View source for Arts and Literature of the Twelve Colonies

:''This article discusses an aspect of the [[Re-imagined Series]] version of the Twelve Colonies. For information on the [[Original Series]] version, see [[The Twelve Colonies (TOS)]].''


The [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]], like most civilizations, have a rich historical record of '''arts and literature''' as well as other works. Their [[Government of the Twelve Colonies|democratic republic]] gives its citizens many freedoms of expression in addition to freedom of the press. Colonials have paintings, abstract designs and a variety of musical traditions.

Additionally, many functional items produced on the Colonies adhere to an aesthetic, even at a cost to efficiency.

{{RDM twelve colonies series}}

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==Literature==

===Religion===

==== ''The Physics of Religion and Spirituality'' ====

A copy of ''The Physics of Religion and Spirituality'' is included in the package of [[Zoe Graystone]]'s personal effects that [[Natalie Stark]] gives to [[Amanda Graystone]] at [[Apollo Park]] ([[CAP]]: [[Rebirth]]).

===Political===

==== Tom Zarek's book ====

'''Tom Zarek's book''' is a political book of [[Tom Zarek]]'s beliefs, which he wrote while imprisoned. The manuscript is smuggled from his prison and published, but due to its yet-unspecified content, the book became banned in certain places throughout the Twelve Colonies, particularly the fleet academy.

During the incident on the ''[[Astral Queen]]'', Captain [[Lee Adama]] tells Zarek that he read the book and that it challenged the way he thought about things on the Colonies ([[TRS]]: [[Bastille Day]]).

==== ''My Triumphs, My Mistakes'' ====

{{mainarticle|My Triumphs, My Mistakes}}

After returning to the [[The Fleet (RDM)|The Fleet]] months after the exodus from [[New Caprica]], [[Gaius Baltar]] wrote his manifesto, in which he criticizes the Colonial government system and highlights the class factions between the "[[Caprica (RDM)|Caprica]]n elite" and the lower classes in the Colonies. Much like Tom Zarek's book, Baltar's manifesto was smuggled out by his [[Alan Hughes|lawyer]] and published, despite attempts to ban and destroy the book by [[Laura Roslin]] and her supporters ([[TRS]]: "[[Dirty Hands]]", "[[The Son Also Rises]]").

===Prose===

====''Dark Day''====
Edward Prima is the author of the novel ''Dark Day''.

[[William Adama]], who had ''Dark Day'' in his personal library on ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'', gives it to [[Laura Roslin]] as a gift ([[Water]]). She considers it to be "one of those classics I've never gotten around to reading." Given the context of their conversation, notably Roslin's reference to ''A Murder on Picon'', it is likely a mystery.

Roslin returns the book, to Adama's consternation, after the prognosis of her illness sharply worsens ([[TRS]]: [[Flight of the Phoenix]]).

====''The French Lieutenant's Woman''====

[[Image:The French Lieutenant's Woman.jpg|thumb|A copy of ''The French Lieutenant's Woman''.]]

'''''The French Lieutenant's Woman'''''<ref>This is likely a gaffe and never intended to be seen on screen in detail. See: [[Continuity errors (RDM)]] for additional information on this book's appearance.</ref> is part of William Adama's formidable library of books on ''Galactica''.

It is located on the shelf behind the couch in Adama's quarters ([[TRS]]: [[Black Market]]). 

====''A Murder on Picon''====
'''''A Murder on Picon''''' is a mystery novel, apparently taking place on [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Picon|Picon]]. 

[[Laura Roslin]] brought the book with her on the trip to ''[[Galactica]]'' prior to its decommissioning ceremonies ([[TRS]]: [[Miniseries]], "[[Water]]").

==== ''Blood Runs at Midnight'' ====
A mystery novel given to William Adama by President Roslin as a gift ([[TRS]]: [[A Day in the Life]]).

==== ''Love and Bullets'' ====
A murder mystery written by Nick Taylo that is set in [[Caprica City]]. Adama reads part of the book to Roslin when she lies in ''Galactica'''s [[sickbay]] to receive [[Doloxan]] treatments ([[TRS]]: [[The Ties That Bind]]).

