Guy de Lusignan and Saladin in Battle / Mathew Paris, c.1250
Medieval Ms ­/ Acoma, Wikimedia

The Templars are Born -

After more than nine centuries of historical scrutiny, the Knights Templar, Europe’s first order of warrior monks, are still a formidable mystery. They were founded shortly after the First Crusade in 1119 by the Burgundian knight Hugues de Payens and Godeffroi de St Omer, a knight from northern France. Their first mission was to protect pilgrims on their journey to Jerusalem and they built a chain of forts to guard the pilgrimage route to Palestine. Baldwin II, ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, allowed the Knights Templar to set up headquarters on the southeastern side of the Temple Mount which is inside the Al Aqsa Mosque.

Baldwin II cedes Temple of Salomon to Hugues de Payns and Gaudefroy de
Saint-Homer in 1119 / Guillaume de Tyr, 13th century
Histoire d’Outre-Mer /­ PHGCOM, Wikimedia

Long sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, the Temple Mount is reputed to be the site of the Temple of Solomon where the Ark of the Covenant may have been hidden. It may also be the legendary Mt. Moria where Abraham believed that he had to sacrifice his son Isaac. The Dome of the Rock at the Al Aqsa Mosque was built by the 7th century Caliph Abd al-Malik to house the rock from which Muhammad ascended to heaven to receive Islamic prayers. The crusaders had made the Al Aqsa Mosque into the Temple of the Lord from which the Order of the Knights Templar take their name.

Temple of Solomon – altars / Jerusalem
19th century engraving ­/ Blumenberg Associates LLC

Templars raised significant amounts of land and money. An early patron was the powerful intellectual abbot and Cistercian monk, Bernard of Clairvaux who wrote a treatise that overcame the initial objection to killing in the name of Christ. New members had to take a vow of poverty and hand over all their material wealth to the Order. Nobles wishing to join a Crusade, but not sign on with the Knights Templar, could deposit their wealth with a Templar bank that would safeguard it and issue an encrypted Letter of Credit. At other Templar institutions, funds could be withdrawn against this LC. As the Templars became powerful bankers, their funds were available to the kings of Europe. Europe’s first order of warrior monks would soon challenge the banking powers in Europe and be perceived as a threat to the sovereignty of France.

Military Orders / Christian warrior monks
Artist /­ Marc Carrie (c) 2007

In 1128, the Council of Troyes sanctioned the Knights Templar. In 1139, the Pope, with Bernard of Clairvaux as advisor, issued a Papal Bull that formally declared the Templars were beholden to no authority but his own, owed no taxes and could freely cross any border. The much feared Templar knights were now able to move unimpeded throughout Europe.

The Rule of the Templar Order contains a wealth of military information. Different ranks of knights are described in detail with their privileges, obligations, and conduct on and off the battlefield. The number and care of horses that attend each rank are clarified, and there can be no doubt about the priority given to mounted warriors.

Templar Knight / Levant
Artist /­ Marc Carrie (c) 2007

The Templars were now charged with protecting the Kingdom of Jerusalem. At most, the Templars could bring 3-400 knights to the battlefield where the size of the Muslim armies confronting them might number over 20,000. Factor in the brilliant leadership of Saladin whom the crusaders often confronted, and the odds on the battlefield frequently did not favor the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the crusaders.

On the battlefield, the importance of the Templar banner cannot be underestimated. Amidst the chaos of the melée, the banner could be used to communicate and direct strategy. The Standard Bearer of the Templars, known as the Confanonier was always present in battle.

Two Templar knights (cf poverty) on one horse
Chronica Majora, Mathew Paris, c.1215
Medieval ms ­/ Acoma, Wikimedia

As a small elite force, the Templars joined larger armies and then took on the most difficult missions. Templar knights trained long and hard but the majority of Templars did not fight. For most brothers, the mission was to fund and equip the small numbers of elite mounted knights. Horses were trained to kick and bite enemy horses in combat. Templar knights believed death in battle was a glorious martyrdom. Their code forbade retreat unless outnumbered 3:1 and ordered to retreat by their commander; or if the Templar flag went down on the battlefield.

