Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 July 23

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Today's featured article
Robert Peake the elder (c. 1551–1619) was an English painter active in the later part of Elizabeth I's reign and for most of the reign of James I. In 1604, he was appointed picture maker to the heir to the throne, Prince Henry, and in 1607, serjeant-painter to King James I, a post he shared with John De Critz. Peake is often called "the elder", to distinguish him from his son, the painter and printseller William Peake (c. 1580–1639) and from his grandson, Sir Robert Peake (c. 1605–1667), who followed his father into the family print-selling business. Peake was the only English-born painter of a group of four artists whose workshops were closely connected. The others were De Critz, Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger, and the miniature-painter Isaac Oliver. Between 1590 and about 1625, they specialised in brilliantly coloured, full-length "costume pieces" (example pictured) that are unique to England at this time. It is not always possible to attribute authorship between Peake, De Critz, Gheeraerts and their assistants with certainty. (more...) Recently featured: Canadian heraldry – Californium – Painted turtle Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that consumption of the poisonous mushroom Inocybe godeyi (pictured) could lead to salivation, tears, urination, defecation, gastrointestinal pain and vomiting? ... that blinded Bristol boxer Dixie Brown was visited during World War II by African American soldiers, who respected him as "a much admired character"? ... that the Louisiana State Rep. Thomas G. Carmody obtained passage in 2009 of a bill strengthening penalities for the crime of indecent behavior with juveniles? ... that Niccolò Machiavelli's military reforms were designed to create a citizen army in the style of Ancient Rome? ... that the 200-year-old Dundee Royal Infirmary was one of the first UK hospitals to acquire a catSCAN head scanner? ... that military historian Lars Borgersrud's research includes taboo subjects like the fate of war children and Norwegian military officers with Nazi sympathies prior to and during World War II? ... that when the Frog Boys went missing, South Korean President Roh Tae-woo dispatched 300,000 police officers to search for them? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Two attacks in Norway—a bombing in Oslo (damage pictured) and a shooting in Utøya—result in at least 91 deaths. Space Shuttle Atlantis concludes its final mission, ending the thirty-year Space Shuttle program. Goran Hadžić is detained in Serbia, becoming the last of 161 people indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia to be arrested. The United Nations declares a famine in southern Somalia. Chinese basketball player Yao Ming retires from the National Basketball Association. Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland wins The Open Championship at Royal St George's Golf Club. News Int'l phone-hacking scandal – Arab Spring Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
July 23: Revolution Day in Egypt (1952) 1927 – Wilfred Rhodes of England and Yorkshire became the only person to play in 1,000 first-class cricket matches. 1970 – Qaboos overthrew his father Said bin Taimur to become Sultan of Oman. 1983 – Air Canada Flight 143 made an emergency landing in Gimli, Manitoba, Canada, without loss of life after the crew was forced to glide the aircraft when it completely ran out of fuel. 1995 – Hale–Bopp (pictured), one of the most widely observed comets of the twentieth century, was discovered by two independent observers, Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp, at a great distance from the Sun. 2002 – On the 50th anniversary of its founding, the European Coal and Steel Community disbanded, and its activities and resources were absorbed by the European Community. More anniversaries: July 22 – July 23 – July 24 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now July 23, 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The common wombat (Vombatus ursinus) is one of three species of wombat. It is native to south-eastern Australia and Tasmania, and grows to an average of 98 cm (39 in) long and a weight of 26 kg (57 lb). It is solitary and lives in an underground burrow.

Photo: JJ Harrison

Recently featured: R136 star cluster – Ernest Hemingway in 1918 – Wineglass Bay, Tasmania

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