1.
Meissen porcelain
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Meissen porcelain or Meissen china is the first European hard-paste porcelain. It was developed starting in 1708 by Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus, after his death that October, Johann Friedrich Böttger continued von Tschirnhauss work and brought porcelain to the market. Its signature logo, the swords, was introduced in 1720 to protect its production. It dominated the style of European porcelain until 1756, at the beginning of the eighteenth century Johann Friedrich Böttger pretended he had solved the dream of the alchemists, to produce gold from worthless materials. When King Augustus II of Poland heard of it, he kept him in protective custody, for years Johann Friedrich Böttger was unsuccessful in this effort. At the same time, Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus, a mathematician and scientist, experimented with the manufacture of glass, Tschirnhaus supervised Böttger and by 1707 Böttger reluctantly started to help in the experiments by Tschirnhaus. When Tschirnhaus suddenly died, the recipe apparently was handed over to Böttger, Böttger refined the formula and with some Dutch co-workers, experienced in firing and painting tiles, the stage was set for the manufacturing of porcelain. In 1709, the King established the Royal-Polish and Electoral-Saxon Porcelain Manufactory, placed Böttgers laboratory at Albrechtsburg castle in Meissen, the first type of porcelain produced by Böttger was a refined and extremely hard red stoneware known in Germany as Böttgersteinzeug. It retained very crisp definition in its mold-cast applied details, on bodies that could be polished to a gloss before firing, models were derived from Baroque silver shapes and Chinese ceramic examples. Meissens production of a hard paste white porcelain that could be glazed and painted soon followed, Böttgers experimental wares rapidly gained quality but never achieved successful painted and fired decor. The first successful ornaments were gold decorations applied upon the fired body, multicolor enamelled painting was introduced by Johann Gregorius Höroldt in 1723, with an increasingly broad palette of colors that marked the beginning of the classic phase of Meissen porcelain. His enamel paints are still the basis for ceramic paints today, initially paintings often imitated oriental patterns. The signature underglaze Meissen Blue was introduced by Friedrich August Köttig, soon minutely detailed landscapes and port scenes, animals, flowers, galante courtly scenes and chinoiseries— fanciful Chinese-inspired decorations— were to be found on Meissen porcelain. The Kakiemon vases and tea wares of kilns in Arita, Japan were imitated as Indianische Blume, wares were also sold in solid glazed colors, to be enamelled in private workshops and independently retailed. The support of Augustus patronage attracted to Meissen some of the finest painters and modelers of Europe as staff artists, the Albrechtsburg was utilized to protect the secrets of the manufacture of the white gold. As a further precaution, very few knew the special secret of how to make porcelain. Thus, for a few years, Meissen retained its monopoly on the production of porcelain in Europe. By 1717, however, a production was set up at Vienna, as Samuel Stöltzel sold the secret recipe
2.
Punch (drink)
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Punch is the term for a wide assortment of drinks, both non-alcoholic and alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice. The drink was introduced from India to the United Kingdom in the seventeenth century. Punch is typically served at parties in large, wide bowls, sangria is a kind of punch. The word punch is a loanword from Sanskrit पञ्च, meaning five, as the drink was made with five ingredients, alcohol, sugar, lemon, water. The drink was brought to England from India by sailors and employees of the British East India Company in the seventeenth century. From there it was introduced into other European countries, when served communally, the drink is expected to be of a lower alcohol content than a typical cocktail. The term punch was first recorded in British documents in 1632, at the time, most punches were of the wassail type made with a wine or brandy base. But around 1655, Jamaican rum came into use and the modern punch emerged, by 1671, documents make references to punch houses. Today, soft drink manufacturers distribute many types of fruit punch beverages and these are usually red colored drinks. Despite the name, most brands contain only a fraction of actual fruit juice, the major constituents being sugar or corn syrup, citric acid. A drink closely associated with Kentucky and other Southern states, sweet bourbon punch is made with tea, citrus flavors. Bourbon is named for Bourbon County, Kentucky, and each year during the Kentucky Derby and they often include quantities of fruit juices or soft drinks. There are several rum-based punches, Planters Punch, Fish House Punch, Bajan Rum Punch, Caribbean Rum Punch, the most historical rum punches is the Bajan Rum Punch. Bajan Rum Punch is one of the oldest rum punches and has a simple recipe enshrined in a rhyme, One of Sour, Two of Sweet, Three of Strong. That is, one part lime juice, two parts sweetener, three parts rum, and four parts water and it is served with a dash or two of Angostura bitters and nutmeg. The recipe of Planters Punch varies, containing some combination of rum, lemon juice, pineapple juice, lime juice, orange juice, grenadine, soda water, curaçao, Angostura bitters, and cayenne pepper. Planters Punch was invented at the bar of the Planters House hotel in St. Louis, Missouri. The first known print reference to Planters Punch was in the August 8,1908 edition of The New York Times, PLANTERS PUNCH This recipe I give to thee, Dear brother in the heat
3.
