View allAll Photos Tagged visually

There are three Ashfords, really. The modern newtown, Swindonesque newbuilds stretching into the countryside; the Victorian railway town, all neat rows of brick buit houses and the station, and then there is the old town, timber-framed houses along narrow lanes, with St Mary standing towering above all but the modern office blocks.

 

The west end church was given over to a Christmas Fayre, but is also used now as a concert venue, while under the tower westwards is still in use as a church, with many of its ancient features left alone by the Victorians.

 

-------------------------------------------

 

A stately church in a good position set away from the hustle and bustle of this cosmopolitan town. The very narrow tower of 1475 is not visually satisfactory when viewed from a distance but its odd proportions are hardly noticed when standing at its base. The church is very much the product of the families who have been associated with it over the centuries and who are commemorated by monuments within. They include the Fogges and the Smythes. The former is supposed to have wanted to create a college of priests here, but by the late fifteenth century such foundations were going out of fashion and the remodelling of the church undertaken by Sir John Fogge may have just been a philanthropic cause. Unusually, when the church was restored in 1860 the architect Ewan Christian kept the galleries (he usually swept them away), but Christ Church had yet to be built and the population of this growing town would have needed all the accommodation it could get. Even in 1851 1000 people had attended the church in a single sitting. The pulpit, designed by Pearson, was made in 1897.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Ashford+1

 

------------------------------------------

 

THE TOWN AND PARISH OF ASHFORD

LIES the next adjoining to Hothfield eastward. It is called in Domesday both Estefort and Essetesford, and in other antient records, Eshetisford, taking its name from the river, which runs close to it, which, Lambarde says, ought not to be called the Stour, till it has passed this town, but Eshe or Eschet, a name which has been for a great length of time wholly forgotten; this river being known, even from its first rise at Lenham hither, by the name of the Stour only.

 

A small part only of this parish, on the east, south and west sides of it, containing the borough of Henwood, alias Hewit, lying on the eastern or further side of the river from the town, part of which extends into the parish of Wilsborough, and the whole of it within the liberty of the manor of Wye, and the borough of Rudlow, which adjoins to Kingsnoth and Great Chart, are in this hundred of Chart and Longbridge; such part of the borough of Rudlow as lies adjoining to Kingsnoth, is said to lie in in jugo de Beavor, or the yoke of Beavor, and is divided from the town and liberty by the river, near a place called Pollbay; in which yoke there is both a hamlet and a green or common, of the name of Beavor; the remainder of the parish having been long separated from it, and made a distinct liberty, or jurisdiction of itself, having a constable of its own, and distinguished by the name of the liberty of the town of Ashford.

 

ASHFORD, at the time of taking the general survey of Domesday, was part of the possessions of Hugo de Montfort, who had accompanied the Conqueror hither, and was afterwards rewarded with this estate, among many others in different counties; in which record it is thus entered, under the general title of his lands:

 

¶Maigno holds of Hugo (de Montfort) Estefort. Turgisus held it of earl Godwin, and it is taxed at one suling. The arable land is half a carucate. There is nevertheless in demesne one carucate, and two villeins having one carucate. There are two servants, and eight acres of meadow. In the time of king Edward the Confessor, it was worth twenty five shillings; when he received it, twenty shillings; now thirty shilling.

 

The same Hugo holds Essela. Three tenants held it of king Edward, and could go whither they would with their lands. It was taxed at three yokes. The arable land is one carucate and an half. There are now four villeins, with two borderers having one carucate, and six acres of meadow. The whole, in the reign of king Edward the Confessor, was worth twenty shillings, and afterwards fifteen shillings, now twenty shillings.

 

Maigno held another Essetisford of the same Hugo. Wirelm held it of king Edward. It was taxed at one suling. The arable land is four carucates. In demesne there are two, and two villeins, with fifteen borderers having three carucates. There is a church, and a priest, and three servants, and two mills of ten shillings and two pence. In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth seventy shillings, and afterwards sixty shillings, now one hundred shillings.

 

Robert de Montfort, grandson of Hugh abovementioned, favouring the title of Robert Curthose, in opposition to king Henry I. to avoid being called in question upon that account, obtained leave to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, leaving his possessions to the king; by which means this manor came into the hands of the crown. Soon after which it seems to have come into the possession of a family, who took their name from it. William de Asshetesford appears by the register of Horton priory to have been lord of it, and to have been succeeded by another of the same name. After which the family of Criol became owners of it, by whom it was held by knight's service of the king, in capite, by ward to Dover castle, and the repair of a tower in that castle, called the Ashford tower. (fn. 1) Simon de Criol, in the 27th and 28th year of Henry III. obtained a charter of free warren for this manor, whose son William de Criol passed it away to Roger de Leyborne, for Stocton, in Huntingdonshire, and Rumford, in Essex. William de Leyborne his son, in the 7th year of king Edward I. claimed and was allowed the privilege of a market here, before the justices itinerant. He died possessed of this manor in the 3d year of Edward II. leaving his grand-daughter Juliana, daughter of Thomas de Leyborne, who died in his father's life-time, heir both to her grandfather and father's possessions, from the greatness of which she was stiled the Infanta of Kent, (fn. 2) though thrice married, yet she died s. p. by either of her husbands, all of whom she survived, and died in the 41st year of Edward III. Upon which this manor, among the rest of her estates, escheated to the crown, and continued there till king Richard II. vested it, among others, in feoffees, for the performance of certain religious bequests by the will of king Edward III. then lately deceased; and they, in compliance with it, soon afterwards, with the king's licence, purchased this manor, with those of Wall, and Esture, of the crown, towards the endowment of St. Stephen's chapel, in the king's palace of Westminster, all which was confirmed by king Henry IV. and VI. and by king Edward IV. in their first years; the latter of whom, in his 7th year, granted to them a fair in this town yearly, on the feast of St. John Port Latin, together with all liberties, and to have a steward to hold the court of it, &c. In which situation they continued till the 1st year of Edward VI. when this collegiate chapel was, with all its possessions, surrendered into the king's hands, where these manors did not continue long; for that king, in his 3d year, granted the manor of Esshetford, with that of Wall, and the manor of Esture, to Sir Anthony Aucher, of Otterden, to hold in capite; and he, in the 2d and 3d of Philip and Mary, sold them to Sir Andrew Judde, of London, whose daughter and at length heir Alice, afterwards carried them in marriage to Thomas Smith, esq. of Westenhanger, commonly called the Customer, who died possessed of them in 1591, and lies buried in the south cross of this church, having had several sons and daughters, of, whom Sir John Smythe, of Ostenhanger, the eldest, succeeded him here, and was sheriff anno 42 Elizabeth. Sir Thomas Smith, the second son, was of Bidborough and Sutton at Hone, and ambassador to Russia, of whom and his descendants, notice has been taken in the former volumes of this history; (fn. 3) and Henry, the third son, was of Corsham, in Wiltshire, whence this family originally descended, and Sir Richard Smith, the fourth, was of Leeds castle. Sir John Smythe, above-mentioned, died in 1609, and lies buried in the same vault as his father in this church, leaving one son Sir Thomas Smythe, of Westenhanger, K. B. who was in 1628 created Viscount Strangford, of Ireland, whose grandson Philip, viscount Strangford, dying about 1709, Henry Roper, lord Teynham, who had married Catherine his eldest daughter, by his will, became possessed of the manors of Ashford, Wall, and Esture. By her, who died in 1711, he had two sons, Philip and Henry, successively lords Teynham; notwithstanding which, having the uncontrolled power in these manors vested in him, he, on his marriage with Anne, second daughter and coheir of Thomas Lennard, earl of Sussex, and widow of Richard Barrett Lennard, esq. afterwards baroness Dacre, settled them on her and her issue by him in tail male. He died in 1623, and left her surviving, and possessed of these manors for her life. She afterwards married the hon. Robert Moore, and died in 1755. She had by lord Teynham two sons, Charles and Richard-Henry, (fn. 4) Charles Roper, the eldest son, died in 1754 intestate, leaving two sons, Trevor-Charles and Henry, who on their mother's death became entitled to these manors, as coheirs in gavelkind, a recovery having been suffered of them, limiting them after her death to Charles Roper their father, in tail male; but being infants, and there being many incumbrances on these estates, a bill was exhibited in chancery, and an act procured anno 29 George II. for the sale of them; and accordingly these manors were sold, under the direction of that court, in 1765, to the Rev. Francis Hender Foote, of Bishopsborne, who in 1768 parted with the manor of Wall, alias Court at Wall, to John Toke, esq. of Great Chart, whose son Nicholas Roundell Toke, is the present possessor of it; but he died possessed of the manors of Ashford and Esture in 1773, and was succeeded in them by his eldest son John Foote, esq. now of Bishopsborne, the present owner of them. There are several copyhold lands held of the manor of Ashford. A court leet and court baron is regularly held for it.

 

THE TOWN OF ASHFORD stands most pleasant and healthy, on the knoll of a hill, of a gentle ascent on every side, the high road from Hythe to Maidstone passing through it, from which, in the middle of the town, the high road branches off through a pleasant country towards Canterbury. The houses are mostly modern and well-built, and the high-street, which has been lately new paved, is of considerable width. The markethouse stands in the centre of it, and the church and school on the south side of it, the beautiful tower of the former being a conspicuous object to the adjoining country. It is a small, but neat and chearful town, and many of the inhabitants of a genteel rank in life. Near the market place, is the house of the late Dr. Isaac Rutton, a physician of long and extensive practice in these parts, being the eldest son of Matthias Rutton, gent of this town, by Sarah his wife, daughter of Sir N. Toke, of Godinton. He died in 1792, bearing for his arms, Parted per fess, azure, and or, three unicorns heads, couped at the neck, counterchanged; since which, his eldest son, Isaac Rutton, esq. now of Ospringeplace, has sold this house to Mr. John Basil Duckworth, in whom it is now vested. In the midst of it is a large handsome house, built in 1759, by John Mascall, gent. who resided in it, and died possessed of it in 1769, and was buried in Boughton Aluph church, bearing for his arms, Barry of two, or, and azure, three inescutcheons, ermine; and his only son, Robert Mascall, esq. now of Ashford, who married the daughter of Jeremiah Curteis, esq. is the present owner, and resides in it. At the east end of the town is a seat, called Brooke-place, formerly possessed by the family of Woodward, who were always stiled, in antient deeds, gentlemen, and bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron, sable, between three grasshoppers, or; the last of them, Mr. John Woodward, gent. rebuilt this seat, and died possessed of it in 1757; of whose heirs it was purchased by Martha, widow of Moyle Breton, esq. of Kennington, whose two sons, the Rev. Moyle Breton, and Mr. Whitfield Breton, gent. alienated it to Josias Pattenson, esq. the second son of Mr. Josias Pattenson, of Biddenden, by Elizabeth, daughter and coheir of Felix Kadwell, esq. of Rolvenden; he married Mary, daughter of Mr. Henry Dering, gent. of this parish, and widow of Mr. John Mascall above-mentioned, by whom he has no issue, and he is the present owner of this seat, and resides in it. There have been barracks erected lately here, which at present contain 4000 soldiers. The market is held on a Saturday weekly, for the sale of corn, which is now but little used; and a market for the sale of all sorts of fat and lean stock on the first and third Tuesday in every month, which has been of great use to prevent monopolies. Two fairs are annually held now, by the alteration of the stile, on May 17, and Sept. 9, and another on Oct. 24; besides which, there is an annual fair for wool on August 2, not many years since instituted and encouraged by the principal gentry and landholders, which promises to prove of the greatest utility and benefit to the fair sale of it. That branch of the river Stour which rises at Lenham, runs along the southern part of this parish, and having turned a corn mill belonging to the lord of this manor, continues its course close at the east end of the town, where there is a stone bridge of four arches, repaired at the expence of the county, and so on northwards towards Wye and Canterbury. On the south side of the river in this parish, next to Kingsnoth, within the borough of Rudlow, is the yoke of Beavor, with the hamlet and farm of that name, possessed in very early times, as appears by the register of Horton priory, by a family of that name, one of whom, John Beavor, was possessed of it in the reign of Henry II. and was descended from one of the same furname, who attended the Conqueror in his expedition hither. The parish contains about 2000 acres of land, and three hundred and twenty houses, the whole rental of it being 4000l. per annum; the inhabitants are 2000, of which about one hundred are diffenters. The highways throughout it, which not many years ago were exceeding bad, have been by the unanimity of the inhabitants, which has shewn itself remarkable in all their public improvements, a rare instance in parochial undertakings, and by the great attention to the repairs of them, especially in such parts as were near their own houses, are now excellent. The lands round it are much upon a gravelly soil, though towards the east and south there are some rich fertile pastures, intermixed with arable land, and several plantations of hops; but toward the west, the soil is in general sand, having much quarrystone mixed with it, where there is a great deal of coppice wood, quite to Potter's corner, at the boundary of this parish.

 

The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, is a large handsome building, consisting of three isles, with a transept, and three chancels, with the tower in the middle, which is losty and well proportioned, having four pinnacles at the top of it. There are eight bells in it, a set of chimes, and a clock. In the high chancel, on the north side, is the college John Fogge, the founder of the college here, who died in 1490, and his two wives, the brasses of their figures gone; but part of the inscription remains. And formerly, in Weever's time, there hung up in this chancel six atchievements, of those of this family whose burials had been attended by the heralds at arms, and with other ceremonies suitable to their degrees. Underneath the chancel is a large vault, full of the remains of the family. On the pavement in the middle, is a very antient curious gravestone, having on it the figure in brass of a woman, holding in her left hand a banner, with the arms of Ferrers, Six masctes, three and three, in pale; which, with a small part of the inscription round the edge, is all that is remaining; but there was formerly in brass, in her right hand, another banner, with the arms of Valoyns; over her head those of France and England quarterly; and under her feet a shield, being a cross, impaling three chevronels, the whole within a bordure, guttee de sang, and round the edge this inscription, Ici gift Elizabeth Comite D' athels la file sign de Ferrers . . . dieu asoil, qe morust le 22 jour d'octob. can de grace MCCCLXXV. Weever says, she was wife to David de Strabolgie, the fourth of that name, earl of Athol, in Scotland, and daughter of Henry, lord Ferrers, of Groby; and being secondly married to John Malmayns, of this county, died here in this town. Though by a pedigree of the family of Brograve, she is said to marry T. Fogge, esq. of Ashford; if so, he might perhaps have been her third husband. Near her is a memorial for William Whitfield, gent. obt. 1739. The north chancel belonged to Repton manor. In the vault underneath lay three of the family of Tuston, sometime since removed to Rainham, and it has been granted to the Husseys; Thomas Hussey, esq. of this town, died in 1779, and was buried in it. In the south chancel are memorials for the Pattensons, Whitfields, and Apsleys, of this place; and one for Henry Dering, gent. of Shelve, obt. 1752, and Hester his wife; arms, A saltier, a crescent for difference, impaling, on a chevron, between three persons, three crosses, formee; and another memorial for Thomasine, wife of John Handfield, obt. 1704. In the north cross are several antient stones, their brasses all gone, excepting a shield, with the arms of Fogge on one. At the end is a monument for John Norwood, gent. and Mary his wife, of this town, who lie with their children in the vault underneath. The south cross is parted off lengthways, for the family of Smith, lords of Ashford manor, who lie in a vault underneath. In it are three superb monuments, which, not many years since, were beautified and restored to their original state, by the late chief baron Smythe, a descendant of this family. One is for Thomas Smith, esq. of Westenhanger, in 1591; the second for Sir John Smythe, of Ostenhanger, his son, and Elizabeth his wife; and the third for Sir Richard Smyth, of Leeds castle, in 1628: all which have been already mentioned before. Their figures, at full length and proportion, are lying on, each of them, with their several coats of arms and quarterings blazoned. In the other part of this cross, is a memorial for Baptist Pigott, A. M. son of Baptist Pigott, of Dartford, and schoolmaster here, obt. 1657, and at the end of it, is the archbishop's consistory court. In the south isle is a memorial for Thomas Curteis, gent. obt. 1718, and Elizabeth his wife; arms, Curteis impaling Carter. Under the tower is one for Samuel Warren, vicar here forty-eight years, obt. 1720. The three isles were new pewed and handsomely paved in 1745. There are five galleries, and an handsome branch for candles in the middled isle; the whole kept in an excellent state of repair and neatness. There was formerly much curtious painted glass in the windows, particularly the figures of one of the family of Valoyns, his two wives and children, with their arms. In the south window of the cross isle, and in other windows, the figures, kneeling, of king Edward III. the black prince, Richard, duke of Gloucester, the lord Hastings. Sir William Haute, the lord Scales, Richard, earl Rivers, and the dutchess of Bedford his wife, Sir John Fogge, Sir John Peche, Richard Horne, Roger Manstone, and—Guildford, most of which were in the great west window, each habited in their surcoats of arms, not the least traces of which, or of any other coloured glass, are remaining throughout this church. Sir John Goldstone, parson of Ivechurch, as appears by his will in 1503, was buried in the choir of this church, and gave several costly ornaments and vestments for the use of it.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp526-545

  

Visually, there's not much I can think of to say about this. If you want, you could read about it, though. And then you could say, "Ah, so that is what a super-metal-rich planetary nebula looks like."

 

Again, two sets of data were three years apart, so if you are a very keen observer you may notice slight color fringing.

 

Red: hst_08594_03_wfpc2_f656n_pc_sci + hst_06119_94_wfpc2_f814w_pc_sci

Green: hst_06119_94_wfpc2_f555w_pc_02_sci

Blue: hst_08594_03_wfpc2_f502n_pc_sci

 

North is NOT up.

Visually this city owns when it's wet

 

Sydney, Australia

 

Tumblr | Twitter | Youtube | WordPress

Visually, NGC 6891 seems fairly simple. I can only see some very small knots of H-alpha. One of them is easy to spot. It's a very small, red dot near the left edge of the outer halo of material. I almost cleaned it up, thinking it was a cosmic ray.

 

Red: hst_08390_09_wfpc2_f658n_pc_sci

Green: hst_08390_09_wfpc2_f555w_pc_sci

Blue: hst_08390_09_wfpc2_f502n_pc_sci

 

North is NOT up.

Newsmap is an application that visually reflects the constantly changing landscape of the Google News news aggregator. A treemap visualization algorithm helps display the enormous amount of information gathered by the aggregator. Treemaps are traditionally space-constrained visualizations of information. Newsmap's objective takes that goal a step further and provides a tool to divide information into quickly recognizable bands which, when presented together, reveal underlying patterns in news reporting across cultures and within news segments in constant change around the globe.

Newsmap does not pretend to replace the googlenews aggregator. It's objective is to simply demonstrate visually the relationships between data and the unseen patterns in news media. It is not thought to display an unbiased view of the news, on the contrary it is thought to ironically accentuate the bias of it.

www.marumushi.com/apps/newsmap/newsmap.cfm

IN THE EARLY 1970S, WHEN the eccentric millionaire gambler and zoo owner John Aspinall was looking for a second plot of land to house his growing collection of endangered species, he discovered the mansion and grounds of Port Lympne. He decided to restore the house and its gardens, as he had become enchanted with the property.

 

Part of the restoration involved creating a pair of murals that would capture the awe Aspinall felt for the natural world and particularly the fauna of India where he had been born and spent much of his childhood years. He commissioned a close friend, the artist Arthur Spencer Roberts, to paint a mural that showcased the extraordinary mammalian, avian, and reptilian biodiversity of several of the world’s regions.

 

Depicted among the forest, jungle, desert, and alpine landscapes is a Jungle Book-esque bestiary of animals. In forested glades and mountain peaks prowl large predators such as Bengal tigers, hyenas, pythons, snow leopards, bears, leopards, wolves and (Asian) lions, while a variety of smaller carnivores such as otters, jackal, red pandas, civets, various smaller wild cats, monitor lizards, and cobras can be spotted too. Cavorting across canopies are troops of apes and monkeys while creeping through thickets and bamboo glades are peculiar primates such as the slow and slender loris. Birds abound within the mural, which shows songbirds, mynahs, woodpeckers, tragopan grouse , pheasants, peacocks, hornbills, cranes, storks, vultures, eagles, and owls. Browsing among the undergrowth is a multitude of ungulates such as deer, gazelle, antelope, onagers, wild goats, boar, and herbivorous heavyweights such as rhino, buffalo, gaur, Malayan tapir, and elephants.

 

Many of the animals are depicted together and juxtaposed, despite not occuring in the same natural habitats. These forgivable (and intentional) zoogeographical errors, aside this mural is intended to be an unabashed visual celebration of the natural world. Roberts himself experienced some of these landscapes and witnessed some of the creatures while stationed in Northern India and Burma during World War II.

 

Roberts, despite possessing an incredible artistic talent, was a rather humble and shy man who consistently declined the attention and competition of the commercial art world and instead preferred to focus on his passion for creating visually stunning works of art that captured the beauty of the natural world.

Built between 1902 and 1906, this Beaux Arts-style building was designed by Joseph Miller Huston to house the state government of Pennsylvania. The building was constructed around a nucleus consisting of a heavily modified temporary capitol building, which was built in 1898-99 by Henry Ives Cobb after the previous capitol building, built in 1822 on the same site as the present building, was destroyed by a fire in 1897. The only surviving portion of the previous 1822 Capitol is the Ryan Office Building, which was built in 1893-94, and originally served as the Executive, Library & Museum Building, which was not directly connected to the Capitol building, allowing it to survive the incident with minimal damage.

 

The building was the subject of a graft and corruption scandal after its completion, which led to four people being sent to prison on charges of corruption and bribery, including the building’s architect. As a result, the rest of the complex was laid out by architect Arnold W. Brunner, whom designed the landscape of the Capitol Complex to the rear of the building, as well as the North and South (Irvis) Office Buildings, which were constructed during the 1920s, flanking the rear of the capitol and framing a central courtyard behind the building. One block to the east, a quad known as the Soldier’s Grove was created, which is framed by the Forum Building and Finance Building, which visually connects the capitol building to the State Street Sailors and Soldiers Memorial Bridge, with all three structures having been completed in the 1930s on the site of the old 8th Ward neighborhood, which was removed via eminent domain to allow for the state government office buildings to be constructed adjacent to the new capitol. Thus, the capitol is part of a larger state government office complex built between 1893 and 1987, which complements the building’s architectural style and houses office space and major amenities for the Pennsylvania state government.

 

The building features a granite exterior with corinthian columns and pilasters, roman lattice transoms and window mullion patterns, a balustrade along the roof, oxeye windows, semicircular and triangular pediment headers over the windows, one-over-one double-hung windows, two-story porticoes at the front facades of the central and side wings with pediments, decorative sculptures and friezes, a green tile roof, cornices with modillions and dentils, large staircases up to the building’s entrances, arched openings at the entrances with decorative keystones, vaulted ceilings, and decorative light fixtures, doric pilasters on the side facades, domes at the crossings of the central and side wings with copper and green tile roofs, a central dome based on the Basilica of St. Peter in Rome, with paired corinthian pilasters, festoons in the panels between the pilasters, a balustrade around the base of the drum, which is ringed by windows with decorative pediments, multiple dormers clad in copper on the dome, and a lantern with a drum that resembles a smaller version of the drum below the dome, topped with a concavely curved roof and golden statue known as “Commonwealth”, created by sculptor Roland Hinton Perry.

 

The building’s interior is clad in lavish materials and artisan decorations, including marble walls and trim, murals on the walls and ceilings, a tall rotunda below the dome with a grand staircase and multiple tiers of balconies and columns, a Moravian Pottery and Tile Works floor with symbols representing Pennsylvania culture and nature hand crafted by artisan Henry Chapman Mercer, sculptures, classical columns, trim panels, coffered ceilings, decorative crown moldings, chandeliers, sconces, and torchiere lamps, corinthian pilasters below the dome, broken pediments over major entrances, corridors with vaulted ceilings, and ornate glass display cases. The house and senate chambers, which sit in wings immediately adjacent to the north and south sides of the rotunda, and the supreme court chamber in the building, which is located in another wing of the building, are also lavishly decorated with murals, decorative trim, ornate ceilings, and stained glass windows.

 

The capitol building received a rear addition to the east in 1986-1987, which features a neoclassical exterior with modern and postmodern flourishes, including glass domes, which is faced with a darker stone to differentiate it from the historic portion of the building, designed by Celli-Flynn Associates and H.F. Lenz Company to provide additional space in the building and a secure vehicle entrance. The addition features a large podium that supports a rooftop plaza with planters that create gardens around the building’s rear, with a large semi-circular recessed portion of the structure framing a large fountain and tiered garden that sits at the center of the visual axis, tying the rear of the State Capitol to the State Street Sailors and Soldiers Memorial Bridge across the block-long Soldier’s Grove Quad, and unifies the North and South (Irvis) office buildings into a single structure connected directly to the State Capitol and Ryan Office Building.

 

The State Capitol and historic portions of the State Capitol Complex were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. The State Capitol Complex was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 2006, and saw a boundary increase in 2013 to include some previously omitted historic structures.

Estimated : € 110.000 - 145.000

Sold for € 109.250

 

RM Sotheby's

Place Vauban

Parijs - Paris

Frankrijk - France

February 2018

 

Despite being visually similar to the outgoing Testarossa, the new Ferrari 512 TR’s Pininfarina body softened the angular lines of the outgoing model. However, the most significant changes were beneath the skin and demonstrate that the 512 TR was far more than a facelift.

 

Looking to compete with Lamborghini’s new Diablo, the 512 TR’s chassis was modified to incorporate a one-piece rear sub-frame that allowed the engine to sit an inch lower, improving road-holding and lowering its centre of gravity. Improvements to the suspension geometry greatly benefitted handling as well. The addition of a Bosch engine management system, larger intake valves and a revised exhaust, among other elements, raised peak output to 428 bhp. Power was channelled through a new single-plate clutch, which vastly improved the quality of gear changes. A top speed of 195 mph and a 0–60 mph time of 4,9 seconds illustrate its impressive performance.

