The Caledonian Mining Expedition Company: Glass Ceilings

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

A Small Hibernation

The main areas of the Rijksmuseum have been under extensive renovation and closed to the public for a decade. Reported to have cost over €300million, I am certain the much anticipated April-13 opening has the whole of Europe (let alone Amsterdam) atwitter...

Reading Room

Atrium

Villa Medicea La Petraia

It is amazing that, while researching on the internet, one finds conflicting facts about certain things. For example with regard to the Villa Medicea La Petraia, one site claims that Cosimo Daddi (a late Renaissance painter active mainly around Volterra and Florence) was responsible for the fresco decoration of the Villa Petraia for the Medici family. And that Baldassare Franceschini (one of his pupils) also contributed to the frescoes. Another site claims that after Ferdinando I de’ Medici restructured the castle belonging to the Brunelleschi family in the 16th Century, Volterrano completed the frescoes dedicated to the Medici family on the walls of the inner courtyard. Later, the Savoy family turned the castle into a summer residence, adding pieces from other royal residences and today visitors can see the Savoy room which is equipped with parlour games. Either way whoever was responsible (perhaps all), the enclosed courtyard must be one of the most glorious in all of Europe...

Via here

Thursday, January 3, 2013

2013

The Mayans were wrong. (Thankfully). A number of bonus days since the miscalculated apocalypse, meant that we were able to realise our (albeit too short) holiday. I have so many photographs to sort through for a posting, but here is one as a placeholder in the meantime. More tomorrow...