Istanbul

known in times past as Byzantium and Constantinople, (though Constantine himself tried unsuccessfully to get the name "Nea Roma" to fix itself to the place). Once called Lygos this was replaced by Byzantium, though the whereabouts of the progenitor is close to where the Topkapı Palace, (the old Ottoman HQ) is now.

In the 3rd century AD 'Augusta Antonina' was a name given to the city. Other names now districts absorbed by the city include Stamboul (see Graham Greene's novel about the Orient Express!), Pera, The City of The Seven Hills, (c.f. Rome!), Chalchedon (now called Kadıköy); and Turks use the name 'Beyoğlu'. It is also merely referred to as 'The City' by many, and is the largest in Turkey (approx. 13 million people - almost 20% of Turkey) and the cultural, economic, as well as financial centre of Turkey.

Located on the Bosporus Strait (the harbour is the famous Golden Horn), it's on both sides of the two continents it straddles - Europe (Thrace) and Asian (Anatolia) - the only city in the world on two continents (though the growth seems to be occurring on the Asian side.

Istanbul has served as the capital* of the Roman Empire (330–395), the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire (395–1204 and 1261–1453), the Latin Empire (1204–1261), as well as the Ottoman Empire (1453–1922).






* NB When the Republic of Turkey was proclaimed on 29 October 1923, Ankara, which had previously served as the headquarters of the Turkish national movement during the Turkish War of Independence, was chosen as the new Turkish State's capital.

A thought on Dry Stone Walls

Britain boasts a staggering 125,000 miles of dry stone walls. A few are very ancient, dating back to 3,500 BC. Most are 100 years or more old, Most are field walls and went up in the early- to mid-1800s, in the wake of the enclosure acts. All are created by eye & hand! My Grandad always told me that you need to be able to look at a stone and know straight away whether it's the one you want.Britain boasts a staggering 125,000 miles of dry stone walls. A few are ancient, dating back to 3,500 BC.

Walling is hard work: a good craftsman can do maybe three metres in a day, which entails lifting about three tonnes of stone (six if it's a rebuild!). The result though is beautifully natural as well as sound and that, if looked after, will stand for centuries.

Dry stone walls, hay meadows and limestone pavements (like Malham), are the typical Yorkshire Dales landscape. Dry stone walls as old as c.600 BC have been researched in the Dales - and the oldest date earlier than the first 1,000 BC!

Collective nouns

One of the many oddities of the English language is the multitude of different names given to collections or groups, be they beasts, birds, people or things. Many of these collective nouns are beautiful and evocative, even poetic.

