P.C.W. Ho, The Design of the Psalter: A Macrostructural Analysis (original) (raw)
A Review of Peter C W HO's Design of the Psalter
Trinity Journal, 2021
Scholarship on the Psalms has been characterized by Hermann Gunkel's form-critical approach for nearly a century. The shift is evident, beginning with the work of Brevard Childs and Gerald Wilson. Gordon Wenham calls the shift a "second revolution" in Psalms studies. The majority of commentaries still maintain the form-critical approach; however, increasingly, the focus is shifted towards reading the Psalms as a whole. Peter C. W. Ho's dissertation, The Design of the Psalter, enters the discussion of this latter development and scholarship of the last four decades on reading the Psalter as a whole. Ho provides a thorough review of interpretive history and a robust evaluation, interacting with lesser-known works of
The Macrostructural Design and Logic of the Psalter: An Unfurling of the Davidic Covenant
Reading the Psalms Theologically, 2023
The search for a principle to unite the 150 psalms has gone on for more than seventeen centuries. Although renewed efforts in this search from the 1980s have yielded important results, Psalms scholarship has yet to reach a consensus. Crystalized from a larger work, The Design of the Psalter: A Macrostructural Analysis, this chapter is an important step toward that consensus. It explores how the entire Psalter is designed, explains why it is coherent as a whole, and opens up a new paradigm to understand the Psalms.
Review of Biblical Literature, 2020
By J. Clinton McCann Jr. This volume represents a slight revision of Peter C. W. Ho’s doctoral dissertation at the University of Gloucestershire, supervised by Gordon McConville, who provides a brief Foreword to the volume. Ho’s work is the most comprehensive attempt to date to explore the shape and shaping of the Book of Psalms. This scholarly enterprise began in earnest with the publication of Gerald H. Wilson’s The Editing of the Hebrew Psalter in 1985; and while the form-critical and rhetorical critical approaches to the Psalms continue, attention to the shape and shaping of the Psalter has dominated Psalms scholarship for the past thirty years or so. The practitioners of this approach (including myself) have paid attention to individual psalms and/or collections that seem to have strategic importance, and they have generally concluded that it is not possible to explain the placement of every psalm. But perhaps we have been setting our sights too low; in any case, Ho attempts in this volume to explain the location of every psalm in the MT 150. It is an ambitious and impressive endeavor!
Pseira V: The Architecture of Pseira, 2001
Build ing AC, looking north. The double wall to retain the fill in the western part of the hnilcling (AC. 1) is at the center of the photograph. A. Detail of the south wall of Wing BV of Building BS/BV, looking north, showing the megalithic ma sonry facing the Plateia, set partly on bedrock. B. Uncoursed nibble masonry in .AD 4. constructed around a large outcrop of limestone bedrock (xdsible at the lower right of the photograph). A. The exterior wall of AC 2 and AC 3, looking south. B. C^oursed rubble masoniy at the northwest cor ner of Block AN. A. The exterior of Room BS 1, looking east, showing the coursed slab masonry of the wall and the bench. B. Coursed slabs in the north wall of the Grand Staircase (.ACi 1), looking north, with the lower section (at the left) butted against the uphill corner. C Megalithic masonr\ facing a street, at the .south east corner of BE 10, looking east. The smooth block at the upper right is an aeolian sandstone ashlar block. A. Megalithic wall in Building AM, in the north wall, shcjwing the exterior. B. I he south facade of Wing BV of Building BS/BV, showing the lowest course of megalithic masonry. A. Large blocks used in pseudo-isodomic masonry in the west facade of Building .AN. B. Fhe east wall of Room AD 9, looking east, showing a large slab .set vertically in the wall and surrounded by rubble ma sonry. A. Building AB, looking southeast. The paved room is at the right. B. Room .AF S, showing the paving of the street that predates the LM I building. Building AM, looking west from just outside the entrance. The double retaining wall for the massive fill m this room is at the top of the photograph. A bench is at right angles to the doorway, at the kiwer right of the photograph. The blocks with the white veins are limestone, and the bench, threshold, and pa\ing slabs are metacarbonate. A. Threshold block in Building AB as seen from inside the building, looking northeast. B. Slab u.sed at the eritrance to Building BS/BV, perhaps for a wooden threshold. A. Staircase in Building AD Center, Space AD 5, looking east. B. .Staircase in Building BX, looking east. A. Aerial view of the sottoscala in Building BC, Space BC 6 (lower center). B. The soffoscala, looking east. The entrance to the building is at the top of the photograph. estibule in Area BH, Room BH 1, looking southwest. B. Stairs at the west of the vestibule, looking west. ® bl vestibule in Area BH, Room BH 1, showing the paving slabs and the threshold of the threshold block in Room BH 1. A bench faced with pln llite slabs is shown at the upper right of the photograph. A ^^^'^^ule in Building BS/BV. B. The L-shaped bench in the vestibule, looking east. hit u ^ Building BC, Room BC 9, looking east. B. Room AF 7, looking north from the kitchen. Room AF 6. o , g s Street near Space AF 1, seen from above. B. The plailbrm ac ross the southern side Roo^l^ ]4 ' southwest. The hearth is at the right of the bench.