:''See [[The Ties That Bind#Noteworthy Dialogue]] for an excerpt.''

==== ''Searider Falcon'' ====
[[Image:Searider Falcon.jpg|thumb|Adama's singed copy of ''Searider Falcon'' ([[TRS]]: [[Sine Qua Non]]).]] 

Another book Adama reads to Roslin. Adama calls it a classic, and both say that it is one of their favorites ([[TRS]]: [[Escape Velocity]]). Roslin takes it with her when she visits the rebel baseship ([[TRS]]: [[Guess What's Coming to Dinner]]) and Adama finds it shortly later in a derelict Raptor that escaped from a battle with the Cylons. When Adama decides to stay behind the Fleet in a Raptor in order to find Roslin, he takes the book with him ([[TRS]]: [[Sine Qua Non]]). 

:''The raft was not as seaworthy as I'd hoped. The waves repeatedly threatened to swamp it. I wasn't afraid to die. I was afraid of the emptiness that I felt inside. I couldn't feel anything. And that's what scared me. You came into my thoughts. I felt them. It felt good.''

===Poetry===

====''A Poet's Dream''====

[[Image:A Poet's Dream - Kataris - watermarked.jpg|thumb|''A Poet's Dream'', Kataris' memorable collections of poetry.]]

'''A Poet's Dream''' is a compilation of poems from the [[Caprica (RDM)|Caprican]] poet [[Kataris]]. Lieutenant [[Joe Palladino|Palladino]] owns a bound edition of this book and threatens Colonel [[Saul Tigh|Tigh]] with lines from a poem within:

<blockquote>From the darkness you must fall<br />
Failed and weak, to darkness all.</blockquote>

At least one of the poems from this compilation is quite well-known amongst Colonials. [[Kara Thrace]] recognizes the above quotation, recalls from which piece it comes, and knows the poem's quality relative to his other works. [[D'Anna Biers]] identifies Palladino's copy on sight in a recording she is editing ([[TRS]]: [[Final Cut]]). Later, [[Gaius Baltar]] has a copy of this book in his cell on ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'' ([[TRS]]: [[Dirty Hands]]).

===Children===

====''Muffit's Really Big Adventure''====

[[Image:Muffit's Really Big Adventure.jpg|thumb|A copy owned by [[Clarice Willow]]'s family.]]

Featuring the character of [[Muffit]], this book was written by Vincent Uytdehaag and illustrated by Shay Hilliard. ([[CAP]]: "[[False Labor]]," [http://cgi.ebay.com/Caprica-Muffits-Really-Big-Adventure-Childrens-Book-/170586016700?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27b7b80bbc#ht_2163wt_1139/ eBay & Propworx]).

====''Dragon Fighters of Kobol''====

A fantasy book, ''[[Dragon Fighters of Kobol]]'' featured dangerous monsters as part of its story. [[Zoe Graystone]] was a fan of the book as a child. ([[CAP]]:  "[[Here Be Dragons]]").

===Periodicals===
*[[Aerelon Gazette]]
*[[Caprica Times]]
*[[Caprican Life]]
*[[Nymph]]
*[[Picon Star Tribune]]
*[[Scorpia Paragliding]]

===Law books===

''Caprican Criminal Codes'' is a multi-volume collection of Caprican law ([[TRS]]: [[A Day in the Life]]).

''[[Trial Tactics and Strategies]]'' and ''[[Law and Mind: The Psychology of Legal Practice]]'' are two books about the the practice of law, written by [[Joseph Adama]], [[William Adama]]'s father ([[TRS]]: "[[The Son Also Rises]]", "[[Crossroads, Part I]]").

==Visual Arts==

===Representationalist===

====Monclair====
[[Image:Monclair2.jpg|thumb|right|A Monclair original.]]
'''Monclair''' was a [[Colonial]] painter. One of his original paintings, a stylized depiction of the [[Cylon War]], adorns [[William Adama]]'s quarters on ''[[Galactica]]''. He is apparently of considerable renown, given [[Gaius Baltar]]'s impressed reaction to the piece ([[TRS]]: [[Bastille Day]]).