The Ferocious Charge -

The Melée 1 / Knights in Battle
18th century print, medieval ms /­ Medieval Warfare, Blumenberg Associates LLC

First and foremost, every brother had to obey those in rank above him. In peace and war, knights rode in squadrons led by a Confanonier with the banner who was guarded by ten knights. As the battle approached, Templar knights took their positions in the line; their squires with lances and shields were before them. It was forbidden to break ranks, or charge without permission, or turn a horse’s head to the rear in order to fight or react to an alarm. Exceptions were allowed: a knight could ride a short distance to adjust saddle and harness, or rescue a Christian under attack. If a knight retreated, he would be humiliated by being forced to walk.

The Melée 2 / Knights in Battle / Advantage Left 1
18th century print, medieval ms ­/ Medieval Warfare, Blumenberg Associates LLC

With his body guard as close by as possible, the Marshall would charge. The ensuing melée quickly developed and casualties were usually light. Therefore, the Régle advised immediate and ferocious pursuit. Reserves were to be close by so they could enter the fray as soon as needed, and/or provide a fresh attack if the first line needed to retire for rest and possibly new mounts. The sergeants were to hold back an enemy that had taken the advantage and/or follow an enemy that was in pursuit of Templar knights. The squires likewise had to be immediately close because they would have fresh horses for their knights.

The Melée 3 / Knights and foot infantry in battle
18th century print / medieval ms ­ Medieval Warfare, Blumenberg Associates LLC

Templar training developed precision techniques by which to achieve a horrifically intense “ferocious charge” of mounted knights that would take on a numerically superior enemy. Templar adherence to the strict Rule of the Order was an attempt to catalyze the manifestation of a supremely disciplined warrior whose fighting stance derived from strict adherence to protocol and superior self control.

Seljukid Turk Archer
Artist ­/ Marc Carrie (c) 2007

Battle of Montisgard -

The Battle of Montisgard in 1177 is a fine example of successful Templar ferocity on a large battlefield. The crusader army of several thousand included 475 knights, most of them Templars. Saladin commanded a force of ~30,000 but they were spread out, disorganized and looting nearby villages on their way to Jerusalem. As the Crusader army slowly approached and the Templar knights were sighted, panic spread amidst the Muslim troops who struggled to form battle lines.

Discovery of leprosy in the future Baldwin IV /
William of Tyre’s “Historia rerum in partibus transmarinis gestarum”, c.1250
Estoire d’Eracles / Andrew Dalby, Wikipedia

At the head of this Crusader army, which appeared to be superbly disciplined and barely made any noise, was the young King of Jerusalem. Baldwin IV was only 16 years old and dying of leprosy. He was a young king of extraordinary character and strength, who was much loved by his army and people. With obvious courage although very weak, the leper king was on horse at the head of his army, his hands covered in bloody bandages. Attendant knights were at his side throughout the day and physically supported him when necessary. Templars and the Leper King all in one afternoon; that would unsettle anyone, even the great Saladin.

St Helena finds the True Cross / N. Italy, 825 AD
Biblioteca Capitolare, Vercelli / Jdsteakley, Wikimedia
St. Helena was consort of Emperor Constantius, and mother of Emperor Constantine I. She has traditionally been assigned the discovery of the True Cross and nails of the crucifixion.

The Christian army grew silent. Baldwin IV prayed before a relic of the True Cross and then his army gave out a great shout. They charged cross the sands with the ferocious Templars in the lead. Everyone fought courageously and the Crusaders achieved a total victory. Baldwin’s army had 1100 killed and 750 wounded. The legendary Saladin was surprised and almost captured by the Templars at Jerusalem. He barely escaped on a racing camel and his personal Mamluke body guards were killed. Saladin’s army was annihilated with the loss ~27,000 men, 90% of his original forces.

The Battle of Cresson -

Sea of Tiberius / Sea of Galilee
Panoramic Photo / Gugganij, Pitert, Wikimedia

The warfare between Saladin and the Crusaders with their Knights Templar now encountered the life of Jesus as it moved to the Sea of Galilee. In the decade since his defeat at Montisgard, Saladin had achieved a superior position. Appointed vizier of Egypt in 1169, he was soon ruling the country as Sultan. He imposed his rule over Damascus, extended it to Aleppo in 1176 and Mosul in Persia by 1183. The Kingdom of Jerusalem was now surrounded by a dangerous Islam that was united by one ruler who had a superior mind for the strategies of war. Saladin the Great would return to the battlefield and not repeat the strategic mistakes of Montisgard.