 

This Rosso Corsa over Nero example was produced for the 1993 model year and presents immaculately. Purchased by its current owner in 2011, it has covered less than 1.000 km in his ownership, showing 27.470 km on the odometer. A detailed appraisal of the car was undertaken by Bernard Loof GmbH in April 2016, who found it to be in excellent shape, even finding the paintwork to be entirely original with consistent paint depths on every panel; something of a rarity on many Ferraris of this era.

It is one of the most unique buildings of Tarragona's modern architecture. It can be described as rationalist, but the influence of Art Deco is quite evident. It was designed by Salvador Ripoll Sahagún and was built between 1944 and 1948. It is characterized by its curved corner, with a wide gallery on the first floor, balconies on the rest of the floors and a cylindrical tower at the top. You should also pay attention to the blown cornice and the treatment of the openings, slightly outlined with a simple molding and visually paired with the presence of an intermediate body that joins them.

 

The Heritage Inventory calls it "House of Magdalena Betbesé Rodés de Sanjuan", after the name of the owner. It is also known as "Casa Calvet", by the name of the tenants. For many years its basement was occupied by the popular El Faro warehouses (because of the building's lighthouse shape), which ended up giving the house its name.

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarragona

 

The rather visually challenged Greenwood Corvette was I believe made by the same named company who specialise in automotive performance tuning and racing specifically for....Corvettes! ;-p

Hot Wheels, ever eager to sniff out every last Corvette variation first released this casting a few years back and proved very popular with U.S. collectors. Its back yet again for 2020 and can be seen here in its very latest Case G colour scheme. Found recently at B&M Bargains. Mint and boxed.

Visually, the finished look is one of pure line with few design elements. The atmosphere is one of pure tranquillity during the day; the reflection of sky in the water and very little to distract the eye. At night the lighting scheme creates a magical pathway fading into the distance, and always there is the gentle sound of running water.

 

Part of a larger scheme, these clients wanted an ultra-simple, minimalist waterfeature on two levels. The main material used was a pale cream Travertine detailed with a dark slate-grey.

 

At the lower level, a canal runs across the garden. The main steps are accessed by stepping stones across the water.

 

The upper level features two rills. Water flows away from the house and cascades via two stainless steel waterfalls onto the lower level beyond, aerating and purifying. The paving features LED flush lighting to highlight the edge of the scheme and the steps and all three bodies of water are floodlit discreetly below the water surface.

 

The only plant material is six ball-shaped box trees, providing a simple, sculptural look to this otherwise angular scheme.

Visually Oregon City seems either too dark or to bright, e.g. here the new lights on the bridge made the river seem very dark visually, but photographically it balanced out very nicely, only masked/brushed in some shorter exposures bits of the brightest bridge lights to get it to balance out. From a fun night in Oregon City with the PDXNightowls. NB18360-62

We went to the National Leprechaun Museum yesterday and was so surprised at how visually stunning it was!!!! totally unexpected :) www.leprechaunmuseum.ie

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

The Grumman Mohawk began as a joint Army-Marine program through the then-Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer), for an observation/attack plane that would outperform the light and vulnerable Cessna L-19 Bird Dog. In June 1956, the Army issued Type Specification TS145, which called for the development and procurement of a two-seat, twin turboprop aircraft designed to operate from small, unimproved fields under all weather conditions. It would be faster, with greater firepower, and heavier armor than the Bird Dog, which had proved very vulnerable during the Korean War.

 

The Mohawk's mission would include observation, artillery spotting, air control, emergency resupply, naval target spotting, liaison, and radiological monitoring. The Navy specified that the aircraft had to be capable of operating from small "jeep" escort class carriers (CVEs). The DoD selected Grumman Aircraft Corporation's G-134 design as the winner of the competition in 1957. Marine requirements contributed an unusual feature to the design: since the Marines were authorized to operate fixed-wing aircraft in the close air support (CAS) role, the mockup featured underwing pylons for rockets, bombs, and other stores, and this caused a lot of discord. The Air Force did not like the armament capability of the Mohawk and tried to get it removed. On the other side, the Marines did not want the sophisticated sensors the Army wanted, so when their Navy sponsors opted to buy a fleet oil tanker, they eventually dropped from the program altogether. The Army continued with armed Mohawks (and the resulting competence controversy with the Air Force) and also developed cargo pods that could be dropped from underwing hard points to resupply troops in emergencies.

 

In mid-1961, the first Mohawks to serve with U.S. forces overseas were delivered to the 7th Army at Sandhofen Airfield near Mannheim, Germany. Before its formal acceptance, the camera-carrying AO-1AF was flown on a tour of 29 European airfields to display it to the U.S. Army field commanders and potential European customers. In addition to their Vietnam and European service, SLAR-equipped Mohawks began operational missions in 1963 patrolling the Korean Demilitarized Zone.

 

Germany and France showed early interest in the Mohawk, and two OV-1s were field-tested by both nations over the course of several months. No direct orders resulted, though, but the German Bundesheer (Army) was impressed by the type’s performance and its capability as an observation and reconnaissance platform. Grumman even signed a license production agreement with the French manufacturer Breguet Aviation in exchange for American rights to the Atlantic maritime patrol aircraft, but no production orders followed.

 

This could have been the end of the OV-1 in Europe, but in 1977 the German government, primarily the interior ministry and its intelligence agency, the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND), showed interest in a light and agile SIGINT/ELINT platform that could fly surveillance missions along the inner-German border to the GDR and also to Czechoslovakia. Beyond visual reconnaissance with cameras and IR sensors, the aircraft was to be specifically able to identify and locate secret radio stations that were frequently operated by Eastern Block agents (esp. by the GDR) all across Western Germany, but primarily close to the inner-German border due to the clandestine stations’ low power. The Bundeswehr already operated a small ELINT/ECM fleet, consisting of converted HFB 320 ‘Hansa’ business jets, but these were not suited for stealthy and inconspicuous low flight level missions that were envisioned, and they also lacked the ability to fly slowly enough to locate potential “radio nests”.

 

The pan and the objective were clear, but the ELINT project caused a long and severe political debate concerning the operator of such an aerial platform. Initially, the Bundesheer, who had already tested the OV-1, claimed responsibility, but the interior ministry in the form of the German customs department as well as the German police’s Federal Border Guard, the Bundesgrenzschutz and the Luftwaffe (the proper operator for fixed-wing aircraft within the German armed forces), wrestled for this competence. Internally, the debate and the project ran under the handle “Schimmelreiter” (literally “The Rider on the White Horse”), after a northern German legendary figure, which eventually became the ELINT system’s semi-official name after it had been revealed to the public. After much tossing, in 1979 the decision was made to procure five refurbished U.S. Army OV-1As, tailored to the German needs and – after long internal debates – operate them by the Luftwaffe.

 

The former American aircraft were hybrids: they still had the OV-1A’s original short wings, but already the OV-1D’s stronger engines and its internal pallet system for interchangeable electronics. The machines received the designation OV-1G (for Germany) and were delivered in early 1980 via ship without any sensors or cameras. These were of Western German origin, developed and fitted locally, tailored to the special border surveillance needs.

 

The installation and testing of the “Schimmelreiter” ELINT suite lasted until 1982. It was based on a Raytheon TI Systems emitter locator system, but it was locally adapted by AEG-Telefunken to the airframe and the Bundeswehr’s special tasks and needs. The system’s hardware was stowed in the fuselage, its sensor arrays were mounted into a pair of underwing nacelles, which occupied the OV-1’s standard hardpoints, allowing a full 360° coverage. In order to cool the electronics suite and regulate the climate in the internal equipment bays, the OV-1G received a powerful heat exchanger, mounted under a wedge-shaped fairing on the spine in front of the tail – the most obvious difference of this type from its American brethren. The exact specifications of the “Schimmelreiter” ELINT suite remained classified, but special emphasis was placed upon COMINT (Communications Intelligence), a sub-category of signals intelligence that engages in dealing with messages or voice information derived from the interception of foreign communications. Even though the “Schimmelreiter” suite was the OV-1Gs’ primary reconnaissance tool, the whole system could be quickly de-installed for other sensor packs and reconnaissance tasks (even though this never happened), or augmented by single modules, what made upgrades and mission specialization easy. Beyond the ELINT suite, the OV-1G could be outfitted with cameras and other sensors on exchangeable pallets in the fuselage, too. This typically included a panoramic camera in a wedge-shaped ventral fairing, which would visually document the emitter sensors’ recordings.

 

A special feature of the German OV-1s was the integration of a brand new, NATO-compatible “Link-16” data link system via a MIDS-LVT (Multifunctional Information Distribution System). Even though this later became a standard for military systems, the OV-1G broke the ground for this innovative technology. The MIDS was an advanced command, control, communications, computing and intelligence (C4I) system incorporating high-capacity, jam-resistant, digital communication links for exchange of near real-time tactical information, including both data and voice, among air, ground, and sea elements. Outwardly, the MIDS was only recognizable through a shallow antenna blister behind the cockpit.

 

Even though the OV-1Gs initially retained their former American uniform olive drab livery upon delivery and outfitting in German service, they soon received a new wraparound camouflage for their dedicated low-level role in green and black (Luftwaffe Norm 83 standard), which was better suited for the European theatre of operations. In Luftwaffe service, the OV-1Gs received the tactical codes 18+01-05 and the small fleet was allocated to the Aufklärungsgeschwader (AG) 51 “Immelmann”, where the machines formed, beyond two squadrons with RF-4E Phantom IIs, an independent 3rd squadron. This small unit was from the start based as a detachment at Lechfeld, located in Bavaria/Southern Germany, instead of AG 51’s home airbase Bremgarten in South-Western Germany, because Lechfeld was closer to the type’s typical theatre of operations along Western Germany’s Eastern borders. Another factor in favor of this different airbase was the fact that Lechfeld was, beyond Tornado IDS fighter bombers, also the home of the Luftwaffe’s seven HFB 320M ECM aircraft, operated by the JaBoG32’s 3rd squadron, so that the local maintenance crews were familiar with complex electronics and aircraft systems, and the base’s security level was appropriate, too.

 

With the end of the Cold War in 1990, the OV-1Gs role and field of operation gradually shifted further eastwards. With the inner-German Iron Curtain gone, the machines were now frequently operated along the Polish and Czech Republic border, as well as in international airspace over the Baltic Sea, monitoring the radar activities along the coastlines and esp. the activities of Russian Navy ships that operated from Kaliningrad and Saint Petersburg. For these missions, the machines were frequently deployed to the “new” air bases Laage and Holzdorf in Eastern Germany.

 

In American service, the OV-1s were retired from Europe in 1992 and from operational U.S. Army service in 1996. In Germany, the OV-1 was kept in service for a considerably longer time – with little problems, since the OV-1 airframes had relatively few flying hours on their clocks. The Luftwaffe’s service level for the aircraft was high and spare parts remained easy to obtain from the USA, and there were still OV-1 parts in USAF storage in Western German bases.

 

The German HFB 320M fleet was retired between 1993 and 1994 and, in part, replaced by the Tornado ECR. At the same time AG 51 was dissolved and the OV-1Gs were nominally re-allocated to JaboG 32/3. With this unit the OV-1Gs remained operational until 2010, undergoing constant updates and equipment changes. For instance, the machines received in 1995 a powerful FLIR sensor in a small turret in the aircraft’s nose, which improved the aircraft’s all-weather reconnaissance capabilities and was intended to spot hidden radio posts even under all-weather/night conditions, once their signal was recognized and located. The aircrafts’ radio emitter locator system was updated several times, too, and, as a passive defensive measure against heat-guided air-to-air missiles/MANPADS, an IR jammer was added, extending the fuselage beyond the tail. These machines received the suffix “Phase II”, even though all five aircraft were updated the same way.

Reports that the OV-1Gs were furthermore retrofitted with the avionics to mount and launch AIM-9 Sidewinder AAMs under the wing tips for self-defense remained unconfirmed, even more so because no aircraft was ever seen carrying arms – neither the AIM-9 nor anything else. Plans to make the OV-1Gs capable of carrying the Luftwaffe’s AGM-65 Maverick never went beyond the drawing board, either. However, BOZ chaff/flare dispenser pods and Cerberus ECM pods were occasionally seen on the ventral pylons from 1998 onwards.

 

No OV-1G was lost during the type’s career in Luftwaffe service, and after the end of the airframes’ service life, all five German OV-1Gs were scrapped in 2011. There was, due to worsening budget restraints, no direct successor, even though the maritime surveillance duties were taken over by Dornier Do 228/NGs operated by the German Marineflieger (naval air arm).

  

General characteristics:

Crew: Two: pilot, observer/systems operator

Length: 44 ft 4 in (13.53 m) overall with FLIR sensor and IR jammer

Wingspan: 42 ft 0 in (12.8 m)

Height: 12 ft 8 in (3.86 m)

Wing area: 330 sq. ft (30.65 m²)

Empty weight: 12,054 lb (5,467 kg)

Loaded weight: 15,544 lb (7,051 kg)

Max. takeoff weight: 18,109 lb (8,214 kg)

 

Powerplant:

2× Lycoming T53-L-701 turboprops, 1,400 shp (1,044 kW) each

 

Performance:

Never exceed speed: 450 mph (390 knots, 724 km/h)

Maximum speed: 305 mph (265 knots, 491 km/h) at 10,000 ft (3,050 m)

Cruise speed: 207 mph (180 knots, 334 km/h) (econ cruise)

Stall speed: 84 mph (73 knots, 135 km/h)

Range: 944 mi (820 nmi, 1,520 km) (SLAR mission)

Service ceiling: 25,000 ft (7,620 m)

Rate of climb: 3,450 ft/min (17.5 m/s)

 

Armament:

A total of eight external hardpoints (two ventral, three under each outer wing)

for external loads; the wing hardpoints were typically occupied with ELINT sensor pods, while the

ventral hardpoints frequently carried 300 l drop tanks to extend loiter time and range;

Typically, no offensive armament was carried, even though bombs or gun/missile pods were possible.

  

The kit and its assembly:

This build became a submission to the “Reconnaissance” Group Build at whatifmodellers.com in July 2021, and it spins further real-world events. Germany actually tested two OV-1s in the Sixties (by the German Army/Bundesheer, not by the air force), but the type was not procured or operated. The test aircraft carried a glossy, olive drab livery (US standard, I think) with German national markings.

However, having a vintage Hasegawa OV-1A in the stash, I wondered what an operational German OV-1 might have looked like, especially if it had been operated into the Eighties and beyond, in the contemporary Norm 83 paint scheme? This led to this purely fictional OV-1G.

 

The kit was mostly built OOB, and the building experience was rather so-so – after all, it’s a pretty old mold/boxing (in my case the Hasegawa/Hales kit is from 1978, the mold is from 1968!). Just a few things were modified/added in order to tweak the standard, short-winged OV-1A into something more modern and sophisticated.

 

When searching for a solution to mount some ELINT sensor arrays, I did not want to copy the OV-1B’s characteristic offset, ventral SLAR fairing. I rather settled for the late RV-1D’s solution with sensor pods under the outer wings. Unfortunately, the OV-1A kit came with the type’s original short wings, so that the pods had to occupy the inner underwing pair of hardpoints. The pods were scratched from square styrene profiles and putty, so that they received a unique look. The Mohawk’s pair of ventral hardpoints were mounted, but – after considering some drop tanks or an ECM pod there - left empty, so that the field of view for the ventral panoramic camera would not be obscured.

 

Other small additions are some radar warning sensor bumps on the nose, some extra antennae, a shallow bulge for the MIDS antenna on the spine, the FLIR turret on the nose (with parts from an Italeri AH-1 and a Kangnam Yak-38!), and I added a tail stinger for a retrofitted (scratched) IR decoy device, inspired by the American AN/ALG-147. This once was a Matchbox SNEB unguided missile pod.

  

Painting and markings:

For the intended era, the German Norm 83 paint scheme, which is still in use today on several Luftwaffe types like the Transall, PAH-2 or CH-53, appeared like a natural choice. It’s a tri-color wraparound scheme, consisting of RAL 6003 (Olivgrün), FS 34097 (Forest Green) and RAL 7021 (Teerschwarz). The paints I used are Humbrol 86 (which is supposed to be a WWI version of RAL 6003, it lacks IMHO yellow but has good contrast to the other tones), Humbrol 116 and Revell 9. The pattern itself was adapted from the German Luftwaffe’s Dornier Do 28D “Skyservants” with Norm 83 camouflage, because of the type’s similar outlines.

 

A black ink washing was applied for light weathering, plus some post-shading of panels with lighter shades of the basic camouflage tones for a more plastic look. The cockpit interior was painted in light grey (Humbrol 167), while the landing gear and the interior of the air brakes became white. The scratched SLAR pods became light grey, with flat di-electric panels in medium grey (created with decal material).

The cockpit interior was painted in a rather light grey (Humbrol 167), the pilots received typical olive drab Luftwaffe overalls, one with a white “bone dome” and the other with a more modern light grey helmet.

 

The decals were improvised. National markings and tactical codes came from TL Modellbau sheets, the AG 51 emblems were taken from a Hasegawa RF-4E sheet. The black walkways were taken from the Mohak’s OOB sheet, the black de-icer leading edges on wings and tail were created with generic black decal material. Finally, the model was sealed with a coat of matt acrylic varnish (Italeri).

  

An interesting result, and the hybrid paint scheme with the additional desert camouflage really makes the aircraft an unusual sight, adding to its credibility.

I think I may have mentioned this before, but the big joke in my most intimate crowd of friends is "Oh that's Karen... she sees things VISUALLY". (beat) (beat) (beat) Duh-uh!

 

It's my own fault. I think it mighta been at the Thanksgiving table a few years ago when I- without adequate aforethought- blurted out in the middle of a conversation "Well that's because I see everything visually". Meaning that I'm more highly attuned to visual stimuli than to anything else in a given situation. If the light's too bright- in my opinion- in a room I will have a hard time concentrating on what is being said until I adjust it. Certain colors- or color combinations- will make my teeth clench. I can remember minute details of the rooms of houses I was in years ago even when I can't call to mind the name of the host. And visual chaos, other than of course my own clutter, will render me incapable of productivity... and even my own visually cacophonous environment will get to me when it reaches a certain point. Didn't have my camera with me on my walk home today from my nutritionist appointment, so of course I saw two dozen imaginary oblong frames over perfect photo ops through my built-in organic viewfinder in the course of two miles.

 

I'm sure the visual bunch around here can relate!

 

For some reason this penchant of mine seems particularly acute near the holidays. In both good and bad ways. I love, for instance, how illumination can be used so beautifully to set mood for the "dark of winter" holidays that hover around the solstice. And I have a healthy appreciation for some good old fashioned kitsch... good thing in my neighborhood! But I have no tolerance for the "over the top" sensibilities of the "bigger is better" crowd. Last night when I was over at Matt's for the weekly viewing of my favorite show "Pushing Daisies"- beloved by me mostly for it's fabulous visual sense, but also it's slightly absurd point of view- I hit my limit of bad holiday advertising visuals in less than three hours. A new record I believe. Luckily, I have a significant counterbalance in memories of holidays past.

 

Last week when I was making pies the day before the holiday, with a buncha friends and family laughing and talking at a table across the room, just the act of looking down into the bowl at the pastry blender mixing fat and flour conjured up a breathtaking remembrance of the barren front yard and manual water pump of my Indiana grandmother. As a very young child I would sit on her ramshackle sagging porch staring out at that pump while we waited impatiently for the pie-day treat she always made us... little individual piecrusts to eat plain and salty and warm from the oven. And then, as always happens when that visual comes to mind, I remembered too how her kitchen looked when my grandad would take a bath in the galvanized tub, with water from the pump heated in kettles on the stove while she was baking the pies. If I was paid to I don't believe I could recall the timbre of my grandfather's voice, or what kind of fillings grandma put in the full-sized piecrusts.... but I could paint you an accurate picture of that front yard, and can draw a groundplan of that kitchen with its farmhouse table and well-used butter churn and the hole in one of the sagging floorboards that you had to avoid. It's not that I didn't love them.... it's that my visual memories overwhelm most of the others.

 

There's another visual memory I was trying to describe to Matt recently. Much harder to describe. One Christmas Eve when I was maybe 8 or 9 or 10 years old, and we lived in a happy but crowded small duplex, I escaped to the tiny bathroom- the only room with a lock on the door- to elude the party downstairs and the inevitable festive chaos for a few minutes. It had snowed that day, which prompted some of the celebration below, and in there, with the lights turned off, the quality of the light that came through the venetian blinds- reflected off the cold white untrammeled-as-yet snow twenty feet below- had a serenity and a magical quality to it that I've never forgotten. Almost blue, but feeling both warm and cool at the same time. Bright enough that there must have been a full moon, though I don't recall seeing it. The din belowstairs seemed far away for a moment, and there was a feeling of promise to it that I know had to do with anticipation of Christmas, but that felt- in that moment- something more portentous than that.

 

I bring this one up because, over the many years since that night, maybe once every few years, I will be in a dark room somewhere and the quality of the light will immediately transport me back to that moment.... and I'll see it again as if I'm a child sitting in that tiny bathroom, just hours before Santa's anticipated arrival by sleigh. It's a very happy feeling.

 

Not all of the visual memories are holiday related, of course. Seeing lavendar growing anywhere near silver artemesia will bring to mind herbalist Adelma Simmons- now long dead- bending over a row of her plants in her signature capelette and skullcap tackling an unwanted weed. Any image hereabouts of a straight highway through a desert will recall to me precisely the way New Mexico looked over the dashboard of our rental car when Matt introduced me to the beauty of that part of the country via route 40. My friend Zen Granny posted a photograph from a mountaintop in Switzerland recently that brought back a memory of sitting on a misty mountaintop high above lake Lucerne so vivid and clear that I swear I could feel the chill in the air that I felt there 34 years ago. I've been known to miss my bus stop when someone on the route reminds me of my mother, and I get lost in a photorealistic picture in my head of a day she was across from me on the Newington to Hartford bus explaining to a newcomer where the best bargains were to be found in the area. I was a sullen teenager at the time too embarrassed to sit next to my mom, but not so jaded that I don't remember the exact way the late afternoon sun sat on her shoulder, or the grateful smile of the mousy blond woman in the incongruous black fishnet stockings who- though she didn't know it at the time- was being inducted into the exclusive cabal of my mother's G Fox & Company cronies.

 

Oh, you know I could go on and on, but I'll spare you the tedium. Sometimes this acute visual memory feels like a curse, but most of the time I'm grateful for it. Would I trade it for some of the memories that are less developed in me? ...names. ...dates. ...how to make money reliably. Those would be tempting ones to have. But not if I'd have to give this one up. Even if my friends do make fun of me for it.

Architect: Thomas Heatherwick

 

One of the more visually striking pavilions at the show was the UK's contribution. This six storey high cube was formed from some 60,000 slender transparent rods, which pass completely through the structure like quills. The rods act like fibre optic filaments, drawing on daylight to illuminate the interior. At night, there are light sources in interior sides projecting outward, which allow the whole structure to glow.

 

Each of the rods contains one species of seed. The building is intended as a seed bank for conservation of the world's plant species.

 

This place had one of the longest lines. While I avoided lines for most of the exhibits, this one was worth the wait!

 

Toute reproduction sur un support imprimé ou publication sur internet devra faire l'objet d'une demande expresse auprès du service communication de la Fédération Française Handisport.

Toute utilisation ainsi autorisée devra mentionner le crédit photo (voir nom du fichier ci-dessus : “©…” ou métadonnées de la photo dans sa taille originale).

Contact : photos [at] handisport.org

Perhaps the most visually compelling element in the Over mansion is this exquisitely detailed Classical inspired porch pediment. It combines lines from Classical Antiquity with Georgian era details reinterpreted though early 20th century eyes and tastes. Although merely part of an architectural statement, I view this as a genuine artistic statement worthy of careful study to fully appreciate the Old World workmanship from this era over a century ago. The stylized symmetrical Georgian Revival window at the center of the pediment was missing for a while but an exact replica was made for a previous restorer. Over 20 years of careful restoration work has gone into this mansion and continues.

The southwest corner of the Clark's living room is a visually rich space. On the right, a table covered with a tasseled cloth contains a glass oil lamp, two mounted photographs, a glass bowl, and two containers, possibly ceramic. The tabletop, as well as the board between the stretchers, contains numerous booklets and papers. The reproduction landscape painting above also contains photographs. In the corner, a shelf holds three clocks, while below that is a vase of feathers and a chair, hidden by a large pillow. Two chairs, a wooden Chippendale rocking chair and classical side chair are placed in front of the corner. The wallpaper has a stylized floral motif, and the cornice paper is an enlarged version of the pattern. The postcard measures 5 and 3/8 inches by 3 and 3/8 inches. Circa 1907-1912. SHSI IC E. M. Clark Coll PA 58

 

Source: State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City

Reproductions and permissions: www.iowaculture.gov/history/research/research-centers/cop...

In the seed processing plant at Bidasem, workers visually examine and manually sift maize seed on a conveyor belt, picking out material such as damaged or spoiled seed or pieces of cob. After initial cleaning and sorting, all seed that goes through the plant passes through quality control. If a sample from a batch is found to more have more than 2% impurities, they are either separated out by hand like this or using a gravity table. The batch is then resampled to ensure a clean bill of health to continue processing.

 

Bidasem is a small seed company based in the central Mexican plains region known as the Bajío. It produces approximately 10,000 bags of maize seed a year, each holding 22.5kg, as well as producing wheat and oat seed and marketing seed of other crops. Despite their small size, Bidasem and similar companies play an important role in improving farmers’ livelihoods. “Our aim is to provide farmers with quality seed at accessible prices, that is adapted to the conditions we have here in the Bajío. It’s a great satisfaction, when farmers achieve the yields they need,” says director general María Esther Rivas.

 

“Without CIMMYT, we couldn’t exist,” says Rivas. She sells four different maize hybrids, all formed from freely-available CIMMYT parent lines. “Really the most important thing is to produce your own hybrids, and for us it wouldn’t be possible if we didn’t have the germplasm from CIMMYT. What we’re currently producing is 100% CIMMYT.” The relationship between Bidasem and CIMMYT is now deepening through participation in the MasAgro initiative, which includes training courses for seed companies and collaborative trials to evaluate the best seed.

