This volume is a wonderful collection of photographs selected from the Royal Photographic Society covering the period of 1839-1919.

The book is selected, edited and arranged by Sir Thomas Hopkinson and includes photographs by pioneers like Fox Talbot, Roger Fenton, David Octavious Hill and others less well known. The subjects included are landscapes, architecture, portraiture and 'high art'. Many great shots of famous people like Gostav Dore and Oscar Wilde as well as many ordinary people.

The street scenes, harbour scenes, drawing rooms, country fairs and faerie glens are magnificent.

Of particular interest are the amazing variation in formal wear across this time period, as well as the quaint, pseudo-historicals of the fantasy portraits. I just wish these had been in colour

Turning the pages of this remarkable and handsome book one can follow the stages by which photography became recognized as an art in its own right rather than merely a mechanical device or a useful aide to academic printers.

Title
Treasures if the Royal Photographic Society
1839-1919

Author
Sir Thomas Hopkinson

Publisher
The Royal Photographic Society

Date
1980

Keep your sightglass full and your firebox trimmed.

Kevin/Max

I have a soft spot for the "Sea Life" as many of you know, and this volume is one of my treasures.

Reed's New Guide Book to the Local Marine Board Examinations

It is a study and examination guide for the examinations that all Masters and Mates of civilian British ships, trading in and out of British waters, were required to pass. This is the twelfth edition of the guide and published in 1891. The book itself is in marvelous condition for being 120 years old, cloth bound in lovely cerulean blue with a gold embossed ship's wheel and title on the cover.

What I find most interesting is the complexity of the contents, the book is filled with typical examination questions and they are tough! Most are related to navigation and mathematics as well as signals, storm tracking and correcting compasses for deviation. Today there are very few High School grads who would be able to work out the questions here. It is important to remember that very few ship's officers of the day had much formal education.

One passage I found fascinating was in the requirements of an officer, in this case the Second Mate:

"A SECOND MATE must be (at least?) seventeen years of age, and must have been four at sea. He must also prove that he has served at least one year in a square rigged sailing vessel in the last five years."

This implies that men younger than 17 had applied before!?! How many parents would today allow a 13 year old to go off and serve as a sailor at sea?

At the end of the book are catalogues of Admiralty charts available from Reed's as well as lists of other Maritime Books, Guides and materials that they supplied.

An interesting glimpse into the work of an officer in the British Merchant Service of the 1890's.

Title
Reed's New Guide Book
To the Local Marine Board Examinations
of Masters and Mates
for
Certificates of Competency
Twelfth Edition
-Sunderland-

Author
None listed

Publisher
Thomas Reed and Co.
184 high Street West
London

Date
1891

Keep your sightglass full and your firebox trimmed.
KJ

Of modern technology...

Sort of.

Keep you sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ

This is a record breaker!

From Wikipedia
In 1906 the Land Speed Record was broken by a Stanley steam car, piloted by Fred Marriott, which achieved 127 mph (204 km/h) at Ormond Beach, Florida.

Keep your sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ

I say, wot!



Keep you sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ

Magnificent shots these!

This series of photos at oobject.com shows some of the great rigid airships under construction.
The intricate structure, strong but lightweight, of these enormous objects can clearly be seen.
Well worth a gander.

Here are some examples.

Inside trusses.

Looking along the axial corridor

The framework of LZ 129 'Hindenburg' under construction

LZ-126 fuel tanks

Keep your sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ

Found this photo while looking for costume photos to put on Pinterest.

This photo by Phil Pantano really captures the sense of quiet power embodied in large utility steam engines.

Check out the link for thee full size photo.

This is a shot from an old steam pump water facility dating back to 1905.

The full image can be found here.

I love the lighting, and the elegance of the human scale guages and walkways, next to the enormous engine itself.

That there are two more of these monsters behind this one, and possibly another beside the photographer indicates the vast scale of this facility.

Keep your sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