#Second Empire style

[rabbitcruiser]

The City Hall of Quebec City (French: Hôtel de ville de Québec) was inaugurated on September 15, 1896.

[newyorkthegoldenage]

The Third Avenue Car Barns, occupying the whole block between 65th and 66th Street, October 8, 1936.

This was a depot for horse-drawn cars, where the cars could be housed and maintained, and the horses stabled. Offices for the white-collar workers were on the second floor. This magnificent building, designed in the French Second Empire style, was completed in 1861 and expanded in 1872. When Berenice Abbott took this picture in 1936, very little had changed.

With horse-drawn vehicles having had their day, the building was sold in 1946. Six years later a big white apartment complex appeared in its place.

Photo: Berenice Abbott via Jackson Fine Art

[asdaricus]

These are fantastical interpretations of the Louvre. The first one is rainy and rather conventional. In the others, the statuary is out of control. In the last one, a black lion statue is animated and menacing people who cower beneath another statue.

Again, there are many violations of classical principles, but I am nonetheless impressed by how much Midjourney gets right. I mean the Corinthian columns and the entablatures and moldings are essentially right. A single column in the middle of the porch, as you see in the second to last image, is completely wrong. But again, I must say that so much is really very good. :)

by Midjourney v5

[romeneverfell]

Room of the East Peristyle of the House of Augustus, 1st century BCE | In the Roman Forum complex, Palatine hill

Beautiful example of the "Second Style" of Roman fresco work, characterized by architectural trompe-l'œil and the insertion of scenes as "windows" to the outside, such as the glimpse behind the stage of the two women standing in the city in conversation.

[micamicster]

Bruce Springsteen's sixth album NEBRASKA as Penguin Classics (series): Andrew Wyeth / Edward Hopper / Unknown follower of Goya / Giovanni Battista Tiepolo / Alexandre Falguiere / Andrew Wyeth / Nick Goss / William Turner / Rene Magritte / Guido Reni

[ariel-s-awesome]

May be awhile until this part of my Hater and Peepers backstory fic gets published but I like this bit of dialogue

(Context: At this point Hater and Peepers have accepted being villains, but they're just a bank robbing duo and bullies. They've just fled in terror from a real villain.)

"Well the difference between the Alligator Archduke and two-bit gangsters like us is-"

"Peepers, I don't think two guys makes a gang."

"Fine! The difference between the Alligator Archduke and two guys like us is that WE don't have an army!"

"OR a gang!"

"Really proving my point there pal..."

[pathosfell]

i remember there was a post that pearlescentmoon sounds like a mlp character name, but i think mythical sausage can be a mlp name too

[breitzbachbea]

13 for the ask game!

Finally getting around to clearing out my inbox! Thank you SO much for asking!

History Ask Game

13. [share some random historical trivia!]

OOOOUUUHHH, where to START!

I have to learn more about Frederick II. of the HRE, he is my second favourite swabian (first is my friend Jani, third is Felix Fabri). Because what I do know FUCKS SO HARD, aside from the fact that he was a rip-roaring BANG to end one periodization phase of the German Medieval ages. You basically killed your entire dynasty, but by GOD did you do it while serving CUNT.

My favourite story is the crusade one, the abridged version. So, my boy Fritz had sworn to the Pope that he'd go on crusade some time, but you know, always something better to do when you're the emperor and also King of Sicily. By the time Fritz can finally go, he gets violently sick on the boat that just left Brindisi and goes back home. That's not a good enough excuse for the Pope, who excommunicates him anyways, so Fritz says oh FUCK YOU, I'm going anyways. Goes to the Holy Land, brokers a temporary peace with the local muslim elite and gets to ACTUALLY go to Jerusalem. Absolute king shit, all while excommunicated. I know it's medieval Europe, he probably did some horrendous shit I haven't read up on yet, but he is my favourite. The balls on this man and his love for South Italy which I share. I visited his grave when I was in Palermo, it was ALL I saw of the Cathedral that time around (I will return. And probably look at Fritz again as well as the rest.)

