During WWII the Archbishop of Canterbury lobbied the UK government to let Jewish refugees into the country before the onslaught of Nazi Germany would cause thousands of families to be sent off to concentration camps. Many were accepted but many more were refused with the exception of the kindertransport mission. Indeed few governments across the globe were prepared to allow a flow of migrants, especially at a time of economic hardship. But there was one government and one city in particular that welcomed ships of refugees to their shores. That city was Shanghai.
Over 30,000 men, women and children escaped to the East on ships set-off from Italy across the globe. The journey took them below the tip of Africa and past India on its route to the Eastern shores of China. There was momentary refuge for these Jewish families in Shanghai as the Japanese were soon to round them up into a Ghetto in the Hongkou district, where the memorial museum stands today.
Documentaries and personal documents tell of how people survived and interacted in the Ghetto area, policed by the Japanese. Michael Blumenthal was one such Shanghai resident who went on to become the U.S. Treasury Secretary.
It was surprising, but today I got a dose of more traditional, commercial communism. Department stores with rented-out sections reminded me of communist Russian shops. Nanjing street was not the force of commercialism I had perhaps expected, but it enlarged my perspective of shopping in Shanghai. There is clearly huge demand, hundreds of people filtered through clothing stores to pick their favourite t-shirt or pair of shorts. A stroll to the end of Nanjing Street takes one to People’s Square, at the epicentre of metro activity.
Yet Shanghai is not all riches and glam. From the overground metro I took this picture, showing more shanty-town constructs even in the heart of the city…
The evening ended with an all-you-can-eat meal at a Japanese restaurant beside the hotel. A Kiwi with his tall Chinese wife told us a few (expat) truths. He spoke of how the Chinese children study six days a week and have tests on the seventh, how in-laws live with the partner after a marriage and how incredibly difficult it is to learn the language.
And with that the Shanghai chapter ends. Tomorrow involves an early trip to Guilin. On the TV Hillary Clinton has just visited China and has spoken of dealing with the debt problem in the USA and three officials from China railway have been sacked after a fatal collision involving high-speed trains.
But tomorrow will bring more of historic China to life.


Born to George Nelson and Anna (Korthals) Nelson in Bismarck, ND, July 31, 1923, died December 8, 2022 at the Claremore Veteran's Center, Claremore, OK.
Gwendolyn Georgian Nelson grew up on a farm in North Dakota but as a teenager, she answered an ad in the paper for a family advertising space in their car going to Oregon to defray their costs. Gwen answered the ad and began her trek west, eventually settling in Washington State where she found employment. As WW II approached, Gwen found herself working at the Boeing Plant, and later enlisted in the US Navy (WAVES - Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service). Although on active duty, these women were considered reservists filling in for the men who had been sent to war. Gwen became a Communications Specialist Third Class and was honored to be the switchboard operator who connected the 3-way call between Winston Churchill, General McArthur, and President Roosevelt that ended WWII. She was privileged to hear the conversation as had she disconnected, the call would have been lost, but she remained a silent partner because she said "she was just doing her job".
While in the Navy, Gwen met and later married Richard McCurdy Stiles from Green Bay, WI. They eventually settled in Wausau, WI, where "Dick" as he was called was the VP for the Morley-Murphy Company. Dick and Gwen had three daughters, Sherry, Linda and Richie. Gwen enjoyed the role of homemaker and wife, and their life in their home on Eleventh St in Wausau. Gwen was an avid canner of pickles, green beans, mincemeat, brandied peaches among other things. She and Dick enjoyed traveling and spending summers at the cottage in Minocqua and later Lac du Flambeau. Upon Richard's passing in 1980, Gwen moved to Oklahoma to be nearer Sherry and Linda who resided there, and in her later years after moving back to Wisconsin, she returned to the better climate in Oklahoma, avoiding harsh winters.
Gwen was fortunate to have lived at home with Linda until age 98, but in March, 2022 was accepted by the Claremore Veteran's Center where she was treated with respect, care and love. The family is grateful to the VA Center for making Gwen's last nine months filled with joy, activity, and camaraderie. Gwen died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 99 and was removed from the VA Center on an American-flag draped gurney with staff and fellow residents lining the halls to say their farewells as "Taps" was played for her "final salute".
Preceded in death by her parents, George and Anna Nelson, husband, Richard Stiles, sisters Gladys and Gertrude and brother Gerald. She is survived by her daughters Sherry Stiles-Wiley (Tom Garrett), Linda Stiles-Meyer and Richie Stiles-Riddle (Robert Riddle), grandchildren Brett (Lindsey) Denney, Brittany Wiley, Christian Riddle and Madison Riddle, great-grandchildren Preston, Powell, Parker and Paxton Denney and Peyton Bray (Brittany Wiley). Gwen's passing has left a hole in the hearts of all who knew her.
As Salman Rushdie writes in Midnight's Children, "I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done, of everything done-to-me. I am everyone everything whose being-in-the-world affected was affected by mine. I am anything that happens after I'm gone which would not have happened if I had not come."
A memorial service will be held at 9:30 am at the Claremore VA Center on December 28, 2022 and memories can be left on the Schaudt Funeral Service (Tulsa, OK) site.
Another memorial service will be held April 21, 2023 for interment in Wausau, Wisconsin.


I travelled to Sofia on June 28th, 2009 to greet the U.S. volunteers who were going to be teaching English in the summer. I remember I arrived with Bulgarian rose oil for each of them. After a week of orientation, they were ready to travel to their placements, and that is when I met Derek and William for the first time.
They were going to be teaching at the Math high school in the town of Pazardzhik, their home for the next two months. They knew no one and spoke not a word of Bulgarian.
Derek was a New York Yankees fan; William was a Boston Red Sox. They quickly brought me up to speed on the rivalry. Despite their differences, they ended up forming a great team together.
During our trip to Pazardzhik, I was asking them endless questions about the United States: famous quotes, history, cities, and everything else under the sun. They told me what they thought was positive, as well as negative, about their culture. I participated in that same debate about mine.
For two months, they became the local superheroes. They were on the local TV and in the newspaper! They even met the mayor!
Their experience was so inspiring that upon returning to America, they continued supporting the development of Bulgarian youth from afar. More about that later.


Juan, Abelina, Lucresha, and Henry Cho Replanting cacao trees on our farm
WHO WE ARE: IXCACAO is a family-owned business in San Felipe, Toledo District, Belize, established in 1985. We make home-made authentic Maya chocolate products from organic cacao pods grown on our farm. From the cacao fields to the finished product, we make our products 100% by hand.
OUR MISSION: At IXCACAO, we believe in sustainable and environmentally conscious chocolate. Our farming techniques allow our rainforest to prosper naturally. Amidst our cacao trees we grow many other plants and use natural compost to invigorate our crops. For every chocolate bar we produce, we plant another cacao tree. We use no large machinery and no chemicals in growing and producing our products.
Since about 2000 BC, chocolate has been an important aspect of culture in MesoAmerica, especially cherished by the Maya and Aztec people. The first traces of chocolate were found at an ancient Maya site called Rio Azul, in Northeastern Guatemala, near to our Toledo District in Belize. According to legend, cacao was first cultivated by the Mayan God, Hun-Apu. Given its divine origin, cacao was considered very sacred by the early MesoAmerican people. Cacao trees grew naturally in the surrounding rainforest environment and thus became an important and versatile part of culture. Cacao seeds were used as currency in trade agreements and also as a means of paying tax to the rulers. The seeds were also used to make chocolate. Ancient chocolate was first consumed as a drink, similar to our modern hot chocolate but unsweetened. To make the chocolate, cacao seeds were fermented, roasted, and ground on the metate - the same one we use at IXCACAO! This hot cocoa was the favourite drink of Mayan kings. In fact, chocolate was so important to the ancient Maya people that they worshipped two cacao Gods, Ek-Chua and Ish-Cacao. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in MesoAmerica, they were enchanted by their discovery of Mayan chocolate and brought the precious cacao tree back to Spain during the 1500's. Chocolate, a foreign imported treat, became a valuable source of commerce for the Spanish empire. Soon, chocolate was being grown and traded throughout Europe and Asia, enjoyed by cultures worldwide. With the Industrial Revolution, the production of chocolate changed forever. The chocolate bar, as we know it, was first invented by a Quaker named John Cadbury in Birmingham, England. Big business hit the chocolate industry and even now, the obsession with chocolate is a worldwide craze.
Cacao pods grown naturally with valuable seeds inside Ancient Mayan ruins Mayan art depicting chocolate as a gift to the Gods Chocolate processing for three days and nights


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Our last stop was this lovely ‘wool-city’, Cirencester, in Cotswold. This city with the localities was the central in the Roman area. Later it was an important wool trade point. So there are lot of turist attractions and there is … Continue reading