The Psalter [printed by Francysk Skaryna]
Book heritage of Francysk Skaryna / National Library of Belarus; edited by A. Suša; translated by H. Kavalenka. – Facsimile reproduction. – – V. 14: The Psalter. – P. 21–27., 2016
The Psalter is the first Belarusian printed book. It is one of the most popular books in Christianity and forms part of the Old Testament. The book origins from the Hebrew Holy Scripture (Tanakh), where it is called תְּהִלִּים (Tehilim) meaning “praises” and is placed in the third part – Ketuvim. While preparing the Greek translation (Septuagint) the book was named “psalms” (Greek: Ψαλμοί) and this name was taken by the majority of other languages (for example, English). The Slavic people called this book Psalter (Church Slavonic: Ψалтирь) in accordance with the name of a musical instrument “psaltery”. In Belarusian lands this book was widely used not just for clerical needs but also for studying and religious-moral upbringing. Probably, such popularity of this book became the reason why Francysk Skaryna chose it as his first edition. On the example of such book it was easy to determine whether his publications would be appreciated by the public. In connection with that he paid close attention to the preparation of this edition. Thus, Belarusian book printing started from very popular edition – Psalter – one of the most respected and emotionally exalted books of the Bible. It opened a wholes series of biblical editions that were prepared and released by Francysk Skaryna in 1517–1519 and laid basis for Belarusian book printing. The date the book was released (or, rather, sent to the printer’s) is known precisely as the publisher indicated it in the edition – August 6, 1517. This date is considered the beginning of the Belarusian book printing. In the Introduction to this book one may read about the importance Francysk Skaryna attributed to the first edition of the Psalter. The enlightener points out that “the Psalter is the only book that includes all these things, teaches and preaches them. For the psalms that it contains are like depository of all spiritual riches”. In poetic form he proves that each and everyone needs Psalter. Understanding the exceptional meaning of the Psalter for educational and religious purposes, the first printer said, “So I, Francysk son of Skaryna from Polack, doctor of medical sciences, seeing a great virtue in such a small book, ordered to print the Psalter with Ruthenian letters (thus Skaryna calls words of the Old Belarusian language – A.S., H.K.) in Slavonic language first of all for the honor of God in Trinity united, His Most Holy and Blessed Mother Virgin Mary and all the God’s saints, and then for common good because I was born among these people by the grace of God”. Here, among other things, we see one of the first patriotic statements about native people and their language in the Belarusian writing. Besides considerations on lofty mission of the Psalter, Francysk Skaryna describes major techniques of producing a book, tells about the system of references used in it, about glosses on the margins containing explanations of words unknown to readers. The mere fact that the edition of a biblical book contained an authorial foreword emphasized its innovatory character. However, the aspiration of Francysk Skaryna to make the book understandable and comprehensible for common people makes the whole thing even more remarkable. The larger part of the first Belarusian edition is occupied by the biblical text translated into Church Slavonic language. Basing on the analysis of its content one may conclude that the book released by Skaryna is a so-called Simple Psalter. The edition includes 151 psalms divided into 20 kathismas. They are added by several biblical songs and prayers of the Old and New Testaments. The edition finishes with a traditional colophon or afterword where publisher’s imprints are given. They are placed on the front side of 142nd sheet and are emphasized with artistic organization of the text. The reverse side of a sheet is left blank. Since it was the first publishing experience of Francysk Skaryna, the given edition slightly differed from his following books. It had smaller type page: 146х85 mm, while the size of the type page in other Prague editions was 161х106 mm. As a result, a page of the Psalter edition contained only 20 lines, while the successive editions had room for 22. The sheets were numbered at the bottom of a page, not at the top as in later editions. Obviously, Skaryna was looking for more perfect artistic form, which would correspond to his authorial conception. His efforts succeeded, none of the previous Cyrillic editions had so rich and perfect artistic decoration as those released by the Belarusian first printer. The Psalter was printed in traditional quarto format that later became traditional for all Skaryna’s Prague editions. The edition consists of 142 sheets (283 pages) divided into 17 eight-page and one six-page gatherings. This is the biggest Prague edition in terms of size. There is a mistake in the sheets numbering: sheet 38 is numbered as “30”. The Psalter is the only Francysk Skaryna’s Prague edition that was printed using paper with watermarks. The Psalter is a monochrome edition: black text and