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Life in Brittany, in English

Some Jokes that may amuse!

Finally, it was revealed in a government survey published today, that the Prime Minister is doing the work of two men - Laurel and Hardy (Ronnie Barker)

Personally, I don't think there's intelligent life on other planets. Why should other planets be any different from this one? (Bob Monkhouse)

What is the difference between genius and stupidity? - Genius has limits.

Question. How can you tell when a politician lies. (e.g. George Bush, Tony Blair etc.)
Answer. His lips move

Serendipity is when you find the farmer's daughter in the haystack

We've heard that a million monkeys at a million keyboards could produce the complete works of Shakespeare; now, thanks to the Internet, we know that is not true. (Robert Wilensky)

Question. How many people work at your place?
Answer. About half

Formula 1

I have been watching the Formula 1, this weekend. It has been held in Monaco, the beautiful principality on the Cote d’Azur. I have followed F1 for over 20 years.

On Saturday, in qualifying, Michael Schumacher for Ferrari was sent to the back of the grid; 7 times world champion, he made a ‘mistake’ and stalled and this was seen as cheating, although only after nearly 8 hours of deliberation by the stewards.

His team-mate Massa made a mistake also, but this was seen as an error.

I was amazed to see the partisan venom thrown in the direction of Michael Schumacher. It was as if the whole F1 world had been overcome with a kind of mass hysteria.

His competitors, previous drivers and commentators, etc, they couldn’t contain themselves to have a go at Schumacher.

So he had to start from the pit lane in P22 and eventually he ended up in P5, but still there were no comments of praise for the world-class driver, that Michael is.

I used to be a great fan of Formula 1, but now I don’t know if I can follow such a sport that behaves like this.

Foods for Life!

This is a compacted view of a previous list

These are the super foods, which you ought to eat on a regular basis.

– Only use organic, consume no e-numbers, processed foods or hydrogenated fats.

Alfalfa, Almonds, Apple, Apricots, Artichokes, Asparagus, Avocado, Baked Beans, Bananas, Barley, Basil, Bean Sprouts, Beef, Beetroot, Bilberry, Blackberry, Blackcurrant, Blueberry, Brazil Nuts, Broad Bean, Broccoli, Brown Rice, Brussels Sprouts, Buckwheat, Butter, Butter Beans, Cabbage, Camomile, Carrot, Carrot Juice, Cashew Nut, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Celery, Cheese, Cherries, Chestnuts, Chicken, Chickpea, Chicory, Chili Pepper, Chives, Chocolate, Clam, Cloves, Cockles, Coconut, Cod, Coffee, Comfrey, Couscous, Crab, Cranberry, Cream, Crème Fraich, Cucumber, Dates, Eggs, Fennel, Figs, Flax Seeds, French Beans, Game Meat, Garlic, Ginger, Globe Artichoke, Grape Juice, Grapefruit, Grapes, Green Teas, Haddock, Hake, Halibut, Haricot Beans, Hazel Nut, Herring, Honey , Kidney Bean, Kippers, Kiwi Fruit, Leeks, Lemon, Lentils, Lettuce, Lime, Lingonberry, Linseed And Oil, Liquorice, Lobster, Macadamia Nuts, Mackerel, Mandarin, Mango, Meat Offal, Melon, Milk (full fat), Millet, Mint (tea), Molasses, Mung Bean, Mushrooms, Mussels, Mustard, Nettle, Oats, Oil of Evening Primrose, Oily Fish, Olives, Olive Oil, Onion, Orange, Oregano, Oysters, Palm Heart, Papaya, Parsley, Parsnip, Peach, Peanuts, Pear, Peas, Peppers, Peppercorn, Pilchard, Pine Nuts, Pineapple, Plums, Pollen, Pollock, Potatoes, Prawns, Propolis, Prune, Pulses, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Seed, Quinoa, Radish, Raisins, Raspberry, Red Cabbage, Red Wine, Rocket, Rosemary, Royal Jelly, Runner Beans, Rye, Safflower Oil, Saffron, Sage, Salmon, Sardine, Scallops, Sea Salt, Seaweed, Sesame Oil, Sesame Seed, Shallot, Shrimp, Slippery Elm, Soya Beans, Spelt, Spinach, Spirulina, Squash, Squid, Strawberry, Sultanas, Sunflower Oil, Sunflower Seed, Swede, Sweet Corn, Sweet Peppers, Sweet Potato, Tea, Tree Oil, Tangerines, Tarragon, Thyme, Tofu, Tomato & Juice, Trout, Tuna, Turkey, Turnip, Venison, Walnuts, Watercress, Wheat, Wheat grass, Wholegrain, Wild Rice, Witch Hazel, Yams, Yoghurt.

E Numbers

People are concerned about E numbers in their food, here is a list of them.

