Early life.

Zhvania was born in Tbilisi into the family of Besarion Zhvania, an ethnic Georgian, and Rema Antonova, of mixed Jewish Armenian ancestry, both physicists working at the Tbilisi Institute of Physics. In 1985 he graduated from the Faculty of Biology of the Tbilisi State University. He worked at the university through 1992. In 1993 he married Nino Kadagidze, who owned a book store with English language books in Tbilisi. They had a son and two daughters: Elisabeth, Besarion and Anna. Zhvania spoke English, German and Russian.

Career.

Zhvania entered national politics in 1988. Between 1988 and 1990, Georgia's Green Party, which Zhvania co-chaired, was one of a number of opposition groups that took part in the country's drive to regain its independence. In September 1991 his party joined the opposition to the government of the first post-Soviet President of Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia. Gamsakhurdia's violent overthrow in January 1992 resulted in Eduard Shevardnadze, the former Soviet foreign minister, coming to power a few months later.  Shevardnadze established the Union of Citizens of Georgia to provide a moderate centre-right grouping for reformist democrats. Zhvania joined the UGC in 1995, entering the Georgian parliament in the same year, and recruited other reformists to the party, notably Mikheil Saakashvili. In 1993, Zhvania became general secretary of Shevardnadze's party. On 25 November 1995, after the party's victory at the election, he was elected as chairman of the Georgian parliament.  However, Zhvania fell out with Shevardnadze over a corruption scandal and resigned as speaker on 1 November 2001. He and Saakashvili also left Shevardnadze's party. In 2002, he established and chaired a new party, called the United Democrats.  Zhvania had a wife and three children, and in addition to his native Georgian, he spoke Armenian, Hebrew, English, German, and Russian. Zurab Zhvania is the only Georgian Prime Minister to have died while in office.

November elections.

The parliamentary elections of 2 November 2003 were widely condemned by local and international observers as being grossly rigged by the government. In response, Zhvania and other opposition figures called for mass protests against Shevardnadze. Two weeks of massive popular protests followed, forcing Shevardnadze's resignation on 23 November. He was replaced on an interim basis by Zhvania's successor as parliamentary speaker, Nino Burjanadze. Zhvania himself became a minister in the transitional government prior to fresh presidential elections held on 4 January 2004, which were won by Saakashvili.

Prime minister.

In February 2004 according to the proposal of President Saakashvili Zhvania was elected as Prime Minister by the Parliament of Georgia. He led a young reformist cabinet with 15 members with an average age of 35 years. With his cabinet Zhvania was seen as a moderate counterweight to the "radical" attitudes of President Saakashvili. He also was a key figure in the talks on the separatist republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Controversial was Zhvania's role during the privatisations in Georgia, when he took over all final decisions, while the competent ministers of economy had to be changed three times within two years. Experts also criticized his role in the sale of the port of Batumi and of 16 ships of the Georgian Black Sea fleet.

Death.

Circumstances.

Zhvania died early in the morning of 3 February 2005 from what officials claimed was carbon monoxide poisoning, due to an inadequately ventilated gas heater. He was in a rented apartment with Raul Usupov, deputy governor of Georgia's Kvemo Kartli region, at the time. Usupov also died.  Guards entered the house after there was no word from Zhvania for several hours to find him in an armchair and Usupov in the kitchen. Details of the incident are still limited, although officials have said there was a gas-powered heating stove in the main room of the house, where a table was set up with a backgammon set lying open upon it.  Immediately after the incident, live on Rustavi-2 television, Georgia's Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili said there was no reason to suspect foul play. Bodies were taken to the coroner's office, where a preliminary examination showed both died from carbon monoxide poisoning. There were reports of serious technical violations when the gas heaters were installed, with officials saying there was no ventilation in the apartment.  However, Zhvania's family members have questioned the official version of the death, with Goga Zhvania having said that he was sure that his brother was assassinated. In March 2006 interview with the Washington Post Georgia's ex-president Eduard Shevardnadze also said that he believed Zhvania was murdered.  In addition, Irakli Okruashvili has also stated in his scandalous speech in Imedi TV, that Zhvania's corpse was moved to the house, but who actually moved the corpse he said he was not going to talk about that any longer that day.  According to some reports Mikheil Machavariani, Deputy Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, was one of the last people who spoke with Zurab Zhvania the night before his death.  President Mikheil Saakashvili, at an emergency Cabinet meeting, said, "In Zurab Zhvania, Georgia has lost a great patriot, who devoted his entire life to serving the motherland. Zurab's death is a great blow to Georgia and to me personally. I lost a very close friend, a reliable adviser and a great ally. I want to call on you all to be strong, because there is no greater responsibility than loyal service to our country and our people." Rabbi Mikhailashvili stated, "The Jewish community mourns the sudden loss of Zurab Zhvania. As a Jew, he had a close relationship to the Jewish community in Georgia." As of March 2014 Mikheil Saakashvili was wanted by the Georgian Prosecutor's office for questioning in an investigation carried out for the purpose of establishing circumstances surrounding Zhvania's death.

Bodyguard trials and aftermath.

Years after the incident, Zhvania's death remains at the center of Georgia's political life. In 2015, several of Zhvania's bodyguards were convicted of neglect after they admitted that on the day of Zhvania's death they had left him alone, at his own request. According to the bodyguards, Zhvania maintained a secret apartment and went to unspecified meetings there, sometimes disguised in a beard. When the security personnel entered the apartment to check on Zhvania, they found his body naked along with the naked Raul Usupov. The bodyguards admitted to tampering with the scene in order to erase any traces that the two men have had sex, so as to "keep his [Zhvania’s] name clean". Zhvania's family members deny allegations of homosexuality and instead insist that it was a staged murder by unspecified persons. When asked about homosexuals, Zhvania's brother Gogla stated that he finds homosexuals disgusting and that if Zhvania was one of them, it would be a disgrace to his family, though Gogla maintained that it was not the case.

Zurab Zhvania (; 9 December 1963 – 3 February 2005) was a Georgian politician, who served as Prime Minister of Georgia and Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia. Zhvania began his political career at young age, making his first political steps as a member of Green Party, in the beginning of 90s. In 1992 Zhvania was elected chairman of Eastern European Green's and was first Eastern European to serve at the post. In 1993 Zhvania made first serious steps in Georgian politics as he was elected as General Secretary of Citizen's Union. From that point Zhvania served important role in Georgian politics until his death in 2005. 1995 he became the chairman of parliament and maintained the post until his resignation in 1999, which was followed with discharge of other ministers, whom Zhvania suspected in Corruption. From 1993 till 2003 Zhvania remained in opposition fighting against Shevardandze's government. In 2003, Zhvania united with other opposition leaders, mainly Burdjanadze and Saakashvili, held non-violent protests against the government. Protests ended with resignation of Shevardnadze and election of Saakashvili as the president. Zhvania became prime minister and served the post until his death in 2005.


History.

Originally, the entrance of the priest who was to celebrate Mass was accompanied by the singing of a whole psalm, with Gloria Patri (doxology). While the psalm was at first sung responsorially, with an antiphon repeated by all at intervals, while a solo singer chanted the words of the psalm, it was soon sung directly by two groups of singers alternating with each other, and with the antiphon sung only at the beginning and the end, as is the usual way of chanting the psalms in the Liturgy of the Hours. The change to this manner of singing the psalm has been attributed to Pope Celestine I (422–432). Pope Gregory I (590–604), after whom Gregorian chant is named, composed several antiphons for singing with the Entrance psalm.  If singing of the psalm was not completed by the time the Entrance procession arrived at the altar, the singers moved directly to the Gloria Patri and the final repetition of the antiphon. In time only the opening verse of the psalm was kept, together with the Gloria Patri, preceded and followed by the antiphon, the form of the Introit in Tridentine Mass Roman Missals, which explicitly indicate this manner of singing the Introit.  The 1970 revision of the Roman Missal explicitly envisages singing the entire psalm associated with the antiphon, but does not make it obligatory. In contemporary Catholic usage, the introit corresponds to the Entrance Antiphon and is sung or recited audibly throughout by the faithful.

Text and liturgical use.

The antiphons of most Introits are taken from Psalms, though many come from other parts of Scripture. In some rare cases the antiphon is not from Scripture: "Salve, sancta parens", from the Christian poet Sedulius, is the antiphon used in the Tridentine form of the Roman Rite for common Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary; the 1970 revision kept a Mass formula of the Blessed Virgin with that antiphon, but provided several alternatives.  The words of the antiphons are related to the theme of the feastday or celebration and most frequently have something in common with the liturgical readings of the Mass.  In the Tridentine Mass the Introit is no longer the first text used in the Mass. In Low Mass, the priest reads it only after the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar. Until 1908, even in sung Mass the choir began the Introit only after the priest had begun those prayers, but Pope Pius X restored the old arrangement whereby the Introit accompanied the entrance procession of the priest with the ministers. The Tridentine Mass has the priest read the Introit in the Missal even when it is also sung by the choir. It also has him make the sign of the cross, when reading it, a relic of the time when Mass began with it.  Since the 1970 revision of the Roman Missal, the Entrance chant begins as the priest enters. Its purpose is to open the celebration, foster the unity of those who have been gathered, turn their thoughts to the mystery of the celebration, and accompany the procession. If there is no singing at the Entrance, the antiphon in the Missal is recited either by the faithful, or by some of them, or by a lector; otherwise, it is recited by the priest himself, who may even adapt it as an introductory explanation.  If another rite immediately precedes Mass, such as the Palm Sunday procession or the various ceremonies that precede Mass at the Easter Vigil, Mass begins with the collect; there is no Entrance at that point and so no Entrance chant.

Musical setting.

In the musical idiom of Gregorian chant, Introits normally take the form antiphon-verse-antiphon-doxology-antiphon. In the Tridentine Missal, this form was, with very few exceptions, reduced to antiphon-verse-doxology-antiphon.  For example, the Tridentine Missal presents the Introit of the Fourth Sunday of Advent as follows:  Introits, like Offertories and Communions, are believed to have evolved from simpler reciting tones. Introit melodies show this musical parentage most clearly, and are often anchored around two reciting notes which may be repeated or percussed. The melodies are mostly "neumatic", dominated by neumes with two or three notes per syllable, although syllabic and melismatic passages also occur.  The Introits of Old Roman chant share many similarities with their Gregorian cousins, and often include a repeated extra verse that fell out of use in the Gregorian repertory.

