal Asiatic Society established the "Bombay Cave Temple Commission" to clear, tidy and record the most important rock-cut sites in the Bombay Presidency, with John Wilson, as president. In 1861 this became the nucleus of the new Archaeological Survey of India. Until the Nizam of Hyderabad built the modern path between the caves, among other efforts to make the site easy to visit, a trip to Ajanta was a considerable adventure, and contemporary accounts dwell with relish on the dangers from falls off narrow ledges, animals and the Bhil people, who were armed with bows and arrows and had a fearsome reputation.
Today, fairly easily combined with Ellora in a single trip, the caves are the most popular tourist destination in Mahrashtra, and are often crowded at holiday times, increasing the threat to the caves, especially the paintings. In 2012, the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation announced plans to add to the ASI visitor centre at the entrance complete replicas of caves 1, 2, 16 & 17 to reduce crowding in the originals, and enable visitors to receive a better visual idea of the paintings, which are dimly-lit and hard to read in the caves. Figures for the year to March 2010 showed a total of 390,000 visitors to the site, divided into 362,000 domestic and 27,000 foreign. The trends over the previous few years show a considerable growth in domestic visitors, but a decline in foreign ones; the year to 2010 was the first in which foreign visitors to Ellora exceeded those to Ajanta.
PAINTINGS
Mural paintings survive from both the earlier and later groups of caves. Several fragments of murals preserved from the earlier caves (Caves 9 and 11) are effectively unique survivals of court-led painting in India from this period, and "show that by Sātavāhana times, if not earlier, the Indian painter had mastered an easy and fluent naturalistic style, dealing with large groups of people in a manner comparable to the reliefs of the Sāñcī toraņa crossbars".
Four of the later caves have large and relatively well-preserved mural paintings which "have come to represent Indian mural painting to the non-specialist", and fall into two stylistic groups, with the most famous in Caves 16 and 17, and apparently later paintings in Caves 1 and 2. The latter group were thought to be a century or more later than the others, but the revised chronology proposed by Spink would place them much closer to the earlier group, perhaps contemporary with it in a more progressive style, or one reflecting a team from a different region. The paintings are in "dry fresco", painted on top of a dry plaster surface rather than into wet plaster.
All the paintings appear to be the work of painters at least as used to decorating palaces as temples, and show a familiarity with and interest in details of the life of a wealthy court. We know from literary sources that painting was widely practised and appreciated in the courts of the Gupta period. Unlike much Indian painting, compositions are not laid out in horizontal compartments like a frieze, but show large scenes spreading in all directions from a single figure or group at the centre. The ceilings are also painted with sophisticated and elaborate decorative motifs, many derived from sculpture. The paintings in cave 1, which according to Spink was commissioned by Harisena himself, concentrate on those Jataka tales which show previous lives of the Buddha as a king, rather than as an animal or human commoner, and so show settings from contemporary palace life.
In general the later caves seem to have been painted on finished areas as excavating work continued elsewhere in the cave, as shown in caves 2 and 16 in particular. According to Spink's account of the chronology of the caves, the abandonment of work in 478 after a brief busy period accounts for the absence of painting in caves such as 4 and 17, the later being plastered in preparation for paintings that were never done.
COPIES
The paintings have deteriorated significantly since they were rediscovered, and a number of 19th-century copies and drawings are important for a complete understanding of the works. However, the earliest projects to copy the paintings were plagued by bad fortune. In 1846, Major Robert Gill, an Army officer from Madras presidency and a painter, was appointed by the Royal Asiatic Society to replicate the frescoes on the cave walls to exhibit these paintings in England. Gill worked on his painting at the site from 1844 to 1863 (though he continued to be based there until his death in 1875, writing books and photographing) and made 27 copies of large sections of murals, but all but four were destroyed in a fire at the Crystal Palace in London in 1866, where they were on display.
Another attempt was made in 1872 when the Bombay Presidency commissioned John Griffiths, then principal of the Bombay School of Art, to work with his students to make new copies, again for shipping to England. They worked on this for thirteen years and some 300 canvases were produced, many of which were displayed at the Imperial Institute on Exhibition Road in London, one of the forerunners of the Victoria and Albert Museum. But in 1885 another fire destroyed over a hundred paintings that were in storage. The V&A still has 166 paintings surviving from both sets, though none have been on permanent display since 1955. The largest are some 3 × 6 metres. A conservation project was undertaken on about half of them in 2006, also involving the University of Northumbria. Griffith and his students had unfortunately painted many of the paintings with "cheap varnish" in order to make them easier to see, which has added to the deterioration of the originals, as has, according to Spink and others, recent cleaning by the ASI.
