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We spent the better part of the day today cruising the waters of Japan's Inland Sea on the way to the port of Fukuoka.
What impressed me the most was the high volume of shipping and the compact size of the vessels compared with their counterparts in the Americas and in Europe. The latter feature is in keeping with the reduced scale of cars and trucks in Japan.
The small, coastal freighters we saw today disappeared from most of the world's shipping lanes decades ago. Some are tankers, while others carry raw materials.
Also remarkable is how many different types and sizes of ferry boats carry passengers to various destinations that would otherwise be difficult to reach rapidly. Why, the "Queen Beetle" (can you find it in the grid?) makes the run from Fukuo to Busan in South Korea in under 4 hours! And nWe spent the better part of the day today cruising the waters of Japan's Inland Sea on the way to the port of Fukuoka.
What impressed me the most was the high volume of shipping and the compact size of the vessels compared with their counterparts in the Americas and in Europe. The latter feature is in keeping with the reduced scale of cars and trucks in Japan.
The small, coastal freighters we saw today disappeared from most of the world's shipping lanes decades ago. Some are tankers, while others carry raw materials.
Also remarkable is how many different types and sizes of ferry boats carry passengers to various destinations that would otherwise be difficult to reach rapidly. Why, the "Queen Beetle" (can you find it in the grid?) makes the run from Fukuo to Busan in South Korea in under 4 hours! And nWe spent the better part of the day today cruising the waters of Japan's Inland Sea on the way to the port of Fukuoka.
What impressed me the most was the high volume of shipping and the compact size of the vessels compared with their counterparts in the Americas and in Europe. The latter feature is in keeping with the reduced scale of cars and trucks in Japan.
The small, coastal freighters we saw today disappeared from most of the world's shipping lanes decades ago. Some are tankers, while others carry raw materials.
Also remarkable is how many different types and sizes of ferry boats carry passengers to various destinations that would otherwise be difficult to reach rapidly. Why, the "Queen Beetle" (can you find it in the grid?) makes the run from Fukuo to Busan in South Korea in under 4 hours! The absence of seat belts (compared with passenger planes) is a selling point.
Nr. 461.
Volvo 460 GL Mk1 5-door sedan (1992).
Taxi de Barcelona (Olympic Games Barcelona 1992).
Escala 1/43
Series 400.
AHC Models, Epe, Holland.
Made in Spain by Pilen / Artec.
Años 90.
Printed description on the baseplate:
" AHC MODELS
EPE HOLLAND
MADE IN SPAIN
VOLVO 460 GL
1990 NR. 461 "
More info:
pilen.jimdo.com/asociaci%C3%B3n-con-otras-marcas-i/
www.minivolvo.lu/uploads/7/8/7/9/7879273/minivolvo-car-00...
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AUTO PILEN / ARTEC / AHC DOORKEY
[ Brief history
of Companies Interconnexions ]
"Auto Pilen was a diecast line of model cars made in Ibi, Alicante, in southeastern Spain by Pilen S.A..
Models were produced from the 1970s through the mid-1990s mostly in 1:43 scale.
A majority of the castings were inherited from French Dinky.
The company was started in the 1960s, diecasting items like colorful metal sailboats and key chains.
In the late 1980s. Pilen was apparently bought by AHC of the Netherlands."
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto_Pilen
(...)
"Pilen ceased its production in 1983, but only 5 years later, in 1988, the company was reborn with the new name Artec.
In the first catalogues from Artec, there is still place for the Pilen logo, meaning that both companies are really the same one, or at least, that Artec is the successor of Pilen."
(...)
Source: toysfromthepast.blogspot.com.es/2013/06/293-pilen-artec-s...
(...)
"Around 1980 there was a Pilen connection with Holland OTO, which had taken over Dutch Efsi Toys. A 1980 Auto Pilen catalog shows many of the revered Efsi vehicles like the Model T series and many Efsi trucks continued as a line Pilen 1980 (Bras 2012).
Around 1990, there was also a connection with the Dutch diecast company AHC, which appears to have bought Holland Oto and thus Auto Pilen (Bickford 2009).
AHC has since shared dies and traditionally Pilen stamped cars can be found in both AHC and Holland OTO labeled boxes (Bickford 2009; Johnson 1998, p. 15)."
AHC, however, usually produced Volvos, of which Pilen only had a few: the DAF based 66, the 480 Turbo, and the 460 and 850 sedans - most of these appear to have been developed first by AHC models before they were reverse marketed - and then also later sold as Pilens - some of which were made in Spain.
Some of these Volvos also appear to have been sold as promotional models. There were also some Nissans made by AHC/Doorkey packaged as Pilens (Bickford 2009).
With the bankruptcy of Doorkey in the early 1990s, Auto Pilen disappeared. The last new models with the Pilen name appeared at this time. "
(...)
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto_Pilen
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Doorkey
"Doorkey was a Dutch model car manufacturer .
The company was established in Epe .
They sold miniatures in the scale 1:43.
The models are:
- Opel Combo, Opel Manta
- Nissan Maxima, Nissan Serena, Nissan Micra (5 door)
- SEAT Ibiza, SEAT 600, SEAT 850 Spider, SEAT 127, SEAT Toledo
- Volvo 440, Volvo 850
- Toyota Celica, Toyota Land Cruiser
- Suzuki Samurai
- Mercedes-Benz 250C, Mercedes-Benz 100, Mercedes-Benz 500
- Mini Cooper
- Porsche Carrera 6
- VW Buggy
- Indra
- Ford Courier
- BMW 2000, BMW 507
- Lexus SC 400
Buses:
- The Elder Alliance 220 DAF
- The Elder Alliance 230 DAF
- The Oldest Alliance 310 DAF
The models were made by the Spanish Artec.
Johannes van Rijn founded the company AR-GEE Hobby Collection together with his son Richard, under the name of Ar-Gee , especially for retail.
Ar-Gee stands for the initials of son Richard and colleague Gerrit. They distributed the models under the name Doorkey.
Both companies AHC and AR-GEE were sold in 1995. The companies eventually went bankrupt."
Source: nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doorkey
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1989 - 1996
VOLVO 460 CLÁSICO
"El Volvo 460 fue lanzado en 1989 como versión cupé del hatchback 440 de tracción delantera.
El Volvo 460 presentaba la misma estructura técnica básica y configuración que el cupé deportivo 480. Es decir, incorporaba la misma tracción delantera y motor transversal que el modelo deportivo, todo ello unido, obviamente, a las ventajas asociadas a la excelente maniobrabilidad y adherencia a la calzada del 480.
A lo largo de su existencia, el 460 estuvo disponible con distintos motores, de entre 1,6 y 2,0 litros. Todos ellos eran unidades de 4 cilindros dotadas de árbol de levas en cabeza y habían sido desarrolladas a partir de la misma familia de motores."
"Especificaciones técnicas
Modelo: 460
Producción: 1989-1996
Volumen: 238401
Carrocería: compacto de 5 puertas
Motor de 4 cilindros en línea OHC de 1.596 cc, 1.721 cc con o sin turbo, 1.794 cc o 1.998 cc y turbodiésel de 4 cilindros en línea OHC de 1.870 cc.
Transmisión: 5 marchas manuales, 4 marchas automáticas
Frenos: Hidráulicos, frenos de disco en la parte delantera y de tambor en la trasera, o discos en todas las ruedas
Dimensiones: Distancia entre ejes: 250 cm"
Source: www.volvocars.com/es/acerca-de-volvo/compania/origen/coch...
More info:
OurDailyChallenge Scale
Here is a S Scale model train by American Flyer Lines (A little the wors for being played with) sitting atop a scale by John Chatillon & Sins, New York. I have not been able to identify the engine from the internet or books I have although it was likely a 2-4-2 but is now missing its front and rear trucks and drivers. Certainly pre WWII, probably late 1920s. Thew scale has no information about its age at all.
A video taken on my HO Scale layout. All but one of the buildings in the center of the layout are from a layout I had as a child 40 years ago; most are Plasticville and Atlas structures. The rolling stock is a mixture of Tyco and Athern equipment from the original layout, Life Like equipment for two train sets that were given to me, and Bachmann. The trackwork is Life-Like EZ Track.
Since it is a throwback to my youth as well as for the kids and grandkids, it is all DC and horn hook couplers for ease of use. The feel is also a throwback to the small towns I remember growing up; with lots of "easter eggs" from moments and places in my life.
The song is Life's Railway to Heaven by Johnny Cash,
THE HAZZARD RANGE HERALD
ICR number 259 had to make a unplan stop at Mt AV /NM state rd 308 where ICR Conductor Fred Garcia had to the rush to Hazard Range Airport to be life flight to El Paso TX after something came though the open side window of the Locomotive . The incident start at Hazzard Range Sand and Gravel pit B where Conductor Fred Garcia and engineer Brad Wagner pick up a 6 hopper cars of Gravel . When the Train Crossed under NM state rd 168 something went into the cab hitting Conductor Fred Garcia in the face knocking him unconscious ,engineer Brad Wagner Radio the main yard in Sparta to get ambulance and to meet them at Mt Av crossing Hazzard Range county Sheriff's Department Sheriff Travis Martin Told the Herald . HRCSD well be investigating this and the object it not being told what it is at this point . Sheriff Travis Martin did say a rancher near the sand & gravel pit B did see a man in a white pickup fighting with Conductor Fred Garcia before the train left .
To the surprise of nobody who's ever talked to me, I have eclectic tastes when it comes to collectibles. Yeah, I'll get the things that are generally universally liked, but ultimately shock value and general tastelessness (by puritan US standards) are what kind of guide my collecting path.
About a year ago, there was a company with a dream - Big Firebird Toy - and that dream was to make a transforming Arcee figure that was more Senran Kagura than G1 Autobot. Her name would be Nicee, and would share enough characteristics with her licensed namesake so you could help Hot Rod live out his high school fantasies including a familiar alt mode and a very G1 Arcee head.
People complained, of course, but in this day and age, what else is new? At least this wasn't Flametoys where they were selling licensed figures... this was the Wild Wild West of Third Party Transformer figures. I'll admit the window dressing was might attractive, but the Engineer in me also wanted to know.. just how would they pull off such an ambitious design?
At any rate, preorders were placed and all was well for a while.
First it was COVID causing mayhem and delaying production of everything across the board. Then, rumour has it that Hasbro started actually cracking down on Chinese bootlegs of their figures, and so Big Firebird Toy dropped the Arcee head, and just stuck with their own original content. That all passed, and I finally received my copy of the figure.
So just how did they do? Lets look at the Big Firebird Toy EX-01: Nicee figure.
I ordered mine from TF-Direct, who were the lowest price point at the time. Prices have since jumped up from the $95 USD I paid, which included EMS shipping, but a cursory glance at eBay shows you should still be OK. The figure came in it's own brown shipper, with an art box contained within which houses all the fun stuff.
A quick glance at the art box should very quick establish that no... this is not a kids figure. It's not quite Skytube hentai PVC material, but it is at least Teen territory. Also nice is the Pink foiled letters.
I also have to giggle at the security seal and the quality assurance foil sticker because, well... China.
Nicee is packed in robot mode, and comes in a single layered tray with her accessories. By the time things are said and done, the box is gigantic, effectively 12" x 12" x 4", like something out of the old Toys R Us MP boxes. Accessories include an extra Aheago head, a breast plate with soft rubbery breasts, a laser pistol, an energy arrow, a sword, part of her chasis, the handle for her bow, and six additional hands. Naturally, she has a set of instructions, as well as a nifty art card.
Nicee is a gorgeous figure, and I'm not just talking curves. I had two major concerns - crappy paint work, and crappy build. I've done the best I can on my photos, but one of things I couldn't make out on other photos I've seen is the fact that Nicee has a nice pearl finish on all her painted parts. Try as I might, I could not find any areas of overspray or bleeding, with the only bad paint being a fibre or something being embedded into the forehead of my Aheago head. Even the pink on the wheels are pearl finish. Now, I would ADD some colours to a few areas, such as the blade of the sword and maybe to the face to make the lips turn out better, but that's another discussion - what paint work you do get is pretty damn good and is generally resistant to most forms of contact.
I'm not saying you should break out the sand paper, but you can at least be assured you don't have to worry about actually handling the figure without gloves.
Build quality is a bit tougher to explore, but to put aside any immediate worries, overall things are very good. Nicee has rubber tires, which is becoming more and more of a rare thing. There are some die cast metal parts, though these in high stress structural components. The plastics they used feel like the same stuff you'd get on a Takara Tomy MP figure, but perhaps a bit thinner, maybe due to the sheer number of curved parts on this figure.
The finish on these parts is, without a doubt, phenomenal. very few rough surfaces or mould lines found. My mind is blown at how well the pieces fit together, and that truly the finished product matched the CG renders almost perfectly. QC with regards to accuracy of tabs and slots is almost perfect, but isn't quite up to Takara Tomy standards, so it can be a bit of pain to get things aligned correctly but it can be done, at least, and the parts come together with tolerances that wouldn't be out of place on an MP figure.
Joints in general tend to be a bit on the stiff side, especially the neck and head joints, which can make posing Nicee a bit of a headache..
Finally I feel the hands should have used the more popular method of connection, that is having the ball on the wrist joint itself and the socket on the hand, as opposed to the opposite. This would make things connect more securely, as well as improve range of motion here.
Nicee herself is 19 cm tall, which puts here out of MP scale, as she's supposed to be slightly smaller than Hot Rod. On the plus side, she's that much more visually impressive and has that much more shelf presence.
Articulation is impressive, and is in line with what I'd expect from an MP figure. You get full ankles (two separate points of movement), double jointed knees, thigh twist, hips with pull down for greater range of motion, waist, mid torso, shoulders with lateral movement (so arms can come closer together), bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrists, neck, and head. Provided you can get the joints to cooperate, you can put the figure into many, many poses, though for next time Big Firebird Toy, double jointed elbows, please.
For all the effort put into the design of this figure, I feel that Big Firebird Toy put their C Team on weapons duty. The sword is a bit bland, but more importantly, there's one hand dedicated to holding both the Sword and the Bow, and neither of them are really held that well. The laser pistol is perhaps the only weapon where they did some homework as there's almost no way that gun will ever get loose from that hand, and I wish that they had given her a second pistol, in addition to more useful hands.
Another thing that might cool your enthusiasm for Nicee is that she is somewhat of a Partsformer, like most of the current mainline Transformers. In order to achieve a certain body shape, designers just made unwanted parts removable and convertible into accessories for the main figure.
In Nicee's case, that piece of the car body turns into a shield that is pegged in a way that you either can move the forearm it's attached to, or you hold it like a gun because there's no proper handle. Then there's the bow.... oh that bow.
It's made up of the front of the vehicle mode, which usually hangs on to her behind her neck, giving Nicee those wing looking things. Conversion to a bow involves plugging in a plastic piece that gives it a handle, then squeezing it into the hand that is meant for the sword. It's very, very awkward to say the least, and the fact there's no real dedicated hand for holding the arrow is also a major pain.
Oh right, in the event you don't fancy a bow, you can convert most of the parts into a skirt for... reasons, which unfortunately leaves you with a completely useless panel as well as reduced articulation.
Finally, coming full circle we have transformations, though before I go on I should probably mention that you swap out the breast plates by popping up the shoulders and head and replacing the part.
Conversion into vehicle mode isn't really that complicated once you decipher the instruction manuals mentions of degrees and misspelt words. To their credit, there is a link to a transformation video, which I didn't watch, but I'll presume is more helpful than the instructions. The overall methodology is kind of like TM2 Blackarachnia where you stretch out the body, wrap the legs around the body and cover the entire thing in a shell. IIRC the Generations version had this method and maybe even the other 3P Arcee I have, the Occular Max Zinnia.
I guess I should also mention there was controversy about how the vehicle mode had the visual making of a Vagina or something. I dunno.. I don't looking for the meaning of life in my cups of coffee, and I don't go looking for Vaginas in my vehicle modes.
So in conclusion, the base figure itself is very good, and I'm impressed with the excellent paint work and overall production values of the figure. Weapons really is where the ball was dropped, and even then things could have been saved if the variety of hands was greater and if the bow/shield had actual proper handles so they could do their job. But all-in-all, this is much better than any novelty figure has the right to be.
So if you're an open minded transforming robot fan, I'd highly recommend you give Nicee a try.
I just received the Hot Toys Finn 1/6th scale figure from Sideshow Collectibles. The list price is $205, but he was $30 off with free shipping, so I saved about $45. He is 12 inches tall, and is highly articulated. He is an excellent likeness of John Boyega as Finn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
His LED lightsaber hilt is permanently attached the hand of a special right arm, that replaces the normal right arm and hand. The blade of the non-light-up lightsaber is removed and placed in this LED hilt. I couldn't fit the arm without taking off his jacket, so I pose him that way with his light up lightsaber.
I pose him alone and with Hot Toys Rey and BB-8.
Finn Sixth Scale Figure by Hot Toys
Movie Masterpiece Series
Sold by Sideshow
$204.99
FREE US SHIPPING
ABOUT THIS SIXTH SCALE FIGURE
“You don’t know what I’ve seen. We all need to run.”
Star Wars: The Force Awakens has finally hit the silver screens around the world and already broken box-office records becoming the biggest worldwide opening in theaters! Following the debut of this epic Star Wars film, Sideshow Collectibles and Hot Toys are very excited to officially present the sixth scale collectible figure of one of the main characters from the film – Finn!
Originally trained to serve as a stormtrooper by the First Order, Finn’s conscience has awakened following the skirmish on Jakku, which lead to his encounter with Rey, BB-8, and the Resistance and changes his life forever.
The highly-accurate collectible figure is specially crafted based on the image of John Boyega as Finn in the film featuring a newly developed head sculpt, finely tailored outfit, LED light-up lightsaber, detailed weapons, and a hexagonal figure stand with the Resistance’s emblem.
Expand your Star Wars: The Force Awakens collection today with Finn!
A few years ago, I got to see a 1:1500 scale model of London at the Building Centre there. It is a large scale model of the heart of the city in three dimensions, with representations of most buildings, landmarks, parks, the Thames, and the (at the time yet to be built) Olympic Park.
It's extremely impressive.
And it is as nothing compared to The Panorama at the Queens Museum of Art.
Here's two panorama photos to give a sense of the scale:
⁂
Quoting from the Museum’s page on the The Panorama of the City of New York:
The Panorama is the jewel in the crown of the collection of the Queens Museum of Art. Built by Robert Moses for the 1964 World’s Fair, in part as a celebration of the City’s municipal infrastructure, this 9,335 square foot architectural model includes every single building constructed before 1992 in all five boroughs; that is a total of 895,000 individual structures.
The Panorama was built by a team of 100 people working for the great architectural model makers Raymond Lester Associates in the three years before the opening of the 1964 World’s Fair. In planning the model, Lester Associates referred to aerial photographs, insurance maps, and a range of other City material; the Panorama had to be accurate, indeed the initial contract demanded less than one percent margin of error between reality and the model. The Panorama was one of the most successful attractions at the ‘64 Fair with a daily average of 1,400 people taking advantage of its 9 minute simulated helicopter ride around the City.
After the Fair the Panorama remained open to the public, its originally planned use as an urban planning tool seemingly forgotten. Until 1970 all of the changes in the City were accurately recreated in the model by Lester’s team. After 1970 very few changes were made until 1992, when again Lester Associates changed over 60,000 structures to bring it up-to-date.
In the Spring of 2009 the Museum launched its Adopt-A-Building program with the installation of the Panorama’s newest addition, Citi Field, to continue for the ongoing care and maintenance of this beloved treasure.
The Queens Museum of Art has a program giving you the opportunity to “purchase” NYC real estate on The Panorama of the City of New York for as low as $50. To learn how you can become involved click here.
We hope that you will take time to enjoy the Panorama of the City of New York.
The Panorama of the City of New York is sponsored by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and New York State Assembly members Mike Gianaris, Mark Weprin, Audrey Pheffer, Nettie Mayersohn and Ivan Lafayette, The New York Mets Foundation and the supporters of the Adopt-A-Building Program.
View the winning pictures from our Gala 2011 Panorama Picture Contest!
View pictures from our Gala 2011 Photo booth, May 12, 2011!
View pictures of the Panorama on its Flickr page
Add your own pictures to our Panorama Flickr Group!
⁂
Quoting now from The Panorama section in Wikipedia’s Queens Museum of Art article:
The best known permanent exhibition at the Queens Museum is the Panorama of the City of New York which was commissioned by Robert Moses for the 1964 World’s Fair. A celebration of the City’s municipal infrastructure, this 9,335-square-foot (867.2 m2) architectural model includes every single building constructed before 1992 in all five boroughs; that is a total of 895,000 individual structures. The Panorama was built by a team of 100 people working for the architectural model makers Raymond Lester Associates in the three years before the opening of the 1964 World’s Fair. The Panorama was one of the most successful attractions at the ’64 Fair with a daily average of 1,400 people taking advantage of its 9 minute simulated helicopter ride around the City. After the Fair the Panorama remained open to the public and until 1970 all of the changes in the City were accurately recreated in the model by Lester’s team. After 1970 very few changes were made until 1992, when again Lester Associates was hired to update the model to coincide with the re-opening of the museum. The model makers changed over 60,000 structures to bring it up-to-date.
In March 2009 the museum announced the intention to update the panorama on an ongoing basis. To raise funds and draw public attention the museum will allow individuals and developers to have accurate models made of buildings newer than the 1992 update created and added in exchange for a donation. Accurate models of smaller apartment buildings and private homes, now represented by generic models, can also be added. The twin towers of the World Trade Center will be replaced when the new buildings are created, the museum has chosen to allow them to remain until construction is complete rather than representing an empty hole. The first new buildings to be added was the new Citi Field stadium of the New York Mets. The model of the old Shea Stadium will continue to be displayed elsewhere in the museum.
⁂
Quoting now from the explanatory sign at the exhibit:
THE PANORAMA OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK
The Panorama of the City of New York, the world's largest scale model of its time, was the creation of Robert Moses and Raymond Lester. Presented in the New York City Pavilion as the city’s premiere exhibit at the 1964/65 New York World’s Fair, it was intended afterwards to serve as an urban planning tool. Visitors experienced the Panorama from a simulated “helicopter” ride that travelled around perimeter or from a glass-enclosed balcony on the second floor, while news commentator Lowell Thomas provided audio commentary on “The City of Opportunity.” One of the “helicopter” cars is now on view in the Museum’s permanent exhibition, A Panoramic View: A History of the New York City Building and Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
Constructed at the Lester Associates workshop in Westchester, New York, the Panorama contains 273 separate sections, many of which are four-by-ten-foot rectangular panels. They are composed of Formica flakeboard topped with urethane foam slabs from which the typography was carved. Lester Associates’ staff consulted geological survey maps, aerial photographs, and books of City insurance maps, to accurately render the City’s streets, highways, parks, and buildings. Once the Panorama’s modules were completed at Lester Associates’ workshop, they were assembled on site in the New York City Building. It took more than 100 workers, three years to complete the model.
Built on a sale of 1:1,200 (1 inch equals 100 feet), the Panorama occupies 9.335 square feet and accurately replicates New York City including all 320 square miles of its five boroughs and 771 miles of shoreline, as well as the built environment. It includes miniature cars, boats, and an airplane landing and taking off at LaGuardia Airport.
The majority of the City’s buildings are presented by standardized model units made from wood and acrylic. Of more than 895,000 individual structures, 25,000 are custom-made to approximate landmarks such as skyscrapers, large factories, colleges, museums, and major churches. The amount of detail possible on most buildings is limited; at a scale of 1 inch to 100 feet, the model of the Empire State Building measures only 15 inches. The most accurate structures on the Panorama are its 35 major bridges, which are finely made of brass and shaped by a chemical milling process.
The model is color coded to indicate various types of land use. The dark green areas are parks. Parkways are also edged in dark green. Mint green sections are related to transportation including train and bus terminals. The pink rectangles that dot the City show the locations of recreational areas including playgrounds and tennis and basketball courts. Clusters of red buildings are indicative of publicly subsidized housing.
Red, blue, green, yellow, and white colored lights were installed on the surface of the Panorama in 1964 to identify structures housing City agencies relating to protection, education, health, recreation, commerce, welfare, and transportation. Overhead lights have been designed to run in a dawn to dusk cycle, and the nighttime effect is enhanced by ultraviolet paint, illuminated by blacklight.
In 1992, the City began a renovation of the Queens Museum of Art and the Panorama. Using their original techniques, Lester Associates updated the Panorama with 60,000 changes. In the current instalation, designed by Rafael Viñoly Architects, visitors follow the course of the original “helicopter” ride on an ascending ramp that enables them to experience the Panorama of the City of New York from Multiple Perspectives.
Dispensing with the long black trenchcoat and black shirt he wears at the conclusion of The Matrix, Neo now prefers a cassock with a high-rise mandarin collar giving the appearance of a priest or Bishop for the Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions sequels.
The outfit presented in this album is our attempt to recreate in 1/6 Scale the clothing worn in the film.
For Inquiries, please email geewhizcustoms@gmail.com
The Postcard
A postally unused Valentine's Series postcard.
Although the card was not posted, someone has written a name and address on the divided back:
Miss Carrel,
18, Elmer Avenue,
Southend,
Essex.
Valentine’s Co. Ltd. (Valentine & Sons)
Valentine & Sons were a major postcard publisher of Dundee and London. The Valentine Company, a lithographic printing firm, was founded in 1825 in Dundee, Scotland by John Valentine.
His son James became an early pioneer of photography, and by the 1860’s his work was being reproduced by the Valentine Company as prints and stereo-views.
After James’ death in 1879, his two sons, George Dobson and William Dobson took over the Company, but in 1884 George moved to New Zealand where he became a landscape photographer.
In 1880 Valentine began producing Christmas cards, and by 1896 they began printing postcards. Up until 1882 they had only published views of Scotland, but they began expanding into other tourist markets.
Other offices opened in Jamaica, Madeira, Norway, Tangier, Canada, and New York. They produced a great range of view-cards that were mostly printed in Scotland in tinted halftone lithography or issued as real photo cards.
In addition they produced a vast array of other products that held photographic images. All interests outside of Great Britain were sold in 1923. By 1929 they had given up their photo portraiture work to concentrate solely on postcard production.
However they did not anticipate the public’s growing demand for colour cards, and by the 1950’s their business was suffering. In response they put most of their efforts into greetings cards.
They were purchased by John Waddington & Co. in 1963, which passed on to Hallmark Cards in 1980. Dundee operations closed in 1994.
The Festival of Empire Exhibition
The 1911 Festival of Empire was the biggest single event held at The Crystal Palace in London since its opening. It opened on the 12th. May, and was one of the events to celebrate the coronation of King George V.
The original intention had been that Edward VII would open it in 1910, however, this was postponed after his death shortly before the planned opening day.
The Festival contained a display of landscapes and exhibits from the British Empire, mainly the dominion countries, to encourage emigration to those nations. It also contained a large scale pageant dramatising British history.
It was described at the time as:
'A social gathering of the British family,
encouraging the firmer welding of those
invisible bonds which hold together the
greatest empire the world has ever
known’.
It has since been described as the ‘Ultimate Imperialist Propaganda Showcase’.
Context of the Festival of Empire
Robert George Windsor-Clive, Conservative government minister managed and promoted the Festival as a sub-contracted event; it was nothing to do with the Crystal Palace company which was in receivership at the time.