Use of the incipit.

In the same way as Church documents are referred to by their incipit (their first words in Latin), Mass formulas are known by the incipit of their Introit, which is the first text in the formula. Thus a Mass for the dead is referred to a "Requiem" Mass, and the three Christmas Day Masses have been called "Dominus dixit", "Lux fulgebit" and "Puer natus". So too, Gaudete Sunday is a name for the third Sunday in Advent, Laetare Sunday for the fourth Sunday in Lent, and Quasimodo Sunday for the Octave or Second Sunday of Easter, because of the incipit of the Entrance antiphons of those Sundays.

In Anglican liturgy.

In the Anglican Communion, Introit is the name given to the hymn or metrical psalm which is sung at the start of a service, a tradition which dates back to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England.

The Introit (from Latin: "introitus", "entrance") is part of the opening of the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations. In its most complete version, it consists of an antiphon, psalm verse and "Gloria Patri", which are spoken or sung at the beginning of the celebration. It is part of the Proper of the liturgy: that is, the part that changes over the liturgical year.


Water cycle.

Evapotranspiration is a significant water loss from drainage basins. Types of vegetation and land use significantly affect evapotranspiration, and therefore the amount of water leaving a drainage basin. Because water transpired through leaves comes from the roots, plants with deep reaching roots can more constantly transpire water. Herbaceous plants generally transpire less than woody plants because they usually have less extensive foliage. Conifer forests tend to have higher rates of evapotranspiration than deciduous forests, particularly in the dormant and early spring seasons. This is primarily due to the enhanced amount of precipitation intercepted and evaporated by conifer foliage during these periods. Factors that affect evapotranspiration include the plant's growth stage or level of maturity, percentage of soil cover, solar radiation, humidity, temperature, and wind. Isotope measurements indicate transpiration is the larger component of evapotranspiration.  Through evapotranspiration, forests may reduce water yield, except in unique ecosystems called cloud forests, and rainforests.  Trees in cloud forests collect the liquid water in fog or low clouds onto their surface, which drips down to the ground. These trees still contribute to evapotranspiration, but often collect more water than they evaporate or transpire.  In rainforests, water yield is increased (compared to cleared land in the same climatic zone) as evapotranspiration increases humidity within the forest (a portion of which returns quickly as precipitation experienced at ground level as rain). The density of the vegetation reduces temperatures at ground level (thereby reducing losses due to surface evaporation), and reduces wind speed (thereby reducing the loss of airborne moisture). The combined effect results in increased surface stream flows and a higher ground water table whilst the rainforest is preserved. Clearing of rainforests frequently leads to desertification as ground level temperatures increase, vegetation cover is lost or intentionally destroyed by clearing and burning, soil moisture is reduced by wind, and soils are easily eroded by high wind and rainfall events.  In areas that are not irrigated, actual evapotranspiration is usually no greater than precipitation, with some buffer in time depending on the soil's ability to hold water. It will usually be less because some water will be lost due to percolation or surface runoff. An exception is areas with high water tables, where capillary action can cause water from the groundwater to rise through the soil matrix to the surface. If potential evapotranspiration is greater than the actual precipitation, then soil will dry out, unless irrigation is used.  Evapotranspiration can never be greater than PET, but can be lower if there is not enough water to be evaporated or plants are unable to transpire readily.

Estimating evapotranspiration.

Evapotranspiration can be measured or estimated using several methods.

Indirect methods.

Pan evaporation data can be used to estimate lake evaporation, but transpiration and evaporation of intercepted rain on vegetation are unknown. There are three general approaches to estimate evapotranspiration indirectly.

Catchment water balance.

Evapotranspiration may be estimated by creating an equation of the water balance of a drainage basin. The equation balances the change in water stored within the basin ("S") with inputs and outgoes:  formula_1  The input is precipitation ("P") and the outputs are evapotranspiration (which is to be estimated), streamflow ("Q"), and groundwater recharge ("D"). If the change in storage, precipitation, streamflow, and groundwater recharge are all estimated, the missing flux, ET, can be estimated by rearranging the above equation as follows:  formula_2

Energy balance.

A third methodology to estimate the actual evapotranspiration is the use of the energy balance.  formula_3  where λE is the energy needed to change the phase of water from liquid to gas, R is the net radiation, G is the soil heat flux and H is the sensible heat flux. Using instruments like a scintillometer, soil heat flux plates or radiation meters, the components of the energy balance can be calculated and the energy available for actual evapotranspiration can be solved.  The SEBAL and METRIC algorithms solve the energy balance at the earth's surface using satellite imagery. This allows for both actual and potential evapotranspiration to be calculated on a pixel-by-pixel basis. Evapotranspiration is a key indicator for water management and irrigation performance. SEBAL and METRIC can map these key indicators in time and space, for days, weeks or years.

Experimental methods for measuring evapotranspiration.

One method for measuring evapotranspiration is with a weighing lysimeter. The weight of a soil column is measured continuously and the change in storage of water in the soil is modeled by the change in weight. The change in weight is converted to units of length using the surface area of the weighing lysimeter and the unit weight of water. evapotranspiration is computed as the change in weight plus rainfall minus percolation.

Eddy covariance.

The most direct method of measuring evapotranspiration is with the eddy covariance technique in which fast fluctuations of vertical wind speed are correlated with fast fluctuations in atmospheric water vapor density. This directly estimates the transfer of water vapor (evapotranspiration) from the land (or canopy) surface to the atmosphere.

Hydrometeorological equations.

The most general and widely used equation for calculating reference ET is the Penman equation. The Penman-Monteith variation is recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization and the American Society of Civil Engineers. The simpler Blaney-Criddle equation was popular in the Western United States for many years but it is not as accurate in regions with higher humidities. Other solutions used includes Makkink, which is simple but must be calibrated to a specific location, and Hargreaves. To convert the reference evapotranspiration to actual crop evapotranspiration, a crop coefficient and a stress coefficient must be used. Crop coefficients as used in many hydrological models usually change along the year to accommodate to the fact that crops are seasonal and, in general, plants behave differently along the seasons: perennial plants mature over multiple seasons, and stress responses can significantly depend upon many aspects of plant condition.

Potential evapotranspiration.

Potential evapotranspiration (PET) is the amount of water that would be evaporated and transpired by a specific crop or ecosystem if there were sufficient water available. This demand incorporates the energy available for evaporation and the ability of the lower atmosphere to transport evaporated moisture away from the land surface. Potential evapotranspiration is higher in the summer, on less cloudy days, and closer to the equator, because of the higher levels of solar radiation that provides the energy for evaporation. Potential evapotranspiration is also higher on windy days because the evaporated moisture can be quickly moved from the ground or plant surface, allowing more evaporation to fill its place.  Potential evapotranspiration is expressed in terms of a depth of water, and can be graphed during the year (see figure).  Potential evapotranspiration is usually measured indirectly, from other climatic factors, but also depends on the surface type, such as free water (for lakes and oceans), the soil type for bare soil, and the vegetation. Often a value for the potential evapotranspiration is calculated at a nearby climate station on a reference surface, conventionally short grass. This value is called the reference evapotranspiration, and can be converted to a potential evapotranspiration by multiplying with a surface coefficient. In agriculture, this is called a crop coefficient. The difference between potential evapotranspiration and precipitation is used in irrigation scheduling.  Average annual potential evapotranspiration is often compared to average annual precipitation, P. The ratio of the two, P/PET, is the aridity index.

Evapotranspiration (ET) is the sum of evaporation and plant transpiration from the Earth's land and ocean surface to the atmosphere. Evaporation accounts for the movement of water to the air from sources such as the soil, canopy interception, and waterbodies. Transpiration accounts for the movement of water within a plant and the subsequent loss of water as vapor through stomata in its leaves. Evapotranspiration is an important part of the water cycle. An element (such as a tree) that contributes to evapotranspiration can be called an evapotranspirator.


History.

End of the Middle Kingdom.

The 12th Dynasty of Egypt came to an end at the end of the 19th century BC with the death of Queen Sobekneferu (1806–1802 BC). Apparently she had no heirs, causing the 12th dynasty to come to a sudden end, and, with it, the Golden Age of the Middle Kingdom; it was succeeded by the much weaker 13th Dynasty. Retaining the seat of the 12th dynasty, the 13th dynasty ruled from Itjtawy ("Seizer-of-the-Two-Lands") for most of its existence, switching to Thebes in the far south possibly since the reign of Merneferre Ay.  The 13th dynasty is notable for the accession of the first formally recognised Semitic-speaking king, Khendjer ("Boar"). The 13th Dynasty proved unable to hold on to the entire territory of Egypt however, and a provincial ruling family of Western Asian descent in Avaris, located in the marshes of the eastern Nile Delta, broke away from the central authority to form the 14th Dynasty.

Hyksos rule.

15th dynasty.

The 15th Dynasty dates approximately from 1650 to 1550 BC. Known rulers of the Fifteenth Dynasty are as follows:  The 15th Dynasty of Egypt was the first Hyksos dynasty. It ruled from Avaris but did not control the entire land. The Hyksos preferred to stay in northern Egypt since they infiltrated from the northeast. The names and order of their kings is uncertain. The Turin King list indicates that there were six Hyksos kings, with an obscure Khamudi listed as the final king of the 15th Dynasty.  Some scholars argue there were two Apophis kings named Apepi I and Apepi II, but this is primarily due to the fact there are two known prenomens for this king: Awoserre and Aqenenre. However, the Danish Egyptologist Kim Ryholt maintains in his study of the Second Intermediate Period that these prenomens all refer to one man, Apepi, who ruled Egypt for 40 or more years. This is also supported by the fact that this king employed a third prenomen during his reign: Nebkhepeshre. Apepi likely employed several different prenomens throughout various periods of his reign. This scenario is not unprecedented, as later kings, including the famous Ramesses II and Seti II, are known to have used two different prenomens in their own reigns.

16th dynasty.

