http://www.bstorage.com Bill Storage News en-US See the Portraiture of Gallienus at www.rome101.com. Subscribe to the RSS feed there. This will be the last posting on bstorage.com regarding ancient Rome. http://www.rome101.com/Portraiture/Numerian/ Tue, 13 May 2008 00:15:00 PDT See the Portraiture of Gallienus at www.rome101.com. Subscribe to the RSS feed there. http://www.rome101.com/Portraiture/Carinus/ Tue, 13 May 2008 00:15:00 PDT See the Portraiture of Gallienus at www.rome101.com. Subscribe to the RSS feed there. http://www.rome101.com/Portraiture/Gallienus/ Tue, 13 May 2008 00:10:00 PDT Roman Imperial Portraits and the other topics related to ancient Rome have been moved to www.rome101.com. http://www.rome101.com/ Mon, 12 May 2008 23:59:00 PDT The Getty Commodus bust, acquired from Castle Howard in 1992, was thought to be a work of the Renaissance. In A 2006 conference, however, a panel of Roman sculpture experts including Klaus Fittschen, Cécile Evers, and our good friend Chris Hallett unanimously judged it ancient. Rome/Portraiture/Commodus/GettyCommodus/ Fri, 14 Mar 2008 22:00:00 PDT Some fun pix of southern Utah http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/UT/UT0710/ Sat, 22 Dec 2007 22:00:00 PST There is nothing wrong with the software. It won't hurt your computer, but it is killing our server. http://www.bstorage.com/misc/KillScreenSaver/ Thu, 06 Dec 2007 16:10:00 PST Cave trip report. http://www.bstorage.com/speleo/wv/ElkRiverCave/ Sat, 17 Nov 2007 15:10:00 PST Photos of Herculaneum and the sculptures from the Villa of the Papyri. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Herculaneum/ Tue, 12 Nov 2007 10:10:00 PST We wrote a computer program to allow us to display photographs on screen and to identify facial landmarks on images. We then conducted statistical analyses on the resulting data to determine whether craniofacial anthropometry was of value in differentiating portraits of a few prominent Julio-Claudians. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Ostia/ Mon, 12 Nov 2007 01:17:00 PST Photos of Ostia, the sea port of ancient Rome. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Ostia/ Mon, 12 Nov 2007 01:10:00 PST Photos and a brief writeup on the villa of Emperor Hadrian near modern day Tivoli, Italy. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/HadriansVilla/ Mon, 12 Nov 2007 01:12:00 PST The focus of these photos is early Christian art in Rome that can be correlated with biblical and apocryphal texts. This is a major update to an earlier posting on the same topic. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Christian/Magician/ Sun, 28 Oct 2007 14:40:00 PDT Photos of portraits of the Roman emperor Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, known today as Caligula. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Portraiture/Caligula/ Thu, 18 Oct 2007 23:28:00 PDT Photos of portraits of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Pius, known as Caracalla. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Portraiture/Caracalla/ Tue, 16 Oct 2007 13:58:00 PDT Shots from the Friday practice air show taken from Aquatic Park in San Francisco. Featuring the A380, the F-16/P-51 Heritage demo, the Patriots, Fat Albert (C-130) and the Blue Angels flying F-18s. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/FleetWeek2007/ Thu, 11 Oct 2007 13:14:00 PDT The Airbus A380 arriving for its inaugural touchdown at San Francisco International Airport. Also the Blue Angels' arrival for Fleet Week. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/FleetWeek2007SFO/ Fri, 05 Oct 2007 19:40:00 PDT New photos of Air Force museum. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/OH/WrightPatterson/ Sun, 16 Sep 2007 21:43:00 PDT New photos of the aquarium and its residents. http://bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/MontereyBay/MontereyBayAquarium/ Sun, 16 Sep 2007 13:43:00 PDT Photos of flowers from last week in and around the dahlia garden. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/20070814/index.htm Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:43:00 PDT New photos of the diaeta with perspective analysis. Photos of the triclinium, tepidarium and calidarium. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Oplontis/ Mon, 10 Sep 2007 13:56:00 PDT Frescoes and painted walls from one of the richest collections of images from the cult of Isis. Most of these are from the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, Italy. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Pompeii/TempleOfIsis/ Sat, 08 Sep 2007 17:48:00 PDT Here is a group of photos by Diana Gietl and me from the Old Timers Reunion in Elkins, West Virginia. I've included some technical notes on lighting technique using flashbulbs. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/us/wv/Caves2007/ Fri, 07 Sep 2007 19:50:00 PDT Silenus and Dionysus hang out with some hot chicks. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Pompeii/Mysteries/ Fri, 07 Sep 2007 19:49:00 PDT One of Pompeii's really sweet paint jobs. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Pompeii/WildBoar/ Fri, 07 Sep 2007 19:48:00 PDT Where it all started. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/misc/HPGarage/ Fri, 07 Sep 2007 19:47:00 PDT Recent studio shots of models and a few infants, mostly with very high key or very low key lighting. Oh - and don't forget the fog machine. http://www.bstorage.com/Photo/model/20070815Recent/ Wed, 15 Aug 2007 9:47:00 PDT Recent photos, mostly of the arboretum, done with a Canon 5D digital SLR and a Canon 100mm macro lens. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/20070814/index.htm Wed, 15 Aug 2007 9:43:00 PDT Some miscellaneous shots of San Francisco fog, Chinatown, Barry Bonds, boats on the bay and Golden Gate Park. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/20070814/index.htm Tue, 14 Aug 2007 12:43:00 PDT I rarely get a chance to show finished work product, since most of what I work on has no public visuals. This MLB video contest site went from artwork to production in three weeks. You're a fan. Act like one... http://www.actober.com/ Tue, 14 Aug 2007 9:53:00 PDT These are two of Rome's oldest churches, both containing some great sarcophagi and grave slabs. San Lorenzo dates from the 7th century. Sant' Agnese appears to be able to claim Constantinian era origins. It contains a grave slab fragment that can solidly be dated to 323-324 AD. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Christian/SanLorenzo/ Mon, 13 Aug 2007 17:59:00 PDT The focus of these photos is early Christian art in Rome that can be correlated with scriptural texts (whether canonical or not). About one fourth of such scenes depict acts that would be immediately identified by ancient viewers as magic. Jesus is the most common figure on the sarcophagi (~ 50% of scenes), and often performs miracles or acts of magic. Jesus almost always uses a wand in conjunction with multiplication of loaves (the most common scene on sarcophagi), the miracle at Cana, raising Lazarus, and raising the son of the widow. He never uses a wand in conjunction with healing live people. The only other New Testament miracle worker to appear on sarcophagi is Peter, the second most common figure on the sarcophagi, whose wand, unlike Jesus', may also signify a staff of authority. Peter only uses a wand in conjunction with his non-canonical water miracle (the second most common scene on the sarcophagi), which Christian tradition places in Rome. We speculate that Peter's prominence in sarcophagus imagery and the prominence of his wand are related to desire of the early Roman church to establish apostolic succession. The claim of apostolic succession was perhaps strengthened by sending a visual message to viewers of Christian sarcophagi that Peter had been active in Rome. The number of sarcophagus scenes associated with events that appear only in "heretical" writings is surprisingly large. We also look at images where details disagree with those given by scriptures. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Christian/Magician/ Mon, 13 Aug 2007 00:20:00 PDT The Villa of Poppea, built during the 1st century B.C. was buried by the eruption of Vesuvius. An inscription on an amphora revealed that its owner was Poppaea Sabina, second wife of emperor Nero. Its oecus (reception room) contains a large wall painting in late Pompeian 2nd Style that demonstrates ancient use of vanishing-point perspective and false architectural space. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Oplontis/ Mon, 13 Aug 2007 00:13:00 PDT Check out the plants, bugs and birds. http://www.bstorage.com/Photo/Misc/20070707Patio/ Sun, 08 Jul 2007 22:00:00 PDT I updated some of the Constantinians and added portraits of Emperor Constans and Aelia Flaccilla, wife of Theodosius I. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Portraiture/ Thu, 28 Jun 2007 00:30:00 PDT Wishing all Christians a happy celebration of the resurrection of Christ, and all Babylonians a happy Ishtar (pronounced east·ər), feast of the resurrection of Tammuz (who liked rabbits), the only begotten son of the moon-goddess (who descended from heaven in an egg) and the sun-god. http://www.bstorage.com/News.htm#Happy_Easter/ Sun, 08 Apr 2007 10:54:00 PDT In the early 1700s, Francesco Bianchini, a librarian-turned-astronomer, got the job of constructing a giant solar observatory/clock inside a church. Given the experience of Galileo, this may seem to be a strange allegiance between church and cosmology. But science was on the verge of a discovery that the church badly wanted - an accurate calendar. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/BianchiniMeridiana/ Sat, 07 Apr 2007 01:54:00 PST The Arch of the Argentarii, or Porta Argentarorium, in Rome's Forum Boarium is another great example of Roman propaganda and damnatio memoriae. Photos show the obliteration of images of Caracalla's brother, wife, and father-in-law - Geta, Plautilla, and Plautianus. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/ArchOfArgentarii/ Sat, 07 Apr 2007 00:24:00 PST Catching the Chronicle writers publishing some bad math may hardly seem noteworthy to anyone with a smidgen of knowledge of statistics, but the article in question (Police Fail to Report Traffic Stop Data, Mar. 7 2006) is connected with a much larger and more interesting issue of bad math in the analysis of racism in America. A look at the larger issue reveals that bad math in journalism is not merely the consequence of what conservatives might see as the fuzzy-thinking product of a Berkeley liberal arts education. Bad math in print extends beyond ideologies, education and party lines. http://www.bstorage.com/misc/070320BadMath/ Wed, 21 Mar 2007 00:19:00 PST "Greenspan Rocks Markets" reported the Washington Post today. In a matter of hours, they reported, his warning of a possible 2007 recession "wreaked havoc on global share prices." I'm not mad at Greenspan for causing stocks to fall, but I am mad at him for being arrogant enough to publicly offer half-thought remarks with disregard for their likely outcome. He has a long history of giving opinions and predictions, and a lot of investors hang on every word of them. http://www.bstorage.com/News.htm#February_27,_2007 Tue, 27 Feb 2007 23:59:00 PST This is an exploration of a mathematical concept called Lyapunov Space, which is closely related to fractals, including my fifteen year history of programming the generation of Lyapunov space plots. Even if you have no interest at all in math or computers (you're using one right now, by the way), check out the graphics. http://www.bstorage.com/Software/Lyapunov/ Sun, 25 Feb 2007 21:43:00 PST Photos of San Francisco's vintage fleet of streetcars (trolleys) and cable cars. Many of these shots appeared in the calendars of the Market Street Railway. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/Streetcars/ Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:01:00 PST Discussion of the identification of a portrait bust of the child emperor, Diadumenian. Also a scolding of the art-history world. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Portraiture/Diadumenian/ Sun, 28 Jan 2007 12:47:00 PST New photos of portrait sculptures of Probus, Claudia Octavia, Gordian I, Clodius Albinus, Nerva and Honorius. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Portraiture/ Sun, 28 Jan 2007 12:47:00 PST New photos of portrait sculptures of Augustus, Caligula, Tiberius, Agrippa Postumus, Germanicus and Pertinax. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Portraiture/ Sun, 21 Jan 2007 14:07:00 PST A handful of shots of flora in the Conservatory. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/GGPark/Conservatory/ Thu, 11 Jan 2007 20:00:00 PST Some flower photos done with the new Canon 70-200mm f/4 IS lens. http://www.bstorage.com/Photo/Misc/20070107Flowers/ Mon, 8 Jan 2007 8:00:00 PST These are a few photos of some neat homes we've visited. Check out the bathtub setting. http://www.bstorage.com/Photo/Misc/20070106Interiors/ Sat, 6 Jan 2007 15:00:00 PST This is a detailed description (~10,000 words) with 70 photos. An analysis of ancient biographies, all of which have strong religious (pagan or Christian) agendas, reveals a man who, despite violent impulses, frequent reversals and self-contradictions, managed to promote commerce, maintain Rome's military and its borders, and restore a sense of unity in the wake of long years of internal conflict. Constantine also sought to convert the empire to Christianity - a quest that profoundly influenced the course of human history. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/ArchConstantine/ Wed, 3 Jan 2007 23:00:00 PST The Church of Santa Sabina on the Aventine Hill is famous for its cypress door, which may date to the early 5th century, when the church was built. One panel contains a scene that is generally regarded as the first depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus. The other panels, with one exception, depict scenes from the Old and New Testaments, although some include minor departures from the related story in canonical texts. The door has been the subject of papers and books by half a dozen authors in the early 20th century who had some significant differences of opinion on its origin and the meanings of some of its scenes. I show detail photos of all of the panels and present slightly different interpretations of several of the panels. http://www.bstorage.com/Rome/Sabina/ Sun, 31 Dec 2006 15:39:00 PST Laura provides some travel tips for visiting Naples, Italy and archaeological sites at Pompeii, Herculanum, Stabiae and Oplontis. She explains how to use the ArteCard to make getting around this ancient city and into the sites even easier than wrestling a minotaur. http://www.bstorage.com//Rome/Tour/Naples/ Thu, 14 Dec 2006 7:32:00 PST Here are a few shots from a spontaneous photo session that, according to the EXIF data recorded in the digital photos, lasted precisely fifteen seconds. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/model/20061211Slavka/ Thu, 14 Dec 2006 7:32:00 PST I shoot a lot of photos at night, partially because I work during the day, but also just because I like the effect. These are some recent pictures at night from places that I can get to on rollerblades. Yes, carrying a sturdy tripod while rollerblading takes a bit of practice. http://www.bstorage.com/photo/US/CA/SF/20061207Night/ Thu, 14 Dec 2006 7:31:00 PST