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copperbadge · 2 years ago

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[ID: A photo of the fountain in the Piazza Della Cinque Scole, featuring a gorgon head on the fountain, water visibly falling, and a bird perched on the rim, bathing and getting a sip of water.]

Okay, well, Piazza Della Cinque Scole is a lot more complex than I anticipated when my dumb ass walked into it looking for a place to eat a macaroon.

I didn't know when I booked my room that I was on the edge of the historic Roman Jewish ghetto, but when I found out later, I did somewhat plan a day around it. The idea was to go to the kosher bakery I'd heard was really good for breakfast, then stroll up to the Great Synagogue of Rome and do the museum and synagogue tour, and I have reservations for a late lunch at a historic local restaurant to try the Jewish fried artichokes (and obviously also now the Grandpa Balls, for those who saw the earlier post). I had wanted to attend Kabbalat Shabbos on Friday, but I got into Rome far too late, unfortunately.

What I didn't expect when I walked into the Museuo Ebraico di Roma this morning was for the first placard I read to explain to me that the Cinque Scole were the five distinct cultures of Judaism that one of the Popes crowded into the ghetto and furthermore that eventually they all were housed in one building, because all the Jews of Rome were only allowed one place of worship. So that's simultaneously even more awesome in re: imagine the shouting, and also an unavoidable and terrible aspect of the persecution of Jews in Europe. But yeah, it turns out the little plaza where I ate breakfast is hugely historically important to Roman Jewish history.

Good start to the day, actually; a lot of my most meaningful encounters with Judaism come from coincidence, which is the kind of chaos I just live in. And then I got to see the Great Synagogue, which certainly is a lot. It's a gorgeous building inside and out, but our tour guide told us that it was designed by gentiles because the Jews had no architects at the time (probably to do with being forbidden to own their own houses) so it's very, uh, unusual. It seems to be (both visually and from the tour guide's speech) that the architects basically said "Let's make a church that's, you know....exotic," and the result is a very pretty synagogue that looks like it's also a basilica and an art deco hotel lobby, all at the same time.

I have a couple of minutes before lunch reservation so I thought I'd come home and drop off the souvenirs I bought; getting to the restaurant should be fairly easy if I take the alleys instead of the main streets as planned. This whole area is basically wide alleys that occasionally open into interesting courtyards, but aside from some areas that are barricaded off from cars, they're also city streets -- cars and motorcycles drive through them all the time, and it will be a miracle if I get out of Rome without getting pasted into a wall by a Fiat. (Most of the cars on these alley-streets are Mini Coopers and I figure if a Mini Cooper tries me I can just kick it onto its side.)

I found a super cool Jewish antique store near the museum, so I bought a lovely almond-blossom brooch for Mum for mother's day and a khamsa bracelet for myself, and also a fidget ring inscribed in Hebrew that I'm pretty sure has the traveler's prayer on it but I'm going to need to check next time I've got Sefaria open.

#sam travels #the cheese tour #rome #jewish rome #jewish history #jumblr

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cookies-and-mirrors · 8 months ago

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Prison of Stone and Flesh

Chapter One

This is a collaborative fic between @cookiesupplier and @faceless-mirror.

Divider by @samspenandsword

Pairings: Chris x transfem!Vinny, Justin x Transmasc!Ricky, Chris x Justin x Ryan, Chris x Transmasc!Ricky, Ryan x ONBC, Ryan x transfem!Vinny, ryan x transmasc!ricky, Justin x transfem!Vinny

Christopher, Justin, and Ryan are members of the Gargoyle Order, soldiers fighting in the angels war against the demonic supernatural evils of the world to protect human kind. Through the years they lost comrades and now just the three of them remain in their little town. They have long since been abandoned by the angel that had been sworn to keep them safe and protect them during the day while they were trapped in stone.

Now, Ricky and Vinny are moving into their church to renovate and live in the space due to Ricky always found it as home as a child, stirring up old and new feelings, along with the past, posing the challenge of navigating this new chapter in their lives.

Can they navigate this path successfully and break free of the prisons that is their lives of both stone and flesh, or will they all be trapped forever in a world that could prove to be a constant misery?

Taglist: @embracethereaper42 @21-century-tae @dragon-chica @shilohrosechicken @phxntxsmicgoricxl

@missduffsblog @witchyweeb34 @spicywhenspeaking @lacktoesandtoddlerants @blackveilomens

@bngurngheart @dominuslunae @collapsedglasshouses @embracethereaper42 @emmmm127

@sunsshinesunny

(please comment/reblog/message to be added to taglist)

Outside of the church was mostly silent other than the soft noises of people talking and construction. It was a mild day at least. The roof had been fixed up and supports had been reinforced. People had been in and out of the church for weeks but now… This was a different sound. People moving in. Part of the church had been turned into an apartment-like space. Three bedrooms… and a kitchen and living room. It was nice at least and the Rectory had even had some work, plumbing replaced, fresh paint, and heating and cooling throughout the entire building.