Raymond Richman - Jesse Richman - Howard Richman
Richmans' Trade and Taxes Blog
Historical Background of Purim
[Note: The first version of this was posted on March 8, 2011. The second was posted on March 8, 2012 and revised March 25, 2012]
For thousands of years people have been inspired by Esther's brave choice when she risked her safety in the king's harem to save the Jewish people from annihilation. Her cousin Mordecai had called her to greatness when he asked her, “Who knoweth whether thou art not come to royal estate for such a time as this?” (Esther 4: 14). She had bravely replied to Mordecai:
Some think that the Book of Esther is fiction. But I do not. It fits too well with what we know about Persian history. Even though the Persian libraries were destroyed by Alexander the Great and the Greek reports conflict wildly, the Jewish account of Persian history is quite consistent. Esther is part of a chain of historic Jewish figures (Mordecai, Esther, Ezra and Nehemiah) who worked together to save the Jewish people at a time of extreme peril. The following timeline shows how Persian and Jewish history fit together:
Each Jewish event is dated as having taken place during such-and-such year of the reign of such-and-such monarch, so the reigns of the Persian monarchs give us the approximate year of each major Jewish event. On the timeline, the Jewish events are shown above the horizontal axis, while the Persian monarchs are shown below.
I have not deviated from the accepted Persian timeline, except that I have only separated Ahasuerus and Artaxerxes by a dashed line, because I believe that they were a single person who reigned as two different kings. The doubled lines between the reigns of Cambyses II and Darius I and between the reigns of Artaxerxes and Darius II indicate short reigns of quickly deposed kings. This timeline is just the briefest of summaries. Here are more details.
597 BCE. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered Jerusalem and took 10,000 of the Jewish nobility and skilled workers back with him to Babylon:
The Book of Esther tells us that Mordecai's ancestors were among these first exiles.
These exiles were treated very well. Among them was the child Daniel:
Even King Jehoiachin was treated well:
In Understanding the Bible Through History and Archaeology, Harry M. Orlinsky related that the same account appears in the Babylonian records. He wrote:
Mordecai's family, like many others in this first group of exiles, may have assimilated into Babylonian culture. In fact, his parents may have named Mordecai after the Babylonian god Marduk.
587 BCE. Then some Jews in Judah assassinated the Babylonian-appointed governor Gedalia, and the Babylonian military returned to punish Judah. After a long siege, the Babylonian army tore down Jerusalem's walls, burned the temple to the ground, murdered many Jews, and carried others to Babylon in captivity:
One of the members of this second group of captives wrote Psalm 137. At the end, he or she would like to see Babylonian children dashed against a rock, just as Babylonians had dashed Jewish children:
540 BCE. The Babylonian triumph was short lived. Just 53 years after Babylon razed Jerusalem, King Cyrus II of the Medo-Persian empire conquered Babylon. Unlike the Babylonians and Greeks, the Persians were known for religious tolerance. A declaration by Cyrus, called the “Cyrus Cylinder,” was found in the ruins of Babylon. In the writing upon the cylinder, Cyrus noted his support for the restoration of all temples, and his encouragement of all peoples and gods to be returned from Babylon to their homelands. Here is a selection from the text:
The Jews were included in Cyrus' magnanimity. One of his proclamations allowed the Jews to return home and rebuild their temple in Jerusalem:
530 BCE. About ten years after his conquest of Babylon, King Cyrus died in battle, and his son Cambyses II took the throne. The rebuilding of the Temple proceeded slowly. The main problem was the Samarians, who lived in what was formerly the northern kingdom of Israel. They not only harried those who tried to build the temple, but they also hired “counselors” (lobbyists?) to frustrate the plans of the Judeans to rebuild the temple:
522 BCE. About eight years after becoming king, Cambyses was fighting in Egypt, when his brother Bardiya (Greek name: Smerdis) usurped the throne. Soon Cambyses died. But Bardiya's power was brief. A group of noblemen known as the Seven Families, led by the future King Darius, killed him (or, if their claim was true, an imposter named Gaumata pretending to be him) and took power for themselves. In the Behistan inscription, Darius names these seven families:
In the Behistan inscription, Darius relates that it took him battle after battle, against one false king after another, to conquer the kingdom. While this fighting was occurring, the prophet Haggai predicted that the Lord would “destroy the strength of kingdoms and nations ... everyone by the sword of his brother.” He urged Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah who was descended from King David, to take up the signet ring and thus declare himself King of Judah. (For more about the signet ring, see Jeremiah 22: 24.) The following are the last words from Haggai that appear in the Bible:
Meanwhile, Zechariah was giving Zerubbabel very different counsel, urging him not to rebel. He wrote that an angel told him:
Apparently, Zerubbabel listened to Haggai, not Zechariah. Ezra wrote that Zerubbabel “rose up,” that very year:
Nothing more is heard of Zerubbabel. King Darius may have executed both Zerubbabel and Haggai when he put down their rebellion, just as he executed others who rose up against him, as related in the Behistan inscription. But Zerubbabel's failure did not put a halt to the building of the 2nd Temple. In Chapters 5 and 6 Ezra reports that the building continued during Darius' reign under the leadership of the elders of Israel.
He reports that Tattenai, the Persian governor of “Beyond the River” (the entire region of the Persian empire which is south of present day Iraq), wrote Darius a balanced letter telling him that the Jews were rebuilding their temple and walls. In that letter he related the Jewish elders' answer to his question, “Who gave you a decree to build this house, and to finish this wall?” (Ezra 5: 9). The Jewish elders cited Cyrus' decree in their reply, saying:
So Darius looked up the records, and gave his consent that the temple be rebuilt. After that, Governor Tattenai not only permitted the rebuilding, but he even assisted it financially.
517 BCE. In the sixth year of King Darius' reign (about 517 BCE), exactly 70 years after the Babylonians had destroyed the first temple (about 587 BCE), the second temple was completed:
The timing was significant because it fulfilled Jeremiah's prophesy, made at the beginning of the exile, that the Babylonian captivity would last 70 years:
486 BCE. About 36 years after taking power, Darius died while planning a renewed attack against Greece after losing the Battle of Marathon. His son Ahasuerus (“Xerxes” in Greek) assumed power. The approximately 32-year-old Ahasuerus was not Darius' oldest son. But he was Darius' first son through King Cyrus' daughter Atossa, and thus his first son of Cyrus' royal line.
483 BCE. About three years into his reign, Ahasuerus called an 180 day convocation, which included his army, probably to plan a renewed military campaign against Greece. His privy counsel consisted of princes of the Seven Families, who made many of Ahasuerus' decisions for him. For example, after King Ahasuerus' beautiful wife Vashti refused to come when summoned to the feast at the end of the convocation, they turned her crime into a crime against them, and thus forced him to separate from Vashti and strip her of her royal estate:
Soon after that convocation, Ahasuerus led the attack upon Greece, but was eventually defeated in the Battle of Salamis by the brilliant Athenian general Themistocles. After that campaign, the Greeks hated Ahasuerus because of the tremendous destruction that his armies had caused. Not only had he burned the city of Athens, but he had also burned and pillaged the Athenian temple. For years, the Athenians left their temple in ruins as a reminder to them of their lust for revenge.
480 BCE. Afterwards, possibly when Ahasuerus arrived home discouraged by his failure in Greece, he could not be consoled by Vashti because he had separated from her. He was lonely and sad. Then his servants came up with the idea of holding a contest to pick a beautiful virgin to replace Vashti.
By this time, Mordecai had moved with his beautiful orphaned cousin Esther from Babylon to the Persian capital city of Susa (pronounced “Shushan” in Hebrew). Mordecai sat with the employees and lobbyists at the palace gates. He got Esther to enter the contest, so she entered the harem and was eventually elevated by Ahasuerus as Vashti's replacement. At about the same time, Mordecai foiled a palace plot against Ahasuerus:
473 BCE. At some time during the early days of King Ahasuerus, the Samarian leaders wrote a letter that was not balanced like Governor Tattenai's letter. In fact, Ezra describes it as an accusation against the Jews:
Ezra doesn't tell us the contents of that accusation. I suspect that it contained a similar argument to the one made by Haman, King Ahasuerus' prime minister, soon afterwards:
Mordecai had precipitated a conflict with Haman by refusing to bow down to him. Haman had responded by putting together a plan to kill and loot all the Jews, starting with Mordecai. But Esther successfully appealed to King Ahasuerus. The king's justice was poetic. Haman was executed on the same gallows that he had constructed to kill Mordecai and Haman's estates were given to Esther. Although King Ahasuerus could not rescind his own edict that Jews could be attacked and looted on a coming day, he issued a new edict, promulgated by Mordecai, giving Jews permission to arm themselves and kill those who planned to kill them.
Mordecai's edict specifically gave the Jews permission to defend themselves if attacked by people or by a province. It stated:
that the king had granted the Jews that were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy and to slay, and to cause to perish, all the forces of the people and province that would assault them, their little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for prey, upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus, namely, upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. (Esther 8: 11-12)
The only archaeological evidence of the fighting comes from Shechem, a Samarian-Jewish religious center on the road from Samaria to Jerusalem. This would be the logical place for a battle if the province of Samaria were moving on Judah, but were stopped by an armed militia of Jews. In a 1987 journal article, William Shay noted that Shechem was burned and was left temporarily inhabited. He noted that the burned Greek pottery dates the fire to about 475 B.C.E. and wrote:
Indeed, the Book of Esther describes the fighting that took place in the provinces:
During these events, King Ahasuerus elevated Mordecai to a high position in the palace (“Mordecai was great in the king's house,” Esther 9: 4) where he would likely have been in charge of protecting the king's safety. Later, Mordecai may have brought other Jews into the palace. These may have included Nehemiah, as cupbearer, who would thus protect the king from being poisoned.
Palace workers, including Mordecai and Nehemiah, probably had to become eunuchs so that they could circulate freely among the king's wives and concubines. This caused some of their fellow Jews to reject them, due to a provision in the Bible which states “He that is crushed or maimed in his privy parts shall not enter into the assembly of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 23: 2). But a prophet softened this provision, probably on their behalf:
The Greek physician Ctesias who worked in Persia about 50 years after these events, may have been referring to Mordecai as “Matacas” when he wrote:
We don't hear much more about Mordecai, except that both Ezra and Nehemiah mention his name as one of those who led an aliyah (ascent to Jerusalem), traveling for protection in a group (a wagon train?) from Babylon. Mordecai must have emigrated to Judah after retiring from the palace. Ezra writes:
Similarly, Nehemiah writes:
The two listings of returnee leaders differ slightly. For example, Ezra gives his father, Seraiah, credit for leading Ezra's group of returnees, while Nehemiah gives that credit to Azariah, Ezra's grandfather. (See Ezra 7:1-5 for Ezra's geneology.) Although both writers list the groups in almost the same order, we can tell that it isn't chronological order because they both list Nehemiah's group before Ezra's group, even though Ezra's group preceded Nehemiah's group by about 13 years. My guess is that these groups were listed in size order, rather than chronological order. If so, we don't know when Mordecai returned, but we do know that he led either the sixth or the seventh largest aliyah.
We also know that the Jews have celebrated Purim from about that time until the present day. Each year, the Purim story recounts how Esther and Mordecai changed King Xerxes (Ahasuerus') mind and saved the Jews from annihilation.
465 BC. After reigning about 21 years, Persian records report that Ahasuerus was replaced by his son Artaxerxes (who the Greeks later nicknamed Longimanus due to his elongated hand). The Greeks relate two different versions of what happened. In both of these versions, Artaxerxes is the innocent avenger of his father's murder. A third possibility, which may have been first suggested in 1996 by Anaidis, is that Ahasuerus and Artaxerxes are the same person. He didn't die at all, but instead pretended to succeed himself, following a plan hatched by Themistocles, the Athenian general who had defeated Ahasuerus at Salamis.
Themistocles had been banished from Athens and had traveled to Persia to meet with Ahasuerus. He arrived just about the same time that Ahasuerus either died or changed his name. In fact, the Greek historians of the day were all quite confused about whether he actually met with Ahasuerus or with Artaxerxes. In Lives of Eminent Commanders, Cornelius Nepos summarized this confusion: “I know most historians have related that Themistocles went over into Asia in the reign of Xerxes… Thucydides says that he went to Artaxerxes”.
I think that he originally met with Ahasuerus (Xerxes). And that he was the one who suggested the name change as a way to remake Ahasuerus reputation. We do know that King Artaxerxes elevated Themistocles to be one of his governors in Asia Minor, the part of the Persian empire closest to Greece.
As a Greek hero and the governor of a Persian province close to Greece, Themistocles would have been the Persian leader that Greeks would naturally come and visit. He may have told his Greek visitors stories that would cast King Artaxerxes in a positive light. These stories may have led to the Greek view that Artaxerxes was characterized by “gentleness and magnanimity,” as expressed 500 years later by Plutarch in the first sentence of his Life of Artaxerxes:
