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Archive for januar, 2012

jan 31

beatadeliebanalille

Spanish Treasures

The National Library of Spain celebrates its 300 years anniversary with an exhibition showing a grand selection of some of its treasures: Manuscripts of Leonardo Da Vinci, a famous apocalypse by Beato de Liebana and a manuscript of the Cantigas de Santa Maria. Further drawings and engravings of Dürer, Velázquez, Rembrandt, Goya, Fortuny and Picasso are shown.

Apart from this, the exhibition shows how technologies of writing, conservation and reproduction have changed the institution since Felipe V laid the foundation.

As part of the exhibition visitors are invited to download a free app to Iphones as well as Androids. The app is organized as a catalogue showing photos and a text plus a plan of the exhibition. The information here may also be accessed at a virtual exhibition where it is possible to see fully digitized reproductions of the exhibited treasures.

Unfortunately the catalogue as well as the app is only available in Spanish

Biblioteca Nacional de España: 300 años haciendo historia

 

jan 31

france-relief-1115812

Maison Histoire

Following the huge success in Berlin, where the National Historical Museum opened in 2004 France is currently building a “House of History”.

However, where the German Historical Museum is moulded as a traditional museum showcasing a huge and fascinating collection of objects, the French project is planned in the French tradition as a cultural institution. Accordingly, it primarily aims to “highlight the importance of history to today’s society, by exploring all its facets, encouraging discussion and debate on key chapters in French history, and widening its scope to European and international contexts.”

As such it is less planned as a museum than a coordinating initiative and a portal, where visitors thanks to an ambitious digitization strategy presumably will be enabled to access a huge quantity of resources on the History of France.

The exhibition space, which is currently under construction, is located in the historic heart of Paris, in the Rohan-Soubise section of the Marais (beside the National Archives). The primary exhibition will consist of a “Gallery of Time”. Apart from that there will be room for temporary exhibitions, conferences, discussions, seminars, films and concerts. The opening of the venue is planned to 2015.

Until then visitors are invited to consult the homepage, where a number of digital exhibitions are under construction. Also the new House of History is engaged in the current flagship exhibition of the famous 3D models of French cities stemming from the 17th to 19th century. The models, which were created in order to enlighten officers and engineers on the proper fortifications and military strategies for defence, are a treasure trove of information on landscapes, houses, streets, public buildings, churches etc.

Normally the models are kept at the “Musée des plans reliefs” near the national museum at Hôtel National des Invalides, where 26 of the 150 are on permanent show. Right now another sixteen exceptionally fine models are shown at the “Grand Palais”. All are built to the scale of 1/600th. Nevertheless they are remarkable both for their extraordinary detail and for their sheer size: the scale model of Cherbourg covers for instance some 160 square metres.

Maison Historie

 La France en relief

Musée des plans reliefs

Album d’exposition La France en relief. Chefs d’oeuvre de la collection des plans-reliefs de Louis XIV à Napoleon III. Rmn-Grand Palais 2012

 


jan 16

smykkesaetafperler

1100 years old

The Royal Danish family may trace its history back to 936

The prehistory is a bit muddled. The German chronicler Widukind wrote that the German king Heinrich beat the Danish king Gnupa in 936 and forced him to be baptised. Some pages later we learn that the name of the king was Hardegon Wurm, who just might be identical to king Gorm the Old, father of Harold Bluetooth, and said to be buried at Jellinge in 958. The puzzle may never be solved. The source material is simply too discrepant. What we do know, however, is that since then there has been kings or queens in Denmark stemming from the same family. Thus the present queen who is no. 53 on the list can claim herself a direct descendant of Gorm the Old! Last week Denmark celebrated the 40-year jubilee of her reign. But also the long history of the realm infused by traditions going back to the Viking age.

In connection with the jubilee it may be worth while to visit a number of exhibitions. At Frederiksborg a new painting of the queen is at the center of an exhibition focusing on the peculiar but important role, which the queen still plays in the democratic government in Denmark. As a constitutional monarch, the Queen is limited to non-partisan, ceremonial functions. However, the ultimate executive authority over the government of Denmark is still by and through the monarch’s royal reserve powers.

Leonora 221x300 1100 years oldAt Amalienborg another exhibition shows some of the dresses and robes of the queen. The exhibition is very interesting in so far as the queen is co-designer of her image. Thus the wardrobe illustrates the colours and themes which may be found in the rest of her oeuvre – paintings, textiles, decoupage etc.

