#ancient stonework

[kungseyesfr]

#question everything #history #ancient #ancestors #art #puma punku #ancient stonework

[thesilicontribesman]

Chesters Roman Fort Headquarters Courtyard and Roman Phallus Relief, Chesters Roman Fort, Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland

#roman #roman army #roman living #roman fort #roman empire #roman building #roman symbols #romans #archaeology #chesters roman fort #landscape #stonework #relic #courtyard #roman society #ancient cultures #ancient craft

[lionofchaeronea]

Statuette (white marble) of Hermaphroditus, the mixed-gender child of Hermes and Aphrodite. Artist unknown; 2nd cent. BCE (Hellenistic). Thought to have come from Rhodes; now in the Princeton University Art Museum.

#classics #tagamemnon #Ancient Greece #Hellenistic period #classical mythology #Greek mythology #Hermaphroditus #art #art history #ancient art #Greek art #Ancient Greek art #Hellenistic art #sculpture #statuette #marble #stonework #carving #Princeton University Art Museum

[1five1two]

Medusa head at the Basilica Cistern, Istanbul, Turkey.

#ancient architecture #medusa #stonework #column #history

[sixteenseveredhands]

Bronze Age Libation Vessel from Crete, c. 1600-1450 BCE: the body of this 3,600-year-old vessel was carved from a single block of rock crystal

The collar of this libation vessel is decorated with discs of gilded ivory, while the handle is formed by a length of bronze wire and fourteen beads made of rock crystal. The vessel itself is about 16.5cm tall (roughly 6.5 inches) when measured from the base up to the rim.

Libation vessels such as this were widely used to pour ritual offerings, such as wine (or other alcoholic substances), water, honey, olive oil, milk, or grain, usually in honor of a deity or in remembrance of the dead. These ritual vessels are also known as rhyta (or the singular rhyton). They were especially common among ancient cultures, but have also been used by many other peoples throughout history, and similar libation vessels are still used within certain religious/cultural traditions today.

This particular vessel was crafted and used by the Minoans -- a Bronze Age civilization that once flourished on the island of Crete. It was unearthed from the ruins of the Central Palace of Zakros.

According to The Heraklion Archaeological Museum:

This small libation vessel, a true masterpiece of Minoan art, is one of the most valuable ritual vessels of the Central Sanctuary of Zakros. The body and neck are made separately. The body of the rhyton is carved from a particularly large block of rock crystal. The vase was found shattered into hundreds of tiny pieces, which were restored with marvellous skill by the conservators of the Heraklion Archaeological Museum. The collar around the join between neck and body is decorated with gilded ivory discs. The tall, curved handle is formed of fourteen crystal beads threaded on bronze wire and was found almost intact during the excavation, with the beads still in place.

The skill of the Minoan craftsman is evident not only from the decorative details of the rhyton but also from the fact that he was able to create such a fine-walled vessel without cracking the particularly hard raw material. The aesthetic perfection of the rhyton is as impressive as the technical skill required to produce it. Its symbolic value as a ritual vessel is heightened by the precious ivory and the metals, all of which were imported to Crete from distant parts of the East Mediterranean.

Sources & More Info:

Heraklion Archaeological Museum: Rock Crystal Libation Vessel/Rhyton

World History Encyclopedia: Minoan Rock-Crystal Vase

Minoan Crete: Zakros

#archaeology #history #artifact #ancient history #art #bronze age #minoan #crete #greece #europe #rhyton #ritual artifact #religious art #ancient religion #rock crystal #ancient art #crafting #crystals #stonework #ritual

[viridian-pickle]

#architecture #ancient #historic #stonework #doorway #monochrome #simple #beautiful #symmetry #photography

[tenth-sentence]

In those days the Dwarves still came on their journeys into Beleriand from their mansions in Ered Lindon, and passing over Gelion at Sarn Athrad, the Ford of Stones, they travelled the ancient road to Dorianth; for their skill in the working of metal and stone was very great, and there was much need of their craft in the halls of Menegroth.

