Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: gnome

Kirkwall was first mentioned in the Orkneyinga Saga in 1046, when it was recorded as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason, Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn Sigurdsson (aka Thorfinn the Mighty) on the island of Stronsay. St Magnus Cathedral is the oldest cathedral in Scotland and the most northerly cathedral in the United Kingdom - an example of architecture built when the islands were ruled by the Norse Earls of Orkney. In 1137 the cathedral was founded by Jarl Rögnvald Kali Kolsson. The church was entrusted to the patronage of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, an uncle of the founder. Before the Reformation, the cathedral belonged to the Archdiocese of Trondheim. After Orkney had become part of the Scottish kingdom, the cathedral was handed over to the burgh of Kirkwall in 1486. During the Reformation worship was reformed in 1560. However, unlike many churches in Scotland, there was no iconoclasm. Today, the cathedral is used by the Church of Scotland. The oldest parts of the cathedral are the transept, the choir and the east side of the nave. The cathedral was built in a mixture of northwest European, Romanesque-Norman and early Gothic styles. The east side ended in an apse in the 12th century. Only speculation is known about the west building. A double-towered facade is said to have been planned in the 13th century. The most recent parts of the cathedral are in the west. A dwarf hides in the foliage of the capitals

The history of Wroclaw dates back more than a thousand years. At various times, it has been part of the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Hungary, the Habsburg monarchy of Austria, the Kingdom of Prussia, and Germany. Wrocław became part of Poland again in 1945 as part of the result of extensive border changes and expulsions after WWII. In 990 Mieszko I of Poland conquered Silesia and Wrocław. The town became a commercial center. In the 12th century Polish, Bohemian, Jewish, Walloon, and German communities existed here. Wroclaw was devastated in 1241 during the first Mongol invasion of Poland. In the 13th century due to migration from Saxony and Bavaria, Wroclaw got germanised. The population adopted the German language and culture and the name changed to Breslau. Between 1342 and 1344 two fires destroyed large parts of the city, which was a part of the Bohemian Kingdom at that time. Charles IV`s , successors Wenceslaus and Sigismund became involved in a long-lasting feud with the city and its magistrate, culminating in the revolt in 1418 when local craftsmen killed seven councilors. After the city had defeated the Bohemian Hussites the city was besieged by a combined Polish-Czech force in 1474, however, a ceasefire was signed, according to which the city remained under Hungarian rule. The Reformation reached Breslau already in 1518, and in 1523 the town council unanimously appointed a new pastor and thus introduced the Reformation in Breslau. In 1526, the Habsburg monarchy of Austria inherited Bohemia, Silesia, and the city of Breslau. In 1609 German emperor Rudolf II granted the free exercise of church services to all Bohemian and Silesian Protestants. In the following Thirty Years' War, the city suffered badly. It was occupied by Saxon and Swedish troops and lost 18,000 of its 40,000 residents to the plague. The Counter-Reformation had started with Rudolf II who encouraged Catholic orders to settle in Breslau. The dominance of the German population under the Habsburg rule in the city became more visible, while the Polish population diminished in numbers. After Frederick the Great besieged the city for a year, it surrendered in 1741. In 1742, Queen Maria Theresa handed over Silesia to the Prussian king. - First gnomes appeared in the streets of Wrocław in 2001/2002 commemorating the anti-communist movement. Since 2005 their numbers have been continually growing. The trio seen here was unveiled around 2008. They are part of the "Wrocław Without Barriers" campaign, which aims at drawing attention to handicapped people living in Wroclaw.

In 1927, what is pretty recent, the city "Borgo San Donnino" changed it´s name to "Fidenza", as in Roman times it was known as "Fidentia Julia". The city was named and the Duomo inside the walls was dedicated to San Donnino di Fidenza (aka "Domninus of Fidenza"), who was martyred nearby in 291. Sigeric the Serious, Archbishop of Canterbury, made the pilgrimage to Rome following the Via Francigena around 990. His contemporary records of this journey still exist (and are source for the modern guide books). He reached "Sce Domnine" after 36 days, what is pretty fast for more than 1000kms. The erection of the Cattedrale di San Donnino started in the 11th century, the first consecration took place in 1106, though the building process continued. From around 1200 on Master Benedetto Antelami and his workshop worked here, not only as Master masons. Antelami may as well be the architect of the facade. Frederick Barbarossa had entrusted "Borgo San Donnino" to the Pallavicino family of Piacenza. In 1268 - after a siege - the city was conquered by the troops of Parma, who looted and burnt down it completely. All houses got destroyed at that time just the Duomo was saved, but it was not completed at that time. The building process came to a stop - and was never continued. A detail of the facade, carved by Benedetto Antelami and/or his workshop. I just wrote, that the archivolt is populated by dwarfs (previous upload), but that is wrong. The sculptures wearing cone hats indeed look like garden gnomes, but medieval onlookers may have recognized them and some may have been able to read the banner. I am not.

The first (carolingian) church here is named "Haito Muenster", as Bishop Haito ( as well abbot of the important Reichenau Abbey) had comissioned it. It was completed around 825. The foundations of these structure were reused, when the so called "Heinrich Muenster" was built just after 1000, sponsored and named after Emperor Heinrich II (Henry II) of the Ottonian dynasty. Already in 1019 this church got consecrated. The Muenster seen today is the third large church, erected 1180 - 1220/30. The late romanesque church had five towers, that all got destroyed (with most vaultings) in 1356 during the worst earthquake ever recorded in Central Europe. Modern seismologists estimate a magnitude of 7.1. The rebuilding of the Muenster was led by Johannes Parler, who at the same time was employed for building the Freiburg Muenster. So there are a lot of parallels between these two Muensters, only 70 kms apart. About 1500 the Muenster was finally completed in a combination of late romanesque and gothic style. The restauration process started about 400 years later. Pollution caused a lot of damage and meanwhile many of the carvings outside the church have been replaced by copies. So many of the details seen on the shots may be - copies. Just below the windows runs a long frieze all around the choir. Everybody loves grapes obviously. The rooster to the left, the gnome with a cap to the right and even the monkey in the center.