Category: prad - Part 7

Daily Flickr Finds: Calinore’s Kashgar

A young boy peers out of the doorway in the Chinese province of Kashgar, where days of rioting have left the area in a state of fear. The tensions between two ethnic groups have led to the recent violence, with the Uighars campaigning for independence from the Chinese government.

The Chinese Government recently announced plans to demolish a vast majority of this ancient city, in favour of more modern and earthquake proof buildings. This defies the wishes of the Uighari people, who would lose the culture in the old city. Additionally, they believe the Chinese Government has alterior motives for the move.

This image by Calinorecaptures perfectly the vulnerability and innocence of the whole situation. And certainly is a topic that spares a thought in a growing world, which still manages to become smaller by the day.

Daily Flickr Finds: jagudo’s Foro Romano

The Foro Romano is a stunning relic of Roman architecture that remains in Rome, and is beautifully captured on High Dynamic Range (HDR) imaging film by jaqudo who uses the technique to capture the details and perfect the shading in the photograph. Combined with an angle which accentuates the lines and structure of this iconic piece of Roman history.

The Roman Forum was the home of the Senate and venue to large public meetings, and was located in the centre of Rome and thus the heart of the Roman Empire. It was here where the economic, political and judicial systems were based.

Several temples, basilicas and arches were built in the Roman Forum, and the relics which remain today serve as one of the few remaining structures that survive in the city today.

The beautiful lighting and the vibrancy of the vegetation in jaqudo’s photograph shows the true beauty of the Roman Forum, as well as the architectural styles of the era.

Google Earth Tour: Ancient Greece – The Acropolis

Last week I used Google Earth to show you a tour around the ancient relics of Rome, flyover over the city and looking at all the 3D models with clickables to get extra information from Heritage Key. This week, I’ve decided to spruce up Jon’s tour of the Acropolis of Ancient Greece so you can have a look at one of the most magnificent relics from the ancient age, as well as the New Acropolis Museum.

Again, the tour utilises aerial photography with 3D models to give a realistic and innovative look at how the ancient world still exists in our very modern world. The tour is complete with those clickable Heritage Key logos once again, which will link you to articles on this website, as well as photographs from our Heritage Key Flickr photo pool.

The tour enables you to fly over and explore the sites and their surroundings, and where you see a Heritage Key logo, you can click it and you’ll see more information about the adjacent landmark.

To view this Google Earth Tour, you will need to download additional software created by Google. You will require Google Earth 5.0 which will need to be installed in order to explore the aerial photography in a 3D environment. Once the software is installed, you will need to return to this webpage and download Google Earth Plugin (Your browser should meet minimum requirements). the Plugin can be downloaded by selecting it in the panel below:

To open webpages in a new window, right click the link in the information window and select “Open link in new window”. This will enable you to view the link in a full web browser.

You can also download this tour to your computer by clicking here, selecting “Save” and then running the file. It will automatically open Google Earth and begin the Heritage Key: Ancient Acropolis Tour

Daily Flickr Finds: jojofotografia’s Pont Du Gard

jojofotografia‘s capture of the Pont du Gard in the South of France boasts a great HDR shot full of vibrancy and colour, reflecting the beauty of this ancient Roman aqueduct. The strong lines of the structure against the natural features of the water and green banks represent a strong contrast, and the lighting shows the richness of the stone. High dynamic range (HDR) imaging shots are ideal for bringing the colour out in an image, and jojofotografia has really done a stunning job in this photograph.

The Pont du Gard was originally thought to have been built by Augustus’s son-in-law, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa in about 19BC, but recent excavations dispute this, dating it to the middle of the first century AD. The whole structure is built with precisely cut stones, eliminating the need for mortar and on completion allowed the transport of water across the Gardon river valley.

It’s one of France’s most visited tourism spots, and it’s not surprising considering the immense beauty at this site. The crafting of the structure is nothing short of spectacular, and boasts the trademark Roman features implementing three levels, carrying a road on its first level and a water conduit at the top level.

There are many photographs taken of this beautiful landmark, but jojofotografia’s shot is certainly eye catching for it’s high level of detail and strong contrast between the colours, making this a fantastic photograph for depicting this beautiful location.