"The Silmarillion" - J.R.R. Tolkien

#book quote #the silmarillion #jrr tolkien #dwarves #dwarven crafts #journey #mansion #ford #ancient road #metalwork #stonework #craft #metalcraft #stone craft #halls #elves #beleriand #ered lindon #gelion #sarn athrad #ford of stones #dorianth #menegroth

[discworldquotes]

Here and there huge patches of fungi, luminous with decay, cast a faint glow over the ancient stonework.* *It didn't need to. Cuddy, belonging to a race that worked underground for preference, and Detritus, a member of a race notoriously nocturnal, had excellent vision in the dark. But mysterious caves and tunnels always have luminous fungi, strangely bright crystals or at a pinch merely an eldritch glow in the air, just in case a human hero comes in and needs to see in the dark. Strange but true.

Terry Pratchett, Men at Arms

#Discworld #Terry Pratchett #Men at Arms #Cuddy #Detritus #footnotes

[chaoswarfare]

dp x dc prompt #53

Bruce thought he knew what to expect when it came to a fight between ghosts.

Danny had always phrased it like some sort of schoolyard scuffle, or a brawl in a ring. Looking back, Danny managed to gloss over or completely deflect any details that could worry them, but Bruce really thought that it was because his son didn’t want to worry him with any concerning details.

He was really starting to regret that.

Phantom and the ancient clashed like two natural disasters converging, howling and clawing at everything around them as they forgot to put any effort into maintaining their form. Dark clouds blew cold rain down on the barely visible combatants, and it was impossible to distinguish the shriek of the fighting ghosts and the wind. Bruce could hardly find it in himself to react as crumbling stonework rained around him, and Dick pulled him completely off his feet to get him away from the calamity going on in front of him. It was nothing less than apocalyptic. It was beautiful.

(Danny was finally getting the chance to be, maybe not normal, but human with his new home. It was an unbelievably easy transition to get settled in. That should have been his first sign that something would inevitably go wrong.)

#danny phantom #danny fenton #dc x dp #crossover #dc universe #dp x dc #dp x dc crossover #writing prompt #writing #batpham #batman #richard grayson #danny is either bruce’s son or gets adopted(read- snatched) #ghosts are way op #extra op danny phantom #he could duke it out with gods and win without breaking much of a sweat #bruce wayne has never seen a ghost #he almost wishes he was back to that point #keep calm and run away from the warring gods dammit! #nothing #just an absolutely mind blowing fight between two apocalyptic deities #art prompt #art #i #i want to see this and i don’t care how #if i have to be summoned into the fight to see it happen so be it

[briarcrawford]

A Common Problem With Fantasy Castles: The Details

Commonly, in both books and movies, the castles are shown or described as having bare, cold, stone walls and floors. They look dark, depressing, and sometimes not even all that impressive even though someone important is living there. What people are forgetting is that when you invite people into your castle, how it looks can be a representation of how powerful you are. As well as that, if you are going to live there, you will want to make it comfortable.

Yes some castles did have bare stone, but I just want to clarify that it is not your only option. Here are some ideas on how make your fantasy castles seem more interesting:

Flooring

Wood Stains. You can stain wood a variety of colors

Tiles. Hand-painted medieval tiles can be absolutely stunning (though expensive) and some have lasted even to today.

Rugs and Carpets. Not only do they help with warmth, but they can also send a message. If someone enters a castle and there is a rug on the floor that would have cost a fortune to make, that tells the visitor that this person has so much money, it is fine to walk on the rug.

Walls

Whitewashing. Whitewashing castle walls(sometimes after smoothing them with plaster) was extremely common, which alone brings a lot of brightness to the room.

Fabric. Tapestry was a quick and less expensive way to add extra insulation to a room, and also added color. Imagine elaborate hand-stitched artworks.