 

Photo credit: X. Fonseca/CIMMYT.

 

For more on seed production at Bidasem, and CIMMYT's role in providing the best seed, see CIMMYT's 2012 e-news story The seed chain: producing better seed for small farmers, available online at: www.cimmyt.org/en/newsletter/598-2012/1398-the-seed-chain....

Toute reproduction sur un support imprimé ou publication sur internet devra faire l'objet d'une demande expresse auprès du service communication de la Fédération Française Handisport.

Toute utilisation ainsi autorisée devra mentionner le crédit photo (voir nom du fichier ci-dessus : “©…” ou métadonnées de la photo dans sa taille originale).

Contact : photos [at] handisport.org

 

Drawing is a form of visual art in which a person uses various drawing instruments to mark paper or another two-dimensional medium. Instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoal, chalk, pastels, various kinds of erasers, markers, styluses, various metals (such as silverpoint) and electronic drawing.

 

A drawing instrument releases small amount of material onto a surface, leaving a visible mark. The most common support for drawing is paper, although other materials, such as cardboard, plastic, leather, canvas, and board, may be used. Temporary drawings may be made on a blackboard or whiteboard or indeed almost anything. The medium has been a popular and fundamental means of public expression throughout human history. It is one of the simplest and most efficient means of communicating visual ideas.[1] The wide availability of drawing instruments makes drawing one of the most common artistic activities.

In addition to its more artistic forms, drawing is frequently used in commercial illustration, animation, architecture, engineering and technical drawing. A quick, freehand drawing, usually not intended as a finished work, is sometimes called a sketch. An artist who practices or works in technical drawing may be called a drafter, draftsman or a draughtsman.[2]

Drawing is one of the major forms of expression within the visual arts. It is generally concerned with the marking of lines and areas of tone onto paper/other material, where the accurate representation of the visual world is expressed upon a plane surface.[3] Traditional drawings were monochrome, or at least had little colour,[4] while modern colored-pencil drawings may approach or cross a boundary between drawing and painting. In Western terminology, drawing is distinct from painting, even though similar media often are employed in both tasks. Dry media, normally associated with drawing, such as chalk, may be used in pastel paintings. Drawing may be done with a liquid medium, applied with brushes or pens. Similar supports likewise can serve both: painting generally involves the application of liquid paint onto prepared canvas or panels, but sometimes an underdrawing is drawn first on that same support.

  

Madame Palmyre with Her Dog, 1897. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

 

Galileo Galilei. Phases of the Moon. 1616.

Drawing is often exploratory, with considerable emphasis on observation, problem-solving and composition. Drawing is also regularly used in preparation for a painting, further obfuscating their distinction. Drawings created for these purposes are called studies.

 

There are several categories of drawing, including figure drawing, cartooning, doodling, free hand and shading. There are also many drawing methods, such as line drawing, stippling, shading, the surrealist method of entopic graphomania (in which dots are made at the sites of impurities in a blank sheet of paper, and lines are then made between the dots), and tracing (drawing on a translucent paper, such as tracing paper, around the outline of preexisting shapes that show through the paper).

 

A quick, unrefined drawing may be called a sketch.

 

In fields outside art, technical drawings or plans of buildings, machinery, circuitry and other things are often called "drawings" even when they have been transferred to another medium by printing.

 

History[edit]

Drawing as a Form of Communication Drawing is one of the oldest forms of human expression, with evidence for its existence preceding that of written communication.[5] It is believed that drawing was used as a specialised form of communication before the invent of the written language,[5][6] demonstrated by the production of cave and rock paintings created by Homo sapiens sapiens around 30,000 years ago.[7] These drawings, known as pictograms, depicted objects and abstract concepts.[8] The sketches and paintings produced in prehistoric times were eventually stylised and simplified, leading to the development of the written language as we know it today.

 

Drawing in the Arts Drawing is used to express one's creativity, and therefore has been prominent in the world of art. Throughout much of history, drawing was regarded as the foundation for artistic practise.[9] Initially, artists used and reused wooden tablets for the production of their drawings.[10] Following the widespread availability of paper in the 14th century, the use of drawing in the arts increased. At this point, drawing was commonly used as a tool for thought and investigation, acting as a study medium whilst artists were preparing for their final pieces of work.[11][12] In a period of artistic flourish, the Renaissance brought about drawings exhibiting realistic representational qualities,[13] where there was a lot of influence from geometry and philosophy.[14]

 

The invention of the first widely available form of photography led to a shift in the use of drawing in the arts.[15] Photography took over from drawing as a more superior method for accurately representing visual phenomena, and artists began to abandon traditional drawing practises.[16] Modernism in the arts encouraged "imaginative originality"[17] and artists' approach to drawing became more abstract.

 

Drawing Outside the Arts Although the use of drawing is extensive in the arts, its practice is not confined purely to this field. Before the widespread availability of paper, 12th century monks in European monasteries used intricate drawings to prepare illustrated, illuminated manuscripts on vellum and parchment. Drawing has also been used extensively in the field of science, as a method of discovery, understanding and explanation. In 1616, astronomer Galileo Galilei explained the changing phases of the moon through his observational telescopic drawings.[16] Additionally, in 1924, geophysicist Alfred Wegener used illustrations to visually demonstrate the origin of the continents.The medium is the means by which ink, pigment or color are delivered onto the drawing surface. Most drawing media are either dry (e.g. graphite, charcoal, pastels, Conté, silverpoint), or use a fluid solvent or carrier (marker, pen and ink). Watercolor pencils can be used dry like ordinary pencils, then moistened with a wet brush to get various painterly effects. Very rarely, artists have drawn with (usually decoded) invisible ink. Metalpoint drawing usually employs either of two metals: silver or lead.[20] More rarely used are gold, platinum, copper, brass, bronze, and tinpoint.

 

Paper comes in a variety of different sizes and qualities, ranging from newspaper grade up to high quality and relatively expensive paper sold as individual sheets.[21] Papers can vary in texture, hue, acidity, and strength when wet. Smooth paper is good for rendering fine detail, but a more "toothy" paper holds the drawing material better. Thus a coarser material is useful for producing deeper contrast.

 

Newsprint and typing paper may be useful for practice and rough sketches. Tracing paper is used to experiment over a half-finished drawing, and to transfer a design from one sheet to another. Cartridge paper is the basic type of drawing paper sold in pads. Bristol board and even heavier acid-free boards, frequently with smooth finishes, are used for drawing fine detail and do not distort when wet media (ink, washes) are applied. Vellum is extremely smooth and suitable for very fine detail. Coldpressed watercolor paper may be favored for ink drawing due to its texture.

 

Acid-free, archival quality paper keeps its color and texture far longer than wood pulp based paper such as newsprint, which turns yellow and become brittle much sooner.

 

The basic tools are a drawing board or table, pencil sharpener and eraser, and for ink drawing, blotting paper. Other tools used are circle compass, ruler, and set square. Fixative is used to prevent pencil and crayon marks from smudging. Drafting tape is used to secure paper to drawing surface, and also to mask an area to keep it free of accidental marks sprayed or spattered materials and washes. An easel or slanted table is used to keep the drawing surface in a suitable position, which is generally more horizontal than the position used in painting.

 

Technique[edit]

 

Raphael, study for what became the Alba Madonna, with other sketches

Almost all draftsmen use their hands and fingers to apply the media, with the exception of some handicapped individuals who draw with their mouth or feet.[22]

 

Prior to working on an image, the artist typically explores how various media work. They may try different drawing implements on practice sheets to determine value and texture, and how to apply the implement to produce various effects.

 

The artist's choice of drawing strokes affects the appearance of the image. Pen and ink drawings often use hatching—groups of parallel lines.[23] Cross-hatching uses hatching in two or more different directions to create a darker tone. Broken hatching, or lines with intermittent breaks, form lighter tones—and controlling the density of the breaks achieves a gradation of tone. Stippling, uses dots to produce tone, texture or shade. Different textures can be achieved depending on the method used to build tone.[24]

 

Drawings in dry media often use similar techniques, though pencils and drawing sticks can achieve continuous variations in tone. Typically a drawing is filled in based on which hand the artist favors. A right-handed artist draws from left to right to avoid smearing the image. Erasers can remove unwanted lines, lighten tones, and clean up stray marks. In a sketch or outline drawing, lines drawn often follow the contour of the subject, creating depth by looking like shadows cast from a light in the artist's position.

 

Sometimes the artist leaves a section of the image untouched while filling in the remainder. The shape of the area to preserve can be painted with masking fluid or cut out of a frisket and applied to the drawing surface, protecting the surface from stray marks until the mask is removed.

 

Another method to preserve a section of the image is to apply a spray-on fixative to the surface. This holds loose material more firmly to the sheet and prevents it from smearing. However the fixative spray typically uses chemicals that can harm the respiratory system, so it should be employed in a well-ventilated area such as outdoors.

 

Another technique is subtractive drawing in which the drawing surface is covered with graphite or charcoal and then erased to make the image.[25]

 

Tone[edit]

 

Line drawing in sanguine by Leonardo da Vinci

Shading is the technique of varying the tonal values on the paper to represent the shade of the material as well as the placement of the shadows. Careful attention to reflected light, shadows and highlights can result in a very realistic rendition of the image.

 

Blending uses an implement to soften or spread the original drawing strokes. Blending is most easily done with a medium that does not immediately fix itself, such as graphite, chalk, or charcoal, although freshly applied ink can be smudged, wet or dry, for some effects. For shading and blending, the artist can use a blending stump, tissue, a kneaded eraser, a fingertip, or any combination of them. A piece of chamois is useful for creating smooth textures, and for removing material to lighten the tone. Continuous tone can be achieved with graphite on a smooth surface without blending, but the technique is laborious, involving small circular or oval strokes with a somewhat blunt point.

 

Shading techniques that also introduce texture to the drawing include hatching and stippling. A number of other methods produce texture. In addition to the choice of paper, drawing material and technique affect texture. Texture can be made to appear more realistic when it is drawn next to a contrasting texture; a coarse texture is more obvious when placed next to a smoothly blended area. A similar effect can be achieved by drawing different tones close together. A light edge next to a dark background stands out to the eye, and almost appears to float above the surface.

 

Form and proportion[edit]

 

Pencil portrait by Ingres

Measuring the dimensions of a subject while blocking in the drawing is an important step in producing a realistic rendition of the subject. Tools such as a compass can be used to measure the angles of different sides. These angles can be reproduced on the drawing surface and then rechecked to make sure they are accurate. Another form of measurement is to compare the relative sizes of different parts of the subject with each other. A finger placed at a point along the drawing implement can be used to compare that dimension with other parts of the image. A ruler can be used both as a straightedge and a device to compute proportions.

 

When attempting to draw a complicated shape such as a human figure, it is helpful at first to represent the form with a set of primitive volumes. Almost any form can be represented by some combination of the cube, sphere, cylinder, and cone. Once these basic volumes have been assembled into a likeness, then the drawing can be refined into a more accurate and polished form. The lines of the primitive volumes are removed and replaced by the final likeness. Drawing the underlying construction is a fundamental skill for representational art, and is taught in many books and schools. Its correct application resolves most uncertainties about smaller details, and makes the final image look consistent.[26]

 

A more refined art of figure drawing relies upon the artist possessing a deep understanding of anatomy and the human proportions. A trained artist is familiar with the skeleton structure, joint location, muscle placement, tendon movement, and how the different parts work together during movement. This allows the artist to render more natural poses that do not appear artificially stiff. The artist is also familiar with how the proportions vary depending on the age of the subject, particularly when drawing a portrait.

 

Perspective[edit]

Linear perspective is a method of portraying objects on a flat surface so that the dimensions shrink with distance. Each set of parallel, straight edges of any object, whether a building or a table, follows lines that eventually converge at a vanishing point. Typically this convergence point is somewhere along the horizon, as buildings are built level with the flat surface. When multiple structures are aligned with each other, such as buildings along a street, the horizontal tops and bottoms of the structures typically converge at a vanishing point.

  

Two-point perspective drawing

When both the fronts and sides of a building are drawn, then the parallel lines forming a side converge at a second point along the horizon (which may be off the drawing paper.) This is a two-point perspective.[27] Converging the vertical lines to a third point above or below the horizon then produces a three-point perspective.

 

Depth can also be portrayed by several techniques in addition to the perspective approach above. Objects of similar size should appear ever smaller the further they are from the viewer. Thus the back wheel of a cart appears slightly smaller than the front wheel. Depth can be portrayed through the use of texture. As the texture of an object gets further away it becomes more compressed and busy, taking on an entirely different character than if it was close. Depth can also be portrayed by reducing the contrast in more distant objects, and by making their colors less saturated. This reproduces the effect of atmospheric haze, and cause the eye to focus primarily on objects drawn in the foreground.

 

Artistry[edit]

 

Chiaroscuro study drawing by William-Adolphe Bouguereau

The composition of the image is an important element in producing an interesting work of artistic merit. The artist plans element placement in the art to communicate ideas and feelings with the viewer. The composition can determine the focus of the art, and result in a harmonious whole that is aesthetically appealing and stimulating.

 

The illumination of the subject is also a key element in creating an artistic piece, and the interplay of light and shadow is a valuable method in the artist's toolbox. The placement of the light sources can make a considerable difference in the type of message that is being presented. Multiple light sources can wash out any wrinkles in a person's face, for instance, and give a more youthful appearance. In contrast, a single light source, such as harsh daylight, can serve to highlight any texture or interesting features.

 

When drawing an object or figure, the skilled artist pays attention to both the area within the silhouette and what lies outside. The exterior is termed the negative space, and can be as important in the representation as the figure. Objects placed in the background of the figure should appear properly placed wherever they can be viewed.

  

Drawing process in the Academic Study of a Male Torso by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1801, National Museum, Warsaw)

A study is a draft drawing that is made in preparation for a planned final image. Studies can be used to determine the appearances of specific parts of the completed image, or for experimenting with the best approach for accomplishing the end goal. However a well-crafted study can be a piece of art in its own right, and many hours of careful work can go into completing a study.

 

Process[edit]

Individuals display differences in their ability to produce visually accurate drawings.[28] A visually accurate drawing is described as being "recognized as a particular object at a particular time and in a particular space, rendered with little addition of visual detail that can not be seen in the object represented or with little deletion of visual detail”.[29]

 

Investigative studies have aimed to explain the reasons why some individuals draw better than others. One study posited four key abilities in the drawing process: perception of objects being drawn, ability to make good representational decisions, motor skills required for mark-making and the drawer's own perception of their drawing.[29] Following this hypothesis, several studies have sought to conclude which of these processes are most significant in affecting the accuracy of drawings.

 

Motor function Motor function is an important physical component in the 'Production Phase' of the drawing process.[30] It has been suggested that motor function plays a role in drawing ability, though its effects are not significant.[29]

 

Perception It has been suggested that an individual's ability to perceive an object they are drawing is the most important stage in the drawing process.[29] This suggestion is supported by the discovery of a robust relationship between perception and drawing ability.[31]

 

This evidence acted as the basis of Betty Edwards' how-to drawing book, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain.[32] Edwards aimed to teach her readers how to draw, based on the development of the reader's perceptual abilities.

 

Furthermore, the influential artist and art critic John Ruskin emphasised the importance of perception in the drawing process in his book The Elements of Drawing.[33] He stated that "For I am nearly convinced, that once we see keenly enough, there is very little difficult in drawing what we see".

 

Visual memory has also been shown to influence one's ability to create visually accurate drawings. Short-term memory plays an important part in drawing as one’s gaze shifts between the object they are drawing and the drawing itself.[34]

Not my sharpest image!

But I think it's interesting visually.

 

On the menu: 2 Boeing 777 - 2 Boeing 767- 3 Boeing 737- 1 Boeing 747-

1 MD11 - 1 Airbus A320 and 1 Dash8 Q-400

 

Nikon D300 Nikkor 200-400mm f/4 VR

 

Toute reproduction sur un support imprimé ou publication sur internet devra faire l'objet d'une demande expresse auprès du service communication de la Fédération Française Handisport.

Toute utilisation ainsi autorisée devra mentionner le crédit photo (voir nom du fichier ci-dessus : “©…” ou métadonnées de la photo dans sa taille originale).

Contact : photos [at] handisport.org

Designed by Cuno Amiet 1912. During the latter part of the nineteenth century, Switzerland, due to its mountainous terrain, difficult geography and a population who spoke four different languages, promoted country wide activities to help tie its citizens together with a sense of Swiss nationalism. A variety of Swiss government competitions and contests such as marksmanship skills required posters promoting the events throughout the country. (No television or radio in those days.)

 

It was out of this national effort supporting clear, visually attractive graphics that the Swiss contemporary design movement eventually devoloped.

Visually identical to the Jenoptem models, this example came in great condition but out of collimation. Performance is not as good as my Jenoptem 7x50, image goes soft towards the edge of the field quicker than I would expect from this model. Still has the great Zeiss smell though!

Usable with Spectacles =No

Quoting Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum | Focke-Achgelis Fa 330A-1 Bachsteltze (Water Wagtail):

 

This rotary-wing kite allowed German submarines to locate targets in heavy seas. Towed aloft by Type IX D2 U-Boats to a maximum altitude of 220 meters, the pilot had a possible sighting distance of 53 kilometers. U-Boat commanders disliked the Fa 330, because it gave away the location of the submarine, both visually and on radar. Only U-Boats operating in the Indian Ocean deployed them, because Allied naval superiority in the Atlantic Ocean made surfacing in the daylight extremely hazardous.

 

A crew of four could assemble and disassemble the Fa 330 in three minutes. When not in use, the aircraft remained stowed in two watertight tubes in the U-Boat's conning tower. The pilot communicated his observations by a telephone line that ran along the tow cable. The Fa 330 was simple to fly, and an ingenious parachute system allowed the pilot to escape from the aircraft at relatively low altitudes.

 

Transferred from the U.S. Air Force.

 

Manufacturer:

Weser-Flugzeugbau

 

Date:

1942-1948

 

Country of Origin:

Germany

 

Dimensions:

Rotor diameter 7.315m (24 ft), Height 1.829m (6ft), length 4.4196m (14ft6 in)

 

Materials:

Airframe - steel-tube covered with fabric.

Rotor blades - wood frame covered with fabric.

 

Physical Description:

Single-seat gyroglider with skid gear and 3-bladed rotor; breaks down for storage aboard U-boat; overall pale blue; stuffed, black leather seat cushion, olive drab canvas seat back.

 

Focke-Achgelis Fa 330 A-1 Bachstelze (Water Wagtail) (extended description)

 

Henrich Focke startled the aviation world when he flew his Focke-Wulf Fw 61 helicopter in 1937. It quickly shattered all records for helicopter speed, altitude, distance, and endurance. Thanks to Focke and fellow helicopter pioneer, Anton Flettner, Germany entered World War II as the leader in rotorcraft technology. By 1942, the German Navy was already testing Flettner's twin-rotor helicopter, the Fl 282. Navy leaders hoped to use this aircraft to hunt for enemy submarines and protect convoys. The tests convinced them to continue to develop rotary-winged aircraft for shipboard use.

 

During World War 2, German naval strategy and Britain's survival hinged on the success or failure of the U-boat service to interdict the flow of material from the United States. However, the U-boats depended primarily on visual acquisition of their targets. They rode low in the water and a lookout could not see vessels more than 8 km (5 miles) away, even when surfaced. Small, submarine-launched aircraft offered a novel solution in regions free of enemy patrol aircraft.

 

Beginning in World War I, several nations experimented with submarine-based observation aircraft with mediocre results and interest waned after the Armistice. The start of World War II renewed interest in Germany and Japan in developing this technology. The German Navy looked first at the Arado Ar 231 but this collapsible seaplane proved a failure. It handled poorly on the water and took too long to assemble and disassemble. As the sub's crew put the airplane together on the open deck, the submarine was extremely vulnerable. As a result, the German Navy quickly terminated the Ar 231 program.

 

By the spring of 1942, the Battle of the Atlantic was beginning to turn against Germany. The U. S. Navy was deploying increasing numbers of anti-submarine assets to protect the eastern seaboard, once a fertile hunting ground for prowling U-boats. The submarine commanders moved their patrols far out to sea to avoid Allied air cover and roaming destroyers. High sea states in these open waters restricted visibility to several kilometers or less, and U-boat commanders were hard-pressed to acquire targets. The expanse of the open ocean also worsened the target detection problem. Near the coast, Allied ships traveled in relatively narrow areas. A U-boat could wait, just beneath the waves in daylight or float on the surface at night, and expect with some certainty that a target would steam within detection range. Away from the coast, U-boats had to patrol much larger areas and this reduced the chances of detecting Allied ships. German sonar and radar technology lagged behind Allied developments and also made detection of the U-boats easier.

 

The navy asked Focke-Achgelis GmbH to build a rotorkite that a U-boat could tow aloft to search for targets. The aircraft had to fly high enough to substantially boost the scouting range, yet remain small, easy to store, and mechanically simple to maintain and operate. Focke-Achgelis proposed a clever design best characterized by simplicity. The Fa 330 was simple to fabricate, easy to assemble on deck for flight, and weighed so little that two men could comfortably hoist the entire machine. The Fa 330 needed no engine because the submarine towed the gyro kite through the air. Like a gyro plane, the rotorkite flew by autorotation, meaning that the movement of relative wind through the rotors caused them to turn with sufficient speed to generate lift.

 

The airframe consisted of two 6.35 cm (2.5 in) diameter steel tubes joined to form an inverted 'T.' One tube served as the fuselage of the aircraft, which mounted the pilot's seat and rear control surfaces. The other tube served as the rotor mast. A control stick hung from the blade hub atop the mast. The pilot moved the stick for direct (no intervening control linkage) pitch and roll control, and he used foot pedals to move the large rudder and control yaw. The horizontal stabilizer had no moving control surfaces. Weight was saved on the rotor hub by using steel cables to support the blades against blade droop when the aircraft was not flying. The cables also limited the blades' range of movement when during flight. Instrumentation consisted of an altimeter, airspeed indicator, and tachometer. Its landing gear consisted of two small skids.

 

The three-bladed rotor turned freely but was limited to 250 rpm. This limit was reached if the aircraft attained a never-exceed speed of 80 kph (50 mph). Normal flight rpm was about 205 at a standard towing airspeed of 40 km/h (25 mph). A minimum speed of 27 kph (17 mph) was required to maintain autorotation. Blade pitch could only be set before flight by turning adjustment screws. The blades used flapping and dragging hinges equipped with variable dampers. The rotor blades consisted of a 3.2 m (10 ft 4 in) steel spar that supported plywood ribs. The blades were 0.3 m (12 in) wide and skinned with fabric-covered plywood. The blade airfoil was almost symmetrical. The blades were precisely balanced during the manufacturing process, which eliminated the need for difficult and time-consuming manual balancing at sea.

 

The Fa-330 was stowed in two tubes of approximately 3.75 meters (12 ft 4in) length built vertically into the U-boat's conning tower. One tube contained the blades and tail and the other contained the fuselage. Four crewmen could assemble the entire structure in three minutes in calm conditions. Rotation of the blades in preparation for flight could be done by hand, but if a course pitch (which provided the best operating performance) was preset on the rotor blades this became extremely difficult. In that case, a rope wrapped around drum on the rotor hub was used to get the rotor turning. The Fa 330 took off from a small platform attached to the aft railing of the U-boat's conning tower. A towline extended from an electric winch to a quick release coupling on the Fa 330. Since the primary duty of the Fa 330 was to spot suitable targets, communication with the towing vessel was essential. The pilot used an interphone system that consisted of a telephone cable, which paralleled the towline. Upon landing a rotor brake was provided to quickly stop the rotor spinning. Disassembly time was not much greater than that required for assembly. If the U-boat came under attack and had to make a crash dive the pilot could pull a quick release lever above the seat, and the towline would separate from the aircraft in addition to releasing the rotor hub from the mast. As the rotors departed they pulled a line out, which deployed a parachute. Once the parachute opened, the pilot released his seat buckle, which allowed the remainder of the aircraft structure to fall away. Additionally, the towline quick release coupling could be manually operated without engaging the rotor release.

 

By early August 1942, Focke-Achgelis had completed the first prototype Fa 330 and had begun operational testing aboard U 523 in the Baltic Sea with positive results, though it clearly demonstrated that the Type VIIC U-boats were to slow to tow the aircraft successfully. A wind tunnel at Chalais-Meudon, France served as a simulator to train several crewmembers from each vessel that carried a Fa 330. Since very few of the prospective pilots had previous flight experience, and would have little opportunity to practice while on patrol, it was essential that the aircraft be easy to fly. The Fa 330 was stable enough that the pilot could release the stick for seconds at a time without a loss of control.

 

At the time the Fa 330 received clearance for deployment at the beginning of 1943, only the Type IX U-boat, with its surface speed of 18 knots, had sufficient speed to ensure the Fa 330 remained airborne in low wind conditions. The Fa 330 used a steel tow cable 300 meters (984 ft) in length, which allowed it to ascend to a maximum altitude of 220 meters (722 ft) when flying at the top speed of 80 km/h (50 mph). At that altitude, spotting distance was 53 kilometers (33 miles) in clear conditions. Like a kite, the maximum altitude attainable was dependent on airspeed. If the airspeed dropped to 50 km/h (31 mph), then the maximum altitude became 200 meters (656 ft) with a possible spotting distance of 50 kilometers (31 miles). If the speed dropped to the minimum safe towing speed of 35 km/h (22 mph) then the maximum altitude was only 100 meters (328 ft), with a possible spotting distance of 35 kilometers (22 miles).

 

Unfortunately, the Fa 330 possessed a large radar signature and because most of the Atlantic convoys employed numerous escort vessels for anti-submarine duty by the time the Fa 330 entered service, it was impractical to deploy the rotorkite in that ocean. However, in the Indian Ocean, merchantmen still plied the seas without benefit of the convoy system and the Fa 330 could serve the U-boat service to some effect. The U-boat service began committing its longest-range vessels - the Type IX D2, known as the Monsoon boats, to operate with the Fa 330 in the Indian Ocean, frequently operating out of bases borrowed from the Japanese. The first operational deployment of the type occurred in April 1943 aboard U 177, which managed to sink one vessel on August 5 with the aid of the Fa 330.

