This Signpost "Featured content" report covers material promoted from 26 October to 1 November 2014. Anything in quotation marks is taken from the respective articles and lists; see their page histories for attribution.
The Boat Race 1993(
nominated by
The Rambling Man) Another part of The Rambling Man's drive to put as many articles about the
Boat Race up to FA level, this covers the 1993 vintage, which RM says is a personal favourite. The race—held annually on the
River Thames between crews from the Universities of
Oxford and
Cambridge—was an interesting one. New technology was employed by Cambridge in the form of the
cleaver blades they used, while Oxford favoured the more traditional
macon oar. Also notable on the day was one of the Oxford rowers,
Matthew Pinsent, who found himself on the losing side for once (although with five Olympic gold medals to console him, it probably doesn't cause him too much grief). Cambridge extended their lead in the competition to 70–68.
Carl Hans Lody(
nominated by
Prioryman) Lody was a reserve officer of the
Imperial German Navy, who spent the opening months of the First World War spying on Britain. He'd received no training for the work, and was easily identified by the British counter-espionage agency MO5(g), the forerunner of
MI5. They allowed him to carry on spying to gain information about German espionage techniques and spy networks. The work was relatively easy for MO5(g): Lody would send his reports un-coded to an address in Sweden known to be a postbox for German agents. By October 1914 MO5(g) had ordered his arrest; he travelled to Ireland in order to escape, but unwittingly left a trail so obvious that police tracked him down in less than a day. He stood trial, was convicted, sentenced to death and, on 6 November 1914, "shot at dawn by a firing squad at the
Tower of London in the first execution there in 167 years". A hundred years after his death he
appeared as TFA.
Chandralekha (1948 film)(
nominated by
Kailash29792)Chandralekha is "a 1948
IndianTamilhistorical fiction film directed and produced by
S. S. Vasan. Starring
T. R. Rajakumari,
M. K. Radha and
Ranjan in the lead roles, the film follows two brothers named Veerasimhan and Sasankan, who fight with each other over ruling their father's kingdom and for marrying the village dancer Chandralekha", according to the article. The story is based on a chapter of
George W. M. Reynolds's 1848 novel Robert Macaire: or, The French bandit in England. The film was in production for five years and became the most expensive film made in India at the time.
Endometrial cancer(
nominated by
Keilana) Something of a rarity: a health and medicine FA, (and a fantastic article it is too). The article concerns that
cancer which "arises from the
endometrium (the
lining of the
uterus or womb). It is the result of the abnormal growth of
cells that have the ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body." While strongly related to obesity, the cancer is also "associated with excessive
estrogen exposure,
high blood pressure and
diabetes." It is the third most common cause of death from female cancers and caused 76,000 deaths in 2012. The re-write and review process included an expert review from
Cancer Research UK.
Jack Crawford (cricketer)(
nominated by
Jhall1 &
Sarastro1) Crawford was "a rather arrogant but massively talented cricketer", according to Sarastro. Crawford played for
Surrey and
South Australia as an
all-rounder. He could score quickly, with powerful shots, and bowled an accurate
medium-pacedoff spin. He made his debut for
England before he was 21 years old, but only played in 12 matches for England, "although critics believed he had a great future in the sport and was a potential future England captain".
HMS Formidable (67)(
nominated by
Sturmvogel 66) HMS Formidable was an
aircraft carrier ordered for the
Royal Navy before the onset of the Second World War, which was completed in late 1940. Sturmvogel 66 tells us that the ship had an extremely active role during the war, which included service in most major theatres of British involvement. The ship was "worn out by her wartime service and was scrapped as uneconomical to repair in 1953 after a brief period ferrying troops about shortly after the end of the war".
Acacia pycnantha(
nominated by
Melburnian &
Cas Liber) This plant is also more commonly known as the golden wattle; it has "profuse fragrant, golden flowers [that] appear in late winter and spring, followed by long seed pods". The plant is native to southern Australia, and since 1988 it has been the official
floral emblem of the country. Despite such high official note for the flower, it is considered a weed in a range of countries, including South Africa, Tanzania, Italy, Portugal, India, Indonesia and New Zealand.
Ontario Highway 403(
nominated by
Floydian) This highway is a 125.2 km (77.8 mi) road that runs through Ontario, between
Woodstock and
Mississauga. The road was first proposed in the 1950s, its first section was opened in December 1963, and it was finally completed in August 1997.
