Maritime Monday 262; week ending April 22, 2011

Imagine this is your daily view. How do you get up to go to your office job and see this every day and not just chuck it all and go to sea?

World Unicorn, built by the shipbuilders Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd, at the Wallsend shipyard, Tyneside in 1973. Newcastle upon Tyne, England– from Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums – (original on dreamslikethat), altered via thisisnthappiness; posted by dirtyriver

Mauretania – Bridge Front

left: Bower Anchor – Mauretania — right: Onboard the Mauretania

The Wallsend Slipway and Engineering Company Limited, with female workers in the yard; 1914-1918

The London sewerage system: “The Octagon”, Crossness Pumping Station (opened 1865), architect Charles H. Driver

During the early 19th century the River Thames was an open sewer, with disastrous consequences for public health in London, including numerous cholera epidemics. Proposals to modernise the sewerage system had been made during 1856, but were neglected due to lack of funds. However, after The Great Stink of 1858, Parliament realised the urgency of the problem and resolved to create a modern sewerage system.

Sir Joseph William Bazalgette, a civil engineer and Chief Engineer of the Metropolitan Board of Works, was given responsibility for the work. He designed an extensive underground sewerage system that diverted waste to the Thames Estuary, downstream of the main centre of population. Six main interceptory sewers, totaling almost 100 miles (160 km) in length, were constructed, some incorporating stretches of London’s ‘lost’ rivers.

from thevictorianist, via drtuesdaygjohnson

Royal Australian Navy

Sir̬ne РParis, Bibl. Sainte-Genevi̬ve, ms. 0143 / f. 063v (via allmermaids)

God of the Sea Poseidon (Neptune), a mosaic of the sea-god in his chariot (drawn by sea-horses, of course) found in a Roman-period house in modern-day Tunisia. – via msbehavoyeur

common gallinule (or Common Moorhen) – illustration by JTO; see full image

Isle of Man, Douglas Piers c. 1920’s – all of the images on this page are kindly shared with us from the collection of Pamela Jones. The images include vintage motor cars, trams, steamboats, and horse drawn carriages. MORE: Old UK Photos

Werner Herzog on the set of Fitzcarraldo (1981) – (via dirtyriver)

Nautical Hollywood Trivia:

“When Maurice Joseph Micklewhite first became an actor, he adopted the stage name “Michael Scott”. His agent soon informed him, however, that Michael Scott was already using the same name, and that he had to come up with a new name immediately.

Speaking to his agent from a telephone box in Leicester Square, London, he looked around for inspiration, noted that The Caine Mutiny was being shown at the Odeon Cinema, and decided to change his name to “Michael Caine”.

more on wiki

 

coldisthesea – Cruiser USS Memphis (ACR-10) wrecked off Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic 1916.

Conditions in the harbor had deteriorated badly by 15:45, when Memphis sighted an approaching 75 ft (23 m) wave of yellow water stretching along the entire horizon. By 16:00, the wave was closer, had turned ochre in color, and had reached about 100 ft (30 m) in height; at the same time, Memphis was rolling 45°, so heavily that large amounts of water cascaded into the ship via her gun ports and water even was entering the ship via ventilators 50 ft (15 m) above the waterline…

more on wiki

Waiting at Hong Kong, 14/08/1937 – Royal Welch Fusiliers awaiting to board the MMV Maron, requsitioned to transport the R.W.F and to evacuate British expatriates from Shanghai. – full size

having a smoke on the river, Vietnam, 1970 – via coldisthesea

“unless I have my facts/faces mixed up, the guy in the foreground rescued a general from a downed chopper and in the process had 60 KIAs and received a very notable decoration” –SpysGrandson

Pabst Blue Ribbon time—Vietnam, 1970

“This scene, or GIs smoking dope rather than imbibing, typified the American experience as much as men being loaded in helicopters in stretchers or firing our M-16s into the darkness—all part of war as we knew it (for those too young to remember, one of the ad campaigns for Pabst Brewing used the phrase in the title of this image)”

–SpysGrandson (via coldisthesea)

see also Mekong River, Vietnam, 1970 “Navy SEAL with M-16 in comfortable position” ; USCGC Point Kennedy WPB 82320 alongside USS Fred T Berry off South Vietnam 15 Mar 1966