If the name change was a ruse to fool the Greeks, it worked. While Xerxes was king, the Athenians left their temple in ruins to remind them of their lust for vengeance. But with the benign Artaxerxes as king, the Athenians not only rebuilt their temple but they also arranged a truce in which Athens and Persia both agreed to respect the other's sphere of influence.
There is additional evidence which suggests that Ahasuerus (Xerxes) indeed changed his name to Artaxerxes:
458 BCE. About seven years into his reign (or after the name change), King Artaxerxes sent the Jewish scholar Ezra to Jerusalem. He told Ezra to promulgate the Jewish law and set up a legal system. He was partly trying to end, once and for all, the accusation that Jews would not obey the king's law. Here is a selection from the directive that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra:
Ezra did not travel to Jerusalem alone. He traveled with a large group of Jews, who began to rebuild the city and its walls. The Governor of Samaria was concerned about this rebuilding and, referring to those that came up from King Artaxerxes (i.e., those who went in Ezra's group), wrote a letter to King Artaxerxes, saying that the Jews should not be allowed to build the city or its walls because they were a rebellious people:
This is the copy of the letter they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king—thy servants the men beyond the River—and now be it known unto the king that the Jews that came up from thee are come to us into Jerusalem; they are building the rebellious and the bad city, and have finished the walls, and are digging out the foundations. Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, impost, or toll, and so thou wilt endamage the revenue of the kings. Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not meet for us to see the king's dishonour, therefore have we sent and announced to the king, that search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers; so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time; for which cause was this city laid waste. We announce to the king that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, by this means thou shalt have no portion beyond the River. (Ezra 4: 11-16)
Artaxerxes was convinced by this letter and suspended the building of Jerusalem's walls. He wrote back to the leaders of Samaria:
445 BCE. About thirteen years after Ezra left for Jerusalem, Nehemiah, who was then King Artaxerxes' cupbearer, asked Artaxerxes for a commission to go to Jerusalem to rebuild its walls. Nehemiah was certainly being presumptuous with this request. We know, from Esther's earlier hesitancy in making a request of the king, that such a request could result in the requester's death. Here's how Nehemiah described the scene:
The above quote is from the 1999 Jewish Publication Society translation. Note the words “the consort,” which I have italicized. In most translations, these words appear as “the queen.” But the Hebrew word, pronounced "hashegel," doesn't mean "the queen!" There would only be one consort from Artaxerxes' harem who would have been “the consort” to the Jews. Why else would Artaxerxes grant Nehemiah's request? Why else would Nehemiah wait until the consort was seated next to Artaxerxes? Why else would the fact that the consort was seated next to the king be a significant fact that Nehemiah would mention? This reference confirms that Esther was Artaxerxes' consort, and, therefore, that Ahasuerus and Artaxerxes were the same person.
I am not the first to note that "hashegel" does not mean "the queen." In his 1831 Bible commentary, Adam Clark uses the correct translation to "disprove" an earlier contention by Dean Prideau that it is a reference to Esther. Clark wrote:
Clark is supposing that Esther became queen. But there is no indication of that in Persian history. Having come from Babylon and having kept her Jewish heritage secret (Esther 2: 10), she would have been known to the Persians as a Babylonian concubine. Although she may have taken the place of Queen Vashti in Artaxerxes affection, her actual coronation in the Book of Esther may have simply been sugar coating to make the story of a Jewish girl going into the King's harem more palatable for telling to Jewish children.
If the words "the consort" indeed refer to Esther, then she again played a major role in Jewish history. After getting his commission from King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah traveled to Jerusalem with an escort of Persian cavalry. Once there, he assumed the position of governor and organized the rebuilding of the walls, perhaps taking advantage of King Ahasuerus' edict, the one promulgated by Mordecai which gave Jews permission to bear arms in order to defend themselves:
In order to keep Nehemiah from completing the walls, Tobiah the Ammonite and Governor Sanballat of Samaria tried to scare Nehemiah into entering the walls of the temple for safety. Then they planned to accuse him of profaning the temple as a eunuch:
There is no writing in the Jewish Bible (the Tenach) that is attributed to either the prophet Shemaiah or the prophetess Noadiah. In fact, no further prophetic writings were included after this point. Prophets had sustained the Jewish people during their exile, but the Jews were about to be given something new to sustain them, an accessible Torah. Soon after the walls of Jerusalem were completed, Ezra read aloud the Law of Moses (the Torah) to the assembled people:
Included in the Law of Moses was the Book of Leviticus, a book instructing the priesthood about their responsibilities. One of those responsibilities was to continue teaching the law of Moses. They were told to “teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses” (Leviticus 10: 11). After the fall of the 2nd Temple, rabbis (teachers) were given the responsibility of teaching the Law of Moses to the Jewish people. That teaching continues at Synagogues throughout this world to this very day.
443 BCE. When the Jews are living in Israel, they are instructed to give their land a sabbath of rest every seventh year (Leviticus 25: 2). According to the careful calculations of W. Glenn Moore, 311/310 BCE can be substantiated as a sabbatical year. Thus it is likely that 444/443 was the 19th sabbatical year before that.
Although every sabbatical year was important, every seventh sabbatical was to have special importance. It was to be a jubilee year when Jews were instructed to return Jewish land to its original owners and to free Jewish slaves:
And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, seven times seven years; and there shall be unto the thee the days of seven sabbaths of years, even forty and nine years. Then shalt thou make proclamation with the blast of the horn on the tenth day of the seventh month in the day of atonement shall ye make proclamation with the horn throughout all your land. And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants thereof; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family. (Leviticus 15: 8-10)
It was at about this time that the Jewish people witnessed the only full-fledged jubilee that has ever been recorded. Nehemiah organized it, responding to an outcry from the farmers of Judah that their payments to their landlords were keeping them so impoverished that they were being forced to sell their children into slavery:
Then there arose a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews. For there were that said, “We, our sons and our daughters, are many; let us get for them corn, that we may eat and live.” Some also there were that said: “We are mortgaging our fields and our vineyards, and our houses; let us get corn, because of the dearth.” There were also that said: “We have borrowed money for the king's tribute upon our fields and our vineyards. Yet now our flesh is the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children, and lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters are brought into bondage already; neither is it in our power to help it; for other men have our fields and our vineyards.” (Nehemiah 5: 1-5)
Nehemiah called a great assembly to resolve the problem. He got the Jewish landlords to give the land to their Jewish tenants and the Jewish slave owners to free their Jewish slaves. Here is his account of the dramatic meeting where the agreement was reached:
And I held a great assembly against them. And I said unto them: “We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, that sold themselves unto the heathen; and would ye nevertheless sell your brethren, and should they sell themselves unto us? Then held they their peace, and found never a word. And I said: The thing that ye do is not good; ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God, because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies? And I likewise, my brethren and my servants, have lent them money and corn. I pray you, let us leave off this exaction. Restore, I pray you to them, even this day, their fields, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundred pieces of silver, and the corn, the wine, and the oil, that we exact of them. Then said they: “We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do, even as thou sayest.” Then I called the priests and took an oath of them, that they should do according to this promise. Also, I shook out my lap, and said: “So God shake out every man from his house, and from his labour, that performeth not this promise; even thus be he shaken out, and emptied.” And all the congregation said: “Amen,” and praised the Lord. And the promise did according to this promise. (Nehemiah 5: 7-13)
Chapter 25 of Leviticus, which Ezra was just making accessible at about this time, gave theological legitimacy to Nehemiah's jubilee. At the same time it restored commerce by assuring purchasers of land and indentures they would not have to return the land or release their Jewish slaves until that far-away year.
433 BCE. During the 32nd year of the reign of King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah temporarily returned to Susa (Nehemiah 13:6). He does not say why, but according to Jewish tradition, he served as an advisor to Darius:
While working as the king's cupbearer, Nehemiah may have befriended Esther's son. During this visit, years later, he may have helped the future King Darius II prepare for the upcoming power struggle after Artaxerxes' death.
424 BCE. About sixty-two years after becoming king, Ahasuerus/Artaxerxes died. He lived a longer life than most Persian kings, partly because he had Themistocles changing the Greek attitude toward him and partly because he had trustworthy Jews in his palace protecting him from assassination.
According to Ctesias (Pers. fr. 47-51), Artaxerxes had just one legitimate son (Xerxes II) by Queen Demaspia, which would fit with the idea that Demaspia was Ctesias' name for Vashti, who was separated from King Ahasuerus just 3 years into his reign. He also had 17 illegitimate sons by his concubines. After he died three of his sons contended for power. Xerxes II was killed by a son of the concubine Alogyne named Secydianus. Then Secydianus was killed by Ochus, son of a concubine named Cosmartidene (Esther?). When Ochus took the throne, he took the name Darius II. The Greeks called him “The Bastard” (“Nothus”) because he was the son of a concubine.
In his Life of Artaxerxes, written about 500 years after these events, Plutarch claims to be writing about Artaxerxes II, but his description of the succession following Artaxerxes death shows that he was at least partly writing about Artaxerxes I. According to Plutarch's account, Ochus (who later became Darius II) won the kingship with the help of employees in the palace who caused the deaths of his rivals – the legitimate son of Artaxerxes who was older than he (Vashti's son?) and another son of a concubine. Plutarch concludes:
But the first Artaxerxes only officially reigned for 41 years and Artaxerxes II only reigned for 46 years. However, if Ahasuerus changed his name to Artaxerxes, Plutarch was precisely calculating the 62 year reign and death at 94 of Artaxerxes I.
410 BCE. About thirteen years later, according to the Elephantine papyri, a Jewish community in the Elephantine region of Egypt had its temple destroyed by Egyptians during the first recorded anti-Jewish pogrom. The Egyptians had taken out their hate of the Persians on the Persians' close Jewish friends. But King Darius II quickly responded with strong punitive measures against the Egyptians.
The Jews had powerful friends in the Persians, and the friendship was mutual. In his book Wanderings, Chaim Potok wrote, “The Jews had so appreciated the tolerant Persians that they carved on a gate of the temple a picture of Susa, the capital city of that empire” (p. 181).
Postscript: How to Read the Book of Ezra
Ezra was the only scholar/historian of that day and place whose writing survives intact. Although some scholars once argued that his book must have been written later, the Elephantine Papyri confirm that his dialect of Aramaic was current during the time that he wrote.
Although some modern readers believe that Ezra identified some Persian kings by the names of other Persian kings, I believe that Ezra was accurate in this respect. Scribes of his day dated documents using the year and standard name of the reigning king. Ezra would have known the standard names and would have used them in his writing.
Most modern readers get confused by Ezra because of misplacement in the modern division between Ezra's Chapters 4 and 5. They think that the last verse of Chapter 4 ends Chapter 4, when it actually begins Chapter 5. In Chapter 4, Ezra discussed Samarian activities against the Jews:
Then Ezra resumed his narrative by going back to King Darius and the events which actually led to the building of the 2nd Temple. The last verse of Chapter 4 is clearly the lead-in to the first two verses of Chapter 5 which describe the resumed building of the 2nd Temple during Zerubbabel's rebellion. The last verse of Ezra's Chapter 4 (Ezra 4: 24) basically identifies the year of Zerubbabel's rebellion. Haggai (2: 10-23) reported that he had urged Zerubbabel to rebel during that very year. The remainder of Ezra's Chapters 5 and 6 recounted that the building of the 2nd Temple continued during Darius' reign and that the 2nd Temple was completed in the sixth year of Darius' reign with the help of the Persians.
Throughout Chapters 4 through 6, Ezra's account is historically consistent, but it is not entirely in chronological order. Ezra assumes that his readers can follow his chronology through his references to specific years in the specific reigns of named Persian kings. This was extremely difficult during the period of Bible scholarship when the Persian timeline had been lost.
Now that we again know the Persian timeline, we can place his references and those in the books of Esther and Nehemiah into chronological order, as I have done here. If my filling in the blanks between events is correct, then Mordecai, Esther, Ezra and Nehemiah worked together during the reigns of Ahasuerus/Xerxes and Artaxerxes (who may have been the same person), to save the Jews from destruction and to make Jerusalem secure.
Postscript 2: Filling in the Blanks
Here is a brief summary of my speculations that clarify the Bible narrative:
[Unless otherwise noted, the Bible quotes are from the Jewish Publication Society's 1917 translation as republished in 1955.]
Journal of Economic Literature:
Atlantic Economic Journal:


