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The 1954 French flap:

The index page for the 1954 French flap section of this website is here.

October 2, 1954, Louhans, Saône-et-Loire:

Reference for this case: 2-oct-54-Louhans.
Please cite this reference in any correspondence with me regarding this case.

Summary:

The regional newspaper Le Bien Public of Dijon, published on October 3, 1954, reported that a merchant of Louhans, Mr. Emile Nicolas, agent of the Terro cycles in that city, who "did not believe in 'saucers' or similar craft", had seen one.

Working by habit rather by night than day, Mr. Nicolas was trying a scooter on the road from Louhans to Bourg-en-Bresse in the night of Saturday, October 2, 1954, to Sunday, October 3, 1954.

Arriving at the entrance of the Barque Bridge, he made a U-turn and then looked mechanically towards the half-dark sky, where he distinctly saw a blackish mass descend vertically and land on the ground.

Mr. Nicolas made this statement to the newspaper:

"As I usually do when I try a machine, I went as far as the pont [bridge] de la Barque. On my left a very black mass that descended from the sky vertically and landed in a meadow between the Dijon-Bourges railway line and the road about fifty meters from me. I stopped immediately to better observe the craft which, as soon as it was on the ground, let escape through two openings of oval shape, a light, yellowish but very strong. Nothing moved. I stayed watching for at least 10 minutes the craft which measured about eight meters wingspan, whose base was very cylindrical while the top formed a slight curve. I could not get closer, but I had the idea to go get Mr. Rodot who was in my workshop. I turned on my engine and as I put it on at full throttle, the lights went out and the craft rose very quickly vertically. I returned to the place with Mr. Rodot but we saw nothing."

Afraid of being called a joker, Mr. Nicolas had not talked about his adventure to those around him, and it was not until October 3, 1954, that he mentioned it when he saw in the press the numerous testimonies brought on this topic.

Other newspaper gave their second-hand version, and in the ufology literature, one will find essentially very brief summary like that of Jacques Vallée, copied many times, and "demonstration" that this case would be aligned with others of that date in a way that chance, allegedly, cannot explain.

Reports:

[Ref. lbp1:] NEWSPAPER "LE BIEN PUBLIC":

Always "them"

A LOUHANS COMMERCER SAID TO HAVE OBSERVED A FLYING SAUCER IN A FIELD

Louhans (C.P.). - Appearances of flying saucers become more and more frequent.

The region of the Louhannais in turn has just been visited by one of these machines. A trader in Louhans, Mr. Emile Nicolas, agent of the Terro cycles in this city, did not believe in "saucers" or machines of the same kind.

Working by habit rather by night than by day, Mr. Nicolas was trying a scooter on the road from Louhans to Bourg-en-Bresse in the night from Saturday to Sunday. Arrived at the entrance of the pont de la Barque, he turned and then mechanically gazed into the semi-dark sky: he distinctly perceived a blackish mass descending vertically and landing on the ground. Mr. Nicolas gave us the following version: "As I usually do when I try a machine, I went as far as the pont [bridge] de la Barque. On my left a very black mass that descended from the sky vertically and landed in a meadow between the Dijon-Bourges railway line and the road about fifty meters from me. I stopped immediately to better observe the craft which, as soon as it was on the ground, let escape through two openings of oval shape, a light, yellowish but very strong. Nothing moved. I stayed watching for at least 10 minutes the craft which measured about eight meters wingspan, whose base was very cylindrical while the top formed a slight curve. I could not get closer, but I had the idea to go get Mr. Rodot who was in my workshop. I turned on my engine and as I put it on at full throttle, the lights went out and the craft rose very quickly vertically. I returned to the place with Mr. Rodot but we saw nothing."

Fearful of being called a prankster, Mr. Nicolas had not spoken of his adventure to his entourage. It is only yesterday that he made mention of it when he saw in the Press the numerous testimonies brought on this matter.