The 1911 Festival of Empire was one of many imperial propaganda events staged in the early twentieth century in Britain and around the Empire, following the 1909 Imperial International Exhibition at London’s White City, and running parallel to the 1911 Delhi Durbar in India.
The 1911 Festival of Empire was staged at The Crystal Palace at Sydenham Hill and had similar characteristics to the Great Exhibition, for which the palace was initially built, in that it displayed an array of products and exhibits from countries around the world, and promoted a western industrial culture and pro-Empire view of the world.
Design of the Festival
The 1911 Festival of Empire was a considerable logistical exercise which exploited much of the latest technology of the time. It created a simulation of the landscapes around the British Empire for the British public to experience on home ground.
This involved masses of painted canvas and re-landscaped parts of the park.
Buildings of the Festival
At the 1911 Festival of Empire, exhibitions of products from the countries of the Empire were displayed in three-quarter size models of their Parliamentary buildings erected in the grounds, which were:
-- New Zealand replica Parliament Building (based on old New Zealand Parliament Buildings, pre-1907)
-- Canadian Building (replica of the original Centre Block with Victoria Tower, 1866 in Ottawa)
-- South African Building (based on Houses of Parliament, Cape Town)
-- Australia – (based on Parliament House, Melbourne c. 1855)
-- Newfoundland – (based on Colonial Building, c. 1850)
-- South Africa – (based on Houses of Parliament, Cape Town c. 1884)
The buildings were constructed of timber and plaster as they were meant to be temporary. There were also many other exhibits within the Palace itself.
In all, there were 300 ornate buildings constructed by 7,000 workers, one and half miles of track line laid, a mix of stuffed wild animals and real ones (1,000 real wild Australian rabbits and many Newfoundland fish).
Leolyn G Hart, theatre designer, oversaw the whole construction, engaging over 100 painters. The panorama building was adapted into an Indian pavilion, which included displays about Indian history and daily life, and an exhibition of new Bengal art works curated by the India Society.
It also included an Irish cottage village and an attraction named ‘Empire Caves’.
Present day critics would say that exoticism played an integral role in simulating the colonies, especially in the way that colonised peoples were depicted. The colonial exhibits familiarised British men and women with Britain's "newly acquired and distant outpost".
Metaphorically, it took British men and women to places they had never seen and, in all likelihood, would never see. As one observer enthused:
"The East Indian exhibits had the effect
of impressing every visitor with the
importance to such possessions of
Great Britain”.
Exhibits on The All-Red Route Train Ride
The buildings of the 1911 Festival of Empire were linked by an electric tramway called the 'All-Red Route' on which open-sided cars took visitors on a circular tour of the ‘dominions’ with typical scenery of each country.
There were displays of so-called "natives at work", including African tribesmen, Malay people constructing houses and Maori villagers. These were people invited to London to act out scenes from their life and work in mocked up environments.
Most Festival visitors would know little or nothing of such people, and would not have seen such demonstrations. Some scenes included mannequins to represent some of the people of those colonies, seen by critics today as reinforcing notions of primitivism.
All-Red Route bridges over small lakes represented sea voyages between the countries. Scenes along the route included a South African Diamond Mine and an Indian Tea Plantation. There was also a Jamaican sugar plantation, an Australian sheep farm, and a jungle well stocked with wild beasts.
The Pageant of London
A pageant, organised by 'Master of the Pageants' Frank Lascelles, dramatising the history of London and the Empire was held. The first performance of the pageant was on the 8th. June 1911; in four parts, performed on separate days, it celebrated:
'The magnificence, glory and honour
of the Empire and the Mother Country’.
Music was provided for The Pageant of London by 20 composers including Ralph Vaughan Williams, Gustav Holst, Frank Bridge, Cecil Forsyth, Henry Balfour Gardiner, Edward German and Haydn Wood. This was performed by a military band of 50 players and a chorus of 500 voices, directed by W. H. Bell.
The best architects and designers of the day were also engaged in the orchestration of the Pageant, such as Edward Poynter and Aston Webb. The Pageant was so successful that performances were extended from July, when they were due to end, to the 2nd. September, although a number of days were lost or spoilt due to bad weather.
The King's Day with the Children
The King’s Day with the Children was arranged as part of the Festival for 100,000 children to come to enjoy the Palace and Festival events on one day, and meet the King and other members of the royal family.
It was also considered a great organisational challenge. The children were chosen by ballot from London schools of all backgrounds.
The Finances of the Festival
By the time it closed in October 1911, four to five million people had visited the Festival of Empire, including one million to see the Pageant.
However, it clocked up a massive loss of £250,000 - a debt borne by the Festival’s private backers, not the Crystal Palace Company. Meanwhile, that Company had been in receivership, and a date for the auction of the site had been set for the 28th. November.
The Festival might well have been the last dramatic event at the site, before the land was parcelled up and sold off for housing. Fortunately, Lord Plymouth arranged a share offer, including £240,000 from him, to save the site.
Critical appraisal of the Festival
The event was greatly praised by the newspapers of the day, impressed by its sheer scale and ambition. The Globe newspaper reported in May, 1911:
“Nothing like this Festival has
been attempted by any nation”.
The Pall Mall Gazette opined that:
"The grounds were transformed Aladdin-like
into a glittering group of white pavilions, like
a cluster of snowy peaks recast in moulds of
beauty and geographical significance.”
The Daily Telegraph reported:
"Never before… has the home-keeping
Londoner been afforded the opportunity
of realising the varied aspect of different
parts of the Empire.”
Present-day critics question the 1911 Festival of Empire, and other such colonial events, regarding their depiction of the colonies and colonised people. This has been critically examined in relation to the 1851 Great Exhibition and the way in which it ‘othered’ colonised Ethnic groups to strengthen British national identity.
The 1911 Festival of Empire claimed in the official flyer to be:
"An opportunity to admire and seek
amusement in the charms, the wealth
and the wonders of the Empire that
girdles the globe".
However in recent years, questions around the mode of ethics in which it showcased the “dominions” have been questioned.
It was an event promoting “Firmer welding of invisible bonds which hold together the greatest empire in the world”, yet other accounts recognise that there were underlying tensions and antipathies, and that the festival did little to bridge the gap between the classes.
The 1911 Festival of Empire, and other such events at the Crystal Palace, served to both integrate and segregate as it reflected and reinforced hierarchies, not only within British society, but also served as a facilitator to the upholding of primitivism and the inaccurate representation of people from the "orient", the continent of Africa and Oceania.
The use of exhibitions where “Human models were arranged into visual narratives that were deemed representative of their ethnic traits”, promoted and reinforced ideas of what it looked like to be from Africa or India. These people were commonly described as primitives and Cannibals being “saved” by the act of colonisation.
As written in ‘Exhibiting the Empire: Cultures of Display’:
"Visitors were encouraged to compare
themselves with the peoples on display,
and note their progress from the relatively
lowly states of the human race”.
1:43 Scale 1970's Royal Military Police Ford Cortina 1.6L based at 179 Pro. Coy. Belfast by, British Forces, Belfast. (rr)
This is made using the Corgi Vanguards red Ford Cortina stripped and repainted green (as close as possible to the real vehicle) with the detail hand painted and bespoke laser printed decals made and fitted together with a single hand made blue light and 'Military Police' boards.
This is a commission model.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
In the aftermath of the Second World War, Sweden required a strong air defense, utilizing the newly developed jet propulsion technology. The original concept had been designed around a mostly straight wing, but after Swedish engineers had obtained German research data on swept-wing designs, the prototype was altered to incorporate a 25° sweep. In order to make the wing as thin as possible, Saab elected to locate the retractable undercarriage in the aircraft's fuselage rather than into the wings.
Extensive wind tunnel testing had also influenced aspects of the aircraft's aerodynamics, such as stability and trim across the aircraft's speed range. In order to test the design of the swept wing further and avoid any surprises, it was decided to modify a Saab Safir. It received the designation Saab 201 and a full-scale swept wing for a series of flight tests. The first 'final' sketches of the aircraft, incorporating the new information, were drawn in January 1946.
The originally envisioned powerplant for the new fighter type was the de Havilland Goblin turbojet engine. However, in December 1945, information on the newer and more powerful de Havilland Ghost engine became available. The new engine was deemed to be ideal for Saab's in-development aircraft, as not only did the Ghost engine had provisions for the use of a central circular air intake, the overall diameter of the engine was favorable for the planned fuselage dimensions, too. Thus, following negotiations between de Havilland and Saab, the Ghost engine was selected to power the type and built in license as the RM 2.
By February 1946 the main outline of the proposed aircraft had been clearly defined. In autumn 1946, following the resolution of all major questions of principal and the completion of the project specification, the Swedish Air Force formally ordered the completion of the design and that three prototype aircraft be produced, giving the proposed type the designation J 29. After a thorough test program, production of the type commenced in 1948 and, in May 1951, the first deliveries of operational production aircraft were received by F 13 Norrköping. The J 29 proved to be very successful and several variants and updates of the Tunnan were produced, including a dedicated reconnaissance variant, a two seat trainer and an all-weather fighter with an onboard radar
However, Sweden foresaw that there would soon be a need for a jet fighter that could intercept bombers at high altitude and also successfully engage fighters. During September 1949, the Swedish Air Force, via the Swedish Defence Material Administration, released a requirement for a cutting-edge interceptor aircraft that was envisioned to be capable of attacking hostile bomber aircraft in the transonic speed range. As released, this requirement specified a top speed of Mach speed 1.4 to 1.5. (1956, the specified speed was revised and raised to Mach 1.7-1.8, and eventually led to the Saab 35 Draken). With the barely supersonic Saab 32 Lansen just under development, and intended for different roles than being a nimble day fighter, the company searched for a way to either achieve supersonic flight through modifications of an existing type or at least gather sufficient data and develop and try the new technologies necessary to meet the 1949 requirements.
Since Sweden did not have a truly supersonic aircraft in its inventory (not even an experimental type), Saab decided to convert the Saab 29 into a supersonic testbed, with the outlook to develop an interim day fighter that could replace the various Tunnan fighter versions and support the new Lansen fleet until a fully capable Mach 1.5+ interceptor was ready for service. Even though the type was regarded as a pure experimental aircraft, the designation remained close to the J29 nomenclature in order to secure military funding for the project and to confuse eventual spies. Consequently, the P29 was initially presented as a new J29 version (hence the “G” suffix).
The P29G was based on a heavily modified production J29B airframe, which was built in two versions and only in two specimens. Work on the first airframe started in 1952, just when the first Saab 32 prototype made its maiden flight. The initial challenge consisted of integrating two relatively compact axial flow jet engines with afterburners into the fuselage, since the J29’s original RM2, even in its late afterburner variant, was not able to safely deliver the necessary thrust for the intended supersonic flight program. After long negotiations, Saab was able to procure a small number of Westinghouse J34-WE-42 turbojets from the USA, which delivered as a pair 40% more thrust than the original RM2B. The engines were only delivered under the restriction that they would exclusively be used in connection with the supersonic research program.
Through a thorough re-construction, the Saab team was able to mount the new engines into the lower rear fuselage, and, internally, the air intake duct had to be modified and forked behind the landing gear wells. Due to the significantly widened rear fuselage, the P29G became quickly nicknamed “Kurviga Tunnan” (= “Curvy Barrel”). Even though the widened rear fuselage increased the aircraft’s frontal cross section, the modified shape had the (unintended) effect of area ruling, a welcome side benefit which became apparent during the flight test and which largely promoted the P29G’s gain of top speed.
Another special and unique feature of the P29G was a special wing attachment system. It consisted of two strengthened, open box spars in the fuselage with additional attachment points along the wing roots, which allowed different wings to be switched with relatively little effort. However, due to this modification, the wing tanks (with a total capacity of 900l inside of the J29s standard wings) were lost and only 2.150l in the Saab 29’s standard fuselage tanks could be carried – but this was, for a research aircraft, not regarded as a major weakness, and compensated for the wing attachment system’s additional weight. The original wing-mounted pitots were replaced by a single, massive sensor boom attached to the aircraft’s nose above the air intake, slightly set-off to starboard in order to give the pilot an unobstructed view.
The first P29G's maiden flight, marked “Gul Urban” (Yellow U), took place in July 1955. The aircraft behaved normally, even though the center of gravity had markedly shifted backwards and the overall gain of weight made the aircraft slightly unstable along the longitudinal axis. During the initial, careful attempts to break the sound barrier, it soon became apparent that both the original wings as well as the original air intake shape limited the P29G's potential. In its original form, the P29G could only barely pass Mach 1 in level flight.
As a consequence, the second P29G, which had been under conversion from another J29B airframe since mid-1954, received more thorough modifications. The air intake was lengthened and widened, and in order to make it more effective at supersonic speed it received a sharp lip. Wind tunnel tests with the first machine led to a modified tail, too: the fin was now taller and further swept back, the stabilizer was moved to a higher position, resulting in a cruciform layout. The original single-piece stabilizer was furthermore replaced by a two-piece, all-moving construction with a 45° sweep and a thinner profile. This not only improved the aerodynamics at high speed, it also suppressed the longitudinal instability problem, even though this was never really cured.
Due to the even higher all-up weight of the new aircraft, the landing gear was reinforced and the 2nd P29G received an experimental suspension system on its main legs with higher spring travel, which was designed for operations on semi-prepared airfields. This system had actually been designed for the updated J29 fighters (esp. the A32B attack variant), but it was not introduced into series production or the Saab 29E/F conversion program. Despite these massive changes, the P29G designation was retained, and the second machine, carrying the tactical code “Röd Urban” (Red U), was quickly nicknamed “Karpen” (“Carp”), due to its characteristic new intake shape, the long fin and its stocky shape.
The second P29G was ready for flight tests in August 1956, just in time to support the Saab 35’s ongoing development – the aircraft, which was eventually built to meet (and exceed) the Swedish Air Force’s 1949 supersonic interceptor requirement. The modifications proved to be successful and the P29G was, fitted with a 60° sweep wing and in clean configuration, able to achieve a maximum speed of 1.367 km/h (849 mph) in level flight, a formidable achievement (vs. the 1,060 km/h (660 mph) of the late J29F and the 1200 km/h (745 mph) of the J32B interceptor) for the post WWII design.
Several wing shapes and profiles were tested, including sweep angles from 25° to 63° as well as different shapes and profiles. Even though the machines carried provisions for the J29’s standard armament, the 20 mm cannons were normally not mounted and replaced with sensors and recording equipment. However, both machines were temporarily fitted with one or two guns in order to analyze the effects of firing the weapons at supersonic speed. Underwing ordnance was also almost never carried. In some tests, though, light bombs or unguided missiles were carried and deployed, or podded cine cameras were carried.
While the second P29G was used for high speed trials, the first machine remained in its original guise and took over low speed handling tests. Thanks to the unique wing switch mechanism, the supersonic research program could be held within a very tight schedule and lasted until late 1959. Thereafter, the P29Gs’ potential was of little use anymore, and the engine use agreement with the USA put an end to further use of the two aircraft, so that both P29Gs were retired from service in 1960. The 1st machine, outfitted with standard J29F wings and stripped off of its engines, remained in use as an instructional air at Malmslätt air base 1969, while the second machine was mothballed. However, both airframes were eventually scrapped in 1970.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 11.66 m (38 ft 2 in) fuselage only,
13,97 m (45 ft 9 in) with pitot boom
Wingspan: varied*; 11.0 m (36 ft 1 in) with standard 25° sweep wings,
10.00 m (32 ft 9 ¾ in) with experimental 45° wings
Height: 4.54m (14 ft 10 ½ in)
Wing area: varied*; 24.15 m² (260.0 ft²) with standard 25° sweep wings
22.5 m² (242.2 ft²) with experimental 45° wings
Empty weight: 5,220 kg (11,500 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 8,510 kg (18,744 lb)
Powerplant:
2× Westinghouse J34-WE-42 turbojets, each rated at 3,400 lbf (15 kN) dry thrust
and 4,200 lbf (19 kN) with full afterburner
Performance:
Maximum speed: 1.367 km/h (849 mph) were achieved*
Range: 790 km (490 mi)
Service ceiling: up to 17,250 m (56,500 ft)*
Rate of climb: up to 45 m/s (8,850 ft/min)*
*Varying figures due to different tested wing configurations
Armament:
None installed; provisions for 4x 20mm Hispano Mark V autocannon in the lower front fuselage.
Depending on the mounted wing type, various external loads could be carried, including a wide range of light bombs, 75 mm (3 in) air-to-air rockets, 145 mm (5.8 in) anti-armor rockets, 150 mm (6 in) HE (high-explosive) rockets or 180 mm (7.2 in) HE anti-ship rockets. Due to the lack of complex wiring or fuel plumbing, no guided weapons or drop tanks could be mounted, though.
The kit and its assembly:
Sweden is a prolific whiffing territory, and the Saab 29 offers some interesting options. This highly modified Tunnan, which is actually rather a kitbashing than a mere model kit modification, is/was a submission to the “More or less engines” group build at whatifmodelers.com in summer 2019.
I actually had the idea of a two-engine J29 in the back of my mind for a long time, spawned by a resin conversion set for the Hasegawa B-47 Stratojet kit that came with new intakes and exhaust sections for the four engine pods. The single engine pod parts had been spent a long time ago, but the twin engine parts were still waiting for a good use. Could the exhaust fit under/into a Tunnan…?
I even had a Matchbox J29 stashed away for this experiment long ago, as well as some donor parts like the wings, and the GB eventually offered the right motivation to put those things together that no one would expect to work.
So I pulled out all the stuff and started – a rather straightforward affair. Work started with the fuselage, which was, together with the (very nice) cockpit assembled OOB at first, the nose filled with as much lead as possible and with the lower rear section cut away, so the B-47 resin jet nozzles would end up at the same position as the original RM2B exhaust. Due to the pen nib fairing between them, though, the profile of the modified tail became (visually) more massive, and I had to fill some gaps under the tail boom (with styrene sheet and putty). The twin engines also turned out to be wider than expected – I had hoped for straight flanks, but the fuselage shape ended up with considerable bulges behind the landing gear wells. These were created with parts from drop tank halves and blended into the rest of the lower hill with PSR work. In the same wake the area under the fin was sculpted and re-created, too.
At that point it became clear that I had to do more on the fuselage, esp. the front end, in order to keep the aircraft visually balance. A convenient solution became an F-100 air intake, which I grafted onto the nose instead of the original circular and round-lipped orifice – with its sharp lip the Super Sabre piece was even a plausible change! The fuselage shapes and diameters differed considerably, though, more PSR became necessary.
Next came the wings: I had already set apart a pair of trapezoid wings with a 45° sweep angle – these were left over from a PM Model Ta 183 conversion some time ago. With their odd shape and size they were a perfect match for my project, even more so due to the fact that I could keep the original J29 wing attachment points, I just had to shorten and modify the trailing edge area on the fuselage. The result was very conclusive.
With the new nose and the wings in place, the overall proportions became clearer: still tail-heavy, but not unpleasant. At this time I was also certain that I had to modify the tail surfaces. The fin was too small and did not have enough sweep for the overall look, and the stabilizer, with its thick profile, rounded edges and the single, continuous rudder did not look supersonic at all. What followed was a long search in the donor banks for suitable replacements, and I eventually came up with a MiG-15 fin (Hobby Boss) which was later clipped at the top for a less recognizable profile. The stabilizers were more challenging, though. My solution eventually became a pair of modified stabilizers from a Matchbox Buccaneer(!), attached to the MiG-15 fin.
The design problems did not stop here, though: the landing gear caused some more headaches. I wanted to keep the OOB parts, but especially the main legs would leave the aircraft with a very goofy look through a short wheelbase and a rear axis position too much forward. In an attempt to save the situation I attached swing arms to the OOB struts, moving the axis maybe 5mm backwards and widening the track by 2mm at the same time. Not much in total, but it helped (a little, even though the aircraft is still very tail-heavy)
As a final addition – since the original, wing-mounted pitots of the J29 were gone now and would not go well with the wing-switching idea – I gave the P29G a large, nose-mounted pitot and sensor boom, placed on top of the nose. This part come, like the air intake, from an F-100.
Painting and markings:
I tend to be conservative when it comes to liveries for what-if models, and the P29G is no exception. At first, I thought that this build could become an operational supersonic daylight interceptor (the J29G), so that I could give the model full military markings and maybe a camouflage paint scheme. However, this idea would not work: the potential real life window for such an aircraft, based on the Saab 29, would be very narrow. And aircraft development in the late Fifties made quantum leaps within a very short period of time: While the J29A entered service, work on the Mach 2 Saab 35 was already underway – nobody would have accepted (or needed) a Mach 1 fighter, based on late Forties technology, at that time anymore, and there was the all-weather Saab J32B around, too. The update program with new wings and a more powerful afterburner engine was all that could be done to exploit the Tunnan’s potential, resulting in the (real world’s) J29E and F variants.
I eventually decided that the J29G would only be a prototype/research aircraft, consequently called P29G, and through this decision I became more or less settled upon a NMF finish with some colorful markings. Consequently, the model was painted with various shades of metal colors, primarily Polished Aluminum Metallizer from Humbrol, but also with Humbrol 191 and Matt Aluminum Metallizer as well as ModelMaster Steel Metallizer. Around the exhaust section, I also used Revell 91 (Iron) and ModelMaster Exhaust Metallizer. Some single panels and details were painted with Revell 99 (Aluminum), and I also used generic decal material in silver to simulate some smaller access panels. Grey decal sheet was used to simulate covers for the cannon nozzles.
The cockpit interior was painted, according to Saab 29 standard, in a dark greenish-grey (Revell 67), and bluish grey was used inside of the landing gear wells (Revell 57). The pitot boom received black and white stripes.
For markings I let myself get inspired from the real world Saab 29 and 32 prototypes, which were all marked with a colored “U” tactical code on the fin and also on the front fuselage, simply meaning “Utverding” (= “Test”). I found four red decals, and I also gave the aircraft a yellow cheatline, lent from an Airfix F-86D decal sheet. The Swedish roundels come from a generic aftermarket sheet, most stencils were taken from the Revell OOB sheet and a Printscale J29 sheet.
Before the model was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish from Italeri, some grinded graphite was rubbed onto the rear fuselage, adding a metallic shine and simulating exhaust stains.
A thorough conversion – this has rather evolved into a kitbashing than just a kit conversion: not much from the original Matchbox J29 has been left over. But I like the outcome, even though things developed gradually from the simple idea of changing the number of engines on the Tunnan. One thing led to another. The resulting aircraft looks quite plausible, even though I am not totally happy with the landing gear, which appears to be rather far forward, despite surgical measures to mend the situation. The Ta 183 wings are a very good match, though, and I cannot help but recognize a certain French look, maybe due to the cruciform tail and the oval air intake? The P29G could also, with Argentinian marking, have become a revised version of the FMA Pulqui II?
You can see how I made this by viewing the vero apartment building set. It's made from a bunch of really old disgarded parts I bought off ebay, two unbuilt n scale vollmer models and parts from 3 greenmax add on kits. When viewing the photo set you can click on slide show to view the photos enlarge there's also an option once the slideshow starts to view in full screen. Cheers and thanks for the comments.
To the surprise of nobody who's ever talked to me, I have eclectic tastes when it comes to collectibles. Yeah, I'll get the things that are generally universally liked, but ultimately shock value and general tastelessness (by puritan US standards) are what kind of guide my collecting path.
About a year ago, there was a company with a dream - Big Firebird Toy - and that dream was to make a transforming Arcee figure that was more Senran Kagura than G1 Autobot. Her name would be Nicee, and would share enough characteristics with her licensed namesake so you could help Hot Rod live out his high school fantasies including a familiar alt mode and a very G1 Arcee head.
People complained, of course, but in this day and age, what else is new? At least this wasn't Flametoys where they were selling licensed figures... this was the Wild Wild West of Third Party Transformer figures. I'll admit the window dressing was might attractive, but the Engineer in me also wanted to know.. just how would they pull off such an ambitious design?
At any rate, preorders were placed and all was well for a while.
First it was COVID causing mayhem and delaying production of everything across the board. Then, rumour has it that Hasbro started actually cracking down on Chinese bootlegs of their figures, and so Big Firebird Toy dropped the Arcee head, and just stuck with their own original content. That all passed, and I finally received my copy of the figure.
So just how did they do? Lets look at the Big Firebird Toy EX-01: Nicee figure.
I ordered mine from TF-Direct, who were the lowest price point at the time. Prices have since jumped up from the $95 USD I paid, which included EMS shipping, but a cursory glance at eBay shows you should still be OK. The figure came in it's own brown shipper, with an art box contained within which houses all the fun stuff.
A quick glance at the art box should very quick establish that no... this is not a kids figure. It's not quite Skytube hentai PVC material, but it is at least Teen territory. Also nice is the Pink foiled letters.
I also have to giggle at the security seal and the quality assurance foil sticker because, well... China.
Nicee is packed in robot mode, and comes in a single layered tray with her accessories. By the time things are said and done, the box is gigantic, effectively 12" x 12" x 4", like something out of the old Toys R Us MP boxes. Accessories include an extra Aheago head, a breast plate with soft rubbery breasts, a laser pistol, an energy arrow, a sword, part of her chasis, the handle for her bow, and six additional hands. Naturally, she has a set of instructions, as well as a nifty art card.
Nicee is a gorgeous figure, and I'm not just talking curves. I had two major concerns - crappy paint work, and crappy build. I've done the best I can on my photos, but one of things I couldn't make out on other photos I've seen is the fact that Nicee has a nice pearl finish on all her painted parts. Try as I might, I could not find any areas of overspray or bleeding, with the only bad paint being a fibre or something being embedded into the forehead of my Aheago head. Even the pink on the wheels are pearl finish. Now, I would ADD some colours to a few areas, such as the blade of the sword and maybe to the face to make the lips turn out better, but that's another discussion - what paint work you do get is pretty damn good and is generally resistant to most forms of contact.
I'm not saying you should break out the sand paper, but you can at least be assured you don't have to worry about actually handling the figure without gloves.
Build quality is a bit tougher to explore, but to put aside any immediate worries, overall things are very good. Nicee has rubber tires, which is becoming more and more of a rare thing. There are some die cast metal parts, though these in high stress structural components. The plastics they used feel like the same stuff you'd get on a Takara Tomy MP figure, but perhaps a bit thinner, maybe due to the sheer number of curved parts on this figure.
The finish on these parts is, without a doubt, phenomenal. very few rough surfaces or mould lines found. My mind is blown at how well the pieces fit together, and that truly the finished product matched the CG renders almost perfectly. QC with regards to accuracy of tabs and slots is almost perfect, but isn't quite up to Takara Tomy standards, so it can be a bit of pain to get things aligned correctly but it can be done, at least, and the parts come together with tolerances that wouldn't be out of place on an MP figure.
Joints in general tend to be a bit on the stiff side, especially the neck and head joints, which can make posing Nicee a bit of a headache..
Finally I feel the hands should have used the more popular method of connection, that is having the ball on the wrist joint itself and the socket on the hand, as opposed to the opposite. This would make things connect more securely, as well as improve range of motion here.
Nicee herself is 19 cm tall, which puts here out of MP scale, as she's supposed to be slightly smaller than Hot Rod. On the plus side, she's that much more visually impressive and has that much more shelf presence.