· E100 Curcumin
· E101 (i) Riboflavin (ii) Riboflavin-5'-phosphate
· E102 Tartrazine
· E104 Quinoline Yellow
· E110 Sunset Yellow FCF, Orange Yellow S
· E120 Cochineal, Carminic acid, Carmines
· E122 Azorubine, Carmoisine
· E123 Amaranth
· E124 Ponceau 4R, Cochineal Red A
· E127 Erythrosine
· E128 Red 2G
· E129 Allura Red AC
· E131 Patent Blue V
· E132 Indigotine, Indigo carmine
· E133 Brilliant Blue FCF
· E140 Chlorophylis and Chlorophyllins: (i) Chlorophylls (ii) Chlorophyllins
· E141 Copper complexes of chlorophylls and chlorophyllins (i) Copper complexes of chlorophylls (ii) Copper complexes of chlorophyllins
· E142 Greens S
· E150a Plain caramel
· E150b Caustic sulphite caramel
· E150c Ammonia caramel
· E150d Sulphite ammonia caramel
· E151 Brilliant Black BN, Black PN
· E153 Vegetable carbon
· E154 Brown FK
· E155 Brown HT
· E160a Carotenes: (i) Mixed carotenes (ii) Beta-carotene
· E160b Annatto, bixin, norbixin
· E160c Paprika extract, capsanthin, capsorubin
· E160d Lycopene
· E160e Beta-apo-8'-carotenal (C 30)
· E160f Ethyl ester of beta-apo-8'-carotenic acid (C 30)
· E161b Lutein
· E161g Canthaxanthin
· E162 Beetroot Red, betanin
· E163 Anthocyanins
· E170 Calcium carbonates
· E171 Titanium dioxide
· E172 Iron oxides and hydroxides
· E173 Aluminium
· E174 Silver
· E175 Gold
· E180 Latolrubine BK
· E200 Sorbic acid
· E202 Potassium sorbate
· E203 Calcium sorbate
· E210 Benzoic acid
· E211 Sodium benzoate
· E212 Potassium benzoate
· E213 Calcium benzoate
· E214 Ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate
· E215 Sodium ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate
· E216 Propyl p-hydroxybenzoate
· E217 Sodium propyl p-hydroxybenzoate
· E218 Methyl p-hydroxybenzoate
· E219 Sodium methyl p-hydroxybenzoate
· E220 Sulphur dioxide
· E221 Sodium sulphite
· E222 Sodium hydrogen sulphite
· E223 Sodium metabisulphite
· E224 Potassium metabisulphite
· E226 Calcium sulphite
· E227 Calcium hydrogen sulphite
· E228 Potassium hydrogen sulphite
· E230 Biphenyl, diphenyl
· E231 Orthophenyl phenol
· E232 Sodium orthophenyl phenol
· E233 Thiabendazole
· E234 Nisin
· E235 Natamycin
· E239 Hexamethylene tetramine
· E242 Dimethyl dicarbonate
· E249 Potassium nitrite
· E250 Sodium nitrite
· E251 Sodium nitrate
· E252 Potassium nitrate
· E260 Acetic acid
· E261 Potassium acetate
· E262 Sodium acetates (i) Sodium acetate (ii) Sodium hydrogen acetate (sodium diacetate)
· E263 Calcium acetate
· E270 Lactic acid
· E280 Propionic acid
· E281 Sodium propionate
· E282 Calcium propionate
· E283 Potassium propionate
· E284 Boric acid
· E285 Sodium tetraborate (borax)
· E290 Carbon dioxide
· E296 Malic acid
· E297 Fumaric acid
· E300 Ascorbic acid
· E301 Sodium ascorbate
· E302 Calcium ascorbate
· E304 Fatty acid esters of ascorbic acid (i) Ascorbyl palmitate (ii) Ascorbyl stearate
· E306 Tocopherol-rich extract
· E307 Alpha-tocopherol
· E308 Gamma-tocopherol
· E309 Delta-tocopherol
· E310 Propyl gallate
· E311 Octyl gallate
· E312 Dodecyl gallate
· E315 Erythorbic acid
· E316 Sodium erythorbate
· E320 Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)
· E321 Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT)
· E322 Lecithins
· E325 Sodium lactate
· E326 Potassium lactate
· E327 Calcium lactate
· E330 Citric acid
· E331 Sodium citrates (i) Monosodium citrate (ii) Disodium citrate (iii) Trisodium citrate
· E332 Potassium citrates (i) Monopotassium citrate (ii) Tripotassium citrate
· E333 Calcium citrates (i) Monocalcium citrate (ii) Dicalcium citrate (iii) Tricalcium citrate
· E334 Tartaric acid (L(+)-)
· E335 Sodium tartrates (i) Monosodium tartrate (ii) Disodium tartrate
· E336 Potassium tartrates (i) Monopotassium tartrate (ii) Dipotassium tartrate
· E337 Sodium potassium tartrate
· E338 Phosphoric acid
· E339 Sodium phosphates (i) Monosodium phosphate (ii) Disodium phosphate (iii) Trisodium phosphate
· E340 Potassium phosphates (i) Monopotassium phosphate (ii) Dipotassium phosphate (iii) Tripotassium phosphate
· E341 Calcium phosphates (i) Monocalcium phosphate (ii) Dicalcium phosphate (iii) Tricalcium phosphate
· E350 Sodium malates (i) Sodium malate (ii) Sodium hydrogen malate
· E351 Potassium malate
· E352 Calcium malates (i) Calcium malate (ii) Calcium hydrogen malate
· E353 Metatartaric acid
· E354 Calcium tartrate
· E355 Adipic acid
· E356 Sodium adipate
· E357 Potassium adipate
· E363 Succinic acid
· E380 Triammonium citrate
· E385 Calcium disodium ethylene diamine tetra-acetate (Calcium disodium EDTA)
· E400 Alginic acid
· E401 Sodium alginate
· E402 Potassium alginate
· E403 Ammonium alginate
· E404 Calcium alginate
· E405 Propan-1,2-diol alginate
· E406 Agar
· E407 Carrageenan
· E407a Processed eucheuma seaweed
· E410 Locust bean gum
· E412 Guar gum
· E413 Tragacanth
· E414 Acacia gum (gum arabic)
· E415 Xanthan gum
· E416 Karaya gum
· E417 Tara gum
· E418 Gellan gum
· E420 Sorbitol (i) Sorbitol (ii) Sorbitol syrup
· E421 Mannitol
· E422 Glycerol
· E425 Konjac (i) Konjac gum (ii) Konjac glucomannane
· E431 Polyoxyethylene (40) stearate
· E432 Polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate (polysorbate 20)
· E433 Polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate (polysorbate 80)
· E434 Polyoxyethylene sorbitan monopalmitate (polysorbate 40)
· E435 Polyoxyethylene sorbitan monostearate (polysorbate 60)
· E436 Polyoxyethylene sorbitan tristearate (polysorbate 65)