Finally at Rosenborg another exhibition opens in February – Pearls. Royal splendour and Modern design. This exhibition showcases treasure from the official as well as private royal collections of pearls as well as the work of new designers. The queen wore some of these jewels at the formal dinner party, which rounded the festivities off; notable was the pearl necklace, which is supposed to be at least 300 years old. Some even claim that they used to belong to Leonora Christine, the daughter of Christian the IV, who was imprisoned for 22 years. At her imprisonment her jewels and fabled pearls were confiscated and presented to her sister-in-law, the queen Sophie Amalie. Especially the pearls were very valuable. Whatever their history, the pearls were until about 40 years ago  kept in a dusty showcase at Rosenborg, until the mother of the present queen accidentally found them. She carried them continuously for a long period – even slept with them in order to give them back their lustre. Today they are a fascinating piece of jewellery – and still used.

 

jan 16

luttrellpsalter2

Ebook Treasures

British Library launches eBook Treasures

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sit on a bench in an oriel reading a psalter? Now the possibility is here if you own an iPad or another tablet-device and go shopping at eBook Treasures.

As a follow-up of the recent exhibition at the British Library showcasing royal treasures a number of magnificent manuscripts have been made available as apps. Three of them – The Bedford Hours, Medieval Bestiary and Mallard’s Henry VIII’s Psalter – are even on sale until 20th January 2012.

One of the absolute gems currently on show is “The Bedford Hours”, which is one of the more lavish medieval prayerbooks. It was made in Paris between 1410 and 1430 and is illustrated with 38 large full page illustrations and 1200 small marginal roundels. The original patron is still object for speculation. At some point after 1423 the manuscript was in the possession of John, Duke of Bedford. He was a younger brother to the English king, Henry V and acted after 1423 as regent of France on behalf his nephew. This year he married Anne of Burgundy and both arms and mottos were added to the pages of the psalter. Finally on Christmas Eve 1430 it was presented to the young king Henry VI. Since then it has belonged to the Royal Library. For the paltry sum of £9.99 you may now peruse its images at you leisure.

Another treasure on offer is the Luttrell Psalter, which may be downloaded in total for the paltry sum of £7.99. Or you may decide to limit yourself to the highlights for even less – £4.99. This is an absolute must for anyone engaged in medieval reenactment.

And this is just the beginning: The Library promises to place another 75 treasures on the market during the next year.

eBook Treasures are created by the British Library in partnership with Armadillo Systems and available for download from the iBookstore

See a teaser on the exhibition of Royal Treasures

See a teaser at BBC4 on the exhibition of Royal Treasures

See a teaser on a BBC 4 programme on the Luttrell Psalter from 2011 at YouTube 

jan 13

Potatoes for Everyman

souffle 300x193 Potatoes for EverymanPotatoes are first mentioned in a cookbook from the 16th century. During the next 150 years the vegetable was an exotic speciality reserved for the nobility. During the 18th century it became more widespread but it was still not generally considered worth eating.

Generally it was served boiled with butter or cream on it. One recipe from 1766 writes that the “earth-apples” should be washed and peeled, boiled in some salted water for a short time. Afterwards they should be stewed in a deep pan with butter, sweet cream, breadcrumbs, salt and some nutmeg. A favourite side dish for salted herrings, it was a staple in any European household until French-fries were introduced in the late 20th century.

A slightly tastier (French) variation is to chop a couple of onions finely and stir them in hot butter without browning them. Add flour and stew with milk. Taste the white béchamel sauce with salt and nutmeg and pour it in a deep (buttered and crumbled) pan over layers of 8 – 10 sliced, boiled potatoes, 3 hardboiled, sliced eggs and some chopped ham or salted herring, top with grated cheese and bake in oven at a low temperature (160 celcius) for 30 – 40 minutes.

Another French variation from the 18th century is “Flan de pommes de terre Soufflé” or potato soufflé. Cook eight potatoes and mash them with a pestle and mortar. Pound a generous knob of butter with lemon peel or orange flower to flavour. Blend eight egg yolks with a fork and mix well with the mashed potatoes. Beat the egg whites until stiff as if making a sponge cake, then blend into the remainder of the ingredients and cook in an oven (160 celcius for hour). The Soufflé should be sprinkled with sugar. Such a souffle or pie (in German: Cartoffel Torte) was served for Goethe at his 64th birthday party in Ilmenau. At the serving, the hot pie was decorated with a wreath of fresh flowers. Whether Frederick the Great partook of such delicacies is not known.

