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Wat Ban Saen is a remote forest temple situated in a ‘Tai Loi’ (‘Mountain Thai’) or Lua inhabited border region of easternmost Burma. The temple, which is located near to an ancient trade route between Sipsongpanna or Xishuangbanna in China and Kengtung in Shan State, is thought to be about 300 years old and to have been built on the orders of the Thai Khoen rulers of Kengtung (or perhaps the lords of Chiang Saen in Thailand, then under Burmese rule) to serve the needs of travellers on the old trade route.<br/><br/> Today it is considered to be an unusually fine (if very isolated) example of Chiang Saen temple architecture. There are few or no Tai peoples living in the area, and the temple now serves the local Tai Loi community, who believe that their ancestors built it.
Wat Ban Saen is a remote forest temple situated in a ‘Tai Loi’ (‘Mountain Thai’) or Lua inhabited border region of easternmost Burma. The temple, which is located near to an ancient trade route between Sipsongpanna or Xishuangbanna in China and Kengtung in Shan State, is thought to be about 300 years old and to have been built on the orders of the Thai Khoen rulers of Kengtung (or perhaps the lords of Chiang Saen in Thailand, then under Burmese rule) to serve the needs of travellers on the old trade route.<br/><br/> Today it is considered to be an unusually fine (if very isolated) example of Chiang Saen temple architecture. There are few or no Tai peoples living in the area, and the temple now serves the local Tai Loi community, who believe that their ancestors built it.
Wat Ban Saen is a remote forest temple situated in a ‘Tai Loi’ (‘Mountain Thai’) or Lua inhabited border region of easternmost Burma. The temple, which is located near to an ancient trade route between Sipsongpanna or Xishuangbanna in China and Kengtung in Shan State, is thought to be about 300 years old and to have been built on the orders of the Thai Khoen rulers of Kengtung (or perhaps the lords of Chiang Saen in Thailand, then under Burmese rule) to serve the needs of travellers on the old trade route.<br/><br/> Today it is considered to be an unusually fine (if very isolated) example of Chiang Saen temple architecture. There are few or no Tai peoples living in the area, and the temple now serves the local Tai Loi community, who believe that their ancestors built it.
Wat Ban Ngaek is a remote forest temple situated in a ‘Tai Loi’ (‘Mountain Thai’) or Lua inhabited border region of easternmost Burma. The temple, which is located near to an ancient trade route between Sipsongpanna or Xishuangbanna in China and Kengtung in Shan State, is thought to be about 300 years old and to have been built on the orders of the Thai Khoen rulers of Kengtung (or perhaps the lords of Chiang Saen in Thailand, then under Burmese rule) to serve the needs of travellers on the old trade route.<br/><br/> Today it is considered to be an unusually fine (if very isolated) example of Chiang Saen temple architecture. There are few or no Tai peoples living in the area, and the temple now serves the local Tai Loi community, who believe that their ancestors built it.
Bancho Sarayashiki or Bancho Sarayash ('The Dish Mansion at Banchō') is a Japanese ghost story (kaidan) of broken trust and broken promises, leading to a dismal fate.<br/><br/> The story of Okiku and the Nine Plates is one of the most famous in Japanese folklore, and continues to resonate with audiences today.
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolour illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolor illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
The Poetic Edda is a collection of Old Norse poems primarily preserved in the Icelandic mediaeval manuscript Codex Regius.<br/><br/> Together with Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, the Poetic Edda is the most important extant source on Norse mythology and Germanic heroic legends.
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the Ramayana.<br/><br/> The Mahabharata is an epic narrative of the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the Kaurava and the Pandava princes. It also contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four 'goals of life'. Among the principal works and stories in the Mahabharata are the Bhagavad Gita, the story of Damayanti, an abbreviated version of the Ramayana, and the Rishyasringa, often considered as works in their own right.
Totoya Hokkei was a Japanese printmaker and book illustrator. He initially studied painting with Kano Yosen (1735-1808), the head of the Kobikicho branch of the Kano School and <i>okaeshi</i> (official painter) to the Tokugawa shogunate.<br/><br/> Together with Teisai Hokuba (1771-1844), Hokkei was one of Katsushika Hokusai's best students.
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the Ramayana.<br/><br/> The Mahabharata is an epic narrative of the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the Kaurava and the Pandava princes. It also contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four 'goals of life'. Among the principal works and stories in the Mahabharata are the Bhagavad Gita, the story of Damayanti, an abbreviated version of the Ramayana, and the Rishyasringa, often considered as works in their own right.
Siyah Kalem or 'Black Pen' is the name given to the 15th century school of painting attributed to Mehmed Siyah Kalem. Nothing is known of his life, but his work indicates that he was of Central Asian Turkic origin, and thoroughly familiar with camp and military life. The paintings appear in the 'Conqueror’s Albums', so named because two portraits of Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror are present in one of them.<br/><br/>The albums are made up of miniatures taken from manuscripts of the 14th, 15th, and early 16th centuries, and one series of paintings is inscribed 'work of Master Muḥammad Siyah Kalem'. Something of the style and techniques of Chinese paintings is apparent in these, and an acquaintance with Buddhist art, particularly in the depictions of grotesque demonic figures.