Persian Gulf 1758 (via fuckyeahcartography)

large http://207.191.227.90/~tumblr2/Golfe_Persique_1758_b.jpg
super large http://207.191.227.90/~tumblr2/Golfe_Persique_1758.jpg

Deep Water Writing

Of a Life at Sea and on Shore; Wednesday, May 18, 2011

An Arabian Gulf

When referring to the shallow, hazy, hot body of water surrounded by desert sand, monarchies and dictatorships be careful when choosing your words. If, for example, you’re in Saudi Arabia using the term “Persian Gulf” is sure to piss off any Arabian Port State Control Inspector. This is not too surprising given the prevalence of surface to air missile batteries lining the entrance to ports here which happen to be aimed in the direction of Persians.

keep reading on Deep Water Writing

Under the Boardwalk… (via dulltooldimbulb)

Holden’s beauty brings you pride and joy. FJ Holden, 1954 – Holden: Australia’s Own Car – vivatvintage

SHIPWRECK by Solitaire Miles – (via allmermaids)

(left) theniftyfifties: Ladies in swimsuits by Slim Aarons, 1958. – (right) Mermaid sighting ♥

(via mudwerks)

Coffee (via kari-young)

1961 … aboard Polaris submarine (by x-ray delta one)

pureheathen: Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia.

The Proteus is a military spec aquatic robot – more on Scuttlefish: An Underwater Fighting Drone

A skeleton preparator with his work – probably George Nelson of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Mass (ca. 1910) Skeletons, mummies, bones, and empty eggshells are all that’s left of the Great Auk.

From The Great Auk, by Errol Fuller; via larboardwatch

allmermaids – Come into our world! You belong here with us! – via

Arumugam Match Industries; (via Agence eureka)

Submitted by Ryan Dickson; Ink Mania, Toowoomba Qld Australia – via deathtofalsetattoos

Artist: Chris Park – http://plantartmonster.blogspot.com/ (via sailorjunkers)

submitted by Bowsprite – James Fitzgerald (1899-1971), Bendin’ the Fors’l, c. 1923

http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Living-Art/14332/

theshipthatflew: The last moments of British battleship HMS Majestic, torpedoed by the U-21 off Cape Helles, Dardanelles, on 27 May 1915. via – More images from the Gallipoli Campaign

USS Hermitage, AP-54 Army Transport at Yokohama – This photo was most likely taken in January 1946. According to the DANFS web site (a great source of information on US military ships) This Italian ship was interned in the Canal Zone, Panama, at the outbreak of WW2. It was taken over by the US Army Transport Division and operated over 200,000 miles until it was returned to Italy in 1947. Note the man on the dock. I wonder if he is on rat watch. Check out the larger picture for lots of details. -posted by born1945 – Original (2503 x 1847)

see also: View of the Harbor, Yokohama, about 1895, hand-tinted albumen print

(via adski_kafeteri: the more the merrier)

left: Sailor Boys – artist, Jack Vettriano — right: (via mudwerks)

Oifig Díolta Foillseacháin Rialtais / Séideán Bruithne (Typhoon)/ Joseph Conrad / 1935 (via Irish Book Covers from the 30s – 50 Watts)

The Comic Book Catacombs: Zago, Jungle Prince in “The Insane Maiden!” (Fox; 1948)

The shell with a radio brain; The true story of a mighty secret weapon of World War II – vintage advert: DC Sensation Comics 51 , Jan 1946

 

Throwback Videos of the Week:

Yoho! Ahoy! – Reparata & The Delrons: ‘Captain Of Your Ship’

The Men They Couldn’t Hang – The Colours

the only indie song ever about the 1997 Nore Naval mutiny.

“If I starved on the streets of Bristol, I starved worse on a British ship”

Shower Squid via f*ckyeahsquids

Go 20,000 leagues under the shower with this friendly squid, equipped with nine, adjustable tentacles for gripping your shampoo, soap and washing extras, without disappearing into the bathroom void! Wildly convenient, this functional creature even holds your bottles upside down, so you conquer every last drop. Made in China out of natural latex.

See you next week!