The Coalition to Tax and Regulate was a Nevada County organization operating to influence the politics and legislation through education and across the table conversations.
We took their logo and created a site integrating the colors together. The banner image is of the Yuba River, an instantly recognizable landmark for the county. We applied an illustrative effect to the image to inspire thoughts of artisans. The shapes to some of the content blocks also help give a feeling of old timey Gold Rush days, as Nevada County was a gold mining town.
For this site, we also implemented the ability to collect donations and accept membership.


(Ep. 148) Boston: Wish You Were Here!
August 30, 2021
We are in a series where we revisit all of the Wish You Were Heres that have been shared on our podcast, this time broken down by location. This week we’re revisiting the Boston locations.
- 2:45 Freedom Trail, Boston, MA
- 6:10 Boston Public Market, Boston, MA
- 8:55 The Mapparium, Boston, MA
- 12:10 The Warren Tavern, Charlestown, MA
- 14:15 New England Holocaust Memorial, Boston, MA
- 16:30 Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA
- 19:25 Boston Public Library, Boston, MA
- 23:00 Boston Common, Boston, MA
Follow us on Twitter & Instagram: @tmwypodcast
Leave us a voicemail (or text message): (406)763-8699


Fredericksburg is in Fredericksburg City County and is among the best places to live in Virginia. Living in Fredericksburg offers residents an urban suburban mix feel and most residents rent their homes. In Fredericksburg there are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 24,286, an increase from 19,279 at the 2000 census. The city population was estimated at 29,036 in 2019.
Fredericksburg is located 53 miles (85 km) south of Washington D.C. and 58 miles (94 km) north of Richmond.
With its location just an hour south of Washington DC, the charming Virginia town has an important place in American history. It was the childhood home to George Washington, a major port during the colonial era and the site of major battles during the Civil War. Located near where the Rappahannock River crosses the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, Fredericksburg was a prominent port in Virginia during the colonial era. During the Civil War, Fredericksburg, located halfway between the capitals of the opposing forces, was the site of the Battle of Fredericksburg and Second Battle of Fredericksburg. These battles are preserved, in part, as the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park.
Fredericksburg is home to several major retail and commercial centers including Central Park and the Spotsylvania Towne Centre, located in Spotsylvania County adjacent to the city. Major employers include the University of Mary Washington, Mary Washington Healthcare, and GEICO. Many Fredericksburg-area residents commute to work by car, bus, and rail to Washington D.C. and Richmond, as well as Fairfax, Prince William and Arlington counties.


Wild, Aloysius & Ball, Raphael
History of Research and Current View
(Relationship of Structure and Function)
Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, 1997
Aus dem Vorwort:
In the center of the photosynthetic process so critical to the development and the continuation of life stand as the actual motors the photosystems with their light gathering antennae, or in other words the Photosynthetic Unit. With their discovery in the 30s of our century began research of such detail in depth and breadth that it resulted in a volume that today can be barely mastered.
With this book we attempted to come up with a synthesis of all these individual research results. By retracing the historical development and composing an overview of the history of the ideas, we hope to offer the present day active researcher that basis that is today even more urgently needed than ever before to successfully grasp the scientific inquest.
The fact that in doing so the circle drawn spans from the beginnings of photosynthesis research in the 18th century to the present-day scientific discussions, makes up the appeal and the difficulty of this endeavor.
We hope that we achieved to relate content as well as history of the research into the photosynthetic apparatus by not only presenting historical aspects but including and evaluating topical and the most recent literature.


