Lamps as we know them first appeared about 72 000 years ago. Humans used shells or hollowed rocks to place tinder and animal fat to lit it. Later humans started to create lamps through pottery technology and work with metal as well. In the 1700s the central burner was created. Thereafter glass workers created a glass enclosure over the flame to keep it safe. In a decade after that the classic gas lamp was invented. In 1879 Thomas Edison created his incandescent bulb to give space for improving table lamps. In 1930s table lamps became regular in every home.
Elizabeth II and George V
George V was the King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India from 6 May 1910 till 20 January 1936. The Parliament Act 1911 established the supremacy of the elected British House of Commons over the unelected House of Lords. In 1924 he appointed the first Labour ministry and in 1931 the Statute of Westminster recognized the dominions of the Empire as separate, independent kingdoms within the Commonwealth of Nations.
This one is a photo of a cooperage in Liverpool, which dates back to the year of 1900. The cooper's craft traditionally had four divisions. The "dry" cooper made containers for dry goods - cereals, tobacco, vegetables and fruits. The "dry-tight" cooper made containers for keeping dry goods in and moisture out. The "white cooper" made containers like washtubs and butter churns to hold water and other liquids. The "wet" or "tight" cooper made containers for long-term storage and transportation of liquids.
North Wales map, Wirral with a red cross is where John lives :)
North Wales (Gogledd Cymru in Welsh) is the northernmost region of Wales, which was known as the Kingdom of Gwynedd. Two of the three UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Wales are located here - Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and canal and the Edwardian castles and town walls(Caernarfon, Beaumaris,Conwy and Harlech).
Elizabeth II and Mr. Potato
Mr. Potato comes from a set of ten nicely photographed fruit and vegetable stamps, accompanied by 72 stickers. The idea is that you can create your own fruit and vegetable faces :)
"Send a postcard and receive a postcard back from a random person somewhere in the world!"
Stamps from Belarus ;)
Elizabeth II and Bradley Wiggins
Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins, born in 1980 and nicknamed "Wiggo", is a road and track cyclist. Bradley became the first British cyclist to win the Tour de France and the time trial at the Olympic Games in 2012.
We gave him the name Mishet (French style). He is a true gentleman!
Amazing fridge magnet
This absolutely amazing metal fridge magnet is from the Robert Opie Collection "Great Nostalgic Images".
"Built up since 1963, The Collection now contains over 500,000 items which together tell the extraordinary story of Britain's consumer society, its lifestyle and culture - dramatic changes that have happened as a result of and since the Industrial Revolution.
Initially, as a teenager, Robert Opie gathered together contemporary packaging, everything from cereal boxes to cigarette packs. The first item in the Collection was a Munchies pack bought by Robert on Inverness railway station in 1963, when he was 16. A few years later Robert's mission extended to understanding the origins and development of brands and retailing; he assembled the evidence from thousands of surviving examples of bottles, tins, labels, signs and many forms of promotional and advertising material. By 1975 there was enough material for Robert to be invited to stage a one-man show at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. This was entitled The Pack Age; A Century of Wrapping It Up. This temporary show was such a success with the public and the media that it encouraged Robert to try to create a permanent Museum, and this was achieved in 1984, with the setting up of the Museum in Gloucester. The Collection expanded rapidly when Robert decided to extend it into further areas of social history - toys and games, travel and transport, leisure and entertainment, comics, magazines and newspapers - every facet of daily life, including souvenirs from exhibitions and major events such as coronations. Ephemera such as postcards, song sheets, posters and brochures show not only the story of design and fashion but also the whole structure and transitional nature of everyday life. The research Robert undertook was similar to assembling a vast jigsaw where each tiny piece contributes to the undersatnding of the wider picture. " Some may consider so much apparent trivia to be so much rubbish," says Opie, "but it is amongst the fragments of daily living that we are psychologically and socially rooted, and this is where the impulses of our society can be found."
Seems, the cat is totally comfortable
Cat's eyes...
Cats have a
reflective layer behind the retina that sends light to pass through the
retina back into the eye, which improves the ability to see in darkness. Cat’s
light detection threshold is up to seven times lower than humans’, and the
visual field of cats is of about 200°. Cats can differ between red, blue, green
and yellow lights.
Wonderful poem
The Teddy Bears Picnic If you go out in the woods today You're sure of a big surprise. If you go out in the woods today You'd better go in disguise. For every bear that ever there was Will gather there for certain, because Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic. Picnic time for teddy bears, The little teddy bears are having a lovely time today. Watch them, catch them unawares, And see them picnic on their holiday. See them gaily dance about. They love to play and shout. And never have any cares. At six o'clock their mommies and daddies Will take them home to bed Because they're tired little teddy bears. If you go out in the woods today, You'd better not go alone. It's lovely out in the woods today, But safer to stay at home. For every bear that ever there was Will gather there for certain, because Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic CHORUS Every teddy bear, that's been good Is sure of a treat today There's lots of wonderful things to eat And wonderful games to play Beneath the trees, where nobody sees They'll hide and seek as long as they please Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic CHORUS
Elizabeth II and 1981 Royal Wedding
The wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer took place on 29th of July, 1981 at St Paul's Cathedral. This marriage was called a "fairytale wedding" or the "wedding of the century". The estimated TV audience to watch the ceremony counted about 750 million.
