Postcard 76: Not quite Moby Dick...

Heading back to Greenwich on The Thames Clipper
from the O2
(May 2010)

It was only yesterday that I was blogging about my early visits as a baby and toddler to the squirrels in Greenwich Park. I have been back to Greenwich many times, and feel a strong connection with the area. I love to take the Thames Clipper from the London Eye, and approach Greenwich by water. You get a good view of the Naval College, the Maritime Museum and the Park, with its Meridian. Sadly the Cutty Sark is not on show at present, but restoration work is underway. However, the current headline story relating to Greenwich concerns not a small grey mammal but a Leviathan-sized skeleton.

Drawing out of Greenwich
on the Thames Clipper

The Moby Dick-like tale relates to Bay Wharf in Greenwich and the recent finding by archaeologists, working for Pre-Construct Archaeology Limited, of a colossal North Atlantic Right Whale from north Atlantic waters, probably in the areas between Spitzbergen and Greenland. I am grateful to the History Blog for alerting me to the sad, sad story of this 200 year old headless corpse of a creature that died at some point between the age of 50 and 100. The remaining skeleton weighs in at 60 tons and is a mere 52 (Imperial) feet long. It seems to have fallen foul of whalers and their harpoons. Whales were prized in the 17th and 18th centuries for their oil, and the word 'right' in the name indicates that whales of this species provided quality oil for lamps, soap-making and industry. Whale bone was used for corsets.

Can a sad story like this have any kind of happy ending? Please note, I have NO wish to endorse the killing of whales. Those who follow my blogs will know the immense pleasure I get from watching creatures like Basking Sharks in their natural habitats. However, this sad mammal is already well and truly dead. DNA tests on its skeleton will help scientists in their quest for knowledge about the genetic diversity of this particular Right Whale. It will also help to fuel our understanding of the negative impact of whaling in terms of the future survival or otherwise of a particular species. Perhaps the discovery of 'Moby' will challenge us all to reconsider the part we can play in protecting creatures at risk.

The London Eye,
where we caught the Thames Clipper

'Like the creature in Herman Melville's novel,
it was a giant whale of great age.'

David Keys,
The Independent

• 'Moby' in Time Magazine
• and in The Independent

Postcard 56: A Sunset for the Guy

Cuillin sunset, Skye, Scotland
June

Strumble Head, Pembrokeshire, Wales
August

Narnia in a Lamp?
Tree reflections in the lamp, the Cathedral Close, St Davids, Pembrokeshire, Wales
(Can't you just imagine Mr Tumnus appearing through the trees and meeting Lucy?)
November

The Weaver of Grass has celebrated Bonfire Night (aka as Guy Fawkes Night) with a wonderful blend of sunset photography and poetry. Do follow this link HERE to her site.

I decided that I had a few sunset photographs of my own that I could post. I hope you like the ones I have chosen, taken in different months, years and geographical locations. If you have a favourite sunset photograph, why not post it on your blog, and let us know.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis is one of my all time favourite books. You will remember Mr Tumnus the faun, with his 'strange but pleasant little face' and his cloven hooves. Later on, of course, he is turned into a stone statue by the White Witch. But can Aslan the lion come to the rescue...?

The wardrobe is on display in the Wade Center in Wheaton College, USA.

Speaking of the USA and returning to 5 November, do take a look at Steven's blog post for today. It was good to be reminded of the (rather gruesome) tale of our Parliament. I wonder how many of you saw the Guy Fawkes lantern on display in the revamped Ashmolean Museum on 'The Culture Show' this evening on BBC2, with Andrew-Graham Dixon. There was also feature on Keats - with Andrew Motion alluding to the new film, 'Bright Star', with Ben Whishaw in the lead role.

Postcard 30: Westminster and Wordsworth

We enjoyed the first episode of A Poet's Guide to Britain presented by Owen Sheers (Monday BBC4 8.30pm). Sheers explored the story behind the famous lines ‘Composed Upon Westminster Bridge’ by William Wordsworth. He took us on a journey to the Lakes and over to France, demonstrating how pivotal and symbolic the bridge was in terms of spanning the different aspects of Wordsworth's life. Sheers is due to explore the poem 'Wuthering Heights' by Sylvia Plath in the next episode.

• Advice from Wordsworth to Southey sells for over £8000
  

Postcard 19: Happy [Ancient] Valentine's Day

The O2: Tutankhamun 2008

Unlike Edward Lear (of limerick fame) who actually travelled to Egypt, I have to content myself with a virtual visit today. I am reminded of a happy evening in the company of Tutankhamun at the O2 almost a year ago. You may wonder why I have chose to post on 'things ancient' for Valentine's Day, and the reason is that we came across an intriguing 2009 Near Eastern Valentine Contest for entries in ancient scripts and languages. It is run by the publishers, Eisenbrauns, who specialize in books on the Near East and Biblical Studies. Matthew Scarborough won himself an honourable mention in the contest for a Hittite version of 'You are my sunshine'. This song was immortalized for me in the television adaptations of The Balkan and Levant Trilogies (aka as the Fortunes of War novels) by Olivia Manning. Emma Thompson acted the part of Harriet Pringle and Kenneth Branagh was Guy in these memorable productions.

On my travels on the internet I came across a site on Ancient Hebrew poetry. I studied classical Greek and Latin as a student, and have often regretted the fact that I did not have the opportunity to learn some Hebrew. For those who prefer things a little more modern, I note that a new book is out, Poets on the Edge: an Anthology of Modern Hebrew Poetry selected and translated by Tsipi Keller.

And finally, for those of you who enjoy a short challenge, there is the opportunity on the Boston Phoenix site to write a Six Word Memoir Valentine in (you guessed it) six words. Happy Valentine's Day ... and happy writing!

• The Egypt Centre, University of Swansea
• Collecting Egypt blog: Bev Rogers and David Gill
• Egyptian Blue Hippo (my site)
• Egypt and the Nile: through Writers' Eyes, Eland Books