Sew La Ti Embroidery:
Western Europe

The actual laser modeling is done by mounting a laser from a tripod and shooting the gallery, taking time to measure the distance between the scanner and every point it hits. Each one of these points represents a distance — by mapping millions of points from a single location, historians can measure how the building expands and contracts during the day, as well as how it shifts over longer periods of time. By combining the point cloud data generated by the laser scanner with on-site photographs taken at the same time, Tallon has created extremely accurate models of the underlying structure and design of the cathedral, and identified points where the cathedral’s masons either deviated from the original plan or paused work to allow the ground to settle.

Tallon’s research, for example, has found that the Gallery of Kings — the massive, three-doorway facade that dominates one side of the cathedral, had shifted almost a foot out of plumb. Researchers had previously suspected that work had stopped on the area for up to a decade, and this new work suggests why that might have occurred. The masons, realizing that the building was shifting in the thin, sandy soil, halted progress to give the ground time to settle and resumed a decade later.

Other findings from Tallon’s work include data that shows the internal columns of Notre Dame don’t align perfectly, and that workers likely incorporated existing structures in the area as part of the cathedral rather than tearing them out altogether. The flying buttresses, which were often thought to be a later addition to the architecture, were likely installed from the very beginning to counterbalance the effect of the vaulted ceilings (which tended to force the walls outward). External support from flying buttresses would push the walls inward, counterbalancing the vaults. The walls of Notre Dame have scarcely moved since they were constructed — a testament to the exquisitely balanced and counterbalanced supports.

National Geographic has a full update on the process and technology used to create the laser point models and a discussion of the work done at Notre Dame and other Cathedrals. Laser and LIDAR-assisted mapping has become more prominent in recent years, thanks to its ability to show us where long-buried structures or archaeological remains may still exist. Thermal maps and subtle gradation variations can also show remnants of mankind’s activity in an area, even when shifting sands or jungle terrain has obscured the more obvious visual reminders. Human buildings and structures absorb heat differently than surrounding terrain even when buried, which gives us a window into the past when conventional methods or other records come up short.

Author: Joel Hruska | Source: Extreme Tech [June 24, 2015]

On June 15, 1215, in fields by the banks of the River Thames at Runnymede to the west of London, England's King John agreed to the demands of his rebelling barons and accepted the Magna Carta, Latin for "Great Charter", which for the first time placed the monarch under the rule of law.

In the centuries since, it has taken on huge global significance, becoming the basis for the U.S. Bill of Rights, the U.S. Declaration of Independence and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Three of its 63 clauses still remain on Britain's statute book.

"What happened in these meadows eight centuries ago is as relevant today as it was then. And that relevance extends far beyond Britain," British Prime Minister David Cameron said.

He said the document had changed the world, inspiring people from the founding fathers of the United States and Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi to Nelson Mandela in South Africa.

"Its remaining copies may be faded, but its principles shine as brightly as ever," Cameron told the ceremony attended by the queen, other royals and global figures including U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

Magna Carta came into being during a period of great political upheaval in England with conflict between King John, his nobles and the English church.

It was essentially a peace deal to address the problems of the day and was annulled by the pope shortly afterwards. But updated versions, which included two original clauses regarded as pivotal in establishing the rule of law, were re-released regularly by or on behalf of succeeding monarchs.

The clauses read: "No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land.

"To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice."

Originals Exist

Four original copies of the document, written on a single sheet of parchment about the size of A3 paper, still exist.

At Monday's ceremony, a new art installation was unveiled and the American Bar Association's Magna Carta Memorial, which was erected at the site in 1957, was re-dedicated.

U.S. Attorney General Lynch said the charter was a bedrock to free societies globally, while Cameron also used the anniversary as a political opportunity to underpin his plan to overhaul human rights laws and reduce the influence of Europe.

However, John Dyson, chairman of the Magna Carta Trust, said King John and the barons would have been bemused that the document would garner such interest hundreds of years later.

"They would surely have been astonished that over time Magna Carta came to be regarded as one of the most important constitutional documents in our history," he said.

"They would not have believed that barons' lists of demands would become a symbol of democracy, justice, human rights and perhaps above all, the rule of law for the whole world. But that is exactly what has happened."

Author: Stefan Wermuth | Source: Reuters [June 15, 2015]

The worn copper alloy figurine of the Roman god of commerce and travellers was found by Dave Cooper, member of the York and District Metal Detecting Club, in a field near Selby.

Mercury was one of the more popular Roman gods, with similar examples already found across the country giving an insight into the religious practices of Roman Britain.

The figurine is the 1,000th find this year recorded by the North and East Yorkshire Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), a government-funded project to encourage the voluntary recording of archaeological objects found by the public.

Rebecca Griffiths, PAS Finds Liaison Officer at York Museums Trust, said: “Every year thousands of archaeological objects are discovered by members of the public.

“While the majority of these come from metal-detector users we also see many finds from people field-walking, gardening, renovating houses and even those out walking particularly inquisitive dogs.”

Source: The Yorkshire Post [June 01, 2015]

The story of how the relic was discovered has entered local legend in Reuil-Malmaison after a resident, who has never been identified, turned up at the municipal dump in 2001 and asked where to throw her unwanted goods.

“She said: ‘Where shall I put this, it’s a mummy?’ We weren’t sure exactly what she was talking about. She just said she was clearing her cellar,” Jean-Louis Parichon, an employee at the dump, recalled shortly afterwards.