A further set of copies were made between 1909 and 1911 by Christiana Herringham (Lady Herringham) and a group of students from the Calcutta School of Art that included the future Indian Modernist painter Nandalal Bose. The copies were published in full colour as the first publication of London's fledgling India Society. More than the earlier copies, these aimed to fill in holes and damage to recreate the original condition rather than record the state of the paintings as she was seeing them. According to one writer, unlike the paintings created by her predecessors Griffiths and Gill, whose copies were influenced by British Victorian styles of painting, those of the Herringham expedition preferred an 'Indian Renascence' aesthetic of the type pioneered by Abanindranath Tagore.
Early photographic surveys were made by Robert Gill, who learnt to use a camera from about 1856, and whose photos, including some using stereoscopy, were used in books by him and Fergusson (many are available online from the British Library), then Victor Goloubew in 1911 and E.L. Vassey, who took the photos in the four volume study of the caves by Ghulam Yazdani (published 1930–1955).
ARCHITECTURE
The monasteries mostly consist of vihara halls for prayer and living, which are typically rectangular with small square dormitory cells cut into the walls, and by the second period a shrine or sanctuary at the rear centred on a large statue of the Buddha, also carved from the living rock. This change reflects the movement from Hinayana to Mahāyāna Buddhism. The other type of main hall is the narrower and higher chaitya hall with a stupa as the focus at the far end, and a narrow aisle around the walls, behind a range of pillars placed close together. Other plainer rooms were for sleeping and other activities. Some of the caves have elaborate carved entrances, some with large windows over the door to admit light. There is often a colonnaded porch or verandah, with another space inside the doors running the width of the cave.
The central square space of the interior of the viharas is defined by square columns forming a more or less square open area. Outside this are long rectangular aisles on each side, forming a kind of cloister. Along the side and rear walls are a number of small cells entered by a narrow doorway; these are roughly square, and have small niches on their back walls. Originally they had wooden doors. The centre of the rear wall has a larger shrine-room behind, containing a large Buddha statue. The viharas of the earlier period are much simpler, and lack shrines. Spink in fact places the change to a design with a shrine to the middle of the second period, with many caves being adapted to add a shrine in mid-excavation, or after the original phase.
The plan of Cave 1 shows one of the largest viharas, but is fairly typical of the later group. Many others, such as Cave 16, lack the vestibule to the shrine, which leads straight off the main hall. Cave 6 is two viharas, one above the other, connected by internal stairs, with sanctuaries on both levels.
The four completed chaitya halls are caves 9 and 10 from the early period, and caves 19 and 26 from the later period of construction. All follow the typical form found elsewhere, with high ceilings and a central "nave" leading to the stupa, which is near the back, but allows walking behind it, as walking around stupas was (and remains) a common element of Buddhist worship (pradakshina). The later two have high ribbed roofs, which reflect timber forms, and the earlier two are thought to have used actual timber ribs, which have now perished. The two later halls have a rather unusual arrangement (also found in Cave 10 at Ellora) where the stupa is fronted by a large relief sculpture of the Buddha, standing in Cave 19 and seated in Cave 26. Cave 29 is a late and very incomplete chaitya hall.
The form of columns in the work of the first period is very plain and un-embellished, with both chaitya halls using simple octagonal columns, which were painted with figures. In the second period columns were far more varied and inventive, often changing profile over their height, and with elaborate carved capitals, often spreading wide. Many columns are carved over all their surface, some fluted and others carved with decoration all over, as in cave 1.
The flood basalt rock of the cliff, part of the Deccan Traps formed by successive volcanic eruptions at the end of the Cretaceous, is layered horizontally, and somewhat variable in quality, so the excavators had to amend their plans in places, and in places there have been collapses in the intervening centuries, as with the lost portico to cave 1. Excavation began by cutting a narrow tunnel at roof level, which was expanded downwards and outwards; the half-built vihara cave 24 shows the method. Spink believes that for the first caves of the second period the excavators had to relearn skills and techniques that had been lost in the centuries since the first period, which were then transmitted to be used at later rock-cut sites in the region, such as Ellora, and the Elephanta, Bagh, Badami and Aurangabad Caves.
