Saturday 3 March 2012

The Marble Effect.



I detect a bit of  architectural competition going on in Bodrum today and it involves a lot of marble.  A while ago, about 2,360 years to be accurate, a large brick building was covered in marble. It gained quite a reputation, got itself on the "Seven Wonders of the World" list in fact. Even generated a word - "mausoleum"; we're still using it today. If you walk near the marina you cannot miss the stacks and stacks of marble along the seafront.  This time the marble is not going up a 40 meters high building, it's going along the pavement.  I wonder if this effort will generate a new word or enter the modern "Wonders of the World" list.  It is certainly an endeavour of epic proportions and gives our modern Bodrum more than a hint of its Halikarnassus past.





The museum at the site of the Mausoleum is on Turgut Reis Caddesi in Bodrum and it has its own room in the British Museum.

http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/galleries/ancient_greece_and_rome/room_21_halikarnassos.aspx




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12 comments:

  1. Anonymous3 March 2012 at 21:22

    that IS a lot of marble...look forward to seeing the pavement that is created!

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    Replies
    1. BacktoBodrum4 March 2012 at 10:56

      It's due to be finished in May. I'll post the fininshed picture

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    2. Anonymous5 March 2012 at 23:50

      look forward to it!

      Delete
  2. Alan4 March 2012 at 10:14

    Oh -oh! Wonderful in the winter wet!

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  3. BacktoBodrum4 March 2012 at 10:59

    The pavements have a drain running the whole length which seems to take care of the surface water. The big drawback is the chewing gum, which turns black when dropped on the marble.

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  4. Jack Scott4 March 2012 at 13:15

    Well done for getting the Turgut Reis thingy correct. Even the locals seem to spell and pronounce it wrong. But then I would expect nothing less from a top notch vetpat returning Belle! It's a pity about the chewing gum. They didn't have that problem in old Mausolus' day.

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  5. BacktoBodrum4 March 2012 at 14:07

    You've given me an idea for a post-grad subject. Chewing gum alternatives in antiquity. I wonder if it's been done.

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  6. Julia5 March 2012 at 14:01

    Hmm, I think a revisit to Bodrum is due soon, once all that lovely marble has been laid. We've got a few footpaths (not on this scale) made of marble and they're a tad slippery in the rain! :)

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  7. Ayak5 March 2012 at 18:47

    Can't wait to come over in May and see the end result.

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  8. BacktoBodrum5 March 2012 at 18:48

    I hope you'll call in for a coffee when you visit. Half of Bodrum is already "marbled" and it doesn't seem too bad in the wet. I do always wear my stout wellies so I may not have noticed the slipperyness.

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  9. BacktoBodrum5 March 2012 at 19:59

    Forget the coffee, we should have a bloggers' lunch in Bodrum

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