The new (used tractor) does not start. The cable is broken. So a man comes to pick up the tractor in the evening. Of course, it gets stuck in the pasture. So my dear husband gets it out of the mess with the other tractor. There’s music from the neighbours, who are having their weekly hunting horn practice.
Mit dem Traktor Fahrzeuge ziehen
Der neue (gebrauchte Traktor) springt nicht an. Das Kabel ist hinüber. Also kommt abends ein Mann und holt den Traktor wieder ab. Natürlich bleibt er in der Weide stecken. Also holt ihn mein lieber Mann mit dem anderen Traktor aus dem Schlamassel. Dazu gibt es Musik von den Nachbarn, die ihr wöchentliches Jagdhornüben veranstalteten.
The secret of the unknown painter
This is August Wilhelm von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1662-1731) playing the lute. His wife Elisabeth Sophie Marie of Schleswig-Holstein-Norburg (1683-1767) is sitting next to him, looking annoyed. My husband thinks it’s because August Wilhelm can only play ‘Wonderwall’. I say, as long as August Wilhelm doesn’t have the bored, croaky voice of the Oasis singer, he’ll be fine. Elisabeth Sophie’s brother, Ernst Leopold of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Norburg (1685-1722), is sitting on the far left. He is holding a flute, which he probably used to play the singing part, but the flute is now out of tune, so he is ringing for a servant to tune the flute, or perhaps the servant is supposed to sing. I can’t help but think of a cartoon by John Callahan (1951-2010) (a beggar standing on a street with a sign saying ‘Please help me I am blind and black but not musical’). Of course, that doesn’t work at all. In any case, Elisabeth Sophie wears a kind of elaborate dressing gown because everything takes place in a family setting. Her dressing gown is lined with ermine. August Wilhelm is also wearing a dressing gown. The artist is unknown; we assume that he had to leave the country, as it is not exactly a flattering painting. Except perhaps for the tailor.
I sing in a baroque ensemble, so I researched baroque clothing. I would like to wear something more historical when we perform. In connection with this, I came across this painting. Funnily enough, I was born in Lower Saxony, the capital of which is Braunschweig. These rulers would have been my rulers if I had been born a few centuries earlier.
Das Geheimnis des unbekannten Malers
Dies ist August Wilhelm von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1662-1731), der die Laute spielt. Daneben sitzt seine Frau Elisabeth Sophie Marie von Schleswig-Holstein-Norburg und guckt genervt (1683-1767). Mein Ehemann meint, das läge daran, dass August Wilhelm nur “Wonderwall” spielen kann. Ich sag mal dazu, solange August Wilhelm nicht die gelangweilte, quäkige Stimme des Oasis-Sängers hat, gehts doch. Ganz links sitzt Elisabeth Sophies Bruder, Ernst Leopold von Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Norburg (1685-1722). Er hält eine Flöte in der Hand, mit der er wahrscheinlich die Gesangsstimme geflötet hat, aber die Flöte ist jetzt verstimmt, daher klingelt er nach einem Diener, der die Flöte stimmen soll, oder vielleicht soll er auch singen. Ich muss da immer an einen gezeichneten Witz von John Callahan (1951–2010) denken (steht ein Bettler an einer Straße und trägt ein Schild “Please help me I am blind and black but not musical”). Das geht natürlich gar nicht. Jedenfalls trägt Elisabeth Sophie eine Art elaborierten Morgenmantel, weil ja alles in familiärem Rahmen stattfindet. Der Morgenmantel (Bademantel) ist mit Hermelin gefüttert. August Wilhelm trägt ebenfalls einen Morgenmantel. Der Künstler ist unbekannt, wir nehmen an, dass er das Land verlassen musste, es ist ja nicht gerade ein schmeichelhaftes Gemälde. Außer vielleicht für den Schneider.
Boiler face and its history
This is the central heating boiler of Beaumesnil castle. It’s an “Ideal Titan Serie 3”, which was on the market in 1939 (I know that because I saw a catalogue). I don’t know exactly when it was installed. But it must have been around that time. It was installed by the company Valentin & Fils & Barousse when they had their office in Paris 17e arrondissement, 30, Rue des Épinettes. There’s a modern building nowadays. From 1965 to 2004 an enterprise called Valentin and Barousse existed in Aubervilliers (northeast of Paris). No idea if the enterprised belonged to the son (fils) or if it was already the grandson of Valentin and son of Barousse.
So, back to the installation time. There is a badge with the company’s name and their telephone number on the wall. The telephone number indicated, that the badge was made after 1912. We had a bit of a discussion about if it was made between 1912 and 1928 or 1912 and 1963. Maybe the Ideal Titan series 3 was brand-new in 1928?
The history of French telephone
This is the badge of the plumbers (? There’s really only one English word for it? You’d say “Heizungsbauer” in German) who installed the heating in Beaumesnil castle. Their telephone number was Marcadet 74-01 and Marcadet 74-02. How do you call Marcadet? And when? In 1908 only 182 000 household of France had a telephone. They had numbers. In 1912 they got words and numbers. People would call a service line and say: “Marcadet 74-01” to the phone operator. The automatical revolution started in 1913 but it took some years. In 1926 Paris had automatic telephone connections, but the first automatic central was installed in 1928. The word “Marcadet” became the letters MAR. The letters were shown on the rotary dial of the telephone.
That means 627 is MAR. Those letters were in use until 1963, when they were replaced by their numbers. So in fact no change on the dial, but on badges people would have written only numbers after 1963.
As far as the owners of the castle go: the de Maistre lived there from 1851 to 1927, Audrey Emery 1927-1937, Dimitri Pavlovitch Romanov 1937–1939 and the Fürstenbergs bought the castle in 1939. Any of them could have bought the boiler, but I guess it were the Fürstenbergs.
Further reading:
Stanzebla 