Now, a black-haired man drifted into the building with a warm smile, blue eyes twinkling and shining as he carried a cardboard box labeled ‘kitchen’. He was followed by a curly red and brown-haired person wearing jeans and a t-shirt that hugged their masculine frame beautifully. “Ricky wait up- Holy shit it’s pretty in here- wait am I allowed to cuss? This was a church-”

“You can cuss. The gargoyles have heard me cuss enough when i was younger-” he said, stopping to wait for his companion, before looking up towards the rafters not seeing the gargoyles right away. Though when he spotted them near the altar- covered with some light graffiti he scowled rushing to them and set down the box, moving to get some soap and water and a brush. “Fuck- Vinny- Can you help me? Shit-shit-” he mumbled softly scrubbing away the graffiti, cupping Loyalty’s face gently, “Hey- Hey i came home. I’m here- Let’s get you cleaned up, Loyalty… Trust you’re next.” he insisted.

Vinny’s green eyes widened in shock seeing Ricky’s concern and they rushed over, quickly moving to help by starting on the worst- Responsibility. “So… these are your friends you told me about?” they asked looking at Ricky curiously.

The raven-haired man nodded, happy to see Loyalty’s face free of paint and staining. “Yeah. Loyalty, Trust, and Responsibility. That’s Responsibility you’re working on.” He explained, smiling softly up at Loyalty petting his cheek. “Guys this is Vinny, she’s my friend I made in Washington.” His voice was deeper, and his smile was just as sweet as when he was younger. He moved to scrub Trust of paint, his hand falling from Loyaltys cheek gently as he did.

Christopher had been irate when the construction had finally started. Finally, considering the builders and architects had been coming and going through their home for weeks prior to any work to their space being actually done, and to make matters worse… it didn’t actually scare off the teenagers. Some time back, it had become a popular dare for the local hooligans to see who could get in here, climb up to the rafters, and tag one of the gargoyles in the most inappropriate way.

The ones that had managed to crawl underneath them and managed to tag their groins certainly had reached the top of the list. The problem was, being able to wash away the graffiti from their stone forms was extremely difficult. They couldn’t move when they were stone, what were they to do, transform in the river and way for the water to rush by long enough to wash the dried paintaway? It didn’t work, and it didn’t disappear when they shifted back and forth.

Now, seeing these two moving into their home after desecrating the church by, by completely changing it. Their home, while holy ground to them, following the edicts of the angels, admittedly hadn’t been a place of worship for a long time. These humans coming in and tearing it apart, changing everything, it had Christopher seething from the moment they first stepped in here with their equipment, that was even before they started moving in today.

Then there was the two that came up to platforms where they were perched in their stone prisons, still, trapped and unable to move in the light of day. The voices, the voices had already drifted up here long before they did, hearing the other call him Ricky, and Justin seeing him once they’d climbed up here from that apartment space.. He knew it was him. It was Ricky. He’d come home.

Stone eyes watched Ricky as his soft touch scrubbed at the markings on the stone skin of his face. He looked, his smile just as it always was, there was no missing that. Though, he sounded different.. A good different. He sounded happy.

Vinny. Christopher blinking at this female that was cleaning him, her touch scrubbing at some of the multitude of markings that covered him. He did bear the brunt of the markings, his pride of place more prominent than Loyalty and Trust, he was the commander of the unit, and his placement showed it. In turn became the prime target for shenanigans. Did he question her muscular frame with her jeans and shirt, no, stone eyes merely regarded her curiously, still, refusing to be pleased at their presence.. Ricky, how could you do this to their home?

Ryan was in absolute disagreement with Christopher to his frustration to the updating to their home. With how long it had been since anyone of true honest religious intent had stepped foot on these grounds, it was about time someone put the holy ground to good use once more. To them, it would always be holy ground, because their work, was always going to be in the name of the angels. As long as they resided here, and still functioned in fighting their war on their behalf, they did their duty.. As long as they breathed, they fought.

Trust they would always fight, and Ryan, he trusted, and he hoped others would trust him just as much. He was glad to have Ricky home.

Ricky was scrubbing Trust free of the paint now soothingly humming to them. “I'm going to take some pictures of the gargoyles and find a better place for them. I was thinking the Rectory so that they wont be as accessible-” Ricky babbled sweetly with a grin as he worked finally getting the last of the paint off of Trust.

“I think the rectory would be perfect. Is that why you put in the window so we can check on them sometimes?” Vinny asked kneeling as she scrubbed the rest of Responsibility without much thought as movers moved some of their stuff up into their apartment across from the rectory.

The Rectory. It was where they retreated enough as it was, it was how they got cleaned up when some of their battles got, messy. If they couldn’t find other means. Of course, it was easier to use since the place had been abandoned and was no longer used to house the local parish priest. Ryan found it curious that Ricky would put them in there, however he was, it would be a place that could be closed off from the rest of the church opposed to here, and unbeknownst to him, had perfect balcony for them to fly from when they head out on patrol. They could come and go as they needed to continue their work, and it would be far less having to hide from the mortals down below in the church open space.

“Precisely. I figured it’d be nice for them to have a space just for them.” Ricky explained gently. “I'll arrange for the construction workers to help move them up to the rectory.”

Christopher wasn’t listening to Ricky, he was trying to focus on anything else but what was happening around him. Nope, not listen, he was thinking of battle strategy, and the report on the rogue vampire pack that had been trolling the east side of town last night that Justin had brought back to him that they needed to follow up on. Yes, that was what he was attempting to focus on, anything but the way Vinny’s scrubbing brush was moving over his skin underneath his belly. No, his body couldn’t physically react in his stone form, but he could feel every single stroke of that rough brush against the thick porous skin.

Ricky stepped back and noticed what Vinny was doing, sliding down to scrub Trust's crotch first, his eyes wide when he noticed there were actually… dick and balls. “Oh shit… well. Let's get you cleaned up. Loyalty, I'll help you shortly. Trust doesn't have as much paint down here i dont think.”