===== Notes =====

* In ''[[Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero 4]]'' (which exists in a [[BW:SC|separate continuity]]), [[Colonial Intelligence]] agent [[Levin]] comments on the painting, noting Adama's "expensive tastes". Additionally, Levin knowingly mentions that the painting was a gift from [[Julian DiMarco]], Adama's friend and former commander. 

* According to ''[[Battlestar Galactica: The Official Companion]]'', the painting hanging in Adama's quarters was made by additional art director [[Ken Rabehl]].

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===Abstract===

====Kara Thrace====
[[Image:Valley_of_Darkness-Starbuck_Helo.jpg||thumb|right|Abstract paintings by Kara Thrace. ]]
Between tours of duty, [[Kara Thrace]] was an enthusiastic painter. [[Karl Agathon]] is surprised to discover this side of her when they visit her apartment in [[Delphi]] ([[TRS]]: [[Valley of Darkness]]). Curiously, a specific design that Thrace has doodled as a child would be found more than two years later inside an [[Temple of Five|ancient temple]] of the [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]], without Thrace or Helo understanding why she would be aware of the design ([[TRS]]: [[Rapture]]).
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===Film===

====''The Tauron Line''====
'''''The Tauron Line''''' is a war film produced several decades before the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]]. It is possibly set during the [[Tauron Civil War]].

The plot of the film is unknown. At one point in the film, the antagonists booby-trap an item with explosives, then wait for the protagonists to pick it up and take it somewhere before detonating it. Samuel Anders uses this scene as inspiration for the [[Caprica Resistance]]'s first attack on the Cylons ([[TRS]]: [[The Plan]]).

According to [http://twitter.com/SergeGraystone/status/10142203820 Serge's Twitter Account], [[Daniel Graystone|Daniel]] and [[Amanda Graystone]] are fans of the film.

===Tattoos===

====[[Tauron]] Tattoos====
Many Taurons sport tattoos, from which can be read essential aspects of their life stories. The most extensive tattoos are found among members of the [[Ha'la'tha]] crime syndicate, and many Capricans associate the practice with the Ha'la'tha ([[CAP]]: [[Gravedancing]]).  However, members of the [[Heraclitus]] militia also wore Tauron tattoos ([[CAP]]: [[Dirteaters]]).

====[[Kara Thrace]] & [[Samuel Anders]]====
[[Image:Anders and Thrace wedding tattoo.jpg|thumb|left|[[Samuel Anders]] and [[Kara Thrace]]'s wedding band.]]

Instead of wearing wedding rings, Samuel Anders and Kara Thrace<ref>Actress Katee Sackhoff has a number of personal tattoos on her body. The crew uses various means to cover or block these tattoos from view during filming, but the results are not always perfect. See the article on [[Katee Sackhoff]] for details.</ref> created tattoos on their arms that, when they embrace, form a unified circle with wings. The symbol for the colony of [[Caprica (RDM)|Caprica]] is also in view<ref>In a TV Guide photoshoot video interview, [[Katee Sackhoff]] comments: "...the tattoos that Anders and Starbuck got when they got married and uh, it kinda looks like the Redwings sign doesn't it?  Or logo, but its, um... when he's holding me the rings match up and it becomes one ring with two wings. So it's very cool there's some signs in there like the Caprica symbol and some space things and its all very intricate and very cool and the guys over at Twin Villain Tattoo down in Gastown designed it so we're all very excited about it."</ref>.

From a behind-the-scenes perspective, [[Michael Trucco]] adds that it is their wedding band, but that this is never fully explained in the show. Further, these matching tattoos are applied by the makeup department.

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==== Other ====

[[Felix Gaeta]] displays a tattoo of a rather large tiger during his interview with [[D'Anna Biers]] ([[TRS]]: [[Final Cut]]). Gaeta indicated he was quite inebriated with [[ambrosia]] to minimize the pain of the tattoo.