Wainscoting. This is simply just wood added to the wall for decoration, but it can be expensive.

Stonework. The stone of the castle itself could be made beautiful. For an example of amazing carved stonework, look up Rosslyn Chapel.

Paintwork. Yes, medieval times did have colorful paints. Many of the mural decorations were incredibly detailed, but even simple flowers were popular to paint on walls.

Other Décor

Even medieval people hung up items just for the sake of decoration. Commonly in movies, the most interesting thing you see on the walls is a coat-of-arms, or maybe a boars head, but you do have more options.

Suits of Armor. Many suits of armour for royals would never see battle, but they could be shown off. This was a way of showing your power. In fact, children, dogs, cats, and even elephants, have all had armour made for them, even though some of these would never see battle, or quickly grow out of the fit.

Imported Items. Imports were expensive, and having decorations from another culture made you look educated and rich.

Furniture. Could be metal, wood, or stone. It could be amazingly detailed.

Statues. Keep in mind that many of statues used to be painted, so they don’t have to all be void of color. They also do not all have to be about a families history; sometimes people are passionate about a certain subject. For example, a king might have an obsession with an ancient culture and collect statues about that cultures myths.

Weapons. I have been into a few castles where the collections of weapons cover the walls of the entire rooms.

Pottery. Ancient or simply just the most famous artist of the times.

Lighting. Candles, especially beeswax, were not cheap. Having enough candles to brighten an entire room is for sure a show of wealth.

#Worldbuilding #how to write #writers on tumblr #fantasywriter #writingfantasy #writing tip #writing help #writing tips #writing advice #fantasy writer #writing fantasy #write #writer #writing #writers of tumblr #writeblr #worldbuildingcities

[pianokantzart]

The Super Mario Bros. Redux (Pt. 4)

What would happen if, in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, after Mario and Luigi are separated, Mario was the one who ended up in the clutches of Luigi’s eventual arch nemesis, while Luigi teamed up with some of his own close allies to go rescue him?

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

________

Luigi and E. Gadd get off the train at a station in the middle of a massive desert kingdom where the ground is covered in intricate, ancient stonework pathways, and the sky filled with enormous floating pyramids.

Birabuto Kingdom, while bustling, is not quite as crowded as the coastal circuit, so Luigi finds it far easier to keep up with E. Gadd's hurried pace as they move toward a sandstone palace in the center of the city that reaches so far into the sky it overlooks even the floating pyramids.

The whole time they are traveling, neither realize they are being followed at a distance by the ghost dog from the train. Turning invisible and slipping into walls to remain undetected, it seems to be paying close attention to Luigi in particular.

As E. Gadd and Luigi arrive at the doors of the palace they're stopped by two large Gao who, after evaluating the duo, allow Professor Elvin Gadd to enter– as they had been expecting him– but tell Luigi he must wait in the courtyard.

E. Gadd reassures Luigi it shouldn't be long, and enters the castle with The Poltergust on his back and a bunch of paperwork tucked under his arm. Luigi obediently finds a quiet, shady spot in courtyard, and waits.

While waiting, he holds his hat dejectedly in his hands, running his palm over the "L" stitched into the front, when he's startled by a loud bark. He turns, and is terrified to see a little white ghost dog bounding directly toward him.

He fall over backwards in a panic, whimpering in fear, but to his surprise the dog doesn't attack. Instead, it licks his face, then pushes its forehead under his hand in a less-than-subtle demand for affection.

Luigi nervously gives the ghost dog what it wants, then starts scratching the sides of his neck, and eventually can't help but smile as it leans into him in an adoring nuzzle.

"Heh... not so scary for a poltergeist. Not even very scary as far as dogs go. You're just a friendly little pup, aren't you? A silly little polterpup..."