· E440 Pectins (i) pectin (ii) amidated pectin
· E442 Ammonium phosphatides
· E444 Sucrose acetate isobutyrate
· E445 Glycerol esters of wood rosins
· E450 Diphosphates (i) Disodium diphosphate (ii) Trisodium diphosphate(iii) Tetrasodium diphosphate (iv) Dipotassium diphosphate (v) Tetrapotassium diphosphate (vi) Dicalcium diphosphate (vii) Calcium dihydrogen diphosphate
· E451 Triphosphates (i) Pentasodium triphosphate (ii) Pentapotassium triphosphate
· E452 Polyphosphates (i) Sodium polyphosphates (ii) Potassium polyphosphates (iii) Sodium calcium polyphosphate (iv) Calcium polyphophates
· E459 Beta-cyclodextrine
· E460 Cellulose (i) Microcrystalline cellulose (ii) Powdered cellulose
· E461 Methyl cellulose
· E463 Hydroxypropyl cellulose
· E464 Hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose
· E465 Ethyl methyl cellulose
· E466 Carboxy methyl cellulose, Sodium carboxy methyl cellulose
· E470a Sodium, potassium and calcium salts of fatty acids
· E470b Magnesium salts of fatty acids
· E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E472a Acetic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E472b Lactic acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E472c Citric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E472d Tartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E472e Mono- and diacetyl tartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E472f Mixed acetic and tartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E473 Sucrose esters of fatty acids
· E474 Sucroglycerides
· E475 Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids
· E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate
· E477 Propane-1,2-diol esters of fatty acids
· E479b Thermally oxidized soya bean oil interacted with mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
· E481 Sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate
· E482 Calcium stearoyl-2-lactylate
· E483 Stearyl tartrate
· E491 Sorbitan monostearate
· E492 Sorbitan tristearate
· E493 Sorbitan monolaurate
· E494 Sorbitan monooleate
· E495 Sorbitan monopalmitate
· E500 Sodium carbonates (i) Sodium carbonate (ii) Sodium hydrogen carbonate (iii) Sodium sesquicarbonate
· E501 Potassium carbonates (i) Potassium carbonate (ii) Potassium hydrogen carbonate
· E503 Ammonium carbonates (i) Ammonium carbonate (ii) Ammonium hydrogen carbonate
· E504 Magnesium carbonates (i) Magnesium carbonate (ii) Magnesium hydroxide carbonate (syn. Magnesium hydrogen carbonate)
· E507 Hydrochloric acid
· E508 Potassium chloride
· E509 Calcium chloride
· E511 Magnesium chloride
· E512 Stannous chloride
· E513 Sulphuric acid
· E514 Sodium sulphates (i) Sodium sulphate (ii) Sodium hydrogen sulphate
· E515 Potassium sulphates (i) Potassium sulphate (ii) Potassium hydrogen sulphate
· E516 Calcium sulphate
· E517 Ammonium sulphate
· E520 Aluminium sulphate
· E521 Aluminium sodium sulphate
· E522 Aluminium potassium sulphate
· E523 Aluminium ammonium sulphate
· E524 Sodium hydroxide
· E525 Potassium hydroxide
· E526 Calcium hydroxide
· E527 Ammonium hydroxide
· E528 Magnesium hydroxide
· E529 Calcium oxide
· E530 Magnesium oxide
· E535 Sodium ferrocyanide
· E536 Potassium ferrocyanide
· E538 Calcium ferrocyanide
· E541 Sodium aluminium phosphate, acidic
· E551 Silicon dioxide
· E552 Calcium silicate
· E553a (i) Magnesium silicate (ii) Magnesium trisilicate
· E553b Talc
· E554 Sodium aluminium silicate
· E555 Potassium aluminium silicate
· E556 Calcium aluminium silicate
· E558 Bentonite
· E559 Aluminium silicate (Kaolin)
· E570 Fatty acids
· E574 Gluconic acid
· E575 Glucono-delta-lactone
· E576 Sodium gluconate
· E577 Potassium gluconate
· E578 Calcium gluconate
· E579 Ferrous gluconate
· E585 Ferrous lactate
· E620 Glutamic acid
· E621 Monosodium glutamate
· E622 Monopotassium glutamate
· E623 Calcium diglutamate
· E624 Monoammonium glutamate
· E625 Magnesium diglutamate
· E 626 Guanylic acid
· E627 Disodium guanylate
· E628 Dipotassium guanylate
· E629 Calcium guanylate
· E630 Inosinic acid
· E631 Disodium inosinate
· E632 Dipotassium inosinate
· E633 Calcium inosinate
· E634 Calcium 5'-ribonucleotides
· E635 Disodium 5'-ribonucleotides
· E640 Glycine and its sodium salt
· E900 Dimethyl polysiloxane
· E901 Beeswax, white and yellow
· E902 Candelilla wax
· E903 Carnauba wax
· E904 Shellac
· E912 Montan acid esters
· E914 Oxidized polyethylene wax
· E920 L-Cysteine
· E927b Carbamide
· E938 Argon
· E939 Helium
· E941 Nitrogen
· E942 Nitrous oxide
· E948 Oxygen
· E950 Acesulfame K
· E951 Aspartame
· E952 Cyclamic acid and its Na and Ca salts
· E953 Isomalt
· E954 Saccharin and its Na, K and Ca salts
· E957 Thaumatin
· E959 Neohesperidine DC
· E965 Maltitol (i) Maltitol (ii) Maltitol syrup
· E966 Lactitol
· E967 Xylitol
· E999 Quillaia extract
· E1103 Invertase
· E1105 Lysozyme
· E1200 Polydextrose
· E1201 Polyvinylpyrrolidone
· E1202 Polyvinylpolypyrrolidone
· E1404 Oxidized starch
· E1410 Monostarch phosphate
· E1412 Distarch phosphate
· E1413 Phosphated distarch phosphate
· E1414 Acetylated distarch phosphate
· E1420 Acetylated starch
· E1422 Acetylated distarch adipate
· E1440 Hydroxy propyl starch
· E1442 Hydroxy propyl distarch phosphate
· E1450 Starch sodium octenyl succinate
· E1451 Acetylated oxidised starch
· E1505 Triethyl citrate
· E1518 Glyceryl triacetate (triacetin)