Articulation is impressive, and is in line with what I'd expect from an MP figure. You get full ankles (two separate points of movement), double jointed knees, thigh twist, hips with pull down for greater range of motion, waist, mid torso, shoulders with lateral movement (so arms can come closer together), bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, wrists, neck, and head. Provided you can get the joints to cooperate, you can put the figure into many, many poses, though for next time Big Firebird Toy, double jointed elbows, please.
For all the effort put into the design of this figure, I feel that Big Firebird Toy put their C Team on weapons duty. The sword is a bit bland, but more importantly, there's one hand dedicated to holding both the Sword and the Bow, and neither of them are really held that well. The laser pistol is perhaps the only weapon where they did some homework as there's almost no way that gun will ever get loose from that hand, and I wish that they had given her a second pistol, in addition to more useful hands.
Another thing that might cool your enthusiasm for Nicee is that she is somewhat of a Partsformer, like most of the current mainline Transformers. In order to achieve a certain body shape, designers just made unwanted parts removable and convertible into accessories for the main figure.
In Nicee's case, that piece of the car body turns into a shield that is pegged in a way that you either can move the forearm it's attached to, or you hold it like a gun because there's no proper handle. Then there's the bow.... oh that bow.
It's made up of the front of the vehicle mode, which usually hangs on to her behind her neck, giving Nicee those wing looking things. Conversion to a bow involves plugging in a plastic piece that gives it a handle, then squeezing it into the hand that is meant for the sword. It's very, very awkward to say the least, and the fact there's no real dedicated hand for holding the arrow is also a major pain.
Oh right, in the event you don't fancy a bow, you can convert most of the parts into a skirt for... reasons, which unfortunately leaves you with a completely useless panel as well as reduced articulation.
Finally, coming full circle we have transformations, though before I go on I should probably mention that you swap out the breast plates by popping up the shoulders and head and replacing the part.
Conversion into vehicle mode isn't really that complicated once you decipher the instruction manuals mentions of degrees and misspelt words. To their credit, there is a link to a transformation video, which I didn't watch, but I'll presume is more helpful than the instructions. The overall methodology is kind of like TM2 Blackarachnia where you stretch out the body, wrap the legs around the body and cover the entire thing in a shell. IIRC the Generations version had this method and maybe even the other 3P Arcee I have, the Occular Max Zinnia.
I guess I should also mention there was controversy about how the vehicle mode had the visual making of a Vagina or something. I dunno.. I don't looking for the meaning of life in my cups of coffee, and I don't go looking for Vaginas in my vehicle modes.
So in conclusion, the base figure itself is very good, and I'm impressed with the excellent paint work and overall production values of the figure. Weapons really is where the ball was dropped, and even then things could have been saved if the variety of hands was greater and if the bow/shield had actual proper handles so they could do their job. But all-in-all, this is much better than any novelty figure has the right to be.
So if you're an open minded transforming robot fan, I'd highly recommend you give Nicee a try.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet is a light attack jet and advanced trainer aircraft co-manufactured by Dassault Aviation of France and Dornier Flugzeugwerke of Germany. It was developed specifically to perform the trainer and light attack missions, as well as to perform these duties more ideally than the first generation of jet trainers that preceded it.
Following a competition, a design submitted by a team comprising Breguet Aviation, Dassault Aviation, and Dornier Flugzeugwerke, initially designated as the TA501, was selected and subsequently produced as the Alpha Jet.
Both the French Air Force and German Air Force procured the Alpha Jet in large numbers, the former principally as a trainer aircraft and the latter choosing to use it as a light attack platform. In July 1978, Dassault signed an agreement with American aircraft manufacture Lockheed to market the Alpha Jet in the US market, the arrangement included provisions for Lockheed to manufacture the Alpha Jet under license. The Alpha Jet was considered as a candidate for the US Navy's VTXTS advanced trainer program, which was eventually won by the McDonnell Douglas T-45 Goshawk, a modified version of the Hawker Siddeley Hawk. Proposed modifications included undercarriage changes for nose-tow catapults and a stronger arrestor hook, as well as various US-sourced avionics and other equipment.
The Alpha Jet program remained prolific, though. During the early 1990s, the French Air Force investigated the “Alpha Jet 3” program, which involved installing a fully digital cockpit, a modernized communications suite, and a full navigation/attack and sensor training system.
Another development line was the Alpha Jet Lancier (Lancer), which would enable the trainer to act as a light, all-weather multi-purpose attack aircraft. The most obvious modification was the addition of an Anemone radar in an extended nose section with a radome, similar and shape and size of the Super Étendard’s nose section. The Anemone radar was an improved and very compact derivative of the Super Étendard’s Agave radar, weighing only a mere 60kg.
The Anemone would provide the weapon system (based on the developments for the Alpha Jet 3) with all the data required for firing air-to-sea AM39 missiles, and the data needed for air-to-ground fire control. It could also be used for aircraft self-protection, as it could also handle the fire control of air-to-air weapons.
Dassault had high hopes in export sales for the Alpha Jet Lancier (e. g. to Egypt, Qatar and Nigeria), but interest was lukewarm since the Alpha Jet was a design that had been superseded by more modern constructions, and its operation costs were relatively high.
However, in 1991, when the Alpha Jet Lancier was still on the drawing board, the French Aéronavale was looking for an advanced trainer that could also be used for carrier start and landing training – basically as a replacement for the outdated Fouga CM.175 Zéphyr. The Alpha Jet offered several benefits, including its two engines for improved operational security and the fact that the type had already been in use with the French Air Force, so that the maintenance infrastructure and experienced mechanics were readily available. Even the demand for a maritime variant could be quickly realized – thanks to the VTXTS engagement in the late Seventies.
The result was the so-called “Alpha Jet Lancier M”, which incorporated all the aforementioned elements. An order for 31 aircraft (one prototype plus 30 serial aircraft) was placed in early 1992. The prototype was ready in May 1993 and incorporated further changes like uprated engines (delivering 10% more thrust than the former Larzac turbofans used on the land-based variants) or foldable outer wing sections, a reinforced arrester hook and a fixed (but detachable refueling probe).
The landing gear was also modified for carrier operations, with a bigger spring deflection and a more rigid, twin-front wheel that also featured a launch hook.
The Anemone multi-mode radar was augmented by a lightweight Ferranti Type 105 laser rangefinder, mounted in a fairing under the port side cockpit flank, leaving space for an optional gun pod that could be carried under the fuselage. A Doppler radar for navigation purposes was added in a shallow fairing under the cockpit, too. Mission avionics were further enhanced by a helmet-mounted sight, improved cockpit displays, a datalink, and improved night vision goggles compatibility.
The Alpha Jet Lancier M’s most powerful weapon was the AS.39 Exocet missile. Two of these weapons (weighing 670 kg each) could be carried on the inner pylons, even typically only a single one was carried with a drop tank as counterbalance and range compensation on the opposite pylon.
The relatively compact missile is designed for attacking small- to medium-size warships (e. g. frigates, corvettes and destroyers), although multiple hits are effective against larger vessels, such as aircraft carriers. Its rocket motor, which is fueled by solid propellant, gives the Exocet a maximum range of 70 km (43 mi; 38 nmi). It is guided inertially in mid-flight and turns on active radar late in its flight to find and hit its target. As a countermeasure against air defense around the target, it maintains a very low altitude during ingress, staying one–two m above the sea surface. Due to the effect of the radar horizon, this means that the target may not detect an incoming attack until the missile is only 6,000 m from impact. This leaves little time for reaction and stimulated the design of close-in weapon systems (CIWS).
Trials of the Alpha Jet Lancier M prototype lasted until 1994, when serial production eventually started – just in time for the Zéphyr replacement, the trainer had been in service since 1960. The first machines arrived at the operational units in early 1995, though. Dassault still had high export hopes, but despite having an official operator now no further orders were coming forth – the Alpha Jet Lancier was simply too expensive. Plans for upgrading the land-based Alpha Jet fleet were also ultimately abandoned as being too expensive. In 1998, France's defense ministry examined prospective upgrades focused on the Alpha Jet's cockpit, such as the installation of a new Head-Up Display (HUD) and multifunction displays, though.
In June 2003, Dassault revealed its plans for an Alpha Jet upgrade to potentially meet the French Air Force's long term training requirements. This upgrade was similar to that which was performed for the Belgian Air Force's Alpha Jet fleet, involving the installation of a glass cockpit, increasing cockpit compatibility with frontline aircraft such as the Dassault Rafale and Dassault Mirage 2000, as well as a structural overhaul.
As a result of post-Cold War military cutbacks, Germany already elected to retire its own fleet of Alpha Jets in the 1990s and has re-sold many of these aircraft to both military and civilian operators. The Alpha Jet has been adopted by a number of air forces across the world and has also seen active combat use by some of these operators.
General characteristics:
Crew: two
Length: 13.23 m (43 ft 5 in)
Wingspan: 9.11 m (29 ft 10¾ in), folded:
Height: 4.19 m (13 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 17.50 m² (188.4 ft²)
Empty weight: 3,515 kg (7,750 lb)
Loaded weight: 5,000 kg (11,000 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 7,500 kg (16,535 lb)
Powerplant:
2× SNECMA Turbomeca Larzac 04-H-20 non-afterburning turbofans,
delivering 4.12 kN of thrust (3,173 lbf) each
Performance:
Maximum speed: 1,000 km/h (540 kn, 621 mph) at sea level
Stall speed: 167 km/h (90 knots, 104 mph) (flaps and undercarriage down)
Combat radius: 610 km (329 nmi, 379 mi) lo-lo-lo profile with full ordnance
Ferry range: 2,940 km (1,586 nmi, 1,827 mi)
Service ceiling: 14,630 m (48,000 ft)
Rate of climb: 57 m/s (11,220 ft/min)
Armament:
1× optional 30 mm (1.18 in) GIAT 30/M791 autocannon with 125 rounds in a centerline pod
Four underwing hardpoints for a total load of 2,500 kg (5,506 lb), including up to six Matra rocket pods
with eighteen SNEB 68 mm rockets each or six CRV7 rocket pods with nineteen 70 mm rockets each;
Two AIM-9 Sidewinders or two Matra Magic IIs air-to-air missiles
Up to two AM.39 Exocet anti-ship missiles, or four AGM-65 Mavericks
or other TV-, laser or IR-guided Smart Weapons
The kit and its assembly:.
Another entry for the “Old Kit Group Build” at whatifmodelers.com, #4 to be precise. The basis for this conversion is the venerable Heller Alpha Jet in 1:72 scale from 1979, even though in a much more recent Revell re-boxing as a Belgian aircraft with a black/yellow/silver anniversary paint scheme.
Anyway, the moulds must have suffered a lot in the meantime, because the Revell offering comes with lots of flash, ugly ejector pin markings and even some sinkholes. I have built an old, original Heller kit a while ago, and this was much more crisp and defined!
However, the conversion of the kit was only cosmetic, including:
• A new, longer and more massive nose– actually the front end of a Tornado drop tank
• A completely new twin front wheel, including the well in the nose section
• Modified main landing gear with new wheels and a higher stance
• Engraved seams for the wings’ folding mechanism
• Appropriate ordnance, including…
- an Exocet missile (Academy Super Étendard)
- a drop tank (Academy OV-10 Bronco)
- a Barracuda 2 ECM pod and a Matra Phimat flare dispenser (Heller SEPECAT Jaguar)
• Some new antennae and pitots, and a more massive arrestor hook
• The laser rangefinder in its unusual (but correct!) fairing
• Some chaff/flare dispensers at the tail
Building the fuselage was no fun – nothing would fit, and the kit’s construction is really complicated. O.K., the Alpha Jet’s shape with its engine nacelles and the curved belly is complex, but the kit’s solution is far from perfect.
Another true weak point are the air intakes: they end after 3-4mm in a staggered, vertical wall. Really ugly, so I drilled the intakes open and moved the still necessary view blocker (black foamed styrene) a bit further back.
Painting and markings:
IMHO, the only potential operator for this fictional yet rather complex and expensive Alpha Jet variant would be France, and so the Lancier M ended up in the hands of the Aéronavale.
Consequently, I gave the aircraft a Nineties paint scheme inspired by the two-tone grey livery of the late Super Ètendard – also a bit of an unusual, yet familiar, touch. The basic colors I used are Humbrol 164 (Dark Sea Grey) and 165 (Medium Sea Grey), because I wanted to prevent a US look – and the frequently recommended tones of FS36118 and FS35237 are IMHO just wrong, Gunship Grey being too dark, and the grey blue being …simply much too bluish. The British tones work quite well, though, even though I still wonder about the “true” colors of this paint scheme?
The cockpit interior was painted in very dark grey (Humbrol 67) for some contrast to the outside, the landing gear wells and the struts became Aluminum (Humbrol 56), as well as the air intakes. The interior of the landing gear covers was painted in chrome yellow primer (Humbrol 81), for some more color contrast.
The Barracuda 2 pod was painted in dark green, while the chaff dispenser became dark grey – as a small color contrast to the grey aircraft. The Exocet missile became white with a light grey radome, according to the real thing, but as another disruption the single drop tank received the old Aéronavale scheme in dark bluish grey and white, together with a red tip (marking the flight the aircraft belongs to).
The decals come mostly from a Berna Decals aftermarket sheet for French Bréguet Alizés. The sheet features, among others, a late, dark grey aircraft, and this option provided the small roundels and the grey codes. Escadrille 59S was chosen, since it was available in the sheet (with the squadron’s emblem) and originally a unit for night/all-weather training, disbanded in early 1997.
A simple conversion, yet very thorough and surprisingly convincing. The Lancier’s longer and more massive nose changes the character of the sleek Alpha Jet a lot, and the grey-on-grey paint scheme with the toned-down markings adds a unusual touch to the normally much more colorful aircraft. The scheme looks very natural on the Alpha Jet, too.
Love the styling of the brand new S-Class - it's the best looking Mercedes sedan right now on their line-up; I don't like the styling of the new C and E-Class, the CLS is not bad and the CLA is ugly as f#ck!!
Great model by Norev though, I recently acquired the S500/S550 Coupe 1:18, also by Norev, will post it soon!
Elsa has been deboxed. She is inserted in the base, with her cape on.
I got the Beast Kingdom MC-005 Elsa 1/4 Scale Figure from Big Bad Toy Store today (Wednesday October 3, 2018). She is made from resin, has an excellent paint job, and stands 15 inches tall to the top of her head, or 16.5 inches to the top of her raised hand, or 18 inches tall on her stand. The base is 9.5 inches in diameter and 1 1/4 inches thick, with a non skid bottom. There is a silver plaque on the base which has the Edition number, 291, which is also on a separate Certificate of Authenticity. But there is no indication of the Edition size.
She is in her iconic Let It Go pose, same as the Maquette and many other figures. She comes in three parts, her body and dress, her cape, and the base. She has to be inserted into the base to stand, and the cape is inserted into her back. She is very stable on the base. There is silver glitter on her bodice and the snowflake and icicle patterns in her cape, and it does shed a little. She is a very accurate and very beautiful depiction of Snow Queen Elsa.
I show her being deboxed, then on the base without her cape, and finally fully assembled with her cape on.
Frozen Master Craft MC-005 Queen Elsa of Arendelle PX Previews Exclusive Statue
BY BEAST KINGDOM
BRANDS FROZEN, DISNEY
IN STOCK
$214.99
Sold by Big Bad Toy Store
Premiered in 2014, the animated motion picture Frozen has propelled Disney's motion pictures to new heights! In addition to instant fame to all characters in the movie, Frozen has also elevated Elsa to the number three spot on Disney's ranking for the most popular princess.
Beast Kingdom's MC-005 Frozen Elsa is based on the appearance of Elsa when she became the Snow Queen in the movie with her confident and resolute demeanor. The sculptor has painstakingly stayed true to the source materials from Disney so as to portray the perfect recreation of Elsa's elegance. With precise and detailed sculpting, this statue faithfully captures the look of confidence and elegant posture of Elsa.
Coupled with professional paint work and special paint materials, all details on the statue are accurate reproduction of the color scheme as seen in the animation. As she stands atop of her pearl luster base, Elsa is ready to unleash her powerful cryokinetic magic. Want to witness that breathtaking world of ice?
Come to Beast Kingdom and join Elsa in a return to the stunning scenery in the world of Frozen!
Product Features
1/4 scale
Previews Exclusive statue!
Features details from the film
Stands on her ice base!
Box Contents
Elsa of Arendelle 1/4 scale statue
More images at the manufacturer's Facebook page announcement of the figure:
Here's the Kid Flyer 6 1/2. The chord of the wing is a bit large, as is the span. But it flew nice, and this was the first time I've used twist-ties for ballast! Works fine, and you don't have to carry non-drying clay around in your pocket. (well, in a bag, of course...)
Here's the deal: As the sketches show, this can be done any number of ways, there's no magic, all engineering is trade-offs and getting the most out of the materials.
Soooo. Make a pile of fuselages, try different wings, different horizontal stabilizers, different fins & rudders. Balance it different places. Try no dihedral, a single bend in the middle, three bends, middle and ends, Try longer fuselages and shorter fuselages. Put the wing in the back and make it fly as a canard (hint- you'll need the horizontal stabilizer to have its leading edge UP if its at the front instead of down as it is at the back... why is that?)
Do some science. Do some engineering. Build stuff and fly it. Above all, have a great time!
DSC_0527
Finally it's done, after over 2 months of work, I have completed a fully motorized M4 Sherman Crab in 1/18th scale. This model was planned ever since I started building tank MOCs, I would have to say this model is one of my most complex builds, as it features 7 power functions motors in a compact space. It features a 2 speed transmission, working mine flail, dual synchronized linear actuators for flail elevation/ depression, turret traverse, gun elevation/depression, and a electronic clutch braking system.
I am pleased with how well the turret turned out.... ha ... as it is round and was a complex shape, but with SNOT techniques I was able to create the rounded angles. Nearly everything is aesthetically perfect, except for one dimension, the height of the center of the hull is 2 studs too tall because of the mechanisms for the transmission and elevation of flail, thus I made that and the turret slightly larger by 1 stud taller. Though this isn't too noticeable, as the Sherman is already tall because of the real vehicle mounted a radial engine.
This will be my last MOC until college, I am unsure if I will be able to build anything else during breaks, so it may be until next summer for a larger tank... 1/15 Maus...
video
Lovebytes - Digital Spring
Live performances by Bruce Gilbert, R/S, Russell Haswell
Sound Installation by Jana Winderen
Sat 24 March 7-10.30pm
Channing Hall, 45 Surrey Street, Sheffield. S1 2LG
An evening of extreme electronic music, collaboration and improvisation curated by Sheffield artists Mark Fell and Mat Steel and featuring Bruce Gilbert, Russell Haswell, and R/S (Peter Rehberg and Marcus Schmickler), plus access to a multichannel installation by Jana Winderen.
Jana Winderen is one of the world's foremost field recording artists. She talked about her work in the Upper Chapel at 3pm 24 March. This was a free event.
Jana Winderen is an artist, educated in Fine Art at Goldsmiths College in London, and with a background in mathematics and chemistry from the University in Oslo. Since 1993, she has worked as an artist, curator and producer. She currently lives and works in Oslo.
Jana Winderen researches hidden depths with the latest technology. Her work reveals the complexity and strangeness of the unseen world beneath. The audio topography of the oceans and the depth of ice crevasses is brought to the surface. She is concerned with finding sound from hidden sources, like blind field recording.
Artist Statement:
"I like the immateriality of a sound work, and the openness it can have for both associative and direct experience and sensory perception. I have been occupied with finding sounds from unseen sources of sound, like blind field recordings. Over the last seven years, I have collected recordings made by hydrophones, from rivers, shores and the ocean in Asia, Europe and America, from glaciers in Greenland, Iceland and Norway. In the depths of the oceans there are invisible but audible soundscapes about which we are largely ignorant, even if the oceans cover 70% of our planet. I am also experimenting with different types of microphones to collect sounds which are not obviously recognisable, but give room for broader, more imaginative readings or sounds that are unreachable for the human senses. I use these sounds as source material for composition in a live environment or to create installations, currently also for film, radio, CD, MC and vinyl productions."
Bruce Gilbert is perhaps best known as co-founder of post-punk legends Wire. Following their end in 1980, Gilbert demonstrated a long-standing interest in electronic and experimental music that saw him form Dome (with Graham Lewis) and yielded such classic solo albums as This Way and The Shivering Man (reissued last year by Peter Rehberg's Editions Mego, 25 years after their first appearance). Along with reissues and solo projects in recent years, Gilbert has been active with collaborative performances alongside Mika Vainio, and is planning further new material.
R/S is the electronic music duo of Peter Rehberg and Marcus Schmickler. In 2011 they released 'USA', the duo's second full length release on PAN, a follow-up to their 2007 'One (Snow Mud Rain)' on Erstwhile Records.
Peter Rehberg performs throughout the world, and has participated in many of the major festivals associated with electronic music, through both solo performances and duets with Stephen O'Malley (KTL) and Marcus Schmickler (R/S), as well as projects such as Fenn O'Berg and Peterlicker. In addition to his roles as mentor to many artists and label curator of Editions Mego, Rehberg has also collaborated with interdisciplinary artists such as choreographer Gisele Vienne and writer Dennis Cooper (Kindertotenlieder; I Apologize, Jerk, This Is How You Will Disappear).
Marcus Schmickler is a Cologne-based composer, musician and producer of modern classical, electronic and computer music. He is also known for his work with Pluramon. In addition, he works in various collaborative projects - most notably with synth wiz Thomas Lehn. More recently, he has developed an interest in an epistemic dialog with the sciences, resonating in sonifications of astrophysical data, and translating recent mathematical discoveries into the sonic. His music's gleaming, impenetrable surfaces, labyrinthine constructions and opacity suck up all the air in the room - as well as your headspace.
Russell Haswell has exhibited visual artwork at Sadie Coles HQ, London; TN Probe, Tokyo; Galerie Rudolfinum, Prague; Kunsthalle, Vienna; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Centre Regional d'Art Contemporian, Bricks & Kicks Gallery, Vienna; Galerie Poo Poo, London; Museo d'Art Moderne, Paris; Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London; Kate Bernard Gallery, London; Independent Art Space, London and Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.
He has given solo audio presentations at major Art and Music festivals and events, in art galleries, concert halls and rock venues in Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Luxemburg, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, and USA. Including occasional live collaborations with Masami Akita, Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Florian Hecker, Zbigniew Karkowski, Toshiji Mikawa [INCAPACITANTS], Peter Rehberg, Yasunao Tone, Ilpo & Mika Vanio [PAN_SONIC], WHITEHOUSE, and Hard Disc Jockey [HDJ] duos with Richard D James [Aphex Twin].
A second edition of the 8 track compact disc catalogue 'Live Salvage 1997 - 2000' (Honorable Mention, Digital Music's, Prix Ars Electronica.) has been reissued by Mego.. In 2008, a second volume, 'Second Live Salvage', was also released by Editions Mego as a double 12" vinyl set. In 2011, a third volume, 'IN IT: Immersive Live Salvage', was also released by Editions Mego as a Surround sound DVD (DTS & DOLBY 5.1) and vinyl LP (UHJ Ambisonic format) set.
Haswell released the Compact Disc 'Wild Tracks' (Editions Mego) in 2009: a collection of raw recordings, originally intended for film and other media projects. A double Compact Disc, 'VALUE + BONUS', was released by NO FUN Productions in mid 2010.
An ongoing collaboration (2003 +) with Florian Hecker working on Iannis Xenakis' graphic-input 'UPIC Music Composing System' is one project: the recorded results have been presented in the form of multi channel electroacoustic diffusion sessions, for example for the Frieze Art Fair. These events use surround sound and laser lighting to create an immersive multi-sensory environment. Mego, Warner Classical, and Warp records have released Haswell & Hecker recordings.
'satanstornade', a collaboration between Masami Akita & Russell Haswell, was published by Warp Records on compact disc and vinyl. It was awarded "Record cover of the month", Vice UK.
'MiniDisc' by Gescom, (Distinction, Digital Musics, Prix Ars Electronica.) The worlds first 'independent' label released 'MiniDisc' A collaboration between Russell Haswell, Rob Brown and Sean Booth of Autechre, has been reissued by OR on Compact Disc in 2007.
Haswell was also a curator at P.S.1/MOMA, Contemporary Art Centre, New York. Responsible for large-scale exhibition curating and hanging, as well as curating a weekly (summer months only) outdoor music event, WARM UP.
In 2005 and 2006 he curated two London based 'All Tomorrow's Parties' club events, entitled 'Easy to Swallow', intended for the broad-minded, the events showcased Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Yasunao Tone + Hecker, Mark Stewart and the Maffia, Aphex Twin, Whitehouse, Surgeon + Regis Present: British Murder Boys, Lee Dorrian (ex- Napalm Death & Cathedral), Pita, Earth, Autechre, Robert Hood (ex-Underground Resistance). Both events sold out!
In November 2009 he curated 'LISTEN' at Aldeburgh Snape Maltings Concert House with Chris Watson, Bernie Krause and Tony Myatt, presenting their works on a 360° 'high-order' ambisonic surround sound system.
Haswell recently curated part of the audio program for "The Morning Line Istanbul 2010' project, European Capital of Culture 2010. Commissioned by Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (T-B A21), working with Artists/Composers: Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Peter Zinovieff, Jana Winderen, and Yasunao Tone. These works were presented again in Vienna, 2011.
Haswell has contributed to Frieze Magazine articles on Japanese noise, computer music software and Peter Halley.
Lovebytes 2012 - Digital Spring
A Festival of Art, Science and Technology
22-24 March
Sheffield UK
Fossiliferous limestone of the Grotto Beach Formation (Upper Pleistocene) along a trail due west of Pain Pond, northeastern San Salvador Island, eastern Bahamas. (camera lens for scale)
The fossiliferous limestone shown above is dominated by fossil bivalves, principally Codakia orbicularis (Linnaeus, 1758) - the tiger lucine clam. This is part of the Cockburn Town Member of the Grotto Beach Limestone (lower Upper Pleistocene, Sangamonian, MIS 5e, 119-131 ka).
---------------------------------------
The surface bedrock geology of San Salvador consists entirely of Pleistocene and Holocene limestones. Thick and relatively unforgiving vegetation covers most of the island’s interior (apart from inland lakes). Because of this, the most easily-accessible rock outcrops are along the island’s shorelines.
------------------------------
Stratigraphic Succession in the Bahamas:
Rice Bay Formation (Holocene, <10 ka), subdivided into two members (Hanna Bay Member over North Point Member)
--------------------
Grotto Beach Formation (lower Upper Pleistocene, 119-131 ka), subdivided into two members (Cockburn Town Member over French Bay Member)
--------------------
Owl's Hole Formation (Middle Pleistocene, ~215-220 ka & ~327-333 ka & ~398-410 ka & older)
------------------------------
San Salvador’s surface bedrock can be divided into two broad lithologic categories:
1) LIMESTONES
2) PALEOSOLS
The limestones were deposited during sea level highstands (actually, only during the highest of the highstands). During such highstands (for example, right now), the San Salvador carbonate platform is partly flooded by ocean water. At such times, the “carbonate factory” is on, and abundant carbonate sediment grains are generated by shallow-water organisms living on the platform. The abundance of carbonate sediment means there will be abundant carbonate sedimentary rock formed after burial and cementation (diagenesis). These sea level highstands correspond with the climatically warm interglacials during the Pleistocene Ice Age.