Trust wasn't too big but thick at least making ricky blush. He was grateful he had never noticed until now.

Vinny giggled and smiled softly, “it was a nice surprise.” She commented with a smirk as Ricky scrubbed away.

A nice surprise. A nice surprise, that was what the female said of scrubbing Christopher’s groin. Oh boy. It was blessing that is was mid afternoon and the sun was still out, forcing them to be rigid as stone, and not in the way that would make what the pair was doing to them even more embarrassing. It was a blessing, because hearing the way this Vinny just giggled like that and said it was a nice surprise, would have had him falling over with laughter, there would be no hiding, even trying to keep his stone form.. Thousands of years of keeping the secret wasted over two mortals scrubbing his commanders cock of graffitti. Oh, the angels. This was priceless.

Justin was no better, he was no better, until he remembered something, Ricky said he would be going next.

Shit.

He moved back to Loyalty finally and blushed seeing exactly what Loyalty had been packing compared to Trust. Oh. Oh. He swallowed cheeks burning as his mouth watered, “oh fuck I would take you in a heart beat if you were erect.” He mumbled.

His face burned as he realized what he had just said when Vinny snorted. “Size king.” She said softly, as she scrubbed a bit harder at Responsibilties’ length noting some stubborn paint.

“As if you arent a size queen.” He retorted his focus on cleaning though he allowed himself to let his fingers glide over his cock teasingly for a moment under the guise of feeling for paint.

No, no, absolutely not. Justin did not hear that. He did not hear that. He was not imagining that. This was Ricky. Ricky. Hear that. Ricky, whom used to sleep curled up in a pew down below, crying over his father being an ignoramus- oh that was, Ricky needed to stop that, now, immediately, Justin had to fight now to groan. Any sound he made was swallowed on the wind through the rafters of the Church, thank the Heavens, please, please, Ricky, just finish quickly and be done. Justin eyes were focused on the far beams across the rafters, mentally going over his different weapons that he had tucked away in his arsenal. His daggers, his blades, his dual warrior swords, those were his specialty.

Christopher was doing no better, he had started itemizing the reports one by one for the past week as he had run out of the vampire issue from the night before. Most of the reports were verbal of course, magically recorded rather than waste the likes of trees as per humans did. Vinny, Vinny seemed to be taking a prolonged time with her scrubbing. Ryan was done and moved on to Justin already, and Vinny was still at work, and as, as… he couldn’t lie about how… pleasing it felt… What was he going to do?

Finally, Vinny pulled back smiling at her work and smirked. “Okay. I’m gonna finish taking boxes upstairs- she said kissing Ricky's cheek before slipping off. There was a long silence before Ricky was satisfied and sighed in relief. “All better now… I’m gonna have you guys moved now…” he murmured drying his hands.

Oh, he could try to calm down now, Christopher was thankful that the siren had taken her hands off of him. Watching as she pressed that tiny kiss to Ricky’s cheek. Oh. Oh wasn’t that interesting. Ricky had said they were friends, but from watching humans over the centuries, most friends were less close in such a manner than that, such nonchalant kisses tended to be reserved for more intimate relations. Could it be that Ricky had found himself a partner?

Well, in that case, Christopher wished them well.

Of course, he would be infinitely happier for them, if the pair hadn’t decided to completely decided to upend and destroy his home. It was a Church, not whatever they were turning it into!

Ricky talked to the construction crew and they set to work to move the gargoyles into the Rectory, careful with the new drywall in the smaller apartment. He sighed softly, smiling to himself as he helped move things into the apartment with Vinny, setting things up. It felt amazing to be home and peaceful for once. He was arranging to have it still remain looking most like a church, but he and Vinny had decided the outcome of the building. It would be their home, along with being a coffee shop during the day and a bar at night. He had found a beautiful old bar that would be perfect for both and fit into the decor perfectly.

It would be a few more weeks until it was fully ready to open but Vinny had been delighted at the thought of opening the business. Seeing that joy alone was priceless to him… Beautiful and endearing… how could he resist?

He tied his long hair back up into a bun as he worked and helped with some of the smaller details in the apartment. It was beautiful and perfect in his mind. This was and would be his only home. It had been for so long already. And with his grandparents now… gone… he felt even more sure of himself that this was where he was meant to be.

- - - - -

Finally, Ricky had finished up enough and set some coasters out in the Rectory, a pumpkin latte, black coffee, and a sweet caramel coffee with whipped cream placed in each one. The coasters were homemade one for each of the gargoyles. He smiled and looked at them exhausted, “Thank you for being here. I’m going to be here for you too.” he admitted softly, “Vinny and I are locking the church up now and I’m going to make dinner before bed. You’re safe now. No one will do that again to you. I promise.”

He left, flipping off the lights leaving the gargoyles alone with the beverages as the sun began to fully dip below the horizon. “Oh. And every day I finish my work I’m going to leave some drinks for you all to enjoy. The coasters will be moved to the bar.

Then there was the soft click of the door shutting and the sound of his footsteps clicking down the stairs.

#chris motionless #ryan sitkowski #justin morrow #miw fanfic #vinny mauro #chenzo mauro #ricky olson #ricky horror #chris cerulli #miw band #miw

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asspostate · 2 months ago

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DnD interest check!!