engravings on the white ground. Starting from the Psalter, Skaryna didn’t use traditional for Cyrillic books carry-over words (repetition of first letters or words of the next page in the end of the previous one) and signatures (sheets numbering by gatherings). The artistic decoration of the book included two engravings. The first of them – “King David, the kneeler” – was used twice. On the title sheet under the engraving the title of the book is placed, “Songs of King David, called Psalter”. In the second case the engraving is placed next to the first eight lines of the text opening the first psalm, in the place where usually capital letter is placed. Earlier it was considered that this page is the back of a title sheet. This was connected with the wrong (reverse) placement of a sheet after restoration in the only known copy. Probably, the Prague edition of the Psalter was very popular and became rare during the lifetime of the publisher. In connection with this after his return to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and opening of typography in Vilna Francysk Skaryna first of all republished the Psalter, which formed basis of so-called “Little Travel Book”. That is why it’s safe to say that the endeavour of Francysk Skaryna did not go unnoticed, which inspired him for continuation of his publishing activity. Thus, the Prague Psalter is the rarest of all the books released by Francysk Skaryna. Moreover, both extant copies are not full: the copy form the collection of the National Library of Russia lacks the last sheet and the one from the collection of the State Historical Museum – the first sheet.
Chapter 12 : Topics in Spatial Structures Section 12 . 1 : Structural Morphology
2013
The coupling between forms and forces became, at the end of the previous century, one of the major issues for shells and spatial structures, namely for those that are pre-stressed. The denomination " Structural Morphology " covers a field of investigation and research that was increasing in the recent years. It was implicitly implied in design processes of pioneers, it was obviously a major concern for famous shell designers. Founders of the Structural Morphology Working Group of the IASS contributed to its definition and progress inside the association. Our time is characterized by an increasing number of numeric tools devoted to morphology; and the actual actors of this discipline have to face new challenges like simplicity of realization of complex morphologies, or monitoring of transformable shapes. This section aims to provide some features of this fascinating discipline: structural morphology. Pioneers Structural morphology is not a new discipline born with the epony...
Forces, Structures, and the Evolution of Natural and Artificial Forms
6th International Symposium on Innovations in Scientific Areas, 2024
The formation of architectural form is influenced by functional, economic, social, cultural, climatic, and environmental factors, along with construction and stability conditions. Stability is crucial in shaping form and ensuring durability against environmental factors, as it guarantees the structural integrity of architectural form. Thus, the role of structure in design and its impact on form warrants thorough investigation. Understanding the development of structural knowledge elucidates its historical relationship with architecture. While form is often seen as the manifestation of architecture, its creation is inherently linked to structure, with structural concepts and methods pivotal in generating form. This article examines the structural aspect of form, focusing on the system of load distribution, force behavior, and transmission methods. It questions how forces influence form formation. The descriptive and analytical research method aims to provide a novel perspective on the relationship between structure and architecture to enhance structural understanding among architectural engineers. By tracing the roots of structural knowledge and analyzing natural forms and force flows in materials and artificial forms, the study seeks to achieve a logical design process for form in the architectural context, considering complex structural concepts.
The physical model in the structural studies of Robert Le Ricolais: “apparatus” or “hierogram”
In a quest towards creative structural awareness, the present work inscribes within a broader debate about the mode of reasoning in structural studies. The research of Robert Le Ricolais at the University of Pennsylvania is discussed here as a paradigm of creative practice employing design-erly ways in structural studies; offering an original insight about the potential of the physical model; as a conceptual device (“hierogram”) pertaining in the design realm beyond the in-scale representation (“apparatus”) confined in the scientific paradigm. Physical models – as an instance of modelling – are regarded as a fundamental methodological means in structural design studies, thus becoming the vehicle to tackle epistemological issues about the synthetic nature of the discipline. From this perspective, Le Ricolais’ research practices become all the more relevant in a most contemporary discourse about the “informal”, a differentiated structural design rationale.