Just as Luigi seems to be warming up to the ghost dog, it spots his hat and playfully snatches it away, turning to Luigi with a play bow and a wagging tail. Luigi meekly asks the dog to give the hat back, but Polterpup takes that as a cue to initiate a game of chase.

Luigi tries his best to retrieve his stolen hat, but Polterpup proves very good at keepaway. The two bound past the guards into the castle, with Luigi offering a quick "SorryI'llberightback!" over his shoulder.

Pandemonium soon follows. Polterpup's recklessness and Luigi's clumsiness knocks over people and furniture alike as they rush through palace corridors, and Luigi's numerous apologies do nothing to quell the slowly growing swarm of guards chasing after him.

Meanwhile, in a grandiose meeting room, Professor E. Gadd is speaking before The Four Kings of Sarasaland: A great water dragon (King Dragonzamasu), a hovering cloud (King Biokinton), a giant sentient stone head (King Hiyoihoi), and an enormous sphinx-like lion (King Totomesu). The Professor is explaining The Dark Moon, the dangers posed by its absence, the current state of Evershade Valley, and the looming threat of King Boo.

When E. Gadd pulls out blueprints of all the inventions that were destroyed when his lab in Evershade Valley was attacked and starts listing off all the materials he'll need in order to rebuild, King Totomesu silences him.

King Totomesu reminds Professor E. Gadd that he was promised sanctuary and a new place to live, nothing more. E. Gadd tries to insist that he has the knowledge and the tech necessary to nip the ghost invasion in the bud if he only had some help, but all four kings seem to doubt him.

King Hiyoihoi suspects that the ghost invasion isn't as nearly a big of a threat as E. Gadd is making it out to be, stating that Sarasaland can fight off King Boo's forces the same way it has the thousands of other armies that have threatened their lands in centuries past.

King Dragonzamasu reminds E. Gadd that he had a bad habit of losing his inventions– making mention of Bowser Jr.'s Magic Brush– and states they have no intention of funding anything they couldn't trust would stay out of enemy hands. On that same note, King Biokinton comments that King Boo was using Professor E. Gadd's technology– The Portrificationizer– as a means of holding hostages at that very moment.

Overall, the four kings seem to agree that however big the encroaching threat, they didn't quite trust E. Gadd when it came to how he handled his own tech.

That is when Luigi barges in, leaping upon Polterpup and finally retrieving his hat as the ghost dog disappears into the floor. Luigi places his hat back on his head, reveling in a short-lived sense of victory before he is slammed to the ground by roughly a dozen guards while another dozen try to explain the situation to their kings.

Amidst the pandemonium, Professor E. Gadd asks for Luigi's release. The Kings oblige, but not without demanding an explanation. E. Gadd's face slowly brightens as he cobbles together a story: "This is my new assistant! You are right, in my age I've started losing track of things, and that is why I hired Luigi here to take charge of all my new tech! The whipper snapper is strong as he is quick, and a real wiz with The Poltergust!"

The Kings seem skeptical, but can't deny that it's impressive he managed to get so far into the palace before being apprehended. They look Luigi up and down. Luigi stares vacantly back at them like a deer in the headlights.

King Totomesu, noting the man's obvious nervousness, decides to strike a deal: that evening they would hold a match in The Battle Stadium, in which Luigi would wield his Poltergust against Sarasaland's own reigning champion. If he proved himself worthy, they would give Professor E. Gadd everything he requested.

Luigi wrings his newly-recovered green cap in his hands as he tries to come up with an answer based on the little he knew. Looking at The Professor... who seems to sincerely believe in him... and looking down at the hat in his hands and remembering his brother, he ultimately agrees to the king's terms.

Luigi is rethinking the decision by the time he is at The Battle Stadium, being ushered to the arena doors by E. Gadd. Luigi is barely holding it together, shakily insisting that he doesn't know how to fight.

E. Gadd dismisses these fears. He tells Luigi to let the machine do all the fighting, explaining to him the two new features he added (the strobulb and the suction shot), before unceremoniously shoving him through the doors into the bright light of the crowded arena.