"Persuasion" by Jane Austen
"Persuasion" is the last completed novel by Jane Austen. The novel was finished in August 1816, and the author died in 1817 at the age of 41. The novel was published in December 1817, but dated 1818.
Lady Jane Grey
Jane Grey or Lady Jane Dudley was the Queen of England from July 10, 1553 till July 19, 1553. She is also known as the "Queen for nine days." Jane Grey was put to death for the authority usurpation on February 12, 1554.
"Northanger Abbey" by Jane Austen
"Northanger Abbey" was the first novel by Jane Austen to be completed for publication. In 1803 the novel was sold for £10 to Crosby & Co. bookseller, who decided against publishing. In 1816, the book was sold back to Jane Austen's brother for the same sum of £10. As the books by Jane were published anonymously, the bookseller didn't know her to be a popular writer by then. The novel was published in December 1817, but dated 1818.
The colorful stamps were created by design agency Kokoro & Moi, and will be available on a folded stamp sheet from September 9th onwards, which means, Finnish postcrossers will soon be able to send their postcards using these playful stamps!
Buddy Bears
are big painted bear sculptures from Berlin, firstly created in 2001. The first
activities were presented during the Buddy Bear Berlin Show, when the artists
painted about 350 bears to decorate the streets of Berlin. The United
Buddy Bears is an international project, which chooses artists from the individual countries and is a platform even for small and poor countries. On their
global tour, the "United Buddy Bears" promote peace, love, tolerance
and international understanding; the entry to
the exhibitions is always free.
"Little Tiger and Little Bear" stamps
In February I received this great card with the "Little
Tiger and Little Bear" characters. Now the senders, a wonderful couple from Germany, decided to make me happy and send a hand-made card with bears and also two special stamps with the same heroes, issued recently.
This
decorative world map was made in 1641 in Amsterdam by Henricus Hondius. It is
hand colored and has a size of 21.5x15 inches. The map was first issued in 1630
in the Mercator-Hondius Atlas. Its basic cartography follows the world map by
John Speed, the portraits of Ptolemy, Mercator, Hondius and Julius Caeser are
included to decorate the borders.
Purmerend
was founded in 1410 on the basis of the small fishing village Purmer between the Purmer Lake,
Beemster Lake and Wormer Lake. In 1434 Purmerend was given city rights, and its total population makes about 80 thousands of people now.
70 CT stamp
This 70 CT stamp was designed by Wim
Crouwel(b. 1928), a Dutch graphic
designer and typographer known for his posters and exhibition designs.
Xitou
Monster Village is a Japanese style village built in 2011 in Taiwan. Torii, a
traditional Japanese gate standing at the entrance of the village, symbolically
marks the transition from the profane to the sacred. All over the
small village you may find cute Japanese monster statues.
Tula is a city
in Russia, located 193 km to the south from Moscow, on the Upa River, which is
345 km long. Tula was first mentioned in 1146 and is famous for Tula accordion
(a free-reed wind instrument), pryaniki and samovar.
Traditional
Russian pryaniki (gingerbread) are the cookies made with honey and spices. Tula
gingerbread often looks like a rectangular tile or a flat figure and contains
jam or condensed milk and honey as well. Gingerbreads in Tula originate from
the 17th century, and In 1996 Tula opened a museum dedicated to these cookies.
Tula is
also a center of samovar production. Samovar is a heated metal container used
to boil water. The Russian idiom says "You don't take a samovar to
Tula", which is an equivalent of "coals to Newcastle".
Kaiserslautern
has the population of almost 99 500 people, and its historic center dates
to the 9th century. Additionally, Kaiserslautern is a home for about 50 000
people from NATO military community. The early American military population had
some difficulties with pronouncing the German name, and Kaiserslautern is also named
as “K-town” for this reason.
Lynx is widely used in heraldry, symbolizing visual
acuity. Due to this, the constellation was named after the lynx by Johannes
Hevelius in 1690. Hevelius commented his choice: “Only small stars are located
in this part of the sky, and you are to have the lynx’s eyes to distinguish
between them and recognize.”
Taiwan (officially the Republic of China) was based in
mainland China originally. Now the Republic of China governs the island of
Taiwan and some minor islands nearby only.
The status of Taiwan is a bit uncertain, as the
People's Republic of China claims Taiwan’s government to be illegitimate. The
Republic of China, however, has constitution, president and army, viewing
itself as a sovereign state. The present territory of Taiwan has never been
controlled by the People's Republic of China.
The Capital of Taiwan is Taipei, and Standard Chinese
is the official language. Taiwan, alongside with South Korea, Hong Kong and
Singapore, is one of the "Four Asian Tigers" due to the quick
industrial growth and development during the 2nd half of the 20th
century.
Rosalia is a member of a diverse family of longhorn beetles.
Delonix regia stamp
Delonix regia is a plant noted for its leaves and
flowers and grown as an ornamental tree in many parts of the world. Its English
name is Royal Poinciana or Flamboyant. In India it is called Gulmohar – “Gul” means “Flower” and “Mor” means
“Peacock”, which is very close to the tree’s appearance.
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