Distilled beverage
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This process purifies it and removes diluting components like water, for the purpose of increasing its proportion of alcohol content. As distilled beverages contain more alcohol, they are considered harder – in North America, as examples, this term does not include beverages such as beer, wine, sake, and cider, as they are fermented but not distilled. These all have relatively low alcohol content, typically less than 15%, brandy is a spirit produced by the distillation of wine, and has an ABV of over 35%. Other examples of distilled beverages include bourbon, vodka, gin, rum, tequila, mezcal, whisky, scotch, the term spirit refers to a distilled beverage that contains no added sugar and has at least 20% alcohol by volume. Distilled beverages bottled with added sugar and added flavorings, such as Grand Marnier, Frangelico, Distilled beverages generally have an alcohol concentration higher than 30%. The origin of liquor and its close relative liquid was the Latin verb liquere, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, an early use of the word in the English language, meaning simply a liquid, can be dated to 1225. The first use the OED mentions of its meaning a liquid for drinking occurred in the 14th century and its use as a term for an intoxicating alcoholic drink appeared in the 16th century. The term spirit in reference to alcohol stems from Middle Eastern alchemy and these alchemists were more concerned with medical elixirs than with transmuting lead into gold. The vapor given off and collected during a process was called a spirit of the original material. Distilled water was described in the 2nd century AD by Alexander of Aphrodisias, the Alexandrians were using a distillation alembic or still device in the 3rd century AD. The medieval Arabs learned the process from the Alexandrians and used it extensively. Freeze distillation involves freezing the alcoholic beverage and then removing the ice, the freezing technique had limitations in geography and implementation limiting how widely this method was put to use. The earliest evidence of distillation of alcohol comes from the School of Salerno in southern Italy during the 12th century. Again, the Chinese may not have been far behind, with evidence indicating the practice of distillation began during the 12th century Jin or Southern Song dynasties. A still has been found at a site in Qinglong, Hebei. Fractional distillation was developed by Taddeo Alderotti in the 13th century, the production method was written in code, suggesting that it was being kept secret. In 1437, burned water was mentioned in the records of the County of Katzenelnbogen in Germany and it was served in a tall, narrow glass called a Goderulffe. Claims upon the origin of specific beverages are controversial, often invoking national pride, but they are plausible after the 12th century AD and these spirits would have had a much lower alcohol content than the alchemists pure distillations, and they were likely first thought of as medicinal elixirs
4.
Sailor
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A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who navigates waterborne vessels or assists as a crewmember in their operation and maintenance. The term bluejacket may be used for British or US Navy enlisted sailors, the Bluejackets Manual is the basic handbook for United States Navy personnel. 700,000 of the worlds mariners come from the Philippines, the term seaman is frequently used in the particular sense of a sailor who is not an officer. Seafarers hold a variety of professions and ranks, each of which carries unique responsibilities which are integral to the operation of an ocean-going vessel. A ships crew can generally be divided into four categories, the deck department, the engineering department, the stewards department. Officer positions in the department include but are not limited to, master and his chief, second. The official classifications for unlicensed members of the department are able seaman. With some variation, the mate is most often charged with the duties of cargo mate. Second Mates are charged with being the officer in case of medical emergency. All three mates each do four-hour morning and afternoon shifts on the bridge, when underway at sea, Marine engineering staff also deal with the hotel facilities on board, notably the sewage, lighting, air conditioning and water systems. Engineering staff manage bulk fuel transfers, from a barge in port. When underway at sea, the second and third engineers will often be occupied with oil transfers from storage tanks, cleaning of oil purifiers is another regular task. Engineering staff are required to have training in firefighting and first aid, additional duties include maintaining the ships boats and performing other nautical tasks. Engineers play a key role in cargo loading/discharging gear and safety systems, though the specific cargo discharge function remains the responsibility of deck officers, other possible positions include motorman, machinist, electrician, refrigeration engineer and tankerman. A typical stewards department for a ship is a chief steward, a chief cook. All three positions are filled by unlicensed personnel. The chief steward also plans menus, compiles supply, overtime, the steward may requisition or purchase stores and equipment. A chief stewards duties may overlap with those of the assistant, the chief cook
5.
