Evolution of the umbrella
QUESTION Who invented the umbrella?
UMBRELLAS and parasols (to protect from the sun) developed independently across various cultures. Ancient Egyptian carvings dating back to 2450 BC depict a flabellum, a fan of palm leaves or feathers, for the purpose.
In the British Museum, there is a wall panel depicting Ashurnasirpal II, king of Assyria from 883 to 859 BC, with a eunuch behind him with a parasol.
In Ancient Greece, a parasol (skiadeion) was carried by ladies from the 5th century BC.
From China, we find evidence of portable devices used to provide shelter against the sun and the rain. The Rites of Zhou, a series of ceremonial documents dating from the Zhou Dynasty, discuss the etiquette around protecting dignitaries from the elements.
The construction of the traditional Chinese umbrella evolved at this time. These required meticulous craftsmanship. A canopy, typically crafted from oiled paper or silk, was chosen for its lightweight yet durable properties, protecting from both sun and rain. The frame, traditionally made of bamboo or wood, could withstand the wind.
The next great innovation in umbrella technology appeared from France in January 1710. Jean Marius obtained a five-year royal privilege for his invention of a ‘folding pocket parasolumbrella’. In a letter of June 18, 1712, Elizabeth Charlotte, Madame Palatine, praised the ‘expeditious parasol-umbrella that can be carried everywhere, in case you are caught in the rain while out walking’. Hans Haupt, a German soldier injured in the First World War who wasn’t able to carry both his walking stick and his umbrella, invented the telescopic umbrella in 1928. Louise O’Brien, Clitheroe,
Lancashire.
QUESTION Does anyone recall a TV programme in which former cricketer David Gower traced his uncle’s role in the Second World War?
THIS was a short-lived Channel 5 TV show entitled War Hero In My Family, broadcast for a single series in 2012. Narrated by John Thomson, it featured moving tales about the heroic relations of various celebrities including Lisa Faulkner, Pamela Stephenson and Sara Cox.
David Gower’s uncle, John Ronald Gower, was a highly decorated naval commander who commanded several ships, notably the HMS Swift, which bombarded Sword Beach before the D-Day landings of June 6, 1944.
John survived the war but his younger brother Derek was killed during the battle.
The youngest brother, Dicky, was in the Colonial Service and became the father of David Gower, one of England’s most elegant batsmen. David visits the site of his uncle’s death and discovers how the family struggled to come to terms with the loss.
The show featured some remarkable tales of heroism. Chris Tarrant learnt that at the time of the Normandy Landings his father, Major Basil Tarrant, had led a unit of 16 British soldiers through a minefield to successfully attack two farm buildings where at least 60 Germans were holed up, near Groesbeek on the Dutch-German border. For this action, Basil was awarded the Military Cross. Ian Cotton, Swadlincote, Derbyshire.
QUESTION Why is Soulton Hall in Shropshire considered such a unique piece of architecture?
SOULTON Hall, just outside the market town of Wem, was built by Rowland Hill (c.1495-1561), the first Protestant lord mayor of London, in 1549. Hill was notable as the publisher of the Geneva Bible, the premier Bible of 16thcentury English Protestantism; it was the version used by Shakespeare and was also taken on the Mayflower to America.
Hill took advantage of the Dissolution of the Monasteries to acquire land belonging to several abbeys in Shropshire.
An enthusiastic patron of the arts, particularly drama, he was also the publisher of a number of medical and esoteric works. His interest in esoteric mysteries found expression in his Tudor country seat of Soulton Hall.
The buildings there were conceptually sophisticated, based on ideas found in scripture, mathematics, humanism and classical philosophy. For instance, the main hall with the two tower-like projections was intended to evoke Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem. Modern excavations suggest that the entire structure was based around a rhombic dodecahedron, a complex mathematical shape with perfect properties.
The entire precinct is thought to have evoked the Telesterion, a sacred hall at Eleusis in Ancient Greece. Precise records of the buildings have been lost, leaving an architectural puzzle. Edward Clegg, Whitchurch, Shropshire.
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