New discoveries reveal life and times of the Roman Emperor Hadrian

by Sean McLachlan on

The Emperor Hadrian is one of Rome’s most famous emperors, ruling at the height of the Empire from 117-138 AD. His villa just north of Rome is a popular tourist attraction, yet some Italian researchers have discovered what countless visitors never noticed: the buildings are aligned with astronomical events.

On the summer solstice (June 21 this year) light passes through an opening above a doorway and shines on a niche in the opposite wall. The niche probably contained the statue of some deity. This sort of light effect has been found in other ancient sites. Another building is aligned both to the summer and winter (December 21 this year) solstices, during which the light shines through a row of doors.

The effects may have been part of the worship of Isis. Originally an Egyptian goddess, a popular mystery religion grew up around her in the Roman Empire.

Hadrian’s other famous monument, Hadrian’s Wall, is also the site of a recent discovery. At the fort of Vindolanda, dozens of circular huts have been discovered that don’t look like anything the Romans built. In fact, they look like the huts of the tribes living north of the wall in Scotland, outside the direct influence of the Roman Empire. These may have been homes for refugees from friendly tribes fleeing common enemies, perhaps during the invasion of Scotland by Emperor Septimius Severus (ruled 193-211 AD) or the homes of temporary workers who lived along the wall and served the Romans.

For more on Hadrian’s Wall and a hike you can take along the entire length, check out my series on hiking Hadrian’s Wall.

[Photo courtesy Jastrow]

Vorticism: avant-garde art at the Tate Britain, London

by Sean McLachlan on

In the years before the outbreak of World War One, European artists developed a variety of different styles to reflect the pace of change and industrialization in what used to be a traditional continent.

Cubism and Futurism were two of the biggest movements. One of the briefest and most vibrant was Vorticism. The Vorticists started around 1913 and focused on the hard lines and quick pace of the machine age.

Now the Tate Britain in London is hosting a major exhibition on the movement called The Vorticists: Manifesto for a Modern World. It brings together more than 100 Vorticist works from all the major players.

One of the leaders of the movement was Wyndham Lewis, although some Vorticists say the only reason he was popularly seen as the leader was because he gave more interviews to the press. He was certainly important, though. Lewis was the founder of the Vorticist journal Blast, the first issue of which had a hot pink cover and featured writings by T.S. Eliot and Ford Madox Ford. A whole section of the exhibition is dedicated to this journal and its groundbreaking design and typography.

Some of the rarer works on display include those from the many women welcomed into Vorticist ranks, a daring move at the time. There are also the Vorticist photos of Alvin Langdon Coburn, often hailed as the first abstract photographs. These photos will blow your mind and hurt your eyes.

%Gallery-126430%While Vorticism was mainly a British movement, this exhibition also explores its influences on the New York modern art scene. In fact, it was an American poet, Ezra Pound, who gave the movement its name.

The output of this movement was remarkably small. Blast only had two issues, and there were only two Vorticist exhibitions. World War One killed some of the Vorticists and left others embittered against the modern world. Yet Vorticism had a major impact on modern art and its works are still discussed and copied today. The two issues of Blast are still in print almost a century after they first appeared. One advantage of its brevity is that an exhibition of this size can encompass a majority of the major works, giving the visitor a full understanding of the meteoric life of one of modern art’s most intriguing avant-garde movements.

The Vorticists: Manifesto for a Modern World opened yesterday and will run until September 4.

[Image of Workshop c. 1914-5, by Wyndham Lewis courtesy of the Wyndham Lewis Memorial Trust]

Prehistoric stone circle discovered in Yorkshire

by Sean McLachlan on

A stone circle that was once part of a prehistoric cairn has been discovered by a group of amateur archaeologists on Ilkley Moor, Yorkshire, England.

A cairn is a large pile of stones that marked the grave of an important individual in prehistoric times. These stones were often taken away by later farmers for building walls or cottages, and sometimes all that’s left is a circle of stones from the base, as is the case here. The team says the cairn measures 27 by 24 feet. It would have been pretty high back in its glory days.

