Before Steel... by bmac62
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Description
...there was wood and brick.
...This 2nd floor ceiling caught my eye while exploring an art gallery in an old, historic, restored six-story building in downtown Seattle.
...these wooden beams are the largest I've ever seen. They measure 9 inches in width and 18 inches in height. I'd estimate them to be at least 40 feet long.
...this old commercial building was built in the days of masonary load bearing walls and wooden timbers (prior to 1900).
...these beams probably came from giant old growth Douglas Fir trees that were very plentiful in Washington State forests until the logging industry succeeded in cutting them all down by the mid 20th century:(
Bill
P.S. Quite zoom worthy.
"Quiet for Ninety Five Years"
Comments (30)
jocko500
cool shot of what the good old days was like
lyron
Very nice capture!!
awjay
nice angles
whaleman
Amazing timbers! You could build a house with a few of these, and it also shows just how incredibly strong steel is; it would not require very much steel to replace the strength of these beams. Nice shot and observation Bill!
bazza
This is a fabulous capture Bill, love the timber work in this!! Thes besms will probably last longer in a fire than steel beams also!!
durleybeachbum
Astonishing! So HUGE! And no woodworm, which could be a problem, I suppose. They make the 8x4 beams in my house look like matchsticks.
UVDan
No plywood sub floor either. An interesting shot.
jayfar
Super shot and the textures come to the fore in zoom.
jendellas
Well worth a zoom Bill, the depth of that wood, amazing!!
DAVER2112
I love the look of wood. Nice capture. :)
debbielove
Ah! Those were the days... When man never replaced what he took, so we can't keep chopping down trees to build this fine type of building... Thus we are left with awful looking 'modern' things made of steel and plastic.. All they had to do was replant the trees all those years ago and those trees could be todays trees to build this type of building... But.. (If you get my drift... lol) Magnificent. Like! Rob
Faemike55
Very beautiful image 'tis a shame about the wastefulness of man
EJD64
Now that is real construction of a building. Nice shot of the wood and brick. Great workmanship.
MrsRatbag
Beautiful! Can you imagine the size of those trees?!!
Meisiekind
It is sad to see majestic trees cut down and worked like this... Wonderful image Bill that shows the scale of these beams beautifully.
beachzz
Wow, those are3 HUGE beams, what a great shot!!
kgb224
Pity about the trees though. Craftsmanship at its best looking at the woodwork my friend. Great find and capture. God Bless.
helanker
OH Yeah, they are big alright. And a really great shot. In our patio we have a big one, not that big. It is Keeping the roof from falling down, when we built the patio, so it is quite solid. :)
kenmo
Cool capture...
flavia49
nice capture
bobrgallegos
A very cool perspective and POV of these wood beams!!! Love the wood textures!!
BIPOLARTWO
A reminder of true workmanship-great capture and terrific angle
goodoleboy
How about iron? That was before steel. Anyway, great feeling of depth and perspective in this shot of the sturdy erstwhile beams, Bill. Man has savaged the planet in quest of things beautiful.
npauling
Gosh this roof looks sturdy and well built. An excellent capture.
anahata.c
yes, it really is zoom worthy. Because of your perspective, this takes on a monumental feeling, and it's hard to believe this is the ceiling of a gallery in the complex you spoke of. I think Tara was talking about this, the other night. (I think it's the same place...you'll have to ask her, lol.) But in your perspective, it feels looming and magisterial; and your choice of 3/4 of the shot being devoted to the wooden beams brings home the massivity and age of this beautiful ceiling. You've actually turned ground into sky by making such a huge presence loom 'over' us rather than rest beneath us: The rafters have become the ground. And as such, they protect us the way the ground would. (Fascinating stuff underneath, too. Makes one wonder what's there...The light is below here, another feature of this upside down shot.) But that ceiling: Beautiful strength and age. A very powerful ceiling-shot, if ever there was one. Filled with dignity.
auntietk
Excellent image! I love the light, and the perspective on those massive beams. I looked, but didn't shoot. slaps forehead What was I thinking?? Nicely done!
Blush
Very neat image Hugs Susan~
RodS
It's truly amazing how resilient wood is - especially when it's in an environment protected from the elements. Those beams will outlast us all. Super shot, Bill!
Richardphotos
those are some really huge beams.I can only imagine how hard it was to place them. back when I was working the largest floor/ceilig joists I used was 2x12, but I did replace some larger 4x12" but not more than 8 feet long
junge1
Great observation and capture Bill. Could they have been Redwood?