Merete Rasmussen: Hand Built Ceramic Surfaces
2014
Golden Star System is an experimental structural system which uses biomimicary to bring together the geometric configuration of the Koch Star, the Golden Mean and the rotation of DNA around its centerline. Creating physical models of Golden Star System (figure 1) appeared to be a challenge. This paper introduces a parametric application to generate Golden Star System around a desired curve in Rhino-Grasshopper and presents a detailed process to make the model ready for 3d printing. Figure 1: Plotted Models of Golden Star System This project focused on an experimental system called the Golden Star System. It involves the nexus of the Golden Mean, the Koch Star (Snowflake) and the rotation of DNA around the center of its axis. The hypothesis associated with this design is that the nexus of these components will improve structural load carrying capacity in dynamic loading situations. Tests are currently being planned. The Golden Mean ratio has been studied for millennia and it has been...
Stereotomy, an Early Example of a Material System
Shock, Proceedings of the 35th eCAADe Conference, 2017
Stereotomy originated as a technique that accumulated theoretical and practical knowledge on stone material properties and construction. At its peak in the nineteenth century, by pushing the structure and construction limits, it gained the ability of using``using``the weight of the stone against itself by making it hover in space through the very weight that should make it fall down'' (Perrault 1964, cited Etelin, 2012). The modern architectural tectonics, based on structural comprehension in architecture, found no value in stereotomy beyond its early, Gothic period. Similarly, digital architectural theory recognized in Gothic the early examples of a material systems. This paper reassesses stereotomy at its fundamental levels, as a material system based on generative processes that assimilate structure and construction through parameterization. In this way, a theoretical framework is established that exposes stereotomy's intrinsic potentials: the continuity of historic and contemporary examples, overlaps between current research endeavours, and its genuine relevance for contemporary digital architecture.
An insight into the design process of unconventional structures
1996
copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright rests with its author and that no quotation from the thesis and no information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author. This thesis may be available for consultation within the University Library and maybe photocopied or lent to the other libraries for the purposes of consultation. UMI Number: U098586 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion.
A Temple in Words. The Theological Architecture of the Psalter
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form (beyond that permitted by copyright law) without the publisher's written permission. This applies particularly to reproductions, translations and storage and processing in electronic systems. The book was printed on non-aging paper by Gulde Druck in Tübingen, and bound by Buchbinderei Spinner in Ottersweier.
Biomorphic Structures: Architecture Inspired by Nature
Biomorphic Structures: Architecture Inspired by Nature (Form + Technique), 2017
From leaves to liquids, caves to crystal formations, nature has always been a major source of inspiration for architects. This book examines how nature can act as a precedent for design solutions through twelve case studies. Packed with computer drawings, sketches, models and photographs, this will be an ideal resource of ideas for students in their studio work, as well as for practising architects.
A PERIODIC TABLE OF ARCHITECTURAL STRUCTURES
IXth INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE оn ARCHITECTURE AND CIVIL ENGINEERING ArCivE, 2019
The periodic table (matrix) of architectural structures is a tabular display of all main types of structures, which are arranged by their spatial characteristics and configuration, and recurring load-bearing properties. The structure of the table shows periodic trends of their structural behavior. The table derives from very basics architectural and spatial concepts that defines a space “structure” elements, mass “structure” elements and their relation. Thus, an overview to fundamental entities of architecture that could be use in a deeper theoretical and morphological systematization is given. A review of the structures’ periodic table (matrix) is practically a holistic and synoptic classification system of the main types of structures in architecture. The organization of the periodic table can be used to derive relationships between the various structure types’ properties, and also to predict structural properties and behaviours of unused or newly synthesized forms.
The Metamorphoses of a Late Fifteenth-Century Psalter (Harl. MS. 1892)
Electronic British Library Journal, 2011
This article examines in detail a psalter for the use of Sarum executed in Rouen c. 1490-1500, to which a series of unexpected additions have been made. These include sections painted in the style of the Netherlandish Dark Eyes Masters and added leaves in various hands copied after engravings by Martin Schongauer. The original content of the manuscript has thus been enhanced and re-shaped through a process of customization and recycling, which was not uncommon practice in England at the time, as it can also be observed in the so-called Hours of the Earls of Ormond (Harl. 2887).