2021年8月 - 星空迷

蒙特城堡，意大利普利亚大区 Castel del Monte, Apulia, Italy (© Toni Spagone/Alamy)

An octagonal architectural treasure

Built in the 1240s by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in southeast Italy, Castel del Monte (Castle of the Mount) features an unusual octagonal design. Eight stone walls stretch between eight octagonal towers and enclose an octagonal courtyard. Each of the two floors also has eight trapezoidal rooms. Acclaimed and protected as a World Heritage Site in 1966, the castle symbolically reflects a harmonious integration of classical Roman, Arabic, and medieval architecture and design—and to some, its octagonal symmetry suggests a connection between heaven and earth.

Its original purpose is unclear. Without a drawbridge, moat, or curtain wall to protect it, it was clearly not a defensive fortress, and its lack of stables call into question its function as a hunting lodge. Over the centuries it has served as a prison and as a refuge from the plague. But whatever the emperor's intention, he left a captivating monument that still enchants today.

八角形建筑瑰宝

蒙特城堡（山上城堡）建于1240年代，由神圣罗马皇帝腓特烈二世在意大利东南部建造，具有不同寻常的八角形设计。八堵石墙在八座八角形塔楼之间延伸，围绕着一个八角形庭院。两层楼各有八个梯形房间。1966年，这座城堡被誉为世界遗产，并受到保护。它象征性地反映了古典罗马、阿拉伯和中世纪建筑与设计的和谐结合，对某些人来说，它的八角对称性暗示着天地之间的联系。

其最初目的尚不清楚。由于没有吊桥、护城河或幕墙的保护，它显然不是一个防御堡垒，而且它没有马厩，这使它作为狩猎小屋的功能受到质疑。几个世纪以来，它一直被用作监狱和躲避瘟疫的避难所。但不管皇帝的意图是什么，他留下了一座迷人的纪念碑，至今仍令人着迷。

圆顶礁国家公园的大教堂谷，犹他州 Mesas, Upper Cathedral Valley, Capitol Reef National Park, Utah (© Tim Fitzharris/Minden Pictures)

This 'reef' is nowhere near the sea…

…nor the US Capitol building it's named for. Utah's Capitol Reef National Park—first established as a national monument this day in 1937—is named for its massive rock domes that reminded explorers of that famous rotunda back in Washington, DC. Why Capitol 'Reef,' though? Because the imposing formations were a major obstacle to travelers through the region, the same way a coral reef is an obstacle to sailors.

This section of the park, Cathedral Valley, is dotted with monoliths that differ from the namesake domes, instead featuring sheer, jagged walls. While most of the park rests on a steeply warped section of Earth's crust, Cathedral Valley is relatively flat—so rather than carving out gently sloping domes, water erosion here has tended to cut deep, narrow recesses down the rock faces.

这个“暗礁”离海很远…

…也不是以它命名的美国国会大厦。犹他州国会珊瑚礁国家公园于1937年作为国家纪念碑首次建立，以其巨大的岩石圆顶命名，使探险家们想起了华盛顿特区著名的圆形大厅。但为什么国会大厦是“暗礁”？因为壮观的地形是旅行者穿越该地区的主要障碍，就像珊瑚礁是海员的障碍一样。

公园的这一部分，即大教堂谷，点缀着不同于同名圆顶的巨石，取而代之的是陡峭、参差不齐的墙壁。虽然公园的大部分都坐落在地壳急剧弯曲的部分，但大教堂山谷相对平坦，因此这里的水侵蚀倾向于沿着岩石表面切割出深而窄的凹坑，而不是雕刻出缓倾斜的圆顶。

Welcome to Scotland's garden

Today, we're in the 'Garden of Scotland,' better known as the East Lothian region, to pay homage to the area's agricultural roots on Lammas Day. Also known as Loaf Mass Day, it's an observance that marks the beginning of the harvest season and is traditionally celebrated on August 1. The holiday is descended from the ancient British tradition known during the Middle Ages as the Gule of August and was gradually incorporated into the Christian liturgy celebrating Holy Communion. It gets its name from loaves of bread baked from the first harvested grain of the season each year.

Traditionally, Lammastide festivals would mean up to 10 days of raucous eating, drinking, and general merriment. Scottish couples could also take advantage of another common practice during a Lammas fair: a trial marriage, or 'handfast,' where a young couple could live together for a trial period that could last as long as the Lammas festival itself, or even up to a full year. If at the end of the trial the couple decided to call things off, the woman could return to her family with all of her possessions. If a child was born from this union, it would go live with the father without stigma. And while this arrangement seems awfully modern, it was likely just a consequence of a lack of priests—handfasts allowed a single traveling priest to perform all the town's weddings in one day.

欢迎来到苏格兰花园

今天，我们来到了“苏格兰花园”，更著名的是东洛锡安地区，在南丫岛日向该地区的农业根源致敬。也被称为面包弥撒日，这是一个标志着收获季节开始的节日，传统上在8月1日庆祝。这个节日起源于中世纪英国古老的传统，被称为八月红色，并逐渐融入基督教庆祝圣餐的礼拜仪式中。它的名字来源于每年收获的第一批谷物烘焙的面包。

传统上，Lammatide节日将意味着长达10天的喧闹的饮食和一般的欢乐。苏格兰夫妇还可以利用拉玛节期间的另一种常见做法：试婚，或“禁手”，年轻夫妇可以在一起生活一段试婚期，这段试婚期可能与拉玛节本身一样长，甚至长达一整年。如果在庭审结束时，这对夫妇决定取消婚约，这名妇女可以带着她所有的财产回到家中。如果一个孩子是从这种结合中出生的，那么他将与父亲生活在一起，没有任何耻辱感。虽然这种安排看起来非常现代，但很可能只是因为缺少牧师的手铐，一个旅行的牧师可以在一天内完成镇上所有的婚礼。