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Links to check out
| Toy Theatres |
When I was child, I was fascinated with toy theatres. I don't remember owning one, but the delight I took in them surely led me to experiment with theatre design models when I took a scene design course in college. We were asked to build one scale model in the summer course, I built 6, all in 1/2-inch scale. My first was for "Desire Under the Elms" and was a four-room New England salt-box set.
Peter Baldwin's Toy Theatres of the World details the history of toy theatres with lots of illustrations.
Below are some links to pages dealing with toy theatres that I found worth checking out.
| Akhenaton & Tutankhamon |
In 1953, at the age of 10, I was first introduced to Akhenaton. The movie "The Egyptian" toured with a trailer filled with props from the film. When I went through the exhibit, I was hooked. From that point on, I read anything I could on the Amarna Period.
|
One
of my most intense experiences with art was coming face to face
with Tutankhamon's mask when "The Treasures of Tutankhamon" toured
in 1976.
|
 |
The following links provide interesting information on the Amarna Period:
| Pompeii & Herculaneum |
From the time I was in eighth grade and read a story about a boy and dog who died in Pompeii, I have been fascinated with this lost city. Among the excellent sites, check out the following.
- Pompeii: Main Page
- Pompeii...probably the most complete with pictures of the site.
- Amazon.com books on Pompeii and Herculaneum
| The Creche |
Whether they're called creches or presepi or presepe or presepio or just cribs, my love of miniatures and the impact Christmas has drawn me to them. As a child, I was fascinated with our family creche, complete with realistic metal chickens. Only paper mache, that set has long disappeared. In my early twenties, I painted a complete plaster set. So in the early '90's, it seemed logical to begin collecting Roman, Inc's Fontanini nativity figures. That set remained with my wife when we separated.
Four years ago, I realized I had really missed my set. So when I walked into a store and saw a display of the Fontanini lighted village buildings, I knew it was time to continue my own collection. The unusual large display among my first purchases. I was surprised to find an illustration from Albrecht Durer in Fr. Powell's book below that looks like it might have served as the inspiration for this manger scene.
Below are some fascinating sites online which might peak your interest in Christmas creches.
- The Christmas Creche : Treasure of Faith, Art, and Theatre by Fr. Matthew Powell is one of the best sources. It has wonderful pictures, excellent text, and even a prayer service. Fr. Powell is an avid creche collector. See also here.
- Bill Egan's Creche School includes information on creches from around the world. It also includes a fascinating section of four pages on constructing your own creche. The link page is excellent also. A must see.
- The Fontanini Heirloom Nativities offer well-sculpted collectables at affordable prices. For the theatre major in me, they suggest the drama of baroque presepi.
- www.presepi.it contains an Italian web site showing Italian artists and important creche collections.
- Diorama Bethlehem Einsiedeln is billed as "the largest crib in the world," including over 450 figures and a realistic depiction of Bethlehem.
- Creche Herald is an online newsletter of the Christian Nativity.
- The origin and devlopment of the Crib until today explains background on the crib and a crib glossary.
[
Home ] [ Rich
East ] [ The Cleopatra
Costume ] [ Commedia dell'Arte
]
[ Cyrano ]
[ Dressing
for Shakespeare ] [ The Iliad
] [ The Odyssey
]
[ Decorating Forties Style ][
Decorating for a Fifties Christmas
]
[ To
Kill a Mockingbird ] [ Who's Who in GLBT
History ] [ Miniatures ]
[ Paper Dolls ] [ Santa Collection ] [
Clarence ] [
St. Bernardine's
Church ]
Page created by C. David Claudon. Last revision October 15, 2003 .