No. 1 Squadron RAAF(
nominated by
Ian Rose) FAC delegate Ian Rose once again turns into FA writer Ian Rose, as he turns his attention to a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) squadron. Formed during the First World War, the squadron saw action in the
Sinai and Palestine Campaigns; it was also active during the Second World War, in the
Malayan and
Dutch East Indies campaigns, where it suffered severe losses. It flew missions during the
Malayan Emergency in the late 1950s, and had been quiet since, until being assigned to the
military intervention against ISIS. Aircraft from the squadron conducted their first mission, and their first strike, over Iraq in October 2014.
Midsummer Eve Bonfire on Skagen Beach(created by
P. S. Krøyer,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) "Midsummer Eve Bonfire on Skagen Beach (Danish: Sankt Hansblus på Skagen strand) is a 1906 painting by P.S. Krøyer. The large work, which took several years to complete, shows many of the artists in the group known as the Skagen Painters as well as influential members of Skagen's local community."
Yellow-billed shrike(created by
Sumeet Moghe,
nominated by
Jim Carter) The yellow-billed shrike, also known as Corvinella corvina, "is a common resident breeding bird in tropical Africa from Senegal east to Uganda and locally in westernmost Kenya. It frequents forest and other habitats with trees. The nest is a cup structure in a bush or tree into which four or five eggs are laid. Only one female in a group breeds at a given time, with other members providing protection and food."
Franz Lehár(created by
Bain News Service, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden) Best known for The Merry Widow, Austro-Hungarian composer
Franz Lehár was a prolific composer of
operetta in the early 20th century. Like many classical composers, his music has entered society so pervasively that many people will know his music without realizing it; for example, the waltz from The Merry Widow was used in Mister Rogers' Neighborhood for that show's variant of a "Happy Birthday" song.
Madonna with the Blue Diadem(created by
Raphael and
Gianfrancesco Penni,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) "The Madonna with the Blue Diadem is a painting by Raphael and his pupil Gianfrancesco Penni, and was most likely painted in Rome around 1512." The painting is now at the
Louvre. In the Louvre, the painting is named Virgin and Child with the Infant Saint John, also known as Virgin with the Veil or Virgin with the Blue Diadem. Additional names include Virgin with the Linen, Slumbering Child and Silence of the Holy Virgin."
£5 Kingdom of England exchequer note(
nominated and prepared from the collections of the
National Numismatic Collection of the
Smithsonian Institution by
Godot13) "A 5 pound interest-bearing Kingdom of England Exchequer note dated 6 August 1697. These bills were first introduced one year earlier (1696) and paid interest for loans made to the government. This note was issued during the reign of William III, less than a decade after England’s 1689 Bill of Rights was adopted, and a decade before Great Britain was formed."
Mating Gulf fritillaries(created by
Umbris,
nominated by
Gwillhickers) "The Gulf fritillary or passion butterfly (Agraulis vanillae) is a bright orange butterfly of the family Nymphalidae and subfamily Heliconiinae." It "is a medium to large butterfly, with a wingspan of 6–9.5 cm (2.4–3.7 in). Its underwings are buff, with large silvery spots. It takes its common name from its migration over the Gulf of Mexico."
Franklin Pierce(created by
Mathew Brady,
nominated by
Adam Cuerden) Technically, this reached featured picture a while ago, but I realised the day after it passed that I could do a better crop, and, as I'm the editor of the Featured Content section, I held it back until after the featured credit got moved to the better image.
Franklin Pierce, the American president who failed to avert the
American Civil War, became a featured article back in September, and this restoration was the Signpost's way of celebrating that.
Léal Souvenir(created by
Jan van Eyck,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) A souvenir brought from
Leal for a man named Timothy... oh, wrong kind of souvenir. This small 1432 oil-on-oak panel portrait by the Early Netherlandish painter
Jan van Eyck takes its name from the French inscription, meaning "Faithful Remembrance". The article is likely to show up here within a couple weeks, following its lead image's success.
Sunrise, Inverness Copse(created by
Paul Nash,
nominated by
Hafspajen) Although Nash developed into a surrealist painter, during World War I he still had more traditional tendencies. The war had a great effect on him, and in a letter to his wife he wrote "I am no longer an artist interested and curious, I am a messenger who will bring back word from the men who are fighting to those who want the war to go on for ever. Feeble, inarticulate, will be my message, but it will have a bitter truth, and may it burn their lousy souls".
