CASTEL DEL MONTE, a rocky model.

Tonino · Nov 19, 2015

Time to get back to work (if time permits...

). Please excuse me if, for a while, I'll abandon beloved cardmodels for a totally new (for me) kind of build.

Last year, for my birthday, my sons gave me a great present (they know how to make me happy

) a construction kit from spanish Aedes Ars, a beautiful castle all made by little pieces of something that looks like stone (but I think is much more likely some kind of resin). The subject is an incredible building.
Castel del Monte is a fortress built by emperor Frederick II during 13th century in southern Italy.
I was there some years ago and - can assure you - that place is absolutely fantastic, nothing similar exist in all medieval architecture. Really a magical place.

The model itself is something I never tried before. I'll have to experiment totally new build techniques. The "bricks" will be glued to cardboard templates so, eventually, what I'll have at the end will be a cardmodel covered with stone. I'm not totally off topic after all

.

This is what the kit contains: some heavy cardboard templates (unfortunately they are pre-cut and some of the printed line is not perfectly aligned with the cuts so I'll have to decide if I should follow the cut lines or the printed ones) two instructions posters (not shining for clarity) and an HUGE amount of little bricks in several different shapes and sizes, plus some special shaped parts (for windows, columns and other architectural details). There are also three bags with diorama stuff to simulate grass, bushes and gravel.

I studied carefully the photos I've taken on site, a couple of books I have on the castle and some of the great amount of documentation found on the web and now I'm considering some enhancements and corrections to the model to make it as realistic as I can.
The first part I want to do is to scan the cardboard templates to correct the shape of gates and windows. Then I'll print the corrected templates and I'll start building on them.

Some more studying for now. I'll be back with updates as soon as I start actual building.

Revell-Fan · Nov 19, 2015

This castle looks like the perfect subject for papercrafting. It has many angles and repetitive elements. The additions should make the final model look very life-like, especially when it comes to the "plating". I would scan the sheets before using them just in case if something goes wrong or if you find the misaligning is preventing you from getting a nice and clean result. Have fun and enjoy (I'll definitely enjoy this thread!

).

DanBKing · Nov 19, 2015

I'll be watching this!

zathros · Nov 20, 2015

That castle is absolutely beautiful!! I have been to a few, in the U.K., and not to be insulting, they did not have that kind of beauty to them, though they were masterful in their own right.

I truly look forward to seeing this come together, I hope I live long enough!! (Just a comment on how long it might take! ) ):

Tonino · Nov 21, 2015

I also visited many castles (I like castles

) in Scotland, in France and in many medieval sites in Italy, my home itself is just under one of the three San Marino castles.

But Castel del monte is something completely different from any other thing, from any age of the history, I have ever seen. It seems id doesn't belong to anyone of the ages, it's out of times.
The man who draw this castle was a real genius.

I have a book where are described many strange calculations about this building, they do a lot of considerations about relationship between lenghts, angles and other thing with magical numbers and esoteric theories. I find all this things very funny and pretty stupid, like those measuring pyramids and comparing their distance and position to the distance of the earth from the sun or the position of Orion stars... If you want to find strange relationship between random numbers you can demonstrate almost everything you want.

This, however, doesn't prevent this castle to have some "magic" in it. I don't know how to say, you should be there, in front of it, to understand. I visited it, as I said before, and can tell you that this place is... special.

As for the building times.... well I don't know. This can be the model that takes years to be done or it can be built in a flash. It all depends on the difficulties I'll face and the level of detail I want to reach. I don't know how is that material to work with. See you soon for the first wall.
Now I'm still studying the photos... it's fundamental to know everything you can before you start.

I've now photos of almost every window and gate of the palace....

DanBKing · Nov 21, 2015

That looks like an amazing place to live, Tonino. I miss mountains. Where I live, 90% of the country is as flat as a pancake ......:meh:

The castle certainly has an amazing design. You've piqued my interest in going to see it. One for the bucket list ......

You have plenty of good reference, that really helps. Take your time, and enjoy the ride, however long it takes....

cylongirl · Nov 22, 2015

Great, I'm a princess ....
there is the also in 1: 1 .....

.
HGJ

Tonino · Nov 22, 2015

If you are a princess searching for a castle perhaps I can help you

.

Ah, btw, I am a royal guard!

cylongirl · Nov 22, 2015

OK, my flyer stent ready, I come...