Organic Food Trips

South Yorkshire is such an organic food desert.

We have to arrange trips to stock up on organic produce.

Last weekend, we visited the Organic Supermarket at Beeston near Nottingham; it’s called Out of this World.

We stopped for lunch at the car park next to the Hemlock Stone, a wonderful geological feature, amid a lovely parkland setting.

This weekend we have tripped out into West Yorkshire to Wharfedale, where the River Wharfe was in flood after last night's heavy rain.

We dined at lunchtime on fish and chips; from the Addingham Fisheries in the centre of Addingham, opposite the road to Bolton Abbey, this is one of the best fish & chip shops in West Yorkshire.

We then went down Wharfedale to Ilkley to shop at Booths Supermarket, for locally produced and organic food.

We then visited Waitrose at Otley , where we were able to stock up on many organic food basics.

We returned via the scenic route down Wharfedale via Pool and Harewood to Collingham, and then back via the A1 and M1 to South Yorkshire.

Brittany III

Useful Links to Brittany sites

Brittany Ferries
FrenchEntrée-Brittany
Le Côte de Granit Rose
Locquirec Guide
Manger Bio En Bretagne
Ouest-France Bretagne
Perros Guirec Guide
Port la Chaine
Speed Cameras in Brittany

Marsland Gems Weblog update

I have been writing this Blog since 21st March 2006, and it is very interesting to see where visitors and their interests lie.

I have a link to Clustermaps, where I can see the visible geographical locations from where my visitors come from. Click on the map image in the left hand column to see further detail.

Also I have a link to StatCounter, which gives me loads of other useful additional information and counts.

The Manchester Terrier

Our dog Pepe is a Manchester Terrier cross breed.

Here is a standard description of the breed, which may be of some help.

The distinctive looking Manchester Terrier has changed very little since the 1500's. It is an elegant black and tan dog with a medium length tapered tail. The Toy variety weighs up to 12 lb. and has only naturally erect ears.

The Standard variety weighs over 12 lb. and up to 22 lb., and may have naturally erect, cropped, or button ears.

In England, where the breed was developed, its purpose was to kill rats, and later, to flush game for hunters. Today it serves primarily as a companion, but for those who train them, it can be a working dog.

Equally at home in the country or city, the Manchester is admired for its keen intelligence, cleanliness and versatility. It is an excellent watch dog -- a little dog with a big bark -- but it is not suitable as an outdoor - only watch dog left by itself regularly. The Manchester thrives on the companionship of thoughtful children. It is a natural companion animal and demands attention from its family. In return, the Manchester will reward you with affection, loyalty, and protectiveness.

The Manchester's short, dense, glossy black coat with rich mahogany tan markings accounts for the breed's original name of Black and Tan Terrier. The coat is easy to care for, but it does not offer much protection from the cold. The dogs do shed, but they rarely need to be bathed. Their nails grow quickly and should be kept short to avoid injury and maintain an attractive appearance.

