I recommend working from this high-res image, it was taken by the museum's photographer, probably fairly recently. I imagine it was done properly and has the least amount of lens distortion. Different pics taken with different cameras can distort the pic slightly so its best to use this one, I'm now correcting everything I've done to match this.
@duck and all the others waiting for a response: I am currently experiencing a saddening emotional crisis (read: heartbreak) and I will be hopefeully over this in a few days. Sometimes life just sucks. Be patient...
@duck
31.639 inches by 45.333inches at a resolution of 72 pixels per inch
is just enough for a tabloid sized print.
a vector image would be great is some one wanted to print out a tarp to unfurl from a skyscraper.
so good work
thanks
@the_real_simon_iff
Power to ya !
@the_real_simon_iff - i am sure i am not alone in saying "Best wishes to you and yours" as you deal with this.
"Blessed be" as the wiccans say, "Bom shankar" as the Shaivites bellow, "Mazel tov" as them that call It 61 say.
Best always, my Comrade.
Sorry to hear that. Take your time, there's no hurry. These corrections I'm doing are going to take ages anyway.
Thank you guys! I am going with AL II:22 for a while, but of course I'll be back.
These corrections I'm doing are going to take ages anyway.
Please define the term age, in chronological units understandable by human units who are short on patients patience. I'm wondering if the French had something to do with at least one of those variants.
A couple of days probably. This high-res image reveals a lot more detail, I want to include some of this but a lot of it is just caused by the irregularities of the board it was painted on and imperfections in the artist's brushstrokes. I don't think these irregularities are important so I won't include them now though I can in another version later on.
I'm wondering if the French had something to do with at least one of those variants
I looked them up: from Latin via Old French, I guess you were right.
A couple of days probably.
So an "age" is a day. That's cool, because, you know, we're supposed to take it "one day at a time."
I see thousands of people entering the Aeon of Maat in just a short while. Probably after the in-home restrictions lift.
This high-res image reveals a lot more detail
Yes, hi-res work opens up an entirely new dimension. Let me get this straight. This is an image of the original stele in the museum in Cairo, Is that correct?
Yes, this one:
Right. I know you said that earlier. I just wanted to make certain.
In this case, any imperfections are probalby not ripples in the wooden board, but (as LAShTAL pointed out to us), the board has been coated with a plaster-like substance, the name of which escapes me, and the image was then painted on that (supposedly) smoother surface.
It is good that you have found such a fine, museum-sponsored, digital artifact. In the much smaller set of three stelae I posted above, the middle one was shot through the cabinet glass, and it is the poorest quality of the three.
OK, here's Ankh v2, with more detail thanks to that high-res photo:
Each of the leopard (cheetah?) spots now crafted by hand (using the circle tool would be too easy now wouldn't it, and the result too "perfect"). And for extra detail, the thick lines are now made of two normal lines with the gap between them filled in. Also I spent a long time getting his eye just right, I see it has having a slight "smile".
Some of the missing information due to damage on the original still needs to be filled in such as how exactly his lips and nose should go and whether he has a "hairline" or not, this can be figured out later and possibly put to a vote.
Also I spent a long time getting his eye just right
"It took me like three hours to finish the shading on his upper lip."
Really though, nice job. The line art is good.
For my blasphemous Herge-pastiche ligne claire redux of the Stele of Revealing.
"It took me like three hours to finish..."
Haha, pretty much. 🙂 I'm obsessing over all the small details, if I hadn't found these high-res photos I might have got the whole thing done by now.
Herge-pastiche ligne claire redux of the Stele of Revealing
You seem to actually have a talent for this kind of thing (I think I saw a small example of it on some other thread too). You could combine this talent with your "high-falutin" word-smithery skills to make a webcomic like xkcd or similar but with a more esoteric/philosophical angle.
I'm obsessing over all the small details, if I hadn't found these high-res photos I might have got the whole thing done by now.
Yet it would have been a stick-figure cartton compared to the masterpiece you are creating. The XV is in the details. You know the Law: Take your time.
Well if it helps I have a tea mug that has a cute duck on it. It even has a golden rim.
@djedi
You are a strange one. I appreciate you.
RE Herge good eye. Went to the Tintin shop in Brussels maybe 2 times, probably 1x age 9 1x age 15. Got some watches.
Love his work.
I also love his friend and 'copier' who did Blake and Mortimer.
a bientot
Love his work.
I also love his friend and 'copier' who did Blake and Mortimer.
My favorite ligne claire comic is probably The Adventures of Alix. They never seem to get to places like Palmyra or Samarkand, but I'll always prefer stories set in the bronze age or earlier (or so far ahead that it wraps around e.g. Zothique). In this case, it's sword and sandal, but I like sword and sorcery even more.
You could combine this talent with your "high-falutin" word-smithery skills to make a webcomic
I'm too flighty to keep a schedule like that, and the market is over-saturated anyway. But, for one time only, I made one just for you, as a congratulation for undertaking this labor.
Possible joke left in by the artist? AC would probably approve. 😝
Possible joke left in by the artist?
Potty-minded perverts among us?
