1.
Madagascar
–
Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, and previously known as the Malagasy Republic, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Southeast Africa. The nation comprises the island of Madagascar, and numerous smaller peripheral islands, consequently, Madagascar is a biodiversity hotspot, over 90% of its wildlife is found nowhere else on Earth. The islands diverse ecosystems and unique wildlife are threatened by the encroachment of the growing human population. The first archaeological evidence for human foraging on Madagascar dates to 2000 BC, human settlement of Madagascar occurred between 350 BC and AD550 by Austronesian peoples arriving on outrigger canoes from Borneo. These were joined around AD1000 by Bantu migrants crossing the Mozambique Channel from East Africa, other groups continued to settle on Madagascar over time, each one making lasting contributions to Malagasy cultural life. The Malagasy ethnic group is divided into 18 or more sub-groups of which the largest are the Merina of the central highlands. Until the late 18th century, the island of Madagascar was ruled by an assortment of shifting sociopolitical alliances. Beginning in the early 19th century, most of the island was united and ruled as the Kingdom of Madagascar by a series of Merina nobles, the monarchy collapsed in 1897 when the island was absorbed into the French colonial empire, from which the island gained independence in 1960. The autonomous state of Madagascar has since undergone four major constitutional periods, since 1992, the nation has officially been governed as a constitutional democracy from its capital at Antananarivo. However, in an uprising in 2009, president Marc Ravalomanana was made to resign. Constitutional governance was restored in January 2014, when Hery Rajaonarimampianina was named president following a 2013 election deemed fair, Madagascar is a member of the United Nations, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie and the Southern African Development Community. Madagascar belongs to the group of least developed countries, according to the United Nations, Malagasy and French are both official languages of the state. The majority of the population adheres to traditional beliefs, Christianity, ecotourism and agriculture, paired with greater investments in education, health, and private enterprise, are key elements of Madagascars development strategy. As of 2017, the economy has been weakened by the 2009-2013 political crisis, in the Malagasy language, the island of Madagascar is called Madagasikara and its people are referred to as Malagasy. The islands appellation Madagascar is not of origin, but rather was popularized in the Middle Ages by Europeans. On St. Laurences Day in 1500, Portuguese explorer Diogo Dias landed on the island, polos name was preferred and popularized on Renaissance maps. At 592,800 square kilometres, Madagascar is the worlds 47th largest country, the country lies mostly between latitudes 12°S and 26°S, and longitudes 43°E and 51°E. Neighboring islands include the French territory of Réunion and the country of Mauritius to the east, as well as the state of Comoros, the nearest mainland state is Mozambique, located to the west
Madagascar
–
The terraced paddy fields of the
central highlands of Madagascar (left) give way to tropical rainforest along the eastern coast (center) bordered by the shores of the
Indian Ocean (right).
Madagascar
–
Flag
Madagascar
Madagascar
–
The grassy plains that dominate the western landscape are dotted with stony massifs (left), patches of deciduous forest, and
baobab trees (center), while the south is characterized by desert and
spiny forests (right).
2.
Spiders
–
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other orders of organisms, Spiders are found worldwide on every continent except for Antarctica, and have become established in nearly every habitat with the exceptions of air and sea colonization. As of November 2015, at least 45,700 spider species, anatomically, spiders differ from other arthropods in that the usual body segments are fused into two tagmata, the cephalothorax and abdomen, and joined by a small, cylindrical pedicel. Unlike insects, spiders do not have antennae, in all except the most primitive group, the Mesothelae, spiders have the most centralized nervous systems of all arthropods, as all their ganglia are fused into one mass in the cephalothorax. Unlike most arthropods, spiders have no extensor muscles in their limbs and their abdomens bear appendages that have been modified into spinnerets that extrude silk from up to six types of glands. Spider webs vary widely in size, shape and the amount of thread used. It now appears that the orb web may be one of the earliest forms. Spider-like arachnids with silk-producing spigots appeared in the Devonian period about 386 million years ago, true spiders have been found in Carboniferous rocks from 318 to 299 million years ago, and are very similar to the most primitive surviving suborder, the Mesothelae. The main groups of spiders, Mygalomorphae and Araneomorphae, first appeared in the Triassic period. It is estimated that 25 million tons of spiders kill 400–800 million tons of prey per year. Spiders use a range of strategies to capture prey, trapping it in sticky webs, lassoing it with sticky bolas, mimicking the prey to avoid detection. Spiders guts are too narrow to take solids, and they liquefy their food by flooding it with digestive enzymes and they also grind food with the bases of their pedipalps, as arachnids do not have the mandibles that crustaceans and insects have. Male spiders identify themselves by a variety of courtship rituals to avoid being eaten by the females. Males of most species survive a few matings, limited mainly by their life spans. Females weave silk egg-cases, each of which may contain hundreds of eggs, females of many species care for their young, for example by carrying them around or by sharing food with them. A minority of species are social, building communal webs that may house anywhere from a few to 50,000 individuals, social behavior ranges from precarious toleration, as in the widow spiders, to co-operative hunting and food-sharing. Although most spiders live for at most two years, tarantulas and other spiders can live up to 25 years in captivity. While the venom of a few species is dangerous to humans, scientists are now researching the use of venom in medicine
Spiders
Spiders
–
Palystes castaneus female dorsal aspect 1: pedipalp 2: trichobothria 3: carapace of prosoma (cephalothorax) 4: opisthosoma (abdomen) 5: eyes – AL (anterior lateral) AM (anterior median) PL (posterior lateral) PM (posterior median) Leg segments: 6: costa 7: trochanter 8: patella 9: tibia 10: metatarsus 11: tarsus 13: claw 14: chelicera
Spiders
–
Nos 1 to 14 as for dorsal aspect 15: sternum of prosoma 16: pedicel (also called pedicle) 17: book lung sac 18: book lung stigma 19: epigastric fold 20: epigyne 21: anterior spinneret 22: posterior spinneret I, II, III, IV = Leg numbers from anterior to posterior
Spiders
–
Cheiracanthium punctorium, displaying fangs
3.
Termites
–
Termites are eusocial insects that are classified at the taxonomic rank of infraorder Isoptera, or as epifamily Termitoidae within the cockroach order Blattodea. Termites were once classified in an order from cockroaches. However, the first termites emerged during the Permian or even the Carboniferous. About 3,106 species are described, with a few hundred more left to be described. Although these insects are called white ants, they are not ants. Like ants and some bees and wasps from the separate order Hymenoptera, all colonies have fertile males called kings and one or more fertile females called queens. Termites mostly feed on plant material and cellulose, generally in the form of wood, leaf litter, soil. Termites are major detritivores, particularly in the subtropical and tropical regions, Termites are among the most successful groups of insects on Earth, colonising most landmasses except for Antarctica. Their colonies range in size from a few hundred individuals to enormous societies with several million individuals, Termite queens have the longest lifespan of any insect in the world, with some queens reportedly living up to 30 to 50 years. Unlike ants, which undergo a metamorphosis, each individual termite goes through an incomplete metamorphosis that proceeds through egg, nymph. Colonies are described as superorganisms because the termites form part of a self-regulating entity, Termites are a delicacy in the diet of some human cultures and are used in many traditional medicines. Several hundred species are significant as pests that can cause serious damage to buildings, crops. Some species, such as the West Indian drywood termite, are regarded as invasive species, the infraorder name Isoptera is derived from the Greek words iso and ptera, which refers to the nearly equal size of the fore and hind wings. Termite derives from the Latin and Late Latin word termes, altered by the influence of Latin terere from the earlier word tarmes, Termite nests were commonly known as terminarium or termitaria. In early English, termites were known as wood ants or white ants, the modern term was first used in 1781. DNA analysis from 16S rRNA sequences has supported a hypothesis, originally suggested by Cleveland and colleagues in 1934 and this earlier conclusion had been based on the similarity of the symbiotic gut flagellates in the wood-eating cockroaches to those in certain species of termites regarded as living fossils. In the 1960s additional evidence supporting that hypothesis emerged when F. A. McKittrick noted similar morphological characteristics between some termites and Cryptocercus nymphs. These similarities have led some authors to propose that termites be reclassified as a family, the Termitidae, within the order Blattodea
Termites
Termites
–
The external appearance of the giant northern termite Mastotermes darwiniensis is suggestive of the close relationship between termites and cockroaches
Termites
–
Fossilised
Nanotermes isaacae termite alate in Cambay amber
Termites
–
Close-up view of a worker's head
4.
Ants
–
Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from ancestors in the Cretaceous period, about 99 million years ago. More than 12,500 of an total of 22,000 species have been classified. They are easily identified by their antennae and the distinctive node-like structure that forms their slender waists. Larger colonies consist mostly of sterile, wingless females forming castes of workers, soldiers, nearly all ant colonies also have some fertile males called drones and one or more fertile females called queens. The colonies are described as superorganisms because the ants appear to operate as a unified entity, Ants have colonised almost every landmass on Earth. The only places lacking indigenous ants are Antarctica and a few remote or inhospitable islands, Ants thrive in most ecosystems and may form 15–25% of the terrestrial animal biomass. Their success in so many environments has been attributed to their organisation and their ability to modify habitats, tap resources. Their long co-evolution with other species has led to mimetic, commensal, parasitic, Ant societies have division of labour, communication between individuals, and an ability to solve complex problems. These parallels with human societies have long been an inspiration and subject of study, many human cultures make use of ants in cuisine, medication, and rituals. Some species are valued in their role as biological pest control agents and their ability to exploit resources may bring ants into conflict with humans, however, as they can damage crops and invade buildings. Some species, such as the red imported fire ant, are regarded as invasive species, all of these words come from West Germanic *ēmaitijǭ, and the original meaning of the word was the biter. The family Formicidae belongs to the order Hymenoptera, which also includes sawflies, bees, Ants evolved from a lineage within the aculeate wasps, and a 2013 study suggests that they are a sister group of the Apoidea. In 1966, E. O. Wilson and his colleagues identified the remains of an ant that lived in the Cretaceous period. The specimen, trapped in amber dating back to around 92 million years ago, has found in some wasps. Sphecomyrma possibly was a ground forager, while Haidomyrmex and Haidomyrmodes, older ants in the genus Sphecomyrmodes have been found in 99 million year-old amber from Myanmar. After the rise of flowering plants about 100 million years ago they diversified and assumed ecological dominance around 60 million years ago. Some groups, such as the Leptanillinae and Martialinae, are suggested to have diversified from early primitive ants that were likely to have been predators underneath the surface of the soil, during the Cretaceous period, a few species of primitive ants ranged widely on the Laurasian supercontinent
Ants
Ants
–
Ants fossilised in
Baltic amber
Ants
–
Bull ant showing the powerful mandibles and the relatively large compound eyes that provide excellent vision
Ants
–
Seven
Leafcutter ant workers of various castes (left) and two Queens (right)
5.
Elateridae
–
Insects in the family Elateridae are commonly called click beetles. Other names include elaters, snapping beetles, spring beetles or skipjacks and this family was defined by William Elford Leach in 1815. They are a cosmopolitan beetle family characterized by the unusual click mechanism they possess, there are a few closely related families in which a few members have the same mechanism, but all elaterids can click. A spine on the prosternum can be snapped into a notch on the mesosternum. Clicking is mainly used to avoid predation, although it is useful when the beetle is on its back. There are about 9300 known species worldwide, and 965 valid species in North America, Click beetles can be large and colorful, but most are under 2 centimeters long and dull in coloration and patterning. The adults are nocturnal and phytophagous, but rarely of economic importance. On hot nights they may enter houses, but are not pests, Click beetle larvae, called wireworms, are usually saprophagous, living on dead organisms, but some species are serious agricultural pests, and others are active predators of other insect larvae. Some elaterid species are bioluminescent in both larval and adult form, such as those of the genus Pyrophorus, larvae are slender, elongate, cylindrical or somewhat flattened, with relatively hard bodies, somewhat resembling mealworms. The ninth segment, the rearmost, is pointed in larvae of Agriotes, Dalopius and Melanotus, the dorsum of the ninth abdominal segment may also have sharp processes, such as in the Oestodini, including the genera Drapetes and Oestodes. Methods for pest control include crop rotation and clearing the land of insects before sowing, rines, George Edwin, ed. Click Beetle. Media related to Elateridae at Wikimedia Commons Data related to Click beetle at Wikispecies Elateridae, Click Beetles of the Palearctic Region. On the University of Florida / Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Featured Creatures website, Click beetles, Alaus spp
Elateridae
–
Click beetles
Elateridae
–
Lateral aspect of a typical member of the Elateridae. Just below the base of the wings the "clicking" apparatus is visible in silhouette, with the "peg" or "process" in contact with the raised slot or "cavity" into which it slips to force the impact when required
6.
Hymenoptera
–
Hymenoptera is the third-largest order of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. Over 150,000 species are recognized, with many more remaining to be described, females typically have a special ovipositor for inserting eggs into hosts or otherwise inaccessible places. The ovipositor is modified into a stinger. The young develop through holometabolism —that is, they have a larval stage. The name Hymenoptera refers to the wings of the insects, all references agree that the derivation involves the Ancient Greek πτερόν for wing. The Ancient Greek ὑμήν for membrane provides an etymology for the term because this order like several others has membranous wings. However, a key characteristic of this order is that the wings are connected to the fore wings by a series of hooks. Thus, another plausible etymology involves Hymen, the Ancient Greek god of marriage, Hymenoptera originated in the Triassic, with the oldest fossils belonging to the family Xyelidae. Social hymenopterans appeared during the Cretaceous, the evolution of this group has been intensively studied by Alex Rasnitsyn, Michael S. Engel, G. Dlussky, and others. This clade has been studied by examining the mitochondrial DNA, although this study was unable to resolve all the ambiguities in this clade, some relationships could be established. The Aculeata, Ichneumonomorpha, and Proctotrupomorpha were monophyletic, the Megalyroidea and Trigonalyoidea are sister clades as are the Chalcidoidea+Diaprioidea. The Cynipoidea was generally recovered as the group to Chalcidoidea and Diaprioidea which are each others closest relations. The cladogram is based on Schulmeister 2003, hymenopterans range in size from very small to large insects, and usually have two pairs of wings. Their mouthparts are adapted for chewing, with well-developed mandibles, many species have further developed the mouthparts into a lengthy proboscis, with which they can drink liquids, such as nectar. They have large eyes, and typically three simple eyes. The forward margin of the hind wing bears a number of hooked bristles, or hamuli, the smaller species may have only two or three hamuli on each side, but the largest wasps may have a considerable number, keeping the wings gripped together especially tightly. Hymenopteran wings have relatively few veins compared with other insects. In the more ancestral hymenopterans, the ovipositor is blade-like, and has evolved for slicing plant tissues, in the majority, however, it is modified for piercing, and, in some cases, is several times the length of the body
Hymenoptera
Hymenoptera
–
Bombus muscorum drinking nectar with its lengthy proboscis
Hymenoptera
–
Giant honey bee
Apis dorsata on
Tribulus terrestris in
Hyderabad, India
Hymenoptera
–
Extant
7.