With persistence and firmness, Manchester Terriers housebreak readily and take well to crate training. They can excel in dog show conformation, obedience, tracking, agility trials and earthdog events. Manchester Terriers make excellent pets for active families and travel well. The athletic Manchester will chase anything, any size, that threatens its turf. It should have a fenced yard.

Overall, the Manchester is a hardy breed. With proper food, shelter from the cold, exercise, training and love, your Manchester Terrier may live 15 years or more.

The Roman roads in Britain I

There is no doubt that one of the greatest achievements the Romans brought to Britain was the construction of the network of roads that rang throughout the whole country. Before the Romans, the roads were just dirt tracks with mounds and potholes that injured unsuspecting travelers and broke many a cart.

Then after 43 Ad, that all changed. As the Romans went forward and deeper in England, they established towns and regional capitals civitas capitals. To join them together, they embarked on a massive programme of road building as they had done in Europe. In total there were over 53,000 miles (85,000 kms) of road in Britain and the continent.
The new roads enable troops and equipment to be moved great distance in a fraction of the time it would normally take. Trade benefited by the introduction of the roads by giving merchants the ability to move goods between towns much faster and easier and with less risk of damage to their goods. Fresh fruit and vegetables were moved around from the agriculturally rich lands in the south and sold in the north where conditions for farming were less favourable. The produce arrived fresher, and so meant that a better price could be bargained.

The construction of a road
As with all Roman design, the fundamentals were thought out to ensure the maximum benefit from the construction process. The reason the Roman roads were so strong, was due to the foundations that were laid and the techniques used in the design. Apart from natural undulations in the roads, they were mainly built in an absolutely straight line between two points

The roads passed around obstacles such as hills, to avoid the extra effort needed by heavy wagons to negotiate the rise. It was mostly on a high point of ground that a junction was built, which was used by the surveyors to make the viewing of the road easier and to ensure that it was built as straight as possible.

The process of building a road was divided into four actions

1. Firstly a ditch about 3 ft (1 metre) deep was excavated.
2. The was filled with large stones that were packed as compactly as possible to avoid movement and so lessen the risk of the road sinking over time.
3. Over this a layer of smaller stones was laid and this was bound by cement that just covered the stones.
4. The final layer was made up of gravel, or small pieces of flint that was compressed as tightly as possible.

If local materials, such as slag from local mines was available, then this too was added to give extra strength.
Working from the middle of the road outwards:

• There was the road itself which was cambered so that the centre was about 1 ft (30 cms) above the sides. This allowed the drainage of rainwater to wash away the buildup of deposits that formed over the surface over time.
• The agger was on each side of the road and was a flat surface between 30-40 ft (12-15 metres) wide.
• At the edge of the agger was the drainage ditch that collected the excess water and moved it further along the length of the road.
• Then further outwards was the Zone limit ditch which defined where the road ended. This also served as a marker for the construction teams to indicate where they were to fell any trees and uproot bushes within this zone. In Roman times, highway robbers who preyed on unsuspecting traveler were common, and this extra ditch was mainly to protect anyone using the road from a surprise attack from the undergrowth.

An experiment

The Romans were noted for their straight roads that hardly deviated in course from one town to another no matter how far apart they were.
The next time you are out in the open in you home town or village, or wherever you live, find a wide open space and think of a town that is about 100 miles (160km) away. Now face in the exact direction of that town and ask yourself how you would build a road without using any detailed maps, or satellite images, or modern day electronic devices. Oh yes. The road must as straight without much variation in course between where you are now and the other town. You probably had trouble finding the exact direction to face in, let alone how to go about plotting it's course. So, why can't you do it? The Romans did.

Plotting the course of a road
Starting with the big picture
Of course, you couldn't do it because you were working alone. Today it takes teams of surveyors working together to plot the course of a road. So it was in Roman times and they used instruments that are the forerunners of the tools surveyors use today.
The amazing part of all this is that the Roman road system was very much the same throughout the whole empire. But not one instruction book has ever been found that gives details of how it was done. All we have to go on are the documents kept by individuals and Roman writers of the time. There is a clue in that Roman roads were not exactly straight over their entire length. But the straightest parts are in long sections. This leads us to believe that they went across a straight route allowing the inaccuracies to build up until they reached a point where slight changes in direction was necessary.. This would account for there consistently being many miles of straight sections, then a slight bend, followed by more miles of straight road.
As the Romans were superb engineers, they found a solution that was both simple in it's principle, but also intricate in it's detail. As with any project, you start off with the overall view and gradually work it down through a series of stages until you reach the lowest level. So it was with the Roman roads.

Marking the course of the road
The Celts had worn tracks from place to place over the years, so the Romans had a rough idea in which direction they were going. Many of the roads were already there in a very crude form. But these tracks had been made by accident by people walking along them, so they weaved around all over the place. Definitely not the Roman way.
When a decision had been made to build a road between two towns, teams of surveyors would set out along the route. They would head for patches of high ground and set up markers on hilltops and in open terrain where it was generally flat, such as the Anglian region of the Iceni and Trinovates.
Once they had completed this task, and there could be over a hundred of these markers between the two towns, then they would begin the task of ensuring these markers were in as straight a line as possible.
For this they used a groma, a very simple yet effective device for measuring the straightness of a line between a point where the observer was standing and a point some distance away on either side.