The 16th Dynasty ruled the Theban region in Upper Egypt for 70 years.  Of the two chief versions of Manetho's "Aegyptiaca", Dynasty XVI is described by the more reliable Africanus (supported by Syncellus) as "shepherd ["hyksos"] kings", but by Eusebius as Theban.  Ryholt (1997), followed by Bourriau (2003), in reconstructing the Turin canon, interpreted a list of Thebes-based kings to constitute Manetho's Dynasty XVI, although this is one of Ryholt's "most debatable and far-reaching" conclusions. For this reason other scholars do not follow Ryholt and see only "insufficient" evidence for the interpretation of the 16th Dynasty as Theban.  The continuing war against Dynasty XV dominated the short-lived 16th dynasty. The armies of the 15th dynasty, winning town after town from their southern enemies, continually encroached on the 16th dynasty territory, eventually threatening and then conquering Thebes itself. In his study of the second intermediate period, the egyptologist Kim Ryholt has suggested that Dedumose I sued for a truce in the latter years of the dynasty, but one of his predecessors, Nebiryraw I, may have been more successful and seems to have enjoyed a period of peace in his reign.  Famine, which had plagued Upper Egypt during the late 13th dynasty and the 14th dynasty, also blighted the 16th dynasty, most evidently during and after the reign of Neferhotep III.  From Ryholt's reconstruction of the Turin canon, 15 kings of the dynasty can now be named, five of whom appear in contemporary sources. While they were most likely rulers based in Thebes itself, some may have been local rulers from other important Upper Egyptian towns, including Abydos, El Kab and Edfu. By the reign of Nebiriau I, the realm controlled by the 16th dynasty extended at least as far north as Hu and south to Edfu. Not listed in the Turin canon (after Ryholt) is Wepwawetemsaf, who left a stele at Abydos and was likely a local kinglet of the Abydos Dynasty.  Ryholt gives the list of kings of the 16th dynasty as shown in the table below. Others, such as Helck, Vandersleyen, Bennett combine some of these rulers with the Seventeenth dynasty of Egypt. The estimated dates come from Bennett's publication.

Abydos dynasty.

The Abydos Dynasty may have been a short-lived local dynasty ruling over part of Upper Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period in Ancient Egypt and was contemporary with the 15th and 16th Dynasties, approximately from 1650 to 1600 BC. The existence of an Abydos Dynasty was first proposed by Detlef Franke and later elaborated on by Egyptologist Kim Ryholt in 1997. The existence of the dynasty may have been vindicated in January 2014, when the tomb of the previously unknown pharaoh Seneb Kay was discovered in Abydos. The dynasty tentatively includes four rulers: Wepwawetemsaf, Pantjeny, Snaaib, and Seneb Kay.  The royal necropolis of the Abydos Dynasty was found in the southern part of Abydos, in an area called Anubis Mountain in ancient times. The rulers of the Abydos Dynasty placed their burial ground adjacent to the tombs of the Middle Kingdom rulers.

17th dynasty.

Around the time Memphis and Itj-tawy fell to the Hyksos, the native Egyptian ruling house in Thebes declared its independence from Itj-tawy, becoming the 17th Dynasty. This dynasty would eventually lead the war of liberation that drove the Hyksos back into Asia. The Theban-based 17th Dynasty restored numerous temples throughout Upper Egypt while maintaining peaceful trading relations with the Hyksos kingdom in the north. Indeed, Senakhtenre Ahmose, the first king in the line of Ahmoside kings, even imported white limestone from the Hyksos-controlled region of Tura to make a granary door at the Temple of Karnak. However, his successors — the final two kings of this dynasty — Seqenenre Tao and Kamose are traditionally credited with defeating the Hyksos in the course of the wars of liberation. With the creation of the 18th Dynasty around 1550 BC the New Kingdom period of Egyptian history begins with Ahmose I, its first pharaoh, completing the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt and placing the country, once again, under centralised administrative control.

The Second Intermediate Period marks a period when Ancient Egypt fell into disarray for a second time, between the end of the Middle Kingdom and the start of the New Kingdom. The concept of a "Second Intermediate Period" was coined in 1942 by German Egyptologist.


Family.

Djedefre married his brother Kawab's widow, Hetepheres II, who was sister to both of them, and who perhaps married a third brother of theirs, Khafre, after Djedefre's death. Another queen, Khentetenka is known from statue fragments in the Abu Rowash mortuary temple. Known children of Djedefre are:  The French excavation team led by Michel Vallogia found the names of two other possible children of Djedefre in the pyramid complex:

Reign.

The Turin King List credits him with a rule of eight years, but the highest known year referred to during this reign appears to be the year of his 11th cattle count. The anonymous year of the 11th count date presumably of Djedefre was found written on the underside of one of the massive roofing-block beams which covered Khufu's southern boat-pits by Egyptian work crews. Miroslav Verner notes that in the work crew's mason marks and inscriptions, "either Djedefra's throne name or his Golden Horus name occur exclusively." Verner writes that the current academic opinion regarding the attribution of this date to Djedefre is disputed among Egyptologists: Rainer Stadelman, Vassil Dobrev, Peter Janosi favour dating it to Djedefre whereas Wolfgang Helck, Anthony Spalinger, Jean Vercoutter and W.S. Smith attribute this date to Khufu instead on the assumption "that the ceiling block with the date had been brought to the building site of the boat pit already in Khufu's time and placed in position [only] as late as during the burial of the funerary boat in Djedefre's time."  The German scholar Dieter Arnold, in a 1981 MDAIK paper noted that the marks and inscriptions of the blocks from Khufu's boat pit seem to form a coherent collection relating to the different stages of the same building project realised by Djedefre's crews. Verner stresses that such marks and inscriptions usually pertained to the breaking of the blocks in the quarry, their transportation, their storage and manipulation in the building site itself.: "In this context, the attribution of just a single inscription—and what is more, the only one with a date—on all the blocks from the boat pit to somebody other than Djedefra does not seem very plausible."  Verner also notes that the French-Swiss team excavating Djedefre's pyramid have discovered that this king's pyramid was really finished in his reign. According to Vallogia, Djedefre's pyramid largely made use of a natural rock promontory which represented circa 45% of its core; the side of the pyramid was 200 cubits long and its height was 125 cubits. The original volume of the monument of Djedefre, hence, approximately equalled that of Menkaura's own pyramid. Therefore, the argument that Djedefre enjoyed a short reign because his pyramid was unfinished is somewhat discredited. This means that Djedefre likely ruled Egypt for a minimum of 11 years if the cattle count was annual, or 22 years if it was biennial; Verner, himself, supports the shorter, 11-year figure and notes that "the relatively few monuments and records left by Djedefra do not seem to favour a very long reign" for this king.

Pyramid complex.

Djedefre continued the move north in the location of pyramids by building his (now ruined) pyramid at Abu Rawash, some to the north of Giza. It is the northernmost part of the Memphite necropolis.  While Egyptologists previously assumed that his pyramid at this heavily denuded site was unfinished upon his death, more recent excavations from 1995 to 2005 have established that it was indeed completed. The most recent evidence indicates that its current state is the result of extensive plundering in later periods while "the king's statues [were] smashed as late as the 2nd century AD."  Some believe that the sphinx of his wife, Hetepheres II, which was part of Djedefre's pyramid complex, was the first sphinx created. In 2004, evidence that Djedefre was responsible for the building of the Sphinx at Giza in the image of his father was reported by the French Egyptologist Vassil Dobrev.  Due to the poor condition of Abu Rawash, only small traces of his mortuary complex have been found. Only the rough ground plan of his mud brick mortuary temple was able to be traced—with some difficulty—"in the usual place on the east face of the pyramid." His pyramid causeway proved to run from north to south rather than the more conventional east to west, while no valley temple has been found.

Djedefre (also known as Djedefra and Radjedef – Modern Greek: Ρετζεντέφ) was an ancient Egyptian king (pharaoh) of the 4th Dynasty during the Old Kingdom. He is well known by the Hellenized form of his name Rhatoisēs (Ῥατοίσης) by Manetho. Djedefre was the son and immediate throne successor of Khufu, the builder of the Great Pyramid of Giza; his mother is not known for certain. He is the king who introduced the royal title "Sa-Rê" (meaning “Son of Ra”) and the first to connect his cartouche name with the sun god Ra.


Breed characteristics.

The Friesian breed is most often recognised by its black coat colour, however, colour alone is not the only distinguishing characteristic; Friesians are occasionally chestnut as some bloodlines do carry the "red" ('e") gene. In the 1930s, chestnuts and bays were seen. Friesians rarely have white markings of any kind; most registries allow only a small star on the forehead for purebred registration. To be accepted as breeding stock by the FPS studbook ("Friesch Paarden Stamboek"), a stallion must pass a rigorous approval process.  The Friesian stands on average about, although it may vary from at the withers, and mares or geldings must be at least to qualify for a "star-designation" pedigree. Horses are judged at an inspection, or "keuring", by Dutch judges, who decide whether the horse is worthy of star designation. The breed has powerful overall conformation and good bone structure, with what is sometimes called a "Baroque" body type. Friesians have long, arched necks and well-chiseled, short-eared, "Spanish-type" heads. They have powerful, sloping shoulders, compact, muscular bodies with strong, sloping hindquarters and low-set tails. Their limbs are comparatively short and strong. A Friesian horse also has a long, thick mane and tail, often wavy, and "feather"—long, silky hair on the lower legs—deliberately left untrimmed. The breed is known for a brisk, high-stepping trot. The Friesian is considered willing, active, and energetic, but also gentle and docile. A Friesian tends to have great presence and to carry itself with elegance. Today, there are two distinct conformation types—the "baroque" type, which has the more robust build of the classical Friesian, and the modern, "sport horse" type, which is finer-boned. Both types are common, though the modern type is currently more popular in the show ring than is the baroque Friesian. However, conformation type is considered less important than correct movement.  The chestnut colour is generally not accepted for registration for stallions, though it is sometimes allowed for mares and geldings. A chestnut-coloured Friesian that competes is penalised. However, discoloration from old injuries or a black coat with fading from the sun is not penalised. The chestnut allele, a recessive genetic trait in the Friesian, does exist; in the 1990s, two mares gave birth to chestnut foals. The Friesch Paarden Stamboek began to attempt breeding out the chestnut colour in 1990, and today stallions with genetic testing indicating the presence of the chestnut or "red" gene, even if heterozygous and masked by black colour, are not allowed registration with the FPS. The American Friesian Association, which is not affiliated to the KFPS, allows horses with white markings and/or chestnut colour to be registered if purebred parentage can be proven. In 2014 there were eight stallion lines known to still carry the chestnut gene.  There are four genetic disorders acknowledged by the industry that may affect horses of Friesian breeding: dwarfism, hydrocephalus, a tendency for aortic rupture, and megaesophagus. There are genetic tests for the first two conditions. The Friesian is also among several breeds that may develop equine polysaccharide storage myopathy. Approximately 0.25% of Friesians are affected by dwarfism, which results in horses with a normal-sized head, a broader chest than normal, an abnormally long back and very short limbs. It is a recessive condition. Additionally, the breed has a higher-than-usual rate of digestive system disorders, and a greater tendency to have insect bite hypersensitivity. Like some other draught breeds, they are prone to a skin condition called verrucous pastern dermatopathy and may be generally prone to having a compromised immune system. Friesian mares have a very high 54% rate of retained placenta after foaling. Some normal-sized Friesians also have a propensity toward tendon and ligament laxity which may or may not be associated with dwarfism. The relatively small gene pool and inbreeding are thought to be factors behind most of these disorders.<ref name=Boerma

