World Naked Bike Ride - Part 87

 Philadelphia 2025

The Philadelphia World Naked Bike Ride is one of the world's largest, in terms of the number of participants.  Last year it was held on August 23, and riders gathered at Lemon Hill in Fairmont Park before the start of the ride.

I was surprised to see one guy doing an improvised tightrope walk in the park.

A rear view of the tightrope walker.

A rider posing with a park statue called Maja.

In most World Naked Bike Rides, some riders get slogans painted on their bodies to support the WNBR goals: first, educating drivers to be careful around bicycles, and second, encouraging people to ride bikes instead of driving cars, because cars generate pollution.

But I didn't see such slogans on the Philly bike riders.  However, riders had a few other painted slogans.  Many of them just said PNBR, for Philly Naked Bike Ride.  This guy is telling you not to eat animals (presumably he's a vegetarian), but it's OK to eat something else.

This guy claims that tall bikes save the world.  I have no idea why.  We'll see him later.

And this political message has become ubiquitous.

Then the ride began through the streets of Philadelphia.

A local college student smiles as the ride goes down Market Street.

Here's the guy on the tall bike.  Is he saving the world?

The riders pass City Hall, the building in the background.

Like all World Naked Bike Rides, not everyone rides a bike, and not everyone is naked.  It's "as bare as you dare".

We end with a video clip of the riders from above, shot from a tall building.

Estonian Photos - Part 43

Estonian Photos

We continue our series of photos from the Tartu Ülikooli museum of anthropology in Estonia.

For those who haven't seen my previous posts in this series, a few words of explanation.  The museum provides no information about the men, other than the photos came from the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Tartu.  In particular, it does not say who these men are, or when or why the photos were taken.  However, the photos are labeled "Füüsilise antropoloogia pildistus" (physical anthropology photography).

Who are these men?  My best guess is that they are military recruits.  The very short haircuts suggest that these photos were taken during or shortly after the enlistment process.

Some of the men in this series have dark faces and hands.  Are they are tanned from working outside like farmers, or are they dirty from some dirty occupation?  We don't know.

Note: the dark faces and hands are not as visible in today's post as in some previous posts, but darker hands are visible in some of the side views.  Perhaps the photos in today's post were taken in the winter, when farmers would not be spending as much time outside getting tanned.

When were the photos taken?  My best guess is between World War I and World War II, when Estonia was an independent country with its own military.  Before WWI, Estonia was part of the Russian Empire, and after WWII, Estonia was part of the Soviet Union until 1991.

A clue to the time frame is that these photographs were made on glass plates, not film.  Dry glass-plate photography started in 1871 and began to fall out of use in the 1920s.  I found some references to it in Estonia through the 1930s.

One other clue to the time frame of these photos is that in two previous batches, one of the men is wearing a wristwatch.   Wristwatches were considered to be for ladies before World War I.  (Men used pocket watches.)  However, during the war, wristwatches proved very useful for soldiers and pilots.  After WWI, wristwatches came into fashion for men.

Although wristwatches were evidently rare in Estonia (only two men wore a wristwatch among the hundreds that were photographed), it suggests that these photos are post-World War I.

Since the use of glass plates fell out of use in the 1920s, I think the photos were most likely taken shortly after World War I.

Although these appear to be military recruits, these are probably not military photos.  We know that the museum that currently has the photos got them from the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Tartu.  If these are military photos, why would they end up at the Institute of Anatomy?

I believe the photos were taken by academics doing a study of physical anthropology.  Scientists at the Institute of Anatomy were trying to measure what they considered racial characteristics of the population by measuring the body, including phrenology (measuring the skull), ideas which are now discredited.

I think that the scientists at the Institute of Anatomy may have persuaded the military to let them take photographs of the naked new recruits for "research" purposes.  I have no written evidence to support this idea, but since the photos were at the Institute of Anatomy, and the photo subjects appear to be military recruits, it's now my best guess as to what happened.

One other question that perennially arises from these photos is: why were the men photographed in pairs?  Was it to save film?

The answer is that these photos were made on glass plates, not film, but glass plates were more expensive and involved more labor than film, so yes, it's likely that the men were photographed in pairs to save on glass plates.

So, bottom line: My best guess is that these photos were taken after World War I, the subjects are new or recent Army recruits, and the Estonian military allowed scientists from the Institute of Anatomy to take photos of the naked recruits for a study of physical anthropology.