Daily Flickr Finds: Julian Kaesler’s The Colonnaded Terrace

The Colonnade Terrace forms part of the Temple of Ba’al in the ancient Palmyra, an ancient oasis city which boasted great prominence back in ancient times. Julian Kaesler’s photograph of the Terrace caught my eye for the subtle lighting of the stone on a dusk scene. The rich colour reflected in the masonry emphasises the beauty in the relics, and the slight tilt of the camera looking upwards gives this scene the perfect touch.

The city has an interesting past, being influenced under Roman control, but a temple in the city was there a good 2000 years before the Romans even set eyes on the place! The city prospered thanks to it’s hot water spring, and became popular with caravaners looking for somewhere to stock up.

The city has an interesting past, in regards to it’s prominence and leaders. Palmyra became a jewel of the Roman Empire after they conquered Syria, and the city saw lots of new constructions and investment. New streets, temples, arches and statues were built and created one of the most beautiful cities of its time.

Heck – it’s one of the most beautiful relic cities around too! And a beautiful capture from Julian of this simply outstanding site.

To submit your own image for display on our front page, upload it to Flickr and add it to the Heritage Key Flickr pool. We choose the best and invite them to “Heritage Key Select”, out of which we showcase the most amazing one on our homepage daily.

Daily Flickr Finds: JC Richardson’s Moai on Easter Island

In this magical shot, today’s Flickr Find photographer – JC Richardson – snapped the Moai on Easter Island with a backdrop of stars, creating an alluring image mixing the exotic ancient world with a romantic scenery. The end result is an image of immense beauty – the capture is simply astounding.

The Moai are located at Rapa Nui, and are monolithic carvings of human figures, dating back as early as 400AD or as late as 1700AD – many several generations have been making their own Moai!And it’s a popular misconception that they’re just giant heads – these hardy guys have bodies too!

Oh – and they’re not just black stone. The Moai are made from dark scoria (hardened volcanic ash) with red scoria for the capstones. They even have eyes made from white coral with red scoria or black obsidian used for the pupils!

As is often the case with the Ancient world, there is much mystery surrounding the Moai. For example, just how do you move around a 20-ton hunk of rock when a crane wouldn’t be invented for another millennium or so? Various theories have been devised and tested, which mainly involved getting a lot of people to pull on ropes wrapped around Moai and seeing how far they can get them.

Oh, and if you’re planning on visiting these fantastic relics, then a word to the wise. Don’t chip away your own souvenir like a Finnish chap did last year.. unless you want to get hit with a $17,000 fine and a ban from the islands, of course! Your chance to take off with one is long over.. 😉

Google Earth Tour: Ancient Rome

Google Earth allows us here at Heritage Key to take your bog-standard map and bring it to life by flying over the still standing ancient wonders of the world, and allowing us to explore them through aerial photography and 3D models. Satellite imagery has proved to be invaluable in archaeology, used to locate features which may not be spotted from the ground. Such aerial images, when combined with models created by budding enthusiasts, allow for anyone to explore an environment with a real feel for the area and its historical features.

Lets face it – your standard tourist map with little pictures of famous relics don’t cut it in a modern world where we can find numerous photographs and articles on pretty much any historical artefact and building we want.

I’ve taken the liberty of compiling together a Google Earth tour of Ancient Rome, complete with images and key facts about ancient relics in this simply amazing city. The tour enables you to fly over and explore the sites and their surroundings, and where you see a Heritage Key logo, you can click it and you’ll see more information about the adjacent landmark.

To view this Google Earth Tour, you will need to download additional software created by Google. You will require Google Earth 5.0 which will need to be installed in order to explore the aerial photography in a 3D environment. Once the software is installed, you will need to return to this webpage and download Google Earth Plugin (Your browser should meet minimum requirements). the Plugin can be downloaded by selecting it in the panel below:

To open webpages in a new window, right click the link in the information window and select “Open link in new window”. This will enable you to view the link in a full web browser.

You can also download this tour to your computer by clicking here, selecting “Save” and then running the file. It will automatically open Google Earth and begin the Heritage Key: Ancient Rome tour.

Keep an eye out for more Google Earth tours from Heritage Key!