Time Jump! During the Napoleonic occupation, Kassel (the capital of the Landgraviate Hessen-Kassel) became the capital of the newly formed Kingdom of Westphalia and was ruled over by Napoleon's brother Jerome. Or how the Kasseläner_innen called him - König Lustik. Because the only sentence in German he, according to the local tradition, was "Morgen wird wieder lustig" - "Tomorrow, we'll have fun again" (Or to make merry ... It's hard to translate). Also, after Napoleon was defeated and the Landgraf, now Kurfürst Wilhelm I. (Vienna Congress shenanigans, don't worry about it), returned ... they weren't so keen on his absolutistic leanings? So, in 1830, when riots broke out, citizens successfully pressed Wilhelm II to call together the Landtag (not parliament, but a representation of all the people with power in the principality's realm. The estates of a principality, you get it). He did call it together, something that hadn't been done in a long time because absolutism, and they got a constituition, to enshrine rights for citizens and curb the monarchical power! There's a big cutout reproduction in the Kasseler Stadtmuseum of an engraved illustration by Ludwig Emil Grimm! Here's the entire engraving!

Grimm you may now think ... Grimm like the Brother Grimm? Indeed! He was their youngest brother, with Wilhelm and Jakob being the eldest of six children! He was a famous illustrator and also illustrated copies of his brother's Kinder- und Hausmärchen. The city of Kassel was home to the family for many, many years, with Jakob and Wilhelm studying in nearby Marburg as well. One of the reasons that a lot of 'their' fairytales have French origins is the fact that Kassel took in huge swaths of Huguenots over the course of the 17th and 18th century. They let them settle around the Landgraviate (name for a principality ruled over by the Landgraf, in German Landgrafschaft), in existing places as well as newly founded settlements. That's why there is a small village in East Hesse named Gethsemane, called Getzemich in the local dialect. Of course, named after the garden in Jerusalem in the bible. And because those Huguenots were very industrial and Jakob & Wilhelm weren't really gonna leave their cushy study, lots of middle class Huguenots came to tell them their tales - hence things they had carried with them from France.

I am so sorry, this was so much and I could talk on and on and on about Hessian history, I could dig up funfacts about Sicily or other South Italian places, I could wreck my brain for some ancient Roman or Mesopotamian funfacts, I could even unearth some about Ireland and Great Britain if I dug deep enough. I just ... I love history. It's fascinating. It's all there ever was in human history! It's entirely different cultures from our own and yet many times the answer why things are the way they are today! It's the past, it's the present and we look to it because we ask about the future. Wonderful, isn't it?

[chariaki]

Soft boy!! Itadori Yuji × fem!reader

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who wrote you a love letter without signing it with his name and placed it on your desk.

You've been friends for more than 10 years and that idiot thought you wouldn't recognize his handwriting.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who dyed his hair pink when you were kids, because he knew it was your favorite color. And when he noticed you touched his hair more often and gave more attention to him, he always kept it pink.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who always shyly places your favorite milk drink in the front of your dorm door every morning with a yellow note that says "Good morning! :)) " and gently knocks to wake you up before class starts, then quickly runs away before you see him.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who always hugs his pillow to sleep, imagining it to be your soft body snuggled against him.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who, without a second thought, always carries your backpack when walking to and from class with you, unbeknowingly showing off his biceps and triceps.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who loves it when you pat his head!!

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who's roman empire is when everytime you're happy, you instantly throw yourself at him for a big hug, and he knows it bad, but he just can't ignore the feeling of your soft breasts pushing against his chest, and your perfume. Your sweet, tempting perfume.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who reflexively carries you in bridal style when you complain to him that your feet hurt. And the effortless grunt he makes when he lifts you, his hands gripping tightly on the back of your thighs, and the blush on his cheeks when he realizes he's touching you! He feels bad that it might seem like he had some ulterior motive, but shyly savors in the opportunity anyway.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who DEFINITELY is the type to lean his head down, eyes focused on you and body leaning closer to you when you want to whisper something or if he couldn't hear.

Childhoodfriend!Yuji who enjoys hearing your pretty voice when you tutor him, because let's be honest. You hold the academic braincells in the friendship and he doesn't mind, because it's a perfect excuse to sit closer to you in the library and stare at you, shamelessly, pretending to be listening to you review him, but in actuality, he just enjoys the view of you.

[artistantlers]

Empire Siblings Contemplating the Moon

My second piece for the @artists-guild-of-exandria art history style swap! This painting is based on Caspar David Friedrich’s Two Men Contemplating the Moon.

prints here

[its-not-a-pen]

i love the hilarious eunuch ranking system by @welcometothejianghu so i decided to make one based on (mostly) REAL historical chinese enunchs!

in chronological order:

Warring States Period long story short, the PM is sleeping with the Empress Dowager, and he wants to extracate himself before her son (future Emperor Qin Shi Huang) gets old enough to find out. the PM finds her a suitable replacement, and the replacement is attached to a guy named Lao Ai. They pluck his beard and pass him off as a eunuch so he can sneak into the palace. Bing bang boom everyone's happy. This goes terribly wrong later, since Lao Ai tries to replace the emperor with his own kids and stages a failed coup. rest in pieces buddy...

it's very likely that Lao Ai was a ficticious character invented by Sima Qian, who will be appearing on this list later.