 

Operational details of the Fa 330's combat service are almost nonexistent after the U 177 deployment. This is undoubtedly because of the extremely high loss rate among U-boats, which has meant that very few ships' logs have survived. There were several concerns that prevented wider employment of the Fa 330. A U-boat commander was faced with a choice between risking his entire vessel and crew to recover the pilot, or to crash dive the submarine and leave the unfortunate individual to suffer an almost certain death, in the event that the submarine had been spotted, in addition to the fact that it gave away the U-boats primary advantage - stealth. It appears that some U-boat commanders who were not enamored with the Fa 330 took the opportunity to trade them to the Japanese in exchange for floatplanes to patrol around U-boat bases in Java and Malaya. The Japanese Navy enjoyed more success with submarine launched aircraft. They had several classes of large submarines that could carry, launch and recover seaplanes capable of carrying reasonable weapon loads and which would not give away the submarine's position.

 

Although Focke-Achgelis was responsible for the development of the Fa 330, Weser-Flugzeugbau in Hoyenkamp actually produced the aircraft with approximately 200 Fa 330s produced alongside Focke-Achgelis's most significant product - the Fa 223 helicopter, which was the largest rotary wing aircraft of the war. The only notable variation that occurred during Fa 330 production was increase in the span of the rotor blades to 3.79 meters (12 ft 5 in). Later production Fa 330s also had mountings for small wheels to be added to the skids to aid in moving the aircraft on the ground. A version of the Fa 330 was under consideration for surface vessels, which was actually a true helicopter that used a 200 lb, 60 horsepower engine, however this design did not progress much beyond the drawing board.

 

The Fa 330 was viewed with a great deal of interest by the Allies following its discovery on U-852 after it ran aground off the Somali coast during an air attack on May 3, 1944. The performance of the Fa 330 was not as interesting to Allied Intelligence as was the simplicity, ease of production, and speed with which it could be assembled. It was apparent that such a design allowed a significant increase in visual range at sea for very little effort.

 

After the war, the United States and Britain conducted extensive tests on the Fa 330 to evaluate this type of aircraft for observation purposes. Captured Fa 330s towed behind boats and even jeeps provided positive results, but the introduction of the helicopter into naval operations rendered such concepts obsolete. A number of these easily stored aircraft appeared on the collector's market, even occasionally showing up in Army-Navy surplus stores and a number survive in museums around the world.

 

The National Air and Space Museum fully restored its Fa 330 in 1975. It bears the captured aircraft registration number of T2-4618, but it appears likely that the museum's aircraft is actually T2-4616, which was in a display example of captured German technology at Freeman Field in 1946. The Army Air Force then loaned it to Eastern Rotor Craft of Pennsylvania in 1947 for an evaluation after which it into storage for the National Air Museum. T2-4618 conducted a number of flight tests at Wright Field in 1946, during which it was equipped with a wheeled landing gear and towed by a truck. However the relatively large landing gear upset the center-of-gravity and made the aircraft difficult to takeoff and land. After four successful flights the aircraft rolled on landing and sustained some damage. The aircraft was repaired and sent to MacDill Air Force Base for further testing in 1948. There it was towed behind a boat, minus the wheeled undercarriage, for consideration as an aid for U.S. Air Force small rescue boats in spotting downed airmen in the water. Unfortunately in August 1948 the towline broke and the aircraft sank in Tampa Bay, but pilot Capt. Raymond A. Popson managed to escape. The aircraft mysteriously disappeared from where it sank and rumors state that it may have turned up in an army surplus store over twenty years later.

 

The Fa 330 undoubtedly achieved its designed objectives, however by the time the aircraft entered service the tide had irreversibly turn against the U-boat service. If this simplest of aircraft had been available at the beginning of the war, then merchant shipping might have suffered significantly higher losses. The fact that this design was not used more extensively is more an acknowledgement of allied air and naval supremacy over the sea-lanes than any failure of the equipment to live up to its expectations.

 

Rotor Diameter:8.53 m (28 ft)

Length:4.47 m (14 ft 8 in)

Height:1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)

Weight:Empty, 75 kg (165 lb) [not including 10 kg (22 lb) parachute]

Gross, 175 kg (386 lb)

Serial Number:T2-4616

 

References and Further Reading:

 

Butler, Phil. War Prizes. Leicester, England: Midland Counties Publications, 1994.

 

Showell, Jak P. Mallman. U-Boats Under the Swastika. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1987.

 

Smith, J.R. German Aircraft of the Second World War. London: Putnam, 1972.

 

Treadwell, Terry. Strike From Beneath the Sea: A History of Aircraft-carrying Submarines. Charleston, South Carolina: Tempus Publishing Inc., 1999

 

Fa 330 curatorial file, Aeronautics Division, National Air and Space Museum.

 

Roger Connor, REL, 10-16-00

Really, a visually spectacular place.

Everything about it seems to be on an epic scale. Loved the drive from LA down through Nevada. Really, if you go to the States you have to go to Vegas.

I took this shot across from my hotel as I was going to find some breakfast.

I want to go back and take a lot more photographs but doubt that's possible. Holidaying in the US is bloody expensive.

Bali is one of the few places on earth made visually stunning by its main economic activity. In no other locale of the island does this hold truer than in the Tabanan District of west Bali where the cascading rice terraces of Jatiluwih are the most striking feature of the agricultural landscape, claiming even slopes that look too formidable to be of any possible use.

 

Along with majestic Pekerisan River in Gianyar and the stately Taman Ayun Temple in Mengwi, Jatiluwih has been chosen as a new nominee as a World Heritage site. It’s a great honor for Bali to have its natural and cultural wonders included, as the sites will take their place right along side world-famous Borobudur, Prambanan, the Sangiran archaeological site, Ujung Kulon, Lorentz and Komodo national parks, and the tropical rainforests of Sumatra.

The achingly picturesque area of Jatiluwih actually comprises not only rice fields but also forests, lakes, springs, temples and a huge natural mountain reserve scattered over a wide area around the slopes Mount Batukaru, a sacred landscape whose boundaries are defined by a cluster of temples supported by traditional villages and farmlands administered by age-old subak organizations, the local water boards.

 

This site is among the most striking examples of terraced agriculture in the world and is arguably Bali’s oldest and most complex real-life model of the subak agricultural system which vividly reflects the intertwined, mutually beneficial relationship between the island’s traditional rice growing culture and its Bali Hindu spiritual belief system.

 

Bali’s terracing and irrigation practices are even more elaborate, sophisticated, and seasonably predictable than those on Java. Though beautiful rice field terraces also can also be found in Sumatra and Sulawesi, there is no irrigation organization in Indonesia comparable to Bali’s water conservation and distribution system. Only the 2000-year-old Ifugao rice terraces of the Philippines can hold a candle to Jatiluwih.

 

As it exemplifies such effective water usage over centuries, Bali’s famed environmentally friendly subak system itself is being considered for the World Heritage list. The effort to get the subak system listed to World Heritage status is especially urgent in the face of widespread diversion of agricultural lands. Over the past 20 years Bali lost more than 1,500 ha of precious rice fields to make way for the development of tourist resorts, restaurants, housing complexes, road construction and other commercial enterprises.

 

The Realm of Dewi Sri

Jatiluwih is one big sculpture. Because of the Tabanan area’s superb drainage pattern, the high volcanic ash content, and the island’s equable climate, conditions for traditional sawah cultivation exemplified by Jatiluwih’s terraces are perhaps the most ideal in all of Bali.

 

Rice growing is practiced as both an art and a science. Bali’s steep and narrow ravines, as typified especially in the western part of Jatiluwih, are not easy to dam. To remedy this problem, the area’s farmers have devised an ingenious system of hand-built aqueducts, small catchments, and underground canals to collect rainwater from Bali’s mountain lakes, spilling each farmer’s precious allotment of water onto tiers of paddy via thousands of tiny waterfalls.

 

Jatiluwih’s rice fields are irrigated by water that is sometimes channeled by tunnels through solid rock hillsides. Water needs high on the ridges often require tunnels two or three kilometers long. This complex irrigation system, continuously maintained, groomed, and plowed, has been developed over many centuries. The historical manuscript, the Bebetin, records that Balinese farmers have used the Subak system since at least 1071.

 

Some scholars have postulated that it is due to the expertise of Bali’s rice farmers that the Balinese have been able to support such a refined civilization with such a theatrical and colorful religion. The discipline required to share water and resources has created a remarkably cooperative way of life. Rugged individualists cannot exist in communities where every farmer is utterly dependent on the cooperation of his neighbors.

 

The word for rice (nasi), a staple of the Balinese diet, is the same word for “meal”. A Balinese cannot imagine a meal without rice. Specialized vocabularies deal with every aspect of rice farming, and a huge amount of time, energy, and money go into petitioning the gods so the rice farmer’s work may yield good results. Popping up everywhere in Jatiluwih’s rice terraces you see small temples dedicated to Dewi Sri, the beloved goddess of rice.

 

The whole concept of visually updating cars on a yearly basis has always seemed a bit extravagant to many people outside of the U.S. Whereas our cars could look pretty much the same year on year before finally being replaced in America sheet metal changes were often done after 12 months in a continuous effort to get people to buy the latest seasons vehicle.

One one hand you could say it got potential buyers to continually seek out your latest products and on the other it would bring about the term "built in obsolescence" making a pretty new purchase seem old hat! It must have caused a nightmare with model makers even now but I guess also a goldmine of potential for maximising a certain casting with only minimal changes.

This is the second Auto World Buick Estate Wagon Santa brought me this Christmas yet being a 1975 example and not a 1974 means its front panel and grille have been altered accordingly. Everything else looks pretty much the same meaning a true 1/64 scale Station Wagon laden with lashings of chrome and gaudy fake wood appliqué. I absolutely love this type of model and Auto World seem to be very good at making them! Mint and boxed.

I don't typically buy anything from the Revoltech series, mostly likely because the licenses that they play with aren't usually my thing. However, once in a while, an interesting figure pops up.

 

For the last little while, one of the more visually impressive sublines from the Revoltech is the Figure Complex: Amazing Yamaguchi line featuring various beloved X-Men characters sculpted by Yamaguchi Katsuhisa. I know a Wolverine and Magneto were released, and a Gambit will be released. I also believe the line has moved onto at least non-X characters with the recently solicited Iron Man.

 

Obviously, this figure is none of those - this is Psylocke.

 

For someone that likes figures and toys, it's surprising how few comics I've read. My introduction to the character was from the original Capcom Vs. Game, X-Men: Children of the Atom in all her uninhibited bouncy glory.

 

The character naturally has a long and storied past that I'd probably lose much sleep over if I actually tried to research. I believe that "too long, didn't read" version of it is that she is a mutant (duh) named Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock, the sister of Captain Marvel. Through a series of events such as self sacrifice and transference of mental capacities, she ends up in a body of an Japanese woman who is the brain dead wife of the leader of the Hand, an assassin clan, and is brainwashed into become one of them. She develops Psionic powers (ability to form things out of mental energy, mostly for her being blades), and eventually breaks free of this brainwashing, and that, friends is the genesis of the X-Men character Psylocke.

 

None of that matters, of course. I bought the figure because the previews made her look really, really, good, and Psylocke herself being a very sharp character design with long flowing purple hair and her purple kind-of-there outfit. While it's been out for probably 6 months now, I only recently got mine because I insist that the guy who sold it to me bring it to me personally... even if I had to wait six months.

 

If you've never watched gameplay of Psylocke, just think slinky female ninja dressed in purple capable of making various energy things. And, as mentioned, the prototype pictures show cased that very well. So, how did it do?

 

Well, let's start from the top.

 

Psylocke comes with the figure, two face plates (one neutral, one smiling), a sheathed katana, an empty sheath, twin katanas, twin energy katanas, twin Psyblades, 4 sets of hands, a detachable sash, and a dynamic stand with both a peg connector, along with a clamp that I guess would give you a bit more height with your aerial stuff but I never actually used it. I personally would have like an additional angry/attacking face plate because as it is, she's a bit too serene looking.

 

Also kind of neat is that on the cardboard insert (and side flaps of the box) are full colour prints of I guess what comic art inspired this particular design.

 

The Revoltech joint system is a bit different from the Figma and Figuart systems.. at least I guess they are, and at the very least this one is.

 

Articulation is very, very, very good. I cannot emphasize how much you can get this figure to do despite it's small size. The trade off is that some of the joints look really weird when not positioned properly, specifically the shoulders and knees, which are double or triple joints depending on which one we're talking about. Whomever designed the tray for holding Psylocke really didn't do the figure any favours to say the least. However, the amount of knee bend and chest press that this figure more than overshadows this first impression issue, and that range or movement is something you want for a figure like Psylocke.

 

In addition to the aforementioned, all your standard points of articulation are present. Bonus ones include a toe swivel, articulation for her sash, thigh swivel, independent neck and head articulation, and hair that can be lifted to all for greater neck movement, with the latter head/neck related items allowing for some great crouching poses.

 

Sadly, while her shoulders worked out just fine despite their wonky appearance, her ass suffers from the dreaded "thigh separation" scenario where the movement of the legs creates an unsightly gap where the thigh meets the back of the body, particularly notable given that she doesn't wear pants. But, again, at least the trade off is great articulation.

 

Psylocke I guess would technically be the action figure (or at least middle of the pack Japanese figure) equivalent of a Butterface release. To be fair, it is generally what was promised on the box, so I don't really have anyone to blame but myself for buying her if this was the key aspect that ruins the experience for me. Both the prototype and the final item feature the same round almost featureless face with the undersized nose.

 

No it's other things that serve not only as a topic of discussion, but also kind of give you a feeling as to why Figma and Figuarts are kind of priced the way they are.

 

Psylocke has an MSRP of about 6,000 Yen, which is about the price of your run of the mill Figuart, with Figma coming in closer to what.. 7,000 if not more these days? The releases are about the same size, but lets remember that Figuarts have no stand and very few accessories, and clearly Psylocke destroys any run of the mill Figuart figure in terms of value.

 

Part of the pricing on everything is of course the cut paid for the actual license, but it's not like a Marvel license is particularly cheap. So what else is there?

 

It pretty much comes down to paint.

 

If you look closely, you'll probably notice that Psylocke has no paint whatsoever on her fleshy bits. Not only does this look a bit meh, but it makes photographing her a major pain in the ass, especially if you're trying to bring out details.. like her nose and eye sockets. You'll notice that the paint masking on her leg bands isn't bad, but there are more weak spots than on its Figma and Figuarts competitors, especially if we're talking about figure with a relatively simple colour scheme. Some minor paint issues were also spotted on her neck piece, but those are primarily paint transfers. There were also some areas with paint overspray, but it wasn't anything bootleg bad, just something worth noting.

 

Her translucent purple hair is also a big seller for this figure. The overall final product is pretty good, but if you look closely (and in the instance of the back of her head, not even that close), you'll notice some very rough spots that I don't know were a QC issue or a design flaw. By comparison, nothing this was spotted on either KOS-MOS or T-ELOS, both of which are at least 7 years older than Psylocke.

 

For what it is worth, her effect parts are very well done, particularly her Psiblades with the gradient from cold to warm Purple. The quality of the stand itself is, from my analysis, more solid than a Figma stand, mostly due to a combination of better plastic, a thicker arm, and better designed joints. There were also no issues with regards to rough plastic finishes other than the aformentioned hair problems.

 

One other issue that I read about was the face plate itself. Some owners seem to be indicating that due to the way the face is mounted on the head (friction based, one slot, straight above the face) the figure arrived with the socket on the hair already worn out and wouldn't hold the face in place, or would be in danger of doing so in the future. I didn't have that issue on mine, but I do understand where they're coming from with these statements.

 

I should probably also mention the eyes. Those who are familiar with the Hot Toys world will know the term PERS, which is their fancy term for eyes that can be moved on the sculpts to facilitate an even greater amount of posing. Amazingly this figure also features eyeballs that can be moved, though it's not as complicated as the PERS system. This is actually pretty neat given the size of the eyeballs, though you might want to ditch the included white pick in favour of a tiny screw driver or something to move the eyes as I believe the 90 degree bend actually makes it harder to manipulate the eyes into the right direction.

 

In the end, a very good release, and probably the best Psylocke action figure I've ever seen.. of course, the only others I have seen are the Marvel Legends one which again, aren't bad given the price. Those looking for a more legit comic sculpt need not apply here, naturally.

 

But there is no doubt that this is a sharp looking figure, and for the price it comes with quite a few goodies. It just lacks that final bit of spit polish that would push it from being very good to being outstanding. Still, if you like your ninjas purple and slinky, you can't go wrong.

2014 Gore Aussie Muscle Mania Car Show (12-4-14)

 

The Ford XC Falcon is a car which was produced by Ford Australia between 1976 and 1979. It was a facelift of the XB Falcon, itself an upgrade of the XA Falcon which had entered production in 1972. XC Falcon in July 1976, this was the first model to comply with the new pollution regulations specified under Australian Design Rule 27A. The response to the 1st of July 1976, mandatory anti-pollution laws (ADR 27A), was to redevelop the Falcon six cylinder engines with a cross-flow head for greater efficiency.

 

Visually, the XC Falcon was given a restyle treatment, XC had an less aggressive nose which incorporated round headlight on the base model Falcon, twin round headlights on GS pack and Cobra models and with square headlights on both Fairmont and GXL models.Ford also addressed the vision problems of the XA and XB by going to great expense and redesigning the rear door windows and installing an all-new dash and installing higher front seats. It was the last model Falcon to use coke bottle styling and was replaced with the XD Falcon in 1979.

 

Total production of the XC range reached 171,082 vehicles prior to the replacement of the XC by the XD Falcon in March 1979.

(ref: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_XC_Falcon)

 

Ford Falcon XC

1976 - 1979:

 

Engine:

6 cyl. & V8

Capacity:

3.3 & 4.1 litre 6 cyl. / 4.9 & 5.8 litre V8

Power:

121 bhp (3.3 litre)

Transmission:

3/4 spd. man / 3 spd. auto

Top Speed:

217 km/h

Number Built:

171,082

Collectability:

2/5 stars (2 out of 5 stars)

 

Introduction:

 

More power and torque, better visibility, suspension refinements and simpler servicing heralded Ford's new clean, XC Falcon. The appearance changes reflected the basic necessities needed to identify a new model, but they certainly made it easier to separate XC from XB, than GM-H's changeover from HJ Holden to HX. Basically, of course, it was the same old Falcon - Ford was merely marking time until 1979 when its drastically revised and restyled XD hit the market.

 

The XC was built on the floor pan introduced in 1966 and was the third revision (like GM-H's HQ HJ HX line) since the XA Falcon was released. The special difference with this Falcon were the new six cylinder engines. The 200 and 250 CID (3.3 and 4.1 litres) were given a new crossflow head, which had bigger valves, revised cam timing, new manifolds and a substantial boost in power and torque.

 

ADR 27a:

 

The changes were of course brought about by the need to comply with emission regulation ADR 27a, but where many thought the engines would lose power because of the clean-up - Ford engineers managed to reverse this trend by producing even more output - a factor which gave FoMoCo a hefty push-along in the competitive race between its cars and the General's cleaner Holden range.

 

GM-H engineers had estimated power was down by about seven percent across the board, while vehicle weight was reduced by a mere nine kilograms. Ford meanwhile upped vehicle weight (in the Falcon 500 versions) by about 93 kg, while engine output for the 4.1 litres six went up by 9kW to 92kW @ 3700rpm. On all engines except the 3.3 litre six torque was increased substantially. On the 4.1 torque was upped by 8.5Nm.

 

Ford said the four year engine clean-up program (and associated other projects) cost an estimated 16 million. Ford justified the need for this expenditure by asserting that the medium car market had stabilised after a noticeable decline. At the time Ford’s Managing Director was Brian Inglis, and he claimed the company was looking to equal, or better, the success of the XB Falcon, of which more than 170,000 iterations were sold. Ford even revised the 1976 model line-up by dropping the GT and Futura. Big shoes to fill, and while the newly introduced Fairmont GXL was a very good car – it was never going to be a suitable replacement for the GT.

 

Ford had hoped the Fairmont GXL would appeal to the young, middle-management executive types. It was lavishly equipped and trimmed, and came with the 4.1 litre six as standard, with T-bar auto, sports suspension, slippery diff, four-wheel disc brakes and additional sound insulation. It was suitably pricey too – with a sticker price of around $7600 at launch. Generally prices on the XC only rose by about $190 on average - this being made up by natural price increases and about $100 for the 'emissionising' of the engines. The Falcon 500 went up about $180 and Fairmont by $230. The price increases, however, meant quite meaningful additions to the standard equipment levels of all cars, a point which Ford's Brian Inglis pushed hard when the XC was launched.

 

Styling Changes:

 

Inglis claimed Ford aimed to dominate the medium market by its 'value-for-money' approach to vehicle pricing. The 500 may have been around $130 dearer than the equivalent Kingswood HX, but equipment levels were higher – standard kit including bucket seats, heated rear screen, radial tyres and halogen headlamps. The refined look was achieved by reducing the slope of the grille and introducing large rectangular headlamps on some models. The bonnet line was softened and more substantial bumpers fitted. The coke bottle effect was reduced by altering the style line running through the rear doors.

 

The base model Falcon's retained the round headlights of their forebears, however the Fairmont was blessed with wonderfully elegant rectangular headlights. The rectangular headlights made the XC look cleaner and certainly more refined. With later models, Ford would black out much of the chrome work, giving the car a more menacing appearance. The upmarket models also gained far better seating, now affording better under-knee and lumbar support. For the well heeled, there were also electric windows and remote rear-view mirror.

 

One of the more popular models from the XC lineup was the Fairmont wagon, affording a huge luggage capacity and plenty of power on tap courtesy of the 4.1 litre six cylinder engine. The GS and Fairmont hardtop models remained, although they were rather more subdued than previous iterations. A new grille was used, and the Fairmont version also gained the handsome rectangular headlights. However the interior was rather more refined, and in being so lost a little of the sportiness one had come to expect from a hardtop.

 

Both models of the hardtop struggled to sell, and Ford introduced the limited edition Cobra as the last of the two door version, and to help them move the remaining 2 door coupe body shells. The Cobra would be the last of the performance Ford's for a time, and used the worldwide publicity gained by the success of Caroll Shelby for its inspiration. In all, 400 were built and individually numbered (that number coinciding with the number of two door body shells remaining). All Cobra's were painted with the same colour scheme, white with mid blue stripes and a cobra snake decal on the front fender. In addition, each Cobra had a numbered plaque to help with identification, something very important to collectors today.

 

In a move away from imperial measurement, the Ford range was now badged as 3.3, 4.1, 4.9 and 5.8 litre instead of the previously used cubic inch capacity. Strangely, Ford's second longest running model, the Futura, was dropped from the XC lineup. So, much more regrettably, was the GT (the GXL was "supposed" to be the replacement, but it would fail to capture the hearts and minds of the Ford enthusiasts). Mid way through the life of the XC, Ford made some radical improvements to the car's suspension to allow for radial tyres, and these models tend to be known as the 'XC and a half'.

 

The later XCs are easily identified by the introduction of the the classic Ford oval badge on the centre of the grille, its first use on an Australian Ford.

(ref: www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au/car_info_ford_falcon_xc.htm)

Museum Tower, at 560 feet tall and 42 stories costing $200 million dollars, is under construction with completion expected in late 2012. The rendering of Museum Tower in this photo shows what an incredible addition the tower will make on the Downtown Dallas cityscape. Museum Tower has been described as a "shaft of light".

 

Museum Tower, from this particular view, is visually located to the north of the Sacred Heart Catholic Cathedral, JP Morgan Chase Tower, 2100 Ross Avenue Tower, and the Trammell Crow Center with One Arts Plaza to the east. The explosive growth of dozens of skyscrapers and highrises in Downtown Dallas' Uptown District are immediately to the north of Museum Tower and are not seen in this image.

 

As seen in the rendering, Museum Tower is literally surrounded by the 68-acre, 19 contiguous block world class Dallas Arts District with its numerous cultural facilities in the heart of Downtown Dallas. The Dallas Arts District is now perceived as the finest in the country, surpassing the Kennedy and Lincoln Centers in New York City: www.flickr.com/photos/52949402@N03/5128988435/in/set-7215...

 

The 5.2 acre Woodall Rodgers Urban Park is under construction and a rendering for The Park is seen in the foreground of the image. The Woodall Rodgers Urban park is creating a "Central Park" like setting amidst the skyscrapers of Downtown Dallas and will be the "front lawn" to Museum Tower.

 

The Woodall Rodgers Urban Park is costing $110 million dollars and completion is expected in 2012. The Park will seamlessly connect the traditional Downtown Dallas Financial District to the skyscrapers and highrises in its Uptown District just immediately to the north into one continuous whole.

 

Woodall Rodgers Freeway is becoming the new 21st century "Main Street" of Downtown Dallas with the intense development that has occurred fronting Woodall Rodgers Freeway from both the south (the traditional Dallas Financial District) and the north (Downtown Dallas' Uptown District) sides of the freeway.

.

.

.