Do you like DnD? How about online virtual tabletops? Would you like to play a game with two DMs, two parties, and a player character for each?

Enter the Threadlands, a fully-developed homebrew setting with a unique vibe. Hemmed in by impenetrable rainforest on three sides, crowded against the coast, civilization makes the most of the space it has, pushing into a bustling arcanotech-flavored industrial revolution. Does your character come from a business background, where they navigate the intricate politics and policies of the arcane corporations that rule the cities? Are they a mech pilot, practiced in the art of operating Walkers, the legged mechs that serve as the primary form of mechanized transportation? Or maybe they’re a student of the House of Three Pillars, the humanist church that preaches a doctrine modeled after the lifestyle of the Architects, those who came before.

One of your characters will be concerned primarily with civilization, operating within the known map; The other will immediately set off with an exploration expedition, becoming one of the first to learn what exists in the forest proper and beyond.

See details below cut!

I’m looking at running a game with my husband in the near future, via a digital tabletop; the twist is, we’re going to swap in and out of the DM seat. Each of us will be running our own separate campaign in a shared world and trading off every few weeks. So I’ll be a player in his game, he’ll be a player in mine, and our players will have two player characters, one for each game!

You might be interested if:

-You would enjoy developing and swapping between two full player characters

-You enjoy roleplay-heavy games with serious story themes

-You enjoy fully developed homebrew settings with unique flavor

-You like to socialize with your fellow players/DM and would be interested in a discord server (and being friends! DnD is more fun with people you get to know)

-You’re queer-friendly; I’m trans as hell and we’re both gay as shit. ✌️

This might not be a great fit for you if:

-You prefer Forgotten Realms settings or don’t enjoy learning about new settings; this world is completely separate from published Forgotten Realms content and WOTC lore may not apply

-You prefer short play sessions or don’t expect to be able to make a weekly session

-You go heavy on the camp; gag characters probably won’t feel good to play long-term

-You’re sensitive to descriptions of gore, injury, and possibly death- We’re not gonna be Weird, but I love me some body horror.

Interested? Comment, reblog, message me- let’s talk!! Not your cup of tea? Consider a reblog! Help us get this thing going.

#dnd #dungeonsanddragons #dungeons and dragons #dnd lfg #dnd looking for players #TTRPG

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handern · 1 year ago

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since some of you find these endearing, have some dad update :

he made me stand by the porch of a random countryside church some 4 years ago so he could estimate the height and width of said porch and with that he came to the conclusion that the porch was a later addition

he only now managed to find proof of that through the description of the porch he found in an architecture book from the late 19th century that said that one of the windows is early gothic even though when we were there it was OBVIOUSLY gothic imitation you know

so now he managed to not only track back when that porch was destroyed (after the publication of that book) he identified who was in charge of rebuilding it through a publication in a very local savants' newspaper from the early 20th century that he managed to unearth despite the fact that the article was about another church and only mentioned the one he was interested in in passing (he knew the names of all the local church architects already as you do, and knew that other church had been repaired in the same time period he guesstimated for the one he was interested in)

he is in the process of making a whole multi layer map with the dimensions of the church through time

it can't be used in wikipedia bc it's research and wikipedia only allows solid sources, personal works are forbidden and he refuses to share his work w the local savant society bc they're not academics and "run by some holy water font frogs" so he's just doing that for fun now

he swore for 6 months he wouldn't work as hard on the inside of that church's description as he did on the outside bc the vocabulary is a lot more specific. He of course failed this and I have received multiple texts and emails that mention how much he hates architecture

also he has an architecture expert nemesis now, a guy nobody heard about who died 80 years ago

all this was caused bc I wanted to visit the bat museum near that church 4 years ago

#one day I'll also talk about his 5 other careers bc they're also absolutely insane and he also thinks nothing of them #babbles blabbles #he brings me on all his adventures bc I'm good at taking pictures #we have a shared google drive where I give him all my pictures #now that he doesn't drive anymore I'm the one who has to play mind games to figure out which church we can visit on the way to smth else #devy's dad tales #going to tag these from now on

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ludmilachaibemachado · 5 months ago

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July 28th 1968 - 'Mad Day Out' photoshoot. (Location 5 - St. Pancras Old Church)🪴

They then went to the Old Church and St Pancras Gardens near Regent's Park. Don McCullin first photographed the group standing on a small grassy hill to the left of the entrance steps and gate. A nearby flowerbed was in the form of a circle with the inscription "1869-1968 NDFS".m🪷

The second location was a bench north of the hill, south of the central monument, the Burdett Coutts Memorial Sundial. A little further southeast of the monument is a drinking fountain🌸

Tom Murray (photographer): "Paul noticed that I try to capture those moments when their faces take on some silly expressions or unusual poses. When he saw me filming him drinking from the fountain, he sprayed me with water."🌵

The next site was next to the mausoleum of architect Sir John Soane, which is located in the eastern part of the park. They sat down on the grass near the mausoleum, next to a sign: "Please Keep Off The Grass.". To the north of Sir John's mausoleum was the Coroner's Court of St Pancras, where they were photographed with an elderly man reading a newspaper on a bench🌹

The group then posed against the backdrop of St Pancras Hospital among the tall mallows. Then they came to a bench north of the monument. After that, they were photographed in the arched doorway of the church🌻

Via Beatles and Cavern Photos FB🪴🪷🌵

#60s icons #the beatles #mad day out #1968

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buildingislam · 2 years ago

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The Architects of Islam: Mimar Sinan

Architecture created in the Islamic style was brought to fruition not on its own, but by some of the most outstanding architects to date (in my opinion).