jan 13

Kartoffel__Friedrich_der_Grosse

Tartuffoli

Frederick the Great is remembered for his music, letters, wars – and potatoes…

Next week on the 24th of January Prussia (and Germany) begins a year-long celebration of the philosopher king, Frederick the Great (1712 – 1786). Throughout life his main interests were music, art, literature and philosophy. For years he was a correspondent of Voltaire with whom the king had an intimate, if turbulent, friendship.  He was a proponent of enlightened absolutism and modernized the Prussian bureaucracy as well as promoted religious tolerance throughout his realm. Nevertheless he is also well known for his wars to conquer Silesia and later part of Poland. It was during the wars, which caused a number of devastating famines that the king started to promote “Tartuffoli”, potatoes, as “in a number of ways auseful plant for both people and animals” (1756).

Friedrich der grosse grab hg 300x225 TartuffoliOn the 24th of January 2012 a fortnight of celebrations filled with concerts, lectures, debates and exhibitions will end in a grand party in Potsdam. For the middle-aged the event begins at 7pm with a baroque concert leading on to a wilder party at 10pm, where DJ Ipek Ipekcioglu breaks the mold with her remarkable and acclaimed Turkish/Electric/Groove performance. This time including a sampling of Baroque sounds.

For those who want to experience the life and times of the remarkable king the visit to Berlin should nevertheless be postponed until May, when a large and very important exhibition – Friederisiko – opens up at the world heritage sites of Neues Palais and Sanssouci, part of the twelve architectural palaces, garden landscapes and churches which may still be seen in and around Potsdam. The “Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg” stands as organizers. Visitors will have the possibility to get to know the personality of the king, which is the main theme of the great exhibition showcased in more than 6000m2 in 70 rooms; a number of which have not hitherto been opened to the public. A little earlier a huge exhibition at the German Historical Museum in Berlin examines his legacy in art, politics and historiography.

Later in the summer it is worthwhile to plot the weeks from the 9th to the 24th of June into the calendar in order to listen to all the concerts and talks planned in connection with the Music Festival Potsdam 2012. And even later in the autumn a number of other exhibitions are (probably) worth visiting. In July opens the exhibition on “The King & the Potato”, in August “Frederick and Potsdam – Inventing a City“ and even later there is the possibility to go to Köpenick, where Frederick spent his childhood and where he was forced to witness the execution of his childhood friend with whom he had tried to escape from his gruesome father.

The best place to get an overview of all the treats may be found here - unfortunately in German.

While consulting our diaries it may finally be well worth checking up on the many new biographies and books, which have been or are scheduled to be published during the year (Some are reviewed here but many more are in the pipeline.) This may be enjoyed while listening to the quite new double-CD,  “Flötenkönig”, where Emmanuel Pahud plays music by Frederick, his sister, his teacher Quack and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, who was member of the Royal Chamber Orchestra. Why not at the same time savour a fresh dish of potatoes served with pickled herring or butter and cream for the fainthearted?

The official site Friedrich 300

Stiftung Preussische Schlösser und Gärten

Collections of papers from German preliminary workshops in the planning process of the exhibitions

jan 12

europaogtyrenlille

Respect the Princess

January the 1st the Presidency of the Council of the European Union passed from Poland to Denmark. This week the official inauguration took place. Finally this morning an exhibition on “Europe Meets the World”  opened at The National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen. Present at the reception was amongst others the current chairman of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso. In his opening speech he spoke in a poetical vein about Europe being this beautiful princess, who was kidnapped by Zeus disguised as a bull and brought to Crete, later giving birth to three sons. “She should be treated with respect”, he said, and continued to point out that Europe is not just about markets and money. Nay, he said, foremost Europe is about culture, value and civilisation. It represents a great vision of the world as a community of law filled with peace, freedom and solidarity. It is our duty, he stressed, to be at the same time clear about our identity and open towards the rest of the world. We have so much to offer, he declared.

Without doubt the Portuguese chairman was inspired by another founding myth involving Zeus, aka Jupiter, Os Luisidas. Luís de Camões, the most famous of all Portuguese Poets wrote this grand poetical vision for Portugal in 1556, while he was sojourning in Goa. In it another family-member of Zeus plays the main role, Bacchus, and his “friend” Lusus. It is his sons, the Lusiads, amongst others Vasco da Gama, whose creative and entrepreneurial spirit is celebrated while the story is told about their magnificent discoveries.

barroso 195x300 Respect the PrincessIt was fascinating to hear the chairman obviously letting himself be inspired by the “opening piece” of the exhibition – a shard from a Greek vase showing the lovely girl sitting astray on a white bull. But it also bear witness to the qualities of the exhibition, which is organised around a small, but very evocative collection of artefacts solely picked from the stack-rooms of the museum. All in all the collections total 10 million artefacts, ancient and modern, historical and ethnographic. The idea has been not to borrow and create a visual blockbuster, but to demonstrate that it is possible to curate an exhibition with what is at hand. And make it worthwhile. The National Museum of Copenhagen should be complimented on this endeavour (and was by Barroso in his speech).

