The next time you go to the beach and pick up a piece up something from the sand, think of the story of how it arrived there. Is it something lost from the local town, or something that has drifted for years to arrive here just for you?
Kuroshio Current (upper left)
Early in the 1900’s – commercial Japanese crab fishermen began replacing wooden and cork floats on their fishing nets with free blown glass floats. When the nets broke loose or were lost, the net rotted and the glass balls floated free from their nets and drifted across the Pacific, along with much other debris, on the Kuroshio Current (also known as the Black Stream or Japanese Current). This is a north-flowing ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean and it is part of the North Pacific ocean gyre1.
In my years on the lights there was always talk of finding a glass ball. The inside lights such as my first one at Pulteney Point did not have too much chance of stopping a floating glass ball because of the strong tides.
My first outside light [not sheltered by land] was Quatsino but with only one beach at the back of the island and all the rest rocky it was nigh on impossible. Pachena wasn’t much better and we weren’t there long enough to hit the beaches around the area. Green Island was like Pulteney but we did find one or two there sitting in the pools.
So a real outside light was needed, and one was waiting!
Our 14 ft. Zodiac with stowable sail - photo John Coldwell
We moved to McInnes Island in 1977 and in the next couple of years we outfitted a fourteen (14) foot (4.27 m) Zodiac with a 25 HP Evinrude outboard with which we could go beachcombing. The children were still young then (see photo left) so a lot of the beachcombing was done alone with not much luck. Oh, I found a couple but nothing big. Then a friend came up and he found a larger one – about 12 inches (30.5 cms) in diameter along with a couple of small ones. Continue reading Glass Balls – The Dream of Every Beachcomber→
I came across this item in a sale flyer that came out today. It is a jigsaw puzzle lighthouse in 3D. It is available in many places in Europe, and possibly in America (Canada and USA), although I did not find it in Amazon.ca or Amazon.com. The finished tower is 8.3 cms (3.25″) wide by 35.0 cms (13.5″) high.
The advertising video on the webpage shows it a bit exaggerated I think. To find the videos look to the right of the two small photos on the webpage, and you will find the videos in two blue boxes labelled TV-Spot and Erklärfilm. One of the videos is here – click your mouse on the blue link.
I came across this Alabama, USA Blog website today promoting Christmas ornaments with the theme Christmas on the Coast from Mobile, Alabama. They are very nicely done in brass with 24k gold plating.
Can you draw a lighthouse? I cannot, but the people at Turbo Squid seem to be able to.
3D lighthouse drawing
You have never heard of Turbo Squid? Neither had I until I came across the picture at the left. This is a 3D drawing of a lighthouse.
3D lighthouse showing makeup
The actual drawing is made up of 346 polygons and 631 triangles according to the website and the photos. These polygons and triangles can be seen in the photo on the left.
March 15, 2014 – I was notified by Ghislain Bonneau today that he is no longer interested in maintaining his website so I have removed all links to his webpage which now no longer exists.
Ghislain Bonneau found my website while looking for photos of BC lighthouses. He is a Canadian painter using oil on canvas as his medium. I love his rendition of the west coast seas. Because of the oil medium, the water looks wet – almost like you could get your hand wet by touching it.
October 03, 2012 – A new painting by Ghislain showing Cox Bay near Tofino, British columbia. In the background left is the Lennard Island lighthouse, a common topic for Ghislain as he lives in the area.
#101 Lennard Island, 30″ x 48″ oil on canvas, 2011
On the left is a painting of Lennard Island lighthouse which is very well done – I think even the lighthouse keeper on Lennard Island would like this one. The viewpoint is a common one in many photos of Lennard Island as it is easily accessible for making photos.
Below is one of many videos that Ghislain has made while on the west coast. This one shows the view towards Lennard Island lighthouse, and a quick view of the lighthouse at the end.
More west coast videos can be seen on his webpage here.
#88 Trial Island, 18″ x 24″, 2007
Another lighthouse painting he has done is of Trial Island, off Victoria, BC. It shows the lighthouse with a heavy bank of cloud behind, early morning sunrise – painted from a photo taken from the golf course.
#90, Trial island, 18″ x 24″, 2007
Another painting of Trial Island. Trial island is right on Ghislain’s doorstep. I like the former painting of Trial a lot better. I find the house in this painting looks like a round Dutch windmill house, rather than the stark, straight-sided, Canadian lighthouse buildings.
#96, Ocean West, Ucluelet, BC
On his website, Ghislain has many other art works besides paintings. Myself, I like the oil paintings best, but you decide. My last contribution to this artist is a painting that I really like. This is where the oil paint makes the water look wet. Love it!
If you see something you like, contact Ghislain Bonneau. He says he is not selling anything right now, but it never hurts to ask.
Amphitrite Point – photo Ghislain Bonneau
The newest painting (2012) from Ghislain is this one of Amphitrite Point lighthouse (automated). I love the lighthouse lantern, the way it is lit from inside without showing the lamp. Well done!