The caves from the first period seem to have been paid for by a number of different patrons, with several inscriptions recording the donation of particular portions of a single cave, but according to Spink the later caves were each commissioned as a complete unit by a single patron from the local rulers or their court elites. After the death of Harisena smaller donors got their chance to add small "shrinelets" between the caves or add statues to existing caves, and some two hundred of these "intrusive" additions were made in sculpture, with a further number of intrusive paintings, up to three hundred in cave 10 alone.
A grand gateway to the site, at the apex of the gorge's horsehoe between caves 15 and 16, was approached from the river, and is decorated with elephants on either side and a nāga, or protective snake deity.
ICONOGRAPHY OF THE CAVES
In the pre-Christian era, the Buddha was represented symbolically, in the form of the stupa. Thus, halls were made with stupas to venerate the Buddha. In later periods the images of the Buddha started to be made in coins, relic caskets, relief or loose sculptural forms, etc. However, it took a while for the human representation of the Buddha to appear in Buddhist art. One of the earliest evidences of the Buddha's human representations are found at Buddhist archaeological sites, such as Goli, Nagarjunakonda, and Amaravati. The monasteries of those sites were built in less durable media, such as wood, brick, and stone. As far as the genre of rock-cut architecture is concerned it took many centuries for the Buddha image to be depicted. Nobody knows for sure at which rock-cut cave site the first image of the Buddha was depicted. Current research indicates that Buddha images in a portable form, made of wood or stone, were introduced, for the first time, at Kanheri, to be followed soon at Ajanta Cave 8 (Dhavalikar, Jadhav, Spink, Singh). While the Kanheri example dates to 4th or 5th century CE, the Ajanta example has been dated to c. 462–478 CE (Spink). None of the rock-cut monasteries prior to these dates, and other than these examples, show any Buddha image although hundreds of rock-cut caves were made throughout India during the first few centuries CE. And, in those caves, it is the stupa that is the object of veneration, not the image. Images of the Buddha are not found in Buddhist sailagrhas (rock-cut complexes) until the times of the Kanheri (4th–5th century CE) and Ajanta examples (c. 462–478 CE).
The caves of the second period, now all dated to the 5th century, were typically described as "Mahayana", but do not show the features associated with later Mahayana Buddhism. Although the beginnings of Mahāyāna teachings go back to the 1st century there is little art and archaeological evidence to suggest that it became a mainstream cult for several centuries. In Mahayana it is not Gautama Buddha but the Bodhisattva who is important, including "deity" Bodhisattva like Manjushri and Tara, as well as aspects of the Buddha such as Aksobhya, and Amitabha. Except for a few Bodhisattva, these are not depicted at Ajanta, where the Buddha remains the dominant figure. Even the Bodhisattva images of Ajanta are never central objects of worship, but are always shown as attendants of the Buddha in the shrine. If a Bodhisattva is shown in isolation, as in the Astabhaya scenes, these were done in the very last years of activities at Ajanta, and are mostly 'intrusive' in nature, meaning that they were not planned by the original patrons, and were added by new donors after the original patrons had suddenly abandoned the region in the wake of Emperor Harisena's death.
The contrast between iconic and aniconic representations, that is, the stupa on one hand and the image of the Buddha on the other, is now being seen as a construct of the modern scholar rather than a reality of the past. The second phase of Ajanta shows that the stupa and image coincided together. If the entire corpus of the art of Ajanta including sculpture, iconography, architecture, epigraphy, and painting are analysed afresh it will become clear that there was no duality between the symbolic and human forms of the Buddha, as far as the 5th-century phase of Ajanta is concerned. That is why most current scholars tend to avoid the terms 'Hinayana' and 'Mahayana' in the context of Ajanta. They now prefer to call the second phase by the ruling dynasty, as the Vākāţaka phase.