We The People is a photo series that is centered around the cast of a HEROIC group shot consisting of Male and Female multicultural models dressed as vintage historic American Soldier depictions. Spanning from the 1800’s to contemporary times, this powerful group of “Bad-Ass M-Fers” are all characters of impactful strength and allure, each with a unique story to tell weaved of facts and fictions. The exhibit is designed to help facilitate a greater sense of Unity in our nation rather than the splintered separations that today's political climate has created in our society. Join us for a journey through an empowering memorial remembrance of the American people who have given their lives for the greater good.
Half Roman Catholic, Half Jewish and 100% from Brooklyn. His 3 favorite things were Family, the Dodgers and Killing Nazis! He was the loader in a Sherman tank crew during WW2. Back home he was an iron worker and on the weekend he was a coach for the neighborhood youth ballclub. An all around good guy you could count on to do the right thing. After many victories, he and his crew were mortally cornered and learned 1st hand why the M4 Sherman was often referred to as “The Death Trap”.
The bastard child of a 7th cavalry man and a Lakota medicine woman was born on June 25th 1876 during the Battle of Little Bighorn. She was taught the ways of plant medicine and how to be a witful and stealthy huntress. Due to her unique multi cultural look, she was often used as a messenger between the commanding officers of the Cavalry and the Lakota council. She and her sister were violently laid to their eternal rest during the Wounded Knee Massacre as the haunting tune of “Garry Owen” was played. The now banned Irish drinking song which for so many years was used as the merciless march song of the 7th Cavalry who’s pursuits claimed the lives of many of America's indigenous people.
Said to be of a royal Mali bloodline and a direct descendant of Sambo Anderson, George Washington’s esteemed and eventually freed muslim slave, was too tall and muscular to fit in a cockpit with the tuskegee airmen. Much to his liking, he was grounded as a Tuskegee Air Mechanic. Still rightfully sharing credit for the victory of the 99th pursuit squadron, as an intellectually advanced engineer minded type he was very happy to do his part “with a wrench in his hand and both feet on the ground”. Despite his adversion of heights, he and his cousin Paul E. Williams, later designed the Lockheed Model 186 Helicopter.
One of the elite and highly secretive members of the National Clandestine Services branch of the CIA, holds a masters degree in criminal justice, and an 8th degree coral belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Raised in a mixed Puerto Rican/ Colombian household in the Bronx, growing up she was a pillar in the community as she not only dedicated countless hours to her neighborhood Boys & Girls Club of America, she also taught self defence classes in hopes to help make the streets a safer place. Fluent and familiar with a multitude of latin dialects and cultural practices she was the top choice for many of the South American espionage missions in the late 90’s. Sent to Venezuela in hopes to gather intel for the U.S. to get a clearer picture of the developments of the brewing crisis. She was last in contact March 1st, 2013 just days before Hugo Chavez’s death. Now after 6 years of silence she has been declared death in absentia.
The oldest of 9 siblings who loved surfing, martial arts and breakdancing, was deployed from Camp Pendleton as an infantry E2. After arriving in Afghanistan and seeing first hand the extent of destruction the conflict had ensued on the local children when out on patrols he felt called to entertain them with magic tricks, music and dance moves! It didn't take long for his patrol team to be recognized positively amongst the people. In fact they liked him so much that a local family invited them to experience a traditional home cooked meal of lamb qorma and naan. Unfortunately oppositional forces caught word of the arrangement and bombed the building killing both the marines and the hosting family during their meal.
Although her father worked for the Consulate General of India in NYC, she grew up in Lakehurst, New Jersey down the road from McGuire/Fort Dix. Inspired by the annual air shows and culture as a child, she knew she was destined to enlist! As an "ethnic female" in the 90's many doors were not easily opened to her. Using her struggle as her inspiration she dedicated herself to becoming a lawyer in hopes to help rebalance the opportunities for woman both civilian and in the military. She was proud to be a supporting role on the council that declared the policy that excluded women from enrolling in the Citadel Military College in South Carolina. Eventually joining the ranks of the JAG corp her battlefield was the courtroom and what a warrior she was. Ranee was found dead in a hotel room 3 days before a court date.
Top of her class at Johns Hopkins Medical school was the closest thing to Google for the Class of ‘52. Not only did she eventually know more than her Attending Physicians and Master Lecturers presented, she was always willing to help and share her knowledge with her fellow man. If you were wounded and your life was hanging by a thread, would you really care how the person saving you was dressed, or that they were the best practiced physician to save you?! Veronica was drafted during the Korean war “Doctor Draft”, she saved 100’s of soldiers in her Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) unit but due to a field incident, she did not make it home to her family in Baltimore.
A very special thank you
to all of the men and woman who have paid the ultimate sacrifice
fighting for our sweet land of liberty.
Thank you to Incogneeto Vintage of Somerville, NJ for outfitting our cast.
Thank you to all of the production team that helped make this shoot a success!
was a graduate of the Soviet Central Women’s Sniper Training School and a spy from the Eastern Front who worked closely with the Allied Forces. Using her movie star like allure, and “bedroom tactics”, she succeeded by acquiring valuable details from Nazi officers. Credited with 308 kills, she is 2nd only to Lyudmila Pavlichenko as the top female military sniper of all time. On August 14th 1943, Masha and two other female Soviet snipers were surrounded. To avoid being captured by German Forces they heroically detonated 2 grenades taking their own lives as well as the lives of the Nazi soldiers who surrounded them.


Personal Wealth Benjamin Felix Luck vs. Skill PWL Capital 2016-03-3T10:00:00 March 3, 2016 On March 2nd, 1962, Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors in a 169 – 147 win over the New York Knicks. This set the NBA single-game scoring record which still stands today. The game was not televised, in fact, no video footage of the game has ever been located. The stadium was only half full, and no members of the New York press were present. Audio recordings do exist, but only of the fourth quarter.


Come and discover your oasis. It has never been easier to take a break from stress and the harmful factors that surround you every day!
A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water and sometimes seawater is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts including hot springs resorts typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneotherapy. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are especially widespread in Europe and Japan. Day spas are also quite popular, and offer various personal care treatments.
The term is derived from the name of the town of Spa, Belgium, whose name is known back from Roman times, when the location was called Aquae Spadanae,sometimes incorrectly connected to the Latin word spargere meaning to scatter, sprinkle or moisten.
Since medieval times, illnesses caused by iron deficiency were treated by drinking chalybeate (iron-bearing) spring water (in 1326, the iron-master Collin le Loup claimed a cure,when the spring was called Espa, a Walloon word for „fountain.
In 16th-century England, the old Roman ideas of medicinal bathing were revived at towns like Bath (not the source of the word bath), and in 1596 William Slingsby who had been to the Belgian town (which he called Spaw) discovered a chalybeate spring in Yorkshire. He built an enclosed well at what became known as Harrogate, the first resort in England for drinking medicinal waters, then in 1596 Dr Timothy Bright after discovering a second well called the resort The English Spaw, beginning the use of the word Spa as a generic description.
It is commonly claimed, in a commercial context, that the word is an acronym of various Latin phrases, such as salus per aquam or sanitas per aquam, meaning „health through water”.This is very unlikely: the derivation does not appear before the early 21st century and is probably a backronym as there is no evidence of acronyms passing into the language before the 20th century; nor does it match the known Roman name for the location.


This year marks 25 years since Demelza’s original hospice was opened by Derek and Jennifer Phillips, in memory of their daughter Demelza who tragically died of a brain tumour, at the age of 24. We spoke to Demelza’s brother, Adam Phillips, about his participation in our upcoming Grate Descent challenge and what it means to him that we’re still offering extraordinary care to extraordinary children, all these years later.
“I actually did an abseil challenge 25 years ago for Demelza! Back then it was to raise money to open the doors of the first hospice, in memory of my sister. One little boy sent us a cardboard Smarties tube filled with 20p pieces – he’d saved up his pocket money until the tube was full because he’d heard about our mission and wanted to help. That really stuck with me.
It feels appropriate that now, all these years later, I’m taking on another abseil in support of Demelza – this time I’ll be abseiling down The Leadenhall Building in London, otherwise known as the Cheese Grater! Demelza’s Grate Descent is all about facing your fears for a good cause, and I’ll certainly be facing mine as I can’t stand heights. The descent is about 730 feet (just a bit different from the one I did 25 years ago)!
What hasn’t changed since that time, though, is the fervent kindness and generosity of Demelza’s supporters; Demelza never would have come this far without them. I couldn’t have dreamed when my family opened the hospice so long ago that this charity would become what it is today, and it’s impossible not to be grateful and humbled to see how far it has come.”


Chiang MaiThailand's northern capital is an escape
The ancient city of Chiang Mai can trace its history back more than 700 years. It was built in 1296 under the rule of King Meng Rai as the capitol of the ancient Lanna Kingdom of Northern Thailand, Burma, Laos and southern China. Much of the legacy still remains in the ancient city walls and gates as well as centuries old temples.
The Battle For Chiang Mai
Ringed by mountains, teak tree forests, well-stocked rivers and fertile valleys, Chiang Mai was an important cultural and religious centre that reached its peak during the sixteenth century. It was highly coveted as the main trading town between inland China and the sea ports of Burma. For centuries its neighbours fought to win this prized gem until in 1557 it was invaded and conquered by Burma.
For 200 years Chiang Mai passed back and forth between Burma and Siam as they fought for ownership until in 1774 Siam helped the Lanna King reclaim Chiang Mai.
In 1892 when the Lanna Kingdom became part of Siam a small area around Chiang Mai remained Lanna.
Chiang Mai Tradition Re-emerges
During the twentieth century Chiang Mai became drawn into the rest of the country and lost its true independent nature. It was only in the 1990’s that Chiang Mai was once again recognized as the jewel of the north.
Over more recent times it has emerged as the Heart of Healing and Wellness in South East Asia. More laid back than much of bustling Asia, Chiang Mai retains its individual Lanna character and traditional charm. Today it is a centre of quality spas, yoga schools, healthy foods and myriad natural health therapists and techniques.
We’ll be staying in the countryside on the outskirts of Chiang Mai city beside the Mae Ping River where we can relax in the quiet peace of rural Thailand. The Old City where we can soak up the culture and the history is only a short drive away.


My first published book was Easter Fires, a story about German families founding Fredericksburg, Texas, in 1846.
I discovered a book with stories of what happened to different ones and how they made a treaty with the Comanche.
That treaty was never broken -- a copy of it hangs in the Texas State Archives building. My story has a made-up
family, but everything in the book really happened to somebody.
Texas is a big state with a grand history. I'll never run out of things to write about.


Since 1900, more than 500,000 people have borne the first name Alain. The origins and meaning of the first name Alain diverge. There are 4 different ones:
- a Latin origin coming from "Alanus".
- An Iranian origin coming from "Alain" and "Allain". A group of Iranian origin would then have settled in Brittany where these two first names would have merged with "Alain".
- An Indo-European origin coming from "alum" which means beautiful and harmonious.
- A Celtic origin which would come from Welsh and which would mean deer, fawn.