Cockroach
–
Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattodea, which also includes termites. About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats, about four species are well known as pests. The cockroaches are an ancient group, dating back at least as far as the Carboniferous period and those early ancestors however lacked the internal ovipositors of modern roaches. They are common and hardy insects, and can tolerate a range of environments from Arctic cold to tropical heat. Some species, such as the gregarious German cockroach, have a social structure involving common shelter, social dependence, information transfer. Cockroaches have appeared in human culture since classical antiquity and they are popularly depicted as dirty pests, though the great majority of species are inoffensive and live in a wide range of habitats around the world. Cockroaches are members of the order Blattodea, which includes the termites, currently,4,600 species and over 460 genera are described worldwide. The name cockroach comes from the Spanish word for cockroach, cucaracha, transformed by 1620s English folk etymology into cock and roach. The scientific name derives from the Latin blatta, an insect that shuns the light, which in classical Latin was applied not only to cockroaches, the current catalogue of world cockroach species uses the name Blattodea for the group. Another name, Blattoptera, is sometimes used. The earliest cockroach-like fossils are from the Carboniferous period 320 million years ago, since the 19th century, scientists believed that cockroaches were an ancient group of insects that had a Devonian origin, according to one hypothesis. Fossil roachoids that lived during that time differ from modern cockroaches in having long external ovipositors and are the ancestors of mantises, as the body, hind wings and mouthparts are not preserved in fossils frequently, the relationship of these roachoids and modern cockroaches remains disputed. The first fossils of modern cockroaches with internal ovipositors appeared in the early Cretaceous, a recent phylogenetic analysis suggests that cockroaches originated at least in the Jurassic. The evolutionary relationships of the Blattodea shown in the cladogram are based on Eggleton, the cockroach families Lamproblattidae and Tryonicidae are not shown but are placed within the superfamily Blattoidea. The cockroach families Corydiidae and Ectobiidae were previously known as the Polyphagidae and Blattellidae, termites were previously regarded as a separate order Isoptera to cockroaches. However, recent genetic evidence suggests that they evolved directly from true cockroaches. This evidence supported a hypothesis suggested in 1934 that termites are closely related to the wood-eating cockroaches and this hypothesis was originally based on similarity of the symbiotic gut flagellates in termites regarded as living fossils and wood-eating cockroaches. Additional evidence emerged when F. A. McKittrick noted similar morphological characteristics between some termites and cockroach nymphs, the similarities among these cockroaches and termites have led some scientists to reclassify termites as a single family, the Termitidae, within the order Blattodea
Cockroach
–
A 40- to 50-million-year-old cockroach in
Baltic amber (
Eocene)
Cockroach
Cockroach
–
Head of a
Periplaneta americana
Cockroach
–
A cockroach soon after
ecdysis
8.
Flower
–
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in plants that are floral. The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs, Flowers may facilitate outcrossing or allow selfing. Some flowers produce diaspores without fertilization, Flowers contain sporangia and are the site where gametophytes develop. Many flowers have evolved to be attractive to animals, so as to them to be vectors for the transfer of pollen. After fertilization, the ovary of the flower develops into fruit containing seeds, the essential parts of a flower can be considered in two parts, the vegetative part, consisting of petals and associated structures in the perianth, and the reproductive or sexual parts. A stereotypical flower consists of four kinds of structures attached to the tip of a short stalk, each of these kinds of parts is arranged in a whorl on the receptacle. The four main whorls are as follows, Collectively the calyx, corolla, the next whorl toward the apex, composed of units called petals, which are typically thin, soft and colored to attract animals that help the process of pollination. Androecium, the whorl, consisting of units called stamens. Stamens consist of two parts, a called a filament, topped by an anther where pollen is produced by meiosis. Gynoecium, the innermost whorl of a flower, consisting of one or more units called carpels, the carpel or multiple fused carpels form a hollow structure called an ovary, which produces ovules internally. Ovules are megasporangia and they in turn produce megaspores by meiosis which develop into female gametophytes and these give rise to egg cells. The gynoecium of a flower is described using an alternative terminology wherein the structure one sees in the innermost whorl is called a pistil. A pistil may consist of a carpel or a number of carpels fused together. The sticky tip of the pistil, the stigma, is the receptor of pollen, the supportive stalk, the style, becomes the pathway for pollen tubes to grow from pollen grains adhering to the stigma. The relationship to the gynoecium on the receptacle is described as hypogynous, perigynous, although the arrangement described above is considered typical, plant species show a wide variation in floral structure. These modifications have significance in the evolution of flowering plants and are used extensively by botanists to establish relationships among plant species, the four main parts of a flower are generally defined by their positions on the receptacle and not by their function. Many flowers lack some parts or parts may be modified into other functions and/or look like what is typically another part, in some families, like Ranunculaceae, the petals are greatly reduced and in many species the sepals are colorful and petal-like. Other flowers have modified stamens that are petal-like, the flowers of Peonies and Roses are mostly petaloid stamens
Flower
–
A poster with flowers or clusters of flowers produced by twelve species of flowering plants from different families
Flower
–
Main parts of a mature flower (
Ranunculus glaberrimus)
Flower
–
Reproductive parts of Easter Lily (Lilium longiflorum). 1. Stigma, 2. Style, 3. Stamens, 4. Filament, 5. Petal
Flower
–
Left: A normal zygomorphic Streptocarpus flower. Right: An aberrant peloric Streptocarpus flower. Both of these flowers appeared on the Streptocarpus hybrid 'Anderson's Crows' Wings'.
9.
Resin
–
In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. They are often mixtures of compounds, principally terpenes. Many plants, particularly woody plants, produce resin in response to injury, the resin acts as a bandage protecting the plant from invading insects and pathogens. Plants secrete resins and rosins for their protective benefits, the resin produced by most plants is composed mainly of terpenes and derivatives. Some resins also contain a proportion of resin acids. The individual components of resin can be separated by fractional distillation, rosins on the other hand are less volatile and consist, inter alia, of diterpenes. Amber is fossil resin from coniferous and other tree species, copal, kauri gum, dammar and other resins may also be found as subfossil deposits. Subfossil copal can be distinguished from genuine fossil amber because it becomes tacky when a drop of a solvent such as acetone or chloroform is placed on it, african copal and the kauri gum of New Zealand are also procured in a semi-fossil condition. Solidified resin from which the volatile terpene components have been removed by distillation is known as rosin, typical rosin is a transparent or translucent mass, with a vitreous fracture and a faintly yellow or brown colour, non-odorous or having only a slight turpentine odor and taste. Rosin is insoluble in water, mostly soluble in alcohol, essential oils, ether and hot fatty oils, and softens and melts under the influence of heat, rosin consists of a complex mixture of different substances including organic acids named the resin acids. These are closely related to the terpenes, and derive from them through partial oxidation, Resin acids can be dissolved in alkalis to form resin soaps, from which the purified resin acids are regenerated by treatment with acids. Examples of resin acids are abietic acid, C20H30O2, plicatic acid contained in cedar, and pimaric acid, C20H30O2, a constituent of galipot resin. Abietic acid can also be extracted from rosin by means of hot alcohol, it crystallizes in leaflets, pimaric acid closely resembles abietic acid into which it passes when distilled in a vacuum, it has been supposed to consist of three isomers. Rosin is obtained from pines and some plants, mostly conifers. Propolis, consisting largely of resins collected from such as poplars and conifers, is used by honey bees to seal gaps in their hives. Shellac and lacquer are examples of insect-derived resins, asphaltite and Utah resin are petroleum bitumens, not a product secreted by plants, although it was ultimately derived from plants. These were highly prized substances, and required as incense in religious rites. The word resin has been applied in the world to nearly any component of a liquid that will set into a hard lacquer or enamel-like finish
Resin
–
Cedar of Lebanon cone showing flecks of resin as used in the
mummification of
Egyptian Pharaohs.
Resin
–
Insect trapped in resin
Resin
–
Extremely viscous resin extruding from the trunk of a mature
Araucaria columnaris.
Resin
–
Resin of a pine
10.
Burseraceae
–
The Burseraceae are a moderate-sized family of 17-19 genera and about 540 species of flowering plants. The actual numbers differ according to the period in which a given source is written describing this family. The Burseraceae are also known as the family, the frankincense and myrrh family. The family includes trees and shrubs, and is native to tropical regions of Africa, Asia. Just as the family size differs according to the period of the study, so, too. Nevertheless, the family is a genetically supported monophyletic group currently and frequently cited within the Sapindales and is recognized as a group to the Anacardiaceae. The Burseraceae are characterized by the resin they produce in virtually all plant tissue. The origins of the family can be traced to the Paleocene when Beiselia mexicana first diverged in Mexico, though the family likely originated in North America, the greatest generic diversity presently is in the Southern Hemisphere. In fact, the synapomorphy of the Burseraceae is the smooth yet peeling or flaking aromatic bark. The clear, nonallergenic resins may smell like almonds, but at least the most well known resins, frankincense and myrrh, have an odor that is distinct from almonds, however, some members are known to have trifoliate or unifoliate leaves. The leaf and leaflet stalks and axis may be brown and scurfy, while the base is swollen. The family members tend to be without stipules, the determinate, axillary inflorescences carry small, radial, unisexual flowers. The plants tend to be dioecious, the flowers may have four or five faintly connate but imbricate sepals with an equal number of distinct, imbricate petals. The gynoecium contains 3-5 connate carpels, one style, and one stigma that is head-like to lobed, each locule of the superior ovary has two ovules with axile placentation that are anatropous to campylotropous. The one- to five-pitted fruit is a drupe that opens at maturity, the endosperm is usually lacking in the embryo. Some discrepancy exists in the literature about the size of the Burseraceae, records say that the family has 17 to 18 genera and 500 to 540 to 726 species. The Protieae are composed of Protium, Crepidospermum, Garuga, the Bursereae, which are further split into subtribes Boswelliinae and Burserinae, contain Commiphora, Aucoumea, Beiselia, Boswellia, Bursera, and Triomma. Finally, the Canarieae are composed of Canarium, Dacryodes, Haplolobus, Pseudodacryodes, Rosselia, Santiria, Scutinanthe, the morphology of the fruit, which is a drupe, helps to distinguish between the three tribes
Burseraceae
–
Burseraceae
11.
Pre-Columbian
–
For this reason the alternative terms of Precontact Americas, Pre-Colonial Americas or Prehistoric Americas are also in use. In areas of Latin America the term used is Pre-Hispanic. Other civilizations were contemporary with the period and were described in European historical accounts of the time. A few, such as the Maya civilization, had their own written records, because many Christian Europeans of the time viewed such texts as heretical, men like Diego de Landa destroyed many texts in pyres, even while seeking to preserve native histories. Only a few documents have survived in their original languages, while others were transcribed or dictated into Spanish, giving modern historians glimpses of ancient culture. Indigenous American cultures continue to evolve after the pre-Columbian era, many of these peoples and their descendants continue traditional practices, while evolving and adapting new cultural practices and technologies into their lives. Now, the study of pre-Columbian cultures is most often based on scientific. Asian nomads are thought to have entered the Americas via the Bering Land Bridge, now the Bering Strait, genetic evidence found in Amerindians maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA supports the theory of multiple genetic populations migrating from Asia. Over the course of millennia, Paleo-Indians spread throughout North and South America, exactly when the first group of people migrated into the Americas is the subject of much debate. One of the earliest identifiable cultures was the Clovis culture, with sites dating from some 13,000 years ago, however, older sites dating back to 20,000 years ago have been claimed. Some genetic studies estimate the colonization of the Americas dates from between 40,000 and 13,000 years ago, the chronology of migration models is currently divided into two general approaches. The first is the short chronology theory with the first movement beyond Alaska into the New World occurring no earlier than 14, 000–17,000 years ago, followed by successive waves of immigrants. The second belief is the long chronology theory, which proposes that the first group of people entered the hemisphere at an earlier date, possibly 50. In that case, the Eskimo peoples would have arrived separately and at a later date, probably no more than 2,000 years ago. The North American climate was unstable as the ice age receded and it finally stabilized by about 10,000 years ago, climatic conditions were then very similar to todays. Within this timeframe, roughly pertaining to the Archaic Period, numerous archaeological cultures have been identified, the unstable climate led to widespread migration, with early Paleo-Indians soon spreading throughout the Americas, diversifying into many hundreds of culturally distinct tribes. The paleo-indians were hunter-gatherers, likely characterized by small, mobile bands consisting of approximately 20 to 50 members of an extended family and these groups moved from place to place as preferred resources were depleted and new supplies were sought. During much of the Paleo-Indian period, bands are thought to have subsisted primarily through hunting now-extinct giant land animals such as mastodon, Paleo-Indian groups carried a variety of tools
Pre-Columbian
–
Hopewell mounds from the
Mound City Group in Ohio
Pre-Columbian
–
hunter-gatherers
Pre-Columbian
–
Mississippian site in Arkansas,
Parkin Site, circa 1539. Illustration by Herb Roe.
Pre-Columbian
–
One of the pyramids in the upper level of
Yaxchilán
12.