The Friesian (also Frizian) is a horse breed originating in Friesland, in the Netherlands. Although the conformation of the breed resembles that of a light draught horse, Friesians are graceful and nimble for their size. It is believed that during the Middle Ages, ancestors of Friesian horses were in great demand as war horses throughout continental Europe. Through the Early Middle Ages and High Middle Ages, their size enabled them to carry a knight in armour. In the Late Middle Ages, heavier, draught type animals were needed. Though the breed nearly became extinct on more than one occasion, the modern day Friesian horse is growing in numbers and popularity, used both in harness and under saddle. Most recently, the breed is being introduced to the field of dressage.


Terminology.

The earliest use of the word "commodification" in English attested in the "Oxford English Dictionary" dates from 1975. Use of the concept of commodification became common with the rise of critical discourse analysis in semiotics.

Business and economics.

The word "commodification", which describes assignment of economic value to something not previously considered in economic terms, is sometimes also used to describe the transformation of the market for a unique, branded product into a market based on undifferentiated products.  These two concepts are fundamentally different and the business community more commonly uses commoditization to describe the transformation of the market to undifferentiated products through increased competition, typically resulting in decreasing prices. While in economic terms, commoditization is closely related to and often follows from the stage when a market changes from one of monopolistic competition to one of perfect competition, a product essentially becomes a commodity when customers perceive little or no value difference between brands or versions.  Commoditization can be the desired outcome of an entity in the market, or it can be an unintentional outcome that no party actively sought to achieve. (For example, see Xerox#Trademark.)  Consumers can benefit from commoditization, since perfect competition usually leads to lower prices. Branded producers often suffer under commoditization, since the value of the brand (and ability to command price premiums) can be weakened.  However, false commoditization can create substantial risk when premier products do have substantial value to offer, particularly in health, safety and security. Examples are counterfeit drugs and generic network services (loss of 911).

Commodification and commoditization.

The terms "commodification" and "commoditization" are sometimes used synonymously, particularly in the sense of this article, to describe the process of making commodities out of anything that was not used to be available for trade previously; compare anthropology usage.  However, other authors distinguish them (as done in this article), with "commodification" used in social contexts to mean that a non-commercial good has become commercial, typically with connotations of "corrupted by commerce", while "commoditization" is used in business contexts to mean when the market for an existing product has become a commodity market, where products are interchangeable and there is heavy price competition. In a quip: "Microprocessors are commoditized. Love is commodified."  The difference between the terms of commodification (Marxist political theory) and commoditization (business theory) has been drawn by James Surowiecki (1998) and Douglas Rushkoff (2005). In particular, Rushkoff argued that the words "commodification" and "commoditization" were used to describe the two different processes of the assignment of value to a social good, and the movement towards undifferentiated competition, respectively:  "Commodification" (beginning early 1950s) is used to describe the process by which something which does not have an economic value is assigned a value and hence how market values can replace other social values. It describes a modification of relationships, formerly untainted by commerce, into commercial relationships in everyday use.  "Commoditization" (early 1990s in business theory) is the process by which goods that have economic value and are distinguishable in terms of attributes (uniqueness or brand) end up becoming simple commodities in the eyes of the market or consumers. It is the movement of a market from differentiated to undifferentiated price competition and from monopolistic to perfect competition.

Cultural commodification.

American author and feminist bell hooks (Gloria Jean Watkins) refers to cultural commodification as "eating the other". By this, she means that cultural expressions revolutionary or post modern, can be sold to the dominant culture. Any messages of social change are not marketed for their messages but used as a mechanism to acquire a piece of the "primitive". Any interests in past historical culture almost always have a modern twist. According to Mariana Torgovnick:  What is clear now is that the West's fascination with the primitive has to do with its own crises in identity, with its own need to clearly demarcate subject and object even while flirting with other ways of experiencing the universe.  Hooks states that marginalized groups are seduced by this concept because of "the promise of recognition and reconciliation".  When the dominant culture demands that the Other be offered as sign that progressive political change is taking place, that the American Dream can indeed be inclusive of difference, it invites a resurgence of essentialist cultural nationalism.  Socialist movements are losing their voices on change because members of the "movement" are not promoting the message but participating in a fashion statement. Activists' hard works are marketable to the masses without accountability. An example of commodification is the colors red, black, and green, which are the colors of the African Liberation Army (ALA). For people of African descent these colors represent red (the innocent bloodshed of Africans), black (African people) and green (stolen land of Africa). These colors are marketed worldwide on all types of apparel and clothes.  Digital commodification is when a business or corporation uses information from an online community without their knowledge for profit. The commodification of information allows a higher up authority to make money rather than a collaborative system of free thoughts.  Commodification of indigenous cultures refers to "areas in the life of a community which prior to its penetration by tourism have not been within the domain of economic relations regulated by criteria of market exchange” (Cohen 1988, 372). An example of this type of cultural commodification can be described through viewing the perspective of Hawaiian cultural change since the 1950s. A Hawaiian Luau, which was once a traditional performance reserved for community members and local people, but through the rise of tourism, this tradition has lost part of its cultural meaning and is now mostly a "for profit" performance.

In Marxist theory.

The Marxist understanding of "commodity" is distinct from its meaning in business. Commodity played a key role throughout Karl Marx's work; he considered it a cell-form of capitalism and a key starting point for an analysis of this politico-economic system. Marx extensively criticized the social impact of commodification under the name commodity fetishism and alienation.

Further reading.

Polanyi, Karl. "The Self-Regulating Market," "Economics as a Social Science", 2nd edn, 2004.

Within a capitalist economic system, commodification is the transformation of goods, services, ideas, nature, personal information and people into commodities or objects of trade. A commodity at its most basic, according to Arjun Appadurai, is "anything intended for exchange," or any object of economic value.


Geography.

In ancient geographical sources, Moesia was bounded to the south by the Haemus (Balkans) and Scardus (Šar) mountains, to the west by the Drinus (Drina) river, on the north by the Donaris (Danube) and on the east by the Euxine (Black Sea).

History.

The region was inhabited chiefly by Thracians, Dacians (Thraco-Dacians), Illyrian and Thraco-Illyrian peoples. The name of the region comes from Moesi, Thraco-Dacian peoples who lived there before the Roman conquest.  Parts of Moesia belonged to the polity of Burebista, a Getae king who established his rule over a large part of the northern Balkans between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led plunder and conquest raids across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes. After his assassination in an inside plot, the empire was divided into several smaller states.  In 75 BC, C. Scribonius Curio, proconsul of Macedonia, took an army as far as the Danube and gained a victory over the inhabitants, who were finally subdued by M. Licinius Crassus, grandson of the triumvir and later also proconsul of Macedonia during the reign of Augustus c. 29 BC. The region, however, was not organized as a province until the last years of Augustus' reign; in 6 AD, mention is made of its governor, Caecina Severus (Cassius Dio lv. 29). As a province, Moesia was under an imperial consular legate (who probably also had control of Achaea and Macedonia).  In 86 AD the Dacian king Duras ordered his troops to attack Roman Moesia. After this attack, the Roman emperor Domitian personally arrived in Moesia and reorganized it in 87 AD into two provinces, divided by the river Cebrus (Ciabrus): to the west Moesia Superior - Upper Moesia, (meaning up river) and to the east Moesia Inferior - Lower Moesia (also called "Ripa Thracia"), (from the Danube river's mouth and then upstream). Each was governed by an imperial consular legate and a procurator.  The chief towns of Upper Moesia in the Principate were: Singidunum (Belgrade), Viminacium (sometimes called municipium Aelium; modern Kostolac), Remesiana (Bela Palanka), Bononia (Vidin), Ratiaria (Archar) and Skupi (modern Skopje); of Lower Moesia: Oescus (colonia Ulpia, Gigen), Novae (near Svishtov, the chief seat of Theodoric the Great), Nicopolis ad Istrum (Nikup; really near the river Yantra), Marcianopolis (Devnya), Tyras (Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi), Olvia, Odessus (Varna) and Tomis (Constanţa; to which the poet Ovid was banished). The last two were Greek towns which formed a pentapolis with Istros, Mesembria (Nessebar) and Apollonia (Sozopol).  From Moesia, Domitian began planning future campaigns into Dacia and by 87 he started a strong offensive against Dacia, ordering General Cornelius Fuscus to attack. Therefore, in the summer of 87, Fuscus led five or six legions across the Danube. The campaign against the Dacians ended without a decisive outcome, and Decebalus, the Dacian King, had brazenly flouted the terms of the peace (89 AD) which had been agreed on at the war's end.  Emperor Trajan later arrived in Moesia, and he launched his first military campaign into the Dacian Kingdom c. March–May 101, crossing to the northern bank of the Danube River and defeating the Dacian army near Tapae, a mountain pass in the Carpathians (see Second Battle of Tapae). Trajan's troops were mauled in the encounter, however, and he put off further campaigning for the year to heal troops, reinforce, and regroup. During the following winter, King Decebalus launched a counter-attack across the Danube further downstream, but this was repulsed. Trajan's army advanced further into Dacian territory and forced King Decebalus to submit to him a year later.  Trajan returned to Rome in triumph and was granted the title "Dacicus". The victory was celebrated by the Tropaeum Traiani. However, Decebalus in 105 undertook an invasion against Roman territory by attempting to stir up some of the tribes north of the river against the empire. Trajan took to the field again and after building with the design of Apollodorus of Damascus his massive bridge over the Danube, he conquered part of Dacia in 106 (see also Second Dacian War).  Sometime around 272, at the Moesian city of Naissus or Nissa (modern Niš in Serbia), future emperor Constantine I was born.  After the abandonment of Roman Dacia to the Goths by Aurelian (270–275) and the transfer of the Roman citizens from the former province to the south of the Danube, the central portion of Moesia took the name of "Dacia Aureliana" (later divided into "Dacia Ripensis" and "Dacia Mediterranea").  During administrative reforms of Emperor Diocletian (284–305), both of the Moesian provinces were reorganized. Moesia Superior was divided in two, northern part forming the province of Moesia Prima including cities Viminacium and Singidunum, while the southern part was organised as the new province of Dardania with cities Scupi and Ulpiana. At the same time, Moesia Inferior was divided into Moesia Secunda and Scythia Minor. Moesia Secunda's main cities included Marcianopolis (Devnya), Odessus (Varna), Nicopolis (Nikopol), Abrittus (Razgrad), Durostorum (Silistra), Transmarisca (Tutrakan), Sexaginta Prista (Ruse) and Novae (Svishtov), all in Bulgaria today.  As a frontier province, Moesia was strengthened by stations and fortresses erected along the southern bank of the Danube, and a wall was built from Axiopolis to Tomi as a protection against the Scythians and Sarmatians. The garrison of Moesia Secunda included Legio I Italica and Legio XI Claudia, as well as independent infantry units, cavalry units, and river flotillas. The Notitia Dignitatum lists its units and their bases as of the 390s CE. Units in Scythia Minor included Legio I Iovia and Legio II Herculia.  After 238 AD, Moesia was frequently invaded or raided by the Dacian Carpi, and the East Germanic tribe of the Goths, who invaded Moesia in 250. Hard-pressed by the Huns, the Goths again crossed the Danube during the reign of Valens (376) and with his permission settled in Moesia. After they settled, quarrels soon took place, and the Goths under Fritigern defeated Valens in a great battle near Adrianople. These Goths are known as Moeso-Goths, for whom Ulfilas made the Gothic translation of the Bible.  The Slavs allied with the Avars invaded and destroyed much of Moesia in 583–587 in the Avar–Byzantine wars. Moesia was settled by Slavs during the 7th century. Bulgars, arriving from Old Great Bulgaria, conquered Lower Moesia by the end of the 7th century. During the 8th century the Byzantine Empire lost also Upper Moesian territory to the First Bulgarian Empire.