Based on geochronologic dating on various Bahamas islands, and based on a modern understanding of the history of Pleistocene-Holocene global sea level changes, surficial limestones in the Bahamas are known to have been deposited at the following times (expressed in terms of marine isotope stages, “MIS” - these are the glacial-interglacial climatic cycles determined from δ18O analysis):
1) MIS 1 - the Holocene, <10 k.y. This is the current sea level highstand.
2) MIS 5e - during the Sangamonian Interglacial, in the early Late Pleistocene, from 119 to 131 k.y. (sea level peaked at ~125 k.y.)
3) MIS 7 - ~215 to 220 k.y. - late Middle Pleistocene
4) MIS 9 - ~327-333 k.y. - late Middle Pleistocene
5) MIS 11 - ~398-410 k.y. - late Middle Pleistocene
Bahamian limestones deposited during MIS 1 are called the Rice Bay Formation. Limestones deposited during MIS 5e are called the Grotto Beach Formation. Limestones deposited during MIS 7, 9, 11, and perhaps as old as MIS 13 and 15, are called the Owl’s Hole Formation. These stratigraphic units were first established on San Salvador Island (the type sections are there), but geologic work elsewhere has shown that the same stratigraphic succession also applies to the rest of the Bahamas.
During times of lowstands (= times of climatically cold glacial intervals of the Pleistocene Ice Age), weathering and pedogenesis results in the development of soils. With burial and diagenesis, these soils become paleosols. The most common paleosol type in the Bahamas is calcrete (a.k.a. caliche; a.k.a. terra rosa). Calcrete horizons cap all Pleistocene-aged stratigraphic units in the Bahamas, except where erosion has removed them. Calcretes separate all major stratigraphic units. Sometimes, calcrete-looking horizons are encountered in the field that are not true paleosols.
----------------------------
Subsurface Stratigraphy of San Salvador Island:
The island’s stratigraphy below the Owl’s Hole Formation was revealed by a core drilled down ~168 meters (~550-feet) below the surface (for details, see Supko, 1977). The well site was at 3 meters above sea level near Graham’s Harbour beach, between Line Hole Settlement and Singer Bar Point (northern margin of San Salvador Island). The first 37 meters were limestones. Below that, dolostones dominate, alternating with some mixed dolostone-limestone intervals. Reddish-brown calcretes separate major units. Supko (1977) infers that the lowest rocks in the core are Upper Miocene to Lower Pliocene, based on known Bahamas Platform subsidence rates.
In light of the successful island-to-island correlations of Middle Pleistocene, Upper Pleistocene, and Holocene units throughout the Bahamas (see the Bahamas geologic literature list below), it seems reasonable to conclude that San Salvador’s subsurface dolostones may correlate well with sub-Pleistocene dolostone units exposed in the far-southeastern portions of the Bahamas Platform.
Recent field work on Mayaguana Island has resulted in the identification of Miocene, Pliocene, and Lower Pleistocene surface outcrops (see: www2.newark.ohio-state.edu/facultystaff/personal/jstjohn/...). On Mayaguana, the worked-out stratigraphy is:
- Rice Bay Formation (Holocene)
- Grotto Beach Formation (Upper Pleistocene)
- Owl’s Hole Formation (Middle Pleistocene)
- Misery Point Formation (Lower Pleistocene)
- Timber Bay Formation (Pliocene)
- Little Bay Formation (Upper Miocene)
- Mayaguana Formation (Lower Miocene)
The Timber Bay Fm. and Little Bay Fm. are completely dolomitized. The Mayaguana Fm. is ~5% dolomitized. The Misery Point Fm. is nondolomitized, but the original aragonite mineralogy is absent.
----------------------------
The stratigraphic information presented here is synthesized from the Bahamian geologic literature.
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Supko, P.R. 1977. Subsurface dolomites, San Salvador, Bahamas. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 47: 1063-1077.
Bowman, P.A. & J.W. Teeter. 1982. The distribution of living and fossil Foraminifera and their use in the interpretation of the post-Pleistocene history of Little Lake, San Salvador, Bahamas. San Salvador Field Station Occasional Papers 1982(2). 21 pp.
Sanger, D.B. & J.W. Teeter. 1982. The distribution of living and fossil Ostracoda and their use in the interpretation of the post-Pleistocene history of Little Lake, San Salvador Island, Bahamas. San Salvador Field Station Occasional Papers 1982(1). 26 pp.
Gerace, D.T., R.W. Adams, J.E. Mylroie, R. Titus, E.E. Hinman, H.A. Curran & J.L. Carew. 1983. Field Guide to the Geology of San Salvador (Third Edition). 172 pp.
Curran, H.A. 1984. Ichnology of Pleistocene carbonates on San Salvador, Bahamas. Journal of Paleontology 58: 312-321.
Anderson, C.B. & M.R. Boardman. 1987. Sedimentary gradients in a high-energy carbonate lagoon, Snow Bay, San Salvador, Bahamas. CCFL Bahamian Field Station Occasional Paper 1987(2). (31) pp.
1988. Bahamas Project. pp. 21-48 in First Keck Research Symposium in Geology (Abstracts Volume), Beloit College, Beloit, Wisconsin, 14-17 April 1988.
1989. Proceedings of the Fourth Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 17-22, 1988. 381 pp.
1989. Pleistocene and Holocene carbonate systems, Bahamas. pp. 18-51 in Second Keck Research Symposium in Geology (Abstracts Volume), Colorado College, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 14-16 April 1989.
Curran, H.A., J.L. Carew, J.E. Mylroie, B. White, R.J. Bain & J.W. Teeter. 1989. Pleistocene and Holocene carbonate environments on San Salvador Island, Bahamas. 28th International Geological Congress Field Trip Guidebook T175. 46 pp.
1990. The 5th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 15-19, 1990, Abstracts and Programs. 29 pp.
1991. Proceedings of the Fifth Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas. 247 pp.
1992. The 6th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 11-15, 1992, Abstracts and Program. 26 pp.
1992. Proceedings of the 4th Symposium on the Natural History of the Bahamas, June 7-11, 1991. 123 pp.
Boardman, M.R., C. Carney, B. White, H.A. Curran & D.T. Gerace. 1992. The geology of Columbus' landfall: a field guide to the Holcoene geology of San Salvador, Bahamas, Field trip 3 for the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America, Cincinnati, Ohio, October 26-29, 1992. Ohio Division of Geological Survey Miscellaneous Report 2. 49 pp.
Carew, J.L., J.E. Mylroie, N.E. Sealey, M. Boardman, C. Carney, B. White, H.A. Curran & D.T. Gerace. 1992. The 6th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 11-15, 1992, Field Trip Guidebook. 56 pp.
1993. Proceedings of the 6th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 11-15, 1992. 222 pp.
Lawson, B.M. 1993. Shelling San Sal, an Illustrated Guide to Common Shells of San Salvador Island, Bahamas. San Salvador, Bahamas. Bahamian Field Station. 63 pp.
1994. The 7th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 16-20, 1994, Abstracts and Program. 26 pp.
1994. Proceedings of the 5th Symposium on the Natural History of the Bahamas, June 11-14, 1993. 107 pp.
Carew, J.L. & J.E. Mylroie. 1994. Geology and Karst of San Salvador Island, Bahamas: a Field Trip Guidebook. 32 pp.
Godfrey, P.J., R.L. Davis, R.R. Smtih & J.A. Wells. 1994. Natural History of Northeastern San Salvador Island: a "New World" Where the New World Began, Bahamian Field Station Trail Guide. 28 pp.
Hinman, G. 1994. A Teacher's Guide to the Depositional Environments on San Salvador Island, Bahamas. 64 pp.
Mylroie, J.E. & J.L. Carew. 1994. A Field Trip Guide Book of Lighthouse Cave, San Salvador Island, Bahamas. 10 pp.
1995. Proceedings of the Seventh Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, June 16-20, 1994. 134 pp.
1995. Terrestrial and shallow marine geology of the Bahamas and Bermuda. Geological Society of America Special Paper 300.
1996. The 8th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas, May 30-June 3, 1996, Abstracts and Program. 21 pp.
1996. Proceedings of the 6th Symposium on the Natural History of the Bahamas, June 9-13, 1995. 165 pp.
1997. Proceedings of the 8th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, May 30-June 3, 1996. 213 pp.
Curran, H.A., B. White & M.A. Wilson. 1997. Guide to Bahamian Ichnology: Pleistocene, Holocene, and Modern Environments. San Salvador, Bahamas. Bahamian Field Station. 61 pp.
1998. The 9th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 4-June 8, 1998, Abstracts and Program. 25 pp.
Wilson, M.A., H.A. Curran & B. White. 1998. Paleontological evidence of a brief global sea-level event during the last interglacial. Lethaia 31: 241-250.
1999. Proceedings of the 9th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 4-8, 1998. 142 pp.
2000. The 10th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 8-June 12, 2000, Abstracts and Program. 29+(1) pp.
2001. Proceedings of the 10th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 8-12, 2000. 200 pp.
Bishop, D. & B.J. Greenstein. 2001. The effects of Hurricane Floyd on the fidelity of coral life and death assemblages in San Salvador, Bahamas: does a hurricane leave a signature in the fossil record? Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs 33(4): 51.
Gamble, V.C., S.J. Carpenter & L.A. Gonzalez. 2001. Using carbon and oxygen isotopic values from acroporid corals to interpret temperature fluctuations around an unconformable surface on San Salvador Island, Bahamas. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs 33(4): 52.
Gardiner, L. 2001. Stability of Late Pleistocene reef mollusks from San Salvador Island, Bahamas. Palaios 16: 372-386.
Ogarek, S.A., C.K. Carney & M.R. Boardman. 2001. Paleoenvironmental analysis of the Holocene sediments of Pigeon Creek, San Salvador, Bahamas. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs 33(4): 17.
Schmidt, D.A., C.K. Carney & M.R. Boardman. 2001. Pleistocene reef facies diagenesis within two shallowing-upward sequences at Cockburntown, San Salvador, Bahamas. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs 33(4): 42.
2002. The 11th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 6th-June 10, 2002, Abstracts and Program. 29 pp.
2004. The 12th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 3-June 7, 2004, Abstracts and Program. 33 pp.
2004. Proceedings of the 11th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 6-10, 2002. 240 pp.
Martin, A.J. 2006. Trace Fossils of San Salvador. 80 pp.
2006. Proceedings of the 12th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 3-7, 2004. 249 pp.
2006. The 13th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 8-June 12, 2006, Abstracts and Program. 27 pp.
Mylroie, J.E. & J.L. Carew. 2008. Field Guide to the Geology and Karst Geomorphology of San Salvador Island. 88 pp.
2008. Proceedings of the 13th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 8-12, 2006. 223 pp.
2008. The 14th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 12-June 16, 2006, Abstracts and Program. 26 pp.
2010. Proceedings of the 14th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 12-16, 2008. 249 pp.
2010. The 15th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 17-June 21, 2010, Abstracts and Program. 36 pp.
2012. Proceedings of the 15th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 17-21, 2010. 183 pp.
2012. The 16th Symposium on the Geology of the Bahamas and Other Carbonate Regions, June 14-June 18, 2012, Abstracts with Program. 45 pp.
Not an assembled kit, but a lucky find on ebay: a NIB, 1st generation IMAI kit of an Armored Valykrie in 1:100 scale - from an era when even vinyl caps were still to be introduced to giant robot kits... No release year to be found, but I think it is late 80ies. Box came in virgin condition, some dents and some loose parts in the sealed bags, but what a find! ^^
Will probably become the next project - espcially because I know this kit from the Macross Factory kit/set, where an Armored VF-1J was included. I have been wanting to build another one, "better" and right from the start , and now I got this sweetie and am currently gathering info.
The kit is, even by today's standards, very good. Surfaces are excellent, fit is good, too, just the overall kit constuction is not really user-friendly. It is a typical "build-arms-and-legs-and-connect-everything-with-the-body" robot kit.
I might modify this, for ease of building and painting, change some joint angles for a more lively pose, add a GU-11 pod (as depicted on the box, gun is not included) and probably open some of the missile bays.
Also not sure if it will actually become Roy Fokker's "Skull One" from the box, but I'll definitively stay within plausible Macross boundaries. I consider the livery of my Macross PLUS VF-19-style VF-1S (pls. check the Valkyries' album for reference) in ivory, red and black, but the Armor parts will remain dark blue, red and white.
A nice detail - which is a frequent sight on Destroids - is the "Leg Art" (see left leg's inner side, and the bigger detail scan on the next picture). Unfortunately, this is not inlcuded as a decal, but something similar will surely appear on "my" version.
St Helen is probably my favourite Kent church. At least from the outside. Alternating bands of flints and local stone give it a Christmas Cake effect, but in bright sunshine it looks stunning.
Inside, its no less impressive. Part of the wall paintings survive, as do geometric patterns on some of the supporting columns.
And it is huge, with a fine wooden roof, a replacement after a fire, but still works well, and the fabric of the church seems good.
Everywhere there are fabulous things to find; Aumbries, memorials, and so much more.
And I reeived a warm welcome from the warden who was waiting for visitors. Last time I was here, there was a display of how the estuary airport-cum-Boris Johnson vanity project seemed a real possibility. Now he is back insulting foreigners, and the airport is dead. But a new Thames crossing is being mooted, and it might run across Grain, which would be a shame to have the peace and quiet shattered.
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An absolute knockout of a church. From the first glimpse of the exterior, with its zebra-like stripes of flint and stone, you know that here is a church of great interest. In plan it consists of an aisled nave, transepts, chancel and west tower - all built on a prodigious scale. Although the church was heavily restored on two occasions in the nineteenth century there is still a great deal of interest and a visit here should not be rushed. The pillars of the nave have distinctive 'V' paintings contemporary with their fourteenth-century construction. The pulpit is of 1636 and shows some excellent carved arcading. Attached to it is a contemporary hourglass stand. The north transept has wall paintings depicting the martyrdom of St Edmund, but these were over-touched-up by Professor Tristram in 1932. Further paintings exist in the south transept and probably show the martyrdom of St Margaret. The base of the rood screen is fifteenth century while the rather insubstantial traceried top is an early twentieth-century addition. There is an elaborate tie-beam high in the roof with little quatrefoil piercings in the spandrels, but this could not have supported the rood as the remains of the rood loft staircase may be seen in its usual position. Outside the north chancel wall can be found a piscina and holy water stoup - all that remains of a medieval chantry chapel or anchorite's cell which has been demolished. The blocked-up doorway that originally gave access to it may be seen both inside and out. On the inside south wall of the chancel is one of the finest sedilia in Kent which together with its double piscina dates from the early years of the fourteenth century.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Cliffe
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THE Church at Cliffe is dedicated to St. Helen and bears the distinction of being the only church in Kent dedicated to that Saint. It stands in a prominent position at the edge of the Hoo peninsula overlooking the extensive marshes which at this point stretch some two miles to the Thames.
The village seems at one time to have been of greater importance than it is to-day. Lambarde describes it as a large town in his day in spite of a disastrous fire which had destroyed many of the houses about 1520, a fire from the effects of which it appears never to have recovered.
The Manor of Cliffe belonged from very early times to the Prior and Convent of Christ Church, Canterbury, who were also the owners of the advowson, and thus became concerned with the upkeep of the church. At the Dissolution the Manor passed to George Brooke, Lord Cobham, though the Archbishop of Canterbury is still the patron of the living. Among the Rectors of Cliffe were several men of distinction, some of whom probably never visited the parish. From an early date there seems to have been a perpetual vicarage attached to the church, but when it became merged in the Rectory is uncertain.
Of the first church at Cliffe there is no definite record. It is sometimes said to have been founded by Offa, king of Mercia, in the latter part of the eighth century, though the only evidence for this appears to be the presumed identification of the place with the Cloveshoo of the Saxon Chronicle, where various synods of the Saxon Church were held in the eighth and ninth centuries. Without attempting to suggest a solution of this very debatable point, it can only be said that the evidence in favour of Cliffe appears to rest on at least as good authority as that of the rival claimants—Abingdon in Berkshire, and Clifton Hoo in Bedfordshire. There is moreover good reason to think that Cliffe was less inaccessible than might be supposed in mediaeval times. There still remain traces of a causeway across Higham Marsh, which must at one time have led to a ferry, thus affording an easy means of approach from Essex and the Midlands.
The earliest undisputed documentary reference to a church at Cliffe is in the Domesday Survey. It was evidently a building of more than usual importance for it is expressly stated that two ministers were in charge. Of this building, however, not a vestige remains, though there can be little doubt that from it the present plan has, on more or less recognised lines, been developed.
The plan as it exists to-day is complete, and consists of a nave with wide aisles, north and south transepts, chancel, western tower and south porch. The church is one of the largest in Kent, and is a striking example of a parish church whose size and splendour could have borne but little relation to the actual needs of the locality. It was the product of an age whose zeal for church building was limited only by the funds available. The total internal length from east to west is 182 feet, while the width across the transept is 82 feet. The exterior has been the subject of somewhat extensive restoration, which has robbed it of much of its ancient appearance. The south aisle differs from that on the north in having an embattled parapet, similar to that of the porch. The walls of the tower and transepts are faced with flint rubble with little attempt at regular coursing. The later work of the nave and chancel, though extensively refaced, is composed of alternate courses of dressed flints and stone ; the latter, a soft ragstone from the lower green sand formation which, quarried probably from the outcrop a few miles to the south, has weathered badly in many places. A variety of other materials is noticeable, some of which appear to have been reused from the earlier church. A block of Caen stone in the east wall of the chancel, and several pieces in the north wall, have obviously been reused, while a single piece of calcareous tufa can be seen in the north wall of the transept; Reigate stone is also fairly abundant.
It is not till one enters the church, that its size is fully realised. The absence of pews over a large part of the nave, with the fact that the nave arcade is carried past the crossing without a break, and the absence of a chancel arch, all combine to emphasise its spaciousness. The impression
gathered from a superficial survey of the interior is that of a thirteenth century church with considerable additions in the fourteenth century, but a more careful inspection shows at least one trace of an earlier building. The arch from the north aisle into the transept, which has been partially cut away when the thirteenth century nave arcade was constructed, is certainly of late twelfth century date and must therefore have survived from an earlier church. Before, however, considering the development of the ground plan, it is necessary to refer briefly to the chief features of architectural interest which call for notice.
The porch is of a fairly common type, with an upper room, approached by a stair turret from the south aisle. It measures internally 11 feet 5 inches from east to west by 16 feet from north to south, and is apparently of late fifteenth century date. On the right of the inner doorway are the remains of a holy water stoup. The room above has been considerably modernised, and there is nothing to indicate its original use. Occasionally an altar is found in the porch chamber, which, however, in this case would seem more likely to have been used for storing the church goods.
The north and south aisles of the nave are 19 feet 10 inches and 18 feet wide respectively, and are thus considerably wider than the nave itself. They contain a fine series of Decorated windows, those at the end of either aisle being particularly interesting examples of three lights. The church as a whole is very rich in windows of this period, which form in themselves an interesting study in design. The south aisle has a stone bench running along its south and west walls.
The tower is entered from the nave by a plain thirteenth century arch, and measures approximately 15 feet 6 inches from east to west by 17 feet 6 inches from north to south (interior measurements). The lower stage, which is shut off from the church by a screen, and is now used as a vestry, is lit by three narrow lancets, one in each of the disengaged walls. The roof is a simple quadripartite vault, without any boss at the intersection of the ribs, which are carried on shafts supported on corbels set in the four angles. The lower part of the tower is apparently thirteenth century work, and somewhat earlier than the transepts. The flat, clasping buttresses appear to be original, though now entirely re-faced, and might in themselves suggest a transitional date for the base of the tower. The upper part has been rebuilt at a much later date, and contains a Perpendicular window. Like most towers of the period, it is probable that there was originally no structural stairway leading to the upper stages, access to which had to be obtained by means of a ladder, though the existing doorway to the modern stair turret appears to be of fairly early date.
The transepts deserve special consideration on account of the very interesting work which they contain. Their date cannot be later than about 1260 and there are some grounds for thinking that the south transept may be slightly the earlier of the two. The east wall of the south transept is
divided into two bays by blind arches, supported on slender banded shafts, with a narrow lancet window in the centre of each arch. A somewhat similar arrangement exists on the east wall of the north transept, though in this case the central shaft is not carried to the ground, but rests midway on a moulded bracket, below which is a piscina with a trefoil head of the same date. The treatment of the west wall of the north transept is very similar to that of the east, but the arches are much narrower, and the arrangement has been somewhat interfered with by a later widening of the nave aisle. In the south transept the arcading on the west wall is somewhat plainer, and the banded shafts have been dispensed with. Although similar in general design, certain details point to the south transept being slightly the earlier. The string course below the windows, which is continued round the shafts of the mural arcading, is a plain scroll moulding, while in the north transept a fillet is substituted, and the central bands on the shafts of the arcading are of a more elaborate character. The triple lancet windows at the ends of either transept are modern, and replaced two large fifteenth-century windows, which are shown in several early views.
The north transept was formerly shut off from the rest of the church by a screen, and used for holding the Rector's Court. In mediaeval times, and down to 1845, the Rector of Cliffe had a peculiar jurisdiction within his parish. He was exempt from all ecclesiastical authority other than personal visitation from the Archbishop of Canterbury. The wills of parishioners were proved in the local court, and the official seal of the Peculiar is still preserved in the Rochester Museum.
The chancel, which appears to have been rebuilt entirely in the middle of the fourteenth century, is complete, save for the insertion of a modern east window, which replaced an extraordinarily ugly eighteenth-century aperture of brick. The remaining windows are all fine examples of Decorated work, the tracery of which shows a distinctly Flamboyant tendency. The eastern pair affords interesting examples of Kentish tracery. All have good hood-mouldings with
grotesques at the ends. Beneath the windows is a stringcourse, which terminates at the altar rails with a grotesque head on either side. That on the north has been renewed, but the southern one represents the battered head of a monk.
The chief interest in the chancel, however, is its fittings. In the south wall is a series of three very beautiful fourteenth century sedilia, with a piscina of uniform character, recessed in the wall and ascending eastward. They are divided by slender buttressed shafts, supporting elaborately carved ogee canopies, and surmounted by crockets and finials. Beneath the canopies are trefoiled arches, and behind these the roof is carved in imitation of sexpartite vaulting.
Opposite in the north wall is a fine late-fourteenth century tomb of early Perpendicular character, which is often referred to as an Easter sepulchre, for which purpose it may well have been used. The wide cinquefoil arch is surmounted by an elaborate embattled cornice, supported on narrow
buttressed shafts, and terminating with a carved head at either end ; circles with internal cuspings fill the spandrils of the arch.
Immediately west of this tomb is a blocked doorway which led to an adjoining building, now demolished. The exterior wall at this point is of a different character from the rest of the chancel walls, and apparently of earlier date. It is composed of a variety of material, including pieces of Caen stone, which probably came from the earlier church, and suggests that this section of wall and the chapel, of which it formed part, survived the re-building of the chancel in the fourteenth century. The two adjoining buttresses have been constructed out of sections of the eastern and western walls of the chapel, and serve to indicate its approximate size. The position of its low roof is clearly shown by the stone corbels which remain at a height of 7 feet 8 inches from the ground. The floor must have been somewhat lower than the present ground level, as the small piscina in the exterior of the chancel wall is now only two feet from the ground. In the base of the westernmost of the two buttresses is a niche, now scarcely eighteen inches from the ground, which may originally have been used as a holy water stoup, since it was close to the entrance to the chapel. This small building probably served the joint purpose of a Sacristy and Chapel. That it contained an altar there can be no doubt from the piscina already noted.
It may possibly be referred to in the will of Richard Elys, who in 1468 left 12 pence to the light of the Blessed Mary in the chapel and 4 pence to the light of the Blessed Mary near the pulpit, though one of the transepts may of course have been here intended. Such evidence as there is on the other hand seems to point to the chapel having been pulled down at the time of the rebuilding of the chancel or soon afterwards. The blocked doorway in the chancel wall was originally carried down to the present ground level on the exterior, so that there must have been some steps in the thickness of the wall leading down into the chapel. The date of this doorway, which was probably contemporary with the building to which, it led, is uncertain. It is certainly earlier than the adjoining late-fourteenth-century tomb, as parts have been cut away when the latter was inserted, and the use of somewhat small stones points to an earlier rather than a later date. Its details on the other hand include the wave moulding which is usually taken to be characteristic of the Decorated period, or one might otherwise be inclined to think that it formed part of the thirteenth century chancel. The filling on the exterior is certainly not modern, and the fact that a plinth has been inserted when the doorway was blocked up, to match that round the rest of the chancel evidently with the intention, which was never carried out, of continuing it along the section of earlier walling where the chapel stood, seems to suggest that this work was undertaken about the same time as the rebuilding of the chancel.
We are now in a position to consider the probable development of the ground plan, which, though somewhat conjectural for the earlier period, has left some interesting and unmistakable traces of its later history. In the entire absence of remains of the early Norman church, one is forced to rely for the identification of its position on analogy with other buildings of similar type. The first church of which we have any record in all probability consisted of a simple nave and square- ended chancel. The three easternmost bays of the existing nave arcade would preserve the line of
the north and south walls of the church, while the chancel would occupy the interior of the present crossing. There is nothing to show the position of the west wall, but it would have been approximately in a line with the present north and south doors. Towards the close of the twelfth century north and south aisles, about half the width of the present ones, were probably added by piercing the original walls with arches, and about the same time a small chapel or aisle appears to have been built to the north of the original chancel, and the existing arch constructed so as to give access into it. This arch, which cannot be later than about 1200, is obviously much earlier than the present transept and must therefore have communicated with an earlier building on its site. Some evidence in support of this came to light during the restoration of the north transept in 1864. The foundations of an early wall four feet thick were found beneath the present floor running parallel and close to its eastern wall. At a distance of 15 feet from the chancel wall it appears to have been met by another wall at right angles to it. Unfortunately no further record was made of this discovery, but it establishes beyond doubt the existence of a building in this position, to which the arch in question opened. It is possible that this was the chancel arch of a late twelfth century church, and that the foundations were those of the former chancel, though such a theory would be more difficult to reconcile with the later development of the plan. Moreover on the assumption that there already existed a building on the north of the original chancel when the thirteenth-century builders decided to remodel the church, it is possible to account for the hitherto unexplained fact that the north transept is wider than the south by some three feet. The normal development of the thirteenth century produced a cruciform church. A new and longer chancel, and north and south transepts, were built around the small twelfth century chancel, while the nave and aisles were lengthened by the removal of the west wall some 20 feet further west, and a tower erected to the west of this. These extensive works could not of course have been simultaneous.
The tower appears to be somewhat earlier than the transepts, so that presumably the lengthening of the west end was undertaken first, and at the same time an Early English arcade, extending an additional bay westward, was inserted in place of the twelfth century arches. Contrary to what was frequently the case in churches of this type, there was clearly never any intention to erect a central tower over the crossing, since the abutments are far too weak to have supported the weight. This weakness would account for the presence of the strainer arch of oak, which must
have been inserted sometime in the fifteenth century.
With the completion of this work the early builders grew more ambitious. Almost immediately the work on the new chancel and transepts must have begun. A temporary hoarding was probably erected, shutting off the nave and the altar, transferred there until the new works were finished. The chancel and the south transept were probably first erected, as the sites were free of buildings ; the width of the latter being determined by the size of the former chancel and the chapel on the north. When the work was completed attention was directed towards the north transept, which, according to the usual practice, would have been rebuilt round the earlier building, the foundations of which were discovered in 1864, thus accounting for its slight extra width. Probably towards the end of the century the small chapel, the remains of which have already been mentioned, was built on the north of the new chancel.
