Dan Diffendale

@diffendale

archaeologist, at the moment studying volcanic tuff as a building material but interested in all old trash ΟΣΟΝ ΖΗΣ ΦΑΙΝΟΥ he/him Pisa (but bury me beside the Piramide) 🥖🌹 simultaneously more and less fun than profile suggests

2239 Siguiendo5423 Seguidores1145 Publicaciones

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Dan Diffendale@diffendale· 13d

Photo in an Italian railway station, looking across several tracks and platforms at ninety degrees. Part of a passenger train is visible several platforms back. In the background is a brick faced apartment building about seven stories high.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· 28d

see Mari & Tomassetti 2008, "Ancora sulla ceramica decorata con paste vitree da Tivoli," Archeologia Classica 59 (2008), pp. 395-408 (www.jstor.org/stable/44367...)

Photo of a rim sherd of a ceramic vessel in red clay, with applied lettering CULE VICTO and three blue glass paste inserts below. Below the photo is a drawing showing the form of the vessel and the text reconstructed to read "Ab Hercule Victore".

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Jul 7

Anni fatali

Gas station price board: diesel 1939, super 1860, diesel+ 2039.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Jun 17

doing some work on Tufo Rosso a Scorie Nere - a tuff, or rather two of them, from the volcanos north of Rome, that were used as building material from antiquity onwards. There are two deposits from two different eruptions (both huge), only definitively distinguished a couple decades ago

Detail of a white-topped work table with photo scales and color card, a small accumulation of rock dust, and, at the margins, the edges of plastic sample bags with rocks in them.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Jun 10

When in doubt, sketch it out

Pencil sketch on paper of a section of an imagined landscape in a rough isometric view: a steep-sided river valley with two small tributaries; to either side are low hills. Above, a smaller version of the valley, under clouds of disturbance. Above right, perhaps the valley filled.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Jun 7

Be the shadow of the evening you want to see in the world

Photo with the light of an hour before sunset: a rocky landscape in which can be seen here and there regular cuts from an ancient quarry; some of the lower areas have been invaded by the sea. The shadow of the photographer stretches long, up two thirds of the frame.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 31

Here's an example of a lithograph adapted to ceramic form by a Kütahya potter (images from D. Kogias, _Souvenir of Kütahya_ 2021)

Photo from a book with caption: "The third dish of Minas Avramidis from the quartet illustrating the medieval legend of Saint Genevieve (Kütahya, early 20th century, Suna and İnan Kıraç Foundation, Kütahya Tiles and Ceramics Collection, Pera Museum, Istanbul)." The photo is a circular dish with image representing a bearded male figure in medieval clothing on horseback looking down at a half-clad seated female figure. Behind are a tree, a deer, and a boy. The female figure is labeled Genevieve in Greek and French, along with the abbreviation of "figure 3" in both languages.

The lithograph from which the previous image was copied. The caption reads "Lithograph by Sotiris Christidis with Image C from the legend of Saint Genevieve which Avramidis copied on the dish of fig. 9 (Athens, 1900-02)." The scene here has a much fuller scenery: the horse is standing in a stream or spring, while Genevieve is seated on a rock. The same labels in Greek and French appear below the scene.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 22

Photo of a flat-topped hillside entirely covered in dark yellow gorse with green patches that takes up the lower two-thirds of the frame, beyond which is visible a brooding cloudy sky with a dark blueish tint. Just to left of center between the two is standing a black cow with white face. Above fly two birds, tiny in the distance.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 20

some of the inscriptions, which may date to the 5th-4th c. BCE, were found re-used in a later pavement of the area, while others were still in place

Photo, probably taken from a drone, showing a large open archaeological excavation area, with a team of about 25 people standing in the middle, some in high-viz clothing. Behind them and to the left is an area paved with stone blocks, while at the right and left edges of the photo are low stone building foundations.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 20

Archaeologists carrying out excavations ahead of the construction of a new road at Ponso, near Este in the Veneto region of Italy, have uncovered an ancient Venetic and Roman temple site, including numerous inscriptions in the Venetic language (all photos: SABAP Padova Treviso Belluno)🏺

Photo of an archaeological excavation, with the focus at center on a cut-stone block, one side of which is entirely covered with five lines of text inscribed in the ancient Venetic alphabet. A few letters spill onto another side of the block. In the background can be seen small stone pillars with architectural moldings.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 20

quote with a fictional band that is not spinal tap

Still from a film depicting a small English colliery band dressed in purple jackets marching down the street, a line of five tuba players making up the first row. They are led by a conductor played by Pete Postlethwaite, flanked by a person carrying a hand written sign reading "Grimley Colliery". The film is "Brassed Off".

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 13

Arthur's Seat is a much older (340 Ma) volcano than the Roman ones I'm used to dealing with (600 - 36 Ka), but it's glorious - every city should have one (the extincter the better...)

Photo of the central hill of Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh from the south, with green grass in the foreground and a slightly cloudy sky above. The dark color of the hill reflects the volcanic rock that forms it, including basalt and agglomerate.

Photo of an outcrop of volcanic agglomerate, reddish gray fine matrix with inclusions of darker material.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 12

View out the window of a tram, showing another track and, beyond, a slightly idyllic looking meadow with sparse trees under a thickly clouded sky.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 10

happy day to those who mother, who have mothered, who want to mother

Photo of an antique terracotta mold, made of pale yellowish clay, with an impressed figure that can be understood as Mary holding the baby Jesus. The mold would have once been used for making a traditional Sicilian sweet, cotognata, a quince paste.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 10

a couple of days ago

Vertical format photo of the Arno River at Pisa, looking upstream during golden hour. The buildings to the right of the river are warmly illuminated and reflect in the calm water, slightly rippling; a concrete bridge crosses from right to left. The foreground is occupied by a stand of tall thick river grass. In the background, rolling dark blue-green hills loom quietly.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 9

Photo of a reflection of a building in a slow river, the rippling gently distorting the image: the building's color is pale pinkish-reddish-orangeish, but mostly bright, with hints of green in places. Just above and to the right of center is a bird in flight, maybe a kind of finch, black feathers with yellow pattern on the head and body.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 9

Photo of a concrete wall, roughly painted a pale cream color. A spray painted pink line runs a third of the way up the left side of the image, turns right about two thirds, then runs vertically again to the top. A vine of some sort of nettle or bramble type plant with green leaves follows the same vertical line from top to bottom.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 7

Photo of the Arno river at Pisa, at the Ponte Solferino, looking across to the south bank. A blue sky reflects on the water. Light, shadows, and reflections play to make a triangle of light pointing left on the bridge pier and a triangle of shadow on the embankment. The small black silhouette of a bird in flight can be seen against the light of the pier.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 5

Three pink to dark pink roses, seen from the side and slightly below, along the bottom of the frame, dark and starkly outlined against an out of focus cloudy sky that fills the frame.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 4

Screenshot of text: Rock names carry with them widely held preconceptions about their nature, in particular their resistance to weathering and their strength. To assess these preconceptions a straw poll of 100 non-specialist geologists and engineers was undertaken, and the participants were asked to describe the strength of tuff as either: (a) very weak to weak; (b) moderately weak to moderately strong; (c) strong; (d) very strong to extremely strong or; (e) could be of any strength. The strength of a tuff is naturally highly variable, and can be influenced, for example, by the degree of welding, or weathering. The correct answer, ‘could be any strength’ (e) was chosen by 37% of those surveyed, however, 38% suggested that a tuff was ‘moderately weak to moderately strong’ (b), and a further 17% that it was ‘weak to very weak’ (a). The survey responses are summarized in Figure 4. Therefore, if a rock is incorrectly named/interpreted and no quantitative data is available from the ground investigation, this could conceivably lead to such misconceptions of rock strength being applied at a later stage of the investigation. This could be particularly problematic

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 4

Pie chart depicting descriptions of the strength of tuff as collected from a survey of 100 geologists and engineers. The responses include "Very weak to weak" (17), "Moderately weak to moderately strong" (38), "Strong" (4), "Very strong to extremely strong" (4), "Could be any strength" (37).

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 2

The time for talking is over

Selfie of the poster, a bearded white guy, holding a silvered euphonium and making a dumb face.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 2

Funerary monument of Archbishop Simone Saltarelli (+1342), church of S. Caterina, Pisa. Attributed to Andrea and Nino Pisano and workshop

Photo inside a church, very spare interior, of an ornate medieval marble tomb monument in late gothic style. Above an undecorated stone base is a first register of reliefs representing scenes from the life of the archbishop, then a level with the archbishop laid out behind a screen of columns flanked by angels. Above that is a register of small reliefs, then Mary holding the infant Jesus within a gothic aedicule. The monument, illuminated by sun entering from left, leaves a dramatic shadow on the wall to the right.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 1

some context:

Photo of a wall of the treasury of Saint Mark's Basilica in Venice, very ornate and largely composed of reused earlier stone and marble materials: rectangular slabs in grey marble with medieval reliefs of floral patterns, birds, and griffins, and book-matched panels of dramatically veined color marbles, all separated by thin slabs of mottled green stone. At lower left is inserted the porphyry sculpture of the tetrarchs. Running along the bottom is a series of white marble medieval reliefs of animals.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· May 1

c'era una volta a Venezia

A close-up photo of the Late Roman porphyry tetrarch sculptures in Saint Mark's square, Venice. The focus is on one of the figures, embracing his co-ruler; his big eyes and concerned expression are accentuated by the erosion on his face. In the background can be seen a pair of ornate marble pilasters and part of the bell tower in the square, slightly out of focus.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Apr 30

it will have to do

Photo looking across the Arno river at Pisa, everything bathed in the late afternoon sun's golden glow. Yellow and ochre buildings, one of them a long, low and ornate former convent, line the opposite shore. The otherwise placid river surface is marked by gentle ripples that parallel the banks. In the middle ground the sun reflecting off a window makes a bright strange shape on the water.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Apr 30

March in Pisa this evening in response to the attacks against the Global Sumud Flotilla, below smoke from a forest fire in the hills nearby. If you squint you can see a Canadair in the smoke

Photo of Pisa, looking along the bank of the Arno river, in late afternoon, the low sun giving everything a golden hue. The first part of a group of people are marching down the street beside the river, some holding Palestinian flags. A gray smoke hangs in the otherwise blue sky, where the distant shape of an airplane can be seen.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Apr 27

Landscape format photograph of an older couple, one in a yellow coat, the other in dark blue, walking away from the viewer on a dirt path that runs through a field of untrimmed green grass. Cutting across the scene horizontally are dark linear shadows that create a striped effect across the landscape; to the left of the path the shadows join into a single shadow: the shadow of an ancient aqueduct.

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Apr 26

Today in mildly amusing coincidences: I bought a couple of jackets at the fleamarket, and they put them in a bag with this label

Closeup of a blue bag with a yellow address label, most of which has been obscured for privacy, but one can read "Gentile Dott. Giacché". The Italian word for jackets is "giacche".

Dan Diffendale@diffendale· Apr 25

stuck in bed scrolling again