[Ref. fde1:] NEWSPAPER "FRANCE-DIMANCHE":

This weekley newspaper published a series of third hand drawings of some of the different shapes of flying saucers allegedly reported in France in 1954:

Louhans (Saône-et-Loire)

Interesting saucer by the remarkable harmony of the colors of its body, with orange cupola, black body, port-holes with intermittent lighting. Six meters large. Sighted on the ground by Mr. Emile Nicolas.

[Ref. aml1:] AIME MICHEL:

Listing a number of sightings dated the October 2, 1954, Aimé Michel mentions an observation at this day in Louhans in Burgundy, 10 kilometers west of a line joining the observation sites of Morestel, Bourg, Savigny and Poncey.

He only adds that the case was a very interesting saucer landing.

[Ref. gqy1:] GUY QUINCY:

Saturday October 2 [, 1954]

[...other cases...]

: Louhans (Saône-et-Loire): lum.obj. in the s. of a dome posed on the ground

[...other cases...]

[Ref. mcs1:] "MICHEL CARROUGES":

Michel Carrouges indicates that the Nicolas observation was made at a distance of 50 meters.

[Ref. ldl1:] "LUMIERES DANS LA NUIT" UFOLOGY MAGAZINE:

Editor's note. - The four straight lines are about the network of October 2, 1954. The first includes the places of: Jeumont, Dijon, Louhans, Morestel (On this straight line are also located: Chevigny en Valière (on 10/14/54), and Le Pin (on 9/16/54). The second includes the places of Poncey-Pellerey, Bourg (on this straight line are also located: Meursanges (on 10/14/54). The third includes the places of Saint-Brieuc, Saint-Paulien (on this straight line are also located: Angers (on 9/1/54). The fourth includes the places of Aiguillon, Avignon (on this straight line is also located: Fontaine de Vaucluse (on 10/14/54).

[Ref. jve5:] JACQUES VALLEE:

177

-005.21721

46.66500

1954

LOUHANS

001

C**

175

[Ref. pis1:] "PHENOMENES INCONNUS" UFOLOGY BULLETIN:

This ufology bulletin indicated that there was a case on October 2, 1954, in Louhans; which was a part of a "network" of aligned cases of that day, in their opinion.

[Ref. pis2:] "PHENOMENES INCONNUS" UFOLOGY BULLETIN:

In this ufology bulletin, Alain Barbe stated that the cases of October 2, 1954, including that of Louhans, formed a geometrical shape including parallele lines with growing spacing, which, he thought, could not cased by mere chance. He published this diagram, comprizing however only 8 of the 61 cases or more for that date:

He also published a second map with more cases (but far from the 61 cases), including that of Louhans:

[Ref. ldl2] "LUMIERES DANS LA NUIT":

In a list of cases of the 1954 French flap that were estimated to need an investigation or a counter-investigation, the magazine noted:

"10/2/54 Louhans"

[Ref. gal1:] CHARLES GARREAU AND RAYMOND LAVIER:

The two ufologists, journalists and authors, based themselves on newspaper clippings in their personal files and indicate that on October 2, 1954, 30 minutes after midday in Louhans in the Saône-et-Loire, a mechanic in bicycles and motorbikes, Emile Nicolas, who had worked very late to finish the repair of the scooter of the one of his customers, tested this scooter on the road of Bourg, at the exit of Louhans.

When he crossed the bridge of La Barque, he saw a mass going down vertically and landing in a meadow, between the road and the railway line from Dijon to Saint-Love, at about fifty meters of him.

As soon as it was on the ground, the machine let escape a yellowish but very strong light by two openings of oval design. Mr. Nicolas, who had stopped to observe the machine, told:

"It seemed to be cylindrical to me, with a light higher bulge. It measured 8 to 10 meters of length. Nothing moved. I did not dare to approach. On the contrary, I became frightened. I had the engine start and I set out at full speed. At this time, the lights extinguished and the apparatus took off without noise, vertically."

[Ref. jve2:] JACQUES VALLEE:

The author indicates that on October 2, 1954, near Louhans, in the immediate vicinity of Branges, an apparatus surmounted of a dome was seen on the ground between the road and the rails of the railroad. Openings were discernible, through which a strong yellow light shone.