Shrewdness of apes
Herd/pace of asses
Troop of baboons
Cete/(clan?) of badgers
Sloth of bears
Sward/drift/hive/erst of bees
Flock/flight/pod of birds
Herd/gang/obstinacy of buffalo
Bellowing of bullfinches
Drove of bullocks
Army of caterpillars
Clowder/glaring of cats
Herd/drove of cattle
Brood/clutch/peep of chickens
Chattering of choughs
Rag/rake of colts
Covert of coots
Herd of cranes
Bask of crocodiles
Murder of crows
Litter of cubs
Herd of curlew
Herd/mob of deer
Pack/kennel of dogs
School of dolphins
Trip of dotterel
Flight/dole/piteousness of doves
Paddling of ducks (on the water)
Safe of ducks (on the land)
Fling of dunlins
Herd/parade of elephants
Herd/gang of elks
Busyness of ferrets
Charm of finches
Shoal/run of fish
Swarm/cloud of flies
Skulk of foxes
Gaggle of geese (on land)
Skein/team/wedge of geese (in flight)
Herd of giraffes
Cloud of Gnats
Flock/herd/trip of goats
Band of gorillas
Pack/covey of grouse
Down/mute/husk of hares
Cast of hawks
Siege of herons
Bloat of hippopotami
Drove/string/stud/team of horses
Pack/cry/kennel of hounds
Flight/swarm of insects
Fluther/smack of jellyfish
Mob/troop of kangaroos
Kindle/litter of kittens
Desert of lapwings
Bevy/exaltation of larks
Leap/lepe of leopards
Pride/sawt of lions
Tiding of magpies
Sord/suit of mallards
Stud of mares
Richesse of martens
Labour of moles
Troop of monkeys
Span/barren of mules
Watch of nightingales
Parliament/stare of owls
Yoke of oxen
Pandemonium of parrots
Covey of partridges
Muster of peacocks
Muster/parcel/rookery of penguins
Bevy/head of pheasants
Kit of pigeons (in flight)
Litter/herd of pigs
Congregation of plovers
Rush/flight of pochards
Pod/turmoil of porpoises
Covey of ptarmigan
Litter of pups
Bevy/drift of quail
Bury of rabbits
String of racehorses
Unkindness of ravens
Crash of rhinoceros
Bevy of roe deer
Parliament/building/rookery of rooks
Hill of ruffs
Pod/herd/rookery of seals
Flock/herd/trip/mob of sheep
Dopping of sheldrake
Wisp/walk of snipe
Host of sparrows
Murmuration of starlings
Flight of swallows
Game/herd of swans (on land)
Wedge of swans (in flight)
Drift/herd/sounder of swine
Spring of teal
Knot of toads
Hover of trout
Rafter of turkeys
Bale/turn of turtles
Bunch/knob of waterfowl
School/herd/pod/gam of whales
Company/trip of wigeon
Sound of wild boar
Dout/destruction of wild cats
Team of wild ducks (in flight)
Bunch/trip/plump/know of wildfowl
Pack/rout of wolves
Fall of woodcock
Descent of woodpeckers
Herd of wrens
Zeal of zebras

Extracted from The Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus (ed. Maurice Waite, 2007)



Some more collective Nouns

Birds (alternatives in brackets)
Colony of auks (flock, raft)
Colony of avocets
Flock of birds (dissimulation, fleet, flight, parcel, pod, volary)
Sedge of bitterns (siege)
Chain of bobolinks
Bellowing of bullfinches
Flock of bustards
Wake of buzzards
Tok of capercaillies
Muse of capons
Covert of coots ( commotion, cover, fleet, flock, pod, rasp, swarm)
Flight of cormorants (gulp)
Fling of dunlins
Convocation of eagles (aerie)
Cast of falcons
Charm of finches (chirm, trembling, trimming)
Stand of flamingos
Charm of goldfinches (chattering, drum, troubling)
Dopping of goosanders
Flight of goshawks
Bazaar of guillemots
Colony of gulls
Mews of hawks (aerie, cast, kettle, mew, moulting, screw, stream)
Charm of hummingbirds (chattering, drum, troubling)
Colony of ibises
Band of jays (party, scold)
Desert of lapwings (deceit)
Parcel of linnets
Exaltation of larks (ascension, bevy, flight)
Congregation of magpies (charm, flock, gulp, murder, tiding, tittering, tribe, )
Sord of mallards (flush, puddling, sute)
Plump of moorhens
Fleet of mudhens
Watch of nightingales (match, pray)
Pride of ostriches (flock)
Fling of oxbirds
Muster of peacocks (ostentation, pride)
Pod of pelicans (scoop)
Colony of penguins (parcel, rookery)
Cadge of peregrines
Nye of pheasants (bouquet, head, nide, warren)
Flight of pigeons (flock, kit, passel)
Knob of pintails [small number]
Congregation of plovers (band, flight, leash, stand, wing)
Run of poultry
Covey of ptarmigans
Crowd of redwings
Hill of ruffs
Fling of sandpipers
Cloud of seafowls
Squabble of seagulls
Walk of snipes (wisp)
Host of sparrows (meinie, quarrel, tribe, ubiquity)
Mustering of storks (flight, phalanx)
Flight of swallows (gulp)
Flock of swifts
Mutation of thrushes
Flock of turkeys (dole, dule, raffle, raft, rafter, posse)
Pitying of turtledoves
Colony of vultures (committee, wake)
Trip of wildfowls (bunch, knob, lute, plump,scry, skein, sord, sute)
Herd of wrens (flock)