Here is a fantastic video of Downtown Dallas from 07-24-10 driving along I-35 on the west side of Downtown that shows the wonderful density that has developed in the Downtown core with its Uptown District from 2006 to 2010. Select 720p HD and full screen. If you pause at 13 seconds into the video, right in the middle of the image between Hunt Oil and One Arts Plaza Towers, will be where the under construction $200 million dollar Museum Tower in the traditional Downtown Financial District will make its presence known. The construction crane seen center left at a 13 second pause is for the 17 story $185 million dollar Perot Museum of Nature and Science that is also currently under construction on the north side of Woodall Rodgers, a couple blocks away from Museum Tower's location on the side side of Woodall. Woodall Rodgers is the new 21st century "Main Street" of Downtown Dallas. Museum Tower's almost 600 foot tall 42 story presence once completed in late 2012 is going to make a huge impact on the Downtown Dallas cityscape as it will stretch the Financial District so far north that it will completely meld into Uptown and vice versa:

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ao4gZRTDMyM&NR=1

 

This is another fantastic video shot from a helicopter circling Downtown Dallas on 07-09-10. Select 720p HD and full screen. The video generally focuses on the traditional Downtown Dallas Financial District, but if you look on the left hand side middle screen while the video is playing you will again see the incredible dense development that has literally sprung up almost overnight in Downtown's Uptown District (between 2006 and 2010). From between 5 and 13 seconds at the beginning of the video you can see how impressive the Uptown skyscrapers are from just seeing the edge of Uptown that is directly facing the Financial District across Woodall Rodgers. Also from around 35 to 40 seconds into the video is when you can see the dense Uptown development from a bit broader perspective. Woodall Rodgers is the new 21st century "Main Street" of Downtown Dallas. Also, Museum Tower's almost 600 foot tall 42 story presence once completed in late 2012 is going to make a huge impact on the Downtown Dallas cityscape as it will stretch the Financial District so far north that it will completely meld into Uptown and vice versa:

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIks-YVYlj8

 

This is another great aerial video that literally offers a birdseye, multi-thousand foot view of Downtown Dallas shot on 10-24-10, in a jet flying over Downtown on its landing approach to DFW International Airport. Select 720p HD and full screen. For purposes of this discussion, freeze the video anywhere from 1 second to 10 seconds. The large mass of buildings in the very center of the video is Downtown Dallas, which includes all of the skyscrapers and highrises in Uptown as well as those in the more traditional Financial District which today forms the largest urban core in the nation outside of NYC, LA and Chicago with over 50,300,000 square feet of office space. The explosive growth of dense urban development in Uptown has vigorously extended Downtown Dallas northward. Downtown Dallas is now a long rectangle, anchored on its northern border by the CityPlace East (42 story) and Azure (31 story) skyscrapers with the mass of buildings stretching from the northern border southward through the traditional Financial District to just past I-30 to include the dense cluster of new developments in The Cedars District (the new City of Dallas Police Headquarters, the new Beat Condominium Tower, South Side on Lamar, and the just announced coup for Downtown Dallas of the NYLO Hotel South Side, etc.) . The W Hotel (31 stories) and The House Condominiums (29 stories) along with the Hyatt Regency Hotel (30 stories), Reunion Tower (50 stories) and the new half billion dollar Omni Convention Hotel (27 stories) clearly anchor the western side of Downtown running along Stemmons Freeway. One Arts Plaza (24 stories) and the dense Downtown Dallas Arts District along with the Sheraton Hotel's twin towers (42 stories and 31 stories) and the Comerica Bank Headquarters Tower (60 stories) run along Central Expressway anchoring the eastern side of Downtown, and which then extends just a little further eastward to include the massive Baylor Medical District complex (seen in the video as the large mass of white highrises farthest east of the Financial District). Like a beautiful necklace extending just immediately north of Uptown/Downtown in the video, one can see the long chain of highrise apartment and condominium towers in the Turtle Creek area of Dallas tracking the large swath of greenbelt just immediately north of the CityPlace East and Azure skyscrapers. As a pre-cursor for continued vibrant Downtown Dallas growth, a major keystone development that heralds future massive and dense urban development for Downtown can be seen in the video in the form of the instantly iconic new Calatrava Bridge spanning the Trinity River, which will bring billions in new development by extending Downtown Dallas' golden corridor, Woodall Rodgers Expressway, to the west side of the Trinity River. Woodall Rodgers has become the new 21st century "Main Street" for Downtown Dallas as it sets right in the middle of the bustling skyscrapers located on both the north and south sides of it. In the next ten to twenty years Turtle Creek, Uptown, Victory, Baylor, Deep Ellum, the Design District, the Financial District, The Cedars, and the newest urban frontier of West Dallas will seamlessly meld together to form a super dense core of the most dynamic and largest urban center in the nation outside of New York City and Los Angeles, and rivaling Chicago.

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQPosFieMg8&feature=related

 

This cool video from 08-30-10 further reinforces the explosive growth of around 13,000,000 square feet in new Class A and Class AA office space that Downtown Dallas has seen in the last few years in its Uptown and Victory Districts from 2006 to 2010. Select 1080p HD and full screen. The video is shot from the same exact spot throughout but shifts its main focal point from the Financial District to Uptown at 14 seconds. From 0 to 13 seconds the focus of the video is the northern edge of the traditional Financial District with the bustling heavy traffic of Woodall Rodgers Freeway. During this segment one can imagine the imposing and impressive addition to the cityscape that the almost 600 foot tall 42 story Museum Tower will make as it will literally be positioned right behind Hunt Oil Tower, which is unmistakably dressed in its state-of-the-art LED lighting (blue at the time of the video). Still filmed from the exact same spot, from 14 seconds to the end, the focus of the video shifts slightly north looking across Woodall Rodgers Freeway to reveal just a small slice of the significant density of skyscrapers and highrises erected in Uptown mostly since around 2006. Woodall Rodgers is the new 21st century "Main Street" of Downtown Dallas. The construction crane that is clearly visible in this portion of the video is for the 17 story $185 million dollar Perot Museum of Nature and Science that is currently under construction:

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YP47TYaB7nQ&feature=related

.

.

.

Downtown Dallas is experiencing a renaissance from more than $14 billion in new development that is currently underway in and near the Downtown core. As a result, Downtown Dallas is on the verge of a renewed greatness because of the billions in investment it has made in its Downtown core in general but also in its newest premier district, the Downtown Dallas Arts District.

 

An article published in the October 2010 "D Magazine" discusses how the relocation of corporate headquarters and businesses into Downtown Dallas is at an all time high. The level of interest in doing so (from out of state, in state and in town corporations) has also reached the highest level ever:

 

www.dmagazine.com/Home/D_CEO/2010/October/The_Rejuvenatio...

 

Dallas will surpass Chicago as the 3rd largest metro in the nation by 2030 or sooner, published 03-15-10 in The Dallas Morning News:

 

www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/columnists/chall...

 

And another significant recognition and accolade from Forbes Magazine, published 09-02-09, naming Dallas as a "World Capital of the Future" that highlights Dallas' worldwide reach and influence and its growing significance on the world stage:

 

www.forbes.com/2009/09/02/world-capitals-cities-century-o...

RAZOR HIGHWAY • Rambo Blood Hangeki (Shinjuku Wildside, Tokyo 14.05.2022)

 

Long time no live action! But it seems I still got the blues... like Gary Moore would say. I think it was more than six month I did not shoot a gig. And honestly, I wasn't that looking forward, but...

 

Wildside Tokyo's Rambo Blood is a long-standing metal event that boasts on its stage on each edition kick-ass acts that know very well what a metal bangers wants. I have known by name Razor Highway since a while and also knew some of their tunes, but I never worked with them. And since I was explicitly summoned to shot them, 'cause they love my pics’ - they said - of course I couldn't refuse. What to say? Images speak for themselves. Powerful, grinding and visually entertaining. And Aki's voice is so cool!

 

Unfortunately I still can't enjoy going to live events around here yet, since there are still some nonsense mask, fixed places, no yelling, bla, bla... fake-pandemic mumbojumbos going on - which I do not follow of course... but, well... it makes everything unnatural. It is just no fun for me being among mummies outside museums boxes. If I want to listen silently, I get a CD or go the theater not a live house. So, for now, I will keep shooting there only on direct engagement.

The Moon with Jupiter nearby (Visually speaking).

Woodchurch is the latest bete noir of Kent churches for me. Or has been for some while. Along with Hinxhill, these two have proved to be impossible to get into. The lat time I tried here was last year's heritage weekend where I found the church locked just after five in the afternoon.

 

So, after a flurry of e mails this week, and the warden's surprise I have always failed to get in: "its open from seven in the morning to five every day". Maybe I just went on the three or four occasions this did not happen.

 

Whatever, this was the first stop of the day.

 

Woodchurch is on the route to Cranbrook and Sissinghurst, so this is the third week I have driven through Ham Street.

 

We park opposite the two pubs that sit beside each other, one, The Bonny Cravat looked fine with hanging baskets outside.

 

But too early for a pint, so we walk up the path to the porch and pushed....

 

------------------------------------------

 

An enormous church with much of interest. The fabric dates from the thirteenth century, and the nave arcades of alternate round and octagonal piers are made of ragstone, which was polished in the nineteenth century to resemble Bethersden marble. In fact there are some genuine pieces of Bethersden marble in the church, particularly important visually being the shafts between the east window lancets. On the south-east buttress of the chancel is a mass dial, and on the main south wall is an excellent large sundial. The rood loft stairway survives in the north chapel where there is a good and rare double hagioscope. The sedilia are made up of three graduated thirteenth-century seats with a double piscina incorporated as part of the same scheme. In the south aisle is a medallion of the Blessed Virgin Mary, while the nearby east window depicting the Crucifixion is by Kempe. In front of the pulpit is the brass to a priest, Nicholas Gore (d. 1333), a quatrefoil with a circular inscription, into which is set the figure of Gore in his vestments. The Royal Arms are those of George III and were painted by a local artist, Joseph Gibson, in 1773.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Woodchurch

 

-------------------------------------------

 

WOODCHURCH

IS the next parish south-eastward from Halden, and is within the court of the bailiwic of the Seven Hundreds, which claims paramount over the denne of Ilchenden, being a great part of it; though the manors of Apledore and of Wye claim over some parts of it.

 

This PARISH, which stands rather on high ground, is about five miles in length from north to south, and three miles and an half in breadth. The soil of it is in general a stiff clay, though in the southern part of it there is some light land, inclining to sand. It is exceedingly covered, throughout most of it, with oaken coppice wood, and the face of the country here, as well as the roads, are much like those of Halden, last described. The village is near the centre of the parish, built mostly round a green, with the church on the north-west side of it, and the parsonage-house. In the south-west part of the parish is Shirley-house and farm, which formerly belonged to the family of Clarke, and afterwards to the Harlackendens, from whom it was purchased by Anne Blackmore, widow of John Blackmore, esq. of Tenterden, who died in 1717; and their grandson Thomas Blackmore, esq. of Hertfordshire, now owns it, with other adjoining estates in this parish. Below this farm southward is a large tract of marshes, called Shirley, or Sherles-moor, being about three miles in length and two in breadth, lying in Woodchurch, Apledore, Eboney, and Tenterden, containing 1245 acres, and is what is called the Upper Levels, the waters of which few through Scots-float into Rye harbour. It is allowed to be the richest land for satting cattle in all these levels. It belongs to several different proprietors, among whom Sir Edward Hales, bart. Thomas Blackmore, esq. the dean and chapter of Canterbury, Richard Curteis, and the heirs of William Henley, esqrs. are the most considerable.

 

Sir Edward Hales, bart. and Richard Hulse, esq. are lessees of the dean and chapter of Canterbury, for lands in this level, which formerly belonged to the priory of Christ-church there.

 

About three quarters of a mile northward from the church, is Redbrooke-street, at which formerly resided a family named At-hale, possessed of lands in this and the neighbouring parishes.

 

THE MANOR OF TOWNLAND, alias WOODCHURCH, is subordinate to that of Apledore, and was part of those lands and estates assigned for the desence of Dover-castle, to the constable of which it was allotted, and made a part of his barony, which was usually stiled from him, the Constabularie, being held by him of the king in capite by barony, by the service of maintaining a certain number of soldiers from time to time for the desence of the castle. Of him and his heirs this manor was held in capite by the service of ward to the castle, Ralph de la Thun held this manor and other lands in Woodchurch, by the above service, in the 43d year of Henry III. in which year he died possessed of it, and from him it acquired the name of Thunland, or Townland, as it was afterwards called. After him Richard de Tunland became possessed of it, whose grandson John Ate Towneland paid aid for it in the 20th year of Edward III. and in his descendants it continued down to Thomas Townland, who died possessed of it in the 7th year of Henry IV. (fn. 1) After which it passed by sale into the family of Norton, whence it was sold, about the beginning of king Henry VIII.'s reign, to the prior and convent of Leeds, who were then possessed of it, as appears by the receipt in the exchequer anno 8 of that reign, Mich. Rot. 35; and it remained part of their possessions till the dissolution of the priory, in the 31st year of that reign, when it came into the hands of the crown; from whence it was granted that year to Thomas, lord Cromwell, earl of Essex, on whose attainder next year, this manor, among the rest of his estates, became forfeited to the crown, where it staid but a small time, for the king, in his 36th year, granted it to Sir Thomas Moile, chancellor of his court of augmentation, who in the 4th year of Edward VI. alienated it to Thomas Ancos, who afterwards sold it to Thomas Lucas, gent, who died possessed of it in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, hold ing it in capite by knight's service. He was descended from William Lucas, gent. of Ashford, who is recorded in Fuller's history, among those gentry who were returned as such, and qualified to bear arms, by the commissioners anno 12 Henry VI. (fn. 2) By the inquisition taken after his death, it was found, that Thomas Godfrey was his nephew and next heir. He died in the 7th year of that reign, and was succeeded by his brother James Godfrey, who two years afterwards alienated it to Mary, the widow of Sir John Guldeford, of Hemsted, who in the 19th year of that reign sold it to John Shellie, whose son John Shelley, esq. of Michelgrove, was created a baronet in 1611; and in his descendants, baronets, this manor continued till the reign of Charles II. How long it continued in this name, I do not find; for it was now become but of very little note. At length, after some intermediate owners, it became the property of Mr. Gabriel Richards, and since his decease of Mr. William Evans, the present possessor, who resides in it.

 

THE PLACE-HOUSE, or Woodchurch house, is a seat situated at a small distance eastward from the church, and was the habitation of a family who took both their surname and original from it. Anchitel de Woodchurch was possessed of it about the time of the Conqueror, and gave for his arms, Gules, three swords, erected in pale, argent. His grandson Roger de Woodchurch, is the first that is mentioned in the antient deeds, without date, of this estate, and his grandson Sir Simon de Woodchurch, is in the register of those Kentish gentlemen who accompanied king Edward I. in his victorious expedition into Scotland, where he was knighted, with many others of his countrymen. But in him the name, though not the male line, determined; for by matching with Susan, daughter and heir of Henry le Clerk, of Munsidde, in the parish of Kingsnoth, who brought a large inheritance into his family; his successors, out of gratitude to those who had added so much splendour, and annexed so plentiful a revenue to their name, altered their paternal appellation from Woodchurch to Clerke; and in several of their deeds subsequent to this match were written, Clerke, alias Woodchurch. He left two sons, Simon, who died without male issue; (fn. 3) and Clerke Woodchurch, heir to his mother's lands, as well as to his elder brother at this place, on his failure of male issue; which latter left a son Peter Clerke, alias Woodchurch, who inherited this seat on his father's death, and in his descendants it continued down to Humphry Clarke, for so they then wrote their name, who resided at Buckford, in Great Chart. He sold this seat, with the estate belonging to it, to Martin Harlackenden, esq. of this parish, whose successor Walter Harlackenden resided here in the reign of James I. and his descendant Geo. Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, sold it to Winifred Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, the latter of whom at his death devised it to his son John, who dying s.p. his sister Mrs. Winifrid Bridger, of Canterbury, succeeded to it, and dying in 1776, unmarried, by will gave it to the Rev. William Dejovas Byrch, of Canterbury, and Elizabeth his wife. He died in 1792, and she in 1798, having surviving issue an only daughter Elizabeth, since deceased, who married Samuel Egerton Brydges, esq. of Denton, who is now in his late wife's right became entitled to it.

 

Great part of this house has been pulled down, and the remainder of it makes but a very mean appearance, and is inhabited by several different persons.

 

HENDEN is an estate in this parish, which from having had for a length of time the same owners as that last-described, was once almost accounted an ap pendage to it. This place is supposed (for there are no records existing of it) to have been the original seat of the Hendens, who were in much later times seated at Biddenden-place, in this neighbourhood, as has been mentioned before, where they continued till within these few years. How long they remained possessors of it, cannot therefore be traced; but in the reign of king Richard II. the Capells, of Capellscourt, in Ivychurch, were become owners of it; in the 15th year of which reign Richard Capell died possessed of it. At length, after it had continued in his descendants for some generations, it went by the marriage of a female heir into the family of Harlackenden, of this parish, where it remained till Deborah, daughter and heir of Martin Harlackenden, entitled her husband Sir Edward Hales, knight and baronet, to the possession of this estate, together with others in this parish and neighbourhood, and in his descendants it has continued down to Sir Edward Hales, bart. of St. Stephen's, the present owner of it.

 

HARLACKENDEN, usually called Old Harlackenden, situated within the boroughof that name which extended likewise over part of the adjoining parish of Shadoxhurst) was for some hundred years the patrimonial demesnes of that name and family, as appeared by a tomb in this church, the inscription on which, long since obliterated, shewed that one of them lay interred there soon after the conquest. Philipott says, the proportion and shape of the characters were much like those in use in the reigns of king Henry IV. and V. which he thinks was occasioned by this tomb having been renewed by one of this person's successors and descendants in one of the above reigns, and the former one might have been in old characters, suitable to the time in which it was first erected. There are none now remaining on it. Kilburne says, it was for William Harlackenden, anno 1081. They bore for their arms, Azure, a sess, ermine, between three lions beads erased, or; which arms were painted in an upper window of Grays-Inn hall, and appeared to have been of long standing there. In his descendants, residents here, many of whom lie buried in this church, this seat continued down to Thomas Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, who procured his lands to be disgavelled by the acts of 31 Henry VIII. and 2 and 3 Edward VI. He died in 1558. (fn. 4) At length his descendant George Harlackenden, esq. of this place, alienated it to Winifried Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, whose heirs, in the 9th year of queen Anne, procured an act to vest it in trustees, and they accordingly sold it, in 1711, to dame Sarah, widow of Sir Paul Barrett, sergeant-at-law. She died that same year, and by the limitation in her will, (fn. 5) this estate devolved to her grandson Sir Francis Head, bart. son of her first husband Francis Head, esq. who died possessed of it in 1768. After which his widow, lady Head, by virtue of her jointure, came into the possession of it. She died in 1792, and it then devolved to the daughters and coheirs of her late husband Sir Francis Head, and to their heirs, in the like proportions as the Hermitage, in Higham, and his other estates in this county, in which state it remains at present. (fn. 6)

 

HENHURST is an estate in the north-east part of this parish, which formerly belonged to a family of the same name, whose more antient seat was at Henhurst, in Staplehurst, of which this was but a younger branch. They were likewise often written in old deeds both Henhurst and Enghurst, and continued owners of this place until the reign of king Henry VII. and then Sir Thomas Henghurst dying without issue male, his daughter and sole heir carried it in marriage to Humphry Wife, whose daughter and heir Agnes entitled her husband Mr. Robert Master to the possession of it, who bore for his arms, A lion, rampant, holding in his paws an escallop shell. His son Mr. Thomas Master resided here, but his son Giles Master quitted this residence and removed to Canterbury, where he died in 1644. At length it descended to Sir Harcourt Master, alderman of London, who became possessed of it for the term of his life, by the will of his father's eldest brother's daughter, Mary Master. He died in 1648. Since which it has continued in his descendants, one of whom, Harcourt Masters, esq. of Greenwich, owns it at this time.

 

HENGHAM, now usually called Great Hengham, corruptly for Engeham, its original name, lies enveloped by woods, about a mile and an half northward from Woodchurch. It was once accounted a manor, and was in early times possessed by a family of the same name, who resided at it, and were stiled sometimes Engham, alias Edingham, in antient deeds, relating to their possessions in different parts of Romney marsh, the latter being probably their original name, and the former one an abbreviation of it. (fn. 7) Alanus de Engham resided here in the reign of king John, and married the daughter of Townland, of this parish, as did his descendant Moses de Engham, alias Edingham, who by marriage with Petronell, daughter of Alan de Plurenden, greatly increased his estate in Woodchurch; and probably of kindred to this family was Odomar Hengham, esq. who died in 1411, and lies buried in the body of Canterbury cathedral. They bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron, sable, between three pellets; on a chief, gules, a lion passant, guardant, or. A branch of this family became possessed of Singleton, in Great Chart, where they rebuilt the mansion, and afterwards resided; but the last residence of the Enghams, in this county, was at Gunston, where they flourished till the beginning of this century. At length Robert Engham, of Woodchurch, leaving two daughters his coheirs, this manor, about the latter end of the reign of Henry VIII. was carried in marriage by Mary, the eldest of them, to Thomas Isley, who leaving five daughters his coheirs, Mary, married to Francis Spelman; Frances, to William Boys, esq. Elizabeth, to Anthony Mason, esq. Anne, to George Delves, esq. and Jane, to Francis Haut, esq. they, in right of their respective wives, became jointly entitled to it. This occasioned a partition of this estate, which was afterwards called by the name of Great and Little Hengham; the former having the antient mansion and manor annexed to it. This part was afterwards alienated to William Hales, esq. of Nackington, who possessed it in the reign of king James I. and in 1640, passed it away by sale to Thomas Godfrey the younger, esq. of Lid, who conveyed it to Clerke, whence it was sold in the reign of king Charles II. to John Grove, gent. of Tunstall, whose descendant Richard Grove, esq. of London, who died unmarried in 1792, by will devised it to Mr. William Jemmott and Mr. William Marshall, the former of whom, on a partition of his estates, became the sole proprietor of it, and continues so at this time. A court baron is held for this manor.

 

THE OTHER PART of this manor, now called Little Hengham, which lies adjoining to it southward, is now the property of the heirs of Abbot, the Whitfields, and the Combers.

 

PLERYNDEN, now corruptly called Plunden, is situated in the north-west part of this parish, in the midst of a wood, and in the denne of the same name. It had in early times owners, who took their furname from it and continued so till Petronell, daughter and heir of Alan de Plerynden, who bore for his arms, Perchevron, in chief, two mullets, in base, a martlet, as they appear, carved in stone, on the roof of Canterbury cloysters, carried it in marriage to Moses de Engham, in whose descendants it remained till Vincent Engham, in the reign of queen Elizabeth, passed it away by sale to William Twysden, esq. of Chelmington, whose descendant Sir Thomas Twysden, bart. of Roydon-hall, in East Peckham, about the beginning of queen Anne's reign, sold it to Mr. John Hooker, of Maidstone, who died possessed of it in 1717, and devised it to his second son John, of Broadoak, in Brenchley, gent. who dying unmarried in 1762, devised it to his youngest and only surviving brother Stephen Hooker, gent. of Halden, and he alienated it to John Children, esq. of Tunbridge, whose son George Children, esq. of that place, is the present owner of it.

 

Charities.

RICHARD BROWNE, late of Woodchurch, by will in 1562, gave to the poor of this parish a rent charge of 4l. 10s. per annum, on every Trinity Sunday for ever, out of a messuage called Webbes, in this parish, of the clear annual produce of 3l. 8s.

 

SIR EDWARD HALES, of Woodchurch, by deed in 1610, gave to the poor yearly rents out of a farm, called the Legg farm, in Kenardington.

 

PHEBE GOBLE, of Woodchurch, by will in 1692, gave to the poor 2l. per annum, to be paid by her heirs for ever, out of a farm, called the Bonny Cravat, in Woodchurch, (now an alehouse) the first Sunday after Old Lady-day.

 

THERE IS A SCHOOL, for reading and writing, supported by contribution, in this parish.

 

The poor constantly relieved are about ninety, casually 45.

 

WOODCHURCH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the dioceseof Canterbury, and deanry of Limne.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to All Saints, is large and handsome, consisting of three isles and three chancels, with a spire steeple, shingled, at the west end, in which hang six bells. The windows in the high chancel are small and elegant. There are some very small remains of good painted glass. In this chancel is a stone, with the figure in brass, of a priest praying, and inscription for master Nicholas de Gore, in old French; and another stone, with inscription in brass, for William Benge Capellanus, obt. 1437. In this church are many tombs and gravestones of the family of Harlackenden, which have already been mentioned before. In the south chancel there is a handsome tomb, of Bethersden marble, for Sir Edward Waterhous, chancellor of the exchequer, and privy counsellor to queen Elizabeth, in Ireland, third son of John Waterhous, esq. of Whitechurch, in Buckinghamshire, obt. s. p. 1591, his arms on his tomb, Or, a pile engrailed, sable, quartered with other coats. Kilburne says, in the east window of this chancel, were the arms of Ellis; and in the east window of the north chancel, were several essigies of the Clerkes; and in the north window of it, those of William Harey; all long since gone. The sont in this church seems very antient, being of Bethersden marble, square, and standing on four pillars.

 

This church was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, and continues so at this time, his grace the archbishop being the present patron of it.

 

It is a rectory, valued in the king's books at 26l.13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 13s. 4d. In 1640 it was valued at one hundred and ten pounds. Communicants three hundred and forty-nine. In 1729 at two hundred and thirty pounds per annum.

 

Among the Lambeth MSS. is a decree of archbishop Peckham, concerning the tithes of Woodchurch, anno 1281. (fn. 8) There are about two acres of glebe land.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp226-237

Castlerigg Stone Circle is one of the most visually impressive prehistoric monuments in Britain, and is the most visited stone circle in Cumbria. Every year thousands of people visit it to look, photograph, draw and wonder why and when and by whom it was built. The stone circle is on the level top of a low hill with nice views to the towns in the valleys. There are 38 stones in a circle approximately 30 metres in diameter. Within the ring is a rectangle of a further 10 standing stones. The tallest stone is 2.3 metres high. It was probably built around 3000 BC - the beginning of the later Neolithic Period - and is one of the earliest stone circles in Britain. It is important in terms of megalithic astronomy and geometry, as the construction contains significant astronomical alignments. Although its origins are unknown it is believed that it was used for ceremonial or religious purposes.