In accordance to this blog, this following post will be dedicated three architects that paved the way to the present ideas and characteristics of Islamic architecture displayed across the world.

To begin this blog, I'll start with Mimar Sinan - who is arguably the most famous architect to build in the Islamic style.

(I apologise for spelling mistakes when it comes to the names of people and locations, through research, there have been several spellings of the same things, and so I used the most common spelling. Please correct me if it is wrong! This applies to all previous and future blog posts.)

Mimar Sinan

Mimar Sinan (1488/1490-1588) was the son of a Greek or Armenian convert to Islam, Abd al-Mannan. He joined the elite corps of the Ottoman army, the janissaries as a young man, like his father before him. During this time of Sinan's life, his talent as an engineer became known - he rose through the ranks in the military becoming an officer in the army who participated in several military campaigns under sultans Selim and Suleiman. As the Ottoman armies marched to new extents in Europe, Africa, and Persia - Sinan accompanied them and organised the engineering corps for the military as well as building mosques and other civil buildings in newly Ottoman cities. In 1539, Sinan was given the position of head architect of the sultan's government in Istanbul (Archive: Islam., 2023).

Mimar Sinan's career saw him undertake a number of projects; 79 mosques, 34 palaces, 33 public baths, 19 tombs, 55 schools, 16 poorhouses, 7 madrasahs, and 12 caravansaries - with the Şehzade Mosque, the Mosque of Süleiman I the Magnificent and the Selim Mosque being his most famous works (the latter was discussed in the previous blog post) - with all three residing in Turkey (Britannica., 1998).

The Ottoman mosques were largely inspired by the architecture of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey (537 AD). Originally built as a Christian church in 537 by the Byzantines, the Hagia Sophia was converted to a mosque to to serve the new Muslim population after Mehmed II's conquest of the city in 1453 - and ever since, Ottoman architects such as Mimar Sinan used the Hagia Sophia's giant dome as a template for the design of Muslim mosques. Due to the grandness in scale and design of the Hagia Sophia, many architects made it their career mission to design something to top the it - including Mimar Sinan as he made it his goal to build a monument to Islam that was more magnificent than the Hagia Sophia.

This led to the one of the inspirations behind the construction of the Suleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. In 1543, one of the Sultan Suleiman's sons, Prince Mehmed, died of smallpox - and in turn Suleyman insisted on building a large mosque in his honour that would serve the local community. Mimar Sinan was tasked with this project, and over four years he worked on what would transition into what is now known as the Şehzade Camii (the Prince's Mosque).

The Sehzade Mosque

Upon completion, the mosque became a landmark of the city, and included not only a mosque but a complex that included a soup kitchen for the poor, a place for travellers to sleep, and a tomb for Prince Mehmed. Sultan Suleiman was extremely pleased with it but Sinan was not satisfied - and insisted he would do better - which leads us back to the inspiration behind the Suleymaniye Mosque.

Sultan Suleiman wanted another giant mosque in Istanbul, with this one being named after himself so he can accumulate the good deeds of Muslims who pray in it after he dies. He wanted it to be a central part of Istanbul's skyline to show the supremacy and glory of Islam (Archive Islam., 2023), this led to the decision of placing the mosque on top of a hill near the Golden Horn - meaning it could be seen for miles around.

There is a rumour that once the foundation was laid, Mimar Sinan went missing for five years! Suleiman was furious with the missing Sinan, and demanded to know where his favourite architect had gone, once the five years had passed, Sinan returned with the explanation that because the building would be so massive, he needed to let the foundations to settle in the soil before above ground building could commence.

The Suleymaniye Mosque was completed in 1557, and the reveal of what is now one of the most significant pieces of Islamic architecture not only to Mimar Sinan's career, but to the architectural world as a whole. Like the Sehzade Mosque, the building did not only serve as a place of worship, but also a kulliye (complex) which held a hospital, public baths, a library - which is still used today - a soup kitchen, numerous schools teaching Quran, a school for Hadith, and a primary school for children. The cemetery in which Sultan Suleiman is buried is also in this location.

Like other mosques in Istanbul, the entrance to the mosque holds a forecourt and a central fountain, and the exterior of the building is decorated with rectangular blue coloured Iznik tile window lunettes. To the south of the mosque is where the madrassa housing a library containing 110,000 manuscripts. There are minarets at all four of the corners of the courtyard, half short and half tall, which is a sign that the mosque was endowed by a sultan, as princes and princesses could only construct two minarets and others could only construct one minaret. Unfortunately, in 1660 the mosque was ravaged by a fire and then restored by Sultan Mehmed IV, then in 1766 part of the dome collapsed during an earthquake, and due to repairs, what was left of the original decoration by Sinan was damaged (Islamic Landmarks., 2023).

And yet, even after Sinan created this masterpiece, which was received incredibly, he still believed he could do much better.

This then transitioned into the commissioning of the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, which rivalled Hagia Sophia after Suleiman died in 1566. This left his son and successor Selim II in charge and wanting a mosque built in his name, despite being much older when construction began for the Selimiye Mosque, Sinan was determined to make his masterpiece.

The architecture for his masterpiece was discussed in depth in the previous blog.