[[Socinus]] has a tattoo of an [[Wikipedia:Aries|Aries]] design on his right arm ([[TRS]]: [[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]).<ref>It is not yet known if the tattoo belongs to Alonso Oyarzun or if it is purely for the character of Socinus, as both the actor was born under the sign of Aries and the character is a colonist of [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Aerelon|Aerelon]].</ref>

An unnamed [[Tattooed pilot|pilot]] has many tattoos on both upper arms, depicting a tiger and a dragon, among other things.

[[Vireem]], specialist aboard the battlestar ''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]'', has a complex tattoo on his shoulder ([[TRS]]: [[Pegasus (episode)|Pegasus]])<ref>Visible on his left shoulder in the "little robot girl" sequence, apparently a Chinese-style dragon and a Chinese character over a spiral background that could be a galaxy.</ref>.

<gallery>
Image:Gaeta tiger tatoo.jpg|Gaeta's tiger tattoo.
Image:SocinusTatoo KLGp1.JPG|Socinus's tattoo.
Image:Unnamed_pilot_1.jpg|The unnamed [[tattooed pilot]].
</gallery>

==Sculpture==

In addition to the [[Arrow of Apollo]], the [[Delphi Museum of the Colonies]] contains a large collection of ancient pottery.  Located in numerous display cases in the exhibit halls spanning the museum's levels, this large collection of vases, jars, pots and stone fragments form a rough outline of the Colonials' artistic history.  Many of the artifacts and art pieces are quite elaborate and appear to be in the detailed Corinthian Style.

==Music==

===Dreilide Thrace===
[[Dreilide Thrace]] was a pianist.  His daughter [[Kara Thrace|Kara]] kept recordings of some of his piano arrangements in her Delphi apartment ([[TRS]]: [[Valley of Darkness]]).<ref>According to ''Battlestar Galactica'' composer [[Bear McCreary]], the piece attributed to Thrace's father is actually ''Metamorphosis Five'', composed by [[Wikipedia:Philip Glass|Philip Glass]], from his 1989 album ''Solo Piano''.</ref> At some point in his career, he recorded an album, ''Dreilide Thrace: Live at the Helice Opera House'' ([[TRS]]: [[Someone to Watch Over Me]]).

===Colonial Anthem===
The [[Colonial anthem]] is heard as a short fanfare over the Viper flyby during ''Galactica's'' decommissioning ceremony and as a background music at the beginning of Baltar's television interview ([[Miniseries]]). Its third, and longer, appearance is as background music for the rousing closing speech of [[D'anna Biers]]'s documentary on the Colonial military ([[TRS]]: [[Final Cut]]).<ref>In reality, this is the [[Original Series]] theme by [[Stu Phillips]]. For "Final Cut", the piece was specially re-arranged by [[Bear McCreary]].</ref>

===Popular music===
Popular Colonial music can be heard in Boomer's apartment on Caprica in the episode "[[Downloaded]]" and in [[Joe's bar]] in "[[Taking a Break From All Your Worries]]". Another song is playing as Lee Adama enters the bar on ''[[Prometheus (ship)|Prometheus]]'' ([[Black Market]]) <ref>This is only a small part of the song that was composed for the episode by Bear McCreary. The full 5 minute long version is available on the [[Soundtrack (Season 2)|Season 2 soundtrack]].</ref>.

In addition, a popular sing-a-long song is "99 Bottles of Ambrosia"<ref>This is clearly the Colonial version of "[[w:99 Bottles of Beer|99 Bottles of Beer]]".</ref>, which [[Marcia Case]] throws out there as a recommendation after [[Kara Thrace]] comments on the humdrum of their up-until-then-uneventful search and rescue mission for a missing [[Raptor]] ([[TRS]]: [[Razor]]).

Roughly 60 BCH, musical styles emerged on [[Caprica (RDM)|Caprica]] and [[Tauron]], themselves later repeated more than 150,000 years later on the second [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]]; these include alternative hip-hop, of which the only known artists are Tauron ([[CAP]]: [[The Reins of a Waterfall]]) as well as forms of punk rock and dance music ([[Caprica pilot|''Caprica'' pilot]]).<ref>{{cite_web|url=http://www.bearmccreary.com/blog/?p=1903|title=The Themes of "Caprica"|date=23 April 2009|accessdate=26 February 2010|last=McCreary|first=Bear|format=|language=}}</ref>

==Aesthetics==

Colonial [[Wikipedia:Aesthetics|aesthetics]] lead to an avoidance of right angles.

