Israel

° Israel ° Ashdod ° Eretz ° Elat (Eilat)  ° Haifa ° Jaffa ° Jerusalem ° The Dead Sea Scrolls° The Genius, Art and Calligraphy of the Jews ° The Hoopoe Bird

The Hoopoe Bird

"For as long as men had existed upon the land of Israel they had been accompanied by a curious bird, the hoopoe, who had given them more amusement than any other living thing.

"He was a stubby creatured, albout eight inches long, with a black and white body and a pinkish head, and ws remarkable in tht he walked more than he flew.

"He was always busy, hurrying from one spot on the ground to another, like a messenger responsibel for an important mission whose details he had forgotten. The laughable bird seemed to go around in circles, trying to recall what he was supposed to be doing.

"His appearance added to his grotesqueness, for he had a head shaped like a slim, delicate hammer, which he tripped up and down with surprising speed. One end of the hammer-head was obviuos a yellow bill nearly two inces long, but the balancing end was amazing, a tuft of feathers also abut two inches long which could be either compressed into a single projection that matched in size and color the beak, or flashed out into a spreading crest, so that the bird seemed to be wearing a jeweled crown.

"As he hurried about the ground he probed into worm holes until a grub was located or inspects were caught hiding, whereupon the hammer-head would thrash up and down until the long beak grabbed the meal. Then the happy bird would strut away to some rock where he would throw the captive onto a hard surface through which it could not escape back to earth, adn the hammer-head would flash up and down as the bird tore the rub or insect apart and ate it, after which he would go waddling back to the hunting ground, poking his inquisitive head here and there.

"As long as man remembered, this comical bird had been called the hoopoe because of its ugly, short, sharp call. It could not sing like the lark, neither could it mourn like the dove, and to the mean of Israel it evoked no poeotry summarizing the earth on which they lived. To the Egyptians the hoopoe was sacred; the to the Canaanite it was clever, for Baal had given the bird an evil smell and then hidden rare jewels in its next, and the smell kept thieves away.

"To the Hebrews the hoopoe epitomized family loyalty, for young birds tended their parents with care, covering them on cool nights and plucking dead feathers from their wings in the moulting season. But to all, the funny little bird that could fly and didn't ws an object of amusement, and even seemingly important men like the governor often stopped their work to watch these busy little excavators.

"During the last reign of King David in Jerusalem, the town of Makor had an engineer whom its citizens called Hoopoe because he, too, hurried about most of the day, peering into holes. Like the bird for which he was named, this short, dumpy fellow was regarded with affection, partly because he made the citizens laugh and partly because he ws known to be a man without single malicious intent."

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The Source: A Novel
James Michener

Through the discoveries of modern archaeologists excavating the site of Tell Makor, author James A. Michener vividly re-creates life in an ancient city and traces the profound history of the Jewish people — from the persecution of the early Hebrews, the rise of Christianity, and the Crusades to the founding of Israel and the modern conflict in the Middle East. An epic tale of love, strength, and faith, The Source is a richly written saga that encompasses the history of Western civilization and the great religious and cultural ideas that have shaped our world.

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1899. World's Fleet. Boston Daily Globe

Lloyds Register of Shipping gives the entire fleet of the world as 28,180 steamers and sailing vessels, with a total tonnage of 27,673,628, of which 39 perent are British.

Great Britain	10,990 vessels, total tonnage of 10,792,714
United States	3,010 vessels, total tonnage of 2,405,887
Norway	2,528 vessels, tonnage of 1,604,230
Germany	1,676 vessels, with a tonnage of 2,453,334, in which are included her particularly large ships.
Sweden	1,408 vessels with a tonnage of 643, 527
Italy	1,150 vessels
France	1,182 vessels

For Historical Comparison
Top 10 Maritime Nations Ranked by Value (2017)

	Country	# of Vessels	Gross Tonnage (m)	Total Value (USDbn)
1	Greece	4,453	206.47	$88.0
2	Japan	4,317	150.26	$79.8
3	China	4,938	159.71	$71.7
4	USA	2,399	55.92	$46.5
5	Singapore	2,662	64.03	$41.7
6	Norway	1,668	39.68	$41.1
7	Germany	2,923	81.17	$30.3
8	UK	883	28.78	$24.3
9	Denmark	1,040	36.17	$23.4
10	South Korea	1,484	49.88	$20.1
Total		26,767	87.21	$466.9