$LAYYYTER
Xuebing Du
Cosimo Galluzzi
JVL
Sweet Seals For You, Always
No title available
Monterey Bay Aquarium
blake kathryn
Not today Justin
I'd rather be in outer space 🛸
trying on a metaphor
2025 on Tumblr: Trends That Defined the Year
styofa doing anything
Jules of Nature
No title available
ellievsbear
occasionally subtle
Cosmic Funnies
art blog(derogatory)
Andulka
seen from Germany
seen from Azerbaijan
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
seen from Chile
seen from Singapore
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Brazil
seen from Belarus
seen from United States
seen from United Kingdom
@no0b-64
Halberd of the Guard of the Electors of Saxony
Dated: circa 1620
Geography: Saxony
Culture: Saxon
Medium: steel, wood, gold, textile, metallic thread
Dimensions: L. 8 ft. 8 ½ in. (265.4 cm); L. of head 50 ½ in. (128.3 cm); W. 11 ½ in. (29.2 cm); Wt. 7 lbs. 2.2 oz. (3237.5 g)
Source: Copyright © 2015 The Metropolitan Museum of Art
And people wonder why I like pole arms.
And then [Vimes] realized why he was thinking like this. It was because he wanted there to be conspirators. It was much better to imagine men in some smoky room somewhere, made mad and cynical by privilege and power, plotting over the brandy. You had to cling to this sort of image, because if you didn’t then you might have to face the fact that bad things happened because ordinary people, the kind who brushed the dog and told their children bedtime stories, were capable of then going out and doing horrible things to other ordinary people. It was so much easier to blame it on Them. It was bleakly depressing to think that They were Us. If it was Them, then nothing was anyone’s fault. If it was Us, what did that make Me? After all, I’m one of Us. I must be. I’ve certainly never thought of myself as one of Them. No-one ever thinks of themselves as one of Them. We’re always one of Us. It’s Them that do the bad things.
Terry Pratchett, Jingo (via captainofalltheships)
Small-sword
Dated: circa 1655
Culture: French
Medium: iron
Measurements: 101.4 cm
Provenance: Emperor Charles VI; by whom given to the 1st Duke of Marlborough; Bland from whom bought by George IV, 4th March 1789
This sword was purchased by the future George IV in 1789 to further enhance what was already a substantial collection of historic weapons. In the manuscript catalogue of his Armoury at Carlton House this sword is said to have been given by the Emperor Charles VI (1685-1740) to the first Duke of Marlborough (1650-1722) and its hilt - like that of the so-called Hampden sword and the embossed parade shield - was attributed to Benvenuto Cellini.
While the second of these claims can be set aside on the simple grounds that Cellini made no swords, the supposed provenance, though uncorroborated, is not so implausible; Charles VI did indeed present a sword to the Duke of Marlborough in 1703, but that sword had a hilt set with diamonds.
The iron hilt demonstrates a range of techniques executed to the highest standard. The pommel, with its four-headed tang-button (or finial), shells and quillons, is forged, chiselled and pierced; while the grip, which is made of wood cut with spiralling grooves in two directions, is bound with steel wire and overlaid by a further network of twisted wire.
The precise subject matter of the figurative decoration has not been identified. On one side of the pommel is a scene of soldiers in Roman dress approaching a town, and on the other is a group of captives led before an officer standing in a chariot. The larger scenes on the shells are the same on both sides, one in the opposite direction to the other; they comprise a cavalry combat with a commander in a cartouche, and soldiers presenting captured colours to a commander. The quillons are in the form of satyrs, and the other secondary motifs include serpents, masks and naked, winged children. The blade is probably a near-contemporary replacement.
Source: Copyright © 2015 Royal Collection Trust/Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
GNU Terry Pratchett
After Jessica Williams declared that she does not want to replace Jon Stewart, a journalist decided it to diagnose Williams with “imposter syndome” (the idea that a woman in a male dominated field doesn’t feel as if they’re not doing enough to be in said position) and this was Williams response.
http://thebillfold.com/2015/02/on-the-daily-shows-jessica-williams-the-latest-high-profile-victim-of-impostor-syndrome/
It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of our beloved friend, Monty Oum.