Considerable alterations were undertaken in the fourteenth century, the principal of which were the rebuilding of the thirteenth century chancel, and the widening of the nave aisles. The latter was a very frequent form of improvement at this period, and was usually occasioned by the desire
for extra space to set up additional altars so as to meet the enormous increase in the popularity of Chantry bequests. At Cliffe the effect of this widening is clearly shown on the already completed design of the transepts. In the north transept one of the lancets was cut away, and a short pointed arch springing from shafts, which do not reach the ground, inserted in its place. The apex of the original lancet still remains in the wall above. In the south transept a similar alteration in plan is treated somewhat differently. A segmental arch, here reaching to the ground, and opening into the extended aisle, was inserted within the earlier bund arch in the west wall of the transept. This also necessitated the removal of an original lancet, the head of which can be seen occupying the space between the original arch and the later insertion. The windows in the nave all appear to be of this date. Probably contemporary with this extension of the aisles, was the heightening of the nave to allow for the clerestory with its row of single splayed lancets. The junction of this work with the old can be clearly seen immediately above the arcading. The thirteenth century roof of the nave was about on a level with those of the aisles, as the small window in the east face of the tower, which now looks into the church, must originally have looked out over the roof. The line of the fourteenth roof, which was erected at the time that the clerestory was added, can be seen on the wall of the tower, passing across the window opening. Below this the position of the third roof, erected 1732, can also be seen. This roof, which was almost flat, was replaced by the present one about forty years ago.
The rebuilding of the chancel would appear to have been undertaken at the same time as extension of the aisles, to judge from the similarity of the external stonework. This would again have necessitated the use of the nave for services, and it is probable that either at this time, or during the earlier work on the interior of the transepts, the round headed arch, which can be seen on the exterior of the north wall of the north transept, was constructed for the convenience of the masons while the ordinary entrances were not available. That this arch or doorway, which has sometimes been said to be of Norman origin, was really of a much later date, and of a purely temporary character, seems to be shown by a close inspection of its construction. The position is not in the centre of the wall while the arch itself is made up of a variety of material including large flints, pieces of Beigate stone and a single block of calcareous tufa, the latter doubtless coming from the early church. Further, the fact that the filling of the arch' seems to be of much the same character as the adjoining walls points to it only having been used for a comparatively short time. Everything in fact indicates that it was a purely temporary arrangement used during the construction of the transepts, or the later chancel, and filled up as soon as the work was completed. A somewhat similar, though smaller, arch in the exterior of the south wall of the tower was probably of a similar nature, though its purpose is conjectural, and it may have had some connection with original stairs to the upper floors. By the end of the fourteenth century the church was practically complete. The porch was added early in the following century, and the large Perpendicular windows, which formerly existed at the ends of the transepts, inserted. At the same time the upper part of the west tower was rebuilt. Certain work also seems to have been in progress about this time in the chancel, for in the will of the Rector in 1413 a sum of money was left towards that object. Exactly what resulted from the bequest one cannot say.
The subsequent additions were chiefly in the nature of modern insertions. The eighteenth century saw many acts of destruction which are duly entered in the parish registers. In 1730, during the Rectorship of George Green, the old high-gabled roofs were taken down, the lead recast, and an
almost flat roof substituted. Two years later the east window was demolished and a hideous brick opening substituted, and at the same time the old timber roof of the chancel, which, since it bore his arms, had probably been erected during the time of Archbishop Arundel, who occupied the See from 1396 to 1414, was pulled down, and both the nave and chancel ceiled. During this period also the two enormous brick buttresses, which are shown in some early views, were erected on the north and south sides of the tower. The church was in this condition when Sir Stephen Glynne visited it in 1857. Subsequent restorations have been extensive, though for the most part necessary. The brick buttresses to the Tower were removed shortly after Sir Stephen Glynne's visit, and the present circular stair turret erected in the place of the southern one. The chancel was restored in 1875, when traces of the original reredos were discovered, and the jambs of the original east window, which were of Reigate stone and about 15 feet apart, were found in situ. The present window was erected in place of the eighteenth century one in 1884, and at the same time the flat lead roofs of the nave and chancel were removed, and the present high-pitched tiled roofs substituted. Finally a small building, without any communication with the church, has been erected in recent years to the east of the north transept. During these successive restorations much of the external walls has been refaced from time to time, and the whole of the upper part of the east wall of the chancel which was pulled down in 1732, was rebuilt when the present window was inserted.
It is somewhat difficult now to picture the appearance of the interior of the church in mediaeval times. A brilliant colour scheme evidently played an important part in the general effect. Many of the piers of the nave arcades, which are apparently constructed of hard chalk, still show traces of a bold chevron pattern in red and yellow, and, together with the extensive wall paintings, slight traces of which still remain in the transepts, and the brilliance of the mediaeval glass, must have combined to give a very rich effect to the interior. Of the ancient glass very little remains. Dr.
Grayling mentions some fourteenth century borders in the chancel windows, which seem to have disappeared. In the central window of the north aisle is a small piece of ancient glass representing a ship with fish in the water beneath, which is said to have been found many years ago in a shed in the churchyard. In the top of the adjoining window is a fifteenth century figure of the Virgin and Child. A coat of arms in another window is mentioned by Thorpe, but this also seems to have disappeared. The wall paintings, though now very indistinct, were evidently much clearer until
comparatively recent times. On the east wall of the north transept, in the space between the southernmost of the two lancets and the arch in which it is placed, is one of these paintings, divided into five panels, depicting the Martyrdom of St. Edmund. Very little of it can now be made out, though the whole of this transept showed traces of colour at the time of the restoration of 1864. Some remains of a painting in a similar position in the south transept can still be seen, and are said to represent the Last Judgment.
Several bequests for the provision and upkeep of lights before the various altars add a little to our knowledge of the interior in mediaeval times. Of the various saints to whom lights were dedicated in the church Our Lady was of course the most popular. We have already seen that two altars
were dedicated to her. One of these is again mentioned in 1483, when Robert Qwikerell left 20 pence "to the Parish Church of Cleue and to the ligth of Our Lady besyde the pulpett there" and also a similar amount to the lights of St. Laurence and St. George. Richard Elys in 1469 also
mentions lights of St. Christopher, St. John and St. James, while in 1509 Steven Tudor bequeathed to the high altar of St. Elyn 20 pence, and to the light of St. Elyn 12 pence.
Of the position of these various lights one cannot speak with any certainty. That to St. Christopher would have been near the main entrance to the church, while the light of the patron saint, St. Helen, would have been in the Chancel, probably over the high altar. Remains of a piscina in four other places in the church prove the former existence of altars in these positions. That in the Sacristy has already been mentioned. At least one altar stood in each of the transepts, while a small piscina, apparently constructed of broken window tracery at the east end of the south aisle, testifies to another. An altar probably stood in a corresponding position in the north aisle. This disposition would exactly account for the number of lights mentioned in early wills. Besides the lights burning before the altars, there would also be a light before the great Rood over the entrance to the chancel. Some of the lower panels of the original rood screen survive. Above, and partly supported by, the screen was the rood loft, which was already in existence as early as 1413, when it is mentioned in conjunction with the great rood itself and its attendant figures in the will of Nicholas de Ryssheton, Canon of Sarum and Rector of Cliffe. The small fifteenth century doorway with a fourcentred arch, which gave access to it, can still be seen high up in the north wall just east of the entrance of the chancel, and the original stairs remain in good condition, though the entrance from the church has been blocked up and covered over with plaster.
The furniture in the church has suffered much from “restoration" and other causes. Six of the ancient stalls remain, three on each side of the chancel, though panelling at the backs and all the seats except two are modern. The sides terminate in carved heads, some of which have been
renewed, while the two original miserecords are carved with grotesques. The Communion rails are Jacobean, though somewhat repaired. They are of the fairly common baluster type with a central bulge. The pulpit is a very fine piece of Renaissance carving, and retains the original stand for the hour glass, though the glass itself is modern; on it is the date 1636.
Besides the fragments of the original rood screen there is another screen shutting off the vestry under the tower.
The font, which has been moved from its original position, is 3 feet 4£ inches in height, and apparently of late-fourteenth century date. The perfectly plain octagonal bowl has concave sides, around the lower edge of which is a hollow chamfer. The bowl is supported by an octagonal, buttressed stem on a plain base. On the westernmost pillar of the south arcade can still be seen the bracket and chain by which the font cover was raised, indicating its original position.
The monuments in the church are few, and call for little comment. In the floor at the west end of the north aisle are two flat coffin-shaped stones with early fourteenth century French inscriptions in Lombardic capitals. The one on the north is probably the earlier, judging from the very rough
characters which are now scarcely legible. It commemorated Eleanor de Olive, of whom nothing is known. The other stone shows traces of brass, and is inscribed in memory of Joan, wife of John Earn. These stones are described in the Gentleman's Magazine, and old rubbings of them exist among the collection of the Society of Antiquaries. There are three brasses of seventeenth century date, one of which is thought to have been engraved locally.
Two wills are of interest in connection with early burials in the church. In 1376 Robert de Walton, Rector of Cliffe, desired to be buried in the church of Olyve at the entrance to the quire. Some years later, in 1387, Thomas de Lynton, a subsequent rector, directed that he should be buried in the chancel near the entrance, and between the entrance to the quire and the tomb of Master Robert Walton, late Rector, and he ordered that a handsome marble monument should be placed over his body at the discretion of his executors. It seems not unlikely however that his executors favoured a brass monument. In the chancel is the stone matrix of what must once have been a very fine brass of about this period, representing a priest under a canopy. Another smaller matrix of an ecclesiastic is close to the pulpit.
Of the church plate the most important piece is a very beautiful paten of silver gilt of the early part of the sixteenth century. In the centre, worked in coloured enamels, is a seated figure of God the Father holding before Him a figure of the crucifixion. The extreme rarity of pre-reformation
plate is not generally recognised, and the example at Cliffe is one of the finest English patens in existence. At some period or other the paten at Cliffe served as a chalice cover, and it is even said to have been used as an alms dish, which would account for its numerous signs of wear. The other plate is of seventeenth century and later date, and of no particular interest.
It remains for me to acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. F. O. Blliston Erwood for several suggestions and for the photographs which illustrate this paper. The present account is intended to supplement, but not to supplant altogether, an article on Cliffe Church, by the Rev. I. Gr. Lloyd, a former Rector, which appeared in Vol. XI. of Arch. Cant., where reference should be made for further particulars.
www.cliffehistory.co.uk/martin.html
-------------------------------------------------
CLIFFE (St. Helen), a parish, in the union of North Aylesford, hundred of Shamwell, lathe of Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 5 miles (N. by W.) from Rochester; containing 842 inhabitants. The parish is bounded on the north by the Thames, and comprises 5660 acres, whereof 180 are woodland, about 2000 arable, and the remainder pasture, including a considerable portion of marshy land. The village, which is supposed to take its name from the cliff or rock on which it stands, was formerly of much greater extent, a great part of it having been destroyed by fire in 1520: it was the scene of several provincial councils. A pleasurefair is held on September 28th. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £50; net income, £1297; patron, the Archbishop of Canterbury: the glebe contains 20 acres. The church is considered one of the finest in the county, being a large handsome cruciform structure in the early English style, with an embattled central tower, and containing several curious monuments and remains of antiquity, together with six stalls that belonged to a dean and five prebendaries, it having been formerly collegiate.
www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england/pp63...
Smack-dab in the middle of Main St. Larry's Barbershop has been servicing the small town of Rossford, OH for over 20 years. As you can see from the photo, he's setup in a modestly sized shop just chock-full of memorabilia! Some of the unique collectibles he's got in there are museum worthy.
Eastman Commercial B 8x10
Fujinon W 210mm f/5.6
30 sec. @ f/45 + front shift
Ilford HP5+, N+1 Development
Pyrocat HD 1:1:100
I guess there's just as much chance this banana yellow jeep is coming from the cabinet shop.
1:64 Greenlight Collectibles:
2015 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
Rubicon Hard Rock
The Hobby Shop Series 8
Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II
Olympus M.14-42mm F3.5-5.6 II R
For more info about the dioramas, check out the FAQ: 1stPix FAQ
Lovebytes - Digital Spring
Live performances by Bruce Gilbert, R/S, Russell Haswell
Sound Installation by Jana Winderen
Sat 24 March 7-10.30pm
Channing Hall, 45 Surrey Street, Sheffield. S1 2LG
An evening of extreme electronic music, collaboration and improvisation curated by Sheffield artists Mark Fell and Mat Steel and featuring Bruce Gilbert, Russell Haswell, and R/S (Peter Rehberg and Marcus Schmickler), plus access to a multichannel installation by Jana Winderen.
Jana Winderen is one of the world's foremost field recording artists. She talked about her work in the Upper Chapel at 3pm 24 March. This was a free event.
Jana Winderen is an artist, educated in Fine Art at Goldsmiths College in London, and with a background in mathematics and chemistry from the University in Oslo. Since 1993, she has worked as an artist, curator and producer. She currently lives and works in Oslo.
Jana Winderen researches hidden depths with the latest technology. Her work reveals the complexity and strangeness of the unseen world beneath. The audio topography of the oceans and the depth of ice crevasses is brought to the surface. She is concerned with finding sound from hidden sources, like blind field recording.
Artist Statement:
"I like the immateriality of a sound work, and the openness it can have for both associative and direct experience and sensory perception. I have been occupied with finding sounds from unseen sources of sound, like blind field recordings. Over the last seven years, I have collected recordings made by hydrophones, from rivers, shores and the ocean in Asia, Europe and America, from glaciers in Greenland, Iceland and Norway. In the depths of the oceans there are invisible but audible soundscapes about which we are largely ignorant, even if the oceans cover 70% of our planet. I am also experimenting with different types of microphones to collect sounds which are not obviously recognisable, but give room for broader, more imaginative readings or sounds that are unreachable for the human senses. I use these sounds as source material for composition in a live environment or to create installations, currently also for film, radio, CD, MC and vinyl productions."
Bruce Gilbert is perhaps best known as co-founder of post-punk legends Wire. Following their end in 1980, Gilbert demonstrated a long-standing interest in electronic and experimental music that saw him form Dome (with Graham Lewis) and yielded such classic solo albums as This Way and The Shivering Man (reissued last year by Peter Rehberg's Editions Mego, 25 years after their first appearance). Along with reissues and solo projects in recent years, Gilbert has been active with collaborative performances alongside Mika Vainio, and is planning further new material.
R/S is the electronic music duo of Peter Rehberg and Marcus Schmickler. In 2011 they released 'USA', the duo's second full length release on PAN, a follow-up to their 2007 'One (Snow Mud Rain)' on Erstwhile Records.
Peter Rehberg performs throughout the world, and has participated in many of the major festivals associated with electronic music, through both solo performances and duets with Stephen O'Malley (KTL) and Marcus Schmickler (R/S), as well as projects such as Fenn O'Berg and Peterlicker. In addition to his roles as mentor to many artists and label curator of Editions Mego, Rehberg has also collaborated with interdisciplinary artists such as choreographer Gisele Vienne and writer Dennis Cooper (Kindertotenlieder; I Apologize, Jerk, This Is How You Will Disappear).
Marcus Schmickler is a Cologne-based composer, musician and producer of modern classical, electronic and computer music. He is also known for his work with Pluramon. In addition, he works in various collaborative projects - most notably with synth wiz Thomas Lehn. More recently, he has developed an interest in an epistemic dialog with the sciences, resonating in sonifications of astrophysical data, and translating recent mathematical discoveries into the sonic. His music's gleaming, impenetrable surfaces, labyrinthine constructions and opacity suck up all the air in the room - as well as your headspace.
Russell Haswell has exhibited visual artwork at Sadie Coles HQ, London; TN Probe, Tokyo; Galerie Rudolfinum, Prague; Kunsthalle, Vienna; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Centre Regional d'Art Contemporian, Bricks & Kicks Gallery, Vienna; Galerie Poo Poo, London; Museo d'Art Moderne, Paris; Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London; Kate Bernard Gallery, London; Independent Art Space, London and Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.
He has given solo audio presentations at major Art and Music festivals and events, in art galleries, concert halls and rock venues in Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Luxemburg, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, and USA. Including occasional live collaborations with Masami Akita, Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Florian Hecker, Zbigniew Karkowski, Toshiji Mikawa [INCAPACITANTS], Peter Rehberg, Yasunao Tone, Ilpo & Mika Vanio [PAN_SONIC], WHITEHOUSE, and Hard Disc Jockey [HDJ] duos with Richard D James [Aphex Twin].
A second edition of the 8 track compact disc catalogue 'Live Salvage 1997 - 2000' (Honorable Mention, Digital Music's, Prix Ars Electronica.) has been reissued by Mego.. In 2008, a second volume, 'Second Live Salvage', was also released by Editions Mego as a double 12" vinyl set. In 2011, a third volume, 'IN IT: Immersive Live Salvage', was also released by Editions Mego as a Surround sound DVD (DTS & DOLBY 5.1) and vinyl LP (UHJ Ambisonic format) set.
Haswell released the Compact Disc 'Wild Tracks' (Editions Mego) in 2009: a collection of raw recordings, originally intended for film and other media projects. A double Compact Disc, 'VALUE + BONUS', was released by NO FUN Productions in mid 2010.
An ongoing collaboration (2003 +) with Florian Hecker working on Iannis Xenakis' graphic-input 'UPIC Music Composing System' is one project: the recorded results have been presented in the form of multi channel electroacoustic diffusion sessions, for example for the Frieze Art Fair. These events use surround sound and laser lighting to create an immersive multi-sensory environment. Mego, Warner Classical, and Warp records have released Haswell & Hecker recordings.
'satanstornade', a collaboration between Masami Akita & Russell Haswell, was published by Warp Records on compact disc and vinyl. It was awarded "Record cover of the month", Vice UK.
'MiniDisc' by Gescom, (Distinction, Digital Musics, Prix Ars Electronica.) The worlds first 'independent' label released 'MiniDisc' A collaboration between Russell Haswell, Rob Brown and Sean Booth of Autechre, has been reissued by OR on Compact Disc in 2007.
Haswell was also a curator at P.S.1/MOMA, Contemporary Art Centre, New York. Responsible for large-scale exhibition curating and hanging, as well as curating a weekly (summer months only) outdoor music event, WARM UP.
In 2005 and 2006 he curated two London based 'All Tomorrow's Parties' club events, entitled 'Easy to Swallow', intended for the broad-minded, the events showcased Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Yasunao Tone + Hecker, Mark Stewart and the Maffia, Aphex Twin, Whitehouse, Surgeon + Regis Present: British Murder Boys, Lee Dorrian (ex- Napalm Death & Cathedral), Pita, Earth, Autechre, Robert Hood (ex-Underground Resistance). Both events sold out!
In November 2009 he curated 'LISTEN' at Aldeburgh Snape Maltings Concert House with Chris Watson, Bernie Krause and Tony Myatt, presenting their works on a 360° 'high-order' ambisonic surround sound system.
Haswell recently curated part of the audio program for "The Morning Line Istanbul 2010' project, European Capital of Culture 2010. Commissioned by Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (T-B A21), working with Artists/Composers: Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Peter Zinovieff, Jana Winderen, and Yasunao Tone. These works were presented again in Vienna, 2011.
Haswell has contributed to Frieze Magazine articles on Japanese noise, computer music software and Peter Halley.
Lovebytes 2012 - Digital Spring
A Festival of Art, Science and Technology
22-24 March
Sheffield UK
Lovebytes - Digital Spring
Live performances by Bruce Gilbert, R/S, Russell Haswell
Sound Installation by Jana Winderen
Sat 24 March 7-10.30pm
Channing Hall, 45 Surrey Street, Sheffield. S1 2LG
An evening of extreme electronic music, collaboration and improvisation curated by Sheffield artists Mark Fell and Mat Steel and featuring Bruce Gilbert, Russell Haswell, and R/S (Peter Rehberg and Marcus Schmickler), plus access to a multichannel installation by Jana Winderen.
Jana Winderen is one of the world's foremost field recording artists. She talked about her work in the Upper Chapel at 3pm 24 March. This was a free event.
Jana Winderen is an artist, educated in Fine Art at Goldsmiths College in London, and with a background in mathematics and chemistry from the University in Oslo. Since 1993, she has worked as an artist, curator and producer. She currently lives and works in Oslo.
Jana Winderen researches hidden depths with the latest technology. Her work reveals the complexity and strangeness of the unseen world beneath. The audio topography of the oceans and the depth of ice crevasses is brought to the surface. She is concerned with finding sound from hidden sources, like blind field recording.
Artist Statement:
"I like the immateriality of a sound work, and the openness it can have for both associative and direct experience and sensory perception. I have been occupied with finding sounds from unseen sources of sound, like blind field recordings. Over the last seven years, I have collected recordings made by hydrophones, from rivers, shores and the ocean in Asia, Europe and America, from glaciers in Greenland, Iceland and Norway. In the depths of the oceans there are invisible but audible soundscapes about which we are largely ignorant, even if the oceans cover 70% of our planet. I am also experimenting with different types of microphones to collect sounds which are not obviously recognisable, but give room for broader, more imaginative readings or sounds that are unreachable for the human senses. I use these sounds as source material for composition in a live environment or to create installations, currently also for film, radio, CD, MC and vinyl productions."
Bruce Gilbert is perhaps best known as co-founder of post-punk legends Wire. Following their end in 1980, Gilbert demonstrated a long-standing interest in electronic and experimental music that saw him form Dome (with Graham Lewis) and yielded such classic solo albums as This Way and The Shivering Man (reissued last year by Peter Rehberg's Editions Mego, 25 years after their first appearance). Along with reissues and solo projects in recent years, Gilbert has been active with collaborative performances alongside Mika Vainio, and is planning further new material.
R/S is the electronic music duo of Peter Rehberg and Marcus Schmickler. In 2011 they released 'USA', the duo's second full length release on PAN, a follow-up to their 2007 'One (Snow Mud Rain)' on Erstwhile Records.
Peter Rehberg performs throughout the world, and has participated in many of the major festivals associated with electronic music, through both solo performances and duets with Stephen O'Malley (KTL) and Marcus Schmickler (R/S), as well as projects such as Fenn O'Berg and Peterlicker. In addition to his roles as mentor to many artists and label curator of Editions Mego, Rehberg has also collaborated with interdisciplinary artists such as choreographer Gisele Vienne and writer Dennis Cooper (Kindertotenlieder; I Apologize, Jerk, This Is How You Will Disappear).
Marcus Schmickler is a Cologne-based composer, musician and producer of modern classical, electronic and computer music. He is also known for his work with Pluramon. In addition, he works in various collaborative projects - most notably with synth wiz Thomas Lehn. More recently, he has developed an interest in an epistemic dialog with the sciences, resonating in sonifications of astrophysical data, and translating recent mathematical discoveries into the sonic. His music's gleaming, impenetrable surfaces, labyrinthine constructions and opacity suck up all the air in the room - as well as your headspace.
Russell Haswell has exhibited visual artwork at Sadie Coles HQ, London; TN Probe, Tokyo; Galerie Rudolfinum, Prague; Kunsthalle, Vienna; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Centre Regional d'Art Contemporian, Bricks & Kicks Gallery, Vienna; Galerie Poo Poo, London; Museo d'Art Moderne, Paris; Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London; Kate Bernard Gallery, London; Independent Art Space, London and Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.
He has given solo audio presentations at major Art and Music festivals and events, in art galleries, concert halls and rock venues in Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Luxemburg, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, and USA. Including occasional live collaborations with Masami Akita, Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Florian Hecker, Zbigniew Karkowski, Toshiji Mikawa [INCAPACITANTS], Peter Rehberg, Yasunao Tone, Ilpo & Mika Vanio [PAN_SONIC], WHITEHOUSE, and Hard Disc Jockey [HDJ] duos with Richard D James [Aphex Twin].
A second edition of the 8 track compact disc catalogue 'Live Salvage 1997 - 2000' (Honorable Mention, Digital Music's, Prix Ars Electronica.) has been reissued by Mego.. In 2008, a second volume, 'Second Live Salvage', was also released by Editions Mego as a double 12" vinyl set. In 2011, a third volume, 'IN IT: Immersive Live Salvage', was also released by Editions Mego as a Surround sound DVD (DTS & DOLBY 5.1) and vinyl LP (UHJ Ambisonic format) set.
Haswell released the Compact Disc 'Wild Tracks' (Editions Mego) in 2009: a collection of raw recordings, originally intended for film and other media projects. A double Compact Disc, 'VALUE + BONUS', was released by NO FUN Productions in mid 2010.
An ongoing collaboration (2003 +) with Florian Hecker working on Iannis Xenakis' graphic-input 'UPIC Music Composing System' is one project: the recorded results have been presented in the form of multi channel electroacoustic diffusion sessions, for example for the Frieze Art Fair. These events use surround sound and laser lighting to create an immersive multi-sensory environment. Mego, Warner Classical, and Warp records have released Haswell & Hecker recordings.
'satanstornade', a collaboration between Masami Akita & Russell Haswell, was published by Warp Records on compact disc and vinyl. It was awarded "Record cover of the month", Vice UK.
'MiniDisc' by Gescom, (Distinction, Digital Musics, Prix Ars Electronica.) The worlds first 'independent' label released 'MiniDisc' A collaboration between Russell Haswell, Rob Brown and Sean Booth of Autechre, has been reissued by OR on Compact Disc in 2007.
Haswell was also a curator at P.S.1/MOMA, Contemporary Art Centre, New York. Responsible for large-scale exhibition curating and hanging, as well as curating a weekly (summer months only) outdoor music event, WARM UP.
In 2005 and 2006 he curated two London based 'All Tomorrow's Parties' club events, entitled 'Easy to Swallow', intended for the broad-minded, the events showcased Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Yasunao Tone + Hecker, Mark Stewart and the Maffia, Aphex Twin, Whitehouse, Surgeon + Regis Present: British Murder Boys, Lee Dorrian (ex- Napalm Death & Cathedral), Pita, Earth, Autechre, Robert Hood (ex-Underground Resistance). Both events sold out!
In November 2009 he curated 'LISTEN' at Aldeburgh Snape Maltings Concert House with Chris Watson, Bernie Krause and Tony Myatt, presenting their works on a 360° 'high-order' ambisonic surround sound system.
Haswell recently curated part of the audio program for "The Morning Line Istanbul 2010' project, European Capital of Culture 2010. Commissioned by Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (T-B A21), working with Artists/Composers: Carl Michael von Hausswolff, Peter Zinovieff, Jana Winderen, and Yasunao Tone. These works were presented again in Vienna, 2011.
Haswell has contributed to Frieze Magazine articles on Japanese noise, computer music software and Peter Halley.
Lovebytes 2012 - Digital Spring
A Festival of Art, Science and Technology
22-24 March
Sheffield UK
Tamiya's stealth fighter, plus Eduard etch. I didn't take any construction photos of this one - very stealthy...
The other day The Girl was singing the scales : Do-Re-Mi. I asked her who taught her that and she said her music teacher at school. I then asked if she wanted to learn how to play the scales on the piano. (It actually wasn't a question, as the tone was more of a sit down now and I will teach you.)
So I introduced her to everybody's favorite: The C Scale. As I recall from my younger years, "It's the one with no black keys". For a while I felt like Miyagi Keisuke trying to teach someone using metaphors but that didn't go so well.
