(via YouTube) Gem Mining people of Cambodia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsWHYf0gXhI
It was educational.
Saturday, November 03, 2007
Rashid Rana
(via Livemint) Manju Sara Rajan writes about India’s favourite Pakistani artist + his art works + other viewpoints @ http://www.livemint.com/2007/11/01235531/Rashid-Rana--Second-homecomin.html
Much More Than Fifteen Minutes
Tyler Maroney writes about Andy Warhol and his works + a commemorative postage stamp + the founding of Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board to identify fakes + other viewpoints @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1047
Roman Jewelers And Lapidaries
(via Roman Book On Precious Stones: 1950) Sydney H Ball writes:
Both the gem trade and the jewelry industry were made up of many small units producing, in most instances at least, individual orders. Mass production did not exist, the piece of jewelry being made and sold in the same shop. The customer might well furnish his gold and even his unset gems. Indeed, the client furnished the gold in Aristophanes time. Various lawsuits, however, show that some jewelers carried considerable stocks of gold and precious stones: some were men of wealth and from their tombstones we know they left large legacies and had many freedmen who served them. Of one such freedmen, Canuleius Zosimus, his patron, who erected the tablet, says: ‘He has never spoken evil of anyone and he did nothing contrary to the wishes of his patron. Though he always had much gold and silver in his possessions, he coveted none of it. He excelled in carving Clodian ware. A retail jeweler laments the death of this 13-year slave and in his epitaph he states:
‘Skilled was his hand in the art of finishing necklaces finely,
And to enclose in handwrought gold, bright glittering jewels.’
The tomb of Evodus, a pearl merchant (margaritarius) can be seen today on the Via Sacra. Most of the merchants were humble folk, but the epitaph of a woman dealing in pearls on the Via Sacra ‘had freedmen and freedwomen of her own,’ for whom she provided a last resting place beside herself.
Many of the gem engravers and lapidaries in Rome particularly after the reign of Augustus were of Greek origin, and frequently slaves. That the so-called Roman engraved gems were in many instances cut by Greek artists is indicated by the frequent use of Greek gods as subjects and the Grecian grouping presented. When the art passed largely into Roman hands, mere size was confused with beauty. Many wealthy Romans of the Late Empire had slave engravers in their homes. Further, it was not infrequent for a patron as a business venture to set up a skilled slave or freedman in the jewelry trade. However, slaves, in instances, saved enough to buy their freedom and as freedmen to finance their own shop. A Roman inscription at Malton, Yorkshire, England, mentions a goldsmith’s shop run by a slave, adding ‘good luck to you slave in running this shop.’
Gem engravers (gemmarii) cut either intaglios or cameos. The cutters of cameos were called caelotores or scalptores; while the artisans who fashioned the intaglios were known as cavatores or signarii. Lapidaries also cut cabochon stones and beads and polished smooth the natural faces of beryls and emeralds. Others fabricated false stones, some producing extraordinarily good imitations of certain gems. Each branch of the trade was handled by a specialist and Saint Augustine (354-430 A.D) compared the lesser gods with their circumscribed power with the craftsmen in the Streets of the Silversmiths, where each article passed through many hands, the mastery of the whole difficult to learn—that of the part, easy.
Guilds of artisans in the same trade must have originated in very early times (Babylonia long previous to 1900 B.C had had guilds) and they had some of the characteristics of our own labor unions; for example, Demetrius was perhaps the union leader of the guild of silversmiths in Ephesus. One of the oldest Collegia in Rome was that of the goldsmiths which is said to have existed in the time of Numa (715-673 B.C). Plutarch tells us that each guild had its own hall, its court, and its religious rituals peculiar to itself. By 150 A.D the guilds of the gold and silversmiths and of the salt miners were among the strongest in Rome. Caesar Augustus’ father was a silversmith. The silversmiths of Rome, as a body, erected (204 A.D) a small triumphal arch in honor of Septimus Severus and his family in the velabrum or cattle market where their shops were. Monsignor X Barbier du Montault gives an epitaph of a goldsmith who belonged to the guild in the time of Marcus Aurelius. In addition to the gold and silversmiths’ guilds there were ringmakers, goldbeaters, and gilders’ guilds.
These Latin guilds, like some of their successors of today, were politically minded. Scrawled on the walls of Pompeii we find, among other political propaganda, the following: ‘All goldsmiths recommend Gauis Cuspuis Pausa for the aedileship’.
In India, guilds are an ancient hereditary institution. The Ramayana or Ayodhya-Kanda describes a procession of trade guilds, jewelers, potters, ivory workers, perfumers, goldsmiths, and cutters of crystal. Among the Jews, unions did not exist before the Babylonian captivity. Some centuries later each guild had its appointed place and all members of the guild sat together in the huge synagogue at Alexandria, Egypt. The Egyptian goldsmiths in Christ’s time had their guilds.