Yamata no Orochi (八岐の大蛇) or Orochi, translated as Eight-Forked Serpent in English, is a legendary 8-headed and 8-tailed Japanese dragon that was slain by the Shinto storm-god Susanoo.
White Spotted Serpent Yang Chun, Japanese name Hakkaja Yoshun, grasping his sword with both hands, a waterfall behind him.<br/><br/> The Water Margin (known in Chinese as Shuihu Zhuan, sometimes abbreviated to Shuihu, 水滸傳), known as Suikoden in Japanese, as well as Outlaws of the Marsh, Tale of the Marshes, All Men Are Brothers, Men of the Marshes, or The Marshes of Mount Liang in English, is a 14th century novel and one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.<br/><br/> Attributed to Shi Nai'an and written in vernacular Chinese, the story, set in the Song Dynasty, tells of how a group of 108 outlaws gathered at Mount Liang (or Liangshan Marsh) to form a sizable army before they are eventually granted amnesty by the government and sent on campaigns to resist foreign invaders and suppress rebel forces.<br/><br/> In 1827, Japanese publisher Kagaya Kichibei commissioned Utagawa Kuniyoshi to produce a series of woodblock prints illustrating the 108 heroes of the Suikoden. The 1827-1830 series, called '108 Heroes of the Water Margin' or 'Tsuzoku Suikoden goketsu hyakuhachinin no hitori', made Utagawa Kuniyoshi's famous.
Zu Miao (Ancestral Temple) was built during the reign of Emperor Zhezong (1076 - 1100 CE), the 7th emperor of the Song Dynasty (960 - 1276 CE). The temple is dedicated to Beidi, the Northern God, who is said to have power over the waters of Guangdong.<br/><br/> Foshan dates back to the 7th century CE and has been famous for its ceramics, porcelain and pottery industry since the Song Dynasty. It is also famous for its martial arts. It contains numerous Wing Chun schools where many come to train and spar.
Commentary on the Apocalypse (Commentaria In Apocalypsin) was originally an eighth century work by the Spanish monk and theologian Beatus of Liébana. Today, it refers to any of the extant manuscript copies of this work, especially any of the 26 illuminated copies that have survived. It is often referred to simply as the Beatus. The historical significance of the Commentary is made even more pronounced since it included a world map, which offers a rare insight into the geographical understanding of the post-Roman world. Well-known copies include the Morgan, the Saint-Sever, the Gerona, the Osma and the Madrid (Vitr 14-1) Beatus codices.<br/><br/> Considered together, the Beatus codices are among the most important Spanish medieval manuscripts and have been the subject of extensive scholarly and antiquarian enquiry.
Commentary on the Apocalypse (Commentaria In Apocalypsin) was originally an eighth century work by the Spanish monk and theologian Beatus of Liébana. Today, it refers to any of the extant manuscript copies of this work, especially any of the 26 illuminated copies that have survived. It is often referred to simply as the Beatus. The historical significance of the Commentary is made even more pronounced since it included a world map, which offers a rare insight into the geographical understanding of the post-Roman world. Well-known copies include the Morgan, the Saint-Sever, the Gerona, the Osma and the Madrid (Vitr 14-1) Beatus codices.<br/><br/> Considered together, the Beatus codices are among the most important Spanish medieval manuscripts and have been the subject of extensive scholarly and antiquarian enquiry.
Abu Yahya Zakariya' ibn Muhammad al-Qazwini (أبو يحيئ زكريا بن محمد القزويني) (born 1203 - died 1283), was a Persian physician, astronomer, geographer and proto-science fiction writer.<br/><br/> Born in the Persian town of Qazvin, he was descended from Anas ibn Malik, Zakariya' ibn Muhammad al-Qazwini served as legal expert and judge (qadhi) in several localities in Persia and at Baghdad. He travelled around in Mesopotamia and Syria, and finally entered the circle patronized by the governor of Baghdad, ‘Ata-Malik Juwayni (d. 1283 CE).<br/><br/> It was to the latter that al-Qazwini dedicated his famous Arabic-language cosmography titled 'Aja'ib al-makhluqat wa-ghara'ib al-mawjudat عجائب المخلوقات و غرائب الموجودات ('Marvels of Creatures and Strange Things Existing'). This treatise, frequently illustrated, was immensely popular and is preserved today in many copies. It was translated into Persian and Turkish.<br/><br/> Qazwini was also well-known for his geographical dictionary, Athar al-bilad wa-akhbar al-‘ibad اثار البلاد واخبار العباد ('Monument of Places and History of God's Bondsmen'). Both of these treatises reflect extensive reading and learning in a wide range of disciplines.<br/><br/> Al-Qazwini also wrote a futuristic proto-science fiction Arabic tale entitled Awaj bin Anfaq, about a man who travelled to Earth from a distant planet.
The Naxi or Nakhi are an ethnic group inhabiting the foothills of the Himalayas in the northwestern part of Yunnan Province, as well as the southwestern part of Sichuan Province in China. The Naxi are thought to have come originally from Tibet and, until recently, maintained overland trading links with Lhasa and India. The Naxi form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. The Naxi are traditionally followers of the Dongba religion. Through both Han Chinese and Tibetan cultural influences, they adopted Tibetan Buddhism and, to a lesser extent, Taoism, in the 10th century.