Incense
–
Incense is aromatic biotic material which releases fragrant smoke when burned. The term refers to the material itself, rather than to the aroma that it produces, Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, and in therapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also be used as a simple deodorant or insectifuge, Incense is composed of aromatic plant materials, often combined with essential oils. The forms taken by incense differ with the culture, and have changed with advances in technology. Incense can generally be separated into two types, indirect-burning and direct-burning. Indirect-burning incense is not capable of burning on its own, direct-burning incense is lit directly by a flame and then fanned or blown out, leaving a glowing ember that smoulders and releases fragrance. Direct-burning incense is either a paste formed around a bamboo stick, the word incense comes from Latin for incendere meaning to burn. Combustible bouquets were used by the ancient Egyptians, who employed incense within both pragmatic and mystical capacities, Incense was burnt to counteract or obscure malodorous products of human habitation, but was widely perceived to also deter malevolent demons and appease the gods with its pleasant aroma. One of the oldest extant incense burners originates from the 5th dynasty, the Temple of Deir-el-Bahari in Egypt contains a series of carvings that depict an expedition for incense. The Babylonians used incense while offering prayers to divining oracles, Incense spread from there to Greece and Rome. Incense burners have been found in the Indus Civilization, evidence suggests oils were used mainly for their aroma. India also adopted techniques from East Asia, adapting the inherited formulation to encompass aromatic roots and this comprised the initial usage of subterranean plant parts within the fabrication of incense. New herbs like Sarsaparilla seeds, frankincense, and cypress were used by Indians for incense, at around 2000 BCE, Ancient China began the use of incense in the religious sense, namely for worship. Incense was used by Chinese cultures from Neolithic times and became widespread in the Xia, Shang. Incense usage reached its peak during the Song Dynasty with numerous buildings erected specifically for incense ceremonies, during the 14th century Shogunate, a samurai warrior might perfume his helmet and armor with incense to achieve an aura of invincibility. It wasnt until the Muromachi Era during the 15th and 16th century that incense appreciation spread to the upper, a variety of materials have been used in making incense. Historically there has been a preference for using locally available ingredients, for example, sage and cedar were used by the indigenous peoples of North America. Trading in incense materials comprised a part of commerce along the Silk Road and other trade routes
Incense
–
Burning incense at the
Longhua Temple
Incense
–
Orthodox Deacons preparing incense for a
Cross Procession in
Novosibirsk, Russia.
Incense
–
Incense sticks at
Po Lin Monastery, Hong Kong
Incense
13.
Polymerization
–
In polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form polymer chains or three-dimensional networks. There are many forms of polymerization and different systems exist to categorize them, in chemical compounds, polymerization occurs via a variety of reaction mechanisms that vary in complexity due to functional groups present in reacting compounds and their inherent steric effects. Alkanes can also be polymerized, but only with the help of strong acids, further compounds either being referred to as oligomers in smaller molecules. Polymerization that is not sufficiently moderated and proceeds at a fast rate can be very hazardous and this phenomenon is known as hazardous polymerization and can cause fires and explosions. Step-growth polymers are defined as polymers formed by the reaction between functional groups of monomers, usually containing heteroatoms such as nitrogen or oxygen. Most step-growth polymers are classified as condensation polymers, but not all step-growth polymers release condensates, in this case. Step-growth polymers increase in weight at a very slow rate at lower conversions. To alleviate inconsistencies in these methods, adjusted definition for condensation and addition polymers have been developed. Chain-growth polymerization involves the linking together of molecules incorporating double or triple carbon-carbon bonds and these unsaturated monomers have extra internal bonds that are able to break and link up with other monomers to form a repeating chain, whose backbone typically contains only carbon atoms. Chain-growth polymerization is involved in the manufacture of such as polyethylene, polypropylene. A special case of chain-growth polymerization leads to living polymerization, in the radical polymerization of ethylene, its π bond is broken, and the two electrons rearrange to create a new propagating center like the one that attacked it. The form this propagating center takes depends on the type of addition mechanism. There are several mechanisms through which this can be initiated, the free radical mechanism is one of the first methods to be used. Free radicals are very reactive atoms or molecules that have unpaired electrons, taking the polymerization of ethylene as an example, the free radical mechanism can be divided into three stages, chain initiation, chain propagation, and chain termination. Free radical addition polymerization of ethylene must take place at temperatures and pressures. While most other free radical polymerizations do not require such extreme temperatures and pressures, one effect of this lack of control is a high degree of branching. Also, as termination occurs randomly, when two chains collide, it is impossible to control the length of individual chains, a newer method of polymerization similar to free radical, but allowing more control involves the Ziegler-Natta catalyst, especially with respect to polymer branching. Other forms of chain growth polymerization include cationic addition polymerization and anionic addition polymerization, cationic and anionic mechanisms are also more ideally suited for living polymerizations, although free radical living polymerizations have also been developed
Polymerization
–
An example of alkene polymerization, in which each
styrene monomer's double bond reforms as a single bond plus a bond to another styrene monomer. The product is
polystyrene.
14.
Amber
–
Amber is fossilized tree resin, which has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects and it has also been used as a healing agent in folk medicine. There are five classes of amber, defined on the basis of their chemical constituents, because it originates as a soft, sticky tree resin, amber sometimes contains animal and plant material as inclusions. Amber occurring in coal seams is also called resinite, and the term ambrite is applied to that found specifically within New Zealand coal seams, the English word amber derives from Arabic ʿanbar عنبر via Middle Latin ambar and Middle French ambre. The word was adopted in Middle English in the 14th century as referring to what is now known as ambergris, in the Romance languages, the sense of the word had come to be extended to Baltic amber from as early as the late 13th century. At first called white or yellow amber, this meaning was adopted in English by the early 15th century, as the use of ambergris waned, this became the main sense of the word. The two substances conceivably became associated or confused because they both were washed up on beaches. Ambergris is less dense water and floats, whereas amber is too dense to float. The classical names for amber, Latin electrum and Ancient Greek ἤλεκτρον, are connected to a term ἠλέκτωρ meaning beaming Sun, according to myth, when Phaëton son of Helios was killed, his mourning sisters became poplar trees, and their tears became elektron, amber. Earlier Pliny says that an island of three days sail from the Scythian coast called Balcia by Xenophon of Lampsacus, author of a fanciful travel book in Greek, is called Basilia by Pytheas. It is generally understood to be the same as Abalus and it is assumed that there were well-established trade routes for amber connecting the Baltic with the Mediterranean. Pliny states explicitly that the Germans export amber to Pannonia, from where it was traded further abroad by the Veneti, the ancient Italic peoples of southern Italy were working amber, the most important examples are on display at the National Archaeological Museum of Siritide to Matera. Amber used in antiquity as at Mycenae and in the prehistory of the Mediterranean comes from deposits of Sicily. Besides the fanciful explanations according to which amber is produced by the Sun, Pliny cites opinions that are aware of its origin in tree resin. Amber is produced from a marrow discharged by trees belonging to the genus, like gum from the cherry. This is confirmed by the recorded Old High German glas and Old English glær for amber, in Middle Low German, amber was known as berne-, barn-, börnstēn. The Low German term became dominant also in High German by the 18th century, the Baltic Lithuanian term for amber is gintaras and Latvian dzintars. They, and the Slavic jantar or Hungarian gyanta, are thought to originate from Phoenician jainitar, Early in the nineteenth century, the first reports of amber from North America came from discoveries in New Jersey along Crosswicks Creek near Trenton, at Camden, and near Woodbury
Amber
–
Amber pendants made of modified amber. The oval
pendant is 52 by 32 mm (2 by 1.3 inches).
Amber
–
An ant inside Baltic amber
Amber
–
A
mosquito and a
fly in this Baltic amber necklace are between 40 and 60 million years old
15.
Maya civilization
–
The Maya civilization developed in an area that encompasses southeastern Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize, and the western portions of Honduras and El Salvador. The Archaic period, prior to 2000 BC, saw the first developments in agriculture, the first Maya cities developed around 750 BC, and by 500 BC these cities possessed monumental architecture, including large temples with elaborate stucco façades. Hieroglyphic writing was being used in the Maya region by the 3rd century BC, in the Late Preclassic a number of large cities developed in the Petén Basin, and Kaminaljuyu rose to prominence in the Guatemalan Highlands. Beginning around 250 AD, the Classic period is defined as when the Maya were raising sculpted monuments with Long Count dates. This period saw the Maya civilization develop a number of city-states linked by a complex trade network. In the Maya Lowlands two great rivals, Tikal and Calakmul, became powerful, the Classic period also saw the intrusive intervention of the central Mexican city of Teotihuacan in Maya dynastic politics. In the 9th century, there was a political collapse in the central Maya region, resulting in internecine warfare, the abandonment of cities. The Postclassic period saw the rise of Chichen Itza in the north, in the 16th century, the Spanish Empire colonized the Mesoamerican region, and a lengthy series of campaigns saw the fall of Nojpetén, the last Maya city in 1697. Classic period rule was centred on the concept of the divine king, kingship was patrilineal, and power would normally pass to the eldest son. A prospective king was expected to be a successful war leader. Maya politics was dominated by a system of patronage, although the exact political make-up of a kingdom varied from city-state to city-state. By the Late Classic, the aristocracy had greatly increased, resulting in the reduction in the exclusive power of the divine king. Maya cities tended to expand haphazardly, and the city centre would be occupied by ceremonial and administrative complexes, different parts of a city would often be linked by causeways. The principal architecture of the city consisted of palaces, pyramid-temples, ceremonial ballcourts, the Maya elite were literate, and developed a complex system of hieroglyphic writing that was the most advanced in the pre-Columbian Americas. The Maya recorded their history and ritual knowledge in screenfold books, there are also a great many examples of Maya text found on stelae and ceramics. The Maya developed a complex series of interlocking ritual calendars. As a part of their religion, the Maya practised human sacrifice, the Maya civilization developed within the Mesoamerican cultural area, which covers a region that spreads from northern Mexico southwards into Central America. Mesoamerica was one of six cradles of civilization worldwide, the Mesoamerican area gave rise to a series of cultural developments that included complex societies, agriculture, cities, monumental architecture, writing, and calendrical systems
Maya civilization
–
El Castillo, at
Chichen Itza
Maya civilization
–
Detail of Lintel 26 from
Yaxchilan
Maya civilization
–
Maya civilization
Maya civilization
–
Kaminaljuyu, in the highlands, and
El Mirador, in the lowlands, were both important cities in the Late Preclassic.
16.
Maya peoples
–
The Maya people are a group of Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. They inhabit southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, the pre-Columbian Maya population was approximately eight million. There were a seven million Maya living in this area at the start of the 21st century. Guatemala, southern Mexico and the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, El Salvador, one of the largest groups of modern Maya can be found in Mexicos Yucatán State and the neighboring states of Campeche, Quintana Roo and in Belize. These peoples commonly identify themselves simply as Maya with no further ethnic subdivision and they speak the language which anthropologists term Yucatec Maya, but is identified by speakers and Yucatecos simply as Maya. Among Maya speakers, Spanish is commonly spoken as a second or first language, linguists refer to the Maya language as Yucatec or Yucatec Maya to distinguish it from other Mayan languages. This norm has often been misinterpreted to mean that the people are also called Yucatec Maya, that refers only to the language. Maya is one language in the Mayan language family, thus, to refer to Maya as Mayans would be similar to referring to Spanish people as Romantics because they speak a language belonging to the Romance language family. Confusion of the term Maya/Mayan as an ethnic label occurs because Maya women who use traditional dress identify by the ethnic term mestiza, the Yucatáns indigenous population was first exposed to Europeans after a party of Spanish shipwreck survivors came ashore in 1511. One of the sailors, Gonzalo Guerrero, is reported to have taken up with a woman and started a family. Later Spanish expeditions to the region were led by Córdoba in 1517, Grijalva in 1518, from 1528 to 1540, several attempts by Francisco Montejo to conquer the Yucatán failed. His son, Francisco de Montejo the Younger, fared almost as badly when he first took over, while holding out at Chichen Itza. Chichen Itza was conquered by 1570, in 1542, the western Yucatán Peninsula also surrendered to him. Historically, the population in the half of the peninsula was less affected by. In the 21st century in the Yucatán Peninsula, between 750,000 and 1,200,000 people speak Mayan, however, three times more than that are of Maya origins, hold ancient Maya surnames, and do not speak Mayan languages as their first language. Matthew Restall, in his book The Maya Conquistador, mentions a series of letters sent to the King of Spain in the 16th and 17th centuries. The noble Maya families at that time signed documents to the Spanish Royal Family, surnames mentioned in letters are Pech, Camal, Xiu, Ucan, Canul, Cocom. A large 19th-century revolt by the native Maya people of Yucatán, for a period the Maya state of Chan Santa Cruz was recognized as an independent nation by the British Empire, particularly in terms of trading with British Honduras
Maya peoples
–
Francisco Luna Kan Rigoberta Menchú Tum,
Comandante Ramona Armando Manzanero Jesús Tecú Osorio,
Carlos Mérida
Maya peoples
Maya peoples
Maya peoples
17.