The Selimiye Mosque

Mimar Sinan died in 1588 at age 98 or 100 (his birth year is unknown) and was buried in the cemetery of the Suleymaniye mosque, near Sultan Suleiman. During life, Sinan built some of the greatest examples of Islamic architecture ever - and is as of 2023, one of the most successful and acclaimed Muslim architects to grace the planet - and the impact on the Muslim world being not limited to just mosques supports his reputation. His apprentices went on to build other major landmarks such as The Blue Mosque (discussed in the previous blog) and notably the Taj Mahal in Agra, India.

His works remain some of the greatest symbols of Islam, centuries after his death and impressive career.

Thank you for reading the first half of this blog - the following blog will discuss my second chosen architect.

Thank you for reading, and hopefully you enjoyed! Please like and share if you did!

Summer Marshall-Miller

Bibliography:

Archive: Islam (2023) The Greatest Architect was a Muslim. Available at:

https://archiveislam.com/the-greatest-architect-was-a-muslim.html (Accessed: March 1, 2023).

Britannica (1998) Sinan. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sinan (Accessed: March 1, 2023).

Islamic Landmarks (2023) Süleymaniye Mosque. Available at: https://www.islamiclandmarks.com/turkey/suleymaniye-mosque (Accessed: March 1 2023).

#Islam #architecture #islamicarchitecture #history of art #art #religion #culture #turkey #istanbul

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scotianostra · 2 years ago

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John Playfair, the mathematician and philosopher was born on March 10th 1748 at Bervie near Dundee.

John Playfair was the son of a Minister and was educated at home and then studied at St. Andrews University. At the age of eighteen, in 1766, he competed for the Chair of Mathematics at Aberdeen’s Marischal College. He failed to secure it and went on to study theology at St. Mary’s College and was licensed as a Minister in 1770, by which time he was in Edinburgh. In 1772 he was again unsuccessful in an attempt to win a Chair, this time the Chair of Natural Philosophy at St. Andrews. That year too, his father died and the responsibility for the family upon him. He became the Minister at Liff and Benvie, his father’s church. He stayed at Liff and Benvie until 1783 when he became tutor to the Fergusons of Raith. In 1785 John Playfair succeeded Dugald Stewart

His best-known contribution to mathematics is his form of Euclid’s parallelism axiom which is mumbo jumbo to me!

John Playfair’s brothers were architect James Playfair, solicitor Robert Playfair and engineer William Playfair. His nephew, William Henry Playfair was an eminent architect in Scotland who designed a monument to his uncle on Calton Hill.

You can find more info on Playtfair here https://mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Playfair

#scotland #scottish #mathematician #philosopher #history #the scottish enlightenment

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nickgerlich · 2 years ago

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Mall Shook Up

Our recent discussions about the doom and gloom facing current movie theatre chains got me to thinking about other bastions of the past that are on equally unstable ground. And there is perhaps no more wobbly a relic of our past than the mighty enclosed shopping mall.

Before we dive in, let me make it clear that I do not think they are all going to curl up and die just yet. But let’s face it. When about three quarters—that’s a full 75%—of our inventory of malls did just that since the 1980s, you have to wonder about the long term viability of the concept. One analyst predicts that the current stable of 700 malls could be whittled down to 150 in a decade.

It is interesting to note that malls were originally conceived as gathering places. Architect Victor Gruen, who designed the first fully enclosed mall still in use today in Edina Minnesota—Southdale Center—envisioned a climate-controlled environment in which people could escape the elements and could congregate under one roof. And this included not just shopping, but also dining, socializing, and even entertaining.

He was right, even though he later came to loathe his creation. In some regards, he was Dr. Frankenstein in the modern era. Malls became such a part of our cultural fabric that they spawned countless TV and movie scenes, because that is where humanity was happening.

In spite of all the social aspects, from senior citizen mall walkers to angst-filled teens and even a few legitimate shoppers, our malls are now by and large becoming near ghost towns. To be fair, there are still some powerhouse malls that likely have enough Teflon to withstand even the most significant forces of change, but they are increasingly becoming a minority.

And what are those forces of change? Of course, we must put online shopping at the top, even though it still only accounts for about 15% of all retail sales. Yes, that percentage spikes during the winter holidays, but the reality is that people still shop in BAM stores.

But there are other forces, notably that curbside and delivery have found traction, and that when we do venture out, we rather like outward-facing shops with nearby parking. Any of the outdoor formats, from strip centers to lifestyle centers and freestanding, are found to be more appealing than the sterility of the airtight mall. We can park in front of our destination. That climate control came to be an albatross; people don’t mind the elements as much as we once thought.

Then there is the matter of time, something that we can never seem to find enough of to complete all of our daily tasks. Shopping malls were designed to be massive time sucks. But who has time to just go browsing? I know I don’t. I cross the threshold of our nearby mall once a year—at Christmas, of course—and with a very purposive list of places to go and things to buy. In. And. Out.

We must also consider mall owners, which are often REITs. As long as stores are turning a profit and occupancy remains high, then life is good. But when departures increase, and especially the time-honored anchor stores, things get tough. Ponder all of the square footage dedicated to indoor commons areas. That area alone could have been put to much better use were the whole complex reconfigured. It costs money to heat and cool such monstrosities.

Today, we are left with the $64,000 question of the century thus far: What to do with these things when they die? Demolition is an easy if painful answer (there go our teenage memories), allowing for a new developer to come in and essentially start from scratch. But we probably don’t need anymore churches that occupy unused retail (they’re on the decline as well). That leaves converting them into warehouses, fulfillment centers, cloud computing facilities, and, if someone is willing to risk some money, adapting the entire space into a new live/work/shop center, retaining some retail elements, but adding apartments, offices, and gyms.  