The exhibition is installed in eight cylindrical tents and one formed as a globe. Each tent focuses on an aspect of the relation between Europe and the rest of the world – wisdom, power, belief, communication and conflict, discovery, enlightenment, industrialisation, war and finally present-day fluid borders and boundless cities. Each tent shows a small, but careful selection of objects whose stories are told through imaginative use of a wide variety of digital tools. The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue in the form of a collection of essays available both in English and Danish.

For anyone passionate about Europe the exhibition is definitely worth a detour. Just visiting Copenhagen this spring? Don’t miss it. No time left? Get the catalogue!

Europe meets the World – Exhibition catalog. Ed. By Lars K. Christensen et al. Copenhagen, The National Museum 2012

The National Museum of Copenhagen, Frederiksholms Kanal 12, 1220 København K. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10.00 – 17.00, Monday closed. Free entrance

Read the speech of president José Manuel Barroso

 

jan 11

bannockburn

Scottish Emotions

Last May the Scottish National Party headed by Alex Salmond won an astounding victory in the Scottish Parliament election 2011. All in all he ended up with a full majority consisting of 69 seats out of 121. Thus the road to a general referendum on Scottish independence was secured. Since then Westminster has been trying to find a way to meet this challenge in a proper way.

There are legal issues. Who has the legal right to call for a referendum? Westminster or Holyrood? Who should be in charge of overseeing the referendum? Westminster, Holyrood or EU? When is it supposed to be scheduled? And what about the options?

A few days ago Scotland received a sort of ultimatum from London: You may have your referendum inside the next 18 months, but it has to be under the aegis of EU and it should only give the Scots the possibility to vote for either status quo or alternatively full secession. No middle of the road alternative should be offered to the electorate.

Apparently Westminster was appalled by rumours that Alex Salmond scheduled the referendum to take place on the 24th of June 2014 – the 700 year anniversary of the decisive Battle of Bannockburn, where the Scottish army led by Robert the Bruce routed the English army. So far the first minister has answered that the referendum should take place in 2014, but in the early autumn.

That might be a good idea. Referendums during summertime are generally not advisable. People are no longer just on holidays during the traditional month of August. Further, any emotional stirring around Bannockburn might very well carry more impact at a later day, if the celebrations, which are planned, can run their course. It stands to reason that the Queen will be invited to take part in the festivities 2014. However, what would be her role, if a referendum on secession were to take place at the exact same day?

As of now, all this is no doubt being debated fiercely in the corridors of both governmental palaces. Whatever the outcome, it is interesting – especially as seen from abroad  - what importance is attached to a medieval battle, which took place nearly 700 years ago. What is it about Bannockburn, which has the capacity to stir all these passions?

Following on the recent £12 million restoration of Stirling Castle, Historic Scotland and the National Trust for Scotland are currently planning to spend another £5 million on a whole new heritage centre with state-of-the-art digital explanatory exhibitions. No doubt we shall be both enlightened and entertained, when the new visitor centre opens it’s doors in 2014. However, whether it will really stir the emotional feelings as is expected, is quite another question.

The reason is of course that the agenda is not so much to create (yet another) hallowed ground. The agenda is educational and business-like. The centre seems more than anything else planned in order to generate the same success as that of Culloden. Here the new visitor centre has so far created between 40 – 60% more visitors since the centre opened in 2008 (although it seems according to the Moffat Centre to level out now).

Also it points to another reason, why Scottish first ministers, Salmond and Sturgeon, are holding back. As of now Westminster holds 84% in the Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Due to the financial crisis the former plans to start selling the shares in 2012 are currently on hold.

The overall question is of course: If Scotland secedes, how will it finance itself? Will it be allowed to retain the income from the reserves of gas and oil? What about it’s part of the national debt? What about the currency? Will it join the Euro? Will Europe support Scottish secession – in view of other tricky regions like for instance Catalonia and the Basques?

And finally: Will the Scots be swayed by their emotions? Or will they end up making some cool evaluations?