On Mat 1, 1187 at the Springs of Cresson, a small mounted contingent from the Kingdom of Jerusalem faced an Ayyubid army of 7,000. The crusader cavalry was made up of 80 Templars and 10 Knights Hospitaler including their Grand Masters, 40 royal knights, and 300 mounted sergeants. Gerard de Ridefort and Roger de Moulins (Grand Master of the Hospitalers) were the commanders for Christendom.

Jesus at the Sea of Tiberius (Galilee) / Polenov, 1888
Painting ­/ Polenov, User Alex Bakharev, Wikimedia

Saladin’s son, Al-Afdal ibn Salah al-din led the Muslim forces who were seeking revenge for an attack on a Muslim caravan by Raynald of Chatillon. The small mounted crusader army was massacred. Only the Templar Grand Master, two brother knights and two Templar squires at the rear of the fighting survived.

Saladin and the Templars at the Battle of Hattin -

On July 3, 1187, the Battle of Hattin became a turning point in the Crusades and is wrongly described as a Templar defeat. Hattin has a complicated siting and great military and commercial significance because it is connected by mountain passes to the plains of lower Galilee. These plains, with numerous east-west passages, served as routes for commercial caravans and military invasions.

Palestine (Israel) / Hattin Landscape
Photo ­/ Almog, Wikimedia

Gerard de Ridefort was once again the Marshall and in charge of strategy with Raynald de Chatillon. The crusader army was led by Guy of Lusignan (main army), Raymond III of Tripoli (vanguard), Gerard de Rideford, and Balian of Ibelin (rearguard). Saladin’s army was 30,000 strong with 10,000 cavalry. The Crusader army numbered 20,000 with 1200 knights within which an overbearing reliance would again be placed upon the Knights Templar. At times it seemed that all of Christendom believed that Templar ferocity alone would forever secure the Holy Land and Kingdom of Jerusalem. The most arrogant of the Templar leadership believed this as well.

Saladin believed that he could only defeat the crusaders in an open field battle, and his choice in the summer of 1187 AD was at or near Tiberias. In spite of many Muslim victories, the crusaders always seemed to regroup and have an army ready to charge and fight again and again. Saladin respected his European foe for their tenacity and relentlessness. As the crusaders left Sephoria on July 3, Guy led the main army ostensibly heading for Tiberius.

Crusaders at Battle of Hattin, 1187 / fr “Estoire d’Eracles” (Amiens), edition 1400-1450
Medieval ms /­ Guillaume de Tyr, User Acoma, Wikimedia

Muslim harassment began immediately and by noon the crusaders had made only 6 miles to the village of Tu’ran. Inexplicably, they did not stop at the springs to take on water for men and horses. King Guy’s decision was a major tactical error because he was not aware of the vast size of the Muslim army. Saladin had enough men to hold the ridge and also send contingents elsewhere.

The Battle is Won
18th century print / medieval ms /­ Medieval Warfare, Blumenberg Associates LLC

Two wings of Saladin’s army went around the Franks, seized the spring at Tu’ran and thereby blocked a crusader retreat. Continuous attacks forced the crusader army with Templars to halt and camp on the plateau without food or water, and without any possibility of resupply or reinforcements. Saladin set smoky fires that evening which blew into the crusader camp and made them miserable, and he also pelted them with arrows during the night. Guy advised that battle lines and an attack should be organized. Then five of Raymond’s knights defected and gave Saladin an accurate picture of conditions with the crusaders. Thirsty and demoralized the crusaders broke camp and moved towards the springs of Hattin. Two charges for the Sea of Galilee failed and most of the army had moved on to the Horns of Hattin.

Crusaders fighting the Turks
Medieval ms /­ Marc Carrie (c) 2007

Saladin deliberately waited until the heat was at its worst. Guy ordered tents to be pitched on higher ground. The Horns of Hattin provided some protection for crusader archers and a superior highest position. But without infantry protection, horses were killed by Muslim archers and mounted knights were forced to fight on foot. Three desperate attacks by the crusaders from the Horns of Hattin attempted to reach Saladin’s tent and the Muslim army on lower ground. They momentarily frightened Saladin but were beaten back.