There are variations on this, of course. Whenever I see a mall that has filled empty slots with services, gyms, and adventure spaces, I know I am looking at a dying mall. This is desperation. The new adventure space at Amarillo’s Westgate Mall is a shining example.

Even though I am not at all a mall shopper these days, I shake my head each time I hear of a mall’s demise. The mall in which I grew up—Dixie Square in Harvey Illinois—was one of the first to die. It shuttered in 1978, and was rented out to film a chase scene in The Blues Brothers movie that came out in 1980. I returned to the abandoned mall in 2010 to photograph it; finally, in 2012 it was demolished.

Poof. Gone. And yet I know there is a small part of my soul on that land.

I have to side with Mr. Gruen on this. He created a monster, and while that monster has some good attributes, it altered the retail landscape. Those effects may never be resolved completely. And that’s a movie I don’t want to watch more than once.

Dr “I Malled Out“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

#marketing #shoppinbg #malls #online #e-commerce

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molsons112000 · 4 months ago

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So, Chicago I don't understand each of these bridges is a unique opportunity to celebrate the street. To celebrate the community along the street and to celebrate the architect capabilities of chicago... As you see, chicago has the most movable bridges in the united states...

Pennsylvania has the most bridges in the world, but chicago for a city has more bridges in almost any city in the world and has the most movable bridges because of going back and forth to lake michigan... But this is a serious problem for the City of Chicago, as well, because you can't use the river with sailboats and other boats, so they have to be able to lower their mass, the mask that holds the sale up and that needs to fold and they can create a retractable or a Pole that can retract. And b. Put up so they can recreate a retraction system, so they don't have to lift the bridges. It doesn't interrupt traffic and people can use the river more freely... So they can work with these boat, designers to design things right like the boat can sit lower in the water, so it can clear the bridge. Yes, the boat can take on some more balance ballas bring it lower in the water. So we can go under the bridge, and then it can release it and rise higher. And it's not supposed to be speeding down the river, so boats can lower themselves and raise themselves by creating A system like submarines... So this way, they can have taller boats go down the river, because the boats can naturally lower themselves to clear the bridge and then, on the other side they can lift themselves again.... And yes, on the side of the boat, they can bring up these automatic, a system that raises the side of the boat, the skirt. Preventing the water from coming over the edge, so it can be like a glass system that rises and raises and lowers...

Chicago has more movable bridges than any other city in North America, and second only to Amsterdam in the world. Chicago is also known as the "drawbridge capital of the world" because it has experimented with more drawbridge designs than any other city. Chicago's 37 movable bridges include five different types: jackknife, vertical lift, Scherzer rolling lift, and trunnion bascule, also known as the "Chicago Style".

Chicago's large number of bridges, including over 180 in Cook County alone, has been a key factor in its economic success.

Does Pittsburgh Really Have More Bridges Than Any Other City?

Mar 16, 2022 — Standing near the collapsed Fern Hollow Bridge for an impromptu press conference in Regent Square in January, President Joe Biden seemed genuinely s...

Pittsburgh Magazine

So chicago should be an architectural leader in bridges.....

No one's my brother's keeper.No one can keep me... I am sovereign..... And you're not setting moral precedent with me.I tell you what the f*** it is...

So what the f*** have you been through? And I've been the only white person in every single minority group. Numerous coasts with people from all over the world, both male and female young and old, rich and poor sick and healthy.What the f***!!!! You open your f****** mouth to me.They should shut it!!!! It is a f****** travesty that you can even speak...

“His Holiness” and “Holy Father” both address the Pope by his title and position in the Church. You should address the Pope only by these titles rather than by his name when speaking to him face-to-face.

https://www.wikihow.com › Addre...

How to Address the Pope: 10 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow

When speaking to the Pope, you can address him as "Your Holiness" or "Holy Father". You can also use "His Holiness" in indirect references. Here are some other tips for speaking to the Pope:

Be clear: Speak clearly and keep your answers short and direct.

Be aware of your volume: Make sure the Pope can hear you, especially if you're nervous and tend to whisper.

Be careful with humor: Avoid jokes that make fun of priests, nuns, or celibacy.

Be yourself: Some say you should be yourself and smile.

Here are some other tips for meeting the Pope:

Dress modestly: Women can wear a dress with a skirt below the knee, or a pantsuit, and cover their shoulders. Men can wear dark suits, and avoid white clothing. In the summer, you can bring a hat, sunscreen, and water.

Don't touch him unless he approaches you: Some say you shouldn't touch the Pope unless he approaches you first.

Don't fist pump, kiss, or slap him on the back: Some say these are things you might want to avoid.

Take pictures: You can bring your camera, but you might want to leave your selfie stick at home.

Stand when he enters the room: You can also applaud if there's a crowd.

When he leaves, stand up and wait for him to leave the room: You can then turn your attention to other things.

Papal Etiquette: What to Do If You Meet the Pontiff - NPR

Apr 15, 2008 — Keep your answers short and direct. And speak clearly. Smith says sometimes people are so nervous, they whisper. Make sure the pope can hear you. Wh...

NPR

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brownbrown01 · 1 year ago

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When searching for a church architect near you, remember to consider factors such as expertise in religious architecture, local regulations, budget alignment, and portfolio compatibility. Find the perfect partner for your sacred space project.

