Right: Seattle, Washington, USA: summer sunset (published)
Below are some of my favorite images which I suggest as fine art
for home or office. Click any image to see more from that area:
Above: Oia clings to the rim of a sunken volcano on Santorini
Island, GREECE. (Image published
in June 2002 PC Photo Magazine.)
Left: Evening in Oia, Santorini Island,
GREECE. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Below right: Afternoon in the same area.
Above: The village of Oia perches on 700-foot high volcanic sea
cliffs
at the north end of Santorini Island, on Armeni Bay, GREECE.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Above right: Fantasticly
eroded peaks of conglomerate rock tower above
the village of Kastraki. Meteora, GREECE. (Click the image to see
more from the area.)
Lef: Old Stavanger, NORWAY. (Click the image
to see more from the area.)
Below right: Viking stave church rebuilt in 1300
AD,
at Lom, NORWAY.
[Published
in Wilderness Travel 1988 Trip Schedule.]
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Located southwest of Paris, FRANCE, the cathedral in Chartres
was built in 1200 AD. In 1979, Chartres Cathedral was declared a World
Heritage Site by UNESCO. (Click the image to see more from
the area.)
Left: Mont Saint Michel, FRANCE. Built in the 11th to 16th
centuries,
this castle served first as a religious abbey, then as a prison in the
18th century. Connected to the Brittany Peninsula by a causeway, Mont
Saint
Michel is now one of the most popular tourist attractions in France. In
1979, Mont Saint Michel and its bay were declared a World Heritage Site
by UNESCO. The tides sweep in and out nine to twelve miles across the
surrounding
tidal flats twice every 25 hours. The tidal range can reach up to 48
vertical
feet, one of the most extreme in the world.
Mont Saint Michel, FRANCE. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Rooftop dining in Istanbul, TURKEY. (Click the image to see more
from the area.)
Istanbul, TURKEY: Architect Sinan, who wanted to exceed the grandeur
of Hagia Sofia Cathedral, built Süleymaniye Imperial Mosque (shown
here) on Golden Horn harbor from 1550-1557. Süleyman the
Magnificent
and his wife are buried here. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Below: rustic house with grape vines in Kastraki, Meteora, GREECE:
A blue door in Huaraz, PERU. (Click the image to see more from
the area.)
Below: Old window shutters in Athens, GREECE.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Weathered varnished wood door with turquoise trim, Meteora,
GREECE. (See also: GREECE: Doors of
Meteora
) (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Below right: Weathered yellowish wood door, Meteora, GREECE.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
A blue gate in Oia, Santorini Island, GREECE. (See more at Doors
of Santorini, Greece) (Click the image to see more from the area.)
A pink gate in Oia, Santorini Island, GREECE. (See more at Doors
of Santorini, Greece) (Click the image to see more from the area.)
A blue door in Oia, Santorini Island, GREECE. (See more at Doors
of Santorini, Greece) (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Locked wood door with red trim. Oia, Santorini Island, GREECE. (See
more at Doors of
Santorini,
Greece) (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Light-blue door in San Telmo, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Colorful green and yellow shutters in La Boca, Buenos Aires,
ARGENTINA. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Colorful blue and green shutters in La Boca, Buenos Aires,
ARGENTINA.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Colorful buildings in La Boca, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA. (Click
the image to see more from the area.)
Below right: Old balcony in La Boca, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Blue and yellow door in La Boca, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Ephesus (or modern Efes), TURKEY: The Library of Celsus, built 114
AD, was named in honor of a Roman governor of Asia Minor (or what the
Greeks
call Anatolia, or the Turks call Anadolu). (Click the image to see
more from the area.)
Left, The Acropolis ("High City"), in Athens, GREECE. The
Erechtheion
sanctuary is the small building on the left and the huge Parthenon on
the
middle. In 1987, UNESCO declared the Acropolis to be a World Heritage
Site. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Below: During our 2001 visit, the awesome Parthenon was being
reconstructed
for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. The Parthenon is the largest
Doric-column
temple ever completed in Greece. It was built in 447-438 BC as a
treasury
for tribute money moved from Delos Island, and was also dedicated to
the
worship of Athena, specially designed to contain a huge, 12-meter tall
statue of Athina Polias (reproduced
below) placed in 432 BC. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Below: Caryatids support the roof of the portico on the Erechtheion sanctuary, which is the most sacred ancient Greek building on the Acropolis. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Deception Pass bridge rises about 185 feet above the tide,
Whidbey Island, Washington.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Below: the Kalogeriko triple-arch stone bridge, 300 years old,
near
Kipi, Zagoria, GREECE.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Cathedral in Buenos Aires. (Click the image to see more
from the area.)