Sorry this is taking so long. The "two lines to make one line" technique I'm using is slow but I think it looks better and is closer to the original. Here's a bit of RHK version 2:
Getting the right colours and minor details can be sorted out later.
Looking very nice.
Thanks, its slowly getting there. I have now got RHK to a standard I am happy enough with, I've put him in a .pdf:
He was the most time-consuming to do. I wanted to keep most of the quirkiness of the original and getting all the little "tiles" of his throne perfectly "wrong" took a lot longer than I initially thought it would. Different versions can be made later on with these quirks "ironed out" if that's what some folks may prefer.
Well if it helps I have a tea mug that has a cute duck on it. It even has a golden rim.
Thanks, I always knew I could count on you when the time came. 😊
Wow, this looks very good, and the "very basic, bright colours" look fabulous.
i'm sure you will change these out later for more accurate reproductions of the actual stele colors, but i suggest also producing an alternative psychedelic/comic-book version along these "very basic, bright colours" lines.
Yes, some very nice work there your Drakeness.
He was the most time-consuming to do. I wanted to keep most of the quirkiness of the original and getting all the little "tiles" of his throne perfectly "wrong" took a lot longer than I initially thought it would.
I found that as well when drawing my own stele, and it surprised me how much attention I found myself giving to getting those tiles as "wrong", or "imperfect" as possible!
Image-clusteringly yours,
NormaN Joy Conquest
your Drakeness.
As an uncouth American, raised in a savage land lacking the undoubted benefits of a hereditary aristocracy, i had no idea of the proper form of address for a Duck, and i thank you for clarifying this, Jamie, and providing an example for us all.
As an uncouth American, raised in a savage land lacking the undoubted benefits of a hereditary aristocracy ...
Very good. Confession is good for the Soul, they say.
Just in case I happened to leave this world for whatever reason before I finished the Stele, I have uploaded the (Inkscape) svg file here for someone else to complete in that situation.
https://mega.nz/file/wbp2EAgb#BqZf1oRTflYv-kilBs_DEjyRcPbWxk20APUgFmybQyk
Or you may just want to have a look at the file to see what's going on in which case you need to download Inkscape (its free):
Here a pic of my progress:
Getting everything exactly "wonky" in accord with the high res photo is a lot more time-consuming than it would be to make a recreation with everything "perfect". This "perfect" version of the Stele would be a nice project for someone (probably not me) to do, and probably more "fun". I would recommend that project instead of what I'm doing (which requires being an obsessive nerd with lots of time to spare).
I made a start with the hieroglyphs (they're a bit quicker to do).
what I'm doing (which requires being an obsessive nerd with lots of time to spare).
Your confession is also noted, and three Great British Pounds (lbs) have been credited to your karmic account in the Hall of Maat. Being associated with Tahuti, I have a way to "fix" the Record of the Scales of Justice.
Your Last Thelema Will and Testament is noted, and should you depart before The End of the World, which is forbidden, someone is certain to carry on your obsession with nit-picking excellence.
Can you explain why British "pounds" are symbolized with an "L" having a line drawn through?
I once read why "Dollars" are symbolized by a "S" with a vertical line drawn through, but I can't remember that $tory.
You take your sweet time , your Drakeness, you are accruing many incarnations worth of blessings according to some heathen belief-systems.
Shiva: Before decimalization, UK currency was Pounds/Shillings/Pence; Pence (cents, pennies) being for some reason abbreviated as "d." (small "D" i think), so a slangy way to say "money" was "£.s.d.", somewhat similar to the demonic "L.S.D." Can't recall AC ever using this bit of slang, but quite common in older UK writing. Many puns post-'60s of course.
The £ is a capital "L" with a line through for reasons no one knows anymore, "L" for "libra pondo", "libra" as in scales. Originally a pound weight of silver.
Finally got Hadit done, here he is in pdf form with a quick paint job:
He looks wonky and irregular because the original is wonky and irregular.
Oh, and a progress report, why not:
The trickiest parts are now done so the rest shouldn't take too long. Solid black lines and hieroglyphs mean those parts are done, the rest of the 'glyphs are roughly sketched in and need to be sorted out.
He looks wonky and irregular ...
I think he looks pretty spiffy. I purposely turned on my Wonk Irregularity Detector(TM) and thought, That looks like the real deal.
Good show. Thanks for the update.
Marginal footnote scribbled in the column: Ankh is not wearing his Foo."
In the ancient land of Khem, there was this magical Foo bird.
Abdullah the bald-headed bearded one was standing in his courtyard, next to the fountain. The Foo bird flew over him and crapped on his head.
He washed his head in the sandalwood-scented fountain waters, stood up, and fell over dead.
The mortal morale moral of this story is ...
If the Foo shits - wear it!
Ankh knew, and he wore it. And you are restoring his Stele so that we can all be reminded in HiRez.
Excellent work!
Owner and Editor
LAShTAL
It is looking good.
Thanks. I made Nuit's two hands shown based on other depictions of her.
Its not clear if this is entirely accurate but there are some faint lines in the original which suggest this as a possibility:
Little details like this can be added/removed "to order" (price: £/$ 0) when its finished, just ask.
(price: £/$ 0)
And just exactly how much would that be in Eurodollars?