The Templars were no longer a factor, no longer the supreme weapon. Without horses there could be no ‘Ferocious Charge’ and Guy refused to send the Templar and Hospitaler knights any relief. Before long, Saladin allowed Raymond and Balian of Ibelin to escape. To look at the Battle of Hattin as a Templar defeat misses the mark entirely. Without horses, the Templars had been negated and removed from the battlefield as the superior fighting force. Finally the red tent of King Guy of Lusignan fell and Muslim victory was assured.

Reliquary Case for the True Cross /
Byzantium, Meuse Valley, ca. 1160–1170
Medieval artisan /­ Jastrow, Wikimedia

The Muslims also captured the True Cross which the Bishop of Acre had carried in battle. Control of the True cross may have been the final blow, the factor that destroyed crusader morale more than anything else. The list of prisoners captured by Saladin reads like a Who’s Who of Templar leadership. Perhaps 3,000 Christians survived to tell their tales.

Battle of Hattin 1187 / Guy de Lusignan at Saladin’s Tent
Painting ­/ Emír Balduin Hallef Omar Ali al-Adid bin Abú Sharee al-Kerak, Wikipedia

At his tent, Saladin gave Guy a glass of iced water which Guy passed to Raynald. Saladin accused the 60-year-old warrior of being an ‘oath breaker’ to which Raynald admitted by replying “ Kings have always acted thus.” Saladin then beheaded Raynald himself and Guy fell to the ground in terror. Saladin then bade him rise, saying “ True kings do not kill one another.” The True Cross was tied upside down to a lance and sent to Damascus.

Two days later a few of the captured Templars and Hospitalers accepted an offer to convert to Islam. A few of the others went off with some of the Muslim elite as slaves. In an extreme act of solidarity, many captured crusaders claimed to be Templar knights so that they would be beheaded as well. These decisions reveal the extreme awe in which the Templars were held by other crusader knights. Islamic mystics asked Saladin for permission to kill an infidel. Saladin would build the Dome of Victory at Hattin to commemorate the victory; a few scattered remains of its structure survived into the 20th century.

Saladin beheads Renaud de Chatillon after Battle of Hattin, 1187 /
Guillaume de Tyr, “Historia” – 12th century
Manuscript Painting ­/ Guillaume de Tyr, User Odejea, Wikimedia

Guy was taken to Damascus and eventually ransomed. Raymond of Tripoli escaped the battle and died of pleurisy later in the year. Saladin told Gerard that he would be freed if he could convince a Templar fortress in Gaza to surrender and this he did. Although in disgrace because he did not fight to the death, Gerard then went to Tortosa upon his release where he led the defense of this castle. He also seized money sent by Henry II which was held in Tyre.

The Régle de Templar could not overcome arrogance and blind conceit. Within a year, Jerusalem had fallen and the French withdrew their support of the crusades to retake Jerusalem. Even Richard the Lion Heart’s charisma could not turn the tide for Europe. By the mid 13th century, Templar losses in battle were often 90% in both men and horses. (Turkish bowmen were ordered to first shoot at Templar horses.) The financial costs were staggering but the Templars were for some time equal to that challenge. In both Europe and the Middle East, they owned vast tracts of land, castles, churches, farms, vineyards, a fleet of ships, and for a time the entire island of Cyprus.

Siege of Acre, 1291 /
Hospitaler Master, Mathieu de Clermont defends the walls / D.Papety c.1840
Painting /­ PHGCOM, Wikimedia

The fortress city of Acre fell on May 18, 1291 after a six week siege, although the Templars held out in their quarter for another ten days. The remaining crusader cities in the Levant fell by mid-August, 1291. The Templars relocated to Cyprus and attempted to continue their military adventures. They acquired fleets and attacked Egypt and Syria but failed to establish themselves on the Island of Ruad in the Tortosa which they held only briefly. Recruits were everywhere, and individual motivation remained religious salvation.

Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master took office in 1292 and toured Europe to garner support for the Knights Templar. Pope Boniface VIII granted the Templars the same privileges on Cyprus that they had in the Holy Land. Edward I of England and Charles II of Naples were particularly sympathetic but the last Templar fortress in Antioch fell in 1299.

Philip IV of France plots the Templar Downfall… to be continued

Military defeats in the Holy Land aside, the Templars remained extremely powerful because of their pan-European banking system and the vast estates and tracts of land that they owned. The Templars’ fatal mistake proved to be refusing a loan request from the French King Philip IV for his war with England. A forthcoming article for EG will look at the relentless persecution of the Templars by Philip IV in France, their survival in Portugal and how the Templars catalyzed Europe’s Age of Discovery. A longer and more detailed version of this article is online elsewhere.