Cypresses at Cagnes(created by
Henri-Edmond Cross,
nominated by
CorinneSD) This painting is "among the late works of the artist, after shifting his technique from Pointillism to 'broad, blocky brushstrokes'." It "illustrates the 'second generation Neo-Impressionism strategy' of keeping 'the colors separate'. Cross's paintings of this time were considered 'precursors to Fauvism and Cubism'."
Long-billed curlew(created by
Frank Schulenburg,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) One of relatively few featured pictures of North American birds, this shot shows a
long-billed curlew standing on the beach at
Point Reyes National Seashore. The photographer explained that he was lucky to take this shot, for "shooting at a beach means you really need to get low and probably will get wet… And someone on the ground making funny moves attracts dogs". We'll let you imagine what happened.
Bangles(created and
nominated by
Muhammad Mahdi Karim) Although the Christmas season is just around the corner, the jingling you hear is not bells. No, its these
bangles on sale in
Bangalore. Such bracelets have an important place in Hindu tradition: it is inauspicious for a woman to go with bare arms, and "it is a common tradition to see a new bride wearing glass bangles at her wedding and the honeymoon will end when the last bangle breaks".
Southern side of the Taj Mahal(created by
Yann,
nominated by
Jim Carter) It's the
Taj Mahal. We really don't need to introduce it, do we? We do? Alright, this white-marble mausoleum was constructed in the 17th century and serves as the final resting place of Mughal emperor
Shah Jahan and his third wife,
Mumtaz Mahal. It is now a very popular tourist attraction (and subject of numerous pictures on Commons).
This Signpost "Featured content" report covers material promoted from 26 October to 1 November 2014. Anything in quotation marks is taken from the respective articles and lists; see their page histories for attribution.
The Boat Race 1993(
nominated by
The Rambling Man) Another part of The Rambling Man's drive to put as many articles about the
Boat Race up to FA level, this covers the 1993 vintage, which RM says is a personal favourite. The race—held annually on the
River Thames between crews from the Universities of
Oxford and
Cambridge—was an interesting one. New technology was employed by Cambridge in the form of the
cleaver blades they used, while Oxford favoured the more traditional
macon oar. Also notable on the day was one of the Oxford rowers,
Matthew Pinsent, who found himself on the losing side for once (although with five Olympic gold medals to console him, it probably doesn't cause him too much grief). Cambridge extended their lead in the competition to 70–68.
Carl Hans Lody(
nominated by
Prioryman) Lody was a reserve officer of the
Imperial German Navy, who spent the opening months of the First World War spying on Britain. He'd received no training for the work, and was easily identified by the British counter-espionage agency MO5(g), the forerunner of
MI5. They allowed him to carry on spying to gain information about German espionage techniques and spy networks. The work was relatively easy for MO5(g): Lody would send his reports un-coded to an address in Sweden known to be a postbox for German agents. By October 1914 MO5(g) had ordered his arrest; he travelled to Ireland in order to escape, but unwittingly left a trail so obvious that police tracked him down in less than a day. He stood trial, was convicted, sentenced to death and, on 6 November 1914, "shot at dawn by a firing squad at the
Tower of London in the first execution there in 167 years". A hundred years after his death he
appeared as TFA.
Chandralekha (1948 film)(
nominated by
Kailash29792)Chandralekha is "a 1948
IndianTamilhistorical fiction film directed and produced by
S. S. Vasan. Starring
T. R. Rajakumari,
M. K. Radha and
Ranjan in the lead roles, the film follows two brothers named Veerasimhan and Sasankan, who fight with each other over ruling their father's kingdom and for marrying the village dancer Chandralekha", according to the article. The story is based on a chapter of
George W. M. Reynolds's 1848 novel Robert Macaire: or, The French bandit in England. The film was in production for five years and became the most expensive film made in India at the time.
Endometrial cancer(
nominated by
Keilana) Something of a rarity: a health and medicine FA, (and a fantastic article it is too). The article concerns that
cancer which "arises from the
endometrium (the
lining of the
uterus or womb). It is the result of the abnormal growth of
cells that have the ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body." While strongly related to obesity, the cancer is also "associated with excessive
estrogen exposure,
high blood pressure and
diabetes." It is the third most common cause of death from female cancers and caused 76,000 deaths in 2012. The re-write and review process included an expert review from
Cancer Research UK.