“I immediately saw it was an extraordinary thing and put it to one side. Then when I’d stopped being astonished, I called the town museum.”

After years of examination, experts declared that the mummy had been brought from Egypt by one of Napoleon’s generals in the mid-1850s.

The mummy, whose name from the hieroglyphics is Ta-Iset (she of Isis), is believed to date from around 350BC and comes from the Akhmim region in upper Egypt on the east bank of the river Nile.

Radiographic scans revealed that the mummified body is that of a girl “in her fourth year” measuring 92.5cm. The skeleton is well preserved and whole, the head is bent towards the chest, and the quality of the wraps and cask suggest a child of the Egyptian middle classes.

Although the linen bandages and coverings decorated with hieroglyphics were badly damaged, a stylised bird feather and inscription revealed the name Ta-Iset.

“A cut from a knife is visible on the side showing that certain people have already tried to see if [the casket] contained precious metals or amulets,” said Marie-Aude Picaud, director of the history museum at Reuil-Malmaison.

The town council contributed to the restoration, but a large part of the cost was raised by public donations.

Ta-Iset will now go on display in a temperature-controlled room at the town’s history museum.

Author: Kim Willsher | Source: The Guardian [May 13, 2015]

The grotto at Vallon-Pont d'Arc in the Ardeche region of southern France, is a reproduction of the closely guarded Grotte Chauvet, which was granted World Heritage status last year.

The French president had already officially inaugurated the museum earlier this month and it officially opened to the public on Saturday.

The replica cave, which took a team of scientists two and a half years to create, will enable tourists from around the world to continue to see the frescos of painted animals without damaging the original cave.

Unique in the world for being such an identical and precise reproduction, the grotto has been built in the shape of a bear's paw, and stands just one kilometre away from the original site.

Inside the new grotto, which came a cost of €55 million visitors will be able to see more than a thousand drawings, including 425 animal figures of 14 different species, which have been meticulously reproduced.

The smell, humidity and even stalactites of the Grotte Chauvet have also been recreated to make the new site as authentic as can be.

The visitor walks down a long ramp to get into the building housing the replica, entering a darkened, cool and humid place that mirrors conditions in the grotto.

Then just like in the real cave, people stick to a walkway that takes them past replica bones and the skull of an Alpine ibex, a species of wild goat.

The drawings reveal themselves as the visitors walk further into the fake cave, a total of 1,000 paintings including 425 animals -- including bears, rhinos, big cats, owls.

These have been reproduced using charcoal, just like our Aurignacian ancestors did some 36,000 years ago.

Using ultra-modern techniques such as 3D imaging, engineers, sculptors, painters and visual artists faithfully reproduced the paintings.

A team of 10 people in Paris also worked for four years to reproduce stalactites, stalagmites and other formations present in the Grotte Chauvet itself.

Authorities hope that the giant replica will attract some 350,000 visitors a year.

The original Chauvet grotto was preserved for more than 20,000 years thanks to the fallen rocks, which blocked its entrance.

The grotto was discovered on the 18th December 1994 by amateur potholers: Jean-Marie Chauvet, Eliette Brunel et Christian Hillaire.

Among the finds was a medieval hoard of 17 coins discovered by Roland Mumford in December 2012, while metal detecting on farm land in Wenvoe.

The hoard is made of five gold and 12 silver coins and includes a half-noble, four quarter-nobles of Edward III (1327-77) and principally groats (4d pieces) of Edward III.

That hoard dates to between 1365 to 1370 with the oldest coin discovered being from the 1290s and the most recent date from the 1360s.

An archaeological investigation was undertaken by National Museum and PAS Cymru archaeologists, with the support of the landowner and the assistance of the finder. Because no signs of settlement were found, this deposition of a significant sum of money remains a mystery.

The money would have been the equivalent of around two months’ wages.

Another hoard including two bronze artefacts, thought to be dated to the Late Bronze Age around 3,000 years ago was also declared treasure.

They were identified as axes after being found in Llancarfan, in the Vale of Glamorgan, by David Harrison in October 2013, while Mr Harrison was metal detecting on farm land.

One was a complete axe, the other a fragment.

The fragment had been wedged into the socket of the complete axe immediately before burial and were found near to each other in the corner of a field.

They are thought to have been buried during social and ritual ceremonies.

Another find of a small gold pendant which is thought to be dated to the first half of the sixteenth century had been found in St Donats by David Hughes in November 2011.

The pendant was made up of four circular sockets that would once have held beads, pearls or semi-precious stones. They are fastened to a small circular back-plate in a cross shape. The sockets of the pendant are decorated with a gold twisted wire that can be matched to Tudor dress hooks and pins.

Other finds included a 14th or 16th century signet ring which was found by Michael Gerry in August 2013 while metal detecting in Sully.

A gold ring with the inscription “such is my love” was found by David Hughes in April 2013 on land at Llantwit Major.

Fragments of a silver devotional ring were found by Mark Lambert in April 2013 on land at St Athan, that is thought to be dated to the fifteenth or early sixteenth century.

Fragments of a silver badge in the form of a cockerel, bearing the motto Si deus nobiscum – meaning If God is with us – were found by Mark Newbury in September 2012 at Pentyrch.

A 17th-century silver dress pin was also found by Robert Lock and Joseph Cartwright in August 2011 on land at St Athan.

Author: Ruth Mosalski | Source: Wales Online [April 22, 2015]