Not the Same Old Song - Part 75

Ebony and Ivory

Ebony and Ivory is a 1982 single by Paul McCartney, sung by Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder.  It asks why we can't have racial harmony.  I've kept the racial harmony theme, but I think my visuals are a bit more X-rated than what McCartney had in mind.

Vintage Military - Part 98

 My Buddy - World War II Laid Bare

This is a 2014 book containing photos from the collection of Michael Stokes.  Stokes is a photographer, but he did not take these photos.  They are World War II photos of naked servicemen that he has collected.

Here's a group taking impromptu showers under a water pipe in a train station.  Servicemen were not worried about being naked around each other – they were all men, they lived together, and they had far worse things to worry about in combat.

Perhaps this sluice was constructed to provide water for drinking or for washing, but these guys look like they're about to have some fun in the water.

The book does not provide the locations and dates for these photos.  All I can say for sure is that they were taken during World War II.

Speaking of fun in the water, these guys have constructed a gymnastic formation just for fun, and they clearly know they are being photographed naked.

The military conducted exams to keep the men healthy.  Interestingly, this seems to be a penis exam, perhaps checking for venereal disease symptoms.

Catching forty winks.  Who needs pajamas?

A corporal and his helper.

These guys were sprayed on the deck of a ship, perhaps in lieu of a shower.

These guys got to take a regular shower.  Three of them wanted to shower together.

We end with this guy smiling for the photographer as he takes care of himself.

Vernal Equinox

Vernal Equinox

Today is the vernal (spring) equinox in the Northern Hemisphere, marking the official beginning of spring.  The length of the day and night are equal today all over the Earth.

Certain beaches in Britain hold a mass skinny-dip event on the autumnal (fall) equinox in September, but not in March, when the ocean is very cold.  However, the guy above went for a vernal equinox skinny dip at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh, Scotland.  Brrr!

And these guys did a vernal equinox skinny dip on the Isle of Man, an island located between England and Ireland.

No equinox skinny-dipping for me!  How about celebrating the equinox with a couple of ads from Equinox Gyms?  This 2008 ad has a man posing naked for a group of nuns who look suspiciously like models, not nuns.

And we end with a 2020 Equinox Gyms ad with two guys who evidently want to show off to each other.

Olympics - Part 17

 Olympic Art

From 1912 to 1948 the Olympics included art competitions.  The winners were awarded gold, silver and bronze medals, just like the athletic competitions.  Art competitions included painting, sculpture, architecture, even literature and music.  Entries were supposed to be related to athletics.  Many of the sculptures were nude, as is traditional in classic sculpture.  Here are some nude sculptures that won awards.

In 1924, Greek sculptor Konstantinos Dimitriadis won a gold medal for The Discus Thrower, above.

The 1924 bronze medal in sculpture went to Danish sculptor Jean René Gaugin, the son of French painter Paul Gaugin, for The Boxer, seen above with its creator.

In 1928, French sculptor Paul Landowski won a gold medal for Le Pugiliste (The Boxer).

A bronze medal in 1928 was awarded to Swiss sculptor Renée Sintenis for Football Player.

In 1932, a bronze medal was given to Czech sculptor Jakub Obrovsky for Vraždící Odysseus (Odysseus Killing), depicting Odysseus killing his wife's suitors when he returns from the Trojan war.  A nice work, but it's hard to see what it has to do with athletics.

In 1936, German sculptor Arno Breker won a silver medal for Decathlete.

A bronze medal was given in 1936 to Swedish sculptor Stig Blomberg for Wrestling Boys.

We end in 1948, the last year these Olympic art medals were given out.  The 1948 gold medal for sculpture was won by Swedish sculptor Gustaf Nordahl for Homage to Ling.  The sculpture honors Per Henrik Ling, a Swedish gymnastics pioneer.

Performers - Part 83

 Patrick (Paddy) Costello

Dillinger Four is a punk rock band formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1994.  One of the band members, Paddy Costello, occasionally strips naked onstage.  Above, playing at The Fest music festival in Gainesville, Florida in 2005.

Here he is again at The Fest in 2006.

At the Insubordination Fest punk rock music festival in Baltimore, Maryland in 2009.

Another view of him at the 2009 Insubordination Fest.

At the Now That's Class music bar in Cleveland, Ohio in 2009, a fan seems to be stuffing a piece of paper into his butt.

We end with this undated photo.  Paddy is certainly not a muscle god; in fact, he's a bit on the chubby side, but he's unashamed and he doesn't care.  His tattoo says "How much art can you take?"