Exquisite Oil Paintings By Marey Jane Ansell

Christ of the Abyss

Christ of the Abyss is a submerged bronze statue of Jesus, of which the original is located in the Mediterranean Sea off San Fruttuoso between Camogli and Portofino on the Italian Riviera. It was placed in the water on 22 August 1954 at approximately 17 metres depth, and stands c. 2.5 metres tall. Various other casts of the statue are located in other places worldwide, both underwater and in churches and museums. The sculpture was created by Guido Galletti after an idea of Italian diver Duilio Marcante. The statue was placed near the spot where Dario Gonzatti, the first Italian to use SCUBA gear, died in 1947. It depicts Christ offering a blessing of peace, with his head and hands raised skyward.

Due to increasing amounts of corrosion and the growth of crustaceans, the statue was removed from the water and restored in 2003. A hand that had been detached by an anchor was also replaced. The statue was returned to the water with a new base on 17 July 2004. A second bronze sculpture cast from the same mould exists off the coast of St. George's, Grenada. This was a gift of the navy of Genoa for assistance in rescuing the crew of Italian vessel Bianca C destroyed by fire in the port of St. George's. The sculpture was placed under water on October 22, 1961. 

A third bronze from the original mould was presented to the Underwater Society of America in New York in 1962. On August 25, 1965 it was placed approximately in 25 feet of water off the coast of Key Largo, Florida. It is located around Dry Rocks, around six miles east of Key Largo in the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. While the statue weighs around 260 kg, the concrete base to which it is attached weighs about 9 tons. The original clay statue minus the hands was located in a foundry in 1993. This is now on display with replacement hands at the National Museum of Underwater Activities in Ravenna, Italy.

Storseisundet Bridge in Norway

Storseisundet Bridge in Norway — Nervous drivers (and their equally nervous passengers) beware! You should really prepare yourselves for the sight of Storseisundet Bridge in Norway. The road connection from the mainland Romsdal peninsula to the island of Averøya in Møre og Romsdal county doesn’t look as if it actually connects as you drive towards it. In fact it looks very much as if you are in for an icy bath as you plummet off its 23 meters height.

However, you will be relieved to hear that this is simply something of an optical illusion. The bridge is built in such a way that from a certain angle, as you approach, it looks as it is more diving board than bridge. One can only imagine the creative spirit that overcame the architect as he sat at his desk. Known locally as the drunk bridge it forms part of the Atlanterhavsveien or Atlantic Ocean Road in English and attracts many a curious visitor. The bridge's design is functional and curious much like an l shaped desk in a modern office, it still is an amazing location to behold.

Why it is built in this way is a secret lodged in the mind of its architect. It seems to have a different shape from whichever angle you view it which is, perhaps, what makes it so special.

                     Even when you can see the whole bridge it still looks, frankly, scary.

10 Most Popular Persons in Twitter

 Kim Kardashian — 17,158,415 followers — 160 following — 14,345 tweets

As Twitter become one of the most popular application, people starting to measure the popularity of persons with the number of follower in one’s twitter account. Here’s the Top 10 Most Popular persons based on Their Follower (update December 23rd 2009)

                       Shakira —19,241,907 followers — 72 following — 1,642 tweets

                           YouTube — 21,733,947 followers — 435 following — 6,754 tweets

              Taylor Swift — 22,762,995 followers — 82 following — 1,634 tweets

                 Rihanna — 27,791,642 followers — 900 following — 7,287 tweets

                    Barack Obama — 25,689,754 followers — 667,259 following — 8,250 tweets

               Katy Perry — 31,101,996 followers —118 following — 4,482 tweets

                       Britney Spears — 23,147,571 followers — 412,108 following — 2,230 tweets

               Justin Bieber — 

 

32,831,230 followers — 

 

23,405 following — 

 

20,423 tweets

 

                           Lady Gaga — 32,962,434 followers — 136,693 following — 2,558 tweets