===Octagons===

Colonial printouts, photographs, videos, and [[Computers in the Re-imagined Series#Data discs|data discs]] are rarely rectangular; the corners are trimmed at 45 degree angles, creating snub rectangles, i.e. octagons. The reasoning for this is likely based on their aversion to right angles, as rectangles are, particularly for paper, more efficient<ref>This developed out of a discussion between [[Richard Hudolin]], Ron Moore, David Eick and Michael Rymer. It was felt that cutting the corner of most documents is an easy way to make the look a bit unconventional and unfamiliar. Hudolin also states that not all documents are clipped, but that classified ones definitely are ([[Battlestar Galactica: The Official Companion]], p.140)</ref>.

This design choice is also evident in Colonial [[Computers in the Re-imagined Series|computer systems]] with windows and menus often having clipped corners.

===Hexagons===

In the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]], hexagons feature significantly as [[dog tags]], [[Triad (RDM)|playing cards]], glass bottles and many other objects. This likely reflects both the dislike of right angles and the simplicity of polygons over curved shapes.

===Pentagons===

While not a part of Colonial society ''per se'', pentagons play a large part in the architecture of the lone Thirteenth Tribe structure encountered by the Colonials thus far, the [[Temple of Five]].  Much like the Colonials, it appears at least the ancient members of the Thirteenth Tribe were also wary of right angles.


==Architecture==

===Federal Period===

[[Image:Mini-Caprica City.jpg|thumb|right|Some Federal Period architecture in Caprica City]]
This style was mix of older and newer trends, utilizing traditional stone facades along with glass and steel. This architecture was found throughout [[Caprica City]], [[Delphi]], and other [[Unnamed cities of Caprica|unnamed cities]] prior to the Cylon attack.

Several buildings in Caprica City had the form of a pyramid, but the cultural significance of this design choice is unknown <ref>This is a reference to the [[:Image:Capricaattack.jpg|Caprica]] of the [[Original Series]], which was influenced by Egyptian mythology and symbolism.</ref>.

===Ancient Kobol===

[[Image:City of the Gods.jpg|thumb|right|Bird's eye view of the [[City of the Gods]] and its architecture]]
[[Image:Opera House ruins.jpg|thumb|right|The stone ruins of the Opera House]] 
In "[[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]", Roslin looks at schematics for the [[City of the Gods]] on [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]]. Its buildings, such as the [[Temple]], [[Forum]], and the [[Opera House]], were made of stone and range in shape and size, and resemble classical Greco-Roman architecture.

Later, the ruins of the Opera House are seen when [[Gaius Baltar]] and others crash-land nearby. The building was made of stone and utilized decorative columns and pillars. While there, Baltar has a vision which may have represented the original appearance of the Opera House before it fell into disrepair.

===Polygonal Architecture===

Many places and objects within ''Galactica'' reflect early aesthetic choices that eschew right-angular forms. Many corridors, including ship bulkhead doors, are hexagonal. [[CIC]] elements, particularly the Command & Control Center table, the tactical station table, and even the alignment of the displays of the [[DRADIS]] console, form a hexagonal appearance.

This aesthetic appears to have waned during the construction of more advanced battlestars such as ''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]'', which uses far fewer hexagonal shapes.<ref>The sets for ''Pegasus'' were purchased from a failed series pilot for a ''[[Wikipedia:Lost in Space|Lost in Space]]'' series remake. As such, the sets adhere to "earthly" rectangular design, and budget constraints for ''Battlestar Galactica'' likely limited any large modifications.</ref>


==References==
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[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial]]
[[Category:Colonial History]]
[[Category:Colonial History (RDM)]]
[[Category:Colonial Society]]
[[Category:Colonial Society (RDM)]]
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