Uploads from Ben Christian Photos, tagged night

Guild Halls on the Grand Place - Brussels, Belgium B&W

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 04:51:36 -0700

On August 13, 1695, a 70,000-strong French army launched a massive bombardment of the mostly defenseless city centre with cannons and mortars, setting it on fire and flattening the majority of the Grand Place and the surrounding city.

The square was rebuilt in the following four years by the city's guilds. Their efforts were regulated by the city councillors and the Governor of Brussels, who required that their plans be submitted to the authorities for their approval. This helped to deliver a remarkably harmonious layout for the rebuilt Grand Place, despite the ostensibly clashing combination of Gothic, Baroque and Louis XIV styles.

In the late 18th century, revolutionaries sacked the Grand Place, destroying statues of nobility and symbols of Christianity. The guildhalls were seized by the state and sold. The buildings were neglected and left in poor condition, with their façades painted, stuccoed and damaged by pollution. In the late 19th century, mayor Charles Buls had the Grand Place returned to its former splendour, with buildings being reconstructed or restored.

The Grand Place was named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1998.

Brussels Grand-Place has recently been voted the most beautiful square in Europe in survey by a Dutch website (stedentripper.com).

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Place

The High Kirk of Glasgow by Night

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 16:17:07 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

The Protestant Reformation of 1560 did away with the need for bishops answerable to the Pope. Although bishops did continue in the established church in Scotland until their final abolition in 1689, their role was greatly reduced. Their cathedral was ‘cleansed’ of its Catholic trappings and put to use as a parish kirk – in fact, three parish kirks. The choir housed the Inner High Kirk, the west end of the nave the Outer High Kirk, and the crypt the Barony Kirk.

However, a growing appreciation of the qualities of medieval architecture led to another change. By 1835 both the Outer High Kirk and the Barony Kirk had vacated the premises, leaving the great medieval cathedral to return once more to something approaching its former glory.

www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/

18mm.f/11.13s.iso100

PS. I did not adjust the colour or saturation of this photo.

The High Kirk of Glasgow on an Orange Evening

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 16:17:13 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Glasgow Cathedral is built on the site where St Kentigern, or Mungo, the first bishop within the ancient British kingdom of Strathclyde, was thought to have been buried in AD 612.

The present cathedral was built during the 13th to 15th centuries.

It is the only medieval cathedral on the Scottish mainland to have survived the 1560 Reformation virtually complete.

www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/

18mm.f/11.25s.iso100

PS. I did not adjust the colour or saturation of this photo.

Glasgows Red Light District

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 10:55:57 -0700

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Scotland’s most visited attraction is a magnificent building with 22 themed, state-of-the-art galleries displaying an astonishing 8000 objects. The internationally significant collections are extensive and wide-ranging, covering natural history, arms and armour, art from many art movements and periods of history, and much, much more. There's even a real Spitfire!

www.glasgowlife.org.uk/museums/our-museums/kelvingrove

Santaland at Winter Wonderland

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 12:51:59 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Winter Wonderland Scary Ride

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 12:52:11 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Winter Wonderland Candy Shop

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 12:52:40 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Winter Wonderland Hyde Park London 2009 Ferris Wheel 2

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 13:20:19 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Winter Wonderland Hyde Park London 2009 Ride

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 13:20:21 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Winter Wonderland Hyde Park London 2009 Ferris Wheel 1

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 13:20:25 -0800

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

Kelvingrove Blending into the Glasgow Night

nobody@flickr.com (Ben Christian Photos) — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 10:56:02 -0700

Ben Christian Photos posted a photo:

The construction of Kelvingrove was partly financed by the proceeds of the 1888 International Exhibition held in Kelvingrove Park. The gallery was designed by Sir John W. Simpson and E.J. Milner Allen and opened in 1901, as the Palace of Fine Arts for the Glasgow International Exhibition held in that year.

It is built in a Spanish Baroque style, follows the Glaswegian tradition of using Dumfriesshire red sandstone, and includes an entire program of architectural sculpture by George Frampton, Francis Derwent Wood and other sculptors. The centrepiece of the central hall is a massive Pipe Organ installed by Lewis & Co.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelvingrove_Art_Gallery_and_Museum