CAVES
CAVE 1
Cave 1 was built on the eastern end of the horse-shoe shaped scarp, and is now the first cave the visitor encounters. This would when first made have been a less prominent position, right at the end of the row. According to Spink, it is one of the latest caves to have been excavated, when the best sites had been taken, and was never fully inaugurated for worship by the dedication of the Buddha image in the central shrine. This is shown by the absence of sooty deposits from butter lamps on the base of the shrine image, and the lack of damage to the paintings that would have been happened if the garland-hooks around the shrine had been in use for any period of time. Although there is no epigraphic evidence, Spink believes that the Vākāţaka Emperor Harishena was the benefactor of the work, and this is reflected in the emphasis on imagery of royalty in the cave, with those Jakata tales being selected that tell of those previous lives of the Buddha in which he was royal.
The cliff has a more steep slope here than at other caves, so to achieve a tall grand facade it was necessary to cut far back into the slope, giving a large courtyard in front of the facade. There was originally a columned portico in front of the present facade, which can be seen "half-intact in the 1880s" in pictures of the site, but this fell down completely and the remains, despite containing fine carving, were carelessly thrown down the slope into the river, from where they have been lost, presumably carried away in monsoon torrents.
This cave has one of the most elaborate carved façades, with relief sculptures on entablature and ridges, and most surfaces embellished with decorative carving. There are scenes carved from the life of the Buddha as well as a number of decorative motifs. A two pillared portico, visible in the 19th-century photographs, has since perished. The cave has a front-court with cells fronted by pillared vestibules on either side. These have a high plinth level. The cave has a porch with simple cells on both ends. The absence of pillared vestibules on the ends suggest that the porch was not excavated in the latest phase of Ajanta when pillared vestibules had become a necessity and norm. Most areas of the porch were once covered with murals, of which many fragments remain, especially on the ceiling. There are three doorways: a central doorway and two side doorways. Two square windows were carved between the doorways to brighten the interiors.
Each wall of the hall inside is nearly 12 m long and 6.1 m high. Twelve pillars make a square colonnade inside supporting the ceiling, and creating spacious aisles along the walls. There is a shrine carved on the rear wall to house an impressive seated image of the Buddha, his hands being in the dharmachakrapravartana mudra. There are four cells on each of the left, rear, and the right walls, though due to rock fault there are none at the ends of the rear aisle. The walls are covered with paintings in a fair state of preservation, though the full scheme was never completed. The scenes depicted are mostly didactic, devotional, and ornamental, with scenes from the Jataka stories of the Buddha's former existences as a bodhisattva), the life of the Gautama Buddha, and those of his veneration. The two most famous individual painted images at Ajanta are the two over-life size figures of the protective bodhisattvas Padmapani and Vajrapani on either side of the entrance to the Buddha shrine on the wall of the rear aisle (see illustrations above). According to Spink, the original dating of the paintings to about 625 arose largely or entirely because James Fegusson, a 19th-century architectural historian, had decided that a scene showing an ambassador being received, with figures in Persian dress, represented a recorded embassy to Persia (from a Hindu monarch at that) around that date.
CAVE 2
Cave 2, adjacent to Cave 1, is known for the paintings that have been preserved on its walls, ceilings, and pillars. It looks similar to Cave 1 and is in a better state of preservation.
Cave 2 has a porch quite different from Cave one. Even the façade carvings seem to be different. The cave is supported by robust pillars, ornamented with designs. The front porch consists of cells supported by pillared vestibules on both ends. The cells on the previously "wasted areas" were needed to meet the greater housing requirements in later years. Porch-end cells became a trend in all later Vakataka excavations. The simple single cells on porch-ends were converted into CPVs or were planned to provide more room, symmetry, and beauty.
The paintings on the ceilings and walls of this porch have been widely published. They depict the Jataka tales that are stories of the Buddha's life in former existences as Bodhisattva. Just as the stories illustrated in cave 1 emphasize kingship, those in cave 2 show many "noble and powerful" women in prominent roles, leading to suggestions that the patron was an unknown woman. The porch's rear wall has a doorway in the center, which allows entrance to the hall. On either side of the door is a square-shaped window to brighten the interior.
The hall has four colonnades which are supporting the ceiling and surrounding a square in the center of the hall. Each arm or colonnade of the square is parallel to the respective walls of the hall, making an aisle in between. The colonnades have rock-beams above and below them. The capitals are carved and painted with various decorative themes that include ornamental, human, animal, vegetative, and semi-divine forms.
