One of the very first bad jokes I ever learned in the SCA was,
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Sutton.
Sutton Who?
Yes, awful, isn't it? But that's what you get for hanging around with Saxons. Now I can't look at that beautiful ornate helmet without hearing that joke.
At one time I thought it would be nice to learn metal tooling and make decorative reproductions of such masterpieces, but a half a day with a chisel and punch taught me why blacksmiths need to be burly.
As amazing as the original is, this Sutton Hoo Cake, which I read about on Unlocked Wordhoard but was originally found on Studenta Mira, is much more my speed. I wonder if I still have my cake decorating kit...
Stephen Wiltshire is autistic, but his artistic creations are nothing short of amazing. After only a 45 minute helicopter ride over the city of Rome, he was able to reproduce this historic city as a 15 foot panorama by hand in only 3 days, with a degree of accuracy that is nearly impossible to believe. See for yourself in this video:
Man, am I ever humbled. Maybe we should pay to fly this guy over Pennsic...
The British Library has gone and outdone itself. And every other digital manuscript website online, it seems. Turning the Pages is the greatest digital manuscript site I've ever seen!
If your computer meets the requirements (latest version of Shockwave, allow popups and high speed access) you will actually get the feeling that you are right there with the ancient tome that you are flipping through, page by page. And there are many, many the choose from: the personal notebook of Leonardo Da Vinci, The Lindisfarne Gospels, The Sherborne Missal, Mercators First Atlas of Europe, and so on...
The books take a while to load, but once ready, you can page through 'by hand', or use a slider bar or arrows to change pages. Paging by hand does take some practice, so use the arrows if you are having trouble.
The text button gives a description of the elements and text, but if you select the audio feature, it is narrated for you in a dignified English accent, of course. You'll need to click the audio button for each new page you turn. Use the magnify feature to check out all the amazing initials and illuminations while you learn about these great works of art, cartography and literature in a whole new way.
Oh, speaking of maps, here's a bunch of amazing cartographic sites I've stumbled across lately.
You simply must check out the Epact thumbnail search of 520 pre-1600 scientific instruments. Most of the photos enlarge if you click them and a great deal of detail can be seen in these astrolabes, sundials, surveying tools and more....
I'd place an image from their site here, but they have some pretty stringent usage rights. So you'll have to be satisfied with a good old fashioned link to my favorite image:
Drawing instruments from 1570 Oh. My. God. Please? I swear I'll draw perfectly period maps every day for the rest of my life if only I could possess these fine tools. Sigh. Covet, covet, covet.
Want more images of period Maps? Clicketh, I say!
Maps of the Early Medieval Period (400-1300 A.D.)
Maps of the Late Medieval Period (1300 - 1500 A.D.)
Now, if you are interested in 3D models of castles, you definitely want to visit Google Earth 3D Models and Placemarks, where there are several historic sites (so far, mostly in the UK) that you can download and view in Google Earth.
Technology and maps! Two great tastes that taste great together! Techno-cartography!
Don't you just HATE it when advertising slogans pop up at the worst moments? Trouble is, I can't even remember what they were selling....
Having started a new job last week, I'm not having as much time to blog. I hate having to resort to link dumping, but here's a few interesting things I've found online recently.
Click on any of the headlines to go to the full article.
Tower of London Locks Up Legendary Ravens
Feb. 22, 2006— The Tower of London locked up its famous ravens on Monday to protect them from the threat of bird flu, with legend having it that the tower and the kingdom will fall if the ravens go.
Forensic experts claim to have proved a bust and a death mask are the exact likeness of William Shakespeare.
Feb. 23, 2006 - Scientists in Germany scanned the sculptures using computerised imaging techniques to show that they match up with portraits of the Bard.
Villagers claim church fresco is lost Michelangelo
Feb. 23, 2006 - Parishioner's confession leads to discovery of monogram behind altar
Older news:
Lady of Wells reveals her secrets
Feb. 6, 2006 - A mysterious medieval wall painting found beneath the floor of the Bishop of Bath and Wells' bedroom has given up its secrets. The painting, which shows a partly-clad woman wearing a transparent dress, dates from between 1460 and 1470.
Delight at Caravaggio discovery
Jan. 25, 2006 - Art historians have spoken of their shock and delight after two paintings discovered in a French church were found to be by old master Caravaggio.
If there was ever a genius artist who could see into the future, it was Leonardo da Vinci.
Two of his previously un-publicized works are now available to us. If you want to see them in person, you'll have to go all the way to Italy. Check out the BBC story here if you can't afford the plane fare.
Can't get enough Leo? Here's a great gallery of a bunch of his drawings.
For those of you who remember the calligraphy and illumination I used to do in the SCA, you'll recall my deep love for the Celtic style.
Long ago, I had gotten a facsimile version of the Book of Kells, but this appears to go one step further.
How about a CD Rom of the Book of Kells? Here's some highlights from thier site:
The Book of Kells CD-ROM contains all 340 folios or 680 pages of the Book of Kells manuscript.
SEARCH – for Fish, People, Angels, Peacocks, Otters, Goats and find out what they mean…
LISTEN – to the story of the monks striving to protect their masterpiece from Viking invaders…
SEE – the journey of the book through the ages and the many treasures it inspired…
ZOOM – in on the details of feature pages and explore the artists' intricate work
Special Edition US$70
Standard Edition US$36.95
Oh, man. It might be time to pick up the quills again.
Looking for a good online fine art resource for costuming or documentation? Well, check out the Web Gallery of Art.
As their site says: "The Web Gallery of Art is a virtual museum and searchable database of European painting and sculpture of the 12th-18th centuries. It was started in 1996 as a topical site of the Renaissance art, originated in the Italian city-states of the 14th century and spread to other countries in the 15th and 16th centuries."
You can search by time period, artist, title, school, type and form, plus narrow the findings to locations or collections. The scalable image sizes allow for good detail views, and you can view any of the art with a white, grey or black background. So easy on the eyes!!
You can even choose 'music' from the main menu and listen to a selection from the time period of your choosing.
How's that for service??