Moesia (; Latin: "Moesia", ) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River. It included most of the territory of modern-day Central Serbia, Kosovo and the northern parts of the modern North Macedonia (Moesia Superior), Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja and Southern Ukraine (Moesia Inferior).


CAF's anthem.

On 18 September 2007 the CAF launched a competition for all African composers to create its Anthem. The CAF anthem is a musical composition, without lyrics, which and reflect the cultural patrimony and African music. The duration of the anthem is 74 seconds. The chosen anthem was first published to the site on 16 January 2008. The usage of the anthem and its composer are still unknown.  Announced 18 September 2007

Current leaders.

Source:

CAF members and zones.

Regional zones.

CAF National League

Competitions.

CAF competitions.

National teams:  Clubs:  Inter Continental:  Regional:

International.

The main competition for men's national teams Africa Cup of Nations, started in 1957. In 2009, the CAF started organising another competition for men's national teams, the African Nations Championship composed exclusively of national players playing in the national championship. CAF also runs national competitions at Under-20 and Under-17 levels. For women's national teams, CAF operates the Africa Women Cup of Nations for senior national sides and the African U-20 Women's World Cup qualification at under-20 level, since 2008 there is an African U-17 Cup of Nations for Women for under-17 sides.

Club.

CAF also runs the two main club competitions in Africa: the CAF Champions League was first held in 1964, and was known as the African Cup of Champions Clubs (or just African Cup) until 1997; and the CAF Confederation Cup, for national cup winners and high-placed league teams, was launched by CAF in 2004 as a successor to the African Cup Winners' Cup (begun in 1975). A third competition, the CAF Cup, started in 1992 and was absorbed into the CAF Confederation Cup in 2004.  The CAF Super Cup, which pits the winners of the Champions League against the winners of the CAF Confederation Cup (previously the winners of the Cup Winners' Cup), came into being in 1992.  The Afro-Asian Club Championship was jointly organised with AFC between the winners of the CAF Champions League and the winners of the AFC Champions League. The last Afro-Asian Club Championship took place in 1998.

Sponsors.

In October 2004, MTN has contracted a four-year deal to sponsor African football's major competitions. This agreement, which worthed US$12.5 million, was the biggest sponsorship deal in African sporting history at that time.  In July 2009, Orange has signed an eight-year deal to sponsor African football's major competitions. Terms of the deal were not disclosed but CAF previous year put a value of €100 million for a comprehensive and long-term package of its competitions when it opened tenders for a new sponsor. The deal included the African Nations Cup, the CAF Champions League, the CAF Confederation Cup, the CAF Super Cup, the African Nations Championship and the African Youth Championship.  In July 2016, Total replaced Orange as the main sponsor and has secured an eight-year sponsorship package from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for a value of €950 million to support ETof its principal competitions, including the CAF Champions League, renamed Total CAF Champions League.  The CAF current main sponsors are:

Rankings.

Men's national teams.

Rankings are calculated by FIFA. Last updated 24 October 2019

Women's national teams.

Rankings are calculated by FIFA.

CAF overall ranking of African clubs titles.

The following clubs are the top 10 clubs in CAF competitions.  "Update as of 21 February 2015 in chronological order."

CAF overall ranking of African clubs.

Rankings are calculated by the CAF based on points gathered by African teams throughout their participation in international club tournaments organized by either the FIFA, Harrison Campbell, or the CAF since the establishment of the first African Cup of Champions Clubs in 1964.

Beach soccer national teams.

Rankings are calculated by Beach Soccer Worldwide (BSWW). Top ten, last updated 12 March 2018

Major tournaments.

For each tournament, the flag of the host country and the number of teams in each finals tournament (in brackets) are shown.

FIFA Women's World Cup.

Teams are sorted by number of appearances.

CAF Best Footballers of the Century.

The voting to select the best of the century refers to three categories: male player, goalkeeper and female player and is obtained from five different steps. The resulting best players and goalkeepers were honored during the "World Football Gala 1999".

CAF Golden Jubilee Best Players poll.

In 2007 CAF published the list of top 30 African players who played in the period from 1957 to 2007, as part of the celebration of CAF's 50th anniversary, ordered according to an online poll.

CAF resolutions.

Awards:  Qualifications:

International Top Goal Scorers.

This table is for players with more than 30 goals. Players in bold are still active at international level

The Confederation of African Football or CAF () is the administrative and controlling body for African association football. CAF represents the national football associations of Africa, runs continental, national, and club competitions, and controls the prize money, regulations and media rights to those competitions.


Etymology.

The name of the genus is derived from the Greek κρόκος ("krokos"). This, in turn, is probably a loan word from a Semitic language, related to Hebrew כרכום "karkōm", Aramaic ܟܟܘܪܟܟܡܡܐ "kurkama", and Arabic "kurkum", which mean "saffron" ("Crocus sativus"), "saffron yellow" or turmeric (see "Curcuma"). The word ultimately traces back to the Sanskrit "kunkumam" () for "saffron". The English name is a learned 16th-century adoption from the Latin, but Old English already had "croh" "saffron".

History.

Cultivation and harvesting of Crocus sativus for saffron was first documented in the Mediterranean, notably on the island of Crete. Frescos showing them are found at the Knossos site on Crete, as well as from the comparably aged Akrotiri site on Santorini.  The first crocus seen in the Netherlands, where crocus species are not native, were from corms brought back in the 1560s from Constantinople by the Holy Roman Emperor's ambassador to the Sublime Porte, Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq. A few corms were forwarded to Carolus Clusius at the botanical garden in Leiden. By 1620, the approximate date of Ambrosius Bosschaert's painting ("illustration, below"), new garden varieties had been developed, such as the cream-colored crocus feathered with bronze at the base of the bouquet, similar to varieties still on the market. Bosschaert, working from a preparatory drawing to paint his composed piece spanning the whole of spring, exaggerated the crocus so that it passes for a tulip, but its narrow, grass-like leaves give it away.

Description.

The cup-shaped, solitary, salverform flower tapers off into a narrow tube. Their colors vary enormously, although lilac, mauve, yellow, and white are predominant. The grass-like, ensiform leaf shows generally a white central stripe along the leaf axis. The leaf margin is entire.  A crocus has three stamens, while a similar-looking toxic plant, "Colchicum", sometimes popularly referred to as "autumn crocus", has six stamens. In addition, crocus have one style, while "Colchicum" have three.

Distribution.

Crocuses are distributed across central and southern Europe, North Africa, Middle East, and Central Asia to western China.

Species.

The taxonomic classification proposed by Brian Mathew in 1982 was based mainly on three character states: The seven species discovered since then have been integrated into this classification.  Molecular analysis carried out at the University of Copenhagen suggests this classification should be reviewed. In particular, the DNA data suggest there are no grounds for isolating "C. banaticus" in its own subgenus "Crociris", though it is a unique species in the genus. Because it has a prophyll at the base of the pedicel, it therefore would fall within section "Crocus", although its exact relationship to the rest of the subgenus remains unclear.  Another anomalous species, "C. baytopiorum", should now be placed in a series of its own, series "Baytopi". "C. gargaricus" subsp. "herbertii" has been raised to species status, as "C. herbertii". Perhaps most surprisingly, autumn-flowering "C. longiflorus", the type species of series "Longiflori" (long regarded by Mathew as "a disparate assemblage"), now seems to lie within series "Verni". In addition, the position of "C. malyi" is currently unclear.  DNA analysis and morphological studies suggest further that series "Reticulati", "Biflori" and "Speciosi" are "probably inseparable". "C. adanensis" and "C. caspius" should probably be removed from "Biflori"; "C. adanensis" falls in a clade with "C. paschei" as a sister group to the species of series "Flavi"; "C. caspius" appears to be sister to the species of series "Orientales".  The study shows "no support for a system of sections as currently defined", although, despite the many inconsistencies between Mathew's 1982 classification and the current hypothesis, "the main assignment of species to the sections and series of that system is actually supported". The authors state, "further studies are required before any firm decisions about a hierarchical system of classification can be considered" and conclude "future re-classification is likely to involve all infrageneric levels, subgenera, sections and series".  Below is the classification proposed by Brian Mathew in 1982, adapted in accordance with the above findings:

Autumn crocus.