To make the paintings Ghislain takes many photos. A collection of his photos are available here. Please respect his wishes and use them for personal use only. They make lovely screensaver photos.
Yes, it’s just in time for Christmas and it is red and white, just like a Canadian lighthouse. It is the new LEGO model # 5770, called Lighthouse Island. Any child would love it; any adult who collects lighthouses will want it too! Just ignore the sign on the box that says ages 8 – 12.
Following along on the Lighthouse Lapel Pins collections, how many of you knew there were two Canadian lighthouse coins issued?
2004 Sambro Island lighthouse $20 coin
The first Canadian lighthouse coin was issued in 2004 and is from the Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) lighthouse series depicting the Sambro Island Lighthouse which was built in 1758 and remains North America’s oldest operating lighthouse. It is located at the mouth of Halifax Harbour, Nova Scotia.
The quantity minted was limited to 25,000 but only 17,515 were actually struck. Because of this this coin will be the lowest mintage coin in this series. It is now worth approximately $60 CDN (2011).
2005 Gibralter Point lighthouse $20 coin
The second Canadian lighthouse coin was issued in 2005, also by the Royal Canadian Mint with a limited mintage of 14,006. It depicts the Gibraltar Island lighthouse on Toronto Island, Ontario, Canada. A special feature of this coin is the high-tech minting technique which accentuates the beam of light from the lighthouse. It is also worth around $60 CDN (2011). If you want it with all the original RCM packaging, then it can be purchased for $109.88 (2011) from Colonial Acres Coins.
That’s it! There doesn’t seem to be anymore. Is there word of any more being issued? I do not know. Keep your eye out for the next one at the RCM website or sign up for the email newsletter.
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2003 Maine quarter (25 cent piece)
The US issued on June 02, 2003 a Maine State quarter depicting the Pemaquod lighthouse and is the 23rd quarter to be released in the U.S. Mint’s 50 State Quarters program. The Maine State quarter was the first U.S. coin to depict a lighthouse and it was only issued in a mintage of 448,800,000.
Launched in 1999, the United States Mint’s 50 State Quarters Program was a 10-year initiative that honored each of the nation’s states in the order that they ratified the Constitution or were admitted into the Union. Each quarter was produced for about 10 weeks and will never be produced again.
The 50 State Quarters were released by the United States Mint every ten weeks, or five each year. Each quarter’s reverse commemorated one of the 50 states with a design emblematic of its unique history, traditions and symbols.
A new Lighthouse Quarter from the US is to feature Acadia lighthouse. It is to be released in the Summer of 2012 – US Mint to Feature Acadia Lighthouse
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Early Roman coin showing a grain ship and the lighthouse at Alexandria (left)
The only other coin I can find with a lighthouse is one issued in AD 190 – 182 by the Romans. It depicts the famous lighthouse of Alexandria which fell down in 1323.
Are there any other coins in the world depicting lighthouses? Please drop me a comment or place a message in my Guestbook.
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2011-10-18
I was planning a holiday to Turkey, and for some reason one of my searches turned up an eBay page offering Turkish silver coins for sale. They are very beautifully engraved coins with lighthouses on them. Only two have been issued.
The first issued in 2008 depicts the Kizilada lighthouse in Fethiya, Turkey. The second issued in 2010 depicts the Ahikari lighthouse in Istanbul, Turkey.
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June 13, 2012 – Acadia National Park Quarter Products On Sale The United States Mint has started accepting orders for a number of numismatic products featuring the Acadia National Park Quarter. This coin represents the thirteenth release of the ongoing America the Beautiful Quarters
Program.
The reverse design of the quarter includes a view of the Bass Harbor Head Light House, which incorporates representative elements of the park including the lighthouse, the coastline, pine trees, and the ocean. Inscriptions surrounding the design include “Acadia”, “Maine”, “2012”, and “E Pluribus Unum”.
An impressive 33-metre-long aquarium went on display in Taipei, Taiwan on Friday at the opening ceremony of an aquarium expo.
The aquarium is believed to be the longest in the world and was built to celebrate Taiwan’s centennial this year. It features scenery and landmarks from around the island and 100 species of domestic cichlid fish.
The tank holds 28 tons of water and is made of tempered glass with an extra explosion-proof layer.
The aquarium has seven sections with nearly 30 modelled landmarks, including the Yehliu Geopark at the north coast, the landmark Taipei 101 building, Taiwan’s highest Jade Mountain, the Taroko National Park, and the Eluanbi Lighthouse down south. Each of the tanks is connected with a curved tank displaying waterfalls.
One of the benefits of having a “glamorous” job like a policeman, pilot, or lighthouse keeper is the collection of memorabilia such as models, photos, key-chain hangers, and lapel pins. This post is dedicated to lapel pins.
In the photos below you can see some of the pins that were collected by myself and my son over many years. From the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) we have helicopters and ships (CCGS) and hovercraft as well as crests. We also worked in close co-ordination with Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) and Coast Guard Radio. Continue reading Lighthouse Collections – Lapel Pins→