Below right: Russian Orthodox Church, San Telmo, Buenos Aires,
Argentina.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Opera House, Sydney Harbor, New South Wales, AUSTRALIA.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Beautiful Sydney Harbor (seen from the great Toronga Zoo).
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Seattle Public Library, designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas,
finished in 2004, Washington. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Below: Interior of 2004 Seattle Public Library, Washington.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Exterior of 2004 Seattle Public Library, Washington.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Below right: Admiralty Head Lighthouse (built 1890 to help guide
ships into Puget Sound; became obsolete in 1927 when its lantern was
removed),
Fort Casey State Park, part of Ebey's Landing National Historical
Reserve,
Whidbey Island.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Nevada City ghost town, Montana, USA: Nevada City was a booming
placer-gold-mining camp from 1863-1876. A miner's court trial and
hanging
of George Ives in the main street of Nevada City was the catalyst for
forming
the Vigilantes, a group of citizens famous for taking justice into
their
own hands. Now more than 90 buildings from across Montana have been
gathered
for preservation at Nevada City, mostly owned by the people of the
state
of Montana, and managed by the Montana Heritage Commission. This
fascinating
town excites my imagination of what life must have been like in early
Montana.
In 2001, the excellent PBS television series "Frontier House" used one
of the buildings and its furnishings to train families in re-creating
pioneer
life. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Nevada City ghost town, Montana, USA: Reflections in old-style
glass. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Below right: An old wagon rests near a log cabin in Nevada City,
a booming placer-gold-mining camp from 1863-1876, infamous in the
origin
of the Vigilantes, is now an intriguing ghost town managed by the
Montana
Heritage Commission.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: Fresco from 1500 BC: A man with fishes. [modern reproduction
by Spanos, based upon the 53-inch high original]. Volcanic ash
preserved
Minoan
era frescoes such as this at Akrotiri on Santorini Island, GREECE.
Below right: Ancient Akrotiri, Santorini Island, GREECE: Pithoi
(large
storage jars) and bath tubs unearthed from volcanic ash, dating from
1500
BC.
Left: On the West Terrace of Mount Nimrod (or Nemrut Dagi), sunset
light falls on a 40-ton head of Greek god Zeus capped with a Persian
tiara.
(Published
in May/June 2003 Sierra Magazine, Sierra
Club
Outings.)
Below: People explore the West Terrace of Mount Nimrod (or
Nemrut),
as sunset light falls on statues including a 40-ton head of Greek god
Zeus
capped with a Persian tiara.
Left: This is a sculpture of Antinoos (or Antinous, who lived about AD 110-130), who was the lover and best friend of Roman emperor Hadrian. Hadrian lived AD 76-138 and become one of the few exemplary Roman sovereigns. Hadrian fell in love with the boy Antinous, who accompanied him on his extended trips through the Empire. At age 20, Antinous was drowned, or drowned himself, in the Nile. Cassius Dion recounts that Antinous had learned from an astrologer that he might in this way add his life-span to that of Hadrian's. The sovereign mourned for his friend for the rest of his life. He ordered the foundation of a city, Antinoopolis, at the place where Antinous had died. He surrounded himself with statues and busts of Antinous on his trips, and even more so at his old-age residence, the "Villa" in Tivoli. A star or constellation was named after Antinous. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: You can view this Athina Polias ("Athena of the city")
statue in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens, GREECE. This is a
Roman model of the original Athina Polias, which was created
12-meters
high in the Parthenon in 432 BC, and was one of the "wonders of the
ancient
world." Athena has Nike in her right hand, and a sphinx and griffins in
her headpiece. Greeks built the Parthenon atop the Acropolis in 447-438
BC as a place to worship goddess Athena and also to store tribute money
moved from Delos Island. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Above right: Sculpture of Aphrodite, Eros, and Pan from 100 BC,
found on Delos Island, now kept in in the National Archaeological
Museum,
Athens, GREECE. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Greek goddess Athena holds the head of god Zeus in the Louvre
Museum,
Paris, FRANCE. This museum also contains the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo,
and Whistler's Mother. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Left: Roman Bath mosaic built 200 AD at Ancient Dion, located at
the foot of Mount Olympus, GREECE. (Click the image to see more
from the area.)