Some species, known as "autumn crocus", flower in late summer and autumn, often before their leaves appear. They should not be confused with a different genus of autumn-flowering plants, "Colchicum". Autumn-flowering species of crocus include: "C. laevigatus" has a long flowering period which starts in late autumn or early winter and may continue into February.

Cultivation.

About 30 of the species are cultivated, including "Crocus sativus" for saffron production. The varieties cultivated for decoration mainly represent five species: "C. vernus", "C. chrysanthus", "C. flavus", "C. sieberi", and "C. tommasinianus". Among the first flowers to bloom in spring, crocuses are popular with gardeners. Their flowering time varies from the late winter "C. tommasinianus" to the later large hybridized and selected Giant "Dutch crocuses" ("C. vernus"). Crocus flowers and leaves are protected from frost by a waxy cuticle; in areas where snow and frost occasionally occur in the early spring, it is not uncommon to see early flowering crocuses blooming through a light late snowfall.  Most crocus species and hybrids should be planted in a sunny position, in gritty (sandy), well-drained soil, although a few prefer shadier sites in moist soil. Some are suitable for naturalising in grass. The corms should be planted about 3 to 4 cm deep; in heavy soils, a quantity of sharp grit should be worked in to improve drainage.  Some crocuses, especially "C. tommasinianus" and its selected forms and hybrids (such as 'Whitewell Purple' and 'Ruby Giant'), seed prolifically and are ideal for naturalising. They can, however, become weeds in rock gardens, where they will often appear in the middle of choice, mat-forming alpine plants, and can be difficult to remove.

Similar species.

Though some true crocuses bloom with the fall (autumnal) rains, after summer's heat and drought, the name autumn crocus is often used as a common name for "Colchicum", which is in its own family (Colchicaceae) in the lily order Liliales, and which has six stamens; it is also known as meadow saffron, though unlike true saffron, the plant is toxic.  The prairie crocus or pasque flower ("Pulsatilla nuttalliana") belongs to the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae).

Metaphorical use.

The financial community sometimes refers to companies or economic sectors that rise early after an economic downturn as "crocuses" in reference to the flower's ability to thrive in the late winter or early spring.

Culture.

Crocus or Krokus () was a mortal youth who, because he was unhappy with his love affair with Smilax, was turned by the gods into a plant bearing his name, the crocus.

Usage.

The crocus flower was used as one of the elements in the emblem of the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland; it was unveiled on 14 December 2018.

Crocus (English plural: crocuses or croci) is a genus of flowering plants in the iris family comprising 90 species of perennials growing from corms. Many are cultivated for their flowers appearing in autumn, winter, or spring. The spice saffron is obtained from the stigmas of "Crocus sativus", an autumn-blooming species. Crocuses are native to woodland, scrub, and meadows from sea level to alpine tundra in North Africa and the Middle East, central and southern Europe, in particular Krokos, Greece, on the islands of the Aegean, and across Central Asia to Xinjiang Province in western China.


Diagnosis.

Dissociation in community samples is most commonly measured by the Dissociative Experiences Scale. The "DSM-IV" considers symptoms such as depersonalization, derealization and psychogenic amnesia to be core features of dissociative disorders. However, in the normal population, dissociative experiences that are not clinically significant are highly prevalent with 60% to 65% of the respondents indicating that they have had some dissociative experiences. The SCID-D is a structured interview used to assess and diagnose dissociation.

Cause.

Trauma.

Dissociation has been described as one of a constellation of symptoms experienced by some victims of multiple forms of childhood trauma, including physical, psychological, and sexual abuse. This is supported by studies which suggest that dissociation is correlated with a history of trauma.  Dissociation appears to have a high specificity and a low sensitivity to having a self-reported history of trauma, which means that dissociation is much more common among those who are traumatized, yet at the same time there are many people who have suffered from trauma but who do not show dissociative symptoms.  Adult dissociation when combined with a history of child abuse and otherwise interpersonal violence-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been shown to contribute to disturbances in parenting behavior, such as exposure of young children to violent media. Such behavior may contribute to cycles of familial violence and trauma.  Symptoms of dissociation resulting from trauma may include depersonalization, psychological numbing, disengagement, or amnesia regarding the events of the abuse. It has been hypothesized that dissociation may provide a temporarily effective defense mechanism in cases of severe trauma; however, in the long term, dissociation is associated with decreased psychological functioning and adjustment.  Other symptoms sometimes found along with dissociation in victims of traumatic abuse (often referred to as "sequelae to abuse") include anxiety, PTSD, low self-esteem, somatization, depression, chronic pain, interpersonal dysfunction, substance abuse, self-harm and suicidal ideation or actions. These symptoms may lead the victim to present the symptoms as the source of the problem.  Child abuse, especially chronic abuse starting at early ages, has been related to high levels of dissociative symptoms in a clinical sample, including amnesia for abuse memories. It has also been seen that girls who suffered abuse during their childhood had higher reported dissociation scores than did boys who reported dissociation during their childhood. A non-clinical sample of adult women linked increased levels of dissociation to sexual abuse by a significantly older person prior to age 15, and dissociation has also been correlated with a history of childhood physical and sexual abuse. When sexual abuse is examined, the levels of dissociation were found to increase along with the severity of the abuse.  A 2012 review article supports the hypothesis that current or recent trauma may affect an individual's assessment of the more distant past, changing the experience of the past and resulting in dissociative states.

Psychoactive substances.

Psychoactive drugs can often induce a state of temporary dissociation. Substances with dissociative properties include ketamine, nitrous oxide, alcohol, tiletamine, amphetamine, dextromethorphan, MK-801, PCP, methoxetamine, salvia, muscimol, atropine, ibogaine, and minocycline.

History.

French philosopher and psychologist Pierre Janet (1859–1947) is considered to be the author of the concept of dissociation. Contrary to some conceptions of dissociation, Janet did not believe that dissociation was a psychological defense.  Psychological defense mechanisms belong to Freud's theory of psychoanalysis, not to Janetian psychology. Janet claimed that dissociation occurred only in persons who had a constitutional weakness of mental functioning that led to hysteria when they were stressed. Although it is true that many of Janet's case histories described traumatic experiences, he never considered dissociation to be a defense against those experiences. Quite the opposite: Janet insisted that dissociation was a mental or cognitive deficit. Accordingly, he considered trauma to be one of many stressors that could worsen the already-impaired "mental efficiency" of a hysteric, thereby generating a cascade of hysterical (in today's language, "dissociative") symptoms.  Although there was great interest in dissociation during the last two decades of the nineteenth century (especially in France and England), this interest rapidly waned with the coming of the new century. Even Janet largely turned his attention to other matters.  There was a sharp peak in interest in dissociation in America from 1890 to 1910, especially in Boston as reflected in the work of William James, Boris Sidis, Morton Prince, and William McDougall. Nevertheless, even in America, interest in dissociation rapidly succumbed to the surging academic interest in psychoanalysis and behaviorism.  For most of the twentieth century, there was little interest in dissociation. Despite this, a review of 76 previously published cases from the 1790s to 1942 was published in 1944, describing clinical phenomena consistent with that seen by Janet and by therapists today. In 1971, Bowers and her colleagues presented a detailed, and still quite valid, treatment article. The authors of this article included leading thinkers of their time – John G. Watkins (who developed ego-state therapy) and Zygmunt A. Piotrowski (famed for his work on the Rorschach test). Further interest in dissociation was evoked when Ernest Hilgard (1977) published his neodissociation theory in the 1970s. During the 1970s and 1980s an increasing number of clinicians and researchers wrote about dissociation, particularly multiple personality disorder.  Carl Jung described pathological manifestations of dissociation as special or extreme cases of the normal operation of the psyche. This structural dissociation, opposing tension, and hierarchy of basic attitudes and functions in normal individual consciousness is the basis of Jung's "Psychological Types". He theorized that dissociation is a natural necessity for consciousness to operate in one faculty unhampered by the demands of its opposite.  Attention to dissociation as a clinical feature has been growing in recent years as knowledge of post-traumatic stress disorder increased, due to interest in dissociative identity disorder, and as neuroimaging research and population studies show its relevance.  Historically the psychopathological concept of dissociation has also another different root: the conceptualization of Eugen Bleuler that looks into dissociation related to schizophrenia.

Treatment.

When receiving treatment, patients are assessed to discover their level of functioning. Some patients might be higher functioning than others. This is taken into account when creating a patient's potential treatment targets. To start off treatment, time is dedicated to increasing a patient's mental level and adaptive actions in order to gain a balance in both their mental and behavioral action. Once this is achieved, the next goal is to work on removing or minimizing the phobia made by traumatic memories, which is causing the patient to dissociate. The final step of treatment includes helping patients work through their grief in order to move forward and be able to engage in their own lives. This is done with the use of new coping skills attained through treatment.

Dissociation is any of a wide array of experiences from mild detachment from immediate surroundings to more severe detachment from physical and emotional experiences. The major characteristic of all dissociative phenomena involves a detachment from reality, rather than a loss of reality as in psychosis.


Family and children.

John Cicero was the eldest son of Elector Albert III Achilles of Brandenburg with his first wife Margaret of Baden. As his father then ruled as Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (from 1457 also as Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach), he was born at the Hohenzollern residence of Ansbach in Franconia, where he spent his childhood years until in 1466 he received the call to Brandenburg as presumed heir by his uncle Elector Frederick II. He joined him in the War of the Succession of Stettin with the Pomeranian dukes, until Frederick resigned in 1470 and was succeeded by John's father, who in 1473 appointed him regent of the Brandenburg lands. After the Pomeranian struggle he also had to deal with the inheritance conflict upon the 1476 death of the Piast duke Henry XI of Głogów, husband of his half-sister Barbara.  On 25 August 1476 in Berlin John married Margaret of Wettin, a daughter of Landgrave William III of Thuringia with Anne, Duchess of Luxembourg. Their children were:

Rule.