Sources -

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 7, 8, 9

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Image: Richard Ling

Anti-air missile, elephant bug, Pinocchio – these are just some of the nicknames the lantern bug has to endure. All because its nose is slightly long. Okay, fine, that might be an understatement – it is about half the size of the bug’s whole body. If that weren’t enough, the bug’s even supposed to poke its long proboscis into people’s sex lives. Or better, the lack of it might kill them. Find out how.

Go ahead, call me Cyrano de Bergerac, see who cares:

Image: Charles Lam

The lantern bug (Pyrops candelabria) is a tropical insect belonging to one of the more than 32,000 species of the homoptera order. What looks like a nose is actually an extended mouth so that these plant feeders can suck the sap from plants and trees.

The bug’s astonishing and memorable appearance didn’t go unnoticed and local folklore even attributes magical powers to the bug. For one, it was often believed that lantern bugs are able to produce light, similar to glow worms. But their wing patterns merely reflect light, making it look as if are glowing at night.

Green lantern bug:

Image: jon yee yehsi

More intriguing is the myth that persons bitten by this bug will die if they don’t have sex within 24 hours. It’s a story that is widely circulated and already existed in the 19th century. American naturalist John C. Bannor recalled in 1885 stories of an insect called lantern fly whose bite could instantly kill people, animals and even trees. People at least were saved – according to the myth – if they had sex within 24 hours.

Related to cicadas – three lantern bugs in a row:

Image: ssmar2002

Now that’s what we call a creative way to lure, er, potential mates. Who wouldn’t want to be helpful in a life-and-death situation? You might laugh now but if bitten, would you take the risk of laughing off potential danger? Oh wait, lantern bugs actually don’t bite. Hm, Pinocchio nose after all?

The lantern bug’s cousin, Epiptera europea, with its nose high up in the air:

Image: Vas bkl

Sources: 1, 2, 3

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Bull heading towards Tulsa, Oklahoma
Photo ­- Spin Drift / Wooden Boat Forum

Did you ever wonder how to get your Brahman bull from Kansas to Tulsa, Oklahoma?

Brahman cattle were developed in the United States from four different breeds of Indian Cattle and some British cattle varieties as well. Indian cattle were first imported into the United States in 1849 by Dr. James Bolton Davis who had come across them through an adviser to the Sultan of Turkey. The identity of the descendants of these cattle was lost during the Civil War. Two Indian bulls were next given to Richard Barrow , a cotton planter in Louisiana, by the British Crown in recognition of his work teaching cotton and sugar cane to consultants working in India.

Offspring of these Brahman bulls were successful and widely recognized as Barrow Grade Cattle in the American Gulf Coast region. Two Indian bulls imported in 1885 were mated to offspring from the Barrow Cattle and the Brahman breed was secured in the United States. Additional Brahman cattle were imported by circuses and some of those were eventually resold to ranches. By 1925, about 300 Indian Brahmans had been imported into the United States of which the majority were bulls. The American Brahman breed has genetic input from the British Barrow cattle descendants and several Indian breeds including the Guzerat, Gir and Nellore varieties.

Brahma Bull with proud owner
Photo ­- Spin Drift / Wooden Boat Forum

The American Breeders Association proposed the name ‘Brahman’. Brahman cattle have a distinctive large hump on the shoulder and neck. Brahman bulls are big and can weigh more than one ton when fully grown. Despite their large size, Brahman cattle respond to affection, are docile and usually calm unless raised in overcrowded conditions. They tolerate hot humid weather very well, have superior insect resistance, and are excellent milk producers.

Statue of Nandi / Bull Temple at Chamundi, Mysore, Karnataka, India
Photo ­- Sanjay Acharya / Wikimedia

The Brahman in India is named after the sacred cow in Hinduism and is a breed of Zebu cattle. Sacred cattle have a very special status for several reasons and cannot be eaten, slaughtered or sold. 1. They generously give nourishing milk intended for their calves to humans. 2. Cattle are strong, valuable work animals and very valuable within a farming culture. 3. Shiva, The Destroyer of Evil, rides on an ox called Nandhi who is also the gatekeeper for Siva and Parvati. 4. Nandhi is Siva’s most important disciple and a primary guru. 5. Nandhi as a primary and separate god can be found in the ancient Indus Valley Civilization where a Shiva like deity who is ‘keeper of the herds’ has also been identified. 6. Lord Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu, was a cowherd and a sacred cow called Kamadhenu gave milk to Lord Vishnu.

