Tuesday, January 22, 2008

JNF Torah and Certificate stamp

Stars of David JNF stamp LeThorah VeliteudahStars of David appear on JNF stamp LeThorah Veliteudah (for Torah and Certificate) along with the Menorah and the Israeli flag which are frequently accompanying our national emblem. Photo is courtesy of Hayim Shtayer and the stamp is part of his collection.

Jan Vermeer

Some critics claim that the Dutch master artist Jan Vermeer (1632-1675) used a secret geometric formula to compose some of his masterpieces. It included the hexagram as a compositional guide. 

Vitruvian Man Hexagram

This drawing by Leonardo da Vinci illustrates the mathematical proportions found in human anatomy as described in the Golden Section or Mean. The hexagram framing the Vitruvian Man is more perfectly shown in the pentagram of Pythagoras, which can be broken into Golden Rectangles. At the bottom of the drawing is a coded message from Leonardo.

From: http://www.shoshone.k12.id.us/renaissance/math.htm

(and see the illustration there)

Note: Vitruvian Man is from 1492 . Named after a treatise on the proportions of the male human form by Vitruvius who was a Roman architect.

Intersecting Pyramids

See a diagram that shows the Vitruvius man so that its face is framed by the upper triangle of a Star of David that is formed by two intersecting pyramids.

Yellow Badge of Smokers

AP news item from January 11, 2008 tells about a T-shirt using a yellow badge to liken the treatment of smokers in Germany to that of Jews during Nazi rule. This is one of few expressions degrading the original yellow badge.