Goodbye.
Everyone just keep in mind, this man did this. There was no green screen, there was no padding. and he didn’t even flinch when the wall from the first gif hit his arm as it came down.
Buster Keaton appreciation post.
Handmade Swords - Earil
Maker: Peter Lyon of Weta Workshop
Edition Size: 1
Measurements: blade length: 915mm (36”); overall length: 1217mm (48”); weight: 1.94Kg (4 pounds 4 ounces); balance point: 71mm (2.8”) along blade, measured from the shoulder of the blade
The sword has been made especially for the Weta Cave and Weta’s Online Shop to sell to the public. It is similar to late medieval European longswords, but with design flourishes transform it into a piece of art as well. A longsword is light enough and balanced to be used with one hand, but it can also be used two handed for powerful cutting blows. The blade is broad for much of its length, making for strong cuts, but comes to an acute point for effective thrusts, making this a true cut-and-thrust sword.
The individual parts have shapes and detail lines that blend into each other and continue into the next component, so that shapes continue even as the materials change, and the shapes of all the hilt parts draw the eye towards the diamond shaped bosses in the centre of the grip, filled with polished Paua (New Zealand abalone) shell each side. At the same time there is a strong central line through the hilt and along the blade, emphasising the straight and symmetrical shapes of the sword.
This sword has many nautical features which led me to the name, “Aearil”, which in Elvish means “Gleaming Ocean”.
The straight blade is ground from spring steel bar, and has been heat treated to give the best possible combination of toughness and edge hardness. Historically blades were forged into shape and to remove flaws in the steel, but the consistency and high specifications of modern steels mean this is no longer necessary.
The bevelled edge is blunted for safety and display, but could just as easily be sharpened for cutting tests. The tang of the blade is strong and wide, and passes through the cross guard, grip and pommel, and is peened over the end of the pommel for maximum strength.
The cross guard is cut from a block of mild steel. From the centre block it projects along the blade and towards the ends, which are split into a fork. This is an unusual feature which I don’t recall being used on a sword before. The cross is set onto the shoulders of the blade for extra strength and stability, as was done on medieval European swords to prevent the cross becoming loose and rattling through use.
The grip is made of beech wood, covered with leather. Thin cords under the leather create the designs, and the leather has been carefully tooled to fit into all the shapes created by the cords. The grip was mostly drilled out then fitted by heating the tang and burning out the remaining wood for a tight fit, and finally glued in place. It is a two handed grip; the foregrip is straight to give a strong gripping surface, while the waisted shape of the upper grip encourages the second hand to nestle into the inside curves of the pommel.
The mild steel pommel is also a counterweight for the blade. It is shaped somewhat like a fish tail, with curved and recessed faces to add interesting shapes, and also to remove weight and get the best possible balance for the sword overall. The pommel was set tight onto the tapering tang before the end was peened over.
Source: Copyright © 2015 Weta Ltd.
Cavalry Sword
Maker: Bland & Foster : St James’s Street, London
Dated: circa 1896
Measurements: overall length 98.3 cm
Provenance: The Carlton House Catalogue records that “This Sword was The Property of His Late Majesty George The Third”
The sword has a burnished steel hilt, faceted vase-shaped pommel with acorn-shaped tang-button, quillon and knuckleguard with grotesque beast’s heads, also with scroll decoration. The barrel-shaped wooden grip features silver gilt wire wrapping. The one-edged blade has a fuller and is etched with “London” and Royal arms.
Source: Copyright © 2014 Royal Collection Trust/Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Mythical creatures: The most complicated diagram on fictional animals you’ll ever need!
The members of the Guild of Assassins considered themselves cultured men who enjoyed good music and food and literature. And they knew the value of human life. To a penny, in many cases.
Terry Pratchett, Hogfather (via discworldquotes)
i love when people call me precious thats such a cute thing to call somebody
yeah it does have a nice
ring to it