Roman Jewelers And Lapidaries (continued)
Both the gem trade and the jewelry industry were made up of many small units producing, in most instances at least, individual orders. Mass production did not exist, the piece of jewelry being made and sold in the same shop. The customer might well furnish his gold and even his unset gems. Indeed, the client furnished the gold in Aristophanes time. Various lawsuits, however, show that some jewelers carried considerable stocks of gold and precious stones: some were men of wealth and from their tombstones we know they left large legacies and had many freedmen who served them. Of one such freedmen, Canuleius Zosimus, his patron, who erected the tablet, says: ‘He has never spoken evil of anyone and he did nothing contrary to the wishes of his patron. Though he always had much gold and silver in his possessions, he coveted none of it. He excelled in carving Clodian ware. A retail jeweler laments the death of this 13-year slave and in his epitaph he states:
‘Skilled was his hand in the art of finishing necklaces finely,
And to enclose in handwrought gold, bright glittering jewels.’
The tomb of Evodus, a pearl merchant (margaritarius) can be seen today on the Via Sacra. Most of the merchants were humble folk, but the epitaph of a woman dealing in pearls on the Via Sacra ‘had freedmen and freedwomen of her own,’ for whom she provided a last resting place beside herself.
Many of the gem engravers and lapidaries in Rome particularly after the reign of Augustus were of Greek origin, and frequently slaves. That the so-called Roman engraved gems were in many instances cut by Greek artists is indicated by the frequent use of Greek gods as subjects and the Grecian grouping presented. When the art passed largely into Roman hands, mere size was confused with beauty. Many wealthy Romans of the Late Empire had slave engravers in their homes. Further, it was not infrequent for a patron as a business venture to set up a skilled slave or freedman in the jewelry trade. However, slaves, in instances, saved enough to buy their freedom and as freedmen to finance their own shop. A Roman inscription at Malton, Yorkshire, England, mentions a goldsmith’s shop run by a slave, adding ‘good luck to you slave in running this shop.’
Gem engravers (gemmarii) cut either intaglios or cameos. The cutters of cameos were called caelotores or scalptores; while the artisans who fashioned the intaglios were known as cavatores or signarii. Lapidaries also cut cabochon stones and beads and polished smooth the natural faces of beryls and emeralds. Others fabricated false stones, some producing extraordinarily good imitations of certain gems. Each branch of the trade was handled by a specialist and Saint Augustine (354-430 A.D) compared the lesser gods with their circumscribed power with the craftsmen in the Streets of the Silversmiths, where each article passed through many hands, the mastery of the whole difficult to learn—that of the part, easy.
Guilds of artisans in the same trade must have originated in very early times (Babylonia long previous to 1900 B.C had had guilds) and they had some of the characteristics of our own labor unions; for example, Demetrius was perhaps the union leader of the guild of silversmiths in Ephesus. One of the oldest Collegia in Rome was that of the goldsmiths which is said to have existed in the time of Numa (715-673 B.C). Plutarch tells us that each guild had its own hall, its court, and its religious rituals peculiar to itself. By 150 A.D the guilds of the gold and silversmiths and of the salt miners were among the strongest in Rome. Caesar Augustus’ father was a silversmith. The silversmiths of Rome, as a body, erected (204 A.D) a small triumphal arch in honor of Septimus Severus and his family in the velabrum or cattle market where their shops were. Monsignor X Barbier du Montault gives an epitaph of a goldsmith who belonged to the guild in the time of Marcus Aurelius. In addition to the gold and silversmiths’ guilds there were ringmakers, goldbeaters, and gilders’ guilds.
These Latin guilds, like some of their successors of today, were politically minded. Scrawled on the walls of Pompeii we find, among other political propaganda, the following: ‘All goldsmiths recommend Gauis Cuspuis Pausa for the aedileship’.
In India, guilds are an ancient hereditary institution. The Ramayana or Ayodhya-Kanda describes a procession of trade guilds, jewelers, potters, ivory workers, perfumers, goldsmiths, and cutters of crystal. Among the Jews, unions did not exist before the Babylonian captivity. Some centuries later each guild had its appointed place and all members of the guild sat together in the huge synagogue at Alexandria, Egypt. The Egyptian goldsmiths in Christ’s time had their guilds.
Roman Jewelers And Lapidaries (continued)
Million-dollar Outfits Worth Weight In Gold
Reuters Life writes about a Tokyo design school's (Bunka Fashion College) new concept: models decked out in more than 1,500 Austrian gold coins clinking down the catwalk + other viewpoints @ http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071101/lf_nm_life/japan_dress_gold_dc
For Unsuccessful DTC Applicants: Sightholders Anonymous...
Chaim Even-Zohar writes about DTC's new sightholder support programme + the status of de-selected sightholders + the Avalon Project + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp
Mogok, Burma
What is interesting is the way the Burmese King wanted to do business with the outside world . In my view, today's rulers aren't any different.