Tonino · Nov 22, 2015

Mmmmm!
The story gets interesting!

zathros · Nov 22, 2015

Someone hide a camera!! Movie, preferably!!

zathros · Nov 22, 2015

Tonino, to live in such a beautiful land, I know you must thank God every day!!

Tonino · Nov 28, 2015

You're right @zathros
in fact I actually see Him everyday out of my windows and can talk directly with Him to say Thank You for this wonderful world we have here.

(the photo isn't mine, I've taken it from the web, but this is what I actually see almost every day from here!)

Tonino · Nov 28, 2015

Let's turn back to the model, I would like to give a little update on the work in progress.
I'm still working on "preparatory phase".
Studying model drawings I realized there are many imprecisions in design of architectural details.
First of all I scanned all the cardboard parts and outlined them in CorelDraw to have a starting point for my digital editing. Then, looking to the photos, I am correcting all that's wrong to arrive to a decent construction reference for my bricks.

This is the real wall

This is the same detail on the actual model part

And this is the outline of the same piece taken on the scan

As you see the arch shape is completely different and the window it has nothing to do with the real one.

This is my correction. I still don't know how to realize the finest window details. The wooden frame will be probably made with cardboard (so it will be worth publishing here at Zealot). For the remaining stone details I'm thinking about realizing a master in plastic and to take a silicon cast to make copies with some casting material (like plaster or resin...).

See you soon.

zathros · Nov 28, 2015

That's pretty magnificent. I live in a different kind of setting. Old, but there is are not much human structures that have been left by man. Those where you live are incredible. These are a few shots of what I see when I drive off my dirt road, go 6/10ths of a mile up hill, then take a left or right, the views are pretty much the same.

There s a small two lane Rd. which you can't see in the pick., this is the view at the stop sign, I can go to the left or right.

If you look at the center of the picture, then 1/4 ways to the center of the right half, there is a white pole. That is the road I come out of, the road runs around this very very old pond, to the town center, and beyond.

This is 4 miles from my Home. It's the town beach. It is small, only 5 miles long, on the other side of a road that divides the two is a lake that is 18 miles long. I sail small boats on these lakes. It is much fun and there is nothing in the water that can reach up and bite your legs off!!

Town I live in (Satellite View), the 18 mile long finger lake is visible on the right of the center of town. That is approx. 8 miles from my home:

My House and property. My Barn is completely covered by trees. My House sits in the corer, upper right, which gives me two little fields. I have the only flat property on this very steep hill. The long rectangle in the per right of the pic is my motor home,

Beautiful country, in fall, some of the trees turn from Green to an Orange so bright, they almost look like their on fire!

View attachment 147293

We are blessed. I may have a horrific spine and am in pain every day, but I suffer in beautiful country, in a home on a dead end dirt road. If someone walks by my home, it is so remote, I ask then, "Where are you going?" , or "Are you lost?", as my house is the only destination.

Zathros has rifles, and much ammo, Zathros pick off intruders, if Zathros must. Zathros not want to. Zathros use 30-30 Winchester in all weapons, only need one caliber, easy to stay not confused. Zathros can eat of many deer on property if Zathros need meat.

Tonino · Nov 29, 2015

Zat, your surroundings are wonderful, really a nice place to stay. I think, as I said before, that all the world is such a marvellous place. If only it wasn't so full of humans! Every place has its own beauty. My only regret is that I've see too few places in my life.

Well this is my today's update on the design work (I feel a little like UHU02!!!)

On the left the original walls (for the inner court) and to the right the final patterns modified by me. You see that many imprecisions were corrected.
Now it's only a matter of printing on cardboard and we can start with the first phase of the REAL build.

zathros · Dec 1, 2015

That's because your work is right up there with his!!

cylongirl · Dec 1, 2015

Stark!!
HGJ

Kjev · Dec 13, 2015

That is a beautiful castle! I really want to see how your model comes out.

Tonino · Feb 28, 2016

Back at work to Castel del Monte after a little "automotive" interval ;-)

I'm still working on structure redesign before starting with the real build. Last time I finished inner walls, now dealing with outer ones.

First of all a look at the windows. As for the inner court windows, the external was completely wrong in the original model design. They was simplified to be buildable with the kind of bricks and architectural pieces that are available from the producer's catalogue... I won't limit to those bricks and want to build components that looks like the real ones as much as possible.

First the "bifore" (I don't know the English term: they are windows divided in two vertical section by little arches)