***

Cercul de pietre de la Castlerigg este unul dintre cele mai imporante monumente preistorice şi cel mai vizitat de acest fel din Cumbria. In fiecare an, mii de persoane vin sǎ priveascǎ, sǎ fotografieze, sǎ deseneze şi sǎ se întrebe când, de ce şi cine construit bizarul ansamblu. Cercul de pietre se aflǎ pe o platformǎ situatǎ pe vârful unui deal de micǎ înǎlţime, cu privelişti frumoase cǎtre oraşele din vale. Ansamblul este format din 38 de pietre aşezate într-un cerc cu diametrul de cca. 30 metri. In interiorul cercului se aflǎ un dreptunghi alcǎtuit din 10 pietre. Cea mai înaltǎ piatrǎ are 2.3 metri. Ansamblul a fost construit probabil la începutul perioadei neolitice (în jurul anului 3000 î.Ch.) şi este unul dintre cele mai vechi cercuri de piatrǎ din Marea Britanie. Este un monument important din punct de vedere al astronomiei şi geometriei megalitice, întrucât construcţia conţine unele similitudini astronomice semnificative. Deşi originea ansamblului nu este cunoscutǎ, se presupune cǎ a fost folosit în scopuri ceremoniale şi religioase.

 

visitcumbria.com/kes/castlerigg-stone-circle.htm

 

Visually Speaking: The People's Photographer

Brooklyn Public Library

Noelle Flores Théard

Joseph Rodriguez

Jamel Shabazz

www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/visually-speaking-people-ce...

Visually interesting cage with a fake crow .

Some time ago, I posted an image of my own adaptation of a Rubik's cube into a tactile cube for the blind.

 

Well, today I got this brand new Rubik's Cube. It's a cube that is intended for the blind and visually impaired, but can be solved by the sighted, too. It's got its usual coloured tiles with the addition of the 3D shapes on them, so it can be solved visually or just by touch. It's absolutely fantastic! And what I like most about it is that this cube can connect blind and sighted people in a fun activity!

 

Keep the comments clean! No banners, awards or invitations, please!

Visually parsing the more complex motion that will result from the easeInBounce above will likely require more time than the more simplistic easeInQuad curve. (Both these curves and their associated code can be found on easings.net.)

 

Designing Interface Animation: Meaningful Motion for User Experience, Head, Val, 2016. New York: Rosenfeld Media rosenfeldmedia.com/books/designing-interface-animation

Woodchurch is the latest bete noir of Kent churches for me. Or has been for some while. Along with Hinxhill, these two have proved to be impossible to get into. The lat time I tried here was last year's heritage weekend where I found the church locked just after five in the afternoon.

 

So, after a flurry of e mails this week, and the warden's surprise I have always failed to get in: "its open from seven in the morning to five every day". Maybe I just went on the three or four occasions this did not happen.

 

Whatever, this was the first stop of the day.

 

Woodchurch is on the route to Cranbrook and Sissinghurst, so this is the third week I have driven through Ham Street.

 

We park opposite the two pubs that sit beside each other, one, The Bonny Cravat looked fine with hanging baskets outside.

 

But too early for a pint, so we walk up the path to the porch and pushed....

 

The door swung open, and ahead of me, Jools was already in the church.

 

We found the light switches and lit up the large cool interior.

 

I found not one, not two, but three squints, or hagioscopes. One, a fabulous on with a double opening. I have not seen anything like it before.

 

Also, there are three sets of steps, including one to the pulpit and another to the now truncated rood loft.

 

I climb both.

 

------------------------------------------

 

An enormous church with much of interest. The fabric dates from the thirteenth century, and the nave arcades of alternate round and octagonal piers are made of ragstone, which was polished in the nineteenth century to resemble Bethersden marble. In fact there are some genuine pieces of Bethersden marble in the church, particularly important visually being the shafts between the east window lancets. On the south-east buttress of the chancel is a mass dial, and on the main south wall is an excellent large sundial. The rood loft stairway survives in the north chapel where there is a good and rare double hagioscope. The sedilia are made up of three graduated thirteenth-century seats with a double piscina incorporated as part of the same scheme. In the south aisle is a medallion of the Blessed Virgin Mary, while the nearby east window depicting the Crucifixion is by Kempe. In front of the pulpit is the brass to a priest, Nicholas Gore (d. 1333), a quatrefoil with a circular inscription, into which is set the figure of Gore in his vestments. The Royal Arms are those of George III and were painted by a local artist, Joseph Gibson, in 1773.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Woodchurch

 

-------------------------------------------

 

WOODCHURCH

IS the next parish south-eastward from Halden, and is within the court of the bailiwic of the Seven Hundreds, which claims paramount over the denne of Ilchenden, being a great part of it; though the manors of Apledore and of Wye claim over some parts of it.

 

This PARISH, which stands rather on high ground, is about five miles in length from north to south, and three miles and an half in breadth. The soil of it is in general a stiff clay, though in the southern part of it there is some light land, inclining to sand. It is exceedingly covered, throughout most of it, with oaken coppice wood, and the face of the country here, as well as the roads, are much like those of Halden, last described. The village is near the centre of the parish, built mostly round a green, with the church on the north-west side of it, and the parsonage-house. In the south-west part of the parish is Shirley-house and farm, which formerly belonged to the family of Clarke, and afterwards to the Harlackendens, from whom it was purchased by Anne Blackmore, widow of John Blackmore, esq. of Tenterden, who died in 1717; and their grandson Thomas Blackmore, esq. of Hertfordshire, now owns it, with other adjoining estates in this parish. Below this farm southward is a large tract of marshes, called Shirley, or Sherles-moor, being about three miles in length and two in breadth, lying in Woodchurch, Apledore, Eboney, and Tenterden, containing 1245 acres, and is what is called the Upper Levels, the waters of which few through Scots-float into Rye harbour. It is allowed to be the richest land for satting cattle in all these levels. It belongs to several different proprietors, among whom Sir Edward Hales, bart. Thomas Blackmore, esq. the dean and chapter of Canterbury, Richard Curteis, and the heirs of William Henley, esqrs. are the most considerable.

 

Sir Edward Hales, bart. and Richard Hulse, esq. are lessees of the dean and chapter of Canterbury, for lands in this level, which formerly belonged to the priory of Christ-church there.

 

About three quarters of a mile northward from the church, is Redbrooke-street, at which formerly resided a family named At-hale, possessed of lands in this and the neighbouring parishes.

 

THE MANOR OF TOWNLAND, alias WOODCHURCH, is subordinate to that of Apledore, and was part of those lands and estates assigned for the desence of Dover-castle, to the constable of which it was allotted, and made a part of his barony, which was usually stiled from him, the Constabularie, being held by him of the king in capite by barony, by the service of maintaining a certain number of soldiers from time to time for the desence of the castle. Of him and his heirs this manor was held in capite by the service of ward to the castle, Ralph de la Thun held this manor and other lands in Woodchurch, by the above service, in the 43d year of Henry III. in which year he died possessed of it, and from him it acquired the name of Thunland, or Townland, as it was afterwards called. After him Richard de Tunland became possessed of it, whose grandson John Ate Towneland paid aid for it in the 20th year of Edward III. and in his descendants it continued down to Thomas Townland, who died possessed of it in the 7th year of Henry IV. (fn. 1) After which it passed by sale into the family of Norton, whence it was sold, about the beginning of king Henry VIII.'s reign, to the prior and convent of Leeds, who were then possessed of it, as appears by the receipt in the exchequer anno 8 of that reign, Mich. Rot. 35; and it remained part of their possessions till the dissolution of the priory, in the 31st year of that reign, when it came into the hands of the crown; from whence it was granted that year to Thomas, lord Cromwell, earl of Essex, on whose attainder next year, this manor, among the rest of his estates, became forfeited to the crown, where it staid but a small time, for the king, in his 36th year, granted it to Sir Thomas Moile, chancellor of his court of augmentation, who in the 4th year of Edward VI. alienated it to Thomas Ancos, who afterwards sold it to Thomas Lucas, gent, who died possessed of it in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, hold ing it in capite by knight's service. He was descended from William Lucas, gent. of Ashford, who is recorded in Fuller's history, among those gentry who were returned as such, and qualified to bear arms, by the commissioners anno 12 Henry VI. (fn. 2) By the inquisition taken after his death, it was found, that Thomas Godfrey was his nephew and next heir. He died in the 7th year of that reign, and was succeeded by his brother James Godfrey, who two years afterwards alienated it to Mary, the widow of Sir John Guldeford, of Hemsted, who in the 19th year of that reign sold it to John Shellie, whose son John Shelley, esq. of Michelgrove, was created a baronet in 1611; and in his descendants, baronets, this manor continued till the reign of Charles II. How long it continued in this name, I do not find; for it was now become but of very little note. At length, after some intermediate owners, it became the property of Mr. Gabriel Richards, and since his decease of Mr. William Evans, the present possessor, who resides in it.

 

THE PLACE-HOUSE, or Woodchurch house, is a seat situated at a small distance eastward from the church, and was the habitation of a family who took both their surname and original from it. Anchitel de Woodchurch was possessed of it about the time of the Conqueror, and gave for his arms, Gules, three swords, erected in pale, argent. His grandson Roger de Woodchurch, is the first that is mentioned in the antient deeds, without date, of this estate, and his grandson Sir Simon de Woodchurch, is in the register of those Kentish gentlemen who accompanied king Edward I. in his victorious expedition into Scotland, where he was knighted, with many others of his countrymen. But in him the name, though not the male line, determined; for by matching with Susan, daughter and heir of Henry le Clerk, of Munsidde, in the parish of Kingsnoth, who brought a large inheritance into his family; his successors, out of gratitude to those who had added so much splendour, and annexed so plentiful a revenue to their name, altered their paternal appellation from Woodchurch to Clerke; and in several of their deeds subsequent to this match were written, Clerke, alias Woodchurch. He left two sons, Simon, who died without male issue; (fn. 3) and Clerke Woodchurch, heir to his mother's lands, as well as to his elder brother at this place, on his failure of male issue; which latter left a son Peter Clerke, alias Woodchurch, who inherited this seat on his father's death, and in his descendants it continued down to Humphry Clarke, for so they then wrote their name, who resided at Buckford, in Great Chart. He sold this seat, with the estate belonging to it, to Martin Harlackenden, esq. of this parish, whose successor Walter Harlackenden resided here in the reign of James I. and his descendant Geo. Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, sold it to Winifred Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, the latter of whom at his death devised it to his son John, who dying s.p. his sister Mrs. Winifrid Bridger, of Canterbury, succeeded to it, and dying in 1776, unmarried, by will gave it to the Rev. William Dejovas Byrch, of Canterbury, and Elizabeth his wife. He died in 1792, and she in 1798, having surviving issue an only daughter Elizabeth, since deceased, who married Samuel Egerton Brydges, esq. of Denton, who is now in his late wife's right became entitled to it.

 

Great part of this house has been pulled down, and the remainder of it makes but a very mean appearance, and is inhabited by several different persons.

 

HENDEN is an estate in this parish, which from having had for a length of time the same owners as that last-described, was once almost accounted an ap pendage to it. This place is supposed (for there are no records existing of it) to have been the original seat of the Hendens, who were in much later times seated at Biddenden-place, in this neighbourhood, as has been mentioned before, where they continued till within these few years. How long they remained possessors of it, cannot therefore be traced; but in the reign of king Richard II. the Capells, of Capellscourt, in Ivychurch, were become owners of it; in the 15th year of which reign Richard Capell died possessed of it. At length, after it had continued in his descendants for some generations, it went by the marriage of a female heir into the family of Harlackenden, of this parish, where it remained till Deborah, daughter and heir of Martin Harlackenden, entitled her husband Sir Edward Hales, knight and baronet, to the possession of this estate, together with others in this parish and neighbourhood, and in his descendants it has continued down to Sir Edward Hales, bart. of St. Stephen's, the present owner of it.

 

HARLACKENDEN, usually called Old Harlackenden, situated within the boroughof that name which extended likewise over part of the adjoining parish of Shadoxhurst) was for some hundred years the patrimonial demesnes of that name and family, as appeared by a tomb in this church, the inscription on which, long since obliterated, shewed that one of them lay interred there soon after the conquest. Philipott says, the proportion and shape of the characters were much like those in use in the reigns of king Henry IV. and V. which he thinks was occasioned by this tomb having been renewed by one of this person's successors and descendants in one of the above reigns, and the former one might have been in old characters, suitable to the time in which it was first erected. There are none now remaining on it. Kilburne says, it was for William Harlackenden, anno 1081. They bore for their arms, Azure, a sess, ermine, between three lions beads erased, or; which arms were painted in an upper window of Grays-Inn hall, and appeared to have been of long standing there. In his descendants, residents here, many of whom lie buried in this church, this seat continued down to Thomas Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, who procured his lands to be disgavelled by the acts of 31 Henry VIII. and 2 and 3 Edward VI. He died in 1558. (fn. 4) At length his descendant George Harlackenden, esq. of this place, alienated it to Winifried Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, whose heirs, in the 9th year of queen Anne, procured an act to vest it in trustees, and they accordingly sold it, in 1711, to dame Sarah, widow of Sir Paul Barrett, sergeant-at-law. She died that same year, and by the limitation in her will, (fn. 5) this estate devolved to her grandson Sir Francis Head, bart. son of her first husband Francis Head, esq. who died possessed of it in 1768. After which his widow, lady Head, by virtue of her jointure, came into the possession of it. She died in 1792, and it then devolved to the daughters and coheirs of her late husband Sir Francis Head, and to their heirs, in the like proportions as the Hermitage, in Higham, and his other estates in this county, in which state it remains at present. (fn. 6)

 

HENHURST is an estate in the north-east part of this parish, which formerly belonged to a family of the same name, whose more antient seat was at Henhurst, in Staplehurst, of which this was but a younger branch. They were likewise often written in old deeds both Henhurst and Enghurst, and continued owners of this place until the reign of king Henry VII. and then Sir Thomas Henghurst dying without issue male, his daughter and sole heir carried it in marriage to Humphry Wife, whose daughter and heir Agnes entitled her husband Mr. Robert Master to the possession of it, who bore for his arms, A lion, rampant, holding in his paws an escallop shell. His son Mr. Thomas Master resided here, but his son Giles Master quitted this residence and removed to Canterbury, where he died in 1644. At length it descended to Sir Harcourt Master, alderman of London, who became possessed of it for the term of his life, by the will of his father's eldest brother's daughter, Mary Master. He died in 1648. Since which it has continued in his descendants, one of whom, Harcourt Masters, esq. of Greenwich, owns it at this time.

 

HENGHAM, now usually called Great Hengham, corruptly for Engeham, its original name, lies enveloped by woods, about a mile and an half northward from Woodchurch. It was once accounted a manor, and was in early times possessed by a family of the same name, who resided at it, and were stiled sometimes Engham, alias Edingham, in antient deeds, relating to their possessions in different parts of Romney marsh, the latter being probably their original name, and the former one an abbreviation of it. (fn. 7) Alanus de Engham resided here in the reign of king John, and married the daughter of Townland, of this parish, as did his descendant Moses de Engham, alias Edingham, who by marriage with Petronell, daughter of Alan de Plurenden, greatly increased his estate in Woodchurch; and probably of kindred to this family was Odomar Hengham, esq. who died in 1411, and lies buried in the body of Canterbury cathedral. They bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron, sable, between three pellets; on a chief, gules, a lion passant, guardant, or. A branch of this family became possessed of Singleton, in Great Chart, where they rebuilt the mansion, and afterwards resided; but the last residence of the Enghams, in this county, was at Gunston, where they flourished till the beginning of this century. At length Robert Engham, of Woodchurch, leaving two daughters his coheirs, this manor, about the latter end of the reign of Henry VIII. was carried in marriage by Mary, the eldest of them, to Thomas Isley, who leaving five daughters his coheirs, Mary, married to Francis Spelman; Frances, to William Boys, esq. Elizabeth, to Anthony Mason, esq. Anne, to George Delves, esq. and Jane, to Francis Haut, esq. they, in right of their respective wives, became jointly entitled to it. This occasioned a partition of this estate, which was afterwards called by the name of Great and Little Hengham; the former having the antient mansion and manor annexed to it. This part was afterwards alienated to William Hales, esq. of Nackington, who possessed it in the reign of king James I. and in 1640, passed it away by sale to Thomas Godfrey the younger, esq. of Lid, who conveyed it to Clerke, whence it was sold in the reign of king Charles II. to John Grove, gent. of Tunstall, whose descendant Richard Grove, esq. of London, who died unmarried in 1792, by will devised it to Mr. William Jemmott and Mr. William Marshall, the former of whom, on a partition of his estates, became the sole proprietor of it, and continues so at this time. A court baron is held for this manor.

 

THE OTHER PART of this manor, now called Little Hengham, which lies adjoining to it southward, is now the property of the heirs of Abbot, the Whitfields, and the Combers.

 

PLERYNDEN, now corruptly called Plunden, is situated in the north-west part of this parish, in the midst of a wood, and in the denne of the same name. It had in early times owners, who took their furname from it and continued so till Petronell, daughter and heir of Alan de Plerynden, who bore for his arms, Perchevron, in chief, two mullets, in base, a martlet, as they appear, carved in stone, on the roof of Canterbury cloysters, carried it in marriage to Moses de Engham, in whose descendants it remained till Vincent Engham, in the reign of queen Elizabeth, passed it away by sale to William Twysden, esq. of Chelmington, whose descendant Sir Thomas Twysden, bart. of Roydon-hall, in East Peckham, about the beginning of queen Anne's reign, sold it to Mr. John Hooker, of Maidstone, who died possessed of it in 1717, and devised it to his second son John, of Broadoak, in Brenchley, gent. who dying unmarried in 1762, devised it to his youngest and only surviving brother Stephen Hooker, gent. of Halden, and he alienated it to John Children, esq. of Tunbridge, whose son George Children, esq. of that place, is the present owner of it.

 

Charities.

RICHARD BROWNE, late of Woodchurch, by will in 1562, gave to the poor of this parish a rent charge of 4l. 10s. per annum, on every Trinity Sunday for ever, out of a messuage called Webbes, in this parish, of the clear annual produce of 3l. 8s.

 

SIR EDWARD HALES, of Woodchurch, by deed in 1610, gave to the poor yearly rents out of a farm, called the Legg farm, in Kenardington.

 

PHEBE GOBLE, of Woodchurch, by will in 1692, gave to the poor 2l. per annum, to be paid by her heirs for ever, out of a farm, called the Bonny Cravat, in Woodchurch, (now an alehouse) the first Sunday after Old Lady-day.

 

THERE IS A SCHOOL, for reading and writing, supported by contribution, in this parish.

 

The poor constantly relieved are about ninety, casually 45.

 

WOODCHURCH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the dioceseof Canterbury, and deanry of Limne.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to All Saints, is large and handsome, consisting of three isles and three chancels, with a spire steeple, shingled, at the west end, in which hang six bells. The windows in the high chancel are small and elegant. There are some very small remains of good painted glass. In this chancel is a stone, with the figure in brass, of a priest praying, and inscription for master Nicholas de Gore, in old French; and another stone, with inscription in brass, for William Benge Capellanus, obt. 1437. In this church are many tombs and gravestones of the family of Harlackenden, which have already been mentioned before. In the south chancel there is a handsome tomb, of Bethersden marble, for Sir Edward Waterhous, chancellor of the exchequer, and privy counsellor to queen Elizabeth, in Ireland, third son of John Waterhous, esq. of Whitechurch, in Buckinghamshire, obt. s. p. 1591, his arms on his tomb, Or, a pile engrailed, sable, quartered with other coats. Kilburne says, in the east window of this chancel, were the arms of Ellis; and in the east window of the north chancel, were several essigies of the Clerkes; and in the north window of it, those of William Harey; all long since gone. The sont in this church seems very antient, being of Bethersden marble, square, and standing on four pillars.

 

This church was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, and continues so at this time, his grace the archbishop being the present patron of it.

 

It is a rectory, valued in the king's books at 26l.13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 13s. 4d. In 1640 it was valued at one hundred and ten pounds. Communicants three hundred and forty-nine. In 1729 at two hundred and thirty pounds per annum.

 

Among the Lambeth MSS. is a decree of archbishop Peckham, concerning the tithes of Woodchurch, anno 1281. (fn. 8) There are about two acres of glebe land.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp226-237

Woodchurch is the latest bete noir of Kent churches for me. Or has been for some while. Along with Hinxhill, these two have proved to be impossible to get into. The lat time I tried here was last year's heritage weekend where I found the church locked just after five in the afternoon.

 

So, after a flurry of e mails this week, and the warden's surprise I have always failed to get in: "its open from seven in the morning to five every day". Maybe I just went on the three or four occasions this did not happen.

 

Whatever, this was the first stop of the day.

 

Woodchurch is on the route to Cranbrook and Sissinghurst, so this is the third week I have driven through Ham Street.

 

We park opposite the two pubs that sit beside each other, one, The Bonny Cravat looked fine with hanging baskets outside.

 

But too early for a pint, so we walk up the path to the porch and pushed....

 

The door swung open, and ahead of me, Jools was already in the church.

 

We found the light switches and lit up the large cool interior.

 

I found not one, not two, but three squints, or hagioscopes. One, a fabulous on with a double opening. I have not seen anything like it before.

 

Also, there are three sets of steps, including one to the pulpit and another to the now truncated rood loft.

 

I climb both.

 

------------------------------------------

 

An enormous church with much of interest. The fabric dates from the thirteenth century, and the nave arcades of alternate round and octagonal piers are made of ragstone, which was polished in the nineteenth century to resemble Bethersden marble. In fact there are some genuine pieces of Bethersden marble in the church, particularly important visually being the shafts between the east window lancets. On the south-east buttress of the chancel is a mass dial, and on the main south wall is an excellent large sundial. The rood loft stairway survives in the north chapel where there is a good and rare double hagioscope. The sedilia are made up of three graduated thirteenth-century seats with a double piscina incorporated as part of the same scheme. In the south aisle is a medallion of the Blessed Virgin Mary, while the nearby east window depicting the Crucifixion is by Kempe. In front of the pulpit is the brass to a priest, Nicholas Gore (d. 1333), a quatrefoil with a circular inscription, into which is set the figure of Gore in his vestments. The Royal Arms are those of George III and were painted by a local artist, Joseph Gibson, in 1773.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Woodchurch

 

-------------------------------------------

 

WOODCHURCH

IS the next parish south-eastward from Halden, and is within the court of the bailiwic of the Seven Hundreds, which claims paramount over the denne of Ilchenden, being a great part of it; though the manors of Apledore and of Wye claim over some parts of it.

 

This PARISH, which stands rather on high ground, is about five miles in length from north to south, and three miles and an half in breadth. The soil of it is in general a stiff clay, though in the southern part of it there is some light land, inclining to sand. It is exceedingly covered, throughout most of it, with oaken coppice wood, and the face of the country here, as well as the roads, are much like those of Halden, last described. The village is near the centre of the parish, built mostly round a green, with the church on the north-west side of it, and the parsonage-house. In the south-west part of the parish is Shirley-house and farm, which formerly belonged to the family of Clarke, and afterwards to the Harlackendens, from whom it was purchased by Anne Blackmore, widow of John Blackmore, esq. of Tenterden, who died in 1717; and their grandson Thomas Blackmore, esq. of Hertfordshire, now owns it, with other adjoining estates in this parish. Below this farm southward is a large tract of marshes, called Shirley, or Sherles-moor, being about three miles in length and two in breadth, lying in Woodchurch, Apledore, Eboney, and Tenterden, containing 1245 acres, and is what is called the Upper Levels, the waters of which few through Scots-float into Rye harbour. It is allowed to be the richest land for satting cattle in all these levels. It belongs to several different proprietors, among whom Sir Edward Hales, bart. Thomas Blackmore, esq. the dean and chapter of Canterbury, Richard Curteis, and the heirs of William Henley, esqrs. are the most considerable.

 

Sir Edward Hales, bart. and Richard Hulse, esq. are lessees of the dean and chapter of Canterbury, for lands in this level, which formerly belonged to the priory of Christ-church there.

 

About three quarters of a mile northward from the church, is Redbrooke-street, at which formerly resided a family named At-hale, possessed of lands in this and the neighbouring parishes.

 

THE MANOR OF TOWNLAND, alias WOODCHURCH, is subordinate to that of Apledore, and was part of those lands and estates assigned for the desence of Dover-castle, to the constable of which it was allotted, and made a part of his barony, which was usually stiled from him, the Constabularie, being held by him of the king in capite by barony, by the service of maintaining a certain number of soldiers from time to time for the desence of the castle. Of him and his heirs this manor was held in capite by the service of ward to the castle, Ralph de la Thun held this manor and other lands in Woodchurch, by the above service, in the 43d year of Henry III. in which year he died possessed of it, and from him it acquired the name of Thunland, or Townland, as it was afterwards called. After him Richard de Tunland became possessed of it, whose grandson John Ate Towneland paid aid for it in the 20th year of Edward III. and in his descendants it continued down to Thomas Townland, who died possessed of it in the 7th year of Henry IV. (fn. 1) After which it passed by sale into the family of Norton, whence it was sold, about the beginning of king Henry VIII.'s reign, to the prior and convent of Leeds, who were then possessed of it, as appears by the receipt in the exchequer anno 8 of that reign, Mich. Rot. 35; and it remained part of their possessions till the dissolution of the priory, in the 31st year of that reign, when it came into the hands of the crown; from whence it was granted that year to Thomas, lord Cromwell, earl of Essex, on whose attainder next year, this manor, among the rest of his estates, became forfeited to the crown, where it staid but a small time, for the king, in his 36th year, granted it to Sir Thomas Moile, chancellor of his court of augmentation, who in the 4th year of Edward VI. alienated it to Thomas Ancos, who afterwards sold it to Thomas Lucas, gent, who died possessed of it in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, hold ing it in capite by knight's service. He was descended from William Lucas, gent. of Ashford, who is recorded in Fuller's history, among those gentry who were returned as such, and qualified to bear arms, by the commissioners anno 12 Henry VI. (fn. 2) By the inquisition taken after his death, it was found, that Thomas Godfrey was his nephew and next heir. He died in the 7th year of that reign, and was succeeded by his brother James Godfrey, who two years afterwards alienated it to Mary, the widow of Sir John Guldeford, of Hemsted, who in the 19th year of that reign sold it to John Shellie, whose son John Shelley, esq. of Michelgrove, was created a baronet in 1611; and in his descendants, baronets, this manor continued till the reign of Charles II. How long it continued in this name, I do not find; for it was now become but of very little note. At length, after some intermediate owners, it became the property of Mr. Gabriel Richards, and since his decease of Mr. William Evans, the present possessor, who resides in it.