Mayan languages
–
The Mayan languages form a language family spoken in Mesoamerica and northern Central America. Mayan languages are spoken by at least 6 million Maya peoples, primarily in Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, in 1996, Guatemala formally recognized 21 Mayan languages by name, and Mexico recognizes eight more within their territory. The Mayan language family is one of the best-documented and most studied in the Americas, modern Mayan languages descend from the Proto-Mayan language, thought to have been spoken at least 5,000 years ago, it has been partially reconstructed using the comparative method. The proto-Mayan language diversified into at least six different branches, the Huastecan, Quichean, Yucatecan, Qanjobalan, Mamean and Cholan-Tzeltalan branches, Mayan languages form part of the Mesoamerican language area, an area of linguistic convergence developed throughout millennia of interaction between the peoples of Mesoamerica. All Mayan languages display the diagnostic traits of this linguistic area. For example, all use relational nouns instead of prepositions to indicate spatial relationships, during the pre-Columbian era of Mesoamerican history, some Mayan languages were written in the logo-syllabic Maya script. Its use was widespread during the Classic period of Maya civilization. Mayan languages are the descendants of a proto-language called Proto-Mayan or, in Kiche Maya, the Proto-Mayan language is believed to have been spoken in the Cuchumatanes highlands of central Guatemala in an area corresponding roughly to where Qanjobalan is spoken today. The earliest proposal was that of Sapper which identified the Chiapas-Guatemalan highlands as the cradle of Mayan languages was published by the German antiquarian. Terrence Kaufman and John Justeson have reconstructed more than 3000 lexical items for the proto-Mayan language, Proto-Yucatecan and Proto-Cholan speakers subsequently split off from the main group and moved north into the Yucatán Peninsula. Speakers of the branch moved south into the areas now inhabited by Mamean and Quichean people. When speakers of proto-Tzeltalan later separated from the Cholan group and moved south into the Chiapas highlands, in the Archaic period, a number of loanwords from Mixe–Zoquean languages seem to have entered the proto-Mayan language. This has led to hypotheses that the early Maya were dominated by speakers of Mixe–Zoquean languages, in the case of the Xincan and Lencan languages, on the other hand, Mayan languages are more often the source than the receiver of loanwords. Mayan language specialists such as Campbell believe this suggests a period of contact between Maya and the Lencan and Xinca people, possibly during the Classic period. During the Classic period the major branches began diversifying into separate languages, the split between Proto-Yucatecan and Proto-Cholan had already occurred by the Classic period, when most extant Maya inscriptions were written. Both variants are attested in inscriptions at the Maya sites of the time. They propose that it originated in western and south-central Petén Basin, the language of the classical lowland inscriotions then would have been proto-Cholan. During the Spanish colonization of Central America, all languages were eclipsed by Spanish
Mayan languages
–
Maya civilization
Mayan languages
–
Location of Mayan speaking populations. See below for a detailed map of the different languages.
Mayan languages
–
Page 9 of the
Dresden Codex showing the classic Maya language written in
Mayan hieroglyphs (from the 1880 Förstermann edition)
Mayan languages
–
Maya glyphs in stucco at the Museo de sitio in
Palenque, Mexico
18.
Indigenous peoples of Mexico
–
The number of indigenous Mexicans is judged using the political criteria found in the 2nd article of the Mexican constitution. The Mexican census does not report racial-ethnicity but only the cultural-ethnicity of indigenous communities that preserve their indigenous languages, traditions, beliefs and cultures. It can also be defined broadly to all persons who self identify as having an indigenous cultural background. The indigenous peoples in Mexico have the right of free determination under the article of the constitution. Mesoamerica was densely populated by indigenous ethnic groups which, although sharing common cultural characteristics, spoke different languages. One of the most influential civilizations that developed in Mesoamerica was the Olmec civilization, evidence has been found on the existence of multiracial communities or neighborhoods in Teotihuacan. The capital of the empire, Tenochtitlan, became one of the largest urban centers in the world, while the alliances were decisive to the Europeans victory, the indigenous peoples were soon subjugated by an equally impressive empire. Indigenous communities were incorporated as communities under Spanish rule and with the power structure largely intact. Such a written tradition likely took hold because there was a tradition of pictorial writing found in many indigenous codices. Scholars have utilized the colonial-era alphabetic documentation in what is called the New Philology to illuminate the colonial experience of Mesoamerican peoples from their own viewpoints. Indigenous officials in their communities were involved in maintaining this system, there was a precipitous decline in indigenous populations due to the spread of European diseases previously unknown in the New World. Pandemics wrought havoc, but indigenous communities recovered with fewer members, the Spanish crown recognized the existing ruling group, gave protection to the land holdings of indigenous communities, and communities and individuals had access to the Spanish legal system. Mendicants of the Franciscan, Dominican, and Augustinian orders initially evangelized indigenous in their own communities in what is called the spiritual conquest. Later on the northern frontiers where nomadic indigenous groups had no fixed settlements, the Jesuits were prominent in this enterprise until their expulsion from Spanish America in 1767. Catholicism with particular local aspects was the only religion in the colonial era. As the New Spain became independent from Spain, the new country was named after its capital city, Mexico declared the abolition of black slavery in 1829 and the equality of all citizens under the law. Indigenous communities continued to have rights as corporations to maintain land holdings until the liberal Reforma, some indigenous individuals integrated into the Mexican society, like Benito Juárez of Zapotec ethnicity, the first indigenous president of a country in the New World. As a political liberal, however, Juárez supported the removal of protections of indigenous community corporate land holding, the greatest change came about as a result of the Mexican Revolution, a violent social and cultural movement that defined 20th century Mexico
Indigenous peoples of Mexico
–
Cuauhtémoc
Indigenous peoples of Mexico
–
The large building in the Cueva de las Ventanas with Room 5 in the background.
Indigenous peoples of Mexico
–
Benito Juárez
Indigenous peoples of Mexico
–
Modesta Lavana
19.
Central America
–
Central America is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. Central America is bordered by Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the east, Central America consists of seven countries, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. The combined population of Central America is between 41,739,000 and 42,688,190, Central America is a part of the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot, which extends from northern Guatemala through to central Panama. Due to the presence of several active faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur frequently, these disasters have resulted in the loss of many lives. In the Pre-Columbian era, Central America was inhabited by the peoples of Mesoamerica to the north and west. Soon after Christopher Columbuss voyages to the Americas, the Spanish began to colonize the Americas, the seven states finally became independent autonomous states, beginning with Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Guatemala, followed by El Salvador, then Panama, and finally Belize. Middle America is usually thought to comprise Mexico to the north of the 7 states of Central America as well as Colombia, usually the whole of the Caribbean to the north-east and sometimes the Guyanas are also included. According to one source, the term Central America was used as a synonym for Middle America as recently as 1962, in Brazil, Central America comprises all countries between Mexico and Colombia, including those in the Caribbean. Mexico, in whole or in part, is included by British people. For the people living in the 5 countries formerly part of the Federal Republic of Central America there is a distinction between the Spanish language terms América Central and Centroamérica, in the Pre-Columbian era, the northern areas of Central America were inhabited by the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. Most notable among these were the Mayans, who had built numerous cities throughout the region, and the Aztecs, following Christopher Columbuss voyages to the Americas, the Spanish sent many expeditions to the region, and they began their conquest of Maya territory in 1523. Soon after the conquest of the Aztec Empire, Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado commenced the conquest of northern Central America for the Spanish Empire. Beginning with his arrival in Soconusco in 1523, Alvarados forces systematically conquered and subjugated most of the major Maya kingdoms, including the Kiche, Tzutujil, Pipil, and the Kaqchikel. By 1528, the conquest of Guatemala was nearly complete, with only the Petén Basin remaining outside the Spanish sphere of influence, the last independent Maya kingdoms – the Kowoj and the Itza people – were finally defeated in 1697, as part of the Spanish conquest of Petén. In 1538, Spain established the Real Audiencia of Panama, which had jurisdiction over all land from the Strait of Magellan to the Gulf of Fonseca. This entity was dissolved in 1543, and most of the territory within Central America then fell under the jurisdiction of the Audiencia Real de Guatemala. This area included the current territories of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Mexican state of Chiapas, the president of the Audiencia, which had its seat in Antigua Guatemala, was the governor of the entire area
Central America
–
Central America, 1798
Central America
–
Central America
Central America
–
El Chorreron in El Salvador
Central America
–
One of the hanging bridges of the skywalk at the
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve in
Monteverde, Costa Rica disappearing into the clouds
20.
Sweat lodge
–
The sweat lodge is a low profile hut, typically dome-shaped or oblong, and made with natural materials. The structure is the lodge, and the ceremony done within the structure may be called a purification ceremony or simply a sweat, traditionally the structure is simple, constructed of saplings covered with blankets and sometimes animal skins. Originally, it was used by some of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. But with the rise of pan-Indianism, numerous nations that did not originally have the sweat lodge ceremony have adopted it. In all cases, the sweat is intended as a religious ceremony – it is for prayer and healing, otherwise, the ceremony can be dangerous if done improperly – both physically and spiritually. There are several styles of structures used in different cultures, in addition to the most common domed or oblong structures, there are permanent structures made of wood. Stones are typically heated and then poured over them to create steam. Native Americans in many regions have sweat lodge ceremonies, for example, Chumash peoples of the central coast of California build sweat lodges in coastal areas in association with habitation sites. The ancient Mesoamerican tribes of Mexico, such as the Aztec and Olmec, practiced a sweat bath ceremony known as temazcal as a rite of penance. Traditions associated with sweating vary regionally and culturally, ceremonies often include traditional prayers and songs. In some cultures drumming and offerings to the world may be part of the ceremony. One of the requirements is that the leader be able to pray and communicate fluently in the language of that culture. This leadership role is granted by the Elders of the community and this leadership is only entrusted to those who are full members of the community, and who live in community. It is never given to outsiders who then leave to sell ceremony, orientation – The door may face a sacred fire. The cardinal directions may have symbolism in the culture that is holding the sweating ceremony, the lodge may be oriented within its environment for a specific purpose. Placement and orientation of the lodge within its environment are considered to facilitate the ceremonys connection with the spirit world. Construction – The lodge is built with great care and knowledge. Clothing – In Native American lodges participants usually wear a garment such as shorts or a loose dress
Sweat lodge
–
Hupa Indian underground building covered with wood plank roof and surrounded by a wall of large rocks
Sweat lodge
–
Frame for
Ojibwe sweat lodge
21.
Hymenaea
–
Hymenaea L. is a genus in the flowering plant family Fabaceae. Of fourteen living species in the genus, all but one are native to the tropics of the Americas, some authors place the African species in a separate monotypic genus, Trachylobium. In the neotropics, Hymenaea is distributed through the Caribbean islands, linnaeus named the genus in 1753 in Species Plantarum for Hymenaios, the Greek god of marriage ceremonies. The name is a reference to the paired leaflets, most species of Hymenaea are large trees and they are primarily evergreen. They may grow to a height of 25 m and emerge above the forest canopy, some species will grow both as tall forest trees and as smaller shrubby trees depending on their surrounding habitat. The leaves are bifoliolate, meaning that they have two leaflets attached to the sides of the petiole. The flowers grow in a panicle or corymb type of inflorescence, the pulpy center of the fruits are edible and contain starch. The fruit is sold in markets in the Americas. The leaves may be used to make a tea, the trees produce a dense wood used for timber in making ships and furniture. The thick bark of species is used by indigenous peoples of the Amazon to make canoes. Seeds contain large amounts of a viscous polysaccharide which can be used in several industrial sectors such as food, paper, cosmetic. The trees also make hard resins that are used to manufacture varnish, the resin that is produced in Brazil is known as South American copal, and Hymenaea verrucosa is the source of the valuable Zanzibar copal. Resin may be collected from living trees, or from the soil near the place where a tree once stood, throughout its American range, indigenous peoples use the resin for incense and as a cement. Resin from the extinct species Hymenaea protera is the source of Dominican amber, Hymenaea courbaril has been used as a model organism to study the effect of increased CO2 concentration on the rate of photosynthesis in neotropical regions. When the concentration of CO2 was increased from an ambient reference level of 360ppm to 720ppm, Hymenaea courbaril is a very important species in programmes of recuperation of degraded rain forests in the Neotropics. It appears late in the regeneration process being classified as a late successional or climax species. Costa P. M. F. Dietrich S. M. C, Buckeridge M. S. Effect of atmospheric CO2 enrichment on the establishment of seedlings of jatobá, Hymenaea courbaril L. Biota Neotropica. Carbon sequestration in the rain forest, alternatives using environmentally friendly biotechnology, a Field Guide to the Families and Genera of Woody Plants of Northwest South America
Hymenaea
–
Hymenaea
Hymenaea
–
Fruits and seeds of Hymenaea verrucosa -
MHNT
Hymenaea
–
Hymenaea courbaril
22.
Varnish
–
Varnish is a transparent, hard, protective finish or film that is primarily used in wood finishing but also for other materials. Varnish is traditionally a combination of a oil, a resin. Varnish finishes are usually glossy but may be designed to produce satin or semi-gloss sheens by the addition of flatting agents. Varnish has little or no color, is transparent, and has no added pigment, as opposed to paints or wood stains, varnishes are also applied over wood stains as a final step to achieve a film for gloss and protection. Some products are marketed as a stain and varnish. Resin varnishes dry by evaporation of the solvent and harden almost immediately upon drying, acrylic and waterborne varnishes dry upon evaporation of the water but will experience an extended curing period. Environmental factors such as heat and humidity play a large role in the drying and curing times of varnishes. In classic varnish the cure rate depends on the type of oil used and, to some extent, the drying and curing time of all varnishes may be sped up by exposure to an energy source such as sunlight, ultraviolet light, or heat. Many varnishes contain plant-derived oils, synthetic oils or resins as their binder in combination with organic solvents and these are highly flammable in their liquid state. A highly important note, that is often over looked, all drying oils, certain alkyds, thus, oil-soaked rags and paper can smolder and ignite into flames, even several hours after use if proper precautions are not taken. Varnishing was a well known in ancient Egypt. Varnishing is also recorded in the history of Asia, in India, China and Japan, where the practice of lacquer work, varnishing was likely popular in India & China before it spread to Japan and Korea. Varnish and lacquer work are, however, generally treated in the arts as separate, berenice comes from the Greek words phero + nike. There are many different types of drying oils, including linseed oil, tung oil and these contain high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Resins that are used in varnishes include amber, kauri gum, dammar, copal, rosin, sandarac, balsam, elemi, mastic, in the 1900s in Canada, resins from local trees were used to finish pianos. As a result, these now antique pianos are considered difficult to refinish, however, shellac can be used over the existing resins provided sufficient time is allowed for thin coats to cure. Thus the original finish can be returned to its original lustre while preserving the color, violin varnishing is a multi-step process involving some or all of the following, primer, sealer, ground, color coats, and clear topcoat. Some systems use an oil varnish as described below, while others use spirit varnish
Varnish
–
Varnish on wood stairs
Varnish
–
Animal products
23.