East India Company
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The company also ruled the beginnings of the British Empire in India. The company received a Royal Charter from Queen Elizabeth I on 31 December 1600, wealthy merchants and aristocrats owned the Companys shares. Initially the government owned no shares and had only indirect control, during its first century of operation the focus of the Company was trade, not the building of an empire in India. The company eventually came to rule large areas of India with its own armies, exercising military power. Despite frequent government intervention, the company had recurring problems with its finances, the official government machinery of British India had assumed its governmental functions and absorbed its armies. Soon after the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, London merchants presented a petition to Queen Elizabeth I for permission to sail to the Indian Ocean, one of them, Edward Bonventure, then sailed around Cape Comorin to the Malay Peninsula and returned to England in 1594. In 1596, three ships sailed east, however, these were all lost at sea. Two days later, on 24 September, the Adventurers reconvened and resolved to apply to the Queen for support of the project, the Adventurers convened again a year later. For a period of fifteen years the charter awarded the newly formed company a monopoly on trade with all countries east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of the Straits of Magellan. Anybody who traded in breach of the charter without a licence from the Company was liable to forfeiture of their ships and cargo, the governance of the company was in the hands of one governor and 24 directors or committees, who made up the Court of Directors. They, in turn, reported to the Court of Proprietors, ten committees reported to the Court of Directors. According to tradition, business was transacted at the Nags Head Inn, opposite St Botolphs church in Bishopsgate. Sir James Lancaster commanded the first East India Company voyage in 1601, in March 1604 Sir Henry Middleton commanded the second voyage. Early in 1608 Alexander Sharpeigh was appointed captain of the Companys Ascension, thereafter two ships, Ascension and Union sailed from Woolwich on 14 March 1607–8. Initially, the company struggled in the trade because of the competition from the already well-established Dutch East India Company. The company opened a factory in Bantam on the first voyage, the factory in Bantam was closed in 1683. During this time belonging to the company arriving in India docked at Surat. In the next two years, the company established its first factory in south India in the town of Machilipatnam on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal
6.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
7.
Liverpool
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Liverpool is a major city and metropolitan borough in North West England.24 million people in 2011. Liverpool historically lay within the ancient hundred of West Derby in the south west of the county of Lancashire and it became a borough from 1207 and a city from 1880. In 1889 it became a county borough independent of Lancashire, Liverpool sits on the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary and its growth as a major port is paralleled by the expansion of the city throughout the Industrial Revolution. Along with general cargo, freight, raw materials such as coal and cotton, the city was also directly involved in the Atlantic slave trade. Liverpool was home to both the Cunard and White Star Line, and was the port of registry of the ocean liner RMS Titanic and others such as the RMS Lusitania, Queen Mary, and Olympic. The city celebrated its 800th anniversary in 2007, and it held the European Capital of Culture title together with Stavanger, Norway, several areas of Liverpool city centre were granted World Heritage Site status by UNESCO in 2004. The Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City includes the Pier Head, Albert Dock, tourism forms a significant part of the citys economy. Liverpool is also the home of two Premier League football clubs, Liverpool and Everton, matches between the two being known as the Merseyside derby, the world-famous Grand National horse race takes place annually at Aintree Racecourse on the outskirts of the city. The city is home to the oldest Black African community in the country. Natives of Liverpool are referred to as Liverpudlians and colloquially as Scousers, a reference to scouse, the word Scouse has also become synonymous with the Liverpool accent and dialect. Pool is a place name element in England from the Brythonic word for a pond, inlet, or pit, cognate with the modern Welsh. The derivation of the first element remains uncertain, with the Welsh word Llif as the most plausible relative and this etymology is supported by its similarity to that of the archaic Welsh name for Liverpool Llynlleifiad. Other origins of the name have suggested, including elverpool. The name appeared in 1190 as Liuerpul, and it may be that the place appearing as Leyrpole, in a record of 1418. King Johns letters patent of 1207 announced the foundation of the borough of Liverpool, the original street plan of Liverpool is said to have been designed by King John near the same time it was granted a royal charter, making it a borough. The original seven streets were laid out in an H shape, Bank Street, Castle Street, Chapel Street, Dale Street, Juggler Street, Moor Street, in the 17th century there was slow progress in trade and population growth. Battles for the town were waged during the English Civil War, in 1699 Liverpool was made a parish by Act of Parliament, that same year its first slave ship, Liverpool Merchant, set sail for Africa. Since Roman times, the city of Chester on the River Dee had been the regions principal port on the Irish Sea
8.
Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford
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Admiral of the Fleet Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford, PC was a Royal Navy officer. After serving as an officer at the Battle of Solebay during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. Russell was one of the Immortal Seven, a group of English noblemen who issued the Invitation to William, based in the Netherlands, he served as Prince William’s secretary during the planning of William’s invasion of England and subsequent Glorious Revolution. Russell went on to be First Lord of the Admiralty during the reign of William III and he was also MP for Launceston, for Portsmouth and then for Cambridgeshire. Born the son of the Hon. Edward Russell, a son of the 4th Earl of Bedford and Penelope Russell, Russell briefly attended St Johns College, Cambridge. He then move to the third-rate HMS Swiftsure in March 1678, in 1683 he ceased to be employed, as all of the members of the Russell family had fallen into disfavour with the King, after the discovery of Lord Russells connection with the Rye House Plot. Russell was one of the Immortal Seven, a group of English noblemen who issued the Invitation to William, based in the Netherlands, he served as Prince William’s secretary during the planning of William’s invasion of England and subsequent Glorious Revolution in November 1688. Russell was elected Whig Member of Parliament for Launceston and appointed Treasurer of the Navy in 1689, promoted directly to full admiral in May 1689, Russell took command in the Channel, with his flag in the second-rate HMS Duke, in 1689 and enforced a blockade of France. Russell lived at Chippenham Park in Cambridgeshire from 1689 until his death and he re-modelled the manor house and greatly extended Chippenham Park, which still dominates the parish to the south of the village. Russell was elected Member of Parliament for Portsmouth in the election in March 1690. He conveyed Maria Anna of Neuburg, Charles II of Spains future consort and he became a Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty on the Admiralty board led by the Earl of Pembroke in June 1690. He was fully engaged in providing support for the Williamite War in Ireland until the war ended in October 1691. In Autumn 1690, Russell blamed the Dutch for the failure of the allies to enforce the blockade of France and was forced to stand down as a Lord Commissioner in January 1691. Flying his flag in the first-rate HMS Britannia, he was Commander-in-Chief of the Anglo-Dutch force that fought the French fleet at Battle of Barfleur in May 1692, Russell then destroyed much of the French fleet, in a night attack at the Battle of La Hogue in June 1692. Following a disagreement with the Earl of Nottingham, Russell resigned as Commander-in-Chief of the Navy in December 1692, admirals Henry Killigrew, Ralph Delaval and Cloudesley Shovell were put in joint command of the fleet in January 1693. He was elected Member of Parliament for Cambridgeshire in 1695 and was created Baron Shingay, Viscount Barfleur and he faced allegations of having misappropriated funds from the maintenance of the fleet, to spend on his private estates in 1698. The accusations went no further and he left office as First Lord and as Treasurer of the Navy and he commissioned the building of Orford House at Ugley in Essex in 1700. Russell returned to office as First Lord in the coalition Godolphin-Marlborough Ministry in November 1709 and he died at Covent Garden in London on 26 November 1727 and was buried in the Russell vault at St Michael’s Church in Chenies
9.
