Did Ancient Muay Thai Fighters cover their gloves with broken glass?

A lot of people have asked me whether Ancient Muay Thai Fighters, in an attempt to sharpen their body weapons, did in fact dip their gloves into a glue mixture of broken glass (as most would have seen in Van Damme Movies). Before answering the question, I would first like to present the following set of facts for your consideration:

Muay Thai Style Throw

Muay Thai-Style ThrowAs earlier mentioned, Muay Thai is the Crowning glory of the martial arts. Our warrior ancestors ingeniously invented, devised and modified a complete apparatus of defence and offence, from fist, foot, knee and elbow to throwThe world recognizes judo as the foremost from throwing. This is not untrue, if we speak of a martial art which employs exclusively body throwing that is

Birth of Pahuyuth and Ancient Muay Thai

Prior to the Sukhothai era, Thai civilization dated as far back as those of the Egyptians, Babylonians, and the Assyrians. They were established before the Buddhist era in a land called “Aay Loa Kingdom” one the river banks of Huang Ho and Yang Jue rivers, presently known as Schezuan, Hubei, Anhui, and Kiangsi in China. There were later defeated and had to continue migrating south to maintain

Pahuyuth AwudThai

Foreword.....When I was asked to write about “Ancient Thai Boxing and Muay Chaiya”, I felt it was a difficult task because the society at large has lost interest in the subject. But after thorough consideration, I have come to the decision to do so, in order to honor and show my gratitude to my teachers who have patiently taught me and to my homeland, the Kingdom of Thailand. .....Please note

Muay Chaiya Original Muay thai

Thai national martial art is, naturally, MuayThai. But how many really know the true Muay Thai beyond the thought of two big, muscular boxers furiously exchanging kicks as seen at the boxing camps or the famous stadiums such as the Lumpinee and the Rachadumneun?The original Muay Thai uses one’s wits more than brute strength, and ends up with injury sustained by

Calling ephemeral arts teachers, artists, writers and researchers

Calling ephemeral arts teachers, writers and researchers from any part of the world!I am interested in hearing from teachers, artists, writers and researchers who are interested in the ephemeral arts. Our definition of ephemeral arts is," Arts which are temporary or short-lived, based on a specific occasion or event and transitory in nature".A Festival of Ephemeral Arts, which is held at various

Exploring Ephemeral Arts - the best blog on the subject?

A few questions about the progress made so far..This site has been exploring a number of areas connected with ephemeral arts. It would be useful to examine what has been achieved so far and to outline the scope for future development of the blog as a resource for students, teachers, librarians and parents.Further work is to be presented to address the specific areas of interest that have been

Exploring sources of inspiration 2- Ephemeral arts as cultural communication

How does hair inspire ephemeral outcomes?Helen Coleman(1) writes," Hairstyling and hairdressing have great cultural significance in Africa. Coiffures have been regarded as diagnostic of ethnic origin, gender, phase of life cycle, as well as simply fashion; and have been related to power, age, religion, and politics. The transitory yet highly visible nature of hair ensures its suitability as a

'Sycamore Leaves Stitched together' by Andy Goldsworthy

This is an example of work that is transient, with a defined 'life'. It was created in Yorkshire Sculpture Park on 23 October 1987. The picture is on display at the Springer & Winckler Gallery. Source http://www.artnet.com A search using any of the regular search engines is recommended.I have selected this picture from many that are available because it shows how the artist has used brightly

Exploring Sources of Inspiration 1- Andy Goldsworthy

The Sculptures of Andy GoldsworthyAndy Goldsworthy is an environmental sculptor in which his use of the natural surroundings create an art form. He explores and experiments with various natural materiel such as leaves, grasses, stones, wood, sand, clay, ice, and snow. The seasons and weather determine the materials and the subject matter of his projects. With no preconceived ideas about what he

Further Examples of Ephemeral Arts

Further Examples of Ephemeral ArtsThe most notable examples in this site are drawn from the Indian Subcontinent. These are mehndi, rangoli, masks, fancy festival dress, face painting and floral decorations.Mehndi consists of decorations of hands, feet and face by using henna paste. Mehndi is used to celebrate weddings, cultural events and now, increasingly as a fashion statement. Examples of

Belgian Floral Carpet

The Grand Palace in Brussels hosts a Floral Carpet Christopher Stocks reports in The Independent on Sunday ( 6 August 2006) about the Belgian city of Brussels' annual floral carpet. This year from 12 to 15 August the city's famous Grand Palace, which is a UNESECO World Heritage site, plays host to a floral carpet which will be 77m by 24m and will include something like 300,000 begonia blooms,

18 Floor-based art creates an illusion

A pattern created on the floor by joining starson a common background provides an illusion. Take your time getting used to it! It is the right way up.