Created during the sixteenth cycle by Konoi Caveir, the Black Sun is a highly contained dimensional bridge to Velnir. It's capable of a wide number of things, although the most notable use is its ability to revive the deceased without the sacrificial requirement.
The Black Sun was acquired shortly after its creation by the Guardians. Deemed quickly as being far to powerful of an artifact, the Black Sun became a confidential project that was hidden away from most; even eventually becoming mostly forgotten after being passed down to Konois son, Havil.
The Death of Konoi Edit
Regardless of the Guardians attempts at keeping the Black Sun a secret, inside sources lead to the Black Suns existence becoming known. While Konoi was able to avoid most confrontation regarding it, the Tri-Circles interests in the artifact eventually lead to his capture. After having refused to provide information about the artifacts whereabouts or how it functioned, Konoi was promptly killed.


Made for hundreds of years, the Panama hat gained notoriety in the US – and around the world – at the start of the 20th-century, when President Theodore Roosevelt wore one as he inspected the progress of the Panama Canal. By the ‘40s-‘50s, the design had transformed into a style statement, thanks to Hollywood. Gregory Peck, Clark Gable, James Stewart, and then the likes of Robert Redford and Sean Connery wore Panama straw hats in renowned films or on and off set, cementing the design’s gentlemanly appeal.
Fast forward to 2018, and the Panama hat still maintains a sense of mystery, despite being one of the most iconic accessories. Two crucial facts – well-known by experts, those who work in the industry, and some fans of the design – continue to remain largely unknown. The first one is the name, which hints to Panama as a country of origin. In fact, these popular hats are Ecuadorian. More specifically, the authentic Panama straw hat and its finest examples come from the Montecristi area and the small town of Pile.


International Women's Day is celebrated on March 8. It is an international day highlighting the fight for women's rights and in particular for the end of inequalities in relation to men.
Did you know ?
The date of International Women's Day is closely linked to the general strike and demonstrations of Russian women, in Petrograd (Saint Petersburg), on February 23, 1917.
The first country to grant women the right to vote was New Zealand in 1893.
In 1920, for the first time in the world, the Egyptian Society of Physicians challenged tradition by denouncing the deleterious effects of female genital mutilation on women's health.


Through time masks have told the story of heritage and cultural pride. Today we unite to wear the most important mask in human history. We fight as one against the double threat of COVID-19 and the flu. The East Bay has a heritage of community pride. One of coming together, protecting its own, and finding a way to overcome. This too shall pass, and we will stand. Mask up.
Address & Contact
1411 East 31st Street, Oakland, CA. 94602


The area archives committee deepens our gratitude for A.A. by collecting, preserving, and sharing the heritage of A.A. in the mountain state.
Archives requests & submissions:
To submit material for inclusion in the area archives or to request an archives display at an event, email email@example.com.
Examples of items that may be included in the archives include:
Grapevines with articles specific to Area 73
Note on anonymity: When exhibiting in venues that might be viewed by the public, the archivist will limit the display to only those items that are in keeping with the A.A. principle of anonymity.


Public psyche theory was proposed by Siegfried Kracauer in his book, from Caligari to Hitler (Kracauer 1947). Kracauer suggested that film was an expression of the psyche of the society it came from, and that the themes and ideas expressed in these films were a product of the fears, beliefs and ideals of these societies. He proposed that as film was such a collaborative effort involving many different people, and by looking at these films worked as a predictor of where the society would go in the future.
He pointed to the films of the German expressionist movement in the 1920s as a predictor of the rise of fascism in Germany that took place in the years preceding World War II. He suggested that German expressionist films like The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Wiene 1920) and Metropolis (Lang 1927) illuminated an aspect of the German psyche that demonstrated German people were ready to accept the fascist government of the Nazi party in the 1930s.Read more


Discovering the Benefits of Historic Profession Delegations in Modern Times
Profession is an essential element of financial growth. Read more about “Jason LeVecke” on this website. It gas development, elevates standard of lives, as well as creates work. Learn more about “Jason LeVecke” on this homepage. But for trade to happen, connections should be built between countries. View more about “Jason LeVecke” on this page. That’s where profession delegations can be found in. These delegations, consisting of federal government officials, magnate, as well as academics, traveling abroad to discuss profession contracts, construct service partnerships, as well as advertise their nation’s passions overseas. Check “Jason LeVecke” here for more info.
What is a Historic Trade Delegation?
A historic trade delegation is a delegation that adheres to the footprints of a previous delegation that happened in history. Discover more about “Jason LeVecke” on this link. These delegations aim to honor the partnership that was built between two nations long back and also reinforce the connections that exist between them today. Check out “Jason LeVecke” on this site.
The Advantages of Historic Profession Delegations
Historical profession delegations have several benefits in contemporary times. Read “Jason LeVecke” here for more info. Right here are a few:
1. Building on Established Relationships
The primary advantage of a historic trade delegation is that it builds on existing relationships. Click “Jason LeVecke” here for more updates. The original trade arrangement might have been authorized years, otherwise centuries, earlier, however the bonds established through it can still have a lasting impact on profession and organization collaborations today. View “Jason LeVecke” here for more details. By recognizing and improving these partnerships, historic trade delegations can assist to strengthen as well as expand ties between nations, producing more opportunities for profession and also investment. Click “Jason LeVecke” for more info.
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Historic profession delegations can additionally be made use of to promote tourism. Read more about “Jason LeVecke” on this website. Lots of crucial historical events have taken place between countries and backtracking those actions can draw in interest from vacationers. Learn more about “Jason LeVecke” on this homepage. The delegation can check out vital historical sites, hold public events, and engage with neighborhood areas, every one of which can bring attention to the country’s culture as well as heritage. View more about “Jason LeVecke” on this page.
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Historic profession delegations can serve as a bridge in between the past and the here and now, advertising profession, tourism, and also collaboration. Read “Jason LeVecke” here for more info. By honoring the partnerships constructed between countries in the past, these delegations can help to create brand-new collaborations for the future, promoting financial development and also growth. Click “Jason LeVecke” here for more updates.


Michael and Dorothy Guisande both came to the Lord in the summer of 1975 at the Loomis United Pentecostal Church during the church’s 25th anniversary. At that time their oldest son Shawn was 3 years old. They received the Holy Ghost and were baptized by Pastor Sam Cagle the founding pastor of the Loomis Church. In their early years Pastor and Sister Guisande taught in the Sunday school and Sis. Guisande taught in the Loomis Christian School as well as the church daycare. Pastor and Sister Guisande served as Youth Directors for six years. In 1983 Pastor Guisande obtained his Local License with the UPCI. In 1984 Pastor and Sister Guisande left the Loomis Church to start a Home Missions Church, called Apostolic Faith Tabernacle in West Sacramento California. At that time their youngest son Darin was 7 years old and their oldest son Shawn was 12 years old. The Guisande family labored with a passion in West Sacramento seeing many souls come to the Lord. They continued to pastor in West Sacramento for seven years and then returned to Loomis to become the senior Pastor in the later part of 1989.


“China, China, China,” rants Donald Trump, the presidential hopeful
who loses no opportunity to blame America’s economic woes on China and
its “unfair” trade policies. But how did the fortunes of the free world
and the Middle Kingdom become so inextricably intertwined? What started
The roots of U.S.-China trade can be boiled down to one
fragrant little word: tea. The history of the tea trade is a
fascinating story of wealth, adventure and cultural exchange, but also a
tragic one of human suffering and cruelty.
Americans gave up tea as an unpatriotic beverage after the Boston Tea
Party in 1773 and turned to coffee, the majority still craved it. And it
was this overwhelming demand for tea that motivated the newly
independent United States, finally free from the monopolistic clutches
of Britain’s East India Company, to sail to China in search of it.
On a beautiful February morning in 1784, the first American trade ship
to China, Empress of China, set sail from New York. To pay for the tea,
its holds were filled with 242 casks of choice New England and
Appalachian ginseng, for which there was an enormous demand in China.
Everything about that maiden voyage was symbolic: Feb. 22 was George
Washington’s birthday; a 13-gun salute was fired to represent the 13
states; the two goods being bartered were indigenous to the two


ŽUMPA / THE SUMP
Cast: 4 men, 2 women
Ten horror-like scenes are set during St. Laurence’s night, sometime at the turn of 20th and 21st Century, in a discontinued Farming Cooperative in former Sudetenland. The storyline is centred on a strange sump that can still remember events that had happened here just after the WWII. The sump is full of cow stale, and beside it, full of stars, mysteries and secrets of the past. The past and the present, reality and dream, life and death, love and hatred, are all mirrored on the rippled surface and on the mist of the large dimension sump. Whatever disappears in the sump cannot be retrieved – nevertheless... From the forgotten depths of Czech history, some shadows of injustice would appear. Hodina the pensioner is patrolling at the sump although there is nothing to patrol any more. He’s getting drunk to appease his conscience and to forget his past and the beautiful German, Gretl. The ghosts of Gretl and her lover Hynek come from the past to revive the events of the St. Laurence night more than fifty years ago. Present day lovers, Eva and Karel, who came to have traditional lovers’ fun at the half-ruined hayloft belonging to the former collective farm, also get drawn into the mysterious events around the sump. Komorous, the local drunk and thief who would steal anything that’s not well tied down, remembers plenty of things despite his empty head. The Sump opens the past that is forgotten and nevertheless still alive. Can one atone for ancient wrongs? In front of a bizarre set of a rundown collective farm, a sixty year old story of love, small-mindedness and hatred is revived.
The play is available also in German translation.