Mammals (alternatives in brackets)
A cluster of antelopes (herd, tribe)
A shrewdness of apes (troop)
A pace of asses (drove, coffle, herd)
A flange of baboons (congress, troop)
A cete of badgers (colony)
A cloud of bats (colony)
A sloth of bears (sleuth)
A colony of beavers (family, lodge)
A herd of bisons (gang)
A sute of bloodhounds
A herd of boars (singular)
A sounder of (wild) boars [12+]
A herd of bucks (leash)
A gang of buffalos (herd, obstinacy)
A drove of bullocks
A flock of camels (caravan, herd, train)
A herd of caribous
A clowder of cats (glaring, cluster, clutter)
A destruction of (wild) cats (dout, dowt)
A herd of cattle (drift, drove, mob)
A herd of chamois
A coalition of cheetahs
A colony of chinchillas
A rake of colts (rack, rag)
A bury of conies (game)
A flink of cows [12+]
A pack of coyotes (band, rout)
A litter of cubs
A cowardice of curs
A herd of deers (bunch, leash, mob, parcel, rangale)
A pack of dogs (kennel)
A pod of dolphins (flock, school, team)
A herd of donkeys (drove)
A herd of elands
A herd of elephants (parade)
A gang of elks (herd)
A business of ferrets (cast, fesnying)
A skulk of foxes (earth, lead, leash, troop)
A brace of geldings
A horde of gerbils
A journey of giraffes (corps, group, herd, tower)
A herd of gnus (implausibility)
A trip of goats (flock, herd, trip, tribe)
A band of gorillas (whoop)
A leash of greyhounds
A group of guinea pigs
A horde of hamsters
A drove of hares (down, flick, herd, husk, kindle, leash, trace, trip)
A herd of harts
A herd of hartebeests
A array of hedgehogs (prickle)
A parcel of hinds
A bloat of hippopotami (crash, herd, pod, school, thunder)
A drift of hogs (drove, parcel)
A stable of horses (drove, harras, herd, remuda, string, stud, team)
A pack of hounds (cry, hunt, kennel, leash, meet, mute, stable, sute)
A clan of hyenas
A herd of ibexes
A couple of impalas
A husk of jackrabbits
A mob of kangaroos (troop)
A kindle of kittens (litter)
A fall of lambs
A leap of leopards (lepe)
A kindle of leverets
A pride of lions (flock, sault, sawt, sowse, troop)
A herd of llamas
A stud of mares
A richness of martens (richesse)
A mischief of mice (horde, nest, trip)
A labour of moles (company, movement)
A band of mongooses (pack)
A troop of monkeys (cartload, mission, tribe, wilderness)
A herd of moose
A barren of mules (pack, rake, span)
A family of otters (bevy, raft, romp)
A team of oxen (drove, herd, meinie, span, yoke)
A pomp of pekingese
A drove of pigs (drift, flock, herd)
A doylt of (tame) pigs
A sounder of (wild) pigs
A farrow of piglets (litter)
An aurora of polar bears (pack)
A chine of polecats
A string of ponies (herd)
A prickle of porcupines
A school of porpoises (herd, pod)
A coterie of prairie dogs (town)
A litter of pups
A colony of rabbits (bury, drove, flick, kindle, leash, nest, trace, warren, wrack)
A field of racehorses (string)
A nursery of raccoons (gaze)
A colony of rats (horde, mischief, swarm)
A crash of rhinoceroses (herd, stubbornness)
A bevy of roe deers
A colony of seals (harem, herd, pod, rookery, spring)
A flock of sheep (down, drift, drove, fold, herd, meinie, mob, parcel, trip)
A surfeit of skunks
A dray of squirrels (colony)
A pack of stoats (trip)
A drove of swine (herd)
A doylt of (tame) swine (drift, trip)
An ambush of tigers (streak)
A blessing of unicorns
A colony of voles
A huddle of walruses (herd, ugly)
A mob of wallabies
A sneak of weasels (gang, pack)
A grind of bottle-nosed whales
A herd of wildebeests
A mob of wombats
A herd of yaks