Speeding down an American highway in the summer should be no problem for these magnificent cattle. Be certain to take a second look, Lord Shiva may be nearby.

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Sources -
1, 2, 3, 4
Thanks to John Lee for finding the photos of a Brahman bull motoring down the highway to Tusla.

Image via Writehanded

It’s amazing what being ticklish can do for your billing. From relative obscurity, the lowly loris recently became animal A-list material. One in particular of these wide-eyed primates shot to fame for its cutesy performance in some footage that’s pure, aww-inspiring dynamite. While the web watched, Sonya the slow loris simply looked loveable. So what’s the story with the loris – as a species and a starlet?

Introducing: Sonya…

We know this clip of Sonya has done the rounds on the old intertubes, but when we saw it, being – occasionally in some cases – cute and cuddly types here at Environmental Graffiti, it was just too adorable for us to pass up on posting. The dejected lowering of the arms, and that priceless forlorn look at the camera. A star had been born; who were we to ignore it?

When clingy is OK: A female slow loris clinging strongly to a human arm

Photo: Lionel Mauritson

Of course, when you make it to the top there are always people queuing up to knock you down. There were those all too keen to comment that the slow loris can excrete a toxin from elbow glands that it mixes with saliva in its mouth, giving these listless animals a painful, not to say venomous bite. It’s even been known to be fatal to humans because it can bring on anaphylactic shock.

Grub eat-athon, also starring Sonya

Adding to the cries of “It’s poisonous!”, some were clearly concerned about the ethics of keeping one of these creatures captive. Hence, Sonya’s owner Dmitry Sergeyev pointed out that “It is NOT ILLEGAL in Russia to own this animals,” and that “Our Sonya was born in a slow loris nursery and we have bought her in a local pet-shop. She never was in the wild. Thats why she is so tame and friendly!” So there.

Bright eyes: Slow loris spotted near Kampung Labohan, Malaysia

Photo: Daniel Chong Kah Fui

In the wild, slow lorises are found throughout much of Southeast Asia and beyond, but are endangered and actually hunted for their large eyes, which are prized in traditional medicines. As well as insects, these primates feed on lizards, small birds – pretty much anything they can get their hands on. And it’s those hands that are part of what makes the loris so endearing to us, blessed as they are with opposable hands not unlike our own. The hands and those big cute peepers. Aww.

Sources: 1, 2

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“Sarajevo Surprise Attack” (2007)
Image via onemansblog

What is blue, about 10 feet tall and takes several ballpoint pens to make? One of Juan Francisco Casas’ drawings, based on a photograph and recreated with only a blue pen. The 32-year old Spanish artist submitted his first realist ballpoint-pen drawing at a national competition in 2004 – and won second prize! The rest is history and Casas hasn’t really looked at traditional painting methods again.

A slight teeth obession? Casas’ latest works at SCOPE 2009 in New York:

Image via Art Comments

In an interview with the Daily Mail in February 2008, Casas said:

“I guess it started off as a joke, to try and make something so realistic that people would think is a photo. I also wanted to create it with something that everyone has – a Biro. I don’t think it has ever been done before.”

And hasn’t been done since, as far as we know. Juan Francicso Casas appreciates the ballpoint pen’s “simplicity” and stresses the fact that as an artist, it doesn’t really matter what material you use. The only drawback of using ballpoint pens? One can’t erase mistakes and can just hope to make them early on. No wonder then that one large drawing can take Casas up to two weeks to make.

A detail photographed by flickr user Art Comments during the SCOPE art fair in New York in 2009 reveals the fine penmanship – it is a drawing we’re looking after all, not a photograph.

Image via Art Comments

Since winning the prestigious ABC Prize in Madrid in 2004, Juan Francisco Casas’ works have been exhibited at important galleries in Spain and art fairs in New York, London, Basel and many other cities. And his works are selling fast: at an exhibition in Madrid in 2008 he sold 60 of drawings for between €1,000 – €5,000 ($1,400 – $7,200) each. So many in fact, that he quickly had to draw more to have something to exhibit.