 

THE PLACE-HOUSE, or Woodchurch house, is a seat situated at a small distance eastward from the church, and was the habitation of a family who took both their surname and original from it. Anchitel de Woodchurch was possessed of it about the time of the Conqueror, and gave for his arms, Gules, three swords, erected in pale, argent. His grandson Roger de Woodchurch, is the first that is mentioned in the antient deeds, without date, of this estate, and his grandson Sir Simon de Woodchurch, is in the register of those Kentish gentlemen who accompanied king Edward I. in his victorious expedition into Scotland, where he was knighted, with many others of his countrymen. But in him the name, though not the male line, determined; for by matching with Susan, daughter and heir of Henry le Clerk, of Munsidde, in the parish of Kingsnoth, who brought a large inheritance into his family; his successors, out of gratitude to those who had added so much splendour, and annexed so plentiful a revenue to their name, altered their paternal appellation from Woodchurch to Clerke; and in several of their deeds subsequent to this match were written, Clerke, alias Woodchurch. He left two sons, Simon, who died without male issue; (fn. 3) and Clerke Woodchurch, heir to his mother's lands, as well as to his elder brother at this place, on his failure of male issue; which latter left a son Peter Clerke, alias Woodchurch, who inherited this seat on his father's death, and in his descendants it continued down to Humphry Clarke, for so they then wrote their name, who resided at Buckford, in Great Chart. He sold this seat, with the estate belonging to it, to Martin Harlackenden, esq. of this parish, whose successor Walter Harlackenden resided here in the reign of James I. and his descendant Geo. Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, sold it to Winifred Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, the latter of whom at his death devised it to his son John, who dying s.p. his sister Mrs. Winifrid Bridger, of Canterbury, succeeded to it, and dying in 1776, unmarried, by will gave it to the Rev. William Dejovas Byrch, of Canterbury, and Elizabeth his wife. He died in 1792, and she in 1798, having surviving issue an only daughter Elizabeth, since deceased, who married Samuel Egerton Brydges, esq. of Denton, who is now in his late wife's right became entitled to it.

 

Great part of this house has been pulled down, and the remainder of it makes but a very mean appearance, and is inhabited by several different persons.

 

HENDEN is an estate in this parish, which from having had for a length of time the same owners as that last-described, was once almost accounted an ap pendage to it. This place is supposed (for there are no records existing of it) to have been the original seat of the Hendens, who were in much later times seated at Biddenden-place, in this neighbourhood, as has been mentioned before, where they continued till within these few years. How long they remained possessors of it, cannot therefore be traced; but in the reign of king Richard II. the Capells, of Capellscourt, in Ivychurch, were become owners of it; in the 15th year of which reign Richard Capell died possessed of it. At length, after it had continued in his descendants for some generations, it went by the marriage of a female heir into the family of Harlackenden, of this parish, where it remained till Deborah, daughter and heir of Martin Harlackenden, entitled her husband Sir Edward Hales, knight and baronet, to the possession of this estate, together with others in this parish and neighbourhood, and in his descendants it has continued down to Sir Edward Hales, bart. of St. Stephen's, the present owner of it.

 

HARLACKENDEN, usually called Old Harlackenden, situated within the boroughof that name which extended likewise over part of the adjoining parish of Shadoxhurst) was for some hundred years the patrimonial demesnes of that name and family, as appeared by a tomb in this church, the inscription on which, long since obliterated, shewed that one of them lay interred there soon after the conquest. Philipott says, the proportion and shape of the characters were much like those in use in the reigns of king Henry IV. and V. which he thinks was occasioned by this tomb having been renewed by one of this person's successors and descendants in one of the above reigns, and the former one might have been in old characters, suitable to the time in which it was first erected. There are none now remaining on it. Kilburne says, it was for William Harlackenden, anno 1081. They bore for their arms, Azure, a sess, ermine, between three lions beads erased, or; which arms were painted in an upper window of Grays-Inn hall, and appeared to have been of long standing there. In his descendants, residents here, many of whom lie buried in this church, this seat continued down to Thomas Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, who procured his lands to be disgavelled by the acts of 31 Henry VIII. and 2 and 3 Edward VI. He died in 1558. (fn. 4) At length his descendant George Harlackenden, esq. of this place, alienated it to Winifried Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, whose heirs, in the 9th year of queen Anne, procured an act to vest it in trustees, and they accordingly sold it, in 1711, to dame Sarah, widow of Sir Paul Barrett, sergeant-at-law. She died that same year, and by the limitation in her will, (fn. 5) this estate devolved to her grandson Sir Francis Head, bart. son of her first husband Francis Head, esq. who died possessed of it in 1768. After which his widow, lady Head, by virtue of her jointure, came into the possession of it. She died in 1792, and it then devolved to the daughters and coheirs of her late husband Sir Francis Head, and to their heirs, in the like proportions as the Hermitage, in Higham, and his other estates in this county, in which state it remains at present. (fn. 6)

 

HENHURST is an estate in the north-east part of this parish, which formerly belonged to a family of the same name, whose more antient seat was at Henhurst, in Staplehurst, of which this was but a younger branch. They were likewise often written in old deeds both Henhurst and Enghurst, and continued owners of this place until the reign of king Henry VII. and then Sir Thomas Henghurst dying without issue male, his daughter and sole heir carried it in marriage to Humphry Wife, whose daughter and heir Agnes entitled her husband Mr. Robert Master to the possession of it, who bore for his arms, A lion, rampant, holding in his paws an escallop shell. His son Mr. Thomas Master resided here, but his son Giles Master quitted this residence and removed to Canterbury, where he died in 1644. At length it descended to Sir Harcourt Master, alderman of London, who became possessed of it for the term of his life, by the will of his father's eldest brother's daughter, Mary Master. He died in 1648. Since which it has continued in his descendants, one of whom, Harcourt Masters, esq. of Greenwich, owns it at this time.

 

HENGHAM, now usually called Great Hengham, corruptly for Engeham, its original name, lies enveloped by woods, about a mile and an half northward from Woodchurch. It was once accounted a manor, and was in early times possessed by a family of the same name, who resided at it, and were stiled sometimes Engham, alias Edingham, in antient deeds, relating to their possessions in different parts of Romney marsh, the latter being probably their original name, and the former one an abbreviation of it. (fn. 7) Alanus de Engham resided here in the reign of king John, and married the daughter of Townland, of this parish, as did his descendant Moses de Engham, alias Edingham, who by marriage with Petronell, daughter of Alan de Plurenden, greatly increased his estate in Woodchurch; and probably of kindred to this family was Odomar Hengham, esq. who died in 1411, and lies buried in the body of Canterbury cathedral. They bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron, sable, between three pellets; on a chief, gules, a lion passant, guardant, or. A branch of this family became possessed of Singleton, in Great Chart, where they rebuilt the mansion, and afterwards resided; but the last residence of the Enghams, in this county, was at Gunston, where they flourished till the beginning of this century. At length Robert Engham, of Woodchurch, leaving two daughters his coheirs, this manor, about the latter end of the reign of Henry VIII. was carried in marriage by Mary, the eldest of them, to Thomas Isley, who leaving five daughters his coheirs, Mary, married to Francis Spelman; Frances, to William Boys, esq. Elizabeth, to Anthony Mason, esq. Anne, to George Delves, esq. and Jane, to Francis Haut, esq. they, in right of their respective wives, became jointly entitled to it. This occasioned a partition of this estate, which was afterwards called by the name of Great and Little Hengham; the former having the antient mansion and manor annexed to it. This part was afterwards alienated to William Hales, esq. of Nackington, who possessed it in the reign of king James I. and in 1640, passed it away by sale to Thomas Godfrey the younger, esq. of Lid, who conveyed it to Clerke, whence it was sold in the reign of king Charles II. to John Grove, gent. of Tunstall, whose descendant Richard Grove, esq. of London, who died unmarried in 1792, by will devised it to Mr. William Jemmott and Mr. William Marshall, the former of whom, on a partition of his estates, became the sole proprietor of it, and continues so at this time. A court baron is held for this manor.

 

THE OTHER PART of this manor, now called Little Hengham, which lies adjoining to it southward, is now the property of the heirs of Abbot, the Whitfields, and the Combers.

 

PLERYNDEN, now corruptly called Plunden, is situated in the north-west part of this parish, in the midst of a wood, and in the denne of the same name. It had in early times owners, who took their furname from it and continued so till Petronell, daughter and heir of Alan de Plerynden, who bore for his arms, Perchevron, in chief, two mullets, in base, a martlet, as they appear, carved in stone, on the roof of Canterbury cloysters, carried it in marriage to Moses de Engham, in whose descendants it remained till Vincent Engham, in the reign of queen Elizabeth, passed it away by sale to William Twysden, esq. of Chelmington, whose descendant Sir Thomas Twysden, bart. of Roydon-hall, in East Peckham, about the beginning of queen Anne's reign, sold it to Mr. John Hooker, of Maidstone, who died possessed of it in 1717, and devised it to his second son John, of Broadoak, in Brenchley, gent. who dying unmarried in 1762, devised it to his youngest and only surviving brother Stephen Hooker, gent. of Halden, and he alienated it to John Children, esq. of Tunbridge, whose son George Children, esq. of that place, is the present owner of it.

 

Charities.

RICHARD BROWNE, late of Woodchurch, by will in 1562, gave to the poor of this parish a rent charge of 4l. 10s. per annum, on every Trinity Sunday for ever, out of a messuage called Webbes, in this parish, of the clear annual produce of 3l. 8s.

 

SIR EDWARD HALES, of Woodchurch, by deed in 1610, gave to the poor yearly rents out of a farm, called the Legg farm, in Kenardington.

 

PHEBE GOBLE, of Woodchurch, by will in 1692, gave to the poor 2l. per annum, to be paid by her heirs for ever, out of a farm, called the Bonny Cravat, in Woodchurch, (now an alehouse) the first Sunday after Old Lady-day.

 

THERE IS A SCHOOL, for reading and writing, supported by contribution, in this parish.

 

The poor constantly relieved are about ninety, casually 45.

 

WOODCHURCH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the dioceseof Canterbury, and deanry of Limne.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to All Saints, is large and handsome, consisting of three isles and three chancels, with a spire steeple, shingled, at the west end, in which hang six bells. The windows in the high chancel are small and elegant. There are some very small remains of good painted glass. In this chancel is a stone, with the figure in brass, of a priest praying, and inscription for master Nicholas de Gore, in old French; and another stone, with inscription in brass, for William Benge Capellanus, obt. 1437. In this church are many tombs and gravestones of the family of Harlackenden, which have already been mentioned before. In the south chancel there is a handsome tomb, of Bethersden marble, for Sir Edward Waterhous, chancellor of the exchequer, and privy counsellor to queen Elizabeth, in Ireland, third son of John Waterhous, esq. of Whitechurch, in Buckinghamshire, obt. s. p. 1591, his arms on his tomb, Or, a pile engrailed, sable, quartered with other coats. Kilburne says, in the east window of this chancel, were the arms of Ellis; and in the east window of the north chancel, were several essigies of the Clerkes; and in the north window of it, those of William Harey; all long since gone. The sont in this church seems very antient, being of Bethersden marble, square, and standing on four pillars.

 

This church was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, and continues so at this time, his grace the archbishop being the present patron of it.

 

It is a rectory, valued in the king's books at 26l.13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 13s. 4d. In 1640 it was valued at one hundred and ten pounds. Communicants three hundred and forty-nine. In 1729 at two hundred and thirty pounds per annum.

 

Among the Lambeth MSS. is a decree of archbishop Peckham, concerning the tithes of Woodchurch, anno 1281. (fn. 8) There are about two acres of glebe land.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp226-237

11 x 14 limited edition print by visually impaired artist Michael A. Williams

Captured 2 Dec 2021, 22:58 hrs ET, Springfield, VA, USA. Bortle 7 skies, Stellarvue SV80/9D doublet achromat refractor at f/9.38 (eff. fl 750mm), Orion Atlas AZ/EQ-G Pro mount. Mallincam DS10C camera, bin 1, exposure 8 seconds, gain 20, live stack of 20 subframes, dark frames subtracted. Optolong LeNhance filter.

 

Clouds: partly cloudy

Seeing: good

Transparency: good

Moon phase: 4%

 

FOV: 78.4 x 58.8 arcmin before cropping.

Resolution: 1.27 arcsec/pixel.

Orientation: Up is West.

 

Appearance: Brilliant pale-orange star. Magnitude +0.08.

 

Splitting Capella: The primary pair (Capella Aa and Ab) appear very close together, separation 0.06 arsec, and were not resolved in this image. Splitting Capella A would require aperture on the order of 80 inches or more! The second pair (Capella H and L) are separated from A by 12 arcsec, well within the capability of this equipment (Dawes limit 1.45 arcsec, image scale 1.3 arcsec/px) if used with an occulting bar.

 

Notes on image artifacts: The eight spikes appearing to radiate from the center of the star are visually appealing, and appear in images of other very bright stars via this camera and my SCT. I do not have a reasonable explanation (in the absence of a vaned secondary mirror holder) for it. The halo around the star is slightly off-center from the star (likely collimation error or mild sensor tilt) -- try aligning star to exact center of FOV during capture.

 

From Wikipedia:

Capella, designated α Aurigae (Latinised to Alpha Aurigae, abbreviated Alpha Aur, α Aur), is the brightest star in the constellation of Auriga, the sixth-brightest star in the night sky, and the third-brightest in the northern celestial hemisphere after Arcturus and Vega. A prominent object in the northern winter sky, it is circumpolar to observers north of 44°N. Its name meaning "little goat" in Latin, Capella depicted the goat Amalthea that suckled Zeus in classical mythology. Capella is relatively close, at 42.9 light-years (13.2 pc) from the Sun. It is one of the brightest X-ray sources in the sky, thought to come primarily from the corona of Capella Aa.

 

Although it appears to be a single star to the naked eye, Capella is actually a quadruple star system organized in two binary pairs, made up of the stars Capella Aa, Capella Ab, Capella H and Capella L. The primary pair, Capella Aa and Capella Ab, are two bright-yellow giant stars, both of which are around 2.5 times as massive as the Sun. The secondary pair, Capella H and Capella L, are around 10,000 astronomical units (AU) from the first and are two faint, small and relatively cool red dwarfs. Capella Aa and Capella Ab have exhausted their core hydrogen, and cooled and expanded, moving off the main sequence. They are in a very tight circular orbit about 0.74 AU apart, and orbit each other every 104 days. Capella Aa is the cooler and more luminous of the two with spectral class K0III; it is 78.7 ± 4.2 times the Sun's luminosity and 11.98 ± 0.57 times its radius. An aging red clump star, it is fusing helium to carbon and oxygen in its core. Capella Ab is slightly smaller and hotter and of spectral class G1III; it is 72.7 ± 3.6 times as luminous as the Sun and 8.83 ± 0.33 times its radius. It is in the Hertzsprung gap, corresponding to a brief subgiant evolutionary phase as it expands and cools to become a red giant. Several other stars in the same visual field have been catalogued as companions but are physically unrelated.

 

α Aurigae (Latinised to Alpha Aurigae) is the star system's Bayer designation. It also has the Flamsteed designation 13 Aurigae. It is listed in several multiple star catalogues as ADS 3841, CCDM J05168+4559, and WDS J05167+4600. As a relatively nearby star system, Capella is listed in the Gliese-Jahreiss Catalogue with designations GJ 194 for the bright pair of giants and GJ 195 for the faint pair of red dwarfs.

 

The traditional name Capella is Latin for (small) female goat; the alternative name Capra was more commonly used in classical times. In 2016, the International Astronomical Union organized a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN) to catalogue and standardize proper names for stars. The WGSN's first bulletin of July 2016 included a table of the first two batches of names approved by the WGSN; which included Capella for this star. It is now so entered in the IAU Catalog of Star Names. The catalogue of star names lists Capella as applying to the star α Aurigae Aa.

 

Capella was the brightest star in the night sky from 210,000 years ago to 160,000 years ago, at about −1.8 in apparent magnitude. At −1.1, Aldebaran was brightest before this period; it and Capella were situated rather close to each other in the sky and approximated boreal pole stars at the time.

 

Capella is thought to be mentioned in an Akkadian inscription dating to the 20th century BC. Its goat-associated symbolism dates back to Mesopotamia as a constellation called "GAM", "Gamlum" or "MUL.GAM" in the 7th-century BC document MUL.APIN. GAM represented a scimitar or crook and may have represented the star alone or the constellation of Auriga as a whole. Later, Bedouin astronomers created constellations that were groups of animals, where each star represented one animal. The stars of Auriga comprised a herd of goats, an association also present in Greek mythology. It is sometimes called the Shepherd's Star in English literature. Capella was seen as a portent of rain in classical times.

 

Professor William Wallace Campbell of the Lick Observatory announced that Capella was binary in 1899, based on spectroscopic observations—he noted on photographic plates taken from August 1896 to February 1897 that a second spectrum appeared superimposed over the first, and that there was a doppler shift to violet in September and October and to red in November and February—showing that the components were moving toward and away from the Earth (and hence orbiting each other). Almost simultaneously, British astronomer Hugh Newall had observed its composite spectrum with a four prism spectroscope attached to a 25-inch (64 cm) telescope at Cambridge in July 1899, concluding that it was a binary star system.

 

Many observers tried to discern the component stars without success. Known as "The Interferometrist's Friend", it was first resolved interferometrically in 1919 by John Anderson and Francis Pease at Mount Wilson Observatory, who published an orbit in 1920 based on their observations. This was the first interferometric measurement of any object outside the Solar System. A high-precision orbit was published in 1994 based on observations by the Mark III Stellar Interferometer, again at Mount Wilson Observatory. Capella also became the first astronomical object to be imaged by a separate element optical interferometer when it was imaged by the Cambridge Optical Aperture Synthesis Telescope in September 1995.

 

In 1914, Finnish astronomer Ragnar Furuhjelm observed that the spectroscopic binary had a faint companion star, which, as its proper motion was similar to that of the spectroscopic binary, was probably physically bound to it. In February 1936, Carl L. Stearns observed that this companion appeared to be double itself; this was confirmed in September that year by Gerard Kuiper. This pair are designated Capella H and L.

 

Two Aerobee-Hi rocket flights on September 20, 1962, and March 15, 1963, detected and confirmed an X-ray source in Auriga at RA 05h 09m Dec +45°, identified as Capella. Stellar X-ray astronomy started on April 5, 1974, with the detection of X-rays from Capella. A rocket flight on that date briefly calibrated its attitude control system when a star sensor pointed the payload axis at Capella. During this period, X-rays in the range 0.2–1.6 keV were detected by an X-ray reflector system co-aligned with the star sensor. The X-ray luminosity (Lx) of ~1024 W (1031 erg s−1) is four orders of magnitude above the Sun's X-ray luminosity. Capella's X-rays are thought to be primarily from the corona of the most massive star. Capella is ROSAT X-ray source 1RXS J051642.2+460001. The high temperature of Capella's corona as obtained from the first coronal X-ray spectrum of Capella using HEAO 1 would require magnetic confinement, unless it is a free-flowing coronal wind.

 

With an average apparent magnitude of +0.08, Capella is the brightest object in the constellation Auriga, the sixth-brightest star in the night sky, the third-brightest in the northern celestial hemisphere (after Arcturus and Vega), and the fourth-brightest visible to the naked eye from the latitude 40°N. It appears to be a rich yellowish-white colour, although the yellow colour is more apparent during daylight observation with a telescope, due to the contrast against the blue sky.

 

Capella is closer to the north celestial pole than any other first-magnitude star. Its northern declination is such that it is actually invisible south of latitude 44°S—this includes southernmost New Zealand, Argentina and Chile as well as the Falkland Islands. Conversely it is circumpolar north of 44°N: for the whole of the United Kingdom and Canada (except for part of Southern Ontario), most of Europe, and the northernmost fringes of the contiguous United States, the star never sets. Capella and Vega are on opposite sides of the pole, at about the same distance from it, such that an imaginary line between the two stars will nearly pass through Polaris. Visible halfway between Orion's Belt and Polaris, Capella is at its highest in the night sky at midnight in early December and is regarded as a prominent star of the northern winter sky.

 

A few degrees to the southwest of Capella lie three stars, Epsilon Aurigae, Zeta Aurigae and Eta Aurigae, the latter two of which are known as "The Kids", or Haedi. The four form a familiar pattern, or asterism, in the sky.

 

Based on an annual parallax shift of 76.20 milliarcseconds (with a margin of error of 0.46 milliarcseconds) as measured by the Hipparcos satellite, this system is estimated to be 42.8 light-years (13.12 parsecs) from Earth, with a margin of error of 0.3 light-year (0.09 parsec). An alternative method to determine the distance is via the orbital parallax, which gives a distance of 42.92 light-years (13.159 parsecs) with a margin of error of only 0.1%. Capella is estimated to have been a little closer to the Solar System in the past, passing within 29 light-years distant around 237,000 years ago. At this range, it would have shone at apparent magnitude −0.82, comparable to Canopus today.

 

In a 1960 paper, American astronomer Olin J. Eggen concluded that Capella was a member of the Hyades moving group, a group of stars moving in the same direction as the Hyades cluster, after analysing its proper motion and parallax. Members of the group are of a similar age, and those that are around 2.5 times as massive as the Sun have moved off the main sequence after exhausting their core hydrogen reserves and are expanding and cooling into red giants.

 

There are several stars within a few arcminutes of Capella and some have been listed as companions in various multiple star catalogues. The Washington Double Star Catalog lists components A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, L, M, N, O, P, Q, and R, with A being the naked-eye star. Most are only line-of-sight companions, but the close pair of red dwarfs H and L are at the same distance as the bright component A and moving through space along with it. Capella A is itself a spectroscopic binary with components Aa and Ab, both giant stars. The pair of giants is separated from the pair of red dwarfs by 12'.

 

American astronomer Robert Burnham Jr. described a scale model of the system where Capella A was represented by spheres 13 and 7 inches across, separated by ten feet. The red dwarfs were then each 0.7 inch across and they were separated by 420 feet. At this scale, the two pairs are 21 miles apart.

 

Capella A consists of two yellow evolved stars that have been calculated to orbit each other every 104.02128 ± 0.00016 days, with a semimajor axis of 111.11 ± 0.10 million km (0.74272 ± 0.00069 AU), roughly the distance between Venus and the Sun. The pair is not an eclipsing binary—that is, as seen from Earth, neither star passes in front of the other. The orbit is known extremely accurately and can be used to derive an orbital parallax with far better precision than the one measured directly. The stars are not near enough to each other for the Roche lobe of either star to have been filled and any significant mass transfer to have taken place, even during the red giant stage of the primary star.

 

Modern convention designates the more luminous cooler star as component Aa and its spectral type has been usually measured between G2 and K0. The hotter secondary Ab has been given various spectral types of late (cooler) F or early (warmer) G. The MK spectral types of the two stars have been measured a number of times, and they are both consistently assigned a luminosity class of III indicating a giant star. The composite spectrum appears to be dominated by the primary star due to its sharper absorption lines; the lines from the secondary are broadened and blurred by its rapid rotation. The composite spectral class is given as approximately G3III, but with a specific mention of features due to a cooler component. The most recent specific published types are K0III and G1III, although older values are still widely quoted such as G5IIIe + G0III from the Bright Star Catalogue or G8III + G0III by Eggen. Where the context is clear, these two components have been referred to as A and B.

 

The individual apparent magnitudes of the two component stars cannot be directly measured, but their relative brightness has been measured at various wavelengths. They have very nearly equal brightness in the visible light spectrum, with the hotter secondary component generally being found to be a few tenths of a magnitude brighter. A 2016 measurement gives the magnitude difference between the two stars at a wavelength of 700 nm as 0.00 ± 0.1.

 

The physical properties of the two stars can be determined with high accuracy. The masses are derived directly from the orbital solution, with Aa being 2.5687 ± 0.0074 M☉ and Ab being 2.4828 ± 0.0067 M☉. Their angular radii have been directly measured; in combination with the very accurate distance, this gives 11.98 ± 0.57 R☉ and 8.83 ± 0.33 R☉ for Aa and Ab, respectively. Their surface temperatures can be calculated by comparison of observed and synthetic spectra, direct measurement of their angular diameters and brightnesses, calibration against their observed colour indices, and disentangling of high resolution spectra. Weighted averages of these four methods give 4,970 ± 50 K for Aa and 5,730 ± 60 for Ab. Their bolometric luminosities are most accurately derived from their apparent magnitudes and bolometric corrections, but are confirmed by calculation from the temperatures and radii of the stars. Aa is 78.7 ± 4.2 times as luminous as the Sun and Ab 72.7 ± 3.6 times as luminous, so the star defined as the primary component is the more luminous when all wavelengths are considered but very slightly less bright at visual wavelengths.

 

Estimated to be 590 to 650 million years old, the stars were probably at the hot end of spectral class A during their main-sequence lifetime, similar to Vega. They have now exhausted their core hydrogen and evolved off the main sequence, their outer layers expanding and cooling. Despite the giant luminosity class, the secondary component is very clearly within the Hertzsprung gap on the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram, still expanding and cooling towards the red giant branch, making it a subgiant in evolutionary terms. The more massive primary has already passed through this stage, when it reached a maximum radius of 36 to 38 times that of the Sun. It is now a red clump star which is fusing helium to carbon and oxygen in its core, a process that has not yet begun for the less massive star. Detailed analysis shows that it is nearing the end of this stage and starting to expand again which will lead it to the asymptotic giant branch. Isotope abundances and spin rates confirm this evolutionary difference between the two stars. Heavy element abundances are broadly comparable to those of the Sun and the overall metallicity is slightly less than the Sun's.