These different cultures and even individual philosophers had widely varying explanations concerning their attributes and how they related to observable phenomena as well as cosmology. Sometimes these theories overlapped with mythology and were personified in deities. Some of these interpretations included atomism (the idea of very small, indivisible portions of matter) but other interpretations considered the elements to be divisible into infinitely small pieces without changing their nature.
While the classification of the material world by the ancient Indians and Greeks into Air, Earth, Fire and Water was more philosophical, during the Islamic Golden Age medieval middle eastern scientists used practical, experimental observation to classify materials. In Europe, the Ancient Greek system of Aristotle evolved slightly into the medieval system, which for the first time in Europe became subject to experimental verification in the 1600s, during the Scientific Revolution.
MEDIUM: 300 micron Grey Card, Polyurethane Resin. Powder coating.
DIMENSIONS: H 35.5 cm / W 30 cm / D 3.5 cm
ARTISTS: Paul & Mark Cummings


Here’s some excellent news: we’re delighted to announce that our very own Beris Campbell and Heather McKee were presented with awards at this year’s Victorian Community History Awards ceremony, held on Monday 14 October as part of History Week. The duo received awards for their book More Than Just Housing: The South Port Community Housing Group Story 1983-2018, which was co-written with Janet Goodwin and edited by Helen Penrose. The book was recognised in the Local History — Small Publication category.
More Than Just Housing catalogues the history of the South Port Community Housing Group, of which both Beris and Heather are founding members. It explores the role of community housing in preventing recurrent homelessness, community organisations and what makes them work, and the valuable, proactive roles municipal councils can play in addressing community needs. It is an independent publication of the South Port Community Housing Group, and is available for purchase from the Group’s website.


Goldegg, also named Goldegg im Pongau, is a village and municipality situated on a sunny plateau, the so-called « Sunny Terrace » of Salzburg in Austria.
It lies at a distance of 60 kilometres from the city of Salzburg. There are approximately 2200 inhabitants living in the local area, which covers 33,1 square kilometres. In fact, the village owes its name (“Goldegg at the lake”) to a small lake at which it is located.
The castle, which was built in the 14th century, is now a modern cultural centre, offering interesting events all the year round, like concerts, exhibitions of regional or international artists, theatrical or comedian performances, seminars or workshops.
The village also possesses a museum, exhibiting a great collection of pottery, folkloristic clothes and rustic furniture.
The municipal coat of arms is: "In the red field a golden corner (top), covered with a red dragon head and on either side accompanied by ever a golden crown." Originally the coat of arms consisted only of the red segments and the gold piece, dragon and crown emblem comes from the extinct family Schernberg, the parts were integrated until the Grafs in the coat of arms.


Home Sweet Home Care Inc.’s corporate office is located in historic Smithfield, Virginia. Specifically we are in the Victorian row, also know as the Painted Ladies, which consists of five typical houses of the late Victorian time period (early 1900’s), each featuring bay fronts and gingerbread trim. The houses were built around 1901 by Burton W. Hearn, who, himself, lived at 346 Main Street, which is were our corporate office is located. Home Sweet Home Care Inc. has maintained the historic features of the house inside and out (it’s a zoning requirement, but the CEO wouldn’t have it any other way, anyway). Stephanie Jensen, owner and CEO of Home Sweet Home Care Inc., thinks the historic home is a perfect office for in-home care, because she feels it keeps her and her staff reminded that “home” is at the heart of all that they do as an in-home, elder care company.


The Theresienthal crystal glass manufactory was founded in 1836 and has quite an impressive customer list: From King Ludwig II., who acquired a complete glass set for his Linderhof castle to the Russian Czar in St. Petersburg, to whom the glasses had to be delivered on foot to avoid breakages. Each glass is manufactured entirely by hand: from the shaping of the glass to its engraving
The brilliant Theresienthal glass has a long tradition. The current collection has been developed by the German designers Peter Kempe and Thomas Kuball based on age-old forms and models. .
The crystal glass manufacturer Theresienthal has been producing mouth-blown glass of a superb quality for more than 170 years. The magnificent glasses and glass accessories are popular all over the world. Their products display traditional handcraftsmanship at its best: sometimes colourful and opulent, on other occasions crystal clear and finely engraved, but always glittering and brilliant.
These paper-thin, mouth-blown masterpieces crafted in the Bavarian Forest are all unique, regardless whether wine goblets and decanters, champagne flutes or water tumblers. Rounding off the repertoire of distinctive vessels is the selection of elegant vases, dishes, flacons and votives.
Theresienthal can look back on a long and successful history in the art of glass blowing. King Ludwig II was one of the early supporters of the refined drinking culture. He ordered glassware for his castle in Linderhof as also did the residents of the tsar's court in St. Peterburg. In recent years, the legendary Theresienthal collection has produced some fresh variations on the centuries-old shapes and patterns. Even the famous colouring methods, such as the Theresienthal's overlay technique continue to be fully developed. Every Theresienthal glass is still completely handcrafted - from the melting of the raw material to the polishing of the crystal glass.


Johann Scheer - The Pioneer
The year 1816
Beginning of the 19th century it was Austrian tradition – and therefore an unwritten law – that the son will continue his fathers business. But Johann Scheer...
Matthias Scheer – The Optimizer
The 2nd Generation
Johann’s son Matthias was more biddable than his father and learned the craft from his father. Yet he also had big plans on his own and so he...
Rudolf – The Grandmaster
The 3rd Generation
The founders’ grandson, Rudolf Scheer (born 1839) refined his craft during his studying years in Paris. Back in Vienna he moved his workshop and growing business in the vibrating and classy first district in Vienna. Rudolf ...
Street of tailors and shoemakers
Just a few streets away from Stephansplatz, the house of SCHEER is still breathing the spirit of imperial Vienna….
Purveyor to the Imperial and Royal Court
The highest seal of approval
About quality and privileges of the purveyors to the court
Carl & Edmund – The Master Brothers
The 4th Generation
Vienna around 1900: assembling point and climax of the elegant world. The two brothers Carl and Edmund Scheer enter the thriving workshop of their father Rudolf and Rudolf Scheer & Söhne is born…
Auguste – Guardian of the Heritage
After the sudden deaths of Edmund and Carl Scheer, Auguste Scheer – Carls wife – guarded the heritage and managed the company together with the legendary workshop foreman Josef.
Carl Scheer – Couturier and orthopaedic Master
The 5th Generation
Augustes son, Carl Ferdinand had to follow into big footsteps when he took over the company in 1935…
Scheer and the Viennese Haute Couture
From the 1950s to the 1970s Carl Ferdinand Scheer worked together with Getrud Höchsmann the avant-gardist of the Viennese Haute Couture and experimented…
The 6th Generation
All three of Carl Ferdinand’s daughter’s were involved in the workshop, all three went through the teaching up to the final examination but it was the youngest daughter, Michaela, who…


Lt Col Rod Dyckman – Advisory Board
Lt Col Rod Dyckman entered the Air Force in 1970 through Officer Training School and was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant. Following OTS he attended pilot training in Del Rio, Texas and graduated in the top of his class. Throughout his career Rod flew a variety of aircraft, and he was assigned to a number of major commands. He was an ATC instructor in T-38s. In addition, he flew tactical fighters, bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. He was an instructor and evaluator in every Air Force airplane he flew. He has roughly 18,000 hours flying time.
Most notably, Rod was assigned to the 1st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, home of the SR-71 Blackbird. He not only flew worldwide operational SR-71 reconnaissance missions for agencies such as JCS and the CIA, he was commander of the unit. He remained commander until the SR-71 program conclusion in January, 1990.
Rod also worked for NASA Dryden and flew various military aircraft at Edwards AFB, CA.
Following the retirement of the Blackbird, Rod also retired from the Air Force and joined American Airlines. At American he flew as an engineer, first officer and captain in Boeing 727, 757, 767 and MD 80 aircraft. After nearly 18 years with the airline, he retired from American and went to work for NetJets. Rod has over 1,000 general aviation and test hours.