Above: Ceiling of early Christian church, carved into volcanic tuff,
in Ancient Cappadocia, TURKEY. The artwork dates from about 1000 AD.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: At Palenque (in the state of Chiapas, MEXICO), the Temple
of the Inscriptions is the burial shrine of Maya leader Pacal the Great
(615-683 AD). [Published in Wilderness
Travel 1987 Catalog of Adventures.] You can descend
step
stairs inside to Pacal's tomb, which was opened in 1952 and became one
of the greatest discoveries in Maya archaeology. (Click the image
to see more from the area.)
Below: Rattlesnakes and "El Castillo" pyramid hewn from limestone
by the Maya civilization. Chichen Itza, Yucatan, MEXICO.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Above: Maya rain god Chac, and rattlesnake motif, on temple wall
at Uxmal, MEXICO. (Click the image to see more from the area.)
Below: Napoléon Bonaparte, Emperor of France 1804-1814,
and
later exiled to the Island of Elba. Louvre Museum, Paris, FRANCE.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Left: the masterfully carved Peidra del Lanzón ("Stone
of Lanzón"), or "Lanzon de Chavin", at Chavín de
Huántar,
PERU.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
As a long day trip from Huaraz, we rode
a bus over a scenic 15,000-foot pass to visit the ancient ruins of Chavín
de Huántar, located at 10,300 feet elevation at the bottom
of
Cordillera Blanca’s eastern slopes halfway between the Amazon forest
and
coastal plains, in the Department of Ancash in Peru. The most striking
feature is the
Lanzon de Chavin (pictured at left), 13-foot-high
carved white granite stele at the meeting point of four underground
tunnels
in the Castillo (or castle). The Lanzon, the supreme deity of Chavin de
Huantar, intertwines the head of the feline deity of Chavin de Huantar
and the human body of the shaman of the pre-Chavin period. 3000 years
ago,
the innovative Chavin builders engineered the Castillo with underground
ducts for natural air conditioning.
The advanced Chavin culture of 1000
BC to 300 BC greatly influenced all later civilizations in Peru,
including
the famous Inca Empire of 1430-1572 AD, a millennia later. The farming
city of Chavin became populous by controlling important trade routes
which
crossed from coast to interior and from north-to-south along the
cordillera.
Modern artist Pablo Picasso remarked, "Of all the ancient
cultures
that I admire, Chavín is the one that surprises me most. To tell
the turth, it has been the inspiration for much of my work."
In 1985, UNESCO listed Chavín de
Huántar as a World Heritage Site.
PERU: Stuck into walls throughout Chavin de Huántar,
these carved stone Cabezas Clavos ("nail-heads", with a peg extending
behind
the head) represented guardian deities, combining features of a bird
with
a jaguar or puma (or feline).
In Chavín cosmology, the
feline
represented a creator god with earthly power, and the falcon or eagle
represented
the Sun and celestial forces. (Click the image to see more from the
area.)
Tango street art in Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA. (Click the image to
see more from the area.)
Left: "Inca alphabet" or "calendar" rug, commonly woven from wool
of alpaca and sheep. You can buy many wonderful high-quality crafts in
PERU.
Below: Colorful rugs for sale in Aguas Calientes, PERU.
Left: Finely knotted Turkish silk carpets. Silkworms eat mulberry
leaves & spin a cocoon with a continuous strand 1 mile long. People
twist about 35 strands into an extremely strong silk thread, which is
twisted
again into cords for rug making. 4 girls can take 1 ½ years to
make
a 10- by 18-foot silk carpet, which may sell for $11,000 US. TURKEY.
(Click the image to see more from the area.)
Click any image above to see more from that area.
Copyright 2006 by Tom Dempsey. Photographs or text may not be copied without permission.