Paintings appear on almost every surface of the cave except for the floor. At various places the art work has become eroded due to decay and human interference. Therefore, many areas of the painted walls, ceilings, and pillars are fragmentary. The painted narratives of the Jataka tales are depicted only on the walls, which demanded the special attention of the devotee. They are didactic in nature, meant to inform the community about the Buddha's teachings and life through successive rebirths. Their placement on the walls required the devotee to walk through the aisles and 'read' the narratives depicted in various episodes. The narrative episodes are depicted one after another although not in a linear order. Their identification has been a core area of research since the site's rediscovery in 1819. Dieter Schlingloff's identifications have updated our knowledge on the subject.
CAVE 4
The Archeological Survey of India board outside the caves gives the following detail about cave 4: "This is the largest monastery planned on a grandiose scale but was never finished. An inscription on the pedestal of the buddha's image mentions that it was a gift from a person named Mathura and paleographically belongs to 6th century A.D. It consists of a verandah, a hypostylar hall, sanctum with an antechamber and a series of unfinished cells. The rear wall of the verandah contains the panel of Litany of Avalokiteśvara".
The sanctuary houses a colossal image of the Buddha in preaching pose flanked by bodhisattvas and celestial nymphs hovering above.
CAVES 9-10
Caves 9 and 10 are the two chaitya halls from the first period of construction, though both were also undergoing an uncompleted reworking at the end of the second period. Cave 10 was perhaps originally of the 1st century BCE, and cave 9 about a hundred years later. The small "shrinelets" called caves 9A to 9D and 10A also date from the second period, and were commissioned by individuals.
The paintings in cave 10 include some surviving from the early period, many from an incomplete programme of modernization in the second period, and a very large number of smaller late intrusive images, nearly all Buddhas and many with donor inscriptions from individuals. These mostly avoided over-painting the "official" programme and after the best positions were used up are tucked away in less prominent positions not yet painted; the total of these (including those now lost) was probably over 300, and the hands of many different artists are visible.
OTHER CAVES
Cave 3 is merely a start of an excavation; according to Spink it was begun right at the end of the final period of work and soon abandoned. Caves 5 and 6 are viharas, the latter on two floors, that were late works of which only the lower floor of cave 6 was ever finished. The upper floor of cave 6 has many private votive sculptures, and a shrine Buddha, but is otherwise unfinished. Cave 7 has a grand facade with two porticos but, perhaps because of faults in the rock, which posed problems in many caves, was never taken very deep into the cliff, and consists only of the two porticos and a shrine room with antechamber, with no central hall. Some cells were fitted in.
Cave 8 was long thought to date to the first period of construction, but Spink sees it as perhaps the earliest cave from the second period, its shrine an "afterthought". The statue may have been loose rather than carved from the living rock, as it has now vanished. The cave was painted, but only traces remain.
SPINK´S DETAILED CHRONOLOGY
Walter M. Spink has over recent decades developed a very precise and circumstantial chronology for the second period of work on the site, which unlike earlier scholars, he places entirely in the 5th century. This is based on evidence such as the inscriptions and artistic style, combined with the many uncompleted elements of the caves. He believes the earlier group of caves, which like other scholars he dates only approximately, to the period "between 100 BCE – 100 CE", were at some later point completely abandoned and remained so "for over three centuries", as the local population had turned mainly Hindu. This changed with the accession of the Emperor Harishena of the Vakataka Dynasty, who reigned from 460 to his death in 477. Harisena extended the Central Indian Vakataka Empire to include a stretch of the east coast of India; the Gupta Empire ruled northern India at the same period, and the Pallava dynasty much of the south.
According to Spink, Harisena encouraged a group of associates, including his prime minister Varahadeva and Upendragupta, the sub-king in whose territory Ajanta was, to dig out new caves, which were individually commissioned, some containing inscriptions recording the donation. This activity began in 462 but was mostly suspended in 468 because of threats from the neighbouring Asmaka kings. Work continued on only caves 1, Harisena's own commission, and 17–20, commissioned by Upendragupta. In 472 the situation was such that work was suspended completely, in a period that Spink calls "the Hiatus", which lasted until about 475, by which time the Asmakas had replaced Upendragupta as the local rulers.