[Ref. jve1:] JACQUES VALLEE:

179) October 2, 1954, 02:30 a.m. Louhans (France):

In the immediate vicinity of case in Branges, Mr. Nicolas saw a craft with a dome on top, on the ground between the road and the railroad tracks. Through some openings a strong yellow light shone. (33; M 109) (Bourgogne Républicaine, October 3, 1954).

[Ref. fru1:] MICHEL FIGUET AND JEAN-LOUIS RUCHON:

The two authors indicate that on October 2, 1954 at 02:30 in Louhans in the Saone-et-Loire, at the location called "pont de la Barque" ("bridge of the Boat"), Emile Nicolas, a mechanic riding his scooter saw a dark mass at low altitude.

The mass descended from the sky and landed in a meadow, less than one hundred meters of him, between the road and the railroad from Dijon to Saint-Amour.

He stopped to observe the object, which was cylindrical with a dome and measured from 8 to 10 meters. Two yellowish lights spouted out of it.

He did not dare to approach. The object took off vertically.

[Ref. gep1:] UFOLOGY GROUP "GEPO":

10/01/54

(22)

Louhans)

101XV S

[Ref. via1:] UFOLOGY BULLETIN "VIMANA 21":

SATURDAY 2 AND SUNDAY 3 OCTOBER: STILL AND ALWAYS "THEM" -

A trader from Louhans reportedly observed a flying saucer posed in a field. Apparitions of flying saucers are becoming more frequent: the Louhan region, in its turn, has just been visited by one of these machines. A trader, Mr. Emile Nicolas did not believe in saucers or craft of the same kind. Working by habit rather by night than day, he was trying a scootrr on the road from Louhans to Bourg en Bresse, on the night of Saturday to Sunday. At the entrance to La Barque, he turned around, and it was then that his gaze fell on the half-dark sky, and he distinctly perceived a blackish mass descending vertically and landing on the ground. He gave us the following version: "As I usually do when I try a machine, I went to the Pont de la Barque. I turned around and saw on my left a very dark mass, which descended from the sky vertically and which landed in a meadow, between the Dijon Bourg SNCF line and the road, about fifty meters from me. I stopped immediately to better observe the machine which immediately on land, let escape by two oval-shaped openings, a yellow light, but very strong. Nothing moved, I stayed ten minutes to look at the machine which measured about 5m in diameter whose bottom was very cylindrical while the top followe a slight curve. I did not dare to approach, but I had the idea to go and get Monsieur Rodot, who was in my workshop. When I started my engine and I turned it on full throttle, the light went out immediately and the craft rose very quickly vertically. I went back to the place with Mr. Rodot and we saw nothing." Being afraid to be viewed as for a joker, he had not spoken of his adventure to those around him. Only yesterday did he mention it when he saw in the press many testimonies brought on this matter.

The source is said to be the newspaper Le Bien Public.

[Ref. mft1:] MICHEL FIGUET:

Nr of the J. C. Fumoux list	Nr of Francat list	Localization	Date	Class	Credibility	Sources	Number of W
020	111	Louhans	10/02	CE1	NI [= "Unidentified"] C.V. [= Vallée Catalog]	2-p. 107	1 W

[Ref. mft2:] MICHEL FIGUET:

CASE Nr	CLASSIFICATION	DATE	HOUR	PLACE	ZIP CODE	CREDIBILITY SOURCE
111	CEl	02 10 1954	02.00	Louhans	71500 07	NI-AS, OVNI: p. 107

[Ref. lgs1:] LOREN GROSS:

"Domed craft." October 1st.

It was reported by a M. Nicolas that a "domed craft" landed at a spot between some tracks and a road near Louhans, France. The craft had windows or some kind of ports in the side that were lit by yellow-colored light. 11.

Bourgagne [sic] Republicaine. 3 October 54.

[Ref. goe1:] GODELIEVE VAN OVERMEIRE:

Belgian ufologist Godelieve van Overmeire notes in her catalogue that in France, in 1954, on October 2, in Louhans (the Saone et Loire) at 2:30, in the immediate surroundings of the case of Branges, Mr. Nicolas saw a craft, topped by a dome, posed on the ground between the road and the railway. Through some openings a strong yellow light shone.