The groma
The groma was a horizontal wooden cross mounted on a stand that had a curved shaft running from this cross to a platform at the bottom. hanging from the end of each arm of the cross was a plumb line. This was just a string with a weight at the bottom. The reason for the curved shaft was so that the surveyor could sight across two opposite plumb lines without having an obstruction if the way. Of course, this could only be used in calm conditions so that the vertical lines would stay steady. In the not so settled conditions of Britain, they may have used a version where the plumb line was replaced up a nail pointing upwards as a sight. The cross at the top may have been rotatable with a disk underneath marked in degrees. Don't worry, all will come clear later.

Using the groma
The surveyor would place the groma on the one high point and line up both plumb lines so that they were both in line with one of the markers.
He would then go around to the other side and, without moving the groma, he would sight up the two plumb lines with the other marker. If he can see all three components are in line, then he knows the three points are also in line. If not, he could rotate the cross until the lines and the far marker lined up and read off the number of degrees deviation from the plate.

Back to the office
Once all the measurement had been taken, they would all head back to the office and transfer the readings onto one long sheet of paper, marking each point taking into account any deviation from the ones one either side. Once this had been done and all the points had been joined, the whole finished article was fixed to a wall and the surveyors could stand back and see the whole course of the road from start to finish. From this they could see which markers needed to be moved to make the road as straight as possible.

Making adjustments
When all the rogue markers had been re-sighted and the calculations remade and the map updated, the road was now showing sections of straight road with slight deviations where a change of course was necessary. A change of course would, for example, happen where the road was to cross a river and the Romans wanted to make the bridge at the narrowest point.

Marking the actual course of the road
Once the course of the road was decided, the next task was for the course of the road between each marker to be established.
The surveyor would then return to a marker with two assistants. One would stake out the route, the other signalled instructions to the first assistant. The surveyor would sight up the groma again between the current point and the far marker. He would then send the second assistant out with a set of poles. He would walk out about a hundred yards (100m) and stop to face the surveyor.
The surveyor would sight up the plumb lines with this assistant. He then issued commands to the other assistant standing next to him. The signaller would raise either his left or right arm depending on with way the assistant with the poles was to move to be in line. Once he was in line, the surveyor would give the O.K. and the signaller would raise both arms in the air as a sign for a pole to be planted in the ground. After securing the pole firmly, he would walk back a further hundred yards for the process to be repeated.
This whole procedure was repeated until there was a line of poles between the each main marker to guide the road building team.

Measuring and marking the road
One the road had been built, they Romans wanted to know how long it was. The idea of doing this was not only to aid the traveller, but also to enable them to work out the sizes of estates for tax purposes.
You must have seen him. The workman in his bright orange jacket walking along the road side with, what looks like, a wheel on the end of a stick. Actually, he has an odometer, which is used for measuring the distance between two points.
In Roman times, exactly the same type of instrument was used. Although, this was not quite the pocket sized version seen today. It was also known as an 'odometer'. From 'hodos' and 'metron', the Greek words for 'way' and 'measure'. Literally, 'measure the way'.

The Roman odometer
Like most Roman machines, the odometer was an ingenious device. The principle of it's operation was simple, the execution clever.
The device was actually one wheel of a cart that was linked to a series of gears with each wheel in the gear system turning slower than the previous. As the final gear turned, it would release a pebble from a chamber and drop it through a hole into a box.
When the cart left a town, the device was arranged so that one pebble dropped after each mile of travel. On arrival at the destination, the worker would take the stones from the box and count them. The number of stones removed equalled the number of miles travelled. The Roman mile was shorter than the one we know today.

Marking the road with distance signs
To help travellers during their journeys, the Romans put a milestone along the side of the road. As it's name suggests, these were direction and distance indicators placed at one mile intervals along roads. On this stone was the name and distance in miles of the town to the left, and below this was the same information about the town to the right. One thing archaeologists are thankful for, is the practice of many builders of inscribing their name and the year into the stone. This not only helps in ascertaining the age of the road, it also helps to estimate the year the Romans entered that area of Britain, and so reinforce the knowledge we have of how the Romans moved through the country.

This article was posted on the Internet several years ago, and unfortunately I do not have the author's name. If anyone knows the author? Please contact me, so that I may give the correct credit, that is due.

Roman Emperors

We are all interested in the Roman Empire, here is a list of the Emperors and dates of rule

