Image of the day

Fascinating photo of an abandoned elevator. In the centre you can see the leg where the seeds went up in little scoops on the conveyor belt. As the loaded scoops ascended some of the overfilled grains would spill out to trickle down the leg. These grains would ever so slowly erode and sculpt the leg boards over the decades. The lumber I am using for the altar top was salvaged from a canola leg and is stained dark from the canola oil in the seeds. Once at the top of the structure the grain would be directed down into the proper storage bin.

One can also clearly see the cribbed method of construction - 2 by 4's were placed on the flat much like Lego bricks stacked together. This made for a very strong structure but labour intensive to build and taking considerable skill on the part of the craftsmen. The design had to take into account the shrinkage of the wood as it dried, as well as settling as the bins were filled. A full size elevator could be over 100 feet high, and would shrink as much as 2 to 3 feet.