When Luigi's eyes adjust he finds himself in an arena more colorful and complicated than any he'd ever seen, full of obstacles and intricate moving parts. A strange turtle creature riding on a cloud holds a camera up to Luigi's face, and next thing he knows his own perplexed stare is repeated across giant screens all around The Battle Stadium.

As the overstimulation of the new environment wears off, Luigi realizes he's being booed. He nervously pulls his hat over the sides of his face to hide himself from the jeering crowd, and only dares look up when the audience is silenced by the twang of an electric guitar.

The upbeat rock music continues and the crowd's energy shifts, turning from an excited murmur to uproarious applause as a figure bursts onto the scene from the opposite end of the stadium. For a moment, Luigi can't make out more than the flutter of a bright orange dress until the arena screens brighten with a very different face– a bright, beautiful, cheerful, confident face.

"Hi! I'm Daisy!" his opponent declares, striking a victorious pose for the camera as the crowd goes absolutely nuts.

#Mario AU #Mario Movie #Princess Daisy #Super Mario Bros Redux AU #Luigi #Super Mario Brothers

[kungseyesfr]

#question everything #history #ancient #ancestors #messoamerica #megastructures #megaliths #ancient stonework

[thesilicontribesman]

Roman Relief Showing Mithras Being Born From The Cosmic Egg, Housesteads Mithraeum, Hadrian's Wall, Great North Museum, Hancock, Newcastle upon Tyne

#Mithras #Mithraeum #Temple of Mithras #roman #romans #roman living #roman empire #roman army #Hadrian's Wall #Newcastle #archaeology #stonework #relic #artefact #ancient craft #ancient living #ancient cultures #deity #cult

[lionofchaeronea]

Sculpture of a member of the Egyptian royal family. Artist unknown; 18th Dynasty, Amarna Period. Now in the Neues Museum, Berlin. Photo credit: Gary Todd.

#art #art history #ancient art #Egypt #Ancient Egypt #Egyptian art #Ancient Egyptian art #18th Dynasty #New Kingdom #Amarna Period #sculpture #portrait sculpture #portrait bust #stonework #carving #Neues Museum

[1five1two]

#stonework #eagle #symbolism #ancient worlds

[assortedvillainvault]

ok if acceptable I'm dropping one more before closing time

"I remember you" with a reader being the reincarnation of someone the Horned King once loved

*Clutches chest* ROOOSSEEE-

This hurts me. In like, the best way. Here we go, modern reincarnation because I low-key would like to get lost in the Welsh Mountains forever (I have deadlines).

Also please forgive the Google translated Welsh at the end I did not have the time to look up proper medieval Welsh and asking someone real to translate would have been good to think of before I started operating on 5% brain. If anyone following me is a native Welsh speaker pls DM me or leave a comment and I'll correct Google's attempt.

The Horned King x Reincarnated!Reader : 'I Remember You'

You have no fucking clue why you're here.

'Here' being the Ass-End of Nowhere, Wales. No phone reception, no services, no people and no tourists. Except, uh, yourself. Obviously.

You got up, drove out, picked a random direction between two hills and. Started walking. You don't even know why.

You just know that there's something further into the mountains that your soul is ITCHING to get to. You've always felt it, but recently ignoring it has started to feel like being pulled through barbed wire.

The ground is rough and uneven, tussocks and hidden rocks threaten to turn your ankles every other step. The trees that twist their way along the crevices of the high moorland are all but draped in moss and thorns. The mountains arching up behind them are unwelcoming, cold and cragged.

It's...eerily quiet. No birds, no people...even the sheep seemed to stop at some hidden border a few miles back. Just the low moan of the wind accompanies you.

As you walk, you find yourself stealing glances at the sky. You tell yourself it's for birds - Kites and eagles maybe - but you have to keep a strange disappointment down that it's nothing larger. What are you expecting for fucks sake? Dragons??