Work was then resumed, but again disrupted by Harisena's death in 477, soon after which major excavation ceased, except at cave 26, which the Asmakas were sponsoring themselves. The Asmakas launched a revolt against Harisena's son, which brought about the end of the Vakataka Dynasty. In the years 478–480 major excavation by important patrons was replaced by a rash of "intrusions" – statues added to existing caves, and small shrines dotted about where there was space between them. These were commissioned by less powerful individuals, some monks, who had not previously been able to make additions to the large excavations of the rulers and courtiers. They were added to the facades, the return sides of the entrances, and to walls inside the caves. According to Spink, "After 480, not a single image was ever made again at the site", and as Hinduism again dominated the region, the site was again abandoned, this time for over a millennium.
Spink does not use "circa" in his dates, but says that "one should allow a margin of error of one year or perhaps even two in all cases".
IMPACT ON MODERN INDIAN PAINTINGS
The Ajanta paintings, or more likely the general style they come from, influenced painting in Tibet and Sri Lanka.
The rediscovery of ancient Indian paintings at Ajanta provided Indian artists examples from ancient India to follow. Nandlal Bose experimented with techniques to follow the ancient style which allowed him to develop his unique style. Abanindranath Tagore also used the Ajanta paintings for inspiration.
WIKIPEDIA
The MakerBot Digitizer 3D-scanned Laser Cat model was used in this test of different layer thicknesses. The cat was scaled down to 50 mm in height and then 3D printed at the following layer heights:
- 0.40 mm (400 microns)
- 0.30 mm (300 microns)
- 0.20 mm (200 microns)
- 0.10 mm (100 microns) - Average width of a strand of human hair
- 0.05 mm (50 microns)
- 0.02 mm (20 microns)
All six cats where 3D printed on a MakerBot Replicator 2 with TRUE BLUE PLA plastic at 230 degrees C.
All layers where 3D printed with MakerWare's standard values as follows:
(400 microns) - 15% infill - perimeters 2 - speed 90 mm/s
(300 microns) - 15% infill - perimeters 2 - speed 90 mm/s
(200 microns) - 15% infill - perimeters 2 - speed 90 mm/s
(100 microns) - 15% infill - perimeters 2 - speed 90 mm/s
(50 microns) - 15% infill - perimeters 2 - speed 60 mm/s
(20 microns) - 15% infill - perimeters 2 - speed 40 mm/s
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The 3D scanner: bit.ly/1a7y8hG
The 3D printer: makerbot.creativetools.se
The 3D model: www.thingiverse.com/thing:146265
A comparison of four different common 3D-print layer heights.
• 0.34 mm/layer - Low (340 microns)
• 0.27 mm/layer - Medium (270 microns)
• 0.1 mm/layer - High (100 microns)
• 0.05 mm/layer - Super fine (50 microns)
These models where 3D printed with blue 1.75 mm PLA plastic filament on a MakerBot Replicator 2 3D printer.
The sample 3D model for this print is MorenaP's popular tree frog: www.thingiverse.com/derivative:34468
3D-printer: makerbot.creativetools.se
Laser-cut plate: www.thingiverse.com/thing:69351
#3DBenchy printed on a MakerBot Replicator Desktop 5th Generation 3D printer.
The 3D-model: 3dbenchy.com/download
The 3D-printer: www.creativetools.se/index.php?route=product/search&f...
#3DBenchy printed on a MakerBot Replicator Desktop 5th Generation 3D printer.
The 3D-model: 3dbenchy.com/download
The 3D-printer: www.creativetools.se/index.php?route=product/search&f...
#3DBenchy printed on a MakerBot Replicator Desktop 5th Generation 3D printer.
The 3D-model: 3dbenchy.com/download
The 3D-printer: www.creativetools.se/index.php?route=product/search&f...
#3DBenchy printed on a MakerBot Replicator Desktop 5th Generation 3D printer.
The 3D-model: 3dbenchy.com/download
The 3D-printer: www.creativetools.se/index.php?route=product/search&f...
I was trying to replicate Mélisande*'s or Oschene's model (whichever I could figure out) but I couldn't find the references. What I ended up doing is making a hexagon with two sides aligned with the square's sides and following a similar process as the one to produce oschenes's 8 sided model, but in the case of this model, the internal walls are inclined and not vertical as in the case of the original model.
Well I'll wait and hope for the CP.