17 Image from Mystic India- Another Rangoli

This picture is taken from the Mystic India site mentioned earlier. Note the detail of rangoli patterns being out together by the women. They have to work on the floor for long hours possibly to complete the work in one day. Also try to assess the size of the rangoli by comparing the pattern with the people or the building in the background. Make sure that you visit the original Mystic India site

16 The Victory of Good over Evil

The effigy of Ravan, as made by a community groupin Slough, England. Do you know the story of Ravan?

15. Mystic India- an exciting photo gallery!

This is the title of a film, which I have not seen but it is highly rated.The film itself could be interest to teachers, students and researchersOne of the best and largest rangoli or floor paintings that I have seen can be found athttp://www.mysticindia.com The photo gallery is well worth a visit!

14 Materials and sources for School Coursework

Students Use the Ephemeral Arts for CourseworkThe festival and its various resources have been successfully used by students for preparing high quality coursework. Students working on GCSE coursework can use various aspects of the festival for independent research and study. Various thematic treatments can also be offered.Some students may want to download materials from the website. Please see

13 Resources for Teachers and Librarians

Resources now available for sale or loan The Festival of Ephemeral Arts has been presented by using a combination of the following resources:Practical workshops and supported learning experiences, working with senior artists, community arts practitioners and demonstrators with specific cultural backgrounds - one of our artists is a 78 year old Asian woman.Information: Use of the website at

12. Promoting Cross-Cultural Exchanges

Creating a 'Westernised' Rangoli- inviting new readersThe creation of the Butterfly rangoli ( please see post 2) was based on the use of South Asian techniques and materials. The 'rangoli' on the right was created by Sue Gande by using stones, twigs, coloured saw dust, sand, coloured woodchips and short grass cuttings to create her own abstract design. The top half of the picture shows the detail

11 Creative Diversity

Creative DiversityA new website called Creative DIVERSITY, is soon to be launched as www.creative-diversity.comIt is expected to become a major online resource, a service and a forum for people who are interested in the analysis, interpretation and application of artistic and cultural expression relating to diversity, leading to innovation and celebration for London 2102 and for the country as a

10 Another Look at Diversity

Cultural Diversity and Ephemeral ArtsThe study of ephemeral arts provides very interesting pathways for the understanding of diversity. These arts are unique for several reasons. The study and celebration of time based culture links the student to communities, how their traditions relating to common events - birthdays, childhood, coming of age, weddings, childbearing, becoming old, buying a house

9. You do not have to wait for Christmas!

This is picture is taken from a Waitrose supermarkets advertisement promoting the sale fruit and vegetables around Christmas time! I think it presents ideas for making a very clever use of common 'materials' and is also an excellent source of inspiration for students to create their own pictures. A possible project for classroom activity is, a) show the picture to students, b) ask them to collect

8 One of my favourite pictures!

This is a photograph of a mousepad that I bought in a computer shop a few years ago!I believe that it is an aboriginal art, created by putting together beads, slices of fruit, patterns and possibly ribbons made of fabric. But I could be wrong!What do you think? If you have seen this before or have a better description of the picture and its background, I would be very interested to hear from you

7. Investing in creative diversity

Ephemeral Arts as an expression of 'creative diversity'The cultural environment is segmented into three categories to celebrate diversity as a driver for the Ephemeral Arts:The collective and civic forms of culture includes heritage, museums, cinema, concerts, performing and visual arts. These activities have implications for collective cultural celebration affecting regeneration and social

6. Ephemeral Arts for Timebased Cultural Celebrations

Examples of Ephemeral ArtsHere is a wide range of ephemeral arts produced by many cultures. There are some fascinating pictures on the website. Please see www.ephemeralarts.com WELLDRESSING MEHNDI MASKS DOLLS ALPANA MURALSWALL PAINTINGS RAKHI ARM BANDS MOSAICS MIRROR ARTSFACE PAINTING FLOOR ARTS FANCY Festival Dress MASKSCLAY ARTS HOUSE DECORATIONS PICTURES Using Rangoli PatternsFLOWER

5. How the Festival is Created in Schools

How the Festival is created in Schools and in the community?Artists and community workers employed by Asian Arts Access create the Festival in your school and the community. This is done by:Providing the background to ephemeral work and by offering an appreciation of cultural diversity and the environmentEncouraging culturally diverse children and teachers to work at school with people from

4. How The Festival is Created in Libraries

Working in LibrariesArtists and local community workers are supported by Asian Arts Access to create the Festival and access to its resources in school and public libraries. This is done by:Providing the background to ephemeral work and by offering an appreciation of cultural diversity and the environmentEncouraging culturally diverse children and teachers to work at school with people from