Friday, 5 February 2016

Constantinople in the 1890s

I found this photograph of Constantinople (now Istambul) in a book published in 1898. I tried to make the photo a little bit "livelier" by adding colour to it. I hope you like it!:

Constantinople and the Bosphorus in the 1890s.

Thursday, 4 February 2016

Spring is here!

Today was the "official" opening of the Spring season for me; I saw the first
Winter Aconites and Snowdrops ... :-)

"Every spring is the only spring, a perpetual astonishment."
                                    Ellis Peters



Sunday, 31 January 2016

HMS D4 - A British early 20th century submarine

The photograph was published in 1911 in the Swedish weekly magazine Hvar 8 Dag. Processing and colouring from 2016

HMS D4 was a British D class submarine built by Vickers, Barrow. D4 was laid down on 24 February 1910, launched 27 April 1911 and was commissioned on 29 November 1911. She was the first submarine to be fitted with a gun for offensive use.

During D4's career, she sank the grounded the German netlayer Bielefeld in the Heligoland Bight, on 15 June 1915.

Later in her career, D4 torpedoed UB-72 on 12 May 1918. At 04:30 that day, whilst on patrol approximately midway between Guernsey and Portland Bill, D4 observed UB72 on the surface travelling in a southerly direction some two miles distant. Five minutes later Lt Claud Barry in command of D4 saw UB72, obviously unaware of the British boat's presence, alter course so that the U-boat appeared to be approaching D4. In order that his presence should not be detected Lt Barry lowered his periscope for a few minutes but at 0443 D4's periscope was raised to reveal UB72 steering an easterly course. A few minutes later UB72 was on the British boat's port side and Barry waited until the U-boat came on to his sights. At 0450 Lt Barry fired a torpedo 600 yards from target and after lowering periscope for a few moments he released a second one. Ten seconds later the crew of D4 heard an explosion and felt a violent concussion. Barry brought his boat to the surface and headed towards three men swimming in a patch of oil. He succeeded in picking up these men, who were the only survivors of UB72's crew of three officers and thirty-one men.

D4 was decommissioned in 1919 and was then sold on 17 December 1921 to H Pounds, Portsmouth. (Wiki)



Sunday, 24 January 2016

Another Maritime Drawing

Here is another nice drawing from the book "Svensk sjöfart" (Swedish shipping), published in 1921. The drawing was made by artist and architect Eduard Heurlin, who died in 1947:

(Colouring and processing by me)

Friday, 22 January 2016

A cold sunset in Öresund

We have had many quite chilly days here in southern Sweden this January. However, sunsets are beautiful even in cold weather ...



Tuesday, 19 January 2016

A Maritime Drawing

Today I photographed and coloured a wonderful drawing from the book "Svensk sjöfart" (Swedish shipping), published in 1921. The drawing was made by artist and architect Eduard Heurlin, who died in 1947.





Monday, 18 January 2016

The brand new steamship "Teutonia" (early 20th century)



A little more than one hundred years ago the photographer asked people to pose in front of the then brand new Swedish cargo steamer "Teutonia". Judging from the picture, two people did not follow the photographer´s request to stand still ... :-)

(Colouring by me)