Invertebrates (alternatives in brackets)
A culture of bacteria
A stuck of jellyfish (fluther, smack, smuth)
A clew of worms

Insects and Arachnids (alternatives in brackets)
A colony of ants (army, bike, swarm)
A swarm of bees (bike, cast, cluster, drift, erst, game, grist, hive, rabble, stand)
A bike of (wild) bees
A flight of butterflies (kaleidoscope, rabble, swarm)
An army of caterpillars
An intrusion of cockroaches
A swarm of flies (business, cloud, grist, hatch)
A cloud of gnats (horde, rabble, swarm)
A cloud of grasshoppers (cluster, swarm) A bike of hornets (nest, swarm)
A flight of insects (horde, plague, rabble, swarm)
A flock of lice (colony, infestation)
A plague of locusts (cloud, swarm)
A scourge of mosquitoes (swarm)
A clutter of spiders (cluster)
A colony of termites (swarm)
A colony of wasps (bike, nest)

Molluscs (alternatives in brackets)
A bed of clams
A bed of cockles
A bed of mussels
A bed of oysters (hive)
An escargatoire of snails (rout, walk)

Fish (alternatives in brackets)
A company of angel fish
A company of archer fish
A battery of barracudas
A shoal of barbels
A fleet of bass (shoal)
A grind of blackfish
A school of butterfly fish
A school of cod
A swarm of dragonet fish
A troop of dogfish
A swarm of eels
A shoal of fish (catch, draught, fray, haul, run, school)
A glide of flying fish
A glint of goldfish (troubling)
A glean of herrings (army, shoal)
A shoal of mackerels
A shoal of minnows (steam, stream, swarm) A pack of perch
A shoal of pilchards (school)
A cluster of porcupine fish
A party of rainbow fish
A shoal of roach
A bind of salmons(draught, leap, run, school, shoal)
A family of sardines
A herd of seahorses
A shoal of shads
A shiver of sharks (school, shoal)
A troupe of shrimps
A quantity of smelts
A shoal of sticklebacks (spread)
A flotilla of swordfish
A hover of trouts (shoal)
A float of tunas (troup)
A pod of whitings

Amphibians and Reptiles (alternatives in brackets)
A quiver of cobras
A bask of crocodiles (congregation, float, nest)
A herd of dinosaurs (pack)
A flight of dragons (weyr, wing)
An army of frogs (colony, froggery, knot)
A mess of iguanas A rhumba of rattlesnakes
A den of snakes (bed, knot, nest, pit, trogle)
A knot of toads (knob, nest)
A bale of turtles (dule, turn)
A nest of vipers (generation)