Zanzibar
–
Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania in East Africa. It is composed of the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, 25–50 kilometres off the coast of the mainland, the capital is Zanzibar City, located on the island of Unguja. Its historic centre is Stone Town, which is a World Heritage Site, the name Zanzibar is apparently derived from the Persian zang-bâr signifying black coast. Zanzibars main industries are spices, raffia, and tourism, in particular, the islands produce cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and black pepper. For this reason, the islands, together with Tanzanias Mafia Island, are called the Spice Islands. Zanzibar is the home of the endemic Zanzibar red colobus monkey, the Zanzibar servaline genet, the word Zanzibar came from Arabic Zanjibār, which is in turn from Persian Zang-bār, a compound of Zang + bār. The presence of microlithic tools suggest that it has been home to humans for at least 20,000 years, a Greco-Roman text between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD, the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, mentioned the island of Menuthias, which is probably Unguja. Little is known about the history of Zanzibar between the time of the Periplus and the death of Muhammad in 632 CE, from that point forward, wars in Asia and increasing trade motivated Persians, Arabs, and Indians to visit or migrate to Zanzibar. Persian traders used Zanzibar as a base for voyages between the Middle East, India, and Africa and they established garrisons on the islands and built the first Zoroastrian fire temples and mosques in the Southern Hemisphere. The impact of these traders and immigrants on the Swahili culture is uncertain, during the Middle Ages, Zanzibar and other settlements on the Swahili Coast were advanced. The littoral contained a number of autonomous trade cities and these towns grew in wealth as the Bantu Swahili people served as intermediaries and facilitators to local, Arab, Persian, Indonesian, Malaysian, Indian, and Chinese merchants. This interaction contributed in part to the evolution of the Swahili culture, although a Bantu language, Swahili as a consequence today includes some elements that were borrowed from other civilizations, particularly Arabic loanwords. With the wealth that they had acquired through trade, some of the Arab traders also became rulers of the coastal cities, vasco da Gamas visit in 1498 marked the beginning of European influence. In 1503 or 1504, Zanzibar became part of the Portuguese Empire when Captain Ruy Lourenço Ravasco Marques landed and demanded and received tribute from the sultan in exchange for peace, Zanzibar remained a possession of Portugal for almost two centuries. It initially became part of the Portuguese province of Arabia and Ethiopia and was administered by a governor general, around 1571, Zanzibar became part of the western division of the Portuguese empire and was administered from Mozambique. It appears, however, that the Portuguese did not closely administer Zanzibar, the first English ship to visit Unguja, the Edward Bonaventure in 1591, found that there was no Portuguese fort or garrison. The extent of their occupation was a depot where produce was purchased and collected for shipment to Mozambique. In other respects, the affairs of the island were managed by the local king and this hands-off approach ended when Portugal established a fort on Pemba around 1635 in response to the Sultan of Mombasas slaughter of Portuguese residents several years earlier
Zanzibar
–
The old castle in Zanzibar
Zanzibar
Zanzibar
–
The Harem and Tower Harbour of Zanzibar (p.234), London Missionary Society
Zanzibar
–
A
Zanj slave gang in Zanzibar (1889)
24.
American Civil War
–
The American Civil War was an internal conflict fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865. The Union faced secessionists in eleven Southern states grouped together as the Confederate States of America, the Union won the war, which remains the bloodiest in U. S. history. Among the 34 U. S. states in February 1861, War broke out in April 1861 when Confederates attacked the U. S. fortress of Fort Sumter. The Confederacy grew to eleven states, it claimed two more states, the Indian Territory, and the southern portions of the western territories of Arizona. The Confederacy was never recognized by the United States government nor by any foreign country. The states that remained loyal, including border states where slavery was legal, were known as the Union or the North, the war ended with the surrender of all the Confederate armies and the dissolution of the Confederate government in the spring of 1865. The war had its origin in the issue of slavery. The Confederacy collapsed and 4 million slaves were freed, but before his inauguration, seven slave states with cotton-based economies formed the Confederacy. The first six to declare secession had the highest proportions of slaves in their populations, the first seven with state legislatures to resolve for secession included split majorities for unionists Douglas and Bell in Georgia with 51% and Louisiana with 55%. Alabama had voted 46% for those unionists, Mississippi with 40%, Florida with 38%, Texas with 25%, of these, only Texas held a referendum on secession. Eight remaining slave states continued to reject calls for secession, outgoing Democratic President James Buchanan and the incoming Republicans rejected secession as illegal. Lincolns March 4,1861 inaugural address declared that his administration would not initiate a civil war, speaking directly to the Southern States, he reaffirmed, I have no purpose, directly or indirectly to interfere with the institution of slavery in the United States where it exists. I believe I have no right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. After Confederate forces seized numerous federal forts within territory claimed by the Confederacy, efforts at compromise failed, the Confederates assumed that European countries were so dependent on King Cotton that they would intervene, but none did, and none recognized the new Confederate States of America. Hostilities began on April 12,1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, while in the Western Theater the Union made significant permanent gains, in the Eastern Theater, the battle was inconclusive in 1861–62. The autumn 1862 Confederate campaigns into Maryland and Kentucky failed, dissuading British intervention, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which made ending slavery a war goal. To the west, by summer 1862 the Union destroyed the Confederate river navy, then much of their western armies, the 1863 Union siege of Vicksburg split the Confederacy in two at the Mississippi River. In 1863, Robert E. Lees Confederate incursion north ended at the Battle of Gettysburg, Western successes led to Ulysses S. Grants command of all Union armies in 1864
American Civil War
–
New Orleans the largest cotton exporting port for New England and Great Britain textile mills, shipping Mississippi River Valley goods from North, South and Border states.
American Civil War
–
Clockwise from top:
Battle of Gettysburg,
Union Captain John Tidball's artillery,
Confederate prisoners,
ironclad USS Atlanta, ruins of
Richmond, Virginia,
Battle of Franklin
American Civil War
–
Sen. Stephen Douglas, author of the
Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854
American Civil War
–
Sen. John J. Crittenden, of the 1860
Crittenden Compromise
25.
Suez Canal
–
The Suez Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez. It was constructed by the Suez Canal Company between 1859 and 1869, after 10 years of construction, it was officially opened on November 17,1869. It extends from the terminus of Port Said to the southern terminus of Port Tewfik at the city of Suez. Its length is 193.30 km, including its northern and southern access channels, in 2012,17,225 vessels traversed the canal. The original canal was a waterway with passing locations in the Ballah Bypass. It contains no locks system, with seawater flowing freely through it, in general, the canal north of the Bitter Lakes flows north in winter and south in summer. South of the lakes, the current changes with the tide at Suez, the canal is owned and maintained by the Suez Canal Authority of Egypt. Under the Convention of Constantinople, it may be used in time of war as in time of peace, by every vessel of commerce or of war, without distinction of flag. In August 2014, construction was launched to expand and widen the Ballah Bypass for 35 km to speed the canals transit time, the expansion was planned to double the capacity of the Suez Canal from 49 to 97 ships a day. At a cost of $8.4 billion, this project was funded with interest-bearing investment certificates issued exclusively to Egyptian entities, the New Suez Canal, as the expansion was dubbed, was opened with great fanfare in a ceremony on 6 August 2015. On 24 February 2016, the Suez Canal Authority officially opened the new side channel and this side channel, located at the northern side of the east extension of the Suez Canal, serves the East Terminal for berthing and unberthing vessels from the terminal anytime of day and night. Ancient west–east canals were built to travel from the Nile River to the Red Sea. One smaller canal is believed to have been constructed under the auspices of Senusret II or Ramesses II. Another canal, probably incorporating a portion of the first, was constructed under the reign of Necho II, the legendary Sesostris may have started work on an ancient canal joining the Nile with the Red Sea. In his Meteorology, Aristotle wrote, One of their kings tried to make a canal to it, so he first, and Darius afterwards, stopped making the canal, lest the sea should mix with the river water and spoil it. Strabo wrote that Sesostris started to build a canal, and Pliny the Elder wrote,165. Later the Persian king Darius had the idea, and yet again Ptolemy II. This proved to be the canal made by the Persian king Darius I
Suez Canal
–
Suez Canal
Suez Canal
–
Northern outlet of the Suez
Suez Canal
–
Bathymetric chart, northern
Gulf of Suez, route to
Cairo, 1856.
Suez Canal
–
1881 drawing of the Suez Canal.
26.
New Zealand
–
New Zealand /njuːˈziːlənd/ is an island nation in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, or Te Ika-a-Māui, and the South Island, or Te Waipounamu—and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, the countrys varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealands capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland, sometime between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand, in 1840, representatives of Britain and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire, today, the majority of New Zealands population of 4.7 million is of European descent, the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealands culture is derived from Māori and early British settlers. The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, New Zealand is a developed country and ranks highly in international comparisons of national performance, such as health, education, economic freedom and quality of life. Since the 1980s, New Zealand has transformed from an agrarian, Queen Elizabeth II is the countrys head of state and is represented by a governor-general. In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes, the Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau, the Cook Islands and Niue, and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealands territorial claim in Antarctica. New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, in 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand, Aotearoa is the current Māori name for New Zealand. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the country before the arrival of Europeans. Māori had several names for the two main islands, including Te Ika-a-Māui for the North Island and Te Waipounamu or Te Waka o Aoraki for the South Island. Early European maps labelled the islands North, Middle and South, in 1830, maps began to use North and South to distinguish the two largest islands and by 1907, this was the accepted norm. The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised and this set the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu
New Zealand
–
The Waitangi sheet from the
Treaty of Waitangi
New Zealand
–
Flag
New Zealand
–
Painting of
Mount Earnslaw by John Turnbull Thomson, oil on canvas, 1888
New Zealand
–
John Key,
Prime Minister of New Zealand since 2008
27.
Kauri gum
–
Kauri gum is a fossilized resin detracted from kauri trees, which is made into crafts such as jewellery. Kauri forests once covered much of the North Island of New Zealand, before Māori and European settlers caused deforestation, causing areas to revert to sand dunes, scrubs. Even afterward, ancient kauri fields continued to provide a source for the gum, Kauri gum formed when resin from kauri trees leaked out through fractures or cracks in the bark, hardening with the exposure to air. Lumps commonly fell to the ground and became covered with soil and forest litter, other lumps formed as branches forked or trees were damaged, which released the resin. The Māori had many uses for the gum, which they called kapia, fresh gum was used as a type of chewing gum. Highly flammable, the gum was used as a fire-starter. Burnt and mixed with fat, it made a dark pigment for moko tattooing. Kauri gum was also crafted into jewellery, keepsakes, and small decorative items, like amber, kauri gum sometimes includes insects and plant material. Kauri gum was used commercially in varnish, and can be considered a type of copal, Kauri gum was found to be particularly good for this, and from the mid-1840s was exported to London and America. Tentative exports had begun a few years earlier, however, for use in marine glue and as fire-kindlers, gum had even made up part of an export cargo to Australia in 1814. Since the kauri gum was found to mix more easily with linseed oil, at lower temperatures, than other resins and it was used to a limited extent in paints during the late 19th century, and from 1910 was used extensively in the manufacture of linoleum. From the 1930s, the market for gum dropped as synthetic alternatives were found, Kauri gum was Aucklands main export in the second half of the 19th century, sustaining much of the early growth of the city. Between 1850 and 1950,450,000 tons of gum were exported, the peak in the gum market was 1899, with 11,116 tons exported that year, with a value of £600,000. The average annual export was over 5,000 tons, with the price gained £63 per ton. The gum varied in color depending on the condition of the original tree and it also depended on where the gum had formed and how long it had been buried. Colors ranged from chalky-white, through red-brown to black, the most prized was a gold, as it was hard. The size of each lump also varied greatly, swamps tended to yield the small nuggets known as chips, whereas the hillsides tended to produce larger lumps. The majority were the size of acorns, although some were found which weighed a few pounds, most of the gumfields were in Northland, Coromandel and Auckland, the site of the original kauri forests
Kauri gum
–
A 19th-century carving of a
tattooed Maori from kauri gum. The carving is owned and displayed by the
Dargaville Museum, New Zealand.
Kauri gum
–
Kauri gum, polished
Kauri gum
–
Kauri gum, unpolished
Kauri gum
–
Kauri tree in
Waipoua Forest
28.
Japan
–
Japan is a sovereign island nation in Eastern Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies off the eastern coast of the Asia Mainland and stretches from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea, the kanji that make up Japans name mean sun origin. 日 can be read as ni and means sun while 本 can be read as hon, or pon, Japan is often referred to by the famous epithet Land of the Rising Sun in reference to its Japanese name. Japan is an archipelago consisting of about 6,852 islands. The four largest are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku, the country is divided into 47 prefectures in eight regions. Hokkaido being the northernmost prefecture and Okinawa being the southernmost one, the population of 127 million is the worlds tenth largest. Japanese people make up 98. 5% of Japans total population, approximately 9.1 million people live in the city of Tokyo, the capital of Japan. Archaeological research indicates that Japan was inhabited as early as the Upper Paleolithic period, the first written mention of Japan is in Chinese history texts from the 1st century AD. Influence from other regions, mainly China, followed by periods of isolation, from the 12th century until 1868, Japan was ruled by successive feudal military shoguns who ruled in the name of the Emperor. Japan entered into a period of isolation in the early 17th century. The Second Sino-Japanese War of 1937 expanded into part of World War II in 1941, which came to an end in 1945 following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan is a member of the UN, the OECD, the G7, the G8, the country has the worlds third-largest economy by nominal GDP and the worlds fourth-largest economy by purchasing power parity. It is also the worlds fourth-largest exporter and fourth-largest importer, although Japan has officially renounced its right to declare war, it maintains a modern military with the worlds eighth-largest military budget, used for self-defense and peacekeeping roles. Japan is a country with a very high standard of living. Its population enjoys the highest life expectancy and the third lowest infant mortality rate in the world, in ancient China, Japan was called Wo 倭. It was mentioned in the third century Chinese historical text Records of the Three Kingdoms in the section for the Wei kingdom, Wa became disliked because it has the connotation of the character 矮, meaning dwarf. The 倭 kanji has been replaced with the homophone Wa, meaning harmony, the Japanese word for Japan is 日本, which is pronounced Nippon or Nihon and literally means the origin of the sun. The earliest record of the name Nihon appears in the Chinese historical records of the Tang dynasty, at the start of the seventh century, a delegation from Japan introduced their country as Nihon
Japan
–
The
Golden Hall and
five-storey pagoda of
Hōryū-ji, among the oldest wooden buildings in the world,
National Treasures, and a
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Japan
Japan
–
Samurai warriors face Mongols, during the
Mongol invasions of Japan. The
Kamikaze, two storms, are said to have saved Japan from Mongol fleets.