The government were provisionally continuing the old system which existed under the King of Burma. The rubies were dug by the natives who were licensed. They were bound to bring the rubies to a government officer, and record was made of all the stones. The person who dug the ruby estimated its value. If the government were satisfied with that valuation the digger had to pay one third of the estimated value to the government. If there was a dispute the government officer had a right to put a price upon it, and if that were not accepted the ruby was sent down to Mandalay and sold by auction.
The King theoretically had the right to purchase at market value all the stones above four carats in weight, but as a matter of fact very few of those stones ever got to him, as he could never give the fair value. A great many found their way to the dealers, and those that reached the concessionnaire, came to the markets of Europe. Ruby mines before the annexation of Upper Burma, had always been a sealed tract to European adventure and enterprise. No European was ever allowed to enter the forbidden region. There were no actual prohibitory orders, but there was a well-known disinclination on the part of the government, and that man’s perceptions would indeed have been dull who attempted to explore the country and expected to return. It was the policy of the Burmese government to conceal as far as possible from European eyes all appearances which would lead to a belief the Upper Burma was rich country which would well repay foreign conquest. Some years ago he said to the King who was then in want of money, that if he made concessions to trade with regard to overland route between Burma and China, money would flow into his country in equal volume with the waters of the great Irrawadi; but the King replied: ‘The money would come sure enough, but with it we should have a swarm of hungry European merchants and quarrelsome Indian natives, who would get into trouble with the people, and bring on complications which would eventually lead to the loss of the country. We would rather do without money, and keep our country.’ As soon as the disorganization set in, consequent on misrule, French intrigue took root at Mandalay, to the utter exclusion of British interests. A French consulate was established, and the government was asked to make certain concessions to French syndicates which if granted, would have imposed ruinous losses and conditions on the English commercial status in Lower Burma. One of those conditions involved a monopoly by France of the Ruby Mines district. The concession of the mines was actually contemplated at that time, but the contract was not approved and ratified by the King, and consequently was null and void.
As early as the 15th century, this country was known to produce rubies. Tavernier, a jeweler, who visited India in the middle of the 17th century, refers to Burma as yielding stones worth more than 100000 crowns a year, and that it is difficult to meet with one good quality weighing more than three or four carats, as the King kept all the larger. The largest stone of which any record seems to exist was 22 carats, and such stones are usually flawed.
Source: Anonymous
The government were provisionally continuing the old system which existed under the King of Burma. The rubies were dug by the natives who were licensed. They were bound to bring the rubies to a government officer, and record was made of all the stones. The person who dug the ruby estimated its value. If the government were satisfied with that valuation the digger had to pay one third of the estimated value to the government. If there was a dispute the government officer had a right to put a price upon it, and if that were not accepted the ruby was sent down to Mandalay and sold by auction.
The King theoretically had the right to purchase at market value all the stones above four carats in weight, but as a matter of fact very few of those stones ever got to him, as he could never give the fair value. A great many found their way to the dealers, and those that reached the concessionnaire, came to the markets of Europe. Ruby mines before the annexation of Upper Burma, had always been a sealed tract to European adventure and enterprise. No European was ever allowed to enter the forbidden region. There were no actual prohibitory orders, but there was a well-known disinclination on the part of the government, and that man’s perceptions would indeed have been dull who attempted to explore the country and expected to return. It was the policy of the Burmese government to conceal as far as possible from European eyes all appearances which would lead to a belief the Upper Burma was rich country which would well repay foreign conquest. Some years ago he said to the King who was then in want of money, that if he made concessions to trade with regard to overland route between Burma and China, money would flow into his country in equal volume with the waters of the great Irrawadi; but the King replied: ‘The money would come sure enough, but with it we should have a swarm of hungry European merchants and quarrelsome Indian natives, who would get into trouble with the people, and bring on complications which would eventually lead to the loss of the country. We would rather do without money, and keep our country.’ As soon as the disorganization set in, consequent on misrule, French intrigue took root at Mandalay, to the utter exclusion of British interests. A French consulate was established, and the government was asked to make certain concessions to French syndicates which if granted, would have imposed ruinous losses and conditions on the English commercial status in Lower Burma. One of those conditions involved a monopoly by France of the Ruby Mines district. The concession of the mines was actually contemplated at that time, but the contract was not approved and ratified by the King, and consequently was null and void.
As early as the 15th century, this country was known to produce rubies. Tavernier, a jeweler, who visited India in the middle of the 17th century, refers to Burma as yielding stones worth more than 100000 crowns a year, and that it is difficult to meet with one good quality weighing more than three or four carats, as the King kept all the larger. The largest stone of which any record seems to exist was 22 carats, and such stones are usually flawed.
Source: Anonymous
Friday, November 02, 2007
Inherit The Wind
(via YouTube): Inherit The Wind - Spencer Tracy Speech
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_DQUAuNUvw
A real gem. One of my favorite movies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_DQUAuNUvw
A real gem. One of my favorite movies.
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