People (alternatives in brackets)
A faculty of academics
A troupe of acrobats
A cast of actors/players (company, cry)
A bench of aldermen
A conflagration of arsonists
A troupe of artistes
A team of athletes
A tabernacle of bakers
A babble of barbers
A promise of barmen
A thought of barons
A squad of beaters
A bevy of beauties (galaxy)
A bench of bishops (psalter)
A blush of boys
A troop of boy scouts
A feast of brewers
A pack of Brownies
A shuffle of bureaucrats
A goring of butchers
A sneer of butlers
A slate of candidates
A chapter of canons (dignity)
A company of capitalists (syndicate)
A congregation of churchgoers
A school of clerks
A cutting of cobblers (drunkship)
A hastiness of cooks
A shrivel of critics
A cowardice of curs
A troupe of dancers
A decanter of deans (decorum)
A caravan of desert travelers
A board of directors
An obstruction of dons
A staff of employees
A panel of experts
A stalk of foresters
A talent of gamblers
A company of girl guides
A galaxy of governesses
A conjunction of grammarians
A herd of harlots
A melody of harpists
An observance of hermits
A gang of hoodlums
A cavalcade of horsemen
A blast of hunters
A bench of judges (sentence)
A neverthriving of jugglers
A banner of knights (rout)
A gang of labourers
A bevy of ladies An eloquence of lawyers
A colony of lepers
An audience of listeners
An illusion of magicians
A bench of magistrates
A riches of matrons
A morbidity of majors
A band of men
A faith of merchants
A diligence of messengers
A troupe of minstrels
A side of morris dancers
A cortege of mourners
An orchestra of musicians
A tribe of natives
A superfluity of nuns
A crowd of onlookers
A curse of painters (illusion, misbelieving)
A malapertness of pedlars
A crowd of people (audience, congregation, mob)
A troupe of performers (troup)
A skirl of pipers (poverty)
A posse of police
A converting of preachers
A pity of prisoners (gang)
A band of robbers
A crew of sailors
A scolding of seamstresses
A house of senators
A subtlety of sergeants at law
An obeisance of servants
A posse of sheriffs
A blackening of shoemakers
A choir of singers
A squad of soldiers (army, brigade, company, division, muster, platoon, troop)
A picket of strikers
A class of students
A simplicity of subalterns
A disguising of tailors
A glozing of taverners
A den of thieves (gang)
A board of trustees
A flock of tourists
An unction of undertakers
A prudence of vicars
An ambush of widows
A coven of witches
A gaggle of women
A gang of workmen
A congregation of worshippers
A worship of writers
A fellowship of yeomen

Miscellaneous (alternatives in brackets)
A wing of aircraft (flight)
A host of angels (chorus)
A quiver of arrows
A bundle of asparagus
A belt of asteroids
A bunch of bananas (hand)
A grove of bayonets
A carillon of bells (change, peal)
A library of books
A batch of bread (caste)
A bavin of brushwood
A fleet of cars
A pack of cards (deck, hand)
A network of computers
A dossier of documents
A clutch of eggs
A bundle of firewood
A bed of flowers (bouquet, bunch, patch)
A colony of fungi
A pantheon of gods
A bunch of grapes (cluster)
A battery of guns
A budget of inventions
A chain of islands (archipelago)
A cache of jewels
A ring of keys
A fleet of lorries (convoy) A rouleau of coins
A collective of nouns
A bank of monitors
A range of mountains
A troop of mushrooms
A rope of onions
A coterie of orchids
A ream of paper
A budget of papers
A string of pearls (rope)
A pod of peas
A phantasmagoria of phantoms
An anthology of poems
A rosary of quotations (mellificium)
A clump of reeds
A rabble of remedies
A nest of rumours
A fleet of ships (armada, flotilla)
A pair of shoes
A shrubbery of shrubs
A flight of stairs
A galaxy of stars (constellation)
An anthology of stories
An arcana of tarot cards
An agenda of tasks
A stand of trees (clump, forest, grove)
Top

Some That Might Be …!
A balance of accountants
A bevy of alcoholics
A corps of anatomists
A conflagration of arsonists
An audit of bookkeepers
A rascal of boys
A clutch of breasts
A clutch of car mechanics
A load of cobblers
An unease of compromises
A galaxy of cosmologists
An intrigue of council members
A box of cricketers
An incredulity of cuckolds
A brace of dentists
A bodge of DIYers
A grid of electricians
An exaggeration of fishermen
A revelation of flashers
A fraid of ghosts
A giggle of girls
An expectation of heirs
A vagary of impediments
A diffidence of introverts
A wealth of information
A scoop of journalists
A flush of lavatories
A stack of librarians
A babble of linguists
A number of mathematicians
A compromise of mediators
An amalgamation of metallurgists
A shower of meteorologists
An expectation of midwives
A horde of misers
An annoyance of neighbours
A row of oarsmen
A body of pathologists
A virtue of patients
A ponder of philosophers
A clique of photographers
A nucleus of physicists
A breakdown of plans
A flush of plumbers
A complex of psychologists
A following of stalkers
A portfolio of stockbrokers
A fanfare of strumpets
A pack of suitcases
A flight of yesterdays
A jam of tarts
A hug of teddy bears
A ring of telephones
A bunch of things
A promise of tomorrows
A twinkling of todays
A cancellation of trains
An anorak of trainspotters
A linkage of webmasters
A break of winds
An impatience of wives
A yearning of yesterdays
An optimism of youths
from the web site http://users.tinyonline.co.uk/gswithenbank/collnoun.htm