Eventually, she did get the hang of it (correct fingering as well) and while preparing dinner I could hear her go from octave to octave. I felt like Suyuan listening to June play the piano.
Then she got all flancy and started going down the scale. I told her that was great but her fingering was incorrect and we'd work on that tomorrow.
s/n 0585GT
240 bhp, 2,953 cc single overhead camshaft V-12 engine with three Weber carburetors, four-speed all-synchromesh manual gearbox, independent front suspension with unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and parallel trailing arms, and four-wheel drum brakes. Wheelbase: 2,600 mm
• Very first of the second series 14-louver design
• One of nine examples built
• Featured in the Hollywood Classic, The Love Bug
• Matching numbers, extensively documented, and complete with full Ferrari Classiche certification
• Received a class award at the 2011 Quail Motorsports Gathering
• Single ownership for 14 years and offered for the first time ever at auction
• Pristine example of Ferrari’s most revered berlinetta
The tragic accident at the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans that claimed the lives of one driver and 79 spectators had a profound effect on the shape of racing, one that ultimately led to the creation of one of Ferrari’s most celebrated models. Racing enthusiasts and competitors alike agreed that the crash was ultimately the result of the increasingly potent powertrains of the Le Mans sports cars, and in order to prevent further disaster, new regulations would be required to veer from the path of these thinly veiled race cars, which were essentially grand prix cars packaged with two-seater bodies.
The following year, the FIA responded by creating new gran turismo classes that not only prioritized safety, but also re-established the concept of competitively racing a road-based production car. Ferrari, of course, was well prepared for the challenge, having just debuted its new series-production 250 GT at the Geneva Motor Show of 1956. While the coupe on display featured an elegant body that would go on to be produced in quantity by Boano, thus providing necessary homologation, the underlying chassis proved to be the basis for the competition car, or berlinetta, that Ferrari sought to enter into the FIA’s new racing classifications. Pininfarina designed a new lightweight body that was built by Scaglietti, using thin-gauge aluminum and Perspex windows and a minimally upholstered cabin. The finished car, then known officially as the 250 GT Berlinetta, was ultimately made in a sparing quantity of 77 examples that are further sub-divided by subtle differences in coachwork over the model’s four-year production run.
Ferrari’s hopes for competitive success were quickly realized when Olivier Gendebien and Jacques Washer co-drove the very first car, chassis number 0503 GT, to a First in Class and Fourth Overall at the Giro di Sicilia in April 1956, with a Fifth Overall (First in Class) at the Mille Miglia later that month. But the model’s defining success didn’t occur until September, during the 1956 Tour de France Automobile, a grueling 3,600 mile, week-long contest that combined six circuit races, two hill climbs, and a drag race. The Marquis Alfonso de Portago, a Spanish aristocrat and privateer racer, drove chassis number 0557 GT to a dominating victory that sealed the dynamic model’s reputation. Enzo Ferrari was so pleased with the outcome that the 250 GT Berlinetta was subsequently and internally, though never officially, referred to as the Tour de France. The moniker proved to be quite fitting, as Gendebien took First Overall at the 1957, 1958, and 1959 installments of the French race, as well as a Third Overall at the 1957 Mille Miglia, a triumph that witnessed the defeat of many more purpose-built sports racers.
With the introduction of a short-wheelbase 250 GT in late-1959, the outgoing platform became retrospectively labeled as the long-wheelbase version, though the original car’s designation of 250 GT LWB Berlinetta is now largely simplified with the name ‘Tour de France.’ Through its brief production run, the TdF underwent several external body modifications, ultimately resulting in four different series-produced body styles (not including a handful of Zagato-bodied cars). The alterations in appearance are most easily recognizable in the so-called sail panels, the rear ¾-panels of the c-pillar that adjoin the roof. Initially produced with no louvers at all, these panels featured 14 louvers in the second-series cars, followed by a series with just three louvers, and ending with a series that featured just one sail-panel louver. Of all of these series, the 14-louver cars are the rarest, with only nine examples produced, and are judged by many enthusiasts to be the handsomest of the group.
This fabulous, early Ferrari 250 GT Tour de France is the very first example constructed of the second series design that featured 14-louver sail-panels. On November 15, 1956, the stunning TdF was purchased by Tony Parravano, the Italian national and Southern California building construction magnate who is better known among 1950s racing enthusiasts for the numerous Italian sports cars that he campaigned in the area’s SCCA circuit. 0585 GT was entered for the Palm Springs road races in early April of 1957, before being disqualified because the sanctioning body did not recognize it as a production car. Changing hands among a couple of Los Angeles-based owners during the early-1960s, 0585 GT eventually came into the possession of Walt Disney Studios for use in the 1966 film The Love Bug, the celebrated Disney classic about “Herbie,” the racing VW Beetle with a soul.
Following its memorable Hollywood turn, this important 250 GT fell on hard times, passing through the Schaub family, of Los Angeles, before reportedly being abandoned on the side of the Hollywood freeway. Records indicate two more owners during the 1970s and 1980s. In September 1994, the car surfaced and was offered for sale in an unrestored state by David Cottingham’s DK Engineering in Watford, England. Unable to sell 0585 GT for its true value, DK, in late-1996, elected to totally restore the historically significant Tour de France, a freshening that debuted to overwhelming acclaim at Coy’s International Historic Festival at Silverstone in July 1997. The festival proved to be a perfect stage for the immaculate car, as it was sold the following October to its current owner, a well-respected Southern California-based collector who has a 40-year history of collecting and caring for some of the most recognizable and important Ferrari cars ever built.
Registered under license plate “MY 56 TDF,” 0585 GT was soon campaigned in a number of vintage rallies, including the Tour Auto of April 1998, as well as the Mille Miglia of the following May. The car also participated in the Tour Auto in 1999 and 2000, and placed 39th Overall at the 2000 Shell Ferrari/Maserati Historic Challenge at Le Mans. 0585 GT returned to the Tour Auto in 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2006 and was displayed at Car Classic: Freedom of Motion, the 2010 exhibition held at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. The following August, 0585 GT’s extreme quality and rarity were confirmed with the ultimate in exhibitive recognition, a class award at the 2011 Quail Motorsports Gathering in Carmel, California, where the car won “The Great Ferraris” class, honoring some of the marque’s earliest and important sports and racing cars.
In addition to all of these awards and racing achievements, 0585 GT has also gone under the scrutiny of the Ferrari factory’s certification program and easily received the full “Red Book” certification through Newport Beach Ferrari specialist, John Amette. For the certification process, the original gearbox was put in the car; however, the current owner has since removed it and put a more user-friendly synchromesh gearbox in the car for much better drivability purposes. It must be noted that the original unit will be supplied with the sale of this car. A full set of original tools and a jack will also be included, as well as a booklet of documentation and various trophies and awards that the car has received over the years. In preparation for the sale, 0585 GT has also just been completely detailed and sorted at well-respected Junior’s House of Color in Long Beach, California, so it will look stunning in presentation.
On a recent track drive in preparation for RM’s video and photography efforts, the car performed flawlessly, handling directly and powering through all of the gears with ease. As the RM specialist describes, “The four-wheel drum brakes and skinny tyres can sometimes provide a different driving experience for those familiar with later cars fitted with disk brakes and wider stances; however, it allows the pilot to become much more intimate with the driving experience and to engage the engine in a much different way, creating a completely different awareness of timing and speed…The most beautiful thing about these early TDs is what most Ferraristi will attest to, and that is the sound of the exhaust note when the car breaches 3500 rpm. As you power out of the corners, there is that point when the car just feels and sounds right! All the noises, the vibrations, and the elements of speed come together to create a symphonic harmony that is unlike anything else. Moreover, the sound is not too overpowering and is pleasurable for extended periods of time, which cannot be said for many other race-bred cars. It is the ultimate dual-purpose Ferrari!”
Impeccably cared for and stunningly restored, 0585 GT is a beautiful and rare example of the second series 14-louver Tour de France, one of Ferrari’s greatest sports cars of all time. This car’s next owner can look forward to continued warm receptions at the world’s finest automotive events, including rallies such as the Tour Auto and Mille Miglia, and premium exhibitive venues, such as Pebble Beach, Amelia Island, and the Palm Beach Cavallino Classic. It is a truly unique representative of one of Ferrari’s most revered models, and in many ways, it is the ultimate symbol of Ferrari’s long pursuit of dual-purpose sports cars that can be seriously campaigned as easily as they can be road driven. Given their extremely low production numbers and desirability, these cars rarely come to the market. The availability of 0585 GT after 14-years of single ownership offers an unbeatable chance to acquire one of the most storied machines to emerge from Maranello’s legendary motoring lore.
[Text from RM Auctions]
www.rmauctions.com/lots/lot.cfm?lot_id=1052658
This Lego miniland-scale Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta 'Tour de France' (1956 - Scaglietti), has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 89th Build Challenge, - "Over a Million, Under a Thousand", - a challenge to build vehicles valued over one million (US) dollars, or under one thousand (US) dollars.
This particular vehicle was auctioned by the RM Auction house on Saturday, August 18, 2012, where it sold for $6,710,000.
A very large and magnificent monument against the south wall of the nave, originally under the north arch of the south transept but removed to its present position in 1867. It consists of a panelled altar tomb on which are recumbent effigies of a man and wife, the former in armour with a long cloak and ruff. At the feet of the woman's figure is a kneeling figure of a daughter at prayer-desk and facing east. On either side of the tomb is a large obelisk with ball finial and spike and standing on a panelled pedestal. Behind the effigies is a wall canopy with two round arches with coffered soffits having cherub-head keystones and supporting an entablature with the cornice brought forward on four shaped brackets. The back of the arched recesses has carved enrichment, two inscribed tablets and two shields of arms and in the middle spandrel a cartouche of arms. Above the cornice is a centre-piece with carved pilasters and an achievement of arms; flanking the centre-piece are cartouches with shields of arms.
Arms:
(i) (Argent) two gimel bars sable between three spread-eagles sable (Spencer).
(ii) The same.
(iii) Quarterly, I, sable a leopard argent; 2, sable three roses argent; 3, azure a cheveron or between three falcons' heads razed or; 4, gules three pales or within a border or charged with roundels sable.
(iv) As (i).
(v) (i) impaling (iii).
(vi) As (iii).
Crests: (a) a falcon rising; (b) a lion's head razed.
In the left-hand recess behind the recumbent effigies:
Hic sitvs est Ioannes Spencer
Eqves avratvs, civis, & senator
Londinensis, eivsdemq civitatis
prætor anno d'ni mdxciiii
qvi ex Alicia Bromfeldia
vxore vnicam reliqvit filiam
Elizabeth Gvilielmo Baroni
Compton envptam, obiit 3o
die martii anno salvtis mdcix
In the right-hand recess:
Socero bene merito
Gvilielmvs baro Compton
gener posvit
An inscription at the foot of the male effigy records the fact that the tomb originally stood in the northern arch of the south transept, and was removed to its present position, restored and repaired in 1867 by Charles, 3rd Marquis of Northampton.
"Survey of London: volume 9: The parish of St Helen, Bishopsgate, part I (1924)" by Minnie Reddan and Alfred W. Clapham.
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SPENCER, Sir JOHN (d. 1610), lord mayor of London, was the son of Richard Spencer of Waldingfield in Suffolk. He came to London, and was so successful as a merchant that he became known as ‘Rich Spencer.’ His trade with Spain, Turkey, and Venice was very large (State Papers, Spanish, 1568–79 p. 590, Dom. 1591–4 p. 59), and he was accused in 1591 of engrossing, with two other merchants, the whole trade with Tripoli (ib. p. 67). This lends some justification for the charge made in a little book ‘written by D. Papillon, Gent,’ that Spencer became by the practice of merchandise ‘extraordinary rich, but it was by falsifying and monopolising of all manner of commodities’ (Vanity of the Lives and Passions of Men, 1651, p. 48). The same writer relates the story of a plot by a pirate of Dunkirk, with twelve of his crew, to carry off Spencer and hold him to ransom for over 50,000l. Leaving his shallop with six of his men in Barking Creek, he came with the other six to Islington, intending to seize the merchant on his way to his country house at Canonbury, which Spencer had purchased of Thomas, lord Wentworth, in 1570. The plot was frustrated by Spencer's detention that night on important business in the city. Queen Elizabeth is said to have visited him at Canonbury in 1581 (Nichols, Hist. of Canonbury House, 1788, p. 12).
Spencer was a member of the Cloth workers' Company, and was elected alderman of Langbourn ward on 9 Aug. 1587. He served the office of sheriff in 1583–4, and that of lord mayor in 1594–5. During his shrievalty he was engaged in hunting down papists in Holborn and the adjoining localities, and had to justify before the council the committal of A. Bassano and other of her majesty's musicians (State Papers, Dom. 1581–90, pp. 198, 202). On entering upon his mayoralty at the close of 1594 great scarcity prevailed, and Spencer sent his precept to the city companies to replenish their store of corn at the granaries in the Bridge House for sale to the poor. He stoutly resisted a demand by Admiral Sir John Hawkins for possession of the Bridge House for the use of the queen's navy and baking biscuits for the fleet (Welch, Hist. of the Tower Bridge, p. 99).
He kept his mayoralty at his town residence in Bishopsgate Street, the well-known Crosby Place, which he had purchased in a dilapidated state from the representatives of Antonio Bonvisi, and restored at great cost. In this sumptuous mansion during the course of 1604 Spencer entertained both the Duc de Sully (then M. de Rosny), while ambassador to England, and the youngest son of the Prince of Orange, with Barnevelt and Fulke, who came on a mission from Holland (Stow, Survey of London, 1755, i. 435). Towards the close of his mayoralty he boldly asserted the city's right, which it was feared the crown would invade, to freely elect a recorder. Before the close of his mayoralty Spencer received the honour of knighthood.
By his wife, Alice Bromfield, Spencer had an only child, Elizabeth, who in 1598 was sought in marriage by William, second lord Compton (afterwards first Earl of Northampton). Spencer strongly disapproved of the match, but Compton's influence at court enabled him to procure Spencer's imprisonment in the Fleet in March 1599 for ill-treating his daughter (State Papers, Dom. 1598–1601, p. 169). The young lady was ultimately carried off by her lover from Canonbury House in a baker's basket. The marriage quickly followed, but the alderman naturally declined to give his daughter a marriage portion. When, in May 1601, his daughter became a mother, he showed no signs of relenting (ib. 1601–3, p. 45). But some reconciliation apparently took place soon afterwards, it is said, through the interposition of Elizabeth. In May 1609 Spencer refused to contribute to an aid for James I on behalf of the young Prince Henry (ib. 1603–10, p. 508); he also delayed his contribution of 200l. to the amount subscribed by the Clothworkers' Company to the Ulster settlement, which had to be paid by his executors (Remembrancia, p. 172). Spencer was president of St. Bartholomew's Hospital from 1603 to his death.
He died, at an advanced age, on 3 March 1609–10, and his widow only survived him till 27 March. He was buried on 22 March, and Dame Alice on 7 April, in his parish church of St. Helen, Bishopsgate, where a fine monument exists to his memory. His funeral was on a most sumptuous scale (Winwood, State Papers, iii. 136). His fortune was variously estimated at from 500,000l. to 800,000l., and the splendid inheritance is said for the time to have turned the brain of his son-in-law, Lord Compton. Among other estates, he was possessed of the manors of Brooke Hall, Bower Hall, and Bocking, which he obtained from the queen on 1 Aug. 1599. True to the last to his parsimonious principles, Spencer left none of his immense wealth to objects of public benevolence or utility.
*
In the 16th century there had been a tendency to depict armour in a slightly fanciful, manneristic way. It was during the 16th century that wearing armour on the battlefield gradually lost popularity, and so did the realistic depiction of it. Still, realistically depicted armour as well as the more fanciful style lived happily together.
Sir John wears plain, functional armour of the early 17th century. It looks like a mixture of both styles: the overall silhouette is correct, every single piece of armour he wears was actually worn, but the shape of most pieces is quite crude, the carver hasn't paid much attention to detail.
Realistically depicted armour in a 17th century effigy can be seen in Maastricht www.flickr.com/photos/roelipilami/1476883118/in/set-72157...
And an example of the fanciful style in a Belgian effigy: www.flickr.com/photos/roelipilami/1475764991/in/set-72157...
Now in real bricks - the minifigure scale SUV that really sits 7 minifigs! Loosely based on a Land Rover, it features opening doors, space for 7 minifigs and opening tailgate with plenty of room for you to place suitcases, dogs or whatever your Minifigures need to carry! Please note the black bonnet is painted as LEGO doesn't produce the part in that colour yet. Don't ask why I chose Star Wars figs to model the car's minifig seating capability :-) Here's a shot showing the tailgate open. Yoda shows that you can pack lots of suitcases into the vehicle.
It’s been a little while since I’ve had the motivation to do anything with my models, I decided to push myself to do two shoots, one of First Bus in Glasgow & Lanarkshire pre-Barbie ii corporate livery. Included are some Kelvin Central/KCB Network models, awaiting decisions on their fate they are still “in service” while pictured. Part 2 is an equal number of pictures of Barbie ii and beyond for the same area.
HO scale CP Rail FP7 Atlas and F7B Athearn, detailed and modified by me, ca. 2002. I cheated on the A-unit's handrails, just running paint along the moulded-on grab irons without replacing them with wire ones. At 3 feet you can't tell.
A wide-field mosaic of a section of Markarian's Chain, a chain of Galaxies that forms part of the Virgo Supercluster (a cluster of a several thousand Galaxies, 60 million light-years away in the direction of the constellation Virgo). When viewed from Earth, the Galaxies lie along a curved line.
The Virgo Supercluster (Virgo SC) or the Local Supercluster (LSC or LS) is a mass concentration of Galaxies containing the Virgo Cluster and Local Group, which in turn contains the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxies. At least 100 Galaxy groups and clusters are located within its diameter of 33 megaparsecs (110 million light-years). The Virgo SC is one of about 10 million superclusters in the Observable Universe and is in the Pisces–Cetus Supercluster Complex, a Galaxy Filament.
About this image:
Imaged in LRGB over several sessions in July 2019 from the Southern Hemisphere.
Image Acquisition & Plate Solving:
SGP Mosaic and Framing Wizard.
PlaneWave PlateSolve 2 via SGP.
Integration time:
18 hours.
Processing:
Pre-Processing and Linear workflow in PixInsight,
and finished in Photoshop.
Astrometry Info:
Center RA, Dec: 187.055, 12.888
Center RA, hms: 12h 28m 13.184s
Center Dec, dms: +12° 53' 17.123"
Size: 3.26 x 2.5 deg
Radius: 2.054 deg
Pixel scale: 7.33 arcsec/pixel
Orientation: Up is 88.3 degrees E of N
View an Annotated Sky Chart of this image.
View this image in the WorldWideTelescope.
&creditsUrl=&ra=187.536744&dec=12.032357&x=1214.0&y=370.9&rotation=91.70&thumb=http://nova.astrometry.net/image/7121763){kind=link}
Martin
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Original image and more info:
Mum’s Day-tripper Bag
The majority of what I am designing at the moment is baby related! I have a 5 month old girl and a 3 year old boy and have an endless list of items that I want to design to make things easier or prettier or both!
This bag is really 3 items in one. The main bag, a change mat that acts as a compact changing bag in its own right and a toy I have named the sleepy fish!
I used the layer cake by cutting the squares diagonally into equal strips and piecing these for the main bag. I then used the off-cuts of this with some yardage to make the outside of the changing mat. The remaining squares (the louder, busier ones) were used to make all the components of the sleepy fish toy.
The main bag has 2 elastic sections at the sides designed to hold bottles or anything you need to hold upright, like lotion. There is a large zipped pocket for all your ‘mum’ bits – phone, purse, lippy etc. I have included the eyelet on a flap just inside the bag. This was primarily to hold my sleepy fish toy but could also be used for keys. As with any item that comes in contact with children it needed to be sturdy! I put metal studs on the bottom to protect the fabric and a plastic bag base to help maintain the shape and stability. I have also inserted tubing into the handles for extra strength and interfacing has been used throughout.
The compact changing bag is padded and wipe clean. It has enough storage for a basic change kit. i.e. two or three nappies, wipes and disposal bags. I designed it to be carried within the main bag for a quick change. Once the mat is unfolded all the other bits you need are right there. No more rummaging in your bag to find them mid-change! It is also great when you child is a little older and you don’t need to carry so much ‘stuff’ around. It can just be hung on the back of the push chair and doesn’t take up too much space. As you may have noticed, my laptop wrap, submitted in the audition round was born from this design as the fold up function is so quick and compact.
Although you can’t see it, the sleepy fish toy has a ball rattle inside and all the scales and fins have a crinkly cellophane sewn in to make lots of noises. Perfect for entertaining your baby while you change her. There is a hanging loop with Velcro so it can be attached easily to the eyelet inside the bag or onto a pushchair etc
Happy day-tripping!
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The Dornier Do 319 was directly inspired by the (modest) successes experienced by the Messerschmitt Me 262 fighter, the world's first operational jet-powered fighter aircraft. Design work started before World War II began, but problems with engines, metallurgy and top-level interference kept the aircraft from operational status with the Luftwaffe until mid-1944.
However, when it became clear that the new jet engine carried the potential for aircraft that were faster than piston engine counterparts, the German Navy urged the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM) to develop an amphibian fighter, attack and reconnaissance aircraft. This was not to be a navalized Me 262 (which was regarded as impossible due to the aircraft’s layout with low wings and underslung engine nacelles, and added floats would have ruined the aircraft’s aerodynamics, too), but rather a dedicated single-seat jet aircraft. This new design was to be either operated from catapults (replacing the Marine’s standard on-board aircraft, the Arado Ar 196 floatplane) or, with foldable wings, from submarines with water-tight hangars. This concept had already been discussed in the mid-late 1930s, when German class III submarines were to be outfitted with such compartments – but at that time for small motorboats only, for covert landing operations, and no submarine was converted accordingly. But the concept still found a lot of attention.
Dornier was tasked with the development of such an aircraft, based on the experience gained with the Me 262 and its innovative means of propulsion. Dornier realized that the new turbojet engine presented an opportunity to overcome the drawback of floatplanes if it was possible to combine the light jet engine with a streamlined flying boat hull, which would impose only a small aerodynamic penalty. Such an aircraft could still be at least on par with piston-engine land-based aircraft.
Using aerodynamic research data from the Messerschmitt fighter, Dornier conceived a compact flying boat with shoulder-mounted gull wings, carried by a narrow pylon behind the single seat cockpit. The engine nacelles were placed on the wings’ upper sides, as far away from spray water as possible. Through this layout, however, stabilizer floats would have necessitated very long and draggy struts, and the relatively thin, swept wings did not allow a (favored) retracting mechanism.
As a consequence, the aircraft was designed with Dornier’s trademark stub-wing floats, which added uplift in both water and air and offered, despite a permanent drag penalty, a convenient amount of space for extra fuel and the wells for a fully retractable landing/beaching gear, which made the aircraft fully amphibious and independent from a beaching trolley. Armament consisted of four 30mm MK 108 machine guns in the aircraft’s nose section, and the aircraft’s main task would be ground attack, air defense and, as a secondary mission, fast tactical reconnaissance.
Dornier first presented the initial concept to the RLM in mid-1943. Performance with two Junkers Jumo 004 axial-flow turbojet engines was – naturally – lower than the clean Me 262 fighter, but still impressive. The Me 262 was supposed to achieve a maximum speed of 900 km/h (559 mph), while the Dornier aircraft, with basically the same engines, was expected to have a top speed of 520 mph at 40,000 ft. But this was still regarded as sufficient, and the project was officially given the RLM’s type number 319. Two prototypes were built (under the designation Do 319 A-0), the first one making its maiden flight in February 1944.
However, at that time the German navy had lost much of its power and sovereignty, and more and more resources had to be allocated to defense projects. As a consequence, the Do 319 as a combat aircraft (originally designated Do 319 A) became a secondary priority only, and the original aircraft was cancelled. Still, the small amphibious aircraft attained a lot of interest through the type’s potential as a fast reconnaissance plane and for special purpose transport duties – namely as a personal transport for high-ranking officials and for covert operations behind enemy lines and at foreign shores – was discovered and the type nevertheless ordered into small-scale production.
As a consequence and as an adaptation of the airframe to its new role, the Do 319’s design was modified: the fuselage behind the cockpit was widened into a compartment for passengers, cargo or other equipment. The cabin could hold up to two passengers, sitting vis-à-vis, and it was accessible through a watertight door on each side above the stub floats. The cabin was open to the cockpit in front of it, but the opening was blocked if the front passenger seat was in place. Alternatively, up to 300 kg (660 lb) of cargo or photo equipment could be carried, and one or both seats could also be replaced by internal auxiliary tanks. The provision for the Do 319 A’s cannon armament was retained, but the weapons were rarely mounted in order to save weight.
In this form, and now designated Do 319 B and christened “Seeschwalbe”, the aircraft entered service with the Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine on a limited scale. Most machines were exclusively assigned to staff units and reserved for special missions like liaison duties for high ranking officials, but they were also used in recce and other special missions. At least one Do 319 B was shot down over the American east coast, probably while deploying German agents from a submarine. How the aircraft with its limited range itself could come close to American shores remains a mystery until today, since Germany did not build or operate submarine aircraft carriers.
Production numbers remained low, though, reaching roundabout 20 aircraft (even this number is uncertain) until the end of the war, and no Do 319 survived the hostilities.
General characteristics:
Crew: 1 pilot plus up to 2 passengers
Length: 10.80 m (35 ft 4 1/2 in)
Wingspan: 12.60 m (41 ft 6 in)
Height: 3.78 m (12 ft 4 1/2 in)
Wing area: 26.8 m² (288 ft²)
Aspect ratio: 7.32
Empty weight: 4,120 kg (9,075 lb)
Loaded weight: 6,830 kg (15,044 lb)
Max. take-off weight: 7,385 kg (16,266 lb)
Powerplant:
2× Junkers Jumo 004 B-1 turbojets, 8.8 kN (1,980 lbf) each
Performance:
Maximum speed: 820 km/h (510 mph)
Range: 1,200 km (652 mi)
2,100 km (1,300 mi) with extra internal fuel cells
Service ceiling: 10,850 m (35,538 ft)
Rate of climb: 1,000 m/min (At max weight of 7,130 kg) (3,275 ft/min)
Armament:
Provisions for 4× 30 mm MK 108 cannon in the nose, but rarely mounted
The kit and its assembly:
Another entry for the “Flying Boat, Seaplane and Amphibian” Group Build at whatifmodelers.com in late 2017, and the result of a spontaneous inspiration from a drawing of a Luft’46/fantasy creation of a Me 262 fuselage with a planning bottom, a parasol(!) wing and a single jet engine exhausting right above the cockpit, and no (visible) stabilizing floats at all. Rather spurious.
Well, nevertheless, the Me 262 jet fighter has a very shark-like profile and shape, and it has already been converted into flying boats or even submarines by modelers, and I decided to create my personal interpretation of the theme. I remembered a lone He 115 float in my stash (maybe 35 years old or even more!), and when I held to a Me 262 fuselage the parts had almost the same length and width. So, creating a flying boat jet fighter seemed like a realistic task.
Things started straightforward with an 1:72 Smer Me 262 fighter, which is actually the vintage Heller two-seater night fighter with a new fuselage and canopy. My kit of choice would have been the Matchbox kit, but the Heller kit is also O.K., due to its simplicity and simple construction.