The Naxi or Nakhi are an ethnic group inhabiting the foothills of the Himalayas in the northwestern part of Yunnan Province, as well as the southwestern part of Sichuan Province in China. The Naxi are thought to have come originally from Tibet and, until recently, maintained overland trading links with Lhasa and India. The Naxi form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. The Naxi are traditionally followers of the Dongba religion. Through both Han Chinese and Tibetan cultural influences, they adopted Tibetan Buddhism and, to a lesser extent, Taoism, in the 10th century.
The Naxi or Nakhi are an ethnic group inhabiting the foothills of the Himalayas in the northwestern part of Yunnan Province, as well as the southwestern part of Sichuan Province in China. The Naxi are thought to have come originally from Tibet and, until recently, maintained overland trading links with Lhasa and India. The Naxi form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. The Naxi are traditionally followers of the Dongba religion. Through both Han Chinese and Tibetan cultural influences, they adopted Tibetan Buddhism and, to a lesser extent, Taoism, in the 10th century.
The pictorial 'Shanghai Manhua' (Shanghai Sketch), published between April 21, 1928 and June 7, 1930, was a mixture of drawings, photographs and images ranging from advertisements to social criticism and political caricatures.<br/><br/> Shanghai Manhua was an outlet for professional cartoonists and sketch masters, generally of an avant garde or progressive nature. Many of the images printed in 'Shanghai Manhua' are observations of urban life in contemporaneous Shanghai, as well as often critical comment on the social mores of the time.
Pierre Sonnerat (1748-1814) was a French naturalist and explorer who made several voyages to southeast Asia between 1769 and 1781. He published this two-volume account of his voyage of 1774-81 in 1782. <br/><br/> Volume 1 deals exclusively with India, whose culture Sonnerat very much admired, and is especially noteworthy for its extended discussion of religion in India, Hinduism in particular. The book is illustrated with engravings based on Sonnerat’s drawings. Among the most interesting illustrations are Sonnerat’s pictures of various Hindu deities.
Pierre Sonnerat (1748-1814) was a French naturalist and explorer who made several voyages to southeast Asia between 1769 and 1781. He published this two-volume account of his voyage of 1774-81 in 1782. <br/><br/> Volume 1 deals exclusively with India, whose culture Sonnerat very much admired, and is especially noteworthy for its extended discussion of religion in India, Hinduism in particular. The book is illustrated with engravings based on Sonnerat’s drawings. Among the most interesting illustrations are Sonnerat’s pictures of various Hindu deities.
Nāga is the Sanskrit and Pāli word for a deity or class of entity or being, taking the form of a very great snake — specifically the king cobra, found in Hinduism and Buddhism. A female nāga is a nāgī or nāginī.<br/><br/> Nats are spirits worshipped in Burma (or Myanmar) in conjunction with Buddhism. They are divided between the 37 Great Nats and all the rest (i.e., spirits of trees, water, etc.).
In Hindu tradition Shesha, also known as Sheshanaga, is the king of all Nagas, and of all serpent deities, one of the primal beings of creation, and according to the Bhagavata Purana, an avatar of the Supreme God known as Narayana. He is also known as Balarama and Sankarshana.<br/><br/> In the Puranas, Sheshanaga is said to hold all the planets of the Universe on his hoods and to constantly sing the glories of Vishnu from all his mouths. He is sometimes referred to as Ananta Shesha which translates as endless-Shesha or as Adishesha which means the first Shesha.<br/><br/> It is said that when Adishesa uncoils, time moves forward and creation takes place. When he coils back, the universe ceases to exist. 'Shesha' in sanskrit texts, especially those relating to mathematical calculation, also implies the 'remainder' - that which remains when all else ceases to exist.
The Poetic Edda is a collection of Old Norse poems primarily preserved in the Icelandic mediaeval manuscript Codex Regius.<br/><br/> Together with Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, the Poetic Edda is the most important extant source on Norse mythology and Germanic heroic legends.
In Egyptian mythology, Apep was a serpent demon who represented the forces of chaos, death, and disorder. As such, he was the mortal enemy of order, personified as the goddess Ma’at, and light, as incarnated in the form of Ra.<br/><br/> This adversarial construal of the demon is evidenced in various surviving texts from the Middle Kingdom period onwards (ca. 2000-1650 B.C.E.), including the Book of the Dead and the Book of Gates—both of which are concerned with the geography and mythology of the underworld.
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839 – June 9, 1892), also named Taiso Yoshitoshi, was a Japanese artist. He is widely recognized as the last great master of Ukiyo-e, a type of Japanese woodblock printing. He is additionally regarded as one of the form's greatest innovators. His career spanned two eras – the last years of feudal Japan, and the first years of modern Japan following the Meiji Restoration. Like many Japanese, Yoshitoshi was interested in new things from the rest of the world, but over time he became increasingly concerned with the loss of many outstanding aspects of traditional Japanese culture, among them traditional woodblock printing.