Qin Dynasty

Zhao Gao helped the first emperor of China conquer an empire, and administer it efficiently with his legal knowledge, but he also made the second emperor into a puppet, and weakened the empire for his own political gain. Max points of complexity, but you'd get more loyalty out of a coffee club punch card.

Before launching his soft coup, he decided to test the waters by bring in a deer and gaslighted the emperor by calling it a horse. the officials who were loyal to him called it a horse, and he executed the rest.

Han Dynasty Jiru, male favourite of Emperor Gaozu (Liu Bang), the peasant scoundrel who became the founder of the Han Dynasty. look, if the emperor has a harem of hundreds of women and you manage to catch his attention, you max out in style points. simple as. for most of chinese history it was fairly common for high-ranking men, especially eunuchs, to wear make up like powder and rouge, but i decided to give Jiru some women's huadia as well, cause he's a baddie.

Jiru gets a bad rap for alledgely distracting the emperor from his duties, but lets be real, history is written by civil officials who have no shortage of professional jealousy and gender/sexuality related prejudice towards eunuchs, since they were the personal attendants of royalty and could exert a lot of influence. plus Liu Bang was already pissing in the hats of confucian scholars, most of the poor work ethic is on HIM. Jiru should get credit for making him marginally less of a troglodite.

all in all he didn't try any court intrigue so extra points for loyalty and complexity. free my man >:( he's just a Han dynasty Monica Lewinsky who got slutshamed by jealous coworkers >:(

Han Dynasty

meet the father of east asian history, sima qian. half the people on this list can owe their placement here thanks to his extremely though history books "records of the grand historian"

history at this time was mostly "creative writing" and sima qian attempted to give the practise more academic intergrety, he went out and personally interviewed people, tried to get primary sources, and got rid of most of the more fanstastical aspects. however, he was not without his biases and some texts can be seen as allegorical/veiled insults towards the Han Dynasty, especially towards Emperor Wu. unlike most of the people on this list, sima qian was from the gentry and castated later in life as a punishment for treason. he was implicated after trying to defend a friend, and could not pay the fine to commute his sentence. the gentlemen at the time were expected to die by suicide rather than live with such ignimony, but sima qian chose to live so he could finish writing the history book his father started. the "giant conspiracy" joke explained: the chinese word for penis is a homophone for "conspiracy".

[rabbitcruiser]

The City Hall of Quebec City (French: Hôtel de ville de Québec) was inaugurated on September 15, 1896.

[psychotrenny]

It’s fucking insane to me how normal Yankee Liberals are about Hawaii. As in like the way they just treat it as an unremarkable fact that their nation controls the island. Like the annexation of Hawaii wasn’t just any old example of Settler-Colonialism, the subjugation of a decentralised non-urbanised people that could be just dismissed as mere “tribes” or what have you. Not to say that such forms of “typical” Settler Colonialism are any less abhorrent or disgusting, just easier to justify from a Liberal point of view. Easier to claim that they weren’t *really* using the land properly or that they were an hopelessly and eternally backwards who only really benefitted from their conquest or that they were doomed and dying anyway and their fate was a mere tragic inevitability not worth dwelling on or… Point is all these arguments are all wrong and stupid and cruel but they can serve well enough to downplay or justify such atrocities in the eyes of Imperial Core Liberals.

But like with Hawaii you don’t have that. The Kingdom of Hawai’i was a sovereign state that was internationally recognised as such by the Great Powers of Europe even at the very height of Western Imperialism. Literacy rates were high and compulsory education was introduced in 1841 (pre-dating the US by 77 years), healthcare was given to all Hawai’ian subjects free of charge, Christianity was dominant (so even the most ardent Imperialist couldn’t claim that the people were in the thrall of some “barbaric superstition” that necessitated the “civilising influence” of empire) and it had a well-developed Capitalist economy dominated by Sugar production.  Like even if we take the Western model of statehood as the be all end all of what separates the civilised from the savage (to be clear hear you really fucking shouldn’t, but many people do so for a second that’s the frame of reference we’ll employ) then Hawai’i was very much unambiguously the former.  But that didn’t stop the US from shamelessly interfering it’s politics Indeed those aformentioned markers of Western-Style “civilisation” and “development” came with the price of allow US missionaries and investors to settler in the islands and become very wealthy and influential. For decades the US used the threat of force to influence the policy decisions of the kingdom, going as far as to regularly send warships in a classic display of “gunboat diplomacy”. In 1887 a US settler militia called the First Honolulu Rifles staged a coup where they forced Kalākaua to accept a new Constitution that heavily favoured the interests of USamerican settlers who had grown very wealthy through their investment in sugar production on the island.  It stripped the Monarchy of much of its power and introducing requirements for voting that heavily favoured US settlers; re-introducing wealth/property requirements that were now higher than even, allowing resident aliens to vote and just outright banning any Asian immigrants from voting (which at that point had as much to do with plain racial hatred as it did to any acting threat they might have posed). This wasn’t enough for the Yanks and 6 years later a group of 13 US settlers known as the “Committee of Safety” outright overthrew the newly crowned Queen Liliʻuokalani when she refused to co-operate. It existed briefly as an “Independent” USamerican dominated republic before the US government decided to official annex it in 1898 (similar to what you saw with Texas or California).

While incredibly controversial at the time due to both strategic concerns with the annexation of ultramarine territories and some level of outrage at the shameless take-over of a sovereign nation (hence the time gap between the coup and the actual annexation), nowadays Yanks enjoy their control over the island without the slightest care in the world. They even turned it into a tourist destination, a heavily romanticised one that not only receives many millions of visitors every year but is constantly mentioned in the popular culture the US then proceeds to export all over the world, literally revelling in their land that is by literally any definition (even the most nakedly pro-imperialist) stolen. The land itself is severely exploited to the point of significant ecological damage, the indigenous peoples too are exploited as many of them live in poverty while US investors grow wealthy from their land and labour. Even their very culture is stolen and monetised, the most marketable parts bastardised into cheap kitsch and the rest of it left to rot, only kept alive through over a century of continued resistance from the indigenous peoples. It’s a very common story of course, but I think it stands out with how utterly ghoulish it is even under the most Liberal of consistently applied worldviews. It would be like if in say 2007 someone set up Disneyland in Bagdad. And yet by the vast majority of the US (and by extension the vassals states whose view of the situation is filtered through the lens of US media and propaganda) it isn’t seen that way. Hawaii is just the 50th state, the only state outside North America and in the tropics (hahaha ain’t that a neat little fact. Geography is so fun J), an island paradise perfect to visit with the whole family and yet still as American as Apple Pie. Even many self-described “progressives” talk about it in this way, at most mentioning the plight of the indigenous Hawaiians with minimal though as to how this situation came about. Like while the story of Hawaii is far from unique; even in terms of the US doing colonialism to Westernised peoples you examples such as the ethnic cleansing of the Five Civilised Tribes from the Eastern USA, it still stands out to me with the sheer level of international recognition and Western-style development that the Kingdom of Hawai’i possessed. Like it’s just such an obvious example of the naked greed at the heart of the USamerican empire, and how utterly bullshit talk of a “civilising mission” and “spreading democracy” is. No matter what they may claim, no matter what excuses they may trot out, Imperialist rapacity has no limits.

[fashionsfromhistory]

Brooch

Edgar Bense for Boucheron

c.1890

Conceived as a dazzling dragonfly with delicate plique-à-jour wings, this brooch epitomizes the Art Nouveau style in both fashion and manufacture. With its translucent wings set en tremblant and its sparking rose-cut diamonds, the present jewel catches the light brilliantly. In the enameling technique called plique-à-jour, vitreous enamel is applied to openwork wire cells without a backing, creating the transparent effect of stained glass. The house of Boucheron was founded in 1858 by Frédéric Boucheron (1830–1902). First opened in the Galerie de Valois, under the arcades of the Palais Royal, the shop was perfectly situated in the center of Second Empire Parisian luxury. In 1893 Boucheron moved to the Place Vendôme—the first of the great French houses to occupy that location—where it remains headquartered to this day, with more than 30 branches across the globe.

The MET (Accession Number: Accession Number: 2018.447.1)

[rochenn]

The year is 2034. Disney announces the production of the show "Resistance: Dooku of Serenno", set during the early days of the Empire, starring CG Christopher Lee.