Creating something amphibian from a Me 262 is not a trivial task, though. With its low wings and underslung engine nacelles there’s a lot to be changed until you get a plausible floatplane. Another challenge is to integrate some form of stabilizer/outrigger floats, what also influences the wings’ position. Placing the engines where they are safe from spray ingestion is also a serious matter – you have to get the high and the intakes as far forward as possible.
Doing some legwork I found some similar builds, and they all did not convince me. And, after all, I wanted to create my own “design”; in order to incorporate some realism I eventually settled on Dornier’s typical WWII designs like the Do 18 and Do 24. These elegant aircraft had a common, elegant trait: low stub wings as stabilizer floats, paired with high wings (in the case of the Do 18 held by a massive central pylon) which carried the engine out of the water’s reach. This appeared like a feasible layout for my conversion, even though it would mean a total re-construction of the kit, or rather assembling it in a way that almost no part was glued into the intended place!
Work started with the cockpit, which had to be moved forward in order to make room for the wings behind the canopy, placed high on a pylon above the fuselage. For this stunt, the cockpit opening and the place in front of it (where the original front fuselage tank would be) were cut out and switched. The cockpit tub was moved forward and trimmed in order to fit into the new place. The nose section was filled with lead, because the stub wings/floats would allow a retractable landing gear to be added, too, making the aircraft a true amphibian!
The He 115 float was cut down in order to fit under the OOB Me 262 fuselage, and a front wheel well was integrated for a tricycle landing gear. Once the fuselage was closed, the planning bottom was added and the flanks sculpted with putty – lots of it.
In the meantime the Me 262 wing received a thorough re-arrangement, too. Not only were the engine nacelles moved to the upper wing surface (cutting the respective wing and intake sections of the nacelles off/out and turning them around 180°), the original connecting ventral wing part with the landing gear wells were turned upside down, too, the landing gear covers closed (with the respective OOB parts) and the inner wing sections modified into a gull wing, raising the engines even further. VERY complex task, and blending/re-shaping everything took a lot of PSR, too.
Under the central wing section I added a pylon left over from a Smer Curtiss SC Seahawk kit, because a massive Do 18-esque construction was out of question for a fast jet aircraft. The gaps were filled with putty, too.
In order to keep the stabilizers free from water spray they were moved upwards on the fin, too. The original attachment points were sanded away and hidden under putty, and the OOB stabilizers placed almost at the top at the fin.
Finding suitable stub wings/floats became a challenge: they have to be relatively thick (yielding buoyancy and also offering room for the retractable landing gear), but also short with not-so-rounded tips. It took a while until I found suitable donor parts in the form of the tips of an 1:32 AH-64 Apache (!) stabilizer! They were simply cut off, and openings for the main landing gear cut into their lower sides.
Once glued to the lower flanks and the stabilizers in place it was time to place the wing. In the meantime the moved cockpit had been blended to the fuselage, and initial tests indicated that the pylon would have to be placed right behind the canopy – actually on top of the end of the clear part. As a consequence the canopy was cut into pieces and its rear section integrated into the fuselage (more PSR).
However, the relatively thin and slender central pylon from the Curtiss SC indicated that some more struts would be necessary in order to ensure stability – very retro, and not really suited for a jet-powered aircraft. And the more I looked at the layout, the more I became convinced that the wings and engines were in a plausible position, but placed too high.
What started next were several sessions in which I shortened the pylon step by step, until I was satisfied with the overall proportions. This went so far that almost everything of the pylon had gone, and the wings almost rested directly on the Me 262’s spine!
However, this new layout offered the benefit of rendering the extra struts obsolete, since I decided to fill the small gap between wing and fuselage into a single, massive fairing. This would also mean more internal space, and consequently the original idea of a jet-powered combat aircraft was modified into a fast multi-purpose amphibian vehicle for special tasks, capable of transporting personnel behind enemy lines with a quick move.
More PSR, though, and after some finishing touches like a scratched landing gear (front leg/wheel from an Italeri Bae Hawk, main struts from a Mistercraft PZL Iskra trainer, wheels from an Academy OV-10 Bronco and with improvised covers), several antennae and mooring lugs made from wire, the aircraft was ready for painting. On the downside, though, almost any surface detail had been lost due to the massive, overall body sculpting – but the application of the light zigzag pattern helped to recreate some “illusionary” details like flaps or panel lines. ;-)
Painting and markings:
Originally, when the Seeschwalbe was still conceived as a fighter, the model was to receive a daylight scheme in typical German naval aircraft colors (RLM 72/73/65). But this plan changed when the aircraft’s role became a ‘special purpose’ transporter for covert operations.
Nocturnal operations appeared plausible, so that the scheme became much more murky: from above, a splinter scheme with RLM 73 and RLM 74 (naval dark green and dark, greenish grey, both from the ModelMaster Authentic enamel paint range) was applied as a basis, and the undersides became black – as if standard daylight colors had been overpainted, a frequent practice.
Since this black paint was made from soot, it easily wore away and many Luftwaffe machines with improvised black undersides quickly gained a rather shaggy look. I wanted to re-create this look, and built up the lower paint accordingly: In an initial step, RLM76 (I used Humbrol 87, which is a tad darker than the RLM tone, for less contrast with the black) was painted on the lower wing surfaces, the fuselage with a medium waterline and the fin. Once dry, the national marking decals were added. Then a coat of thinned Revell Acrylics 6 Tar Black was applied on top of the lower surfaces, including the lower decals, and later wet-sanded in order to reveal some of the grey underneath for a worn look.
In order to break up the aircraft’s outlines, esp. at low altitude, a disruptive meander pattern in light grey (RLM 76) was painted on top of the upper surfaces. For this task, I thinned Humbrol’s 247 enamel and used a simple brush, painting the curls free-handedly. The finish looks pretty convincing, and it mimics well the technique with which those improvised patterns were applied in the field in real life: quickly, with anything at hand. The way the finish turned out, the pattern could have been applied with a broad brush – the use of a spray gun was rather uncommon, and IMHO the use of an airbrush on a model to recreate such a zigzag pattern rarely leads to convincing results?
This pattern was painted tightly around all the upper markings, and the markings themselves were kept at a minimum. For instance, the tactical code only comprises the aircraft’s individual letter “Blue O” behind the fuselage cross, which indicates an air staff machine. This would, following the official German squadron code system, be confirmed by an “A”, following as a fourth digit. The squadron’s code (“P7”, which is fictional, just like the aircraft’s sea reconnaissance squadron itself) was omitted, too. Such minimal markings became a frequent practice towards the final war stages, though, and it fits the aircraft’s special duty role well. The only individual marking is a squadron badge under the cockpit – lent from an Italian night fighter and placed on a dark blue disc. Another, subtle indicator for the aircraft’s operator are the blue air intake center bodies, repeating the staff flight’s blue color code.
Only some light weathering was done, with dry-brushed light grey on the leading edges, and finally the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish (Italeri). In a final step, some very light dry-brushing with aluminum was done on some of the fuselage edges, esp. the spray dams, and the position lights were painted with translucent paint over a silver base.
A messy project, in many ways, but I am happy with result. Most stunning is IMHO the fact that all major parts for this compact flying boat actually come from a single, simple Me 262 kit – but visually there’s not much of the left from the jet fighter. But it’s also amazing that the proportions look right, and the whole thing quite plausible and Dornier-esque! Turned out better than expected.
Jansson je Temptation recept
Scale 1 kg brambor a nakrájejte na proužky. Nakrájíme na kostičky 3 cibule a 8-10 sleď filé pokutu. Vrstva brambory, cibule a sleď v zapékací misky s zalijeme 3 di krém, pečeme 45 minut při 225 Herring obsahují zdravé tuky, tzv. Nenasycené mastné kyseliny (omega 3). Tyto tuky mohou snížit riziko kardiovaskulárních onemocnění.
Jansson's Temptation recipe
Scale 1 kg potatoes and cut into sticks. Dice the 3 onions and 8-10 herring fillets fine. Layer the potatoes, onions and herring in an ovenproof dish Pour over 3 di cream, bake 45 minutes at 225 Herring contain healthy fat, so called. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega 3). These fats may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Pokusa Janssona - przepis
Skala 1 kg ziemniaków i pokroić w kije. 3 cebule kroimy w kostkę i 8-10 Filety śledziowe grzywny. Warstwa ziemniaki, cebulę i śledzie w żaroodpornym naczyniu zalać 3 di krem, piec 45 minut w 225 Herring kontener zdrowych dań, tzw. Wielonienasycone kwasy tłuszczowe (omega 3). Te tłuszcze może zmniejszyć ryzyko choroby sercowo-naczyniowego.
The Indispensables
Gadgets and gizmos for those on the go.
Plus a few extra hands to help tie the bows.
Bloomingdale's 2009 Holiday window display.
Bloomingdale's, a chain of upscale American department stores owned by Macy's, Inc., has 36 stores nationwide, with annual sales of $1.9 billion dollars. Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side. In 1872, Bloomingdale's expanded and opened their East Side Bazaar, a harbinger of the modern "department store."
In 1886, it moved to 59th Street and Lexington Avenue, still their flagship store, anticipating and capitalizing on the northern movement of New York's upper and middle classes. By 1929, Bloomingdale's covered an entire city block. Two years later, the glamorous Art Deco edifice that still graces Lexington Avenue was completed. In 1949, Bloomingdale's began its real expansion, opening its first satellite store in Fresh Meadows, Queens and by 1959, Bloomingdale's had created a complete circle of stores around the flagship, in New Jersey, Westchester County and Long Island. This dramatic growth continued in the 70's and 80's with the opening of stores in the Northeast, Florida, and Chicago. Bloomingdale's was on its way to becoming a true national entity. That vision culminated in November 1996 with the addition of its first four stores in California, the most ambitious expansion in the company's history.
From the beginning, the Bloomingdale's brothers catered to America's love of international goods, and by the 1880's, their European selection was dazzling. A buying office in Paris in 1886 was the beginning of a network that now spans the globe. The 1960's brought promotions resulting from Bloomingdale's fascination with the foreign market: the first was a small affair called "Casa Bella" featuring merchandise for the home from Italy. Over the next thirty years, the promotions took on a grand scale - including unique merchandise and cultural exhibits that would touch every department in Bloomingdale's. Major transformation of the Bloomingdale's image came in the 1960's and 70's. The promotions were so exciting that the term "Retailing as Theater" was coined to describe Bloomingdale's "happenings." It was the era of pet rocks and glacial ice cubes, of visits by movie stars and royalty, from Elizabeth Taylor to Queen Elizabeth II.
The new direction in merchandising was both to seek and to create. Buyers covered the globe to find exclusive, one-of-a-kind items. When they couldn't find what they wanted, they had it made. In fashion, Bloomingdale's launched new designers and created boutiques for already-famous names. Among the discoveries: Ralph Lauren, Perry Ellis and Norma Kamali - and for the first time in America: Sonia Rykiel, Kenzo and Fendi ready-to-wear. Designers opening their first in-store boutiques at Bloomingdale's include Yves St. Laurent, Calvin Klein, Claude Montana and Thierry Mugler.
In 1961, Bloomingdale's made retail history in yet another area by introducing the first designer shopping bag. Artist Joseph Kinigstein was commissioned to create a bag for the "Esprit de France" promotion. Rather than doing the obvious - ladylike flowers in pastel colors - he reproduced antique French tarot cards in bold red, black and white. Most daring of all, the bag omitted the store name. Even so, it was unmistakably Bloomingdale's, and the collector's shopping bag was launched. Since then, Bloomingdale's bags have been created by both famous and fledgling artists, architects and ad designers. Their designs have been featured in art museums all over the world.
In 1971 "model rooms", a highlight of Bloomingdale's since 1947, gained worldwide attention. "The Cave," an intricate multi-level frame sprayed entirely in white polyurethane, was a spectacular example of the lengths to which Bloomingdale's would go to make a statement of style. Over the years, the model rooms have been showcases for the talents of everyone from architect Frank Gehry to filmmaker Federico Fellini.
During the 1970's, Bloomingdale's was a favorite stop of the international avant-garde, epitomized locally by the "Young East Sider" who lived right in the neighborhood. In 1973 the store wanted to stamp the Bloomingdale's name on panties to launch an intimate apparel promotion, they chose the company nickname as a nod to the young, trendy crowd, and the "Bloomie's" logo was born. Soon, New Yorkers were affectionately referring to the city's second most popular tourist attraction after the Statue of Liberty as "Bloomie's" and the hottest souvenir in town was anything emblazoned with "Bloomie's".
If you are in the area around St John's, Newfoundland, you quickly learn that you have to visit a Chess's Fish 'n Chips for, what else, fish and chips, at least once. It is an institution. I was told here in Ontario I absolutely had to do that. So we did. For lunch. While there I noticed a couple at a far table deeply involved in each other. Either that, or they were debating what to have for lunch. I grabbed a quick shot (always have a camera ready). As for our lunch, it was pretty good. The trouble is, in Newfoundland in general, and St John's in particular, there is a lot of very good fish and chips. So my verdict on Chess's: good but not the best I had there, although all were better than the best I had here in Ontario. - JW
Tech Details:
Taken using a hand-held Nikon D7100 fitted with a Nikkor 18-105mm VR lense set to 105mm, ISO800, full auto mode (no flash), f/5.6, 1/60 sec. PP in free Open Source GIMP: slight adjustment to the tone curve to improve overall tonal appearance by modifying the curve to resemble a slight classical 'S' curve, boost contrast very slightly, dodge the whites of the eyes to help them stand out a bit more, sharpen, add fine black and white frame, add bar and text on left, scale to 1800 wide for posting.
Date Taken: 2013-08-15
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D7A_6211_nfldstjohnschessfishchipsadjbarsigx1800
Canon EOS 6D - f/14 - 10sec - 100 mm - ISO 200
I did build a scale model of the 'Red and Blue chair' from Gerrit Rietveld (see picture in the first comment).
The assembly instructions in the kit were very clear and easy. But what would have been the result if this kit was sold with one of the infamous IKEA instructions ... ? ;)
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The Red and Blue Chair is a chair designed in 1917 by Gerrit Rietveld. It represents one of the first explorations by the De Stijl art movement in three dimensions.
The original chair was constructed of unstained beech wood and was not painted until the early 1920s. Fellow member of De Stijl and architect, Bart van der Leck, saw his original model and suggested that he add bright colours. He built the new model of thinner wood and painted it entirely black with areas of primary colors attributed to De Stijl movement. The effect of this color scheme made the chair seem to almost disappear against the black walls and floor of the Schröder house where it was later placed.
The areas of color appeared to float, giving it an almost transparent structure.
In the Red Blue Chair, Rietveld manipulated rectilinear volumes and examined the interaction of vertical and horizontal planes, much as he did in his architecture. Although the chair was originally designed in 1918, its color scheme of primary colors (red, yellow, blue) plus black—so closely associated with the de Stijl group and its most famous theorist and practitioner Piet Mondrian—was applied to it around 1923. Hoping that much of his furniture would eventually be mass-produced rather than handcrafted, Rietveld aimed for simplicity in construction. The pieces of wood that comprise the Red Blue Chair are in the standard lumber sizes readily available at the time.
Rietveld believed there was a greater goal for the furniture designer than just physical comfort: the well-being and comfort of the spirit. Rietveld and his colleagues in the de Stijl art and architecture movement sought to create a utopia based on a harmonic human-made order, which they believed could renew Europe after the devastating turmoil of World War I. New forms, in their view, were essential to this rebuilding.
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), which houses the chair in its permanent collection, a gift from Philip Johnson, states that the red, blue,and yellow colors were added around 1923. The chair also resides at the High Museum of Art, Atlanta.
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De Rood-blauwe stoel, ook Rietveldstoel genoemd, werd omstreeks 1918-1923 ontworpen door meubelmaker en architect Gerrit Rietveld. Vandaag de dag geldt de stoel, naast het Rietveld Schröderhuis, de asymmetrische composities van Mondriaan uit de jaren 20 en Café De Unie, als een schoolvoorbeeld van kunstbeweging De Stijl.
Rietveld reduceerde in dit ontwerp de traditionele armstoel tot 13 beukenhouten latten met een vierkant profiel, twee beukenhouten latten met een rechthoekig profiel en twee rechthoekige, triplex panelen. Voor de latten kan, op aanwijzing van Rietveld zelf, echter ook een andere niet-splijtbare houtsoort gebruikt worden. De latten worden, volgens een ongedateerde werktekening van zijn hand, met 16 ronde, beuken pennen op elk raakvlak aan elkaar bevestigd, en ‘de rug en zitting worden op de latten gespijkerd’.
Hierdoor was de stoel eenvoudig met behulp van bijvoorbeeld een zaagmachine te produceren. Rietveld hoopte dat machinale productie enerzijds het werk van de arbeider zou verlichten en anderzijds kwalitatief goede producten (zoals zijn stoel) bereikbaar zouden maken voor een groter publiek.
Over de datering van het eerste prototype van de stoel bestaat onder kunsthistorici onenigheid. Sommigen plaatsen hem in 1917, anderen volgen de aanwijzing van oud-Rietveld-medewerker Gerard van de Groenekan, die er stellig van overtuigd was dat hij in de zomer van 1918 is ontstaan. Uit onderzoek van de kunsthistorica en Rietveld-specialist Marijke Kuper kunnen we echter afleiden dat de stoel voor het eerst in 1919 is gemaakt.
Het prototype is nog niet uitgevoerd in de kenmerkende kleuren rood en blauw, maar is onbeschilderd en van een donkere kleur hout. Bovendien heeft het onder de armsteunen triplex zijpanelen.
Later maakte Rietveld een andere versie, zonder deze zijpanelen, om de stoel zowel visueel als fysiek lichter te maken. Zodoende had Rietveld de constructie van armstoel tot een minimum ‘gedeconstrueerd’ en waren alle onderdelen waaruit hij bestaat zichtbaar gemaakt. Ook deze stoel is onbeschilderd en donker. Hij is 87 cm hoog, 60 cm breed en 60 cm diep.
Het eerste (onbeschilderde) exemplaar van 1921 werd besteld door P.J. Schelling. In 1922 bestelde Dr. A.M. Hartog een exemplaar voor zijn, ook door Rietveld ontworpen, behandelkamer in Maarssen. Het exemplaar dat de Haagse avant-garde dichteres Til Brugman in 1923 bestelde voor haar, door Vilmos Huszár geschilderde muziekkamer, is geheel wit gebeitst. Dit exemplaar werd in mei 2007 bij Christie's in Amsterdam geveild voor € 264 000. Daarnaast zijn er nog bekend: een roze stoel, een zeegroene stoel (besteld door Charley Toorop) en een zwarte stoel met witte kopse kanten (besteld door Paul Citroen).
De kleuren rood, blauw, geel en zwart werden omstreeks 1923, kort voordat Rietveld het Rietveld-Schröderhuis ontwierp, onder invloed van werk van Piet Mondriaan, Vilmos Huszár en Theo van Doesburg, aan de stoel toegevoegd. In een ongedateerde werktekening van Rietveld, waarschijnlijk uit de jaren '30, die bewaard wordt in het Centraal Museum in Utrecht, geeft hij de definitieve afmetingen en kleuren van de stoel.
Op een door Rietveld zelf geschetste prijslijst uit omstreeks 1923 staan twee schematische tekeningen van de stoel in rood, blauw en zwart. Volgens deze lijst bestond er een 'goedkoope uitvoering' van 15 gulden en een 'fyner uitvoering' van 22 gulden 50. De goedkopere uitvoering werd geproduceerd door de firma C. van 't Hullenaar in Utrecht; de duurdere door Rietveld en zijn assistent Gerard van de Groenekan zelf en was te koop bij kunsthandel Gerbrands, eveneens in Utrecht. Deze handgemaakte exemplaren verschillen door de jaren aanzienlijk van afmeting.
Ondanks de strakke vorm zit de stoel zelfs zonder kussens comfortabel. Toch waren veel mensen van mening dat de stoel niet lekker zou zitten. Daarop antwoordde Rietveld: ‘Zitten is een werkwoord.’
Rietveld over zijn Rood-blauwe stoel: 'Het kwam nooit bij me op dat dit object zo belangrijk zou worden dat het zelfs de architectuur zou beïnvloeden.'
In 1971 verkochten de erfgenamen Rietveld de rechten van de stoel aan de Italiaanse firma Cassina, die in 1972 de productie van de stoel hernam. Door de machinale productie hebben de stoelen afkomstig uit deze firma allen dezelfde afmetingen.
De stoel is nu hét icoon van De Stijl, hoewel Rietveld hem ontwierp toen hij nog geen lid van deze kunstbeweging was.
To we Brits, the Avro Vulcan, much like Concorde, represents a myriad of feelings both of praise and disdain. An engineering marvel from the 1950's, and a symbol of global annihilation, the Vulcan is one of those aircraft with a love/hate relationship, but today among crowds resounds true British innovation and technological might in a time of darkness.
It hadn't been 10 years since the end of World War II when such an aircraft had been conceived, and the world had been plunged into yet another war, only this one much more sinister and much greater in scale. The Cold War of 1947 was not a battle of tanks and men, but of words and spies, and the new threat of global destruction through nuclear strikes and bombings. The true destructive power of the Atom Bomb had been demonstrated by the United States on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing hundreds of thousands of people and causing widespread devastation. Very soon the nuclear bomb had become the ultimate accessory of warfare, and although the B-29's that delivered the original deadly payload against Japan were capable aircraft, the advent of larger bombs and the coming of the jet age meant that a new breed of aircraft had to be constructed to deliver these instruments of Armageddon. As such, the capitalist powers of NATO and the Soviet led powers of the Warsaw Pact devised a slew of jet powered monstrosities to carry out this world-ending task. The United States developed the B-47 Stratojet and B-52 Stratofortress, the Soviet Union built the Tupolev Tu-16 Badger and Tu-95 Bear, whilst we here in Britain created a trio of V-Bombers, the Handley Page Victor, the Vickers Valiant, and the crown prince of destruction, the Avro Vulcan.
Planning of the aircraft itself goes back to 1946 with the proposal of the British Atomic Weapon Programme and Nuclear Deterrent policies, which not only gave the go-ahead to the development of better nuclear weapons, but also aircraft on which to carry them. As such, in January 1947, the Ministry of Supply distributed Specification B.35/46 to UK aviation companies to satisfy Air Staff Operational Requirement OR.229 for "a medium range bomber landplane capable of carrying one 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) bomb to a target 1,500 nautical miles (1,700 mi; 2,800 km) from a base which may be anywhere in the world." The aircraft would have to have a cruising speed upward of 500 knots and a cruising altitude of between 35,000 and 50,000ft. Whilst Handley Page and Vickers set off to create their own designs, Avro technical director Roy Chadwick and chief designer Stuard Davies led the project under designation Avro 698.
The desire was to create an aircraft that could fill the specified payload capabilities, but at the same time be faster than other contemporary bombers. Investigations into German swept-wing aircraft such as the prototype Horten Ho 229 helped design what would later be known as the Delta Wing, intended to bring the aircraft as close as possible to that mysterious entity known as the Sound Barrier. Whilst other bombers such as the B-52 and Badger were comparatively slow and lumbering, requiring fighter escorts to carry out their mission, the future Vulcan's design was to make the aircraft as fast as possible so as to outrun contemporary interceptors of the era. Prototypes began with 1949's Avro 707, a proof-of-concept aircraft to show that the Delta Wing concept worked in practice, of which 5 examples were built. These craft were essentially ⅓-scale versions of what was designated under Avro as the 698.
Upon successful testing of the 707, the 698 went into prototypical production, and a contract was made with Rolls Royce and Bristol to design engines, which came in the form of the Bristol BE.10 Olympus, later to be known as the Rolls Royce Olympus. Designed back in 1947, the Olympus was originally designed for Bristol's own version of the Vulcan, but after the contract was handed to Avro, the production continued. Several engines were considered, starting with the Rolls Royce Avon engine, and later the Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire ASSa.6, both being tested on prototype Vulcan VX770, which would later become a testbed aircraft for the Rolls Royce Conway engines fitted to later Vickers VC10 Jet Airliners. Olympus engines however were preferred for the much greater amounts of thrust, with early examples providing 10,000lbf, although this would later rise to 20,000lbf on the production Vulcans. Four of these engines were fitted to the aircraft, giving an overall thrust of 80,000lbf, pushing the aircraft to just short of the Sound Barrier at Mach 0.96, or 645mph.
In terms of armament, the Vulcan was not intended to be able to defend itself in air-to-air combat, using its aforementioned speed to evade pursuers and anti-aircraft fire. As such, the aircraft's main weaponry was its payload, which could include 21 x 1,000lb conventional air-raid bombs, or one of any of the contemporary nuclear gravity bombs, including the pioneer British nuclear weapon, the Blue Danube bomb, and the later Red Beard and Yellow Sun designs.
With all developments completed, the aircraft was christened the name Vulcan, the ancient Roman God of Fire, by far the most terrifying name you could put on a nuclear bomber. Don't get me wrong, B-52 and B-47 sound very military and technical, and NATO codewords for Soviet aircraft such as Badger and Bear sound quite fearsome, but Vulcan and its connotations to the God of Fire truly does make this aircraft sound like the bringer of an inferno! The first prototype made its first flight on August 30th, 1952, fitted with the original Rolls Royce Avon engines, this being followed by a selection of other test flights throughout 1953 using differing engines and additional improvements such as extra fuel tanks in the wing. Two prototypes, VX770 and VX777 were tested between 1952 and 1956, being outshopped in RAF gloss white paint. The first production Vulcan left the ground in February 1955, whilst the second production model dazzled crowds at the 1955 Farnborough Airshow with a spectacular barrel roll, for which the pilot, Roland Falk, was disciplined by the Civil Aviation Authority for performing such a move!
Proposals were made to sell these aircraft abroad, but no offers sadly materialised, many Commonwealth countries, such as Australia, choosing instead to buy the later F-111C Starfighters of the USA. September 1956 saw the first Avro Vulcan officially handed over to the RAF, this aircraft being Vulcan B.1 XA897. As part of a goodwill tour, the aircraft flew around the world to the colonies of the British Empire, but ended in tragedy when the aircraft crash landed in bad weather at London Heathrow at the end of the tour on October 1st, 1956. 230 Squadron, Operational Conversion Unit, were the first to receive the Vulcan, later deployed with 83 Squadron in May 1957. In all, 134 of these aircraft were built in two variants, the original B.1, and the latterly improved B.2, which debuted in 1954 with improved electronic countermeasures and the much more powerful Rolls Royce Olympus engines. Proposals were made for a myriad of other variations, including a Missile Carrier and a Delta Winged Jet Airliner. None of these ever went to the prototype stage, although much of the design behind the Vulcan was used to develop the world's first and only supersonic passenger airline, the Bae/Aerospatiale Concorde, in yet another situation where innovations in the world of Military Supremacy have resulted in Civilian Progress.
The Vulcan however never did truly find itself in the combat situation it was designed to confront. As the 1960's and 70's wore on the aircraft's role in the possible future nuclear war never happened, and the aircraft spent much of its time simply doing exercises and strategic reconnaissance patrols over Soviet territory. Before the 1960's had finished the original and fearsome V-Bomber force had largely been disbanded from its nuclear role, with the Valiant being retired in 1965 due to prominent fatigue and inter-crystalline corrosion, and the Victor being converted into aerial refuelling tankers in 1969.