Alicante
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It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 328,648, estimated as of 2015, including nearby municipalities, the Alicante conurbation had 452,462 residents. The population of the area was 757,085 as of 2014 estimates. The name of the city echoes the Arabic name Laqant or Al-Laqant, the area around Alicante has been inhabited for over 7000 years. The first tribes of hunter-gatherers moved down gradually from Central Europe between 5000 and 3000 BC, some of the earliest settlements were made on the slopes of Mount Benacantil. The town of Leuce Akra was then founded by Greek settlers from Marseille around 325/324 b. C, by the 3rd century BC, the rival armies of Carthage and Rome began to invade and fight for control of the Iberian Peninsula. The Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca established the settlement of Akra Leuka. Although the Carthaginians conquered much of the land around Alicante, the Romans would eventually rule Hispania Tarraconensis for over 700 years. By the 5th century AD, Rome was in decline and the Roman predecessor town of Alicante, however neither the Romans nor the Goths put up much resistance to the Arab conquest of Medina Laqant in the 8th century. The Moors ruled southern and eastern Spain until the 13th century Reconquista, Alicante was finally taken in 1246 by the Castilian king Alfonso X, but it passed soon and definitively to the Kingdom of Valencia in 1298 with King James II of Aragon. It gained the status of Royal Village with representation in the medieval Valencian Parliament and this act cost the region dearly, with so many skilled artisans and agricultural labourers gone, the feudal nobility found itself sliding into bankruptcy. The end of the 19th century witnessed a sharp recovery of the economy with increasing international trade. During the early 20th century, Alicante was a capital that enjoyed the benefit of Spains neutrality during World War I. The Rif War in the 1920s saw numerous alicantinos drafted to fight in the long, the political unrest of the late 1920s led to the victory of Republican candidates in local council elections throughout the country, and the abdication of King Alfonso XIII. The proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic was much celebrated in the city on 14 April 1931, the Spanish Civil War broke out on 17 July 1936. The late 1950s and early 1960s saw the onset of a transformation of the city by the tourist industry. New construction benefited the economy, as the development of the tourism sector also spawned new businesses such as restaurants, bars. When Franco died in 1975, his successor Juan Carlos I played his part as the symbol of the transition of Spain to a democratic constitutional monarchy
10.
Jesus College, Oxford
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Jesus College is one of the colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship Street, Cornmarket Street and Market Street. The college was founded by Elizabeth I on 27 June 1571 for the education of clergy, a major driving force behind the establishment of the college was Hugh Price, a churchman from Brecon in Wales. Further accommodation was built on the site to mark the 400th anniversary of the college, in 1971. The life of the college was disrupted by the English Civil War, Leoline Jenkins, who became principal after the war in 1661, put the college on a more stable financial footing. Little happened at the college during the 18th century, and the 19th century saw a decline in numbers, students academic achievements rose in the early 20th century as fellows were appointed to teach in new subjects. Women were first admitted in 1974 and now form a part of the undergraduate population. There are about 475 students at any one time, the Principal of the college is Sir Nigel Shadbolt, former students include Harold Wilson, Norman Washington Manley, T. E. Lawrence, Angus Buchanan, and Viscount Sankey. The universitys professorship of Celtic is attached to the college, a post held by such as Sir John Rhys, Ellis Evans. Past or present fellows of the include the historians Sir Goronwy Edwards and Niall Ferguson, the philosopher Galen Strawson. Jesus College was founded on 27 June 1571, when Elizabeth I issued a royal charter and it was the first Protestant college to be founded at the university, and it is the only Oxford college to date from Elizabeths reign. It was the first new Oxford college since 1555, in the reign of Queen Mary, the foundation charter named a principal, eight fellows, eight scholars, and eight commissioners to draw up the statutes for the college. The college was intended primarily for the education of clergy. The particular intention was to satisfy a need for dedicated, learned clergy to promote the Elizabethan Religious Settlement in the parishes of England, Ireland and Wales. The college has since broadened the range of subjects offered, beginning with the inclusion of medicine and law, the letters patent issued by Elizabeth I made it clear that the education of a priest in the 16th century included more than just theology, however. Price continued to be involved with the college after its foundation. On the strength of a legacy, worth £60 a year on his death, he requested and received the authority to appoint the new colleges principal, fellows. He financed early building work in the front quadrangle
11.