Jack Crawford (cricketer)(
nominated by
Jhall1 &
Sarastro1) Crawford was "a rather arrogant but massively talented cricketer", according to Sarastro. Crawford played for
Surrey and
South Australia as an
all-rounder. He could score quickly, with powerful shots, and bowled an accurate
medium-pacedoff spin. He made his debut for
England before he was 21 years old, but only played in 12 matches for England, "although critics believed he had a great future in the sport and was a potential future England captain".
HMS Formidable (67)(
nominated by
Sturmvogel 66) HMS Formidable was an
aircraft carrier ordered for the
Royal Navy before the onset of the Second World War, which was completed in late 1940. Sturmvogel 66 tells us that the ship had an extremely active role during the war, which included service in most major theatres of British involvement. The ship was "worn out by her wartime service and was scrapped as uneconomical to repair in 1953 after a brief period ferrying troops about shortly after the end of the war".
Acacia pycnantha(
nominated by
Melburnian &
Cas Liber) This plant is also more commonly known as the golden wattle; it has "profuse fragrant, golden flowers [that] appear in late winter and spring, followed by long seed pods". The plant is native to southern Australia, and since 1988 it has been the official
floral emblem of the country. Despite such high official note for the flower, it is considered a weed in a range of countries, including South Africa, Tanzania, Italy, Portugal, India, Indonesia and New Zealand.
Ontario Highway 403(
nominated by
Floydian) This highway is a 125.2 km (77.8 mi) road that runs through Ontario, between
Woodstock and
Mississauga. The road was first proposed in the 1950s, its first section was opened in December 1963, and it was finally completed in August 1997.
No. 1 Squadron RAAF(
nominated by
Ian Rose) FAC delegate Ian Rose once again turns into FA writer Ian Rose, as he turns his attention to a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) squadron. Formed during the First World War, the squadron saw action in the
Sinai and Palestine Campaigns; it was also active during the Second World War, in the
Malayan and
Dutch East Indies campaigns, where it suffered severe losses. It flew missions during the
Malayan Emergency in the late 1950s, and had been quiet since, until being assigned to the
military intervention against ISIS. Aircraft from the squadron conducted their first mission, and their first strike, over Iraq in October 2014.
Midsummer Eve Bonfire on Skagen Beach(created by
P. S. Krøyer,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) "Midsummer Eve Bonfire on Skagen Beach (Danish: Sankt Hansblus på Skagen strand) is a 1906 painting by P.S. Krøyer. The large work, which took several years to complete, shows many of the artists in the group known as the Skagen Painters as well as influential members of Skagen's local community."
Yellow-billed shrike(created by
Sumeet Moghe,
nominated by
Jim Carter) The yellow-billed shrike, also known as Corvinella corvina, "is a common resident breeding bird in tropical Africa from Senegal east to Uganda and locally in westernmost Kenya. It frequents forest and other habitats with trees. The nest is a cup structure in a bush or tree into which four or five eggs are laid. Only one female in a group breeds at a given time, with other members providing protection and food."
Franz Lehár(created by
Bain News Service, restored and
nominated by
Adam Cuerden) Best known for The Merry Widow, Austro-Hungarian composer
Franz Lehár was a prolific composer of
operetta in the early 20th century. Like many classical composers, his music has entered society so pervasively that many people will know his music without realizing it; for example, the waltz from The Merry Widow was used in Mister Rogers' Neighborhood for that show's variant of a "Happy Birthday" song.
Madonna with the Blue Diadem(created by
Raphael and
Gianfrancesco Penni,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) "The Madonna with the Blue Diadem is a painting by Raphael and his pupil Gianfrancesco Penni, and was most likely painted in Rome around 1512." The painting is now at the
Louvre. In the Louvre, the painting is named Virgin and Child with the Infant Saint John, also known as Virgin with the Veil or Virgin with the Blue Diadem. Additional names include Virgin with the Linen, Slumbering Child and Silence of the Holy Virgin."
£5 Kingdom of England exchequer note(
nominated and prepared from the collections of the
National Numismatic Collection of the
Smithsonian Institution by
Godot13) "A 5 pound interest-bearing Kingdom of England Exchequer note dated 6 August 1697. These bills were first introduced one year earlier (1696) and paid interest for loans made to the government. This note was issued during the reign of William III, less than a decade after England’s 1689 Bill of Rights was adopted, and a decade before Great Britain was formed."