We begin with a flashback to Revenge of the Sith. After Dooku is beheaded, we learn that he used the Force to supply his brain with blood and oxygen. The movie is visibly retconned - as Obi-Wan, Anakin and Palpatine flee the Invisible Hand, four human parts can be spotted stealthily floating after them.

Dooku, being Dooku, survives the crash and manages to steal away. His head is surgically reattached. Don't ask why nobody else ever stitched their lightsaber-chopped limbs back on. He ends up getting prosthetic hands, anyway. David Filoni said in a behind-the-scenes interview that he thought they were cool.

Previously established canon prevents Dooku from doing anything in-character until Order 66. He lets loose in Coruscant's undercity and becomes the local kooky old man who couldn't possibly be public enemy number one until Mace Windu, freshly fried and unhanded, crashes down in front of him. What a coincidence.

Mace is still played by Sam L. Jackson. He is So Old. He is only there for the paycheck. Disney didn't know how to recast him. He is acting alongside the shell of a man who has been dead for two decades.

After a joke about missing hands that is very funny, the two get along swimmingly. They don't really talk about Dooku's various war crimes. "My droid army would never traumatize a young child," Dooku says with a wink into the camera. Remember to buy your Mandalorian merch.

Mace and Dooku organize an underground resistance on Coruscant in the spirit of the Confederacy. Mace is okay with this. Choice aspects of this arc are compelling, like the fight against fascism under the yoke of cruel state suppression, but tone-deaf allusions to the work of Sophie Scholl cause controversy abroad. Andor did it better. Critics on YouTube who thus far lauded the return of fan favorites and 'faithful casting' tear into the show for pushing the woke agenda.

Nothing Mace and Dooku accomplish has any impact on the Original Trilogy. What were you expecting? The end of the show teases a second season with the arrival of a mysterious woman. Dooku's secret wife. You never knew of her because she was never relevant before. As the final credit music slowly creeps in, she says: "Don't you want to see your son?"

The music swells and we cut to Serenno. The planet has never been mentioned throughout all 15 episodes of the show. Standing in the ruins of Dooku's castle is Dooku's son: back turned to the viewer, gazing into the sunset. Dooku II of Serenno, proud heir, turns his head. He is played by Harry Styles.

Roll credits.

[shepscapades]

Super, super excited to announce this character design challenge event!! I’ve been wanting to do something like this for ages that’s kinda spread out to give people time to draw without too much rush or pressure, so this is my perfect excuse to get back into drawing and posting here while inviting people to join me while I have some downtime between semesters :]

I’ll be posting here at the start of each week with an elaboration of that week’s prompts, offering ideas, suggestions, and other stuff like that!

As the flyer suggests, anyone can participate, and feel free to @ me and use the tag #ShepsHermitDesign23 if you post! :D

I’m hoping a lot of people will feel inspired to join in and have fun with this, so please reblog to spread the word! I’ll be reblogging this a bunch throughout the week leading up to Monday the 5th, the start of Week 1 :]

If anyone has any questions, feel free to shoot me an ask!

Since everything is hand-written, I typed up a transcript of the announcement below:

SHEP’S HERMITCRAFT CHARACTER DESIGN EVENT

[4 weeks] – [2 Optional Prompts Per Week] – [Pick a Blorbo] – [Redesign Them!]

[The table in the green box is organized into 4 Weeks and the two prompts for each—The first, a “Fandom-Related Prompt”, and the second, a “Non-Fandom-Related Prompt”]

Week 1 (June 5-11) – A Non-Life-Series Hermit on their Red Life [OR] As a D&D Class

Week 2 (June 12-18) – Create-Mod-ificated [OR] Video Game Swap!

Week 3 (June 19-25) – As an Empires SMP Member (make up a new empire, or use someone else’s) [OR] As a classical work of art (or in the style of a famous painter/artist)

Week 4 (June 26 - July 2) – Outfit / Skin Swap with a MCYTer from a different fandom [OR] Horror-themed or as a Villain!

RULES & SUGGESTIONS

Anyone can participate! Participate as much or as little as you’d like!

The intention is that the prompts offer enough variety and intrigue to encourage people to pick one of the prompts to do for each week – But feel free to do both prompts, or only certain weeks, etc.!

The event was designed with Hermitcraft characters in mind, but feel free to apply prompts to any MCYT Blorbo!

Most importantly, have fun & Happy Drawing! :)

CHALLENGE MODE: Try all of your chosen prompts for the same character!

Post with the tag: #ShepsHermitDesign23

And feel free to @me if you post your designs/drawings! (@Shepscapades)