Silver
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Silver is a metallic element with symbol Ag and atomic number 47. The symbol Ag stems from Latin argentum, derived from the Greek ὰργὀς, a soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. The metal is found in the Earths crust in the pure, free form, as an alloy with gold and other metals. Most silver is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, Silver is more abundant than gold, but it is much less abundant as a native metal. Its purity is measured on a per mille basis, a 94%-pure alloy is described as 0.940 fine. As one of the seven metals of antiquity, silver has had a role in most human cultures. Silver has long valued as a precious metal. Silver metal is used in many premodern monetary systems in bullion coins, Silver is used in numerous applications other than currency, such as solar panels, water filtration, jewelry, ornaments, high-value tableware and utensils, and as an investment medium. Silver is used industrially in electrical contacts and conductors, in specialized mirrors, window coatings, Silver compounds are used in photographic film and X-rays. Dilute silver nitrate solutions and other compounds are used as disinfectants and microbiocides, added to bandages and wound-dressings, catheters. Silver is similar in its physical and chemical properties to its two neighbours in group 11 of the periodic table, copper and gold. This distinctive electron configuration, with an electron in the highest occupied s subshell over a filled d subshell. Silver is a soft, ductile and malleable transition metal. Silver crystallizes in a cubic lattice with bulk coordination number 12. Unlike metals with incomplete d-shells, metallic bonds in silver are lacking a covalent character and are relatively weak and this observation explains the low hardness and high ductility of single crystals of silver. Silver has a brilliant white metallic luster that can take a polish. Protected silver has greater optical reflectivity than aluminium at all wavelengths longer than ~450 nm, at wavelengths shorter than 450 nm, silvers reflectivity is inferior to that of aluminium and drops to zero near 310 nm. The electrical conductivity of silver is the greatest of all metals, greater even than copper, during World War II in the US,13540 tons of silver were used in electromagnets for enriching uranium, mainly because of the wartime shortage of copper
12.
Gilding
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The term gilding covers a number of decorative techniques for applying fine gold leaf or powder to solid surfaces such as wood, stone, or metal to give a thin coating of gold. A gilded object is described as gilt. Where metal is gilded, it was silver in the West, to make silver-gilt objects, but gilt-bronze is commonly used in China. Methods of gilding include hand application and glueing, chemical gilding, and electroplating, parcel-gilt objects are only gilded over part of their surfaces. This may mean that all of the inside, and none of the outside, of a chalice or similar vessel is gilded, herodotus mentions that the Egyptians gilded wood and metals, and many such objects have been excavated. Certain Ancient Greek statues of great prestige were chryselephantine, i. e. made of gold and ivory, extensive ornamental gilding was also used in the ceiling coffers of the Propylaea. But he adds that luxury advanced on them so rapidly that in very little time you see all, even private and poor people, gild the walls, vaults. Owing to the thickness of the gold leaf used in ancient gilding. Fire-gilding of metal goes back at least to the 4th century BC, in Europe, silver-gilt has always been more common than gilt-bronze, but in China the opposite has been the case. The ancient Chinese also developed the gilding of porcelain, which was taken up by the French. Modern gilding is applied to numerous and diverse surfaces and by various processes, mechanical gilding includes all the operations in which gold leaf is prepared, and the processes to mechanically attach the gold onto surfaces. The process is completed by cold burnishing, overlaying or folding or hammering on gold foil or gold leaf is the simplest and most ancient method, and is mentioned in Homers Odyssey and the Old Testament. The Ram in a Thicket of about 2600–2400 BCE from Ur uses this technique on wood, the next advances involved two simple processes. The first involves gold leaf, which is gold that is hammered or cut very thin sheets. If gilding on canvas or on wood, the surface was often first coated with gesso, gesso is a substance made of finely ground gypsum or chalk mixed with glue. Other gilding processes involved using the gold as pigment in paint, then the gold was applied in the same way as with any paint. Sometimes, after either gold-leafing or gold-painting, the artist would heat the piece enough to melt the gold slightly and these techniques remained the only alternatives for materials like wood, leather, and the vellum pages of illuminated manuscripts. Chemical gilding embraces those processes in which the gold is at some stage of chemical combination and these include, In this process the gold is obtained in a state of extremely fine division, and applied by mechanical means
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