Japan
–
Samurai could
kill a commoner for the slightest insult and were widely feared by the Japanese population.
Edo period, 1798
29.
Dominican Republic
–
The Dominican Republic is a sovereign state occupying the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western one-third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, christopher Columbus landed on the Western part of Hispaniola, in what is now Haiti, on December 6,1492. The island became the first seat of the Spanish colonial rule in the New World, the Dominican people declared independence in November 1821 but were forcefully annexed by their more powerful neighbor Haiti in February 1822. After the 1844 victory in the Dominican War of Independence against Haitian rule the country again under Spanish colonial rule until the Dominican War of Restoration of 1865. The Dominican Republic experienced mostly internal strife until 1916, a civil war in 1965, the countrys last, was ended by another U. S. military occupation and was followed by the authoritarian rule of Joaquín Balaguer, 1966–1978. Since then, the Dominican Republic has moved toward representative democracy and has been led by Leonel Fernández for most of the time since 1996. Danilo Medina, the Dominican Republics current president, succeeded Fernandez in 2012, the Dominican Republic has the ninth-largest economy in Latin America and is the largest economy in the Caribbean and Central American region. Though long known for agriculture and mining, the economy is now dominated by services. Over the last two decades, the Dominican Republic have been standing out as one of the economies in the Americas – with an average real GDP growth rate of 5. 4% between 1992 and 2014. GDP growth in 2014 and 2015 reached 7.3 and 7. 0%, respectively, in the first half of 2016 the Dominican economy grew 7. 4% continuing its trend of rapid economic growth. Recent growth has been driven by construction, manufacturing and tourism, private consumption has been strong, as a result of low inflation, job creation, as well as high level of remittances. The Dominican Republic has a market, Bolsa de Valores de la Republica Dominicana. and advanced telecommunication system. Nevertheless, unemployment, government corruption, and inconsistent electric service remain major Dominican problems, the country also has marked income inequality. International migration affects the Dominican Republic greatly, as it receives, mass illegal Haitian immigration and the integration of Dominicans of Haitian descent are major issues. A large Dominican diaspora exists, mostly in the United States, contributes to development, the Dominican Republic is the most visited destination in the Caribbean. The year-round golf courses are major attractions, the island has an average temperature of 26 °C and great climatic and biological diversity. The country is also the site of the first cathedral, castle, monastery, and fortress built in all of the Americas, located in Santo Domingos Colonial Zone, a World Heritage Site. Music and sport are of importance in the Dominican culture, with Merengue and Bachata as the national dance and music
Dominican Republic
–
The Pomier Caves are a series of 55 caves located north of San Cristobal in the Dominican Republic. They contain the largest collection of 2,000-year-old rock art in the Caribbean.
Dominican Republic
–
Flag
Dominican Republic
–
The
Alcázar of Colón, located in Santo Domingo, is the oldest
Viceregal residence in all of the Americas.
Dominican Republic
–
Jean-Pierre Boyer the mulatto ruler of Haiti.
30.
Colombia
–
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a transcontinental country largely situated in the northwest of South America, with territories in Central America. Colombia shares a border to the northwest with Panama, to the east with Venezuela and Brazil and to the south with Ecuador and it shares its maritime limits with Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. It is a unitary, constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments, the territory of what is now Colombia was originally inhabited by indigenous peoples including the Muisca, the Quimbaya and the Tairona. The Spanish arrived in 1499 and initiated a period of conquest and colonization ultimately creating the Viceroyalty of New Granada, independence from Spain was won in 1819, but by 1830 the Gran Colombia Federation was dissolved. What is now Colombia and Panama emerged as the Republic of New Granada, the new nation experimented with federalism as the Granadine Confederation, and then the United States of Colombia, before the Republic of Colombia was finally declared in 1886. Since the 1960s the country has suffered from an asymmetric low-intensity armed conflict, Colombia is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse countries in the world, and thereby possesses a rich cultural heritage. Cultural diversity has also influenced by Colombias varied geography. The urban centres are located in the highlands of the Andes mountains. Colombian territory also encompasses Amazon rainforest, tropical grassland and both Caribbean and Pacific coastlines, ecologically, it is one of the worlds 17 megadiverse countries, and the most densely biodiverse of these per square kilometer. Colombia is a power and a regional actor with the fourth-largest economy in Latin America, is part of the CIVETS group of six leading emerging markets and is an accessing member to the OECD. Colombia has an economy with macroeconomic stability and favorable growth prospects in the long run. The name Colombia is derived from the last name of Christopher Columbus and it was conceived by the Venezuelan revolutionary Francisco de Miranda as a reference to all the New World, but especially to those portions under Spanish and Portuguese rule. The name was adopted by the Republic of Colombia of 1819. When Venezuela, Ecuador and Cundinamarca came to exist as independent states, New Granada officially changed its name in 1858 to the Granadine Confederation. In 1863 the name was changed, this time to United States of Colombia. To refer to country, the Colombian government uses the terms Colombia. Owing to its location, the present territory of Colombia was a corridor of early human migration from Mesoamerica, the oldest archaeological finds are from the Pubenza and El Totumo sites in the Magdalena Valley 100 km southwest of Bogotá. These sites date from the Paleoindian period, at Puerto Hormiga and other sites, traces from the Archaic Period have been found
Colombia
–
San Agustín Archaeological Park
Colombia
Colombia
–
Lost City
Colombia
–
Muisca raft. The figure refers to the ceremony of the legend of
El Dorado. The legend and the gold would play a pivotal role in luring Europeans to New Granada during the 16th and 17th centuries.
31.
Chloroform
–
Chloroform, or trichloromethane, is an organic compound with formula CHCl3. It is a colorless, sweet-smelling, dense liquid that is produced on a scale as a precursor to PTFE. It is also a precursor to various refrigerants and it is one of the four chloromethanes and a trihalomethane. The molecule adopts tetrahedral molecular geometry with C3v symmetry, the total global flux of chloroform through the environment is approximately 7005660000000000000♠660000 tonnes per year, and about 90% of emissions are natural in origin. Many kinds of seaweed produce chloroform, and fungi are believed to produce chloroform in soil and its half-life in air ranges from 55 to 620 days. Biodegradation in water and soil is slow, chloroform does not significantly bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms. Justus von Liebig carried out the cleavage of chloral. Eugène Soubeiran obtained the compound by the action of chlorine bleach on both ethanol and acetone, in 1834, French chemist Jean-Baptiste Dumas determined chloroforms empirical formula and named it. In 1835, Dumas prepared the substance by the cleavage of trichloroacetic acid. Regnault prepared chloroform by chlorination of chloromethane, in 1842 Dr Robert Mortimer Glover in London discovered the anaesthetic qualities of chloroform on laboratory animals. In 1847, Scottish obstetrician James Y. Simpson was the first to demonstrate the properties of chloroform on humans. By the 1850s, chloroform was being produced on a basis by using the Liebig procedure. Today, chloroform — along with dichloromethane — is prepared exclusively, in industry, chloroform is produced by heating a mixture of chlorine and either chloromethane or methane. CDCl3 is a solvent used in NMR spectroscopy. Deuterochloroform is produced by the reaction, the reaction of acetone with sodium hypochlorite or calcium hypochlorite. The haloform process is now obsolete for the production of ordinary chloroform, deuterochloroform can also be prepared by the reaction of sodium deuteroxide with chloral hydrate, or from ordinary chloroform. The haloform reaction can also occur inadvertently in domestic settings, bleaching with hypochlorite generates halogenated compounds in side reactions, chloroform is the main byproduct. Chlorodifluoromethane is then converted into tetrafluoroethylene, the precursor to Teflon
Chloroform
–
Chloroform
Chloroform
–
Antique bottles of chloroform
32.
Walter Hough
–
Walter Hough, Ph. D. was an American ethnologist. He was born at Morgantown, West Virginia and he was educated at Monongalia Academy, West Virginia Agricultural College, and West Virginia University. He was employed at the United States National Museum as an assistant, as assistant curator of ethnology, in 1892 he was made Knight of the Order of Isabella when in Madrid as a member of the United States Commission. He was a member of Dr. J. Walter Fewkes expedition to Arizona, went to Mexico, and explored areas of the Southwest
Walter Hough
–
Hough in Rock Creek Park, 1926
Walter Hough
–
Walter Hough, Popular Science Monthly, 1904-1905
33.
International Standard Serial Number
–
An International Standard Serial Number is an eight-digit serial number used to uniquely identify a serial publication. The ISSN is especially helpful in distinguishing between serials with the same title, ISSN are used in ordering, cataloging, interlibrary loans, and other practices in connection with serial literature. The ISSN system was first drafted as an International Organization for Standardization international standard in 1971, ISO subcommittee TC 46/SC9 is responsible for maintaining the standard. When a serial with the content is published in more than one media type. For example, many serials are published both in print and electronic media, the ISSN system refers to these types as print ISSN and electronic ISSN, respectively. The format of the ISSN is an eight digit code, divided by a hyphen into two four-digit numbers, as an integer number, it can be represented by the first seven digits. The last code digit, which may be 0-9 or an X, is a check digit. Formally, the form of the ISSN code can be expressed as follows, NNNN-NNNC where N is in the set, a digit character. The ISSN of the journal Hearing Research, for example, is 0378-5955, where the final 5 is the check digit, for calculations, an upper case X in the check digit position indicates a check digit of 10. To confirm the check digit, calculate the sum of all eight digits of the ISSN multiplied by its position in the number, the modulus 11 of the sum must be 0. There is an online ISSN checker that can validate an ISSN, ISSN codes are assigned by a network of ISSN National Centres, usually located at national libraries and coordinated by the ISSN International Centre based in Paris. The International Centre is an organization created in 1974 through an agreement between UNESCO and the French government. The International Centre maintains a database of all ISSNs assigned worldwide, at the end of 2016, the ISSN Register contained records for 1,943,572 items. ISSN and ISBN codes are similar in concept, where ISBNs are assigned to individual books, an ISBN might be assigned for particular issues of a serial, in addition to the ISSN code for the serial as a whole. An ISSN, unlike the ISBN code, is an identifier associated with a serial title. For this reason a new ISSN is assigned to a serial each time it undergoes a major title change, separate ISSNs are needed for serials in different media. Thus, the print and electronic versions of a serial need separate ISSNs. Also, a CD-ROM version and a web version of a serial require different ISSNs since two different media are involved, however, the same ISSN can be used for different file formats of the same online serial
International Standard Serial Number
–
ISSN encoded in an EAN-13 barcode with sequence variant 0 and issue number 5
34.
Vintry
–
Vintry is one of the 25 wards of the City of London. Located within it is the City end of Southwark Bridge and, adjacent to that, the hall of the Worshipful Company of Vintners, the Christopher Wren-designed church St James Garlickhythe is within Vintry ward, near Mansion House tube station. In medieval times, French wine and garlic were landed at the nearby Garlickhythe and this circumstance led to the church being part of the route for English pilgrims travelling to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, which is sacred to the memory of St James the Great. The ward contained Whittingtons Longhouse, a 128-seat public toilet gifted by Dick Whittington, Vintry is one of 25 wards in the City of London, each electing an alderman to the Court of Aldermen and commoners to the Court of Common Council of the City of London Corporation. Only electors who are freemen of the City are eligible to stand for election, john Stows A Survay of London lists four churches in Vintry ward,14. S. Michael Paternoſter in the Royall ſometime a colledge
Vintry
–
Vintry in a 1572 map by Agas
Vintry
–
Location within the City
35.
International Standard Book Number
–
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
International Standard Book Number
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A 13-digit ISBN, 978-3-16-148410-0, as represented by an
EAN-13 bar code
36.
Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana
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It was the first dictionary to be published in the New World. However the most relevant and most famous edition was the one made in 1571, edited by Antonio de Spinosa and this new edition included the Nahuatl-to-Spanish section that the original didnt. After the Council of Trent, the hierarchy of the Catholic Church recommended to preach in indigenous languages, during Martin Enriquez government, Molina published his vocabularies Spanish-to-Nahuatl and Nahuatl-to-Spanish to help the formation of priests that were to accomplish the evangelizing assignments. Molinas Vocabulario is considered the most important dictionary of Classical Nahuatl and it is typically referred to simply as Molina. This first edition of the dictionary contained the Spanish-to-Nahuatl section. There are 4 columns on each sheet and each one of them contains approximately 35 entries, the first section is headed by the printing licenses and a letter to New Spains viceroy, D. Martínez Enríquez. Both sections are preceded by a foreword in which he justifies the work, there are 7 known editions,1555. Aquí comiença un vocabulario en la lengua castellana y mexicana,1910, by Rufino González, Puebla Talleres el Escritorio, only Spanish-to-Nahuatl. 1944, facsimile edition by Colección de Incunables americanos, siglo XVI, v. IV, Madrid, mexico, Porrúa, preliminar study by Miguel León-Portilla. Digital reproduction of Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana, in the website of the Complutense University of Madrid, full online facsimile of the book at the Internet Archive
Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana
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Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana
37.