The source is noted: "Bourgogne Républicaine, 3 Oct. 1954".

The ufologist indicates that another version is: Emile Nicolas, mechanic, worked very late completing the repair of the scooter of a customer and tests this machine on the road of Bourg towards 02:30 of the night. He sees a dark mass go down vertically and land in a meadow between the road and the railway, 50 m of him. At once at the ground the craft lets escape by two oval openings a very strong, yellowish light. Mr. Nicolas stopped and observes the object: "it seemed to to me cylindrical with a slight higher bulge. It measured from 8 to 10 m in length. Nothing moved. I did not dare to approach. On the contrary, I became frightened, I started the motor again and departed full throttle. At this time the lights tuned off and the crafttook off without noise vertically".

The source is noted: Garreau and Lavier in "Face aux extra-terrestres" - Delarge 1975 - J'ai Lu, p. 217.

[Ref. jbu1:] JEROME BEAU:

Jerome Beau indicates that on Saturday, October 2, 1954, at "02:30 In Louhans (France, in the immediate vicinity of the case of Branges the day before), Mr. Nicolas sees 1 machine topped of a dome posed on the ground between the road and the railroad. Through some openings a strong yellow light shines".

Jérôme Beau indicates as sources: Bourgogne Républicaine, October 3, 1954; Vallée, J., case Nr.41, "Rapport sur l'analyse de 200 observations documentées faites en 1954".

[Ref. lcn1:] LUC CHASTAN:

Luc Chastan indicates in his database that in the Saone et Loire in Louhans on October 2, 1954, at 02:30 hours, at the location "pont de la Barque", "a mechanic driving a scooter sees at low altitude a dark mass which goes down from the sky and lands close to him, at less than one hundred meters of him, between the road and the railway Dijon/St Amour. He stops to observe the object, it is cylindrical with a dome and 8 to 10 meters. Two yellowish lights spout out. The witness does not dare to approach. The object takes off vertically."

The source is indicated as "Ovni, Premier dossier complet... by Figuet M. / Ruchon J.L. ** Alain Lefeuvre pub. 1979".

[Ref. uda1:] "UFODNA" WEBSITE:

The website indicates that on 2 October 1954 at 02:30 in Louhans, France, "A craft with a dome on top, with a strong yellow light, on the ground."

"In the immediate vicinity of the sighting on the day before (October 1) in Louhans, France, Mr. Nicolas saw a domed disc on the ground at 2:30 a.m. between the road and the railroad tracks. Through some openings in the object a strong yellow light shone."

"Mr. Nicolas saw a craft with a dome on top, on the ground between the road and the railroad tracks. Through some openings a strong yellow light shone."

"A green fireball was observed. One yellow ball, about 5 feet across, was observed by four single female witnesses on a farm for over 15 minutes."

The sources are indicated as Guieu, Jimmy, Flying Saucers Come from Another World, Citadel, New York, 1956; Michel, Aime, Flying Saucers and the Straight-Line Mystery, S. G. Phillips, New York, 1958; Poher, Claude, Etudes Statistiques Portant sur 1000 Temoignag, Author, undated; FSR, FSR (formerly Flying Saucer Review), FSR, London, 1966; Bowen, Charles, The Humanoids: FSR Special Edition No. 1, FSR, London, 1966; Vallee, Jacques, Computerized Catalog (N = 3073); Vallee, Jacques, Challenge to Science: The UFO Enigma, Henry Regnery, Chicago, 1966; Vallee, Jacques, Preliminary Catalog (N = 500), (in JVallee01); Vallee, Jacques, A Century of Landings (N = 923), (in JVallee04), Chicago, 1969; Schoenherr, Luis, Computerized Catalog (N = 3173); Hatch, Larry, *U* computer database, Author, Redwood City, 2002.