• Augustus (23 B.C.)
• Tiberius (14 A.D.)
• Gaius [Caligula] (37)
• Claudius (41)
• Nero (54)
• Galba (68-69)
• Otho and Vitellius (69)
• Vespasian (69)
• Titus (79)
• Domitian (81)
• Nerva (96)
• Trajan (97)
• Hadrian (117)
• Antoninus Pius (138)
• Marcus Aurelius (161-180)
• Commodus (176-192)
• Pertinax (193)
• Septimus Severus (193-211)
• Caracella (198-217)
• Macrius (217)
• Elagabalus (218)
• Severus/Alexander (222)
• Maximin/Thrax (235)
• Gordian I, II, III (238)
• Philip and others (244)
• Decius and others (249)
• Gallienus and others (253)
• Claudius II (268)
• Aurelian and others (269)
• Tacitus (275)
• Probus (276)
• Carus (282)
• Carinus and Numerian (283)
• Diocletian (284-305)
• Maximian (286-305)
• Constantius Chlorus (293-296)
• Galerius (293-311)
• Flavius Severus (305-307)
• Licinus (308-324)
• Constantine I (306-337)
• Constantine II (337-340)
• Constans (337-350)
• Constantius II (337-361)
• Julian (361-363)
• Jovian (363-364)
• Valentinian (364-375)
• Valens (364-375)
• Gratian (367-383)
• Valentinian II (375-393)
• Theodosius I (379-395)
• Maximus (385-388)
• Eugenius (392-394)
• Honorius (395-423)
• Valentinian III (425-455)
• Leo I (457-474)
• Romulus Augustulus (475-476)

Brittany II

The part of Brittany that we like to visit is the Pink Granite Coast (Côte de Granit Rose) in the Côte d’Armour region. There are so many beautiful towns and villages such as Perros Guirec, Lannion, Tréguier, Paimpol, Tregastel, and Ploumanach.

But further a field are other delightful Breton towns, such as, Morlaix, Guingamp, Saint-Brieuc, Locquirec; and further to the south and west, Benodet, Quimper, Brest, Concarneau, Carnac, Guérande and La Baule.

I will post future articles about these places; these will include history, geography, food, geology, local industry, architecture and general items of interest.

By the way, the chap in the picture is me!
The menhir near Dol is nearly 30 foot in height.

Brittany I

In 1996, we had our first main holiday in Brittany; we camped at Le Ranolien at Perros Guirec with Canvas Holidays.

It was here where we fell in love with the landscape, culture, food, history, the people and all things Breton.

It also was here that we were introduced to Breton Music, an early favourite was the Didier Squiban & An Tour Tan, " Penn-Ar-Bed / Brest 96 " album.

Since then, we have visited the region at least twice every year since, travelling with Brittany Ferries from Portsmouth/Poole via St Malo, Cherbourg or Caen, to holiday in Brittany.

Further articles about Brittany are to follow.

Coastal Navigators--The First Americans May Have Come by Water

I have found this interesting article, and I have included all source information.

E. James Dixon's article "Coastal Navigators--The First Americans May Have Come by Water"

If the foragers who created Clovis culture walked into North America, they had to pass through the long-described “ice-free corridor. “But a growing body of evidence indicates that pathway between the great glaciers of the last Ice Age was closed — in fact, the way south may have been blocked until centuries after the dawn of Clovis. If the first Americans could not walk into the New World, how did they get there? Coastal or ocean routes navigated by watercraft are the most likely explanation.

No reliably dated human remains from the Americas are older than about 11,500 radiocarbon years (13,350 calendar years). This, along with other evidence, suggests humans first arrived in the Americas not more than 15,000 years ago (17,950 cal BP), near the end of the last Ice Age, the Late Wisconsin.

The climate was much colder then, and massive glaciers in the east and west formed a huge ice sheet covering most of Canada. The ice blocked access between what is today Alaska and the continental United States. Polar sea ice extended south into the Atlantic, covering Greenland, Iceland, and all but the southernmost areas of Ireland and England.

Because much of the earth’s water was trapped in glacial ice, sea level was lower. The continental shelves and the floor of the Bering and Chukchi seas were exposed, creating the Bering Land Bridge. The geography of the Ice Age limited possible migration routes into the Americas to the following: the Beringian mid-continental, the Northwest Coastal, the Pacific, and the Atlantic routes. The Beringian mid-continental route presumes that hunters and gatherers first entered North America from Asia across the Bering Land Bridge.

They then moved south into central-western Canada through the hypothetical ice-free corridor. But geologists working in Canada have recently demonstrated that the “ice-free corridor” did not exist at that time, and that connections between eastern Beringia and areas south of the continental glaciers were not established until about 11,000 years ago (13,020 cal BP).

Supporting this conclusion, palaeontologists have found no animal bones dating between about 21,000 to 11,500 years ago in the region formerly believed to have been the ice-free corridor. This evidence demonstrates fairly conclusively that the ice-free corridor did not exist during the last Ice Age. And it precludes a mid-continental route for human entry before about 11,000 years ago.

Deglaciation along the Northwest Coast of North America had begun by about 14,000 years ago (16,800 cal BP) and was sufficiently advanced to enable humans using watercraft to colonize coastal areas by 13,000 years ago (15,350 cal BP). The remains of land and sea mammals, birds, and fish dating to this time have been discovered along the Northwest Coast, demonstrating sufficient resources existed along the coast for people to have survived.

Because earlier geologic interpretations had indicated that the region had been entirely glaciated until about 10,000 years ago (11,350 cal BP), very little archaeological work has been undertaken to explore this region as a possible migration route. So far, no sites have been found that are older than about 10,500 to 10,000 years ago.

Some researchers believe humans may have crossed the vast expanse of the Pacific and colonized South America before anyone reached North America. Support for this theory is based on sites such as Monte Verde in southern Chile and Tiama-Tiama in northern Venezuela, which may be older than the oldest sites in North America. Biological evidence suggests some of the earliest skeletons in South America may share similarities with inhabitants of Polynesia and Australia.

