history

Saudi Arabia’s hidden city

Team Observers — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 18:07:08 +0200

The region of Qasr al-Bint in the city of Mada’in Saleh. Photo: Emmanuel Guyetand.

The grandiose Jordanian city of Petra, carved out of pink rock, is a first-rate tourist destination. So why has its twin city, in the Saudi desert, been forgotten for so long? Because it is said to be under an ancient curse.

This site, in the north-west of Saudi Arabia, is known in the West as Mada'in Saleh, or the towns of Saleh, from the name of the prophet who, according to the Koran, tried long before Mohammed to convert the Thamud tribe to the religion of one God. The town was however not built by the Thamudis, whose presence at this site is not proven archaeologically, but by the Nabateans. Mada'in Saleh constituted the southern point of their kingdom which prospered between the third century BC and the fourth century AD and stretched from the south of Jordan to the north of the Arabian peninsula. The Nabateans also built Petra, their political capital.

The region of Al-Khuraymat in the city of Mada'in Saleh. Photo: Emmanuel Guyetand.

Another view of Al-Khuraymat. Photo: Emmanuel Guyetand.

It was only at the start of the 20^th century that the exploration of this site began. However, very little work was undertaken until 2001, when a Franco-Saudi archaeological mission was given the task of carrying out digs and documenting the site. Mada'in Saleh was listed in July 2008 as a UNESCO World Heritage site, becoming the first Saudi site to feature.

Façade of a tomb. The monumental tombs were no doubt reserved for the notables of the town. Photo taken at Al-Khuraymat by Emmanuel Guyetand.

Funerary rock architecture at Al-Khuraymat. Photo: Emmanuel Guyetand.

Walled cities of the world

Sophie Team Observers — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:57:22 +0200

Aerial views of Heusden and Naarden, both in Netherlands.

It would be so nice if it were true, but the fact is it isn't: the first settlements - before the Bronze Age, before the Iron Age, probably even prior to the Stone Age - didn't happen because folks liked each other's company. As the old saying goes: safety in numbers ... and fortifications.

This post was written by American blogger Avi Abrams. His blog: "Dark Roasted Blend".

The walled city of Shibam, Yemen - more info and images here.

If you have any doubt about how wood - and then stone, and later even, steel - walls helped shape human civilisation, all you need to do is take a closer look at most of our cities, especially the older ones.

Map of Utrecht from "Toonneel der Steden", published in 1652 - Via.

Sometimes it's easy to see where the boundaries between 'Us In Here And You Out There' once lay. Just look at the lovely city of Utrecht, in the Netherlands: a picture postcard of lovely homes, sparkling waterways, brilliantly green parks, and meandering walkways - a true jewel of civilisation. Except that Utrecht, and a huge number of other cities throughout Europe, were built as walled fortresses. In the case of Utrecht, that's pretty obvious when you look at the city from either the air or at the old city plans.

The original Roman wall, recently excavated - Via (left). "The Oudegracht With A View Of The Old Town Hall And The Dom Tower Beyond", old painting - Via (right).

Map of Brugge, Belgium, 1563 (left) - Poertoren ("Powder Tower") tower in Brugge, Via (right).

In other cities such as London and Paris, urban growth has completely overrun the original walls and fortifications - though they're there if you look hard enough.

China’s latest debate: the story of the Nanking massacre told by "Japanese Schindler"

Sophie Team Observers — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 17:15:39 +0200

Despite its popularity in Chinese cinemas, the director of a film which attempts to deal with "The Rape of Nanking" - the 1937 Japanese massacre in China's former capital - has come under fire on the Chinese web, for his apparent compassion with the Japanese soldiers.

With World War II well under way, on 13 December 1937 the Japanese army stormed the then capital of the Republic of China, Nanking. What followed was six weeks of horror for the defeated army and the civilian population. No less than 300,000 people, subjected to the cruelest atrocities, were killed.

It took four years, almost 80 million yuan (€8.8 million), and 20,000 unpaid extras for director Lu Chuan to bring this bloody episode to the big screen.

"City of Life and Death" (or "Nanking Nanking!" in Chinese) presents the story from the point of view of several characters including a Chinese soldier and a primary school teacher, but also a Japanese soldier consumed by guilt - a personality which web users have labelled the "Japanese Oskar Schindler".

Released a week ago in more than a third of Chinese theatres, the film has already raked in 7.5 million euros in just five days. Heeding to a few modification demands in advance (see third paragraph of this article), the film has also managed to benefit from advertising on the part of the government propaganda department: "Nanking Nanking!" has made it on to the top ten films listed to commemorate the republic's 60 year anniversary.

The black president Colombia forgot

Sophie Team Observers — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 17:31:40 +0100

Left, a photo of Jose Nieto Gil. Right, his "whitened" portrait.

At the end of the 19th century, Jose Nieto Gil was president of Colombia. And yet, you won't find him in a single history book. Why? Presumably because he was black.

While Americans are proud to let the world know they've elected their first black president, the Colombians kept theirs hidden for over a century.

Colombian historian Orlando Fals Borda discovered a portrait of Jose Nieto Gil when digging in a palace loft in Cartagena more than 30 years ago. Fals Borda then spent his entire life trying to do justice to the forgotten politician. But it wasn't until the death of the historian last August that the Colombian media discovered the first African American to reach such an exceptional post.

Wearing red drives men crazy - proven

Sophie Team Observers — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:57:27 +0100

Photo: "nycuk" on Flickr.

A study published on Tuesday claims to prove that women wearing red are more likely to drive men crazy than if clad in any other colour. We tested the theory on our Observers from Iran to Japan, and found it not far from the truth.

There are few things that have a profound effect on each and every of the world's cultural pockets. The prohibition of incest, noted by Lévi-Strauss, is considered the only truly universal code. The colour red likewise strangely unites people across the world - by causing controversy wherever it's found.

The study released on Tuesday claims to prove that a woman wearing red is found far more attractive than in other colours, with men admitting to spending more money, and being more interested in sex with, a woman donned in rouge. The study, released by the University of Rochester, New York, seems to offer evidence on the long term relationship between human psychology and the colour red. A colour that appears in varying forms in almost every culture around the world; and with an equally provocative effect in each.

How is red perceived in your country?

The man who foresaw the Internet…in 1934

Team Observers — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:10:05 +0200

Sixty years before it revolutionized the world, Belgium's very own mad professor, Paul Otlet, envisioned a data exchange system that bore an uncanny resemblance to the Internet.

Extract from a documentary about Otlet's vision: