Category: History

The Namazu-e of 1855

Namazu and the kaname-ishi rock. Japan, 1855

In November 1855, the Great Ansei Earthquake struck the city of Edo (now Tokyo), claiming 7,000 lives and inflicting widespread damage. Within days, a new type of color woodblock print known as namazu-e (lit. “catfish pictures”) became popular among the residents of the shaken city. These prints featured depictions of mythical giant catfish (namazu) who, according to popular legend, caused earthquakes by thrashing about in their underground lairs. In addition to providing humor and social commentary, many prints claimed to offer protection from future earthquakes.

Namazu are normally kept under control by the god Kashima using a large rock known as kaname-ishi. The Great Ansei Earthquake of 1855 is said to have occurred when Kashima went out of town and left Ebisu (god of fishing and commerce) in charge. In this print, the giant subterranean catfish unleashes destruction on the city while Ebisu sleeps on the job. Kashima rushes home on horseback while the city burns, and Raijin the thunder god defecates drums. Large gold coins fall from the sky, symbolizing the redistribution of wealth during the rebuilding phase.

Namazu with construction tools, portrayed as the legendary warrior Benkei.

[Full story and more images found here.]

Inauguration Day 2025

[Still image from The Patriot.]

Emergency Gear

Protective suits and Emergency Life Pack for an evening in New York City, 1961

When nuclear fallout protection was all the rage.
Not sure what’s in the Emergency Life Pack, perhaps an 8 day supply of cigarettes and iodine pills. Note that the Cuban Missile Crisis went down in October of 1962, so the photo date may be in error.

[Photo by Max Scheler, colorized, found here.]

October 7

Thousands of Hamas-led terrorists launched a devastating assault on October 7, in which they rampaged through southern communities, killing over 1,200 people, mostly civilians butchered in their homes and at the music festival, and abducting some 240 people of all ages in total.

Liberty [updated]

[Update: Image is NOT Isabella Eugénie Boyer; see below.]

The face of the Statue of Liberty. Isabella Boyer’s life is like an exciting novel. She was born in Paris, the daughter of an African pastry chef and an English mother. Isabella had a special beauty and, at age 20, she married Isaac Singer, the sewing machine maker, who was 50 years old. After Singer’s death, Isabella became the richest woman in the country. It is not surprising that she was chosen as the model for the Statue of Liberty, as she embodied the American dream. Widowed, Isabella traveled the world and married the Dutch violinist Victor Robstett, becoming a countess. He became a prominent figure in America and Europe, and met the French sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi at a world event. Bartholdi, impressed by her beauty and history, used her face as a model for the Statue of Liberty. Isabella married a third time and died in Paris in 1904 at age 62, but her face lives on in the iconic statue in New York, symbolizing freedom and American pride.

[Found here, h/t Eaglesoars]

UPDATE: The top image appears to be the work of Bas Uterwijk and is an A.I. generated image of Aphrodite, not Isabella Eugénie Boyer (who may or may not have been the model for the Statue of Liberty).

Isabella Eugénie Boyer (1841-1904)
More about the viral photo here, here and here.
[h/t Gabriel]

Remember 9-11

[Archive of 9-11 posts here.]

Vauclusian Hot Links

Pm3 – PKP designation of a German express steam locomotive with aerodynamic lagging, produced in 1939–1941 for German railways (German series 0310).

Good, Good Lovin’, The Blossoms (1966)
 The Blossoms were probably the most successful unknown group of the ’60s, and the most well-known lineup was Darlene Love, Fanita James and Jean King. Their biggest hit was not even credited to them: producer Phil Spector was in a rush to get He’s A Rebel to the market, and since his top group was on tour at the time, he named The Crystals instead.

2A memes.

Dizzy Dishes.

Beatin’ rhythm.

This begets This.

In the stone zone.

Catchin’ some ZZZs.

Norty Blues Episode 77.

Flight of the bumblebee.

Brian Wilson does things.

Excellent horror B-movies.

Monkeypox by the numbers.

“Why am I laughing so hard?“

Careful with that dog, Eugene.

Walrus whistle [via Mme. Jujujive].

Bridging the gap [via Bunkerville].

The OSU Marching Band TubaCam.

The 1964 Zambian space program.

Pearl Jam sings names of LinkedIn.

1971 Emoryville scrap yard [via Memo Of The Air].

Some disturbing thoughts about lab-grown sentience.

[Top image: WWII era German built steam locomotive, PKP National Railway Museum, Warsaw, Poland. Image source unknown.]

From the Archives: 1 year ago. 5 years ago. 10 years ago. 15 years ago.

The Girls of Pre-Revolution Iran

[1970s fashion magazines predating Iran’s Islamic Revolution found here. There’s a huge collection of magazines and models (with their names) from the same era here.]

D-Day 06 June 1944

The Daily Mail posted an interactive timeline of the D-Day, the Invasion of Normandy, 80 years ago today.

Memorial Day

Andersonville becomes an object lesson in patriotism. To this retired and beautiful spot will thousands resort in the long years to come, to learn again and again lessons of heroic sacrifice made by those who so quietly sleep in these long rows of graves. ~ Robert H. Kellogg, Andersonville Survivor