Alonso de Molina
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He also wrote a bilingual confessional manual for priests who served in Nahuatl-speaking communities. He was born in Extremadura, Spain in the Province of Cáceres and he grew up playing with monolingual Nahuatl speaking children in the streets as the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan was being refashioned into Mexico City, and so he became a fluent speaker of Nahuatl. In 1528, as a man, he entered the Franciscan convent of Mexico City becoming a friar. Juan Badiano, a student at the school, translated a Nahuatl herbal into Latin, besides his clerical duties, Molina devoted himself to the study, understanding and writing of Nahuatl. He composed and preached sermons in the Nahuatl tongue. It is still considered a tool for students of Classical Nahuatl language. According to James Lockhart, Molina went far beyond utilitarian basics to include a vast range of vocabulary, making many subtle semantic, molinas work creating Nahuatl language tools came under scrutiny by the Inquisition. Molina records many nouns from Spanish that became integrated into Nahuatl, el arte de la lengua mexicana y castellana de fray Alonso de Molina, morfología y composición. Fray Alonso de Molina y el proyecto indigenista de la orden seráfica, las doctrinas de Molina y Sahagún, similitudes y diferencias. La incidencia de hispanismos en los confessionarios mayor y menor de fray Alonso de Molina, un prólogo en náhuatl suscrito por Bernardino de Sahagún y Alonso de Molina
Alonso de Molina
–
Molina's dictionary.
38.
OCLC
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The Online Computer Library Center is a US-based nonprofit cooperative organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the worlds information and reducing information costs. It was founded in 1967 as the Ohio College Library Center, OCLC and its member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the largest online public access catalog in the world. OCLC is funded mainly by the fees that libraries have to pay for its services, the group first met on July 5,1967 on the campus of the Ohio State University to sign the articles of incorporation for the nonprofit organization. The group hired Frederick G. Kilgour, a former Yale University medical school librarian, Kilgour wished to merge the latest information storage and retrieval system of the time, the computer, with the oldest, the library. The goal of network and database was to bring libraries together to cooperatively keep track of the worlds information in order to best serve researchers and scholars. The first library to do online cataloging through OCLC was the Alden Library at Ohio University on August 26,1971 and this was the first occurrence of online cataloging by any library worldwide. Membership in OCLC is based on use of services and contribution of data, between 1967 and 1977, OCLC membership was limited to institutions in Ohio, but in 1978, a new governance structure was established that allowed institutions from other states to join. In 2002, the structure was again modified to accommodate participation from outside the United States. As OCLC expanded services in the United States outside of Ohio, it relied on establishing strategic partnerships with networks, organizations that provided training, support, by 2008, there were 15 independent United States regional service providers. OCLC networks played a key role in OCLC governance, with networks electing delegates to serve on OCLC Members Council, in early 2009, OCLC negotiated new contracts with the former networks and opened a centralized support center. OCLC provides bibliographic, abstract and full-text information to anyone, OCLC and its member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat—the OCLC Online Union Catalog, the largest online public access catalog in the world. WorldCat has holding records from public and private libraries worldwide. org, in October 2005, the OCLC technical staff began a wiki project, WikiD, allowing readers to add commentary and structured-field information associated with any WorldCat record. The Online Computer Library Center acquired the trademark and copyrights associated with the Dewey Decimal Classification System when it bought Forest Press in 1988, a browser for books with their Dewey Decimal Classifications was available until July 2013, it was replaced by the Classify Service. S. The reference management service QuestionPoint provides libraries with tools to communicate with users and this around-the-clock reference service is provided by a cooperative of participating global libraries. OCLC has produced cards for members since 1971 with its shared online catalog. OCLC commercially sells software, e. g. CONTENTdm for managing digital collections, OCLC has been conducting research for the library community for more than 30 years. In accordance with its mission, OCLC makes its research outcomes known through various publications and these publications, including journal articles, reports, newsletters, and presentations, are available through the organizations website. The most recent publications are displayed first, and all archived resources, membership Reports – A number of significant reports on topics ranging from virtual reference in libraries to perceptions about library funding
OCLC
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Fred Kilgour (1st director of OCLC)
OCLC
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Online Computer Library Center (OCLC)
OCLC
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OCLC headquarters (Ohio)
OCLC
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OCLC offices in Leiden (the Netherlands)
39.
Jewellery
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Jewellery or jewelry consists of small decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes, for many centuries metal, often combined with gemstones, has been the normal material for jewellery, but other materials such as shells and other plant materials may be used. It is one of the oldest type of archaeological artefact – with 100, historically, the most widespread influence on jewellery in terms of design and style have come from Asia. Jewellery may be made from a range of materials. Gemstones and similar such as amber and coral, precious metals, beads, and shells have been widely used. In most cultures jewellery can be understood as a symbol, for its material properties, its patterns. Jewellery has been made to nearly every body part, from hairpins to toe rings. The word jewellery itself is derived from the jewel, which was anglicised from the Old French jouel. In British English, Indian English, New Zealand English, Hiberno-English, Australian English, both are used in Canadian English, though jewelry prevails by a two to one margin. Numerous cultures store wedding dowries in the form of jewellery or make jewellery as a means to store or display coins, alternatively, jewellery has been used as a currency or trade good, an example being the use of slave beads. Many items of jewellery, such as brooches and buckles, originated as functional items. Jewellery can also symbolise group membership or status, wearing of amulets and devotional medals to provide protection or ward off evil is common in some cultures. These may take the form of symbols, stones, plants, animals, body parts, in creating jewellery, gemstones, coins, or other precious items are often used, and they are typically set into precious metals. Alloys of nearly every metal known have been encountered in jewellery, bronze, for example, was common in Roman times. Modern fine jewellery usually includes gold, white gold, platinum, palladium, titanium, most contemporary gold jewellery is made of an alloy of gold, the purity of which is stated in karats, indicated by a number followed by the letter K. American gold jewellery must be of at least 10K purity, many whimsical fashions were introduced in the extravagant eighteenth century. Cameos that were used in connection with jewellery were the attractive trinkets along with many of the objects such as brooches, ear-rings. Some of the necklets were made of pieces joined with the gold chains were in and bracelets were also made sometimes to match the necklet
Jewellery
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Amber pendants
Jewellery
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Diamond temptation design
Jewellery
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The Queen
Farida of Egypt red coral parure by Ascione manufacture, 1938, Naples,
Coral Jewellery Museum
Jewellery
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The
Daria-i-Noor (meaning: Sea of Light) Diamond from the collection of the national jewels of Iran at
Central Bank of Islamic Republic of Iran
40.
Anklet
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An anklet, also called ankle chain, ankle bracelet or ankle string, is an ornament worn around the ankle. Barefoot anklets and toe rings historically have been worn for centuries by girls and women in India and they have also been worn by Egyptian women since predynastic times. In the United States both casual and more formal anklets became fashionable from the 1930s to the twentieth century. While in western popular culture both younger men and women may wear casual leather anklets, they are popular among barefoot women, formal anklets are used by some women as fashion jewellery. Anklets are an important piece of jewellery in Indian marriages worn along with saris, occasionally, anklets on both ankles are joined by a chain to limit the step. This practice was prevalent in South East Asia, where the effect was to give a feminine short tripping step. Today, a few western women follow this practice, but rarely in public, more rarely still, some people wear permanent ankle chains and even connecting chains. Anklets were worn as an ornament by Egyptian women of all social classes in ancient Egypt from as early as predynastic times. The name for anklets was not much different from that of bracelets being menefret except by adding a phrase to denote connection to the feet, during the fourth, fifth, and sixth dynasties, anklets were usually made of beads threaded in several rows held together with spacer-bars. Anklets were also worn by dancers like those shown in the tombs of Kagemni, Ti, in the early twentieth century, anklets were commonly worn by Egyptian women of inner cities. They were called kholkhal and were most classically worn by women of Alexandria, anklets are still commonly worn by dancers in public events. Bronze anklets are visible as early as the Bronze Age in temperate Europe, in an area roughly along the Danube, in the Alpine foreland, up the Rhine to the Atlantic, and also down the Rhône. These were found among hoards in these areas, along with other items characteristic of this time. A first-century CE epic of Tamil literature called Cilappatikaram dealt with a woman whose husband was killed trying to sell one of her anklets to a dishonest goldsmith. The anklets are described in detail in the poem. Rajasthani women wear the heaviest type of anklets, which are silver, the women wear these as costume jewelry, but also to show their bravery as a tribe against other rival tribes. The fashion for heavy anklets is declining in India now, but is common in rural areas. In the eastern Indian state of Odisha, which is famous for its jewelry, there are varieties of anklets known as Paunji Nupur
Anklet
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Anklet and high heels
Anklet
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Anklet and toe ring
Anklet
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A
toe ring with attached anklet.
Anklet
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Payal
41.
Barrette
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A barrette, also known as a hair clip, hair-slide or clasp, is a clasp for holding hair in place. They are often made from metal and/or plastic and sometimes feature decorative fabric, in one type of barrette, a clasp is used to secure the barrette in place, the clasp opens when the two metal pieces at either side are pressed together. The barrette was invented by Jackie Roach when she was five, barrettes are worn in different ways partly according to their size, with small ones often used at the front and large ones in the back to hold more hair. They are used to keep out of the eyes, or to secure a bun. Short metal clip barrettes are sometimes used to pull back front pieces of hair, barrettes are also sometimes used purely for decorative purposes. Larger barrettes are designed to pull back longer hair or an amount of hair and are usually worn at the back of the head. If the intent is to pull back, the length of the barrette is not the only consideration. Many different kinds of hair clips have been invented in the 20th century, several of these are seen in the image
Barrette
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Various types of hair slides
Barrette
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A hair barrette on the back of a woman's head
42.
Belt buckle
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A belt buckle is a buckle, a clasp for fastening two ends, such as of straps or a belt, in which a device attached to one of the ends is fitted or coupled to the other. The word enters Middle English via Old French and the Latin buccula or cheek-strap, Belt buckles and other fixtures are used on a variety of belts, including cingula, baltea, baldrics and later waist-belts. Belt buckles go back at least to the age and a gold great buckle was among the items interred at Sutton Hoo. Primarily decorative shield on tongue buckles were common Anglo-Saxon grave goods at this time, elaborately decorated on the shield portion and associated only with men. One such buckle, found in a 7th-century grave at Finglesham, frame-style buckles are the oldest design. In a frame-and-prong buckle the prong attaches to one end of the frame and extends away from the wearer through a hole in the belt, where it anchors against the opposite side of the frame. The oldest styles have a loop or D shaped frame. Very small buckles with removable center pins and chapes were introduced and used on shoes, beginning in the 17th century, a chape is the fixed cover or plate which attaches buckle to belt while the mordant or bite is the adjustable portion. Plate-style buckles are common on western military belts of the mid-19th century, officers might have a similar but more intricate clasp-style closure that featured two interlocking metal parts. In practice, the term belt plate refers to any flat, the distance between the fixed frame or chape of a plate buckle and its adjustment prong is called the throw. Box-out buckles make the traditional belt seen today, usually made with an enduring leather or other synthetic material as the band, these belt buckles are less functional but more fashionable. These belts became popular after Hollywood began using them in movies for their fresh, now they dominate belt production, and are viewed as a more attractive belt. Box-frame buckles are another, 20th-century style of military friction buckle, the box-frame buckle consists of three parts. There may or may not be a tip on the opposite tongue end of the belt for easier insertion. Earlier, military-style buckles often use friction and are designed for use with cloth belts or straps, simple friction buckles are one-piece frames with no prong whatsoever, the strap or belt winding through a series of slots, and may more technically be called belt slides or belt trims. Although technically not buckles, other such as plastic side-clasp or even seat belt latches are also often used on belts. Because of their association with military equipment, belt buckles were primarily a masculine ornament well into the 19th century. Belt buckles became more popular as fashion accessories in the early 20th century, the large, flat surface of the western-style belt buckles make them a popular ornament or style of jewelry
Belt buckle
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Byzantine belt buckle from the late 6th or 7th century, with the
chape to the right
Belt buckle
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A conventional belt buckle with single square frame and prong
Belt buckle
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Back side of original US
Civil War buckle, showing bent-arrow chape-end attachment and single-hook mordant
Belt buckle
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Box-frame "buckles"
43.
Belly chain
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A belly chain or waist chain are the popular English terms for the Kamarband/Udiyanam, which is a type of body jewelry worn around the waist. Some belly chains attach to a piercing, these are also called pierced belly chains. They are often made of silver or gold, sometimes a thread is used around the waist instead of a chain. A belly chain is an adornment for belly dancers. Historically, waist chains have used in Eastern countries, specifically India, by men and women, as ornaments and as part of religious ceremonies, as accessories. Many ancient sculptures and paintings from locations in India, dating back to the Indus Valley civilization, around the world, an increasing number of women including celebrities are wearing waist ornaments. In Maldives, it was reported that scholars, magistrates and other influential people wore silver chains around their waists before the 1680s, sayyid Mohammed arrived in Male’ when he heard that Maldives was filled with what he called forbidden practices. He banned men from wearing waist chains as part of his effort to remove superstition, some men complied, in other cases chains were forcibly removed. Many deities in the Hindu religion, such as Lord Krishna, a waistband called cummerbund or patka was a part of the medieval upper class costume of Rajasthanis. A 14th century poetry indicates that the waist chain has been a fashion for men in parts, The golden waist chain. Belly chains are common among women in India, in some regions waist chains are common among men as well. Namboothri men generally wear waist strings even as adults, in some aristocratic families, Namboothiri men wore a flattened triple gold string around the waist. As a Hindu custom newborns get a waist chain on the 28th day after their birth, in Kerala, a state in India, almost all newborns irrespective of the religious affiliation get a waist chain. Although many boys generally abandon waist chains during their years, a large fraction of the girls. A follower of Lord Siva is expected to wear a chain, with Rudrakshas strung in a chain with one hundred beads. In Lakshdweep a silver thread is worn by men and women. Dhodia and Kathodis are Katkari men use ornaments around the waist, for cultural reasons, waist chains became a fashion accessory for women and men in many parts of the world. Patent was issued for using waist chain as a monitoring device to facilitate weight loss
Belly chain
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The professional wrestler
Eve Torres wearing a belly chain.
44.