 

The rotational period of each star can be measured by observing periodic variations in the doppler shifts of their spectral lines. The absolute rotational velocities of the two stars are known from their inclinations, rotation periods, and sizes, but the projected equatorial rotational velocities measured using doppler broadening of spectral lines are a standard measure and these are generally quoted. Capella Aa has a projected rotational velocity of 4.1 ± 0.4 km per second, taking 104 ± 3 days to complete one rotation, while Capella Ab spins much more rapidly at 35.0 ± 0.5 km per second, completing a full rotation in only 8.5 ± 0.2 days. Rotational braking occurs in all stars when they expand into giants, and binary stars are also tidally braked. Capella Aa has slowed until it is rotationally locked to the orbital period, although theory predicts that it should still be rotating more quickly from a starting point of a rapidly-spinning main sequence A star.

 

Capella has long been suspected to be slightly variable. Its amplitude of about 0.1 magnitudes means that it may at times be brighter or fainter than Rigel, Betelgeuse and Vega, which are also variable. The system has been classified as an RS Canum Venaticorum variable, a class of binary stars with active chromospheres that cause huge starspots, but it is still only listed as a suspected variable in the General Catalogue of Variable Stars. Unusually for RS CVn systems, the hotter star, Capella Ab, has the more active atmosphere because it is located in the Hertzsprung gap—a stage where it is changing its angular momentum and deepening its convection zone.

 

The active atmospheres and closeness of these stars means that they are among the brightest X-ray sources in the sky. However the X-ray emission is due to stable coronal structures and not eruptive flaring activity. Coronal loops larger than the Sun and with temperatures of several million kelvin are likely to be responsible for the majority of the X-rays.

 

The seventh companion published for Capella, component H, is physically associated with the bright primary star. It is a red dwarf separated from the pair of G-type giants by a distance of around 10,000 AU. It has its own close companion, an even fainter red dwarf that was 1.8″ away when it was discovered in 1935. It is component L in double star catalogues. In 2015 the separation had increased to 3.5″, which was sufficient to allow tentative orbital parameters to be derived, 80 years after its discovery. The Gliese-Jahreiss Catalogue of nearby stars designates the binary system as GJ 195. The two components are then referred to individually as GJ 195 A and B.

 

The two stars are reported to have a 3.5-visual-magnitude difference (2.3 mag in the passband of the Gaia spacecraft) although the difference is much smaller at infrared wavelengths. This is unexpected and may indicate further unseen companions.

 

The mass of the stars can, in principle, be determined from the orbital motion, but uncertainties in the orbit have led to widely varying results. In 1975, an eccentric 388-year orbit gave masses of 0.65 M☉ and 0.13 M☉. A smaller near-circular orbit published in 2015 had a 300-year orbit, benefitting from mass constraints of 0.57 M☉ and 0.53 M☉, respectively, for GJ 195 A and B, based on their infrared magnitudes.

 

Six visual companions to Capella were discovered before Capella H and are generally known only as Capella B through G. None are thought to be physically associated with Capella, although all appear closer in the sky than the HL pair.

 

Component F is also known as TYC 3358-3142-1. It is listed with a spectral type of K although it is included in a catalogue of OB stars as a distant luminous star.

 

Component G is BD+45 1076, with a spectral type of F0, at a distance of 401 light-years (123 parsecs). It is identified as a variable member of the Guide Star Catalogue from Chandra observations although it is not known what type of variability. It is known to be an X-ray source with an active corona.

 

Several other stars have also been catalogued as companions to Capella. Components I, Q and R are 13th-magnitude stars at distances of 92″, 133″ and 134″. V538 Aurigae and its close companion HD 233153 are red dwarfs ten degrees away from Capella; they have very similar space motions but the small difference makes it possible that this is just a coincidence. Two faint stars have been discovered by speckle imaging in the Capella HL field, around 10″ distant from that pair. These have been catalogued as Capella O and P. It is not known whether they are physically associated with the red dwarf binary.

 

Capella traditionally marks the left shoulder of the constellation's eponymous charioteer, or, according to the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy's Almagest, the goat that the charioteer is carrying. In Bayer's 1603 work Uranometria, Capella marks the charioteer's back. The three Haedi had been identified as a separate constellation by Pliny the Elder and Manilius, and were called Capra, Caper, or Hircus, all of which relate to its status as the "goat star". Ptolemy merged the Charioteer and the Goats in the 2nd-century Almagest.

 

In Greek mythology, the star represented the goat Amalthea that suckled Zeus. It was this goat whose horn, after accidentally being broken off by Zeus, was transformed into the Cornucopia, or "horn of plenty", which would be filled with whatever its owner desired. Though most often associated with Amalthea, Capella has sometimes been associated with Amalthea's owner, a nymph. The myth of the nymph says that the goat's hideous appearance, resembling a Gorgon, was partially responsible for the Titans' defeat, after Zeus skinned the goat and wore it as his aegis.

 

In medieval accounts, it bore the uncommon name Alhajoth (also spelled Alhaior, Althaiot, Alhaiset, Alhatod, Alhojet, Alanac, Alanat, Alioc), which (especially the last) may be a corruption of its Arabic name, العيوق, al-cayyūq. cAyyūq has no clear significance in Arabic, but may be an Arabized form of the Greek αίξ aiks "goat"; cf. the modern Greek Αίγα Aiga, the feminine of goat. To the Bedouin of the Negev and Sinai, Capella al-'Ayyūq ath-Thurayyā "Capella of the Pleiades", from its role as pointing out the position of that asterism. Another name in Arabic was Al-Rākib "the driver", a translation of the Greek.

 

To the ancient Balts, Capella was known as Perkūno Ožka "Thunder's Goat", or Tikutis. Conversely in Slavic Macedonian folklore, Capella was Jastreb "the hawk", flying high above and ready to pounce on Mother Hen (the Pleiades) and the Rooster (Nath).

 

Astrologically, Capella portends civic and military honors and wealth. In the Middle Ages, it was considered a Behenian fixed star, with the stone sapphire and the plants horehound, mint, mugwort and mandrake as attributes. Cornelius Agrippa listed its kabbalistic sign Agrippa1531 Hircus.png with the name Hircus (Latin for goat).

 

In Hindu mythology, Capella was seen as the heart of Brahma, Brahma Hṛdaya. In traditional Chinese astronomy, Capella was part of the asterism 五車 (Wŭ chē; English: Five Chariots), which consisted of Capella together with Beta Aurigae, Theta Aurigae and Iota Aurigae, as well as Beta Tauri. Since it was the second star in this asterism, it has the Chinese name 五車二 (Wŭ chē èr; English: Second of the Five Chariots).

 

In Quechua it was known as Colça; the Incas held the star in high regard. The Hawaiians saw Capella as part of an asterism Ke ka o Makali'i ("The canoe bailer of Makali'i") that helped them navigate at sea. Called Hoku-lei "star wreath", it formed this asterism with Procyon, Sirius, Castor and Pollux. In Tahitian folklore, Capella was Tahi-ari'i, the wife of Fa'a-nui (Auriga) and mother of prince Ta'urua (Venus) who sails his canoe across the sky. In Inuit astronomy, Capella, along with Menkalinan (Beta Aurigae), Pollux (Beta Geminorum) and Castor (Alpha Geminorum), formed a constellation Quturjuuk, "collar-bones", the two pairs of stars denoting a bone each. Used for navigation and time-keeping at night, the constellation was recognised from Alaska to western Greenland. The Gwich'in saw Capella and Menkalinan has forming shreets'ą įį vidzee, the right ear of the large circumpolar constellation Yahdii, which covered much of the night sky, and whose orientation facilitated navigation and timekeeping.

 

In Australian Aboriginal mythology for the Boorong people of Victoria, Capella was Purra, the kangaroo, pursued and killed by the nearby Gemini twins, Yurree (Castor) and Wanjel (Pollux). The Wardaman people of northern Australia knew the star as Yagalal, a ceremonial fish scale, related to Guwamba the barramundi (Aldebaran).

Woodchurch is the latest bete noir of Kent churches for me. Or has been for some while. Along with Hinxhill, these two have proved to be impossible to get into. The lat time I tried here was last year's heritage weekend where I found the church locked just after five in the afternoon.

 

So, after a flurry of e mails this week, and the warden's surprise I have always failed to get in: "its open from seven in the morning to five every day". Maybe I just went on the three or four occasions this did not happen.

 

Whatever, this was the first stop of the day.

 

Woodchurch is on the route to Cranbrook and Sissinghurst, so this is the third week I have driven through Ham Street.

 

We park opposite the two pubs that sit beside each other, one, The Bonny Cravat looked fine with hanging baskets outside.

 

But too early for a pint, so we walk up the path to the porch and pushed....

 

The door swung open, and ahead of me, Jools was already in the church.

 

We found the light switches and lit up the large cool interior.

 

I found not one, not two, but three squints, or hagioscopes. One, a fabulous on with a double opening. I have not seen anything like it before.

 

Also, there are three sets of steps, including one to the pulpit and another to the now truncated rood loft.

 

I climb both.

 

------------------------------------------

 

An enormous church with much of interest. The fabric dates from the thirteenth century, and the nave arcades of alternate round and octagonal piers are made of ragstone, which was polished in the nineteenth century to resemble Bethersden marble. In fact there are some genuine pieces of Bethersden marble in the church, particularly important visually being the shafts between the east window lancets. On the south-east buttress of the chancel is a mass dial, and on the main south wall is an excellent large sundial. The rood loft stairway survives in the north chapel where there is a good and rare double hagioscope. The sedilia are made up of three graduated thirteenth-century seats with a double piscina incorporated as part of the same scheme. In the south aisle is a medallion of the Blessed Virgin Mary, while the nearby east window depicting the Crucifixion is by Kempe. In front of the pulpit is the brass to a priest, Nicholas Gore (d. 1333), a quatrefoil with a circular inscription, into which is set the figure of Gore in his vestments. The Royal Arms are those of George III and were painted by a local artist, Joseph Gibson, in 1773.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Woodchurch

 

-------------------------------------------

 

WOODCHURCH

IS the next parish south-eastward from Halden, and is within the court of the bailiwic of the Seven Hundreds, which claims paramount over the denne of Ilchenden, being a great part of it; though the manors of Apledore and of Wye claim over some parts of it.

 

This PARISH, which stands rather on high ground, is about five miles in length from north to south, and three miles and an half in breadth. The soil of it is in general a stiff clay, though in the southern part of it there is some light land, inclining to sand. It is exceedingly covered, throughout most of it, with oaken coppice wood, and the face of the country here, as well as the roads, are much like those of Halden, last described. The village is near the centre of the parish, built mostly round a green, with the church on the north-west side of it, and the parsonage-house. In the south-west part of the parish is Shirley-house and farm, which formerly belonged to the family of Clarke, and afterwards to the Harlackendens, from whom it was purchased by Anne Blackmore, widow of John Blackmore, esq. of Tenterden, who died in 1717; and their grandson Thomas Blackmore, esq. of Hertfordshire, now owns it, with other adjoining estates in this parish. Below this farm southward is a large tract of marshes, called Shirley, or Sherles-moor, being about three miles in length and two in breadth, lying in Woodchurch, Apledore, Eboney, and Tenterden, containing 1245 acres, and is what is called the Upper Levels, the waters of which few through Scots-float into Rye harbour. It is allowed to be the richest land for satting cattle in all these levels. It belongs to several different proprietors, among whom Sir Edward Hales, bart. Thomas Blackmore, esq. the dean and chapter of Canterbury, Richard Curteis, and the heirs of William Henley, esqrs. are the most considerable.

 

Sir Edward Hales, bart. and Richard Hulse, esq. are lessees of the dean and chapter of Canterbury, for lands in this level, which formerly belonged to the priory of Christ-church there.

 

About three quarters of a mile northward from the church, is Redbrooke-street, at which formerly resided a family named At-hale, possessed of lands in this and the neighbouring parishes.

 

THE MANOR OF TOWNLAND, alias WOODCHURCH, is subordinate to that of Apledore, and was part of those lands and estates assigned for the desence of Dover-castle, to the constable of which it was allotted, and made a part of his barony, which was usually stiled from him, the Constabularie, being held by him of the king in capite by barony, by the service of maintaining a certain number of soldiers from time to time for the desence of the castle. Of him and his heirs this manor was held in capite by the service of ward to the castle, Ralph de la Thun held this manor and other lands in Woodchurch, by the above service, in the 43d year of Henry III. in which year he died possessed of it, and from him it acquired the name of Thunland, or Townland, as it was afterwards called. After him Richard de Tunland became possessed of it, whose grandson John Ate Towneland paid aid for it in the 20th year of Edward III. and in his descendants it continued down to Thomas Townland, who died possessed of it in the 7th year of Henry IV. (fn. 1) After which it passed by sale into the family of Norton, whence it was sold, about the beginning of king Henry VIII.'s reign, to the prior and convent of Leeds, who were then possessed of it, as appears by the receipt in the exchequer anno 8 of that reign, Mich. Rot. 35; and it remained part of their possessions till the dissolution of the priory, in the 31st year of that reign, when it came into the hands of the crown; from whence it was granted that year to Thomas, lord Cromwell, earl of Essex, on whose attainder next year, this manor, among the rest of his estates, became forfeited to the crown, where it staid but a small time, for the king, in his 36th year, granted it to Sir Thomas Moile, chancellor of his court of augmentation, who in the 4th year of Edward VI. alienated it to Thomas Ancos, who afterwards sold it to Thomas Lucas, gent, who died possessed of it in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, hold ing it in capite by knight's service. He was descended from William Lucas, gent. of Ashford, who is recorded in Fuller's history, among those gentry who were returned as such, and qualified to bear arms, by the commissioners anno 12 Henry VI. (fn. 2) By the inquisition taken after his death, it was found, that Thomas Godfrey was his nephew and next heir. He died in the 7th year of that reign, and was succeeded by his brother James Godfrey, who two years afterwards alienated it to Mary, the widow of Sir John Guldeford, of Hemsted, who in the 19th year of that reign sold it to John Shellie, whose son John Shelley, esq. of Michelgrove, was created a baronet in 1611; and in his descendants, baronets, this manor continued till the reign of Charles II. How long it continued in this name, I do not find; for it was now become but of very little note. At length, after some intermediate owners, it became the property of Mr. Gabriel Richards, and since his decease of Mr. William Evans, the present possessor, who resides in it.

 

THE PLACE-HOUSE, or Woodchurch house, is a seat situated at a small distance eastward from the church, and was the habitation of a family who took both their surname and original from it. Anchitel de Woodchurch was possessed of it about the time of the Conqueror, and gave for his arms, Gules, three swords, erected in pale, argent. His grandson Roger de Woodchurch, is the first that is mentioned in the antient deeds, without date, of this estate, and his grandson Sir Simon de Woodchurch, is in the register of those Kentish gentlemen who accompanied king Edward I. in his victorious expedition into Scotland, where he was knighted, with many others of his countrymen. But in him the name, though not the male line, determined; for by matching with Susan, daughter and heir of Henry le Clerk, of Munsidde, in the parish of Kingsnoth, who brought a large inheritance into his family; his successors, out of gratitude to those who had added so much splendour, and annexed so plentiful a revenue to their name, altered their paternal appellation from Woodchurch to Clerke; and in several of their deeds subsequent to this match were written, Clerke, alias Woodchurch. He left two sons, Simon, who died without male issue; (fn. 3) and Clerke Woodchurch, heir to his mother's lands, as well as to his elder brother at this place, on his failure of male issue; which latter left a son Peter Clerke, alias Woodchurch, who inherited this seat on his father's death, and in his descendants it continued down to Humphry Clarke, for so they then wrote their name, who resided at Buckford, in Great Chart. He sold this seat, with the estate belonging to it, to Martin Harlackenden, esq. of this parish, whose successor Walter Harlackenden resided here in the reign of James I. and his descendant Geo. Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, sold it to Winifred Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, the latter of whom at his death devised it to his son John, who dying s.p. his sister Mrs. Winifrid Bridger, of Canterbury, succeeded to it, and dying in 1776, unmarried, by will gave it to the Rev. William Dejovas Byrch, of Canterbury, and Elizabeth his wife. He died in 1792, and she in 1798, having surviving issue an only daughter Elizabeth, since deceased, who married Samuel Egerton Brydges, esq. of Denton, who is now in his late wife's right became entitled to it.

 

Great part of this house has been pulled down, and the remainder of it makes but a very mean appearance, and is inhabited by several different persons.

 

HENDEN is an estate in this parish, which from having had for a length of time the same owners as that last-described, was once almost accounted an ap pendage to it. This place is supposed (for there are no records existing of it) to have been the original seat of the Hendens, who were in much later times seated at Biddenden-place, in this neighbourhood, as has been mentioned before, where they continued till within these few years. How long they remained possessors of it, cannot therefore be traced; but in the reign of king Richard II. the Capells, of Capellscourt, in Ivychurch, were become owners of it; in the 15th year of which reign Richard Capell died possessed of it. At length, after it had continued in his descendants for some generations, it went by the marriage of a female heir into the family of Harlackenden, of this parish, where it remained till Deborah, daughter and heir of Martin Harlackenden, entitled her husband Sir Edward Hales, knight and baronet, to the possession of this estate, together with others in this parish and neighbourhood, and in his descendants it has continued down to Sir Edward Hales, bart. of St. Stephen's, the present owner of it.

 

HARLACKENDEN, usually called Old Harlackenden, situated within the boroughof that name which extended likewise over part of the adjoining parish of Shadoxhurst) was for some hundred years the patrimonial demesnes of that name and family, as appeared by a tomb in this church, the inscription on which, long since obliterated, shewed that one of them lay interred there soon after the conquest. Philipott says, the proportion and shape of the characters were much like those in use in the reigns of king Henry IV. and V. which he thinks was occasioned by this tomb having been renewed by one of this person's successors and descendants in one of the above reigns, and the former one might have been in old characters, suitable to the time in which it was first erected. There are none now remaining on it. Kilburne says, it was for William Harlackenden, anno 1081. They bore for their arms, Azure, a sess, ermine, between three lions beads erased, or; which arms were painted in an upper window of Grays-Inn hall, and appeared to have been of long standing there. In his descendants, residents here, many of whom lie buried in this church, this seat continued down to Thomas Harlackenden, esq. of Woodchurch, who procured his lands to be disgavelled by the acts of 31 Henry VIII. and 2 and 3 Edward VI. He died in 1558. (fn. 4) At length his descendant George Harlackenden, esq. of this place, alienated it to Winifried Bridger, widow, and Laurence her son, whose heirs, in the 9th year of queen Anne, procured an act to vest it in trustees, and they accordingly sold it, in 1711, to dame Sarah, widow of Sir Paul Barrett, sergeant-at-law. She died that same year, and by the limitation in her will, (fn. 5) this estate devolved to her grandson Sir Francis Head, bart. son of her first husband Francis Head, esq. who died possessed of it in 1768. After which his widow, lady Head, by virtue of her jointure, came into the possession of it. She died in 1792, and it then devolved to the daughters and coheirs of her late husband Sir Francis Head, and to their heirs, in the like proportions as the Hermitage, in Higham, and his other estates in this county, in which state it remains at present. (fn. 6)

 

HENHURST is an estate in the north-east part of this parish, which formerly belonged to a family of the same name, whose more antient seat was at Henhurst, in Staplehurst, of which this was but a younger branch. They were likewise often written in old deeds both Henhurst and Enghurst, and continued owners of this place until the reign of king Henry VII. and then Sir Thomas Henghurst dying without issue male, his daughter and sole heir carried it in marriage to Humphry Wife, whose daughter and heir Agnes entitled her husband Mr. Robert Master to the possession of it, who bore for his arms, A lion, rampant, holding in his paws an escallop shell. His son Mr. Thomas Master resided here, but his son Giles Master quitted this residence and removed to Canterbury, where he died in 1644. At length it descended to Sir Harcourt Master, alderman of London, who became possessed of it for the term of his life, by the will of his father's eldest brother's daughter, Mary Master. He died in 1648. Since which it has continued in his descendants, one of whom, Harcourt Masters, esq. of Greenwich, owns it at this time.

 

HENGHAM, now usually called Great Hengham, corruptly for Engeham, its original name, lies enveloped by woods, about a mile and an half northward from Woodchurch. It was once accounted a manor, and was in early times possessed by a family of the same name, who resided at it, and were stiled sometimes Engham, alias Edingham, in antient deeds, relating to their possessions in different parts of Romney marsh, the latter being probably their original name, and the former one an abbreviation of it. (fn. 7) Alanus de Engham resided here in the reign of king John, and married the daughter of Townland, of this parish, as did his descendant Moses de Engham, alias Edingham, who by marriage with Petronell, daughter of Alan de Plurenden, greatly increased his estate in Woodchurch; and probably of kindred to this family was Odomar Hengham, esq. who died in 1411, and lies buried in the body of Canterbury cathedral. They bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron, sable, between three pellets; on a chief, gules, a lion passant, guardant, or. A branch of this family became possessed of Singleton, in Great Chart, where they rebuilt the mansion, and afterwards resided; but the last residence of the Enghams, in this county, was at Gunston, where they flourished till the beginning of this century. At length Robert Engham, of Woodchurch, leaving two daughters his coheirs, this manor, about the latter end of the reign of Henry VIII. was carried in marriage by Mary, the eldest of them, to Thomas Isley, who leaving five daughters his coheirs, Mary, married to Francis Spelman; Frances, to William Boys, esq. Elizabeth, to Anthony Mason, esq. Anne, to George Delves, esq. and Jane, to Francis Haut, esq. they, in right of their respective wives, became jointly entitled to it. This occasioned a partition of this estate, which was afterwards called by the name of Great and Little Hengham; the former having the antient mansion and manor annexed to it. This part was afterwards alienated to William Hales, esq. of Nackington, who possessed it in the reign of king James I. and in 1640, passed it away by sale to Thomas Godfrey the younger, esq. of Lid, who conveyed it to Clerke, whence it was sold in the reign of king Charles II. to John Grove, gent. of Tunstall, whose descendant Richard Grove, esq. of London, who died unmarried in 1792, by will devised it to Mr. William Jemmott and Mr. William Marshall, the former of whom, on a partition of his estates, became the sole proprietor of it, and continues so at this time. A court baron is held for this manor.

 

THE OTHER PART of this manor, now called Little Hengham, which lies adjoining to it southward, is now the property of the heirs of Abbot, the Whitfields, and the Combers.

 

PLERYNDEN, now corruptly called Plunden, is situated in the north-west part of this parish, in the midst of a wood, and in the denne of the same name. It had in early times owners, who took their furname from it and continued so till Petronell, daughter and heir of Alan de Plerynden, who bore for his arms, Perchevron, in chief, two mullets, in base, a martlet, as they appear, carved in stone, on the roof of Canterbury cloysters, carried it in marriage to Moses de Engham, in whose descendants it remained till Vincent Engham, in the reign of queen Elizabeth, passed it away by sale to William Twysden, esq. of Chelmington, whose descendant Sir Thomas Twysden, bart. of Roydon-hall, in East Peckham, about the beginning of queen Anne's reign, sold it to Mr. John Hooker, of Maidstone, who died possessed of it in 1717, and devised it to his second son John, of Broadoak, in Brenchley, gent. who dying unmarried in 1762, devised it to his youngest and only surviving brother Stephen Hooker, gent. of Halden, and he alienated it to John Children, esq. of Tunbridge, whose son George Children, esq. of that place, is the present owner of it.

 

Charities.

RICHARD BROWNE, late of Woodchurch, by will in 1562, gave to the poor of this parish a rent charge of 4l. 10s. per annum, on every Trinity Sunday for ever, out of a messuage called Webbes, in this parish, of the clear annual produce of 3l. 8s.

 

SIR EDWARD HALES, of Woodchurch, by deed in 1610, gave to the poor yearly rents out of a farm, called the Legg farm, in Kenardington.

 

PHEBE GOBLE, of Woodchurch, by will in 1692, gave to the poor 2l. per annum, to be paid by her heirs for ever, out of a farm, called the Bonny Cravat, in Woodchurch, (now an alehouse) the first Sunday after Old Lady-day.

 

THERE IS A SCHOOL, for reading and writing, supported by contribution, in this parish.

 

The poor constantly relieved are about ninety, casually 45.

 

WOODCHURCH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the dioceseof Canterbury, and deanry of Limne.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to All Saints, is large and handsome, consisting of three isles and three chancels, with a spire steeple, shingled, at the west end, in which hang six bells. The windows in the high chancel are small and elegant. There are some very small remains of good painted glass. In this chancel is a stone, with the figure in brass, of a priest praying, and inscription for master Nicholas de Gore, in old French; and another stone, with inscription in brass, for William Benge Capellanus, obt. 1437. In this church are many tombs and gravestones of the family of Harlackenden, which have already been mentioned before. In the south chancel there is a handsome tomb, of Bethersden marble, for Sir Edward Waterhous, chancellor of the exchequer, and privy counsellor to queen Elizabeth, in Ireland, third son of John Waterhous, esq. of Whitechurch, in Buckinghamshire, obt. s. p. 1591, his arms on his tomb, Or, a pile engrailed, sable, quartered with other coats. Kilburne says, in the east window of this chancel, were the arms of Ellis; and in the east window of the north chancel, were several essigies of the Clerkes; and in the north window of it, those of William Harey; all long since gone. The sont in this church seems very antient, being of Bethersden marble, square, and standing on four pillars.

 

This church was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, and continues so at this time, his grace the archbishop being the present patron of it.

 

It is a rectory, valued in the king's books at 26l.13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 13s. 4d. In 1640 it was valued at one hundred and ten pounds. Communicants three hundred and forty-nine. In 1729 at two hundred and thirty pounds per annum.

 

Among the Lambeth MSS. is a decree of archbishop Peckham, concerning the tithes of Woodchurch, anno 1281. (fn. 8) There are about two acres of glebe land.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp226-237

1 2 ••• 11 12 14 16 17 ••• 79 80