Casas received a Ph.D. in Fine Arts from the University of Granada in southern Spain in 2006 where he taught for six years. In 2007, he moved to Rome after winning a grant from the Spanish Academy there.

The artist putting finishing touches on “Sarajevo Dental Floss” (2007):

Image via onemansblog

We wish this promising artist all the best and wonder if Bic has thought about sponsoring his art? More amazing drawings and paintings can be found on Juan Francisco Casas website.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4

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Photo: Chrystelle Fontaine via Eduardo Kac (though whether the rabbit did glow so brightly and uniformly has been challenged)

What do you get if you cross a bunny rabbit, some jellyfish genes and a madcap Brazilian bio-artist? Alba, the glowing green rabbit. Yes, we know, it’s an oldie, but it’s a goodie too, and one that’s worth retelling, if only to see what became of the bunny. In 2000, artist Eduardo Kac commissioned a French genetics lab to make his genetically modified creation by implanting the albino rabbit with Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) from a type of jellyfish. Under a certain blue light, Alba literally glowed green.

Controversy was never far from this art-meets-science experiment. The rabbit, viewed by Kac as a socio-cultural being – “an animal that does not exist in nature” – was to be taken home by the artist after a brief spell in an art installation. But under the growing media glare, the scientists decided the rabbit was staying put in the lab and distanced themselves from Kac. In 2002, it was announced that Alba had died, a claim that was hotly disputed by the artist, as rabbits can live for 12 years. Still, dead or alive, Alba’s memory shines on like a long-life light bulb.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4

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Image: Etsy

The next time you strip off to get down to some sweet loving and you really want to give your partner something to get hot under the collar about, you might want to try a pair of beef jerky undergarments. OK, so the pant-tastic surprise might not create the desired effect if you’re lover is vegetarian, but provided they’re a hot-blooded carnivore type, this could be a garment to really beef up your bedroom antics.

Priced at a not particularly credit crunch friendly $139, even so “brief jerky” underpants are “made to order for each specific customer from the highest quality of dried preserved meats we can find at the closest convenience store”. The untreated jerky is not for eating, but another health warning of sorts states: “Rumor has it that wearing our brief jerky undergarments will release their natural pheremones once your body heat and moisture kicks in!” Saucy.

Pick up a pair here. We were tipped off by Neatorama.

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All images via fickleflickers

Get creative and practice the art of paper folding by using up measly dollar bills or foreign currency souvenirs you’ve got lying around the house to create money origami masterpieces featuring famous people wearing all manner of headpieces from around the world. You’ll definitely find some inspiration in our collection of pictures, and you certainly won’t equate origami with just another paper crane after you see what people have done with their money.

Take a look, and go ahead, spend some time and get creative with some money origami pieces to wow your friends and family. If you’d like an extra challenge, you might even try to name all the famous people below, the kinds of hats they’re wearing and what country the currency comes from. Good luck!

Source: 1, 2

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Images: The Museum of The Mad, The Macabre, and The Marvelous via io9

Disturbing or fascinating? The specimen before you is the Lion of Gundavore, a horrific undead being that appears part Lion and part Megatherium, a long extinct elephant-sized sloth. This cursed creature is “just one of a menagerie of mythical and unreal beasts that populate the Museum of the Mad, the Macabre, and the Marvelous”.

This collection of cryptic, multiple hybrid creatures from the outer reaches of known civilization and the human psyche is like something out of a geneticist’s nightmare. Oddly enough though, CD Richardson, the Frankenstein-esque creator of these bizarre beasts, is keen to preserve their misplaced or misperceived beauty.

You can see more at io9, or if you dare take a wander around the Museum itself.

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Image via Dark Roasted Blend

Repurposing old buildings is quite the thing to do these days, but it’s not a scratch on applying such recycling principles to giant-sized vehicles. A Boeing 747, the first jumbo jet to be flown commercially, sits in South Korea – a decommissioned airliner that found a new lease of life converted into a restaurant.

It looks a little out of place stuck in the middle of the city, looming over the highway yet dwarfed by surrounding apartments, but it casts even more of a forlorn figure when you find out it has been abandoned for the second time and is no longer in use as an eatery either. Crying shame; we’d have definitely sampled the aeronautically themed ambience.

To see loads of extra pics and learn more about this strange converted aircraft, fly on over to Dark Roasted Blend

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