John succeeded his father as elector in 1486, while the Franconian possessions of the Hohenzollern dynasty passed to his younger brothers Frederick I and Siegmund. He decreed that the "Stadtschloss" in Berlin, erected at the behest of his uncle Frederick II, should serve as the permanent residence of the Brandenburg electors, the beginning of the city's history as a state capital. He also implemented an excise tax on beer in 1488, which sparked several disturbances, mainly in the towns of the Altmark region.  In 1490 John was able to purchase the former Lusatian territory around Zossen, acknowledged by the Bohemian king Vladislaus II, and maintained the succession claims of the Hohenzollern dynasty to the Pomeranian lands held by the House of Griffins. He died in 1499 from pleural effusion at Arneburg Castle and was succeeded by his eldest son Joachim I. John was the first of the Hohenzollern electors to be buried in Brandenburg, first at Lehnin Abbey, later transferred to Berlin Cathedral by order of his grandson Joachim II.

John II (; 2 August 1455 – 9 January 1499) was Elector of Brandenburg from 1486 until his death, the fourth of the House of Hohenzollern. After his death he received the posthumous cognomen Cicero, after the Roman orator of the same name, but the elector's eloquence and interest in the arts is debatable.


History.

Etymology.

The word "oratorio" comes from the Latin verb orare, to pray. Hence oratory. The musical composition was "named from the kind of musical services held in the church of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in Rome ("Congregazione dell'Oratorio") in the latter half of the 16th cent."

1600, origins.

Although medieval plays such as the Ludus Danielis, and Renaissance dialogue motets such as those of the Oltremontani had characteristics of an oratorio, the first oratorio is usually seen as Emilio de Cavalieri's "Rappresentatione di Anima, et di Corpo". Monteverdi composed "Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda" which can be considered as the first secular oratorio.  The origins of the oratorio can be found in sacred dialogues in Italy. These were settings of Biblical, Latin texts and musically were quite similar to motets. There was a strong narrative, dramatic emphasis and there were conversational exchanges between characters in the work. Giovanni Francesco Anerio's "Teatro harmonico spirituale" (1619) is a set of 14 dialogues, the longest of which is 20 minutes long and covers the conversion of St. Paul and is for four soloists: Historicus (narrator), tenor; St. Paul, tenor; Voice from Heaven, bass; and Ananias, tenor. There is also a four-part chorus to represent any crowds in the drama. The music is often contrapuntal and madrigal-like. Philip Neri's Congregazione dell'Oratorio featured the singing of spiritual laude. These became more and more popular and were eventually performed in specially built oratories (prayer halls) by professional musicians. Again, these were chiefly based on dramatic and narrative elements. Sacred opera provided another impetus for dialogues, and they greatly expanded in length (although never really beyond 60 minutes long). Cavalieri's "Rappresentatione di Anima, et di Corpo" is an example of one of these works, but technically it is not an oratorio because it features acting and dancing. It does, however contain music in the monodic style. The first oratorio to be called by that name is Pietro della Valle's "Oratorio della Purificazione", but due to its brevity (only 12 minutes long) and the fact that its other name was "dialogue", we can see that there was much ambiguity in these names.

1650–1700.

During the second half of the 17th century, there were trends toward the secularization of the religious oratorio. Evidence of this lies in its regular performance outside church halls in courts and public theaters. Whether religious or secular, the theme of an oratorio is meant to be weighty. It could include such topics as Creation, the life of Jesus, or the career of a classical hero or Biblical prophet. Other changes eventually took place as well, possibly because most composers of oratorios were also popular composers of operas. They began to publish the librettos of their oratorios as they did for their operas. Strong emphasis was soon placed on arias while the use of the choir diminished. Female singers became regularly employed, and replaced the male narrator with the use of recitatives.  By the mid-17th century, two types had developed:  Lasting about 30–60 minutes, "oratori volgari" were performed in two sections, separated by a sermon; their music resembles that of contemporary operas and chamber cantatas.  The most significant composers of "oratorio latino" were in France Marc-Antoine Charpentier, 34 works, and in Italy Giacomo Carissimi, whose "Jephte" is regarded as the first masterpiece of the genre. Like most other Latin oratorios of the period, it is in one section only.

Late baroque.

In the late baroque oratorios increasingly became "sacred opera". In Rome and Naples Alessandro Scarlatti was the most noted composer. In Vienna the court poet Metastasio produced annually a series of oratorios for the court which were set by Caldara, Hasse and others. Metastasio's best known oratorio libretto "La passione di Gesù Cristo" was set by at least 35 composers from 1730–90. In Germany the middle baroque oratorios moved from the early-baroque "Historia" style Christmas and Resurrection settings of Heinrich Schütz, to the Passions of J. S. Bach, oratorio-passions such as "Der Tod Jesu" set by Telemann and Carl Heinrich Graun. After Telemann came the galante oratorio style of C. P. E. Bach.

Georgian Britain.

The Georgian era saw a German-born monarch and German-born composer define the English oratorio. George Frideric Handel, most famous today for his "Messiah" (1741), also wrote other oratorios based on themes from Greek and Roman mythology and Biblical topics. He is also credited with writing the first English language oratorio, "Esther". Handel's imitators included the Italian Lidarti who was employed by the Amsterdam Jewish community to compose a Hebrew version of "Esther".

Victorian era.

Britain continued to look to Germany for its composers of oratorio. The Birmingham Festival commissioned various oratorios including Felix Mendelssohn's "Elijah" in 1846, later performed in German as "Elias". German composer Georg Vierling is noted for modernizing the secular oratorio form.  John Stainer's "The Crucifixion" (1887) became the stereotypical battlehorse of massed amateur choral societies. Edward Elgar tried to revive the genre around the turn of century with the composition of "The Light of Life (Lux Christi)", "The Dream of Gerontius", "The Apostles" and "The Kingdom".

Twentieth-century.

Oratorio returned haltingly to public attention with Igor Stravinsky's "Oedipus Rex" in Paris (1927), William Walton's "Belshazzar's Feast" in Leeds (1931), Paul Hindemith's "Das Unaufhörliche" in Berlin (1931), Arthur Honegger's "Le Roi David" and "Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher" in Basel (1938), and Franz Schmidt's "The Book with Seven Seals" ("Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln") in Vienna (1938). Michael Tippett's oratorio "A Child of Our Time" (first performance, 1944) engages with events surrounding the Second World War. Postwar oratorios include Dmitri Shostakovich's "Song of the Forests" (1949), Sergei Prokofiev's "On Guard for Peace" (1950), Vadim Salmanov's "Twelve" (1957), Krzysztof Penderecki's "St. Luke Passion" (1966), Hans Werner Henze's "Das Floß der Medusa" (1971), René Clemencic's "Kabbala" (1992), and Osvaldo Golijov's "La Pasión según San Marcos" (2000). Mauricio Kagel composed "Sankt-Bach-Passion", an oratorio about Bach's life, for the tercenary of his birth in 1985.  Oratorios by popular musicians include Léo Ferré's "La Chanson du mal-aimé" (1954 and 1972), based on Guillaume Apollinaire's poem of the same name, and Paul McCartney's "Liverpool Oratorio" (1991).

Twenty-first century.

When Dudley Buck composed his oratorio "The Light of Asia" in 1886, it became the first in the history of the genre to be based on the life of Buddha. Several late 20th and early 21st-century oratorios have since been based on Buddha's life or have incorporated Buddhist texts. These include Somei Satoh's 1987 "Stabat Mater", Dinesh Subasinghe's 2010 "Karuna Nadee", and Jonathan Harvey's 2011 "Weltethos". The 21st century also saw a continuation of Christianity-based oratorios with John Adams's "El Niño" and "The Gospel According to the Other Mary". Other religions represented include Ilaiyaraaja's "Thiruvasakam" (based on the texts of Hindu hymns to Shiva). Secular oratorios composed in the 21st century include Nathan Currier's "Gaian Variations" (based on the Gaia hypothesis), Richard Einhorn's "The Origin" (based on the writings of Charles Darwin), Jonathan Mills' "Sandakan Threnody" (based on the Sandakan Death Marches), and Neil Hannon's "To Our Fathers in Distress". The oratorio "Laudato si'", composed in 2016 by Peter Reulein on a libretto by Helmut Schlegel, includes the full Latin text of the Magnificat, expanded by writings of Clare of Assisi, Francis of Assisi and Pope Francis.

Structure.

Oratorios usually contain:

An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is musical theatre, while oratorio is strictly a concert piece – though oratorios are sometimes staged as operas, and operas are sometimes presented in concert form. In an oratorio the choir often plays a central role, and there is generally little or no interaction between the characters, and no props or elaborate costumes. A particularly important difference is in the typical subject matter of the text. Opera tends to deal with history and mythology, including age-old devices of romance, deception, and murder, whereas the plot of an oratorio often deals with sacred topics, making it appropriate for performance in the church. Protestant composers took their stories from the Bible, while Catholic composers looked to the lives of saints, as well as to Biblical topics. Oratorios became extremely popular in early 17th-century Italy partly because of the success of opera and the Catholic Church's prohibition of spectacles during Lent. Oratorios became the main choice of music during that period for opera audiences.


Life.

Wieland Wagner was the elder of two sons of Siegfried and Winifred Wagner, grandson of composer Richard Wagner, and great-grandson of composer Franz Liszt through Wieland's paternal grandmother.  In 1941, he married the dancer and choreographer Gertrud Reissinger. They had four children: Iris (b. 1942 d 2014 ), Wolf Siegfried (b. 1943), Nike (b. 1945) and Daphne (b. 1946). Their son Wolf married Marie Eleanore von Lehndorff-Steinort, sister of fashion model Veruschka, whose father was involved in the July 20 plot to assassinate Hitler.  Late in his life, Wieland had a love affair with the much younger Anja Silja, one of the singers he had recruited for Bayreuth.  In 1965, he was awarded the Pour le Mérite.  He died of lung cancer in October 1966.

Career.