One stone had a man-made circular impression archaeologists call a cup mark. These are found all over prehistoric Europe singly or in groups, but nobody knows what they mean.

The UK countryside is full of ancient remains. When I was hiking along Hadrian’s Wall and the East Highland Way I brought along Ordnance Survey maps not only to find my way but because many prehistoric sites are marked on them. I passed stone circles, Anglo-Saxon ring forts, crumbled castles, and much more. Take these maps along to make your walk through the countryside a walk through history.

The Yorkshire team has made numerous discoveries in recent months. Archaeology is understaffed and underfunded, and dedicated groups of amateurs help take up the slack. Archaeological societies exist in many towns throughout the world and are a great way to learn about the past. While members are amateur in the sense that they don’t make their living as archaeologists, they’re often well trained and knowledgeable. This is important so that when they make their discoveries they don’t harm the very sites they are trying to study and preserve.

[Photo of Mölndal cairn in Sweden courtesy Wikimedia Commons. No image of the Ilkley Moor cairn is available. It’s not as well preserved as the Mölndal cairn.]

Driving from Bangladesh to England in a classic Rolls Royce

by Kraig Becker on

Rupert Grey and his wife Jan are preparing to make an epic road trip this September. The kind of road trip that we all dream about during which we leave our normal, mundane, lives behind in favor of the open road and untold adventures. In this case, our two intrepid travelers will begin their journey in Bangladesh and eventually end up back in their native England, covering thousands of miles in between. But Rupert and Jan aren’t content with just making that journey in just any old vehicle, which is why they’ll be driving their classic 1936 Rolls Royce along the way.

While the start of their adventure is still a few months off, the couple are making preparations for what will likely be a fantastic journey. They will be shipping their car to Chittagong, Bangladesh, where they will set out to drive through Bhutan, Nepal, and India before arriving at the Arabian Sea. From there, they’ll board a ship bound for Iran, where they’ll once again hit the open road, crossing into Turkey and eventually Europe, before returning back to the U.K.

Intrigued by this unique road trip, an independent film company hopes to make a documentary of Rupert and Jan’s journey. Rover Films is currently seeking funding for the project, and have already tentatively named their film A Sense of Adventure. You can check out the teaser trailer for it below.

Reading about this story left me to wondering. If you could take any road trip in any vehicle, where would you go and what would you drive? For me personally, I’d love to go from Cairo, Egypt to Cape Town, South Africa, in a classic Land Rover Defender. Say circa 1985 or so.

How about you?

[Photo credit: Rover Films]


A Sense Of Adventure OFFICIAL TEASER from Rover Films on Vimeo.

Edinburgh through the wide angle lens

by Grant Martin on

Spring is ebbing in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh, the best time of the year in northern Great Britain. This historical city blossoms with opportunity as the season changes; green spaces tumble through the city like unrolling bolts of cloth, the castle and the Holyrood Palace glisten with visitors and sleepy residents begin to emerge from the shadows of winter to bustle about the public squares and cafés. Around the this time of the year, Princes Street hums with activity, visitors darting in and out of the TopShop and Jenners while the restaurants on Rose open their front facades to let smells of haggis and fried cod drift out into the street.

Edinburgh is city for walkers and photographers. Two to three steps in any direction and there’s another great view of the castle with a cherry tree or a statue to fold into the shot. Switch to the prime lens and there’s depth in the architectural features of an ancient building or in the lines of a passing tourist. There are generations of history in every fissure of each building, with ancient, stone walls reaching out to you in every direction while nature lovers can drink in the amazing views around Arthur’s Seat in Holyrood Park.

The photo opportunities alone are reason enough to visit Scotland, without a meal consumed, friendship made, or hotel bed rustled. Luckily, there’s plenty of that to experience in this country as well.

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