#church architect near me #church architect #Church Architecture Firms #church architecture #church architects near me

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sidewalkstamps · 8 months ago

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McCombs Bro's Contractors (Photo taken by Rachel Hughes and sent to me in April 2024)

In 1905, there was a McCombs Bros in Iowa - Charles J and Harry F. They were in the livery, bus, and transfer business at 9 W Church. We shall see as we go if there's any reason to believe these were the same brothers. (Conclusion: there isn't.)

In 1911, the McCombs Brothers were located at 111 South Broadway (this address doesn't exist today but is near Bunker Hill) and were "awarded the contract for the construction of approximately 130,000 sq. ft. of cem. sidewalk... and 26,000 lin. ft. of standard cem. curb in the Los Angeles Dock and Terminal Co. tract No. 1 on the harbor at Long Beach." A. L. Sonderegger was the engineer. In that year's city directory, there are two probable McCombs: Chas R, "cement wkr" who lived at 1660 W 36th, and Edgar A, "cement contr" who lived at 1937 6th avenue.

In 1912, the McCombs Bros. had applied for membership to the Builders' Exchange, according to H. B. Webster (its secretary) who reported to the Municipal Journal and Public Works who listed it in "Personal and Trade Notes." I believe they were also awarded a contract that year "for improving Vine st., from Central ave. to San Ferncisco road," including grading, oiling and macadam, cement curb, and cement sidewalks in Glendale, CA.

Sources:

Good Roads, Volume 42. E.L. Powers Company, 1912.

Iowa State Gazetteer and Business Directory, Volume 13. R. L. Polk & Company, 1905.

Los Angeles City Directory, General Directory Publishers, 1911, accessed via the Los Angeles Public Library.

Municipal Journal and Public Works, Volume 33. Municipal Journal & Engineer, Incorporated., 1912.

Southwest Builder and Contractor, Volume 55, F. W. Dodge Company, 1920.

Southwest Contractor and Manufacturer, Volume 7. Engineers and Architects Association of Southern California, 1911.

#contractor stamp #sidewalk #los angeles #sidewalk stamp #cement #contractor #concrete

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echo-s-land · 11 months ago

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Dans ma ville on traîne/In my town, we hang out

In my town, we hang out, between the concrete [and], the plains

In the cobbled streets of the town center, where every stores close down

We spend week-ends in the industrial areas

Close to the suburban areas where all the houses are the same

My city is like the first girlfriend I’ve never had

I can’t leave her yet I spend my time spitting on her

Talking about the nice weather would be wrongly looking at the sky

I hate her as much as I love her, surely because we’re the same

We hung out in the streets

Tagged on walls

Skateboarded in parks

Slept in [town] squares

Threw up in bars

Danced in clubs

Smoked in squats

Sang in stadiums

We hung out in the streets

Tagged on walls

Skateboarded in parks

Slept in [town] squares

Threw up in bars

Danced in clubs

Smoked in squats

Sang in stadiums

I hung out so much in Caen streets

With a bottle from which everybody drank

Between two suspended worlds

Criminal, the way I killed time

I hung out so much in Caen streets

With a bottle from which everybody drank

Between two suspended worlds

Criminal, the way I killed time

I hung out so much in Caen streets

With a bottle from which everybody drank

Between two suspended worlds

Criminal, the way I killed time

After 10 pm you don’t run into people anymore

As if we were still under bombardments

You’ll only hear cops and the sound of wind

And some guys from university celebrating an after-match

Who shouldn’t get too near the edge

When they’ll end up in the port

In the few bars that still serve [people]

Where there are cigs and dead drunk English people

5 am, queue in kebab restaurants after leaving the club

You can take a pita [bread] or take a punch

Or you can take the first tram

And if you ever fell asleep, you’ll wake up on the edges of town

Where shopping centers are huge

Where we spent Saturdays with the family

Where I liked to stroll so much

Even when we had nothing to buy

Parents’ shopping cart slows down in front of Pizza Del Arte

Not far away from the toys store where I stole knights

Close to the bridge where my grandmother [used to] took me throw paper planes

Where you can see the big towers of the neighborhood

Where the architect believed they did a good thing

If I didn’t rap I wouldn’t have ever gone there

Because we don’t mix up so much from where I come from

Beyond that there are fields, there’s nothing

If you see smoke when you come back

It’s that in the factories not for away

People slog, people deteriorate, people make fuel for the machine

Next to straight pavilions

Where we think about what the neighbor think

Where we spend the Sundays with the family

Where we make fragile Whites

Go along the canal, take the beltway, you arrive in the room

Where you missed key lay-ups

Not far away from a remote place where girls prostitute themselves

In the middle of cranes where there are buses

That takes you to the sea in less than 20 minutes

Where Parisians thought us so useless

Where you can see England behind the mist

Walk by the hospital that is seen from everywhere

To remind us that we’ll all be taken away

And you’ll be back in town

Where middle-class people go grocery shopping and punks beg [for food]

Where there are hobos whose everybody knows the name of

I saw Gigi split his veins open with shards of glass

In front of the local shop, the one that is still open

Near the castle, its moats and its urban legends

I intended marriages, burials,

In mosques, churches and temples

Under a Norman drizzle

She can’t even fucking rain properly

My city to the hundred steeples

Every time they destroy a building

They erase a part of my past

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