The only time the Vulcan was ever used in anger against an enemy was in the 1982 Falklands War in the audacious operation known as Black Buck. After the Argentine invasion of the British owned Falklands, a task force was sent to reclaim them, and the plan of Operation Black Buck was to disable the airport at Port Stanley to stop the Argentinian forces from using it as a base for fighter jets. The operation involved a Vulcan flying to the Ascension Islands, then onwards to the Falklands in a non-stop, 6,800 nautical mile air raid. Using squadrons of strategically placed Victor Tankers, the first raid, led by Vulcan XM607, would have 11 Victor tankers refuel one another before the furthest Victor would refuel the Vulcan over the mid-Atlantic. The Vulcan then proceeded to Port Stanley on the Falkland Islands, unleashing its payload of twenty-one 1000lb bombs on the airport before escaping north to a planned rendezvous with a Victor some way off the coast of Rio de Janeiro. Although the damage to the runway was not enough to stop use of the airport, it did show the true capabilities of these mighty aircraft, and took the enemy completely by surprise.
This however was not enough to keep the Vulcans alive, and as the 80's dragged on it was clear this tired design mixed with new aircraft and the advent of satellite guided inter-continental ballistic missiles such as Trident had spelled the end for conventional air raids such as those the Vulcan was meant to carry out. After nearly 30 years of devoted service, the Vulcan's were retired in March 1984. Happily though, 18 aircraft have been preserved across the world, of which one example, XH558, remained airworthy for airshows until October 2015 when it was finally retired for good, bringing an end to this magnificent aircraft's time in the air.
With the passing of the Vulcan into history though, we can reflect however on its life and times, the fact that such aircraft, instruments of war and destruction, have become such symbols of joy and British engineering. Built during a time when we all thought we'd wake up and be atomized, today the fear of nuclear destruction has passed, the Cold War has passed, and now we can see the Vulcan for what it really is, a marvel of 1950's British engineering, conceived in a time when trains still ran on coal and hot water!
Teyler's Museum, Haarlem
Teyler's Museum (Teylers Museum in Dutch), located in Haarlem, is the oldest museum in the Netherlands. The museum is in the former home of Pieter Teyler van der Hulst (1702–1778). He was a wealthy cloth merchant and Amsterdam banker of Scottish descent, who bequeathed his fortune for the advancement of religion, art and science. He was a Mennonite and follower of the Scottish Enlightenment. Nearby the museum is the Teylers Hofje, a hofje which was also founded in Teyler's name.
The Teyler legacy to the city of Haarlem was split into three societies, one for religion, one for science, and one for the arts, known as the first, second, and third societies. The caretakers had to meet in Teyler's home weekly, and each society had five caretakers, so all of the gentlemen involved lived in Haarlem. Until his death, Teyler held weekly meetings in his home for the Mennonite community and the men's drawing school Haarlemse Teekenacademie. The drawing school moved after his death to a new location, to make room for the second society, called Teylers Physische en Naturalien Kabinetten en Bibliotheek (Natural Sciences Library), under the direction of Martin van Marum.
Teyler's Museum displays an eclectic collection of fossils (among which the first ever discovered, if not recognised, of Archaeopteryx), minerals, scientific instruments, medals, coins, and paintings. It is most famous for its extensive collection of old master's prints and drawings, including several works by Michelangelo and Rembrandt. The various objects reflect the interests of 18th century wealthy men like Pieter Teyler who kept 'rariteiten kabinetten' or curiosity cabinets. The main building is built partially in and behind Teyler's former home, on his garden or 'hortus'. Behind the house, the Oval Room was built in 1784 by the architect Leendert Viervant (1752–1801). The same architect drew the plans for the hofje. The current main entrance on the Spaarne was not added until 1878 and was designed by the Viennese architect Christian Ulrich who won the design contest for a new annex, including the entrance hall and auditorium.[1]
The Oval Room (1784) was designed specifically as an art gallery for public access and is a fine example of Neo-classical architecture in the Netherlands. The portrait of Teyler himself still hangs in this room. A showcase in the centre displays a mineralogical collection from the 18th century and the showcases around hold 18th-century scientific instruments. The upper gallery which was designed to let in the maximum amount of light for viewing purposes, has twelve built-in bookcases, largely containing period encyclopaedias. It is now closed to the public. Various parts of the library and print collection are now shown in rotation in a specially prepared room for prints built behind the Oval Room. The history of the Teyler's collection is almost as interesting as the collection itself. As curiosity cabinets fell out of fashion, the museum was granted objects from former summer estates in the Haarlem area. For example, many of the fossils come from a collection of one of the former owners of Groenendaal. Many of the medals and coins come from the former Joh. Enschedé mint, which was originally situated next to the museum.
In the 19th century, the museum was expanded with two painting galleries. The Painting Galleries show a collection of works from the Dutch Romantic School and the later Hague and Amsterdam Schools, including major works by Barend Cornelis Koekkoek, Andreas Schelfhout, Cornelis Springer, Hendrik Willem Mesdag, Jan Willem Pieneman, Anton Mauve, Jacob Maris, Johan Hendrik Weissenbruch, George Hendrik Breitner, Jozef Israels, and Isaac Israëls. A large-scale extension, designed by Hubert Jan Henket and opened in 1996, accommodates temporary exhibitions. Teyler's Museum holds a collection of more than 10,000 master drawings and some 25,000 prints.
The original mission of the second society included research as well as education. After the death of van Marum, Teyler's continued to attract scientists of high standing as caretakers. The theoretical physicist Hendrik Lorentz was appointed director of research at Teyler's in 1910, a position he held until his death in 1928. At the time of his appointment Lorentz was at the height of his scientific career and was a central figure in the international community of physicists. Under his leadership, the Teyler's Museum conducted scientific research in such diverse fields as optics, electromagnetism, radio waves and atom physics. Lorentz was succeeded by the physicist and musician Adriaan Fokker.
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If you would like to license this image for any purpose, please visit my site and contact me with any questions you may have. Please visit Susan Candelario artists website to purchase Prints Thank You.
Resistance Rey is fully deboxed. She is posed free standing, with Luke's lightsaber in her bag, her blaster pistol in its holster, and her staff slung over her shoulder.
I received the latest Hot Toys Rey action figure on December 22, 2016. I had pre-ordered her from BBTS, and she is currently still available from that site. She is the sixth scale action figure (11'' high) wearing the end of movie Resistance Outfit, that she wears when meeting Luke Skywalker. I show her in the box and fully deboxed.
Star Wars Episode VII Movie Masterpiece 1/6 Scale Figure - Rey Resistance Outfit
By Hot Toys
Big Bad Toy Store
IN STOCK
Our Price: $219.99
General Safety Warning: Products sold by BBTS may be intended for Adult Collectors. Products may contain sharp points, small parts, choking hazards, and other elements not suitable for children under 16 years old.
In Star Wars: The Force Awakens, fans were introduced to our new heroine Rey and her incredible journey in assisting the Resistance to stop the First Order’s menacing plan and find the legendary Luke Skywalker.
In honor of the 2016 Star Wars Celebration, Sideshow and Hot Toys are delighted to celebrate this special occasion and are excited to introduce a new exclusive sixth scale collectible figure of the beloved Rey in her new Resistance outfit as seen in the epic moment of the film where we meet Luke Skywalker once again.
The highly-accurate collectible figure is specially crafted based on the image of Daisy Ridley as Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens featuring the highly detailed head sculpt, meticulously tailored outfit as seen in the final scenes of the film, Rey’s signature staff, a blaster pistol, Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber hilt, and a hexagonal figure stand with the Resistance’s emblem.
Star Wars fans, don’t miss the chance add this amazing heroine to your collection today!
The Rey (Resistance Outfit) Sixth Scale Collectible Figure specially features:
- An authentic and detailed likeness of Daisy Ridley as Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Head sculpt with highly-accurate facial expression and make-up
- Body with over 28 points of articulations
- Approximately 11" (28 cm) tall
Eight (8) pieces of interchangeable hands including:
- One (1) pair of fists
- One (1) pair of relaxed hands
- One (1) pair of hands for holding lightsaber hilt/staff
- One (1) right hand for holding blaster
- One (1) gripping left hand
- Each head sculpt is specially hand-painted
Costume:
- One (1) off-white colored top
- One (1) light-brown colored vest
- One (1) pair of beige and grayish colored arm wraps
- One (1) brown-colored belt with blaster holster
- One (1) pair of greenish colored pants
- One (1) pair of grey-colored boots
Weapons:
- One (1) staff with strap
- One (1) blaster pistol
Accessories:
- One (1) lightsaber hilt
- One (1) highly detailed shoulder bag
- Resistance emblem hexagonal figure stand with Rey nameplate and Star Wars logo
Product Number: HOT10684
Shipping Weight: 3.92 pounds
Nr. D-126.
Seat Toledo Mk1 (1991-1998).
Escala 1/43
AHC Doorkey, Epe, Holland.
Made in Spain by Pilen / Artec.
Años 90.
Printed description on the baseplate:
"DOORKEY EPE HOLLAND
MADE FOR SEAT LTD EDITION NR.D -126."
More info:
pilen.jimdo.com/asociaci%C3%B3n-con-otras-marcas-i/
miniaturasconry43.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/seat-toledo-y-s...
www.foro.pieldetoro.net/foro/index.php?threads/seat-en-ww...
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AUTO PILEN / ARTEC / AHC DOORKEY
[ Brief history
of Companies Interconnexions ]
"Auto Pilen was a diecast line of model cars made in Ibi, Alicante, in southeastern Spain by Pilen S.A..
Models were produced from the 1970s through the mid-1990s mostly in 1:43 scale.
A majority of the castings were inherited from French Dinky.
The company was started in the 1960s, diecasting items like colorful metal sailboats and key chains.
In the late 1980s. Pilen was apparently bought by AHC of the Netherlands.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto_Pilen
(...)
"Pilen ceased its production in 1983, but only 5 years later, in 1988, the company was reborn with the new name Artec.
In the first catalogues from Artec, there is still place for the Pilen logo, meaning that both companies are really the same one, or at least, that Artec is the successor of Pilen."
(...)
Source: toysfromthepast.blogspot.com.es/2013/06/293-pilen-artec-s...
(...)
"Around 1980 there was a Pilen connection with Holland OTO, which had taken over Dutch Efsi Toys. A 1980 Auto Pilen catalog shows many of the revered Efsi vehicles like the Model T series and many Efsi trucks continued as a line Pilen 1980 (Bras 2012).
Around 1990, there was also a connection with the Dutch diecast company AHC, which appears to have bought Holland Oto and thus Auto Pilen (Bickford 2009).
AHC has since shared dies and traditionally Pilen stamped cars can be found in both AHC and Holland OTO labeled boxes (Bickford 2009; Johnson 1998, p. 15)."
AHC, however, usually produced Volvos, of which Pilen only had a few: the DAF based 66, the 480 Turbo, and the 460 and 850 sedans - most of these appear to have been developed first by AHC models before they were reverse marketed - and then also later sold as Pilens - some of which were made in Spain.
Some of these Volvos also appear to have been sold as promotional models. There were also some Nissans made by AHC/Doorkey packaged as Pilens (Bickford 2009).
With the bankruptcy of Doorkey in the early 1990s, Auto Pilen disappeared. The last new models with the Pilen name appeared at this time. "
(...)
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto_Pilen
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Doorkey
"Doorkey was a Dutch model car manufacturer .
The company was established in Epe .
They sold miniatures in the scale 1:43.
The models are:
- Opel Combo, Opel Manta
- Nissan Maxima, Nissan Serena, Nissan Micra (5 door)
- SEAT Ibiza, SEAT 600, SEAT 850 Spider, SEAT 127, SEAT Toledo
- Volvo 440, Volvo 850
- Toyota Celica, Toyota Land Cruiser
- Suzuki Samurai
- Mercedes-Benz 250C, Mercedes-Benz 100, Mercedes-Benz 500
- Mini Cooper
- Porsche Carrera 6
- VW Buggy
- Indra
- Ford Courier
- BMW 2000, BMW 507
- Lexus SC 400
Buses:
- The Elder Alliance 220 DAF
- The Elder Alliance 230 DAF
- The Oldest Alliance 310 DAF
The models were made by the Spanish Artec.
Johannes van Rijn founded the company AR-GEE Hobby Collection together with his son Richard, under the name of Ar-Gee , especially for retail.
Ar-Gee stands for the initials of son Richard and colleague Gerrit. They distributed the models under the name Doorkey.
Both companies AHC and AR-GEE were sold in 1995. The companies eventually went bankrupt."
Source: nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doorkey
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SEAT Toledo
"El SEAT Toledo es un automóvil del segmento C producido por el fabricante español SEAT desde el año 1991 hasta 2009 y desde 2012 en adelante.
Su nombre le viene dado por la ciudad española de Toledo perteneciente a Castilla-La Mancha.
El Toledo abarca cuatro generaciones, las dos primeras diseñadas por Giorgetto Giugiaro, la tercera por Walter de Silva y la cuarta por Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos.
Todas comparten elementos mecánicos y estructurales con otros modelos del Grupo Volkswagen.
Fue el primer automóvil de SEAT desarrollado completamente bajo la influencia de Volkswagen (que había adquirido un 51% de las acciones de la marca española en 1986) estrenando un nuevo segmento dentro del mercado español: el de los vehículos con apariencia de berlina pero dotados de un portón trasero.
El modelo fue presentado en el Salón del Automóvil de Barcelona de 1991.
En dicho salón también se presentó el libro ¡Olé Toledo!, escrito y firmado en el acto por Edourd Seidler, que siguió de cerca todo el proyecto del modelo.
El rey Juan Carlos I presidió la inauguración oficial del SEAT Toledo en un acto celebrado en el parador nacional de la ciudad de Toledo.
El Toledo es la berlina media de SEAT con motor delantero transversal y tracción delantera."
(...)
Generaciones SEAT Toledo
- El automóvil SEAT Toledo I, segmento C fabricado por SEAT entre 1991-1998.
- El automóvil SEAT Toledo II, segmento C fabricado por SEAT - entre 1998-2005.
- El automóvil SEAT Toledo III, segmento C fabricado por SEAT entre 2004-2009.
- El automóvil SEAT Toledo IV, segmento C fabricado por SEAT entre 2012-presente.
(...)
Fuente: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/SEAT_Toledo
More info:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SEAT_Toledo
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SEAT Toledo I
Primera generación (1991-1998)
"La primera generación del Toledo (1L) se empezó a comercializar en octubre de 1991. La producción del modelo empezó en la antigua fábrica de la Zona Franca de Barcelona hasta que, en 1993, cuando se inaugura la planta de Martorell, el Toledo se empieza a trasladar allí para su fabricación. Fue el primer modelo de SEAT en ser desarrollado en cooperación con el Grupo Volkswagen (denominado Proyecto S3).
En un principio se iba a desarrollar bajo la plataforma del Volkswagen Passat B3, del cual se empezaría a realizar la primera maqueta, pero se descartó por los costes de producción. Al final se desarrolló bajo la plataforma "A2" (PQ32) de la segunda generación del Volkswagen Golf existente, con carrocería hatchback de tres y cinco puertas, y de los modelos (Volkswagen Jetta)..."
(...)
"El Toledo de la primera generación fue diseñado por Giorgetto Giugiaro..."
(...)
"Se deseaba un modelo superior al SEAT Málaga, que había quedado ya algo anticuado con respecto a la competencia, y darle una nueva imagen a la marca con un modelo de aspecto moderno con unas generosas dimensiones el cual seria el buque insignia de SEAT.
Fue posicionado deliberadamente entre los segmentos C (por plataforma) y D (por soluciones técnicas y "empaque"). Algunos de sus rivales eran el Fiat Tempra, en el segmento C, y las versiones básicas del Ford Sierra, el Opel Vectra y el Renault 21, con las que competía con ventaja en equipamiento."
(...)
Motorizaciones
"Desaparecen los motores System Porsche que estaba utilizando SEAT y empiezan a utilizar las mecánicas de Volkswagen, denominadas desde la marca SEAT como "Econosport".
Las motorizaciones fueron:
Gasolina con injetion (Mono-Jetronic)
- Cuatro de gasolina de cuatro cilindros, un 1.6 litros de 75 CV de potencia máxima, un 1.8 litros de 90 CV, un 2.0 litros Digifant de 115 CV(disponible con cambio automático) y un 1.8 litros de 16V de 136 CV y con catalizador 128 CV asociado únicamente al nivel de equipamiento GT. Más tarde se agregó a la gama el 2.0-16v, que desarrollaba 150 CV de potencia máxima como tope de gama (sustituyendo al 1.8i 16v).
- Al final de su vida comercial la gama de motores gasolina se redujo únicamente a un 1.6 litros de 100 CV y un 2.0 16V de 150 CV de potencia máxima.
Diésel
- Las mecánicas diésel eran un 1.9 litros atmosférico de 68 CV (que más tarde se redujeron a 64 para cumplir las normativas anticontaminación) o con turbocompresor y 75 CV.
- La novedad más importante fue la introducción de las mecánicas turbo diésel con inyección directa de combustible, ya existentes en otros modelos del Grupo Volkswagen: el 1.9 TDI de 90 CV y, posteriormente, de 110 CV.
Las motorizaciones incluían ya el starter automático, excepto las primeras motorizaciones diésel, que lo tenían manual hasta el año 1994."
(...)
---------------------------
[ El Seat Toledo I tuvo 2 fases en su evolución, la 1ª Fase presentada en 1991, y una 2ª Fase (restyling) presentada en 1995 ] :
- 1ª Fase [ 1991-1995 ]
"SEAT presentó el automóvil bajo el eslogan "Para un mundo exigente".
En su primera fase contaba con 4 acabados: CL, GL, GLX y GT/GT16v.
Luego llegarían versiones especiales como la Sport/Sport 2000 (1992-1993); alguno de los extras que al principio eran opcionales (OP) más adelante se incluirán de serie."
(...)
"En el Salón de Oporto de 1994 se presenta el acabado 2.0-16v, que sustituye al GT-16v. y un nuevo diseño del el interior para toda la gama, como el salpicadero con detalles en gris Champagne, rediseño de los paneles interiores de las puertas, nuevos asientos con nuevas tapicerías, manetas de los mandos (luces/limpia) y algún que otro pequeño detalle. También se incluye el airbag en opcional para conductor y acompañante para las versiones altas de gama.
En mayo de 1995 sufre unas pequeñas modificaciones que afectan al exterior.
Las calandras pasan a ser del color de la carrocería en todos los acabados. Los faros traseros pasan a ser combinados, los de la marcha atrás blanca de (CL, GL y Sport) con los intermitentes rosados de (GLX, GT y 2.0i-16v). Los faros pierden las inscripciones Toledo y el acabado, siendo sustituidos por unos anagramas cromáticos ubicados en el portón debajo de los faros con las inscripciones SEAT a la izquierda y Toledo a la derecha, se le añaden taloneras a todas las versiones el cual integraran una chapita con el acabado del modelo. Los retrovisores tendrán un brazo algo más curvo y pasarán de ser abatibles a ser plegables además de incluir en el espejo del conductor una línea vertical central para el ángulo de punto muerto."
(...)
- 2ª Fase [ 1995-1998 ]
"En el Salón de Fránkfurt de 1995 se presentó una reestilización del SEAT Toledo que llegaría al mercado en septiembre/octubre ese mismo año, en la que se modificó la gama de motorizaciones y la apariencia.
Se le añadieron unos parachoques más redondeados, nuevos faros y nueva calandra.
En el interior heredaría el último diseño pero con nuevas tapicerías, el inmovilizador y luces de cortesía con temporizador y apagado progresivo, el doble airbag (de conductor y acompañante) y nuevos elementos de seguridad como los pretensores de los cinturones y la tercera luz de freno.
En el equipamiento se incluyeron pequeñas mejoras, como la preinstalación del Tempomat (control de crucero) y el Komfortblinker (poner intermitente con un toque), exclusivamente en los modelos con motorizaciones TDI, esta novedad no era muy conocida pues se trataba de un extra que solo se incluiría su instalación realizada bajo concesionario oficial, aprovechando que el grupo había empezado a incluir esta función en más modelos de la marca, con solo cambiar la maneta izquierda, que era aparentemente la misma con la diferencia de incluir unos pequeños mandos para su manejo y activar la función con el VAG.COM.
La primera generación del SEAT Toledo se dejó de producir a finales de 1998 pero se estuvo vendiendo hasta marzo de 1999, junto con la segunda generación, de finales de 1998."
(...)
--------------------
SEAT Toledo I
[ Fabricante
SEAT (Grupo Volkswagen), España
Factoría ensamblaje
Barcelona, Zona Franca (1991-1993)
Martorell (1993-1998) ]
Período
1991-1998
559.041 unidades
Tipo
Automóvil de turismo
Carrocerías
Liftback cinco puertas
Largo / ancho/ alto / batalla
4320 / 1660 / 1425 / 2470 mm
Maletero
550 litros
Similares
Citroën Xantia
Fiat Tempra
Ford Mondeo
Opel Vectra
Peugeot 405
Renault Laguna
Volkswagen Passat
Diseñador
Giorgetto Giugiaro
Source: es.wikipedia.org/wiki/SEAT_Toledo_I
More info:
www.seatfansclub.com/2011/10/historia-vida-comercial-del-...
Agricultural Land Based Training Association (ALBA) classes use subject-matter experts, instructors, and presenters from organizations such as U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) or in this case a soil conservation instructor from Hartnell College, talking to a class of new, beginning, and existing farmers at a night seminar, in Salinas, Ca., on Nov. 14, 2018.
The Agricultural Land Based Training Association (ALBA) is a training program that helps low income farmworkers and others learn how to become farmers. New farmers begin with a series of classroom courses and on-hands training, and graduate to farming their own piece of land on the farm. Eventually these new graduates hope to become successful farmers.
ALBAâs Farmer Education and Enterprise Development (FEED) Program educates and trains new farmer-entrepreneurs to plan, launch, and establish viable organic farm businesses or advance their careers. To accomplish this, ALBA has 100 acres of organic land, an experienced team with diverse expertise, and a hands-on, 5-year farmer development program. FEED is comprised of three main components:
1.The Farmer Education Course (PEPA) is a one year, bilingual, 300-hour curriculum featuring classroom instruction and field-based training, readying participants to launch an organic farm business.
2.The Organic Farm Incubator allows course graduates to launch their farm on ALBAâs land. Starting at ½ acre, farmers gradually scale up to 5 acres over 4 years under ALBAâs supervision before transitioning to fully independent farming.
3.ALBA Organics, aggregates, markets and ships participantsâ products to growing markets around California. Doing so gives farmers access to clients that would otherwise be out of reach and allows them to focus on growing and business management in their initial years.
For more information about PEPA please see www.albafarmers.org/programs/
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) is the USDAâs focal point for the nationâs farmers and ranchers and other stewards of private agricultural lands and non-industrial private forest lands. FPAC agencies implement programs designed to mitigate the significant risks of farming through crop insurance services, conservation programs and technical assistance, and commodity, lending, and disaster programs. The FPAC team includes, Farm Service Agency (FSA) (www.fsa.usda.gov/), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) (www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/national/home/), and Risk Management Agency (RMA) (www.rma.usda.gov/).
USDA FPAC Farm Service Agency (FSA) is equitably serving all farmers, ranchers, and agricultural partners through the delivery of effective, efficient agricultural programs for all Americans. FSA is a customer-driven agency with a diverse and multi-talented work force, dedicated to achieving an economically and environmentally sound future for American Agriculture. The vision is to be a market-oriented, economically and environmentally sound American agriculture delivering an abundant, safe, and affordable food and fiber supply while sustaining quality agricultural communities.
Here, FSA works with non-profit organizations such as ALBA to provide program information and outreach to beginning farmers, socially disadvantaged farmers and limited income farmers. ALBA works with a unique farmer base of nontraditional, diverse and beginning farmers.
FSA staff has worked with ALBA for many years in the following ways:
1. Provide classroom training to new ALBA students at the ALBA farm during their regular coursework. FSA provides training on:
a. How to apply for a farm loan and prepare a cash flow statement.
b. How to apply for FSA programs that help with risk management on the farm, such as the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) or other regional crop insurance options.
c. How to apply for Disaster Assistance through FSA in case of an adverse weather event or other emergency.
2. FSA has provided micro loans, operating loans and ownership loans to help ALBA farmers become independent and successful in their operations. FSA has provided Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) and Noninsured Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) payments to these farmers.
3. FSA has provided bookkeeping training courses to ALBA students, on farm tours, and has helped students apply for USDA scholarships to attend agricultural conferences and other trainings.
4. FSA has referred ALBA farmers to NRCS for help with resource management issues.
âThese farmers are the future face of American Agriculture. It is so important for FSA to help them get a strong start in ensuring the success of their operations, said FSA County Executive Director Vivian Soffa. Carlos will need support when he graduates from ALBA and hopefully FSA will be able to assist him with his capital needs when he is farming on his own in this very competitive agriculture market. Familiarity with FSAâs programs at the beginning of a new farmerâs endeavor may be the difference between success and failure.â
For more information please see www.usda.gov.
USDA Photo by Lance Cheung.
The Capitol Complex in Chandigarh – the Indian city that gave the architect a chance to test his Modernist theories on a grand scale. These Le Corbusier buildings added to UNESCO's World Heritage list
The Capitol Complex is made up of three concrete buildings and two monuments:
•the Palace of Assembly or Legislative Assembly
•the Secretariat
•the High Court
•the Open Hand sign, a symbol of the government of Chandigarh
•the Tower of Shadows
Le Corbusier built also a large and a small museum and two schools for art and architecture.
Chandigarh was one of India's first planned cities, and was Le Corbusier's largest project.
He was commissioned to design the masterplan in the early 1950s, after being approved by Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister. The city was to serve as the new independent Indian government's regional capital in Punjab, after the previous capital, Lahore, became part of Pakistan.
"The general feeling seems to be that Le Corbusier took on the task primarily as a way of justifying his theories," wrote the New Yorker in 1955. "He is almost 70, it is pointed out, and thus far most of those theories have been tried only on paper."
Arranged in a grid, the city's districts are connected by boulevards and are dotted with parks, public spaces and streets planted with trees. But it is the group of buildings that form the government's administration complex – known as the Capitol Complex – that have become symbolic of the architect's work in India. Le Corbusier saw the city like a human body, with these buildings functioning as its "head". As with many of his best-known projects, he collaborated with his cousin, architect and designer Pierre Jeanerret, to build and furnish the Capitol Complex as a complete work – creating everything from the facades down to the door handles.
The Secretariat is the largest of the structures, and houses the headquarters of both the Punjab and Haryana governments. The Secretariat houses the ministerial chambers and all ministerial agencies. The massive building is almost 250 metres long and comprises eight storeys of rough-cast concrete. The concrete was moulded into different forms to create complex geometry and patterns, which are highlighted in the paintwork. Ramps at either end allow for vertical circulation through every storey.
The Palace of Assembly was designed to have an open-plan interior, framed by a grid of reinforced concrete columns, offering a view of the nearby Himalayan mountains. The free facade allows it to host large sections of glazing covered in brise-soleils or sun-breaks. Originally the Palace was meant to house only one parliament, but nowadays is is used by both the parliaments of the Punjab and Haryana, so there is less open space left.
The High Court has a double roof that provides shade to the rest of the building and its columns and portico walls are painted in bright, contrasting colours. The upper roof cantilevers out over the lower roof and a gap between the two allows for air to circulate around the building.