You're so busy scanning the skies that you topple arse over tea kettle down the next scree slope like a graceful spaghetti mannequin with a screaming feature.

You manage to scrabble and hiss to a stop, skin on your arms and legs scraped raw. And upon looking up suck in a breath that has nothing to do with your sliced up hands.

It's as though a giant scooped the earth away and set it on fire for good measure. Bare reddish black rock contends with a bitter snarl of dead grasses and lonely tree corpses. Beyond lies a dessicated crevass that looks like a lake drained away overnight.

Beyond that, is a castle.

You blink and tear the vision that seared across your eyes - of a fully fleshed gothic fortress - away. What lies before you is a ruin. The bones of the structure, at best.

The barbed wire in your soul is all but yanking you toward the ancient structure. You don't notice that the path you tread towards it is one you can find without looking, despite the terrain.

The bridge, rotted and rusted as it is, is mostly secure. You keep your weight to the bolted metal crisscrossing the wood as you make your way across, slow and steady and feeling as though phantom archers have their sights on you from atop the wall.

As you pass under the archway to the courtyard, you shiver violently. The feeling of passing under so familiar that it almost clawed it's way out from your skin.

The very air seems to hold it's breath as you make your way deeper into the crumbling structure. Water drips from the stonework, the doors all long since rotted from their hinges. Tools lie forgotten on the cobbles. If it wasn't so creepy it would be an archaeologists dream.

Why does no-one around seem to know this is here? Why is this place so undisturbed?

You stumble into what must have been the Great Hall.

Cold sunlight shafts through holes in the ceiling, the corners in absolute darkness. Skeletons lie in piles across the floor, roughly around where large tables should have been, weapons scattered akimbo as though they didn't even get a chance to use them before they fell.

Your eyes are dragged to the dias. There's a body on the throne.

It's slouched, slumped, as if whoever this was had thrown themselves back on the seat and collapsed in exhaustion. The mothbitten red robe and fur stole is strung with spiderwebs connecting them him to the throne, but this isn't what yanks on the barbed wire in your soul.

The pair of great, regal thorn like horns protuding from the figures hood are angled towards you.

Your feet carry you forward.

The figures face is obscured but you know it, the fingers curled loosely still with flesh, after all this time, no weapons around the dias but no evidence of wounds on the body as if he would need them, as if they could ever lay a finger on their King-

Your hand trembles, reaching out to touch the nearest horn irrestisably, not even daring to breathe.

The corpse lurches.

An arctic vice closes on your wrist, bones grinding as he yanks you to your knees on the stone. His fist is impossible to pry loose even as you scrabble at it, nails ripping at leathery hide- heart pounding-

His second hand closes on your neck and you freeze.

Twin red lights blaze from under the hood. Pupils in a black socket that focus hazily on your face, blinking as if rising from a dream that still has its hooks in him. The hand on your neck squeezes and you gasp, eyes bulging, wrist forgotten as you plead with your hands against the unstoppable force around your neck.

Brows twitch as he watches you struggle. Marginally, the fingers loosen and you suck in air, sounding like a broken bellows compared to the cathedral-esque empty quality of the air passing through his chest.

Gently, reverently, knarled fingers parse hair from your forehead. You didn't even realise he'd released your wrist. Your throat remains in his grip.

You meet his gaze as the last of the fog clears from his sockets. His voice, rusted and broken from disuse, still rumbles from his throat like a shuddering landslide.

"Rwy'n eich cofio, fy annwyl."

"I remember you, my dear."

#thalassa responds #rose this is one of the best asks ive ever gotten thank you #i hope you like this!! #the horned king x reader #disney villains x reader #the horned king #disney villains #x reader #HOOOO let me tell you this was a major self insert moment #what will it take to get me a lich king bf honestly #lich simps arise