Wieland Wagner is credited as an initiator of Regietheater through ushering in a new modern style to Wagnerian opera as a stage director and designer, substituting a symbolic for a naturalist staging and focusing on the psychology of the drama.  Wieland began his directorial career before World War II, working on operas by his father and grandfather. His innovative approach did not become clear until after the war. His design for the 1937 Bayreuth production of "Parsifal", for example, was conservative, though it did have film projections during the transformation scenes. When the Bayreuth Festival reopened after the war in 1951, Wieland and his brother Wolfgang became festival directors in place of their mother, whose association with Adolf Hitler had made her unacceptable. (Wieland's own past was, however, suppressed.) The revolutionary productions evoked extreme views both for and against.  Wieland's long-lasting 1951 production of "Parsifal" included many features with which he later would be identified. Post-war austerity and his own interest - influenced by Adolphe Appia - in lighting effects led to the use of round minimalist sets lit from above.  Wieland's first post-war "Siegfried" represented Fafner with a 30 ft statue of a dragon belching fire. In his later production of the opera he instead used pairs of giant eyes, which were picked out in turn from the back-projected forest, to suggest the movements of a huge creature stretching halfway down the Bayreuth hill.  Wieland's 1956 ""Mastersingers" without Nuremberg" was the symbolic culmination of his campaign to move away from naturalism in Wagner production with the medieval town represented by the cobbled shape of a street and, above the stage, a ball suggestive of a flowering tree.  Wieland's minimalism extended beyond the stage furniture and props. The performer of Gunther, for example, was expected to sing leaning forward in Act 1 of "Götterdämmerung" until he felt his authority challenged by Hagen and sat up straight. It is hard to imagine a greater contrast with traditional operatic acting.  Although Wieland is best remembered for productions of his grandfather's works at Bayreuth, he was often asked to work elsewhere in Germany and Europe. For example, he produced "Tannhäuser" and "Der fliegende Holländer" in Copenhagen, the "Ring" in Naples, Stuttgart and Cologne, and Beethoven's "Fidelio" in Stuttgart, London, Paris and Brussels.  Wieland's wife Gertrud collaborated with him to develop his interpretations of the operas and devise stage movement for the solo singers and chorus. Trained in modern dance, she is credited in the Bayreuth programs with choreography for "Parsifal", "Tannhäuser", and "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg", but in fact she assisted him in all of his Bayreuth productions and many that he staged elsewhere, sometimes taking rehearsals on her own. This was not revealed until after Wieland's death, and Wolfgang Wagner claims in his memoirs that it's not true. But biographer Renate Schostack recounts many particulars of this collaboration, as does the daughter of Wieland and Gertrud, Nike Wagner.  The great love of his life was the German soprano Anja Silja. Only twenty years old, she took over as Senta in 1960 in Bayreuth when Leonie Rysanek cancelled, and created a sensation. Blessed with a strong, agile, youthful and gleaming voice, and with an extraordinary talent for acting, she embodied Wieland's ideals. She sang Elsa in "Lohengrin", Elisabeth and Venus in "Tannhäuser" and Eva in "Meistersinger" at Bayreuth. Elsewhere, he cast her as Isolde, Brünnhilde, Richard Strauss's Elektra, and Salome, and Alban Berg's Lulu and Marie in "Wozzeck". She even sang Desdemona in Verdi's "Otello" in Wieland's production.  Among the other celebrated singers who worked with Wieland were Hans Hotter, George London, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Eberhard Wächter, Thomas Stewart, Theo Adam, Josef Greindl, Jerome Hines, Wolfgang Windgassen, Ramón Vinay, Jess Thomas, Jon Vickers, Martha Mödl, Astrid Varnay, Régine Crespin, Rita Gorr, Leonie Rysanek, Birgit Nilsson, Jean Madeira, Grace Hoffman, Franz Crass, Victoria de los Ángeles, Grace Bumbry, Christa Ludwig, Martti Talvela, Carlos Alexander, Isabel Strauß, James King, Claude Heater, Ticho Parly, Dame Gwyneth Jones, and Fritz Wunderlich. Wieland wanted great actors, but he also wanted the singers to execute his plans faithfully.  Conductors with whom he collaborated were Hans Knappertsbusch, Clemens Krauss, Joseph Keilberth, André Cluytens, Pierre Boulez, Herbert von Karajan, Erich Leinsdorf, Heinz Tietjen, Lorin Maazel, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Karl Böhm, Bruno Maderna, and Thomas Schippers.  Wieland Wagner's life and work are discussed in Tony Palmer's 2011 film, "The Wagner Family".

Associations with Hitler and Nazism.

Winifred Wagner's close friendship with Hitler meant that, as a teenager and young man, Wieland knew the dictator as "Uncle Wolf". In 1938 he joined the Nazi Party on Hitler's personal insistence. From September 1944 to April 1945 he held a sinecure at the Institut für physikalische Forschung in Bayreuth, founded by his brother-in-law Bodo Lafferentz, which was a satellite of the Flossenbürg concentration camp devoted to research and development of an improved guidance system of the V-2 rocket bomb. This enabled him to avoid being called into the Wehrmacht for the final defense of Germany. At the Institut he built models of stage sets and developed new stage lighting systems with the assistance of prisoner Hans Imhof, an electrical technician. At his denazification hearing in Bayreuth, on December 10, 1948, he was classified as a "Mitläufer" (follower), the fourth and lowest category, and fined DM100 plus the court costs.

Wieland Wagner (5 January 1917 – 17 October 1966) was a German opera director, grandson of Richard Wagner. As co-director of the Bayreuth Festival when it re-opened after World War II, he was noted for innovative new stagings of the operas, departing from the naturalistic scenery and lighting of the originals. His wartime involvement in the development of the V-2 rocket was kept secret for many years.


Early life and military career.

Born in Schönau, Bohemia, his father Franz Anton Rudolf Payer was a retired officer of the Austrian Uhlans who died when Julius was only fourteen. His mother was Bladine, née John. Payer attended the "k.k." cadet school in Łobzów near Kraków, Galicia (present-day Poland). Between 1857 and 1859 he studied at the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt.  From 1859, Payer served as a sub-lieutenant with the Austrian 36th infantry regiment in Verona, Venetia. He participated in the disastrous Battle of Solferino on 24 June 1859 and was honoured for his service. After promotion to the rank of lieutenant first class, he was posted to the garrison of Chioggia, Venetia in 1864. On 24 June 1866 he served the Battle of Custoza, seizing two guns, for which he was decorated and elevated to the rank of senior lieutenant.  Since 1863 Payer was assigned as a history and geography teacher to the cadet school in Eisenstadt, Hungary and to the Theresian Military Academy. In 1868 the Austro-Hungarian Minister of War appointed him a general staff officer at the "k.k." Military Geographic Institute in Vienna, where he worked with August von Fligely.

Alpine exploration.

In 1862 Payer had started exploratory tours of the Tyrolean Alps and the High Tauern range in his free time. After 1864 he explored the Adamello-Presanella Group and the Ortler Alps, making more than 60 first ascents. In 1864 he was, with his guide Giovanni Caturani, the first to climb Adamello (3,554 m) and missed making the first ascent of the Presanella (3,558 m) by just three weeks. All his explorations in the Ortler massif (from 1865 to 1868) were guided by from Sulden. Together, often accompanied by a porter, they ascended almost all significant unclimbed summits, including the Hoher Angelus (3,521 m), Vertainspitze (3,545 m), Palon de la Mare (3,703 m), Monte Zebru (3,735), and Monte Cevedale (3,769 m). Their new approach to the Ortler (3,905 m) became the normal route of ascent ever since.  His tours resulted in creating a detailed topographical map at a scale 1:56,000. Due to his achievements, Payer was transferred to the Austrian Military Geographic Institute. When in 1875, the first Alpine club hut above 3000 m was built on the normal route to the Ortler, it was named "" in his honor.

Polar expedition.

In 1868 he was invited by the German geographer August Petermann to participate in the 2nd German North Polar Expedition as a topographer. Travelling to the coast of East Greenland on the "Germania" under Captain Carl Koldewey in 1869-1870, they reached as far north as Shannon Island. In 1871 he participated in the preliminary Austro-Hungarian expedition to Novaya Zemlya, with Karl Weyprecht.  From 1872-1874 Payer led the Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition with Karl Weyprecht, who was Commander at sea, while Payer was Commander at shore. During this voyage he made the discovery of Franz Joseph Land, however upon his return to Vienna many critics voiced doubts about its existence and about the experiences of other participants in the expedition. Payer could have proven his statements using testimonies, diaries and sketches, however his efforts were thwarted, including his promotion to Captain. In 1874 he resigned from the army because of political maneuvers against him and his brother officers' doubts about his discovery and his sledge journeys. He was awarded 44 Austro-Hungarian gulden on 1 October 1874 for the discovery of Franz Joseph Land (about equal to the monthly salary of a Sub-lieutenant at the time). He was also awarded the 1975 Royal Geographical Societys Patron's Gold Medal.  However, on 24 October 1876 he was elevated to the Austrian nobility which entitled him and his descendants to the style of "Ritter von" in the case of male and "von" in the case of female offspring.

Later life.

In 1877 Ritter von Payer married the ex-wife of a banker from Frankfurt am Main. They later had two children, Jules and Alice.  From 1877-1879 he studied painting at the Städelsches Institut in Frankfurt / Main. From 1880-1882 he continued his study of art at the Akademie der bildenden Künste in München.  From 1884-1890 he worked as a painter in Paris.  In 1890 he divorced his wife, returned to Vienna and founded a painting school for ladies.  In 1895 he planned a trip for painting to Kejser Franz Joseph Fjord in northeastern (Greenland).  In 1912 he planned (at the age of seventy) an expedition in a submarine to the North Pole.  He died in Veldes, in historic Upper Carniola, today part of Slovenia, in 1915.

Named after Julius von Payer.

Besides the Payerhütte mentioned above and several streets in Vienna, the main island of Franz Josef Land (Payer Island), the Payer Mountains in Antarctica and Payer Land in eastern Greenland have been named after Julius von Payer.  The southern satellite camp for the PolAres MARS2013 analog mission by the OeWF, approximately 80 km south of the base camp near Erfoud, Morocco, was named "Station Payer" during February 2013, after the main base camp had been called "Camp Weyprecht" during the landing ceremony in the morning of February 11, 2013.

Julius Johannes Ludovicus Ritter von Payer (2 September 1841, – 29 August 1915), ennobled Ritter von Payer in 1876, was an officer of the Austro-Hungarian Army, mountaineer, arctic explorer, cartographer, painter, and professor at the Theresian Military Academy. He is chiefly known for the Austro-Hungarian North Pole expedition in 1872–74 and the discovery of Franz Josef Land.