The Atlantic route is championed by archaeologists Dennis Stanford and Bruce Bradley, who have documented a surprising number of technological traits shared between the Clovis complex of North America dating to between 11,500 and 10,900 years ago and the Solutrean tradition of Europe, which ended possibly as late as 16,000 years ago (19,100 cal BP). They hypothesize that Solutrean maritime hunters and fishers may have worked their way along the southern margins of the Atlantic sea ice to the New World during the Late Wisconsin.

The preponderance of linguistic and biological evidence indicates that Native Americans most likely originated somewhere in north-eastern Asia. Only the Northwest Coastal and mid-continental routes lead from there to the Americas. Because the mid-continental route was not open until about 11,000 years ago, the most plausible route for the initial colonization of the Americas seems to be along the Northwest Coast.

The colonization of continents is a complex process that spans a long period of time and probably involves many groups of people from different places. Archaeologists must keep their minds open to the many ideas being offered to explain the peopling of the New World.

There are tantalizing biological and technological clues that suggest possible contact, perhaps even colonization, between the Americas and Australia, Polynesia, Europe, and even Africa. The timing and processes of the colonization of the Americas are important because the cultural adaptations of the New World’s first populations established the foundation for all subsequent cultural development in the Americas and for the rich and diverse cultures that followed.

E. JAMES DIXON is Curator of Archaeology at the Denver Museum of Natural History. His latest book, Bones, Boats & Bison: Archaeology and the First Colonization of Western North America, is in publication by University of New Mexico Press.

The Solutrean Solution--Did Some Ancient Americans Come from Europe?
by Dennis Stanford and Bruce Bradley

For half a century, archaeologists have assumed that ancestors of the Clovis people — long considered the first Americans — crossed the Bering Land Bridge from northeast Asia some 14,000 calendar years ago, then spread southward across the continent. But there is something wrong with that picture.

Years of research in eastern Asia and Alaska have produced little evidence of any historical or technological connection between the Asian Palaeolithic (Stone Age) and Clovis peoples. Also, the south-eastern United States has produced more Clovis sites than the West, and a few radiocarbon dates suggest some of them may predate those in the western states. If correct, that hardly fits the notion that Clovis technology originated in northeast Asia or Alaska.

Over the years, various scholars have noted similarities between Clovis projectile points and “Solutrean” points, the product of a Palaeolithic culture on the north coast of Spain between 22,000 and 16,500 years ago. Little credence has been given to suggestions of a direct connection between these technologies because of the 4,500-year time gap between the last of Solutrean and the first of Clovis, and because of doubts that people of the Upper Palaeolithic could navigate the Atlantic Ocean.

But indirect evidence for Palaeolithic ocean travel has been mounting. Although no boats have been found, we now know that by at least 40,000 years ago, watercraft carried a founding population to Australia. By 28,000 years ago, flint knappers were collecting raw materials from islands far off the Japanese coast. And closer to Spain, Palaeolithic peoples inhabited some of the Mediterranean islands at least 14,000 years ago.

Solutrean peoples could have used this knowledge of watercraft to travel and exploit marine resources, which would have been especially important during the last glacial maximum, about 18,000 years ago; when most of Europe was covered with ice and competition for diminishing land resources must have been intense. Given these facts, we believe the hypothesis of a western Old World ancestry for Clovis should be reconsidered.

To determine whether the idea was worth additional study, we examined archaeological collections in Spain, France, and Portugal, looking for technological affinities between the European Upper Palaeolithic and Clovis. Our cursory examination revealed an amazing correspondence between Solutrean and Clovis; in fact, Solutrean has more in common with Clovis than with Palaeolithic technologies that followed it in Europe.

Solutrean and Clovis flint knappers used nearly identical stone working technologies. We observed a high degree of correspondence between stone and bone tools, as well as engraved limestone tablets, and caching of extra large bifaces and other tool stock. The Solutrean toolkit is, with a few exceptions, nearly identical to that of Clovis. Although some of the Solutrean concave-base projectile points are heavily thinned, none that we saw exhibited a well-developed Clovis-style flute. Clovis assemblages lack shouldered points and the Solutrean laurel-leaf knife.

A Solutrean origin for the Clovis culture seems a more parsimonious explanation of the evidence than an Asian ancestry. Certainly, if Solutrean industries were found in Siberia, no one would question their historical relationship with Clovis.

The ultimate test of this hypothesis may be found in genetic research on ancient human remains. Michael Brown and colleagues reported in 1998 that mitochrondrial-DNA haplogroup X (a genetic marker of population groups) is found in low frequencies in both European and Native American populations, but not among Asians. This indicated to them that some of the American founders may have come from Europe between 36,000 and 12,000 years ago.

Regardless of whether a Solutrean-Clovis link is eventually proven, exploring this hypothesis should increase our understanding of the development of technological innovations and broaden our knowledge of early peoples of the New World.

DENNIS STANFORD is Chairman of the Anthropology Department at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.
BRUCE BRADLEY is President of Primitive Tech Enterprises, Inc., in Cortez, Colorado, and Adjunct Professor at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

All articles reprinted from "Discovering Archaeology," Feb. 2000.