[Ref. nip1:] "THE NICAP WEBSITE":

*Oct. 2, 1954 - In the immediate vicinity of the sighting on the day before (October 1) in Louhans, France, Mr. Nicolas saw a domed disc on the ground at 2:30 a.m. between the road and the railroad tracks. Through some openings in the object a strong yellow light shone. (Sources: Bourgogne Republicaine, October 3, 1954; Aime Michel, Flying Saucers and the Straight Line Mystery, p. 109; Jacques Vallee, Passport to Magonia, p. 215).

[Ref. ubk1:] "UFO-DATENBANK":

This database recorded the case 6 times:

Case Nr.	Date of observation	Place of observation	Country of observation	Classification
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France	CE I
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France	CE I
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France	CE I
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France	CE I
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France	CE I
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France	CE I
19541002	02.10.1954	Louhans	France

[Ref. prn2:] PETER ROGERSON - "INTCAT":

October 2 1954. 0230hrs.

LOUHANS (SAONE ET LOIRE : FRANCE)

Mechanic Emile Nicolas was driving a motor cycle, he had been repaired, on the road to Bourg, when he saw a dark mass land in a meadow between the road and railway 50m away. Two openings appeared from which a powerful yellow light was emitted. Emile saw that the object was a cylinder 8-10m long, with a slight bulge. Emile, scared, drove off; as he did so the object took off. There was no sound.

Garreau and Lavier 1975 p217

Explanations:

Helicopter or extraterrestrial visitors.

I kept the date of October 2, 1954, but I have a doubt: according to Le Bien Public, it occurred in the night from October 2 to 3, and Michel Figuet indicates 2 o'clock in the morning, so it would be October 3, 1954. But the newspaper says that the witness only spoke about it after reading saucer reports in the newspaper, so there must be at least one newspaper publication between his observation and October 3, 1954...

Keywords:

(These keywords are only to help queries and are not implying anything.)

Louhans, Saône-et-Loire, Emile Nicolas, motorbike, road, daylight, craft, object, apparatus, cylinder, portholes, cigar, silent, vertical, dome, landing, road, railroad, light, yellow

Sources:

[----] indicates sources that are not yet available to me.