Mating Gulf fritillaries(created by
Umbris,
nominated by
Gwillhickers) "The Gulf fritillary or passion butterfly (Agraulis vanillae) is a bright orange butterfly of the family Nymphalidae and subfamily Heliconiinae." It "is a medium to large butterfly, with a wingspan of 6–9.5 cm (2.4–3.7 in). Its underwings are buff, with large silvery spots. It takes its common name from its migration over the Gulf of Mexico."
Franklin Pierce(created by
Mathew Brady,
nominated by
Adam Cuerden) Technically, this reached featured picture a while ago, but I realised the day after it passed that I could do a better crop, and, as I'm the editor of the Featured Content section, I held it back until after the featured credit got moved to the better image.
Franklin Pierce, the American president who failed to avert the
American Civil War, became a featured article back in September, and this restoration was the Signpost's way of celebrating that.
Léal Souvenir(created by
Jan van Eyck,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) A souvenir brought from
Leal for a man named Timothy... oh, wrong kind of souvenir. This small 1432 oil-on-oak panel portrait by the Early Netherlandish painter
Jan van Eyck takes its name from the French inscription, meaning "Faithful Remembrance". The article is likely to show up here within a couple weeks, following its lead image's success.
Sunrise, Inverness Copse(created by
Paul Nash,
nominated by
Hafspajen) Although Nash developed into a surrealist painter, during World War I he still had more traditional tendencies. The war had a great effect on him, and in a letter to his wife he wrote "I am no longer an artist interested and curious, I am a messenger who will bring back word from the men who are fighting to those who want the war to go on for ever. Feeble, inarticulate, will be my message, but it will have a bitter truth, and may it burn their lousy souls".
Cypresses at Cagnes(created by
Henri-Edmond Cross,
nominated by
CorinneSD) This painting is "among the late works of the artist, after shifting his technique from Pointillism to 'broad, blocky brushstrokes'." It "illustrates the 'second generation Neo-Impressionism strategy' of keeping 'the colors separate'. Cross's paintings of this time were considered 'precursors to Fauvism and Cubism'."
Long-billed curlew(created by
Frank Schulenburg,
nominated by
Chris Woodrich) One of relatively few featured pictures of North American birds, this shot shows a
long-billed curlew standing on the beach at
Point Reyes National Seashore. The photographer explained that he was lucky to take this shot, for "shooting at a beach means you really need to get low and probably will get wet… And someone on the ground making funny moves attracts dogs". We'll let you imagine what happened.
Bangles(created and
nominated by
Muhammad Mahdi Karim) Although the Christmas season is just around the corner, the jingling you hear is not bells. No, its these
bangles on sale in
Bangalore. Such bracelets have an important place in Hindu tradition: it is inauspicious for a woman to go with bare arms, and "it is a common tradition to see a new bride wearing glass bangles at her wedding and the honeymoon will end when the last bangle breaks".
Southern side of the Taj Mahal(created by
Yann,
nominated by
Jim Carter) It's the
Taj Mahal. We really don't need to introduce it, do we? We do? Alright, this white-marble mausoleum was constructed in the 17th century and serves as the final resting place of Mughal emperor
Shah Jahan and his third wife,
Mumtaz Mahal. It is now a very popular tourist attraction (and subject of numerous pictures on Commons).
Discuss this story
Lack of humour
"Downey, Jr."?
I don't know how this page is put together, or where the following text is (evidently) transcluded from, so I can only comment here. @ Lady Lotus:? Boldface added.
Since when has "Jr." been treated as part of the last name? Never, as far as I know, and certainly not in the article this paragraph is about, which refers to him three times after the beginning, each time as just "Downey". -- Thnidu ( talk) 07:00, 17 November 2014 (UTC) reply
Franz Lehár
The ¶ about Franz Lehár says
Fred Rogers would have not have been happy. His show was titled Mister (not Mr.) Rogers’ (no d, and with an apostrophe) Neighborhood. -- Thnidu ( talk) 07:08, 17 November 2014 (UTC) reply
Carl Hans Lody
"Neutral Ireland"? Err, no, at the time the whole of Ireland was part of the UK. -- Arwel Parry (talk) 07:29, 17 November 2014 (UTC) reply
Hozier
"Take Me To Church," finally! Smart people are Lithuanian. LonelyLaura ( talk) 20:02, 21 November 2014 (UTC) reply