“Our history is one of quality of product and workmanship, loyalty, integrity, responsibility, and dedication to safety in the workplace.”
Connolly-Pacific Co. traces its roots back to Tom Connolly, who started in business in 1920 as a contractor driving one of the highway tunnels leading into Yosemite National Park. Operating as T. E. Connolly Co., with California Contractor License No. 220, he took on various projects in and around California during the next 12 years. The company built 26 tunnels totaling 26 miles in length, including the tunnel through Yerba Buena Island in San Francisco Bay, which had the largest cross section of any tunnel in the world at the time.
In 1932, another contractor, Wilhelm Rohl, proposed that Connolly joint venture with his company to bid on the construction of El Capitan Dam in San Diego and together they formed Rohl-Connolly Co. After successfully winning the contract, the new joint venture completed the project in 1934.
Even as the El Capitan Dam project was just starting, Rohl-Connolly began pursuing other work. They were the successful low bidder to build the Federal Breakwater in Los Angeles Harbor for the Army Corps of Engineers. The breakwater project required a large source of rock and Tom Connolly was able to begin a relationship with the Wrigley family (of chewing gum fame) who owned Santa Catalina Island, 25 miles off the Southern California coast. Santa Catalina had a proven source of rock which Tom Connolly was able to access through a lease agreement that remains in effect today. Connolly was a geologist by education and realized that a rock source on the ocean would provide a tremendous transportation advantage. There being no known sources on the mainland in protected waters in Southern California, he looked to Catalina Island.
After completing the Los Angeles Harbor Breakwater in 1937, Rohl-Connolly expanded their horizons and undertook the construction of Deer Creek Dam on the Provo River in Utah, followed by Cottage Grove Dam in Oregon. Upon the completion of Cottage Grove Dam, the company recognized the opportunities presented by the expansion of the water distribution system to meet the demands of the rapidly growing Southern California population. Rohl-Connolly bid and was awarded the contract to build Headgate Dam in Parker, Arizona. John Connolly, Tom’s younger brother, served as superintendent for the Headgate project. John had worked for his brother on and off during his college years before joining the company full-time.
At about this time Rohl-Connolly teamed up with Gunther & Shirley Company to successfully win the bid for the construction of the 2-mile-long, 118-foot-high Caddoa Dam in southeastern Colorado. The outbreak of World War II delayed the start of the project from 1940 to 1946, and it was eventually completed in 1948. In 1940 the Caddoa Dam project had been renamed John Martin Dam in honor of the late Congressman who had sponsored the federal funding of the project.
During World War II, Rohl-Connolly operated under the name of Hawaiian Constructors to bid and build several military projects in the Hawaiian Islands and South Pacific islands, thus providing vital military “stepping stones” between Honolulu and Australia. As part of a joint venture it also built 135 miles of military highway in Alaska. As the military projects tapered off, the company returned to its roots in California and built the Pit River Tunnel for Pacific Gas & Electric Co. in Northern California. John Connolly served as a Captain in the Army construction battalions during the war. He rejoined the company when the war ended.
In 1946, now incorporated as Connolly-Pacific Co., CP won an Army Corps of Engineers contract to construct the last remaining segment of the breakwater structures for the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. For this job they teamed up with Case and Peter Kiewit Sons’ Co. under the joint venture name of Connolly-Case-Kiewit, Joint Contractors and Co-Adventurers.
During the course of the breakwater construction project, T. E. Connolly also drove a tunnel for PG&E’s Feather River project north of Sacramento, followed by two diversion tunnels in 1948 just outside Sacramento for the Folsom Dam project. The Folsom Dam projects were part of the massive Central Valley Project in California. During this same time T. E. Connolly built Novato Creek Dam north of San Francisco.
The company’s specialization in tunnel and water projects was well suited for this time, when the rapid population growth in the Los Angeles basin was straining the capacity of the water supply system. In 1949 the company built the tunnel for San Gabriel Dam near Pasadena, followed by several water distribution projects related to the California Aqueduct.
In 1951 Connolly-Pacific built Pier D, a new terminal for the Port of Long Beach. The company also constructed entrance jetties and breakwaters for virtually all of the Southern California small boat harbors and marinas using rock from their quarry on Santa Catalina Island.
In 1957, Connolly-Pacific rebuilt the Long Beach Naval Shipyard to provide it with the capacity to handle the new, larger warships and aircraft carriers. The Long Beach shipyard project also marked a shift in the company’s focus from tunnels and water projects to harbor projects in the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, which were expanding as the nation’s economic growth demanded additional port facilities. Terminal construction and land reclamation became the largest part of the company’s business.
The early 1960s marked the beginning of major expansion programs for the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, and Connolly-Pacific was well positioned to capture much of the work. In 1961 they built the Pier J project for the Port of Long Beach, partnering with Construction Aggregates Co., who handled the dredging. Contracts to build Piers G and F followed in subsequent years. During this decade the old wooden wharves were replaced with deeper draft concrete wharves. Tom Connolly received the Golden Beavers Award for Management in 1961.
In the early to mid 1960s, Connolly-Pacific built four artificial oil drilling islands within the Long Beach breakwaters for Texaco, Humble, Union, Mobile and Shell (THUMS), along with an island in the open ocean off Seal Beach for Chevron.
In the early 1970s the establishment of the California Coastal Commission by then-Governor Jerry Brown brought an abrupt decline in coastal construction as this new quasi-governmental agency was given unprecedented powers to delay new development projects. It took most of the decade for port expansion projects to navigate through the new permitting maze.
John Connolly was awarded the Golden Beaver Award for Management in 1972. Tom Connolly died in 1976 and John succeeded him as president for a brief time as the company was being sold to L. G. Everist, a principal in Western Contracting.
In 1981 the Port of Los Angeles dredged its main channel from -35 feet to -45 feet to accommodate new deep draft vessels. The spoil from the dredging operation was used to create the 400-acre Pier 300, which was constructed by Connolly-Pacific and Potashnik Construction.
Connolly-Pacific built marinas in Long beach and Los Angeles in the early 1980s in addition to harbor expansion projects.
In 1988 Connolly-Pacific formed a joint venture with Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. to tackle the expansion of Pier J in the Port of Long Beach. Great Lakes had purchased the dredge Potashnik had used to deepen the main channel of the Port of Los Angeles. The Pier J project was completed in 1990.
Increased trade in the Pacific Rim brought about some major port expansion projects in the early 1990s. In 1994 the Pier 400 Implementation program for the Port of Los Angeles began. This was a one billion dollar program to build new terminals and deepen ship channels. Phase I was let in 1994 and Phase II of this program was let in 1997 with the team of Connolly-Pacific and Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., operating as Pier 400 Constructors, landing both contracts at a cost of over 400 million dollars. Their work involved placing 11 million tons of stone, and 60 million cubic yards dredge fill to create 685 acres for new ship terminals. The Joint Venture received several prestigious awards, including AGC of America’s 1998 Marvin M. Black Excellence in Partnering Award, AGC of California’s Constructor Awards in 1998 and 2001 for “Meeting the Challenge of a Difficult Job – Heavy Engineering” and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Pacific Division 2000 Contractor of the Year Award for Civil Works Projects.
In 2000 Connolly-Pacific, merged with Knife River Corp., a subsidiary of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE: MDU).
As part of the defense cutbacks in 2000, the U. S. Navy handed over the abandoned Long Beach Naval Shipyard to the Port of Long Beach. The site presented some serious challenges as to how to develop it into a modern ship terminal. Connolly-Pacific joint ventured with Manson Construction Co. to handle the work in two of the three phases, removing six concrete piers, thousands of concrete piling and three abandoned dry docks. The site is now operating as the largest ship terminal in the world.
As Pacific Rim trade continued to grow, the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles needed to deepen the main channel to -55 feet. To undertake this complex project with rigorous schedule requirements, Connolly-Pacific joint ventured with Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. and Manson Construction Co. Their $192 million contract began in 2002 and will continue through 2006.
“We have and will continue to seek the means and methods of the expansion of our operations into other areas of the construction field.”


Aztec peasants and slaves have been at the lowest stage of the society and had least quantity of rights. Their social standing was additionally reflected of their clothes. Thus they used the only Aztec clothes and generally their clothing consisted solely you can try this out of a loincloth. This simplicity also helped them in enterprise their duties which demanded bodily agility and exertion. The historical Aztec Clothing of the warrior supplied some safety, and their head attire also served as helmets.
- In most instances, only the lads of the nobility would put on sandals, and most of the commoners didn’t wear much foot put on.
- The Ancient Aztec clothes of the common people and slaves generally lined little or no of their bodies.
- Aztec clothing diversified in accordance with the social standing of the people.
- They used bows, spears, and the maquahuitl – a mixture sword and club.
- Just like in every other domain of life, Aztec religion and gods additionally influenced Aztec clothing.
Aztecs had a big selection of clothing which were worn by people based on their social standing. The most typical coiffure for the ladies was two protruding twists of hair on the crowns of their heads. The hairstyle for the common man was neck-length hair which sometimes included a fringe. Hairstyle of warriors, on the other hand, usually consisted of a stiff ridge of hair rising down the centre of the pinnacle with remainder of the top shaved.
They made use of a wide range of supplies as jewellery, such as necklaces with charms and pedants, armlets, bracelets, leg bracelets, and rings. Just like every thing else, non secular influences was additionally seen in Aztec clothes. Jewelry was typically crafted into natural shapes along with shapes of various birds and reptiles.
They used bows, spears, and the maquahuitl – a combination sword and membership. Ancient Aztec clothing, that is, the clothes worn by the tribes that made up the Aztec empire , was wealthy in selection. As we shall see, it varied in accordance with the social class that individuals belonged to.
Aztec Clothes Historical Past
Everyday clothes of people from elite courses was completely different and more elaborate. The Aztecs created a selection of masks and whereas these masks weren’t part of on an everyday basis Aztec clothing, they have been used during non secular ceremonies and festivals. The most necessary material used in these masks was turquoise with different materials being used corresponding to wooden, obsidian, coral, shell, stone, or even a actual human skull. Other than being worn during rituals and ceremonies, the masks have been additionally used as demise masks for emperors. Use of headdresses was common among Aztec the Aristocracy and the ruling class and was part of Aztec Clothing for these lessons. The most famous headdress was that of Emperor Moctezuma II which was made of the feathers of quetzal and different birds mounted on a base of gold and precious stones.
The Ancient Aztec clothing of the widespread people and slaves typically lined very little of their our bodies. The loincloth, also worn by widespread people, was made from a long strip of cloth tied in entrance. If the man had slightly higher social standing, it might be embroidered or have fringes on the 2 ends. The males would additionally put on a cloak made from a triangular material often known as a tilmatli or tilma. It could probably be used like an apron to hold things, or worn as a cloak. Aztec clothing of Aztec emperors and the the Aristocracy was elaborate and lavish.
Aztec Clothing For Men And Women
Small tinkling bells which seemed like flowers had been also popular with the Aztecs. The army had their very own costumes, based mostly on what army group they belonged to – the eagle or the jaguar, for example. Even for the Aztec warrior, there was a hierarchy that was reflected by how adorned their costumes have been. Those who have been war heroes were allowed extra jewels and more gorgeous clothing.
The tilmatli was necessary to the Aztec, and the type worn would decide the status of the person who wore it in Aztec society. Most of the frequent individuals in Aztec society went barefoot and didn’t use any footwear. However, use of footwear was common among the Aristocracy and troopers. Traders additionally used shoes since footwear helped on the rugged terrain and anyone who travelled round needed them. They mostly used sandals made of leather-based from goat or sheep or from plant fibres. Woven cloth straps have been used to tie the shoes with feet.