Bindi (decoration)
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A bindi is a red dot worn on the centre of the forehead, commonly by Hindu and Jain women. The word Bindu dates back to the hymn of creation known as Nasadiya Sukta in the Rigveda, Bindu is considered the point at which creation begins and may become unity. It is also described as the symbol of the cosmos in its unmanifested state. Bindi is a dot of red colour applied in the centre of the forehead close to the eyebrow worn in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia among Bali. Bindi in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism is associated with Ajna Chakra, Bindu is the point or dot around which the mandala is created, representing the universe. Bindi has historical and cultural presence in the region of Greater India, traditionally, the area between the eyebrows is said to be the sixth chakra, ajna, the seat of concealed wisdom. The bindi is said to retain energy and strengthen concentration, the bindi also represents the third eye. The Nasadiya Sukta of the Rig Veda, the earliest known Sanskrit text, the Ajna is symbolised by a sacred lotus with two petals, and corresponds to the colours violet, indigo or deep blue, though it is traditionally described as white. It is at point that the two side nadi Ida and Pingala are said to terminate and merge with the central channel Sushumna, signifying the end of duality. The seed syllable for this chakra is the syllable OM, and the deity is Ardhanarishvara. The Shakti goddess of Ajna is called Hakini, in metaphysics, Bindu is considered the dot or point at which creation begins and may become unity. It is also described as the symbol of the cosmos in its unmanifested state. Bindu is the point around which the mandala is created, representing the universe, Ajna, is known as the third eye chakra and is linked to the pineal gland which may inform a model of its envisioning. Ajnas key issues involve balancing the higher and lower selves and trusting inner guidance, ajnas inner aspect relates to the access of intuition. Mentally, Ajna deals with visual consciousness, emotionally, Ajna deals with clarity on an intuitive level. In Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism bindi is associated with Ajna Chakra, the very spot between the eyebrows known as Bhrumadhya is where one focuses his/her sight, so that it helps concentration. In South Asia, bindi is worn by women of all religious dispositions and is not restricted to religion or region, however, the Islamic Research Foundation, located in India, says wearing a bindi or mangalsutra is a sign of Hindu women. The traditional bindi still represents and preserves the symbolic significance that is integrated into Indian mythology in many parts of India, the red bindi has multiple meanings which are all simultaneously valid— One simple interpretation it is a cosmetic mark used to enhance beauty
Bindi (decoration)
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Hindu woman wearing a bindi
Bindi (decoration)
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Bindi and traditional head ornament with sun and moon pendents.
Bindi (decoration)
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Buddha depicted with
Ajna Bhrumadhya Bindu known as inner gaze. Bhrumadhya is the point in the center of the forehead commonly referred to as the third eye, or center of consciousness.
Bindi (decoration)
–
Relief from
Stupa, 2nd century B.C. As decoration only female figures were marked with
sacred lotus during this period.
45.
Bracelet
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A bracelet is an article of jewellery that is worn around the wrist. It may have a function, such as holding a wristwatch or other items of jewellery such as religious symbols or charms. Medical and identity information is marked on some bracelets, such as bracelets, hospital patient-identification tags. If a bracelet is a single, inflexible loop, it is called a bangle. When it is worn around the ankle it is called an ankle bracelet or anklet, a boot bracelet is used to decorate boots. Colloquially, handcuffs are sometimes called bracelets, although the term armlet may be technically similar, it is taken to mean an item that sits on the upper shoulder, an arm ring. The origin of the bracelet is from the Greek brachile meaning of the arm. A bracelet is also a small brace or bracer, the history of Egyptian bracelets is as old as 5000 BCE. Starting with materials like bones, stones and woods to serve religious, from the National Geographic Society, the Scarab Bracelet is one of the most recognized symbols of ancient Egypt. The scarab represented rebirth and regeneration, carved scarabs were worn as jewelry and wrapped into the linen bandages of mummies. Myth told of the god, Khepri, pushing the sun across the sky. Artifacts, including a bracelet, excavated in the cave at the level were carbon dated to around 40,000 BP. In Bulgaria there is a tradition called Martenitsa, which involves tying a red. In some parts of India, the number and type of bangles worn by a woman denotes her marital status, in Sikhism a bracelet is one of the mandatory articles known as the Five Virtues. In Latin America, Azabache Bracelets are worn to protect against the Mal de ojo, the evil eye is believed to result of excessive admiration or envious looks by others. Having newborn babies wear an azabache, is believed to protect them from the evil eye, taken in the plural, bracelets is often used as slang for handcuffs. A charm bracelet is an item of jewelry worn around the wrist and it carries personal charms, decorative pendants or trinkets which are signifiers of important things in the wearers life. In recent history, Italian charm bracelets have become trendy, while traditional charms dangle, Italian charms feature individual pieces soldered flat onto the surface of the link
Bracelet
–
A gold charm bracelet showing a heart-shaped locket, seahorse, crystal, telephone, bear, spaceship, and grand piano.
Bracelet
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Ancient Egyptian bracelet, c. 1450 BCE.
Bracelet
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Ancient bracelet,
Achaemenid period, c. 500 BCE,
Iran.
Bracelet
–
Vintage Trifari in-line bracelet, a.k.a. "tennis bracelet".
46.
Brooch
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A brooch /ˈbroʊtʃ/ is a decorative jewelry item designed to be attached to garments, often to hold them closed. It is usually made of metal, often silver or gold, brooches are frequently decorated with enamel or with gemstones and may be solely for ornament or sometimes serve a practical function as a fastening, perhaps for a cloak. The earliest known brooches are from the Bronze Age, as fashions in brooches changed rather quickly, they are important chronological indicators. Many sorts of European brooches found in archaeology are usually referred to by the Latin term fibula, the fibula is an ornamental clasp used by Romans, Greeks, Germanic peoples and also by Celts and migratory tribes in Europe from the Early Bronze Age. They may have replaced fibulae made of more perishable Neolithic materials, fibulae are useful type-objects, carefully catalogued local typologies, dating and distribution of fibulae can help date finds where neither numismatic nor ceramic materials provide a secure date. Fibulae were shaped somewhat like a safety pin and were used to hold clothing together. They came in varieties and held prominent significance for the identity of the wearer, indicating ethnicity. Elaborately designed fibulae were an important part of Late Antique dress, the same types of fibulae can often be found on either side of the Roman limites, both among Roman and barbarian populations. The cultural interplay of elite objects designed to show status can be quite complex and it is likely that this type originated among Celtic groups and came to be adopted as an exotic fashion by Roman aristocrats, becoming naturalized as an important Roman emblem, and then exported. From the eighteenth century through the Victorian era it was fashionable to incorporate hair, the practice began as an expression of mourning, then expanded to keepsakes of loved ones who were living. Human hair was encased within the brooch or braided and woven into a band to which clasps were affixed and it was not uncommon for miniature brooch portraits to incorporate ground human hair as pigment. Two sided swivel brooches would display a portrait on one side and a lock of hair on the other, hellenic Ministry of Culture, Katie Demakopoulou, Bronze Age Jewellry in Greece Brooch. Metropolitan jewelry, a catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries
Brooch
–
Detail of the Irish
pseudo-penannular Londesborough Brooch, British Museum
Brooch
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Braganza Brooch, Hellenistic art, 250-200 BC,
British Museum
Brooch
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Disk pin with woman giving birth, flanked by antelopes from
Luristan bronze.
Brooch
–
A hair brooch from the 19th century, in the collection of
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
47.
Chatelaine (chain)
–
A chatelaine is a decorative belt hook or clasp worn at the waist with a series of chains suspended from it. Each chain is mounted with useful household appendages such as scissors, thimbles, watches, keys, vinaigrette, chateleine bags refer to bags suspended from a waistband by cord or chain, which were popular from the 1860s to the end of the 19th century. Chatelaines were worn by many housekeepers in the 19th century and in the 16th century Dutch Republic, similar jewelry was also worn by Anglo-Saxon women, as seen from the burial record, but their function is uncertain. Ancient Roman women wore chatelaines with ear scoops, nail cleaners, women in Roman Britain wore chatelaine brooches from which toilet sets were suspended. The chatelaine was also used as a keychain in the 19th century to show the status of women in a household. The woman with the keys to all the desks, chest of drawers, food hampers, pantries, storage containers. Frequently, this hostess was the woman of the house. When a woman married a son and moved into his fathers house, however, if the mother became a widow, the keys and their responsibilities and status were often passed to the oldest sons wife. In the case of the absence of a woman of the house, the dictionary definition of chatelaine at Wiktionary Chatelaine
Chatelaine (chain)
–
Chatelaine, 1765-1775
Victoria and Albert Museum no. C.492:1 to 7-1914
48.
Crown (headgear)
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In art, the crown may be shown being offered to those on Earth by angels. In religious art, a crown of stars is used similarly to a halo, crowns worn by rulers often contain jewels. A crown is often an emblem of the monarchy, a monarchs government, the word itself is used, particularly in Commonwealth countries, as an abstract name for the monarchy itself, as distinct from the individual who inhabits it. A specific type of crown is employed in heraldry under strict rules, costume headgear imitating a monarchs crown is also called a crown. Such costume crowns may be worn by actors portraying a monarch, people at parties, or ritual monarchs such as the king of a Carnival krewe. The nuptial crown, sometimes called a coronal, worn by a bride, in the present day, it is most common in Eastern Orthodox cultures. The Eastern Orthodox marriage service has a section called the crowning, wherein the bride and groom are crowned as king, in Greek weddings, the crowns are diadems usually made of white flowers, synthetic or real, often adorned with silver or mother of pearl. They are placed on the heads of the newlyweds and are held together by a ribbon of white silk and they are then kept by the couple as a reminder of their special day. In Slavic weddings, the crowns are made of ornate metal, designed to resemble an imperial crown. A parish usually owns one set to use for all the couples that are married there since these are more expensive than Greek-style crowns. This was common in Catholic countries in the past, a Crown of thorns according to the Bible, was placed on the head of Jesus before his crucifixion and has become a common symbol of martyrdom. According to Roman Catholic tradition, the Blessed Virgin Mary was crowned as Queen of Heaven after her assumption into heaven and she is often depicted wearing a crown, and statues of her in churches and shrines are ceremonially crowned during May. The Crown of Immortality is also common in historical symbolism, dancers of certain traditional Thai dances often wear crowns on their head. These are inspired in the worn by deities and by kings. Three distinct categories of crowns exist in those monarchies that use crowns or state regalia, coronation, worn by monarchs when being crowned. State, worn by monarchs on other state occasions, consort crowns, worn by queens consort, signifying rank granted as a constitutional courtesy protocol. In Classical antiquity, the crown that was awarded to people other than rulers, such as triumphal military generals or athletes, was actually a wreath or chaplet. Numerous crowns of various forms were used in antiquity, such as the Hedjet, Deshret, the Pschent double crown and it was referred to as the chaplet studded with sunbeams” by Lucian, about 180 AD
Crown (headgear)
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The
Imperial State Crown of Great Britain, Tower of London. It incorporates the "Black Prince's Ruby", a 140 ct. Badakhshan spinel. This image of the crown was taken prior to the 1953 coronation, when the crown was modified for Queen Elizabeth II
Crown (headgear)
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Crown of Bolesław I the Brave from
Poland. Replica made between 2001 and 2003 after the original 1000-year-old crown was destroyed in the late 18th century.
Crown (headgear)
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The
Iron Crown of Lombardy, probably the most ancient royal insignia of Europe, used by the
Holy Roman Empire and the
Kingdom of Italy, kept in the Cathedral of
Monza.
Crown (headgear)
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Crown of King
George XII of Georgia made of gold and decorated with 145 diamonds, 58 rubies, 24 emeralds and 16 amethysts. It took the form of a circlet surmounted by ornaments and eight arches. A globe surmounted by a cross rested on the top of the crown.
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Cufflink
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Cufflinks are used to secure button shirt cuffs and may also be an item of jewellery for boys and men. Cufflinks can be manufactured from a variety of different materials, such as glass, stone, leather, metal, securing of the cufflinks is usually achieved via toggles or reverses based on the design of the front section, which can be folded into position. In addition, there are variants with chains or a rigid. The front sections of the cufflinks can be decorated with gemstones, inlays, inset material or enamel, Cufflinks are designed only for use with shirts which have buttonholes on both sides but no buttons. These may be single or double-length cuffs, and may be worn either kissing, with the ends pinched together, or barrel-style. The barrel-style was popularized by a famous 19th century entertainer and clown, Dan Rice, however, cufflink designs vary widely, with the most traditional the double-panel, consisting of a short post or chain connecting two disc-shaped parts, both decorated. Whale-back and toggle-back cufflinks have a flat decorated face for one side, while the side shows only the swivel-bar. The swivel bar is placed vertically to put the links on and off, Links of knotted brightly coloured silk enjoyed renewed popularity in the 1990s, joined by an elasticated section. The visible part of a cufflink is often monogrammed or decorated in some way, there are numerous styles including novelty, traditional, or contemporary. Colourful and whimsical cufflink designs are only suitable for casual and relatively informal events, and signals someone who is fun-loving, approachable. Sartorial experts prescribe gold to be worn during the daytime and silver for evening wear, an alternative type of cufflink is the cheaper silk knot which is usually two conjoined monkeys fist or Turks head knots. The Paris shirtmaker Charvet is credited with their introduction in 1904 and they became quickly popular, Charvet buttons of twisted braid are quite the style noted The New York Times in 1908. French cuff shirts are often accompanied with a set of colour-coordinated silk knots instead of double-button cufflinks and they are now often not from silk, and consist of a fabric over an elasticated core. Owing to the popularity of this fashion, metal cufflinks shaped to look like a silk knot are also worn, although the first cufflinks appeared in the 1600s, they did not become common until the end of the 18th century. Their development is related to that of the mens shirt. Men have been wearing shirt-like items of clothing since the invention of woven fabric 5,000 years BC, although styles and methods of manufacturing changed, the underlying form remained the same, a tunic opened to the front with sleeves and collar. The shirt was worn next to the skin, it was washable. Conversely, it protected the skin against the rougher and heavier fabrics of jackets and coats by covering the neck
Cufflink
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Double cuff with cufflink
Cufflink
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Swivel bar type
Cufflink
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Double-panel type
Cufflink
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Pairs of silk knot links; they can conveniently be held together as a pair by the elastic when not in use
"Copal". Encyclopædia Britannica. 7 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 94.
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