[lbp1] Article in the regional newspaper Le Bien Public, France, October 2-3, 1954.
[----] Article in the regional newspaper La Bourgogne Républicaine, France, October 3, 1954.
[fde1] Article in the national weekly newspaper France-Dimanche, Paris, France, October 24, 1954.
[aml1] "Mystérieux Objets Célestes", book by Aimé Michel, Arthaud publisher, France, pages 148,149, 1958.
[aml1] "Flying Saucers and the Straight Lines Mystery", book by Aimé Michel, English version of "Mystérieux Objets Célestes", S.G. Phillips publisher, USA, 1958.
[gqy1] "Observations 1954", monograph by Guy Quincy, France - Algeria, private publication, page 10, the 1950's.
[mcs1] "Les Apparitions de Martiens", book by "Michel Carrouges" (pseudonym of Louis Couturier), Fayard publisher, France, page 80, 1963.
[ldl1] Ufology magazine Lumières Dans La Nuit (LDLN), France, #77, page 3, September / October 1965.
[jve5] "Catalogue préliminaire de 500 observations", listing in "Les Phénomènes Insolites de l'Espace", book by Jacques and Jannine Vallée, Table Ronde publisher, France, 1966.
[aml1] "A Propos des Soucoupes Volantes", book by Aimé Michel, reprint of "Mystérieux Objets Célestes", Planète publisher, France, page 136, 1966.
[jve1] "Un Siècle d'Atterrissages", catalogue by Jacques Vallée, in the ufology magazine Lumières Dans la Nuit (LDLN), France, #102, page 7, October 1969.
[jve1] "Passport to Magonia - On Ufos, Folklore, and Parallel Worlds", book by Jacques Vallée, Contemporary Books publishers, USA, 1969.
[pis1] Ufology bulletin Phénomènes Inconnus, C.F.R.S, France, #14, page 19, 1971.
[pis2] "Du nouveau sur l'orthothénie?", article by Alain Barbe, in the ufology bulletin Phénomènes Inconnus, C.F.R.S, France, #14, pages 17,18, 1971.
[jve1] "Chronique des Apparitions Extra-Terrestres", French translation of "Passport to Magonia", book by Jacques Vallée, Denoel publisher, France, page 265, 1972.
[jve2] Summary by Jacques Vallée in "The Humanoids: A Survey of World-Wide Reports of Landings of Unconventional Aerial Objects and their Alleged Occupants", book by Charles Bowen, Neville Spearman publishers, U-K., 1969.
[ldl2] "Réenquêtes 1954", in the ufology magazine Lumières Dans La Nuit (LDLN), France, #118, page 4, November 1972.
[jve2] Summary by Jacques Vallée in "En Quête des Humanoïdes", book by Charles Bowen, French translation of "The Humanoids", J'ai Lu publisher, pp 40-41, 1974.
[gal1] "Face Aux Extra-Terrestres", book by Charles Garreau and Raymond Lavier, Delarge publisher, J'ai Lu, France, page 217, 1975.
[aml1] "Mystérieux Objets Célestes", book by Aimé Michel, Seghers publisher, France, pages 148,149, 1977.
[aml1] "Mystérieux Objets Célestes", book by Aimé Michel, Robert Laffont publisher, France, pages 148,149, 1978.
[jve5] "Catalogue préliminaire de 500 observations", listing in "Les Phénomènes Insolites de l'Espace", book by Jacques and Jannine Vallée, Robert Laffont publisher, France, page 249, 1978.
[fru1] "OVNI, Premier Dossier Complet des Rencontres Rapprochées en France", book by Michel Figuet and Jean Louis Ruchon, Alain Lefeuvre publisher, France, pp 107-108, 1979.
[gep1] "Catalogue mondial des observations - Fichier OVNI GEPO Pasqualini 1954, list, in the ufology bulletin GEPO Informations, ufology group GEPO, France, #16, 1^st quarter, 1981.
[via1] "Catalogue, in the ufology bulletin Vimana 21, A.D.R.U.P. ufology group, France, #10-11, page 19, 3^rd quarter 1982.
[mft1] "ATTERRISSAGES D'UFO sur le continent français du 26 septembre 1954 au 18 octobre 1954", list by Michel Figuet in the ufology magazine Lumières Dans La Nuit (LDLN), France, #249-250, page 27, March / April 1985.
[mft2] "Catalogue Francat des rencontres rapprochées en France (Listing 800 1982) (2 - Suite)", list compiled by Michel Figuet, in the ufology magazine Lumières Dans La Nuit (LDLN), France, #257-258, page 17, November - December 1985.
[----] "Computer Database", compiled by Luis Schoenherr.
[lgs1] "The Fifth Horseman of the Apocalypse - UFOs: A History - 1954 October", monography by Loren E. Gross, USA, page 3, 1991.
[goe1] "Chronologie OVNI", web page compiled by Godelieve Van Overmeire, Belgium, circa 2003, at users.skynet.be/sky84985/afin54.htm
[----] "*U* Computer Database", compiled by Larry Hatch, USA, 2002.
[jbu1] "Samedi 2 octobre 1954", web page compiled by Jérôme Beau, RR0 website, France, circa 2005, at www.rr0.org/data/1/9/5/4/10/02/index.html
[lcn1] Base OVNI France, website by Luc Chastan, France, circa 2005, at baseovnifrance.free.fr/detobs.php?numobs=476
[uda1] "2 Oct 1954 - Louhans, France", web page by the website UFOdna, circa 2008, at www.ufodna.com/uf18/uf9/189053.htm
[nip1] List on The NICAP Website, USA, found in 2014, at http://www.nicap.org/reports/1954_ufocat.htm
[ubk1] Online database UFO-Datenbank, Germany, found in 2016, at ufodatenbank.de
[prn2] "INTCAT 1954", catalogue compiled by Peter Rogerson, U-K., circa 2016, at https://intcat.blogspot.com/search?q=1954
[----] "Des ovnis dans le ciel de