21 April 753 BC

The lineage of legend leading to the foundation of Rome.

Anchises - father of Æneas who flees Troy after its downfall. He was a mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite (therefore in Roman mythology, the lover of Venus). One version is that she pretended to be a Phrygian (from the central Anatolian plateau) princess, and seduced him - for nearly two weeks. Anchises learned that his lover was a goddess only nine months later, when she revealed herself and presented him with the infant Æneas. He should not have revealed this but did while drunk and Zeus, as a punishment, hit him with a thunderbolt, making him lame.

Venus - the goddess of love and the mother of Aeneas. Venus (Aphrodite in Greek mythology) is a benefactor of the Trojans. She helps her son whenever Juno tries to hurt him, causing conflict among the gods

Æneas - the gods of Olympus have predicted that Aeneas would found a new kingdom, namely Rome, achieved after he leaves Carthage - where he had been a lover of the Queen Dido, who, unable to endure his abandonment, preferred to commit suicide with a sword that he had left behind.His defining characteristic is piety, a respect for the will of the gods. Creusa was his first wife and they had a son called Ascanius. Creusa was a daughter of Priam.

Lavinia - Æneas' second wife - they had one son, Silvius. Her father was Latinus - the king of the Latins, and his forbearance in allowing Æneas into his kingdom and encouragement to become a suitor of his daughter, caused resentment and eventually war among his subjects. Lavinia respects the gods and fate, but does not hold strict command over his people.

Silvius, about whose succession, according to Dionysius of Halicarnassus, caused a dispute as to who should succeed Ascanius. The dispute was decided in favor of Silvius by the people who believed that it was his right as the nephew of Latinus. All the kings of Alba following Silvius bore the name as their cognomen.

Aeneas Silvius - grandson of Ascanius and great-grandson of Aeneas, third in the list of the mythical kings of Alba Longa in Latium, and enjoyed a a reign of 31 years.

Brutus of Britain - The island of Britain derives its name from this Brutus - following Roman sources such as Virgil and Livy (Livy's only surviving work is the "History of Rome" - "Ab Urbe Condita")- whose, the Historia tells how Æneas settled in Italy after the Trojan War, and how his son Ascanius founded Alba Longa, one of the precursors of Rome. Ascanius married, and his wife became pregnant. In a variant version, the father is Silvius, who is identified as either the second son of Æneas, previously mentioned in the Historia, or as the son of Ascanius. A magician, asked to predict the child's future, said it would be a boy and that he would be the bravest and most beloved in Italy. Enraged, Ascanius had the magician put to death. The mother died in childbirth.

Latinus Silvius - fourth king of Alba Longa (according to Livy). It is, however, unclear if this person ever existed.

Alba - fifth king of Alba Longa. He was the son of Latinus Silvius - reigned thirty-nine years

Atys - sixth king of Alba Longa.

Capys - seventh king - "capys" meant 'hawk' or 'falcon' or possibly 'eagle'

Capetus - in Latin Căpĕtŭs Sĭluĭŭs

Tiberinus Silvius - the ninth king, Tiberinus' has a legend about him such that he was drowned while crossing the river then known as the 'Albula', but which was ever after known to the Latins as the Tiberis. This ancient river formed the boundary of Latium and Etruria, and the city of Rome was later founded on a group of seven hills overlooking its banks.

Agrippa - tenth king of Alba Longa - listed as such in the time of Augustus. Some speculate that this was done in order to give prestige to Augustus' friend and son in law Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa.

Romulus Silvius - also known as Aremulus or Alladius. Romulus Silvius is said to have been a wicked ruler and pretended to know how to make thunder in order to frighten his subjects into worshiping him as a God. He perished in a thunderstorm with excessive rain.

Aventinus - buried on the Aventine Hill, later named after him. He is said to have reigned thirty-seven years.

Procas - undistinguished.

Numitor - father of Rhea Silvia. He was overthrown by his brother, Amulius, and thrown out of his kingdom where he had ruled.

Amulius - hostile uncle of Romulus and Remus' mother.

Rhea Silvia - (also written as Rea Silvia), and also known as Ilia, was the mythical mother of the twins Romulus and Remus, who founded the city of Rome. Her story is told in the first book of 'Ab Urbe Condita' of Livy

Ares/Mars - was the father of Romulus and Remus with Rhea Silvia. His love affair with Venus symbolically reconciled the two different traditions of Rome's founding; Venus was the divine mother of the hero Aeneas, celebrated as the Trojan refugee who "founded" Rome several generations before Romulus laid out the city walls.

Hersilia - in Roman mythology, Hersilia was the wife of Romulus

Romulus & Remus are Rome's twin founders in its traditional foundation myth, although the former is sometimes said to be the sole founder. Their maternal grandfather was Numitor, rightful king of Alba Longa, a descendant of the Trojan prince Aeneas, and father to Rhea Silvia (also known as Ilia.) Before their conception, Numitor's brother Amulius deposed his brother, killed his sons and forced Rhea to become a Vestal Virgin, intending to deprive Numitor of lawful heirs and thus secure his own position; but Rhea conceived Romulus and Remus by either the god Mars or the demi-god Hercules. When the twins were born, Amulius left them to die but they were saved by a series of miraculous interventions. A she-wolf found them and suckled them. A shepherd and his wife then fostered them and raised them to manhood as shepherds. The twins proved to be natural leaders and acquired many followers. When told their true identities, they killed Amulius, restored Numitor to the throne of Alba Longa and decided to found a new city for themselves. Romulus wished to build the new city on the Palatine Hill but Remus preferred the Aventine Hill. They agreed to determine the site through augury. Romulus appeared to receive the more favorable signs but each claimed the results in his favor. In the disputes that followed, Remus was murdered by Romulus. Ovid has Romulus invent the festival of Lemuria to appease Remus' resentful ghost.

31st May

Met Roger & Beryl at 'The Wensleydale Heifer'


as we wanted to drive back through Coverdale, (her maiden name - and probably the family origin) Coverdale is a tributary valley on the south side of Wensleydale including Coverham, West Scrafton, and Horsehouse. At the head
of the dale there is a single track road leading over the moors between Great Whernside and Buckden Pike down Park Rash and on to Kettlewell in the heart of Wharfedale ... our way home. Hopefully it wasn't too traumatic trip following us on the narrow roads in the Dales. At least Aussies drive on the same side of the road as we do ... though there was no "other side" on many of the small lanes we were on! Still - we made it! Got back in time toi go for a walk up onto the moor via Heber's Ghyll.

On Ilkley Moor we walked on to the swastika stone has a double outline of a swastika with ten cups fitting within the five curved arms. The design is similar to art of the Celtic Iron Age period but could have been carved as early as the Bronze Age, as with other markings in the vicinity. 2,300 BC to 1300 BC, (nowhere as old the Aborigines of Australia - arrived 40,000 to 60,000 years ago!). Back to the carving - there is a Victorian imitation, situated in front of the original, - some think that the symbol relates to the sun.

1st June

Margaret suggested Saltaire ...

... so after walking Ginny from the Cow & Calf we went over to Salts Mill and parked up for a walk around the streets. Margaret told us about the World Heritage status and that all the houses should be of a certain shade of brown, though quite how the relevant authorities achieve this now, with most inhabitants trying to be a little different, is going to be interesting! I must say though, the smartest houses looked like they were trying to keep and make the most of the original facades.
Margaret also told us that you could tell the importance of the house owner (or renter?) depending on the floors to the house as well as the type of door or ornamentation.
The Congregational Church was of interest - including the Greylag geese (Anser anser), and their goslings, that were feeding on the grass all around. Margaret told Roger & Beryl of Sir Titus' grumpiness towards his rather snooty wife - and the balcony tale.The shame was the building was closed until 2pm, and we were ready to come away at noon so missed out on the inside .... The Glen Tramway too was closed - and is not due to re-open, (if they can find sufficient volunteers too), until late June. Still, Roberts Park looked good. The mill was interesting too, I hope. Roger bought a poster and a card - neither he nor Beryl had come across our famous son, Hockney, before! So ... I expect that David Hockney should find a real boost in interest in his work back in Geelong, near Melbourne, next year! Should come as a shock to some as well, to realise the The Australian National Gallery of Art paid about 4.5 million dollars for his painted version of 'A Bigger Grand Canyon'


See http://www.saltsmill.org.uk/david_hockney.htm and (not shown at Saltaire) - my favourite of Hockney's has to be what the Tate got as a gift ... 'Bigger Trees Near Warter'



I took Roger & Beryl up to Malham in the afternoon, after a lunch at home.

However at the start of Malham, realised the locals had the Safari Trail going on and there were loads of visitors so I drove up and parked at the Tarn. Then we set off to walk down to the top of the Cove - looked at the cove ... looked grand. (About two and half hundred feet high and 1,000 feet wide - some sight!). Then we walked over to look at the limestone pavements.


I couldn't remember the details of the formation or the names of the clefts and slabs. Now, (thanks to a refresher) can reveal that it's all formed as part of a glaciation phase as the advancing glacier scrapes away the tops of the rock and exposes horizontally-bedded limestone. Then as the glacier falls back, leaving a residue of clay that forms a soil under which the limestone, because of it's solubility in water (and other salts and gases that make the water more acidic), helps rainfall erode the weaker links in the rock forming or causing the so called "clints" or slabs - all separated by fissures called "grykes". (These are often deep - quite a few feet - even collapsing into larger cave structures underneath the pavement. Allow shade loving - and some rare - plants to exist such as Harts-tongue Fern
Wood-Sorrel, Wood-Garlic, Geranium, Anemone, Rue, and Enchanter's Nightshade. Then wind or other erosive factors stripped off the 'clay soil' leaving the bare level pavement. The fissures can be written "grikes" - both "Clints" and "Grykes: are Yorkshire terms - probably Scandinavian? All this glaciation activity happened over 350 million years ...

This site has a good explanation http://www.limestone-pavements.org.uk/geology.html

Laura Cantrell

Wells was born Ellen Muriel Deason in 1919 in Nashville, Tennessee, one of the few country singers born in Nashville.

Here's a review from The Guardian by Robin Denselow
Thursday 21 April 2011

A charmingly cool, respectful tribute to the country superstar of the 1950s and 60s from the singer who became a heroine of the alt.country scene 40 years later. Now 91, Kitty Wells is the oldest living member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, revered in Nashville as the first artist to prove that a female country singer could become a best-seller, leading the way for the later success of Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette. Her songs were mostly sing-along weepies, and are revived here by Laura Cantrell, whose work was adored by the late John Peel. Cantrell describes Wells's style as "sounding both emotional and restrained at once", and she follows the same approach with this understated, no-nonsense set, in which the equally restrained and classy backing is provided by musicians from BR549 and Calexico. The title track is by Cantrell, who then moves on to the old Wells favourites, including her best-known hit It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tony Angels, the huge weepie I Gave My Wedding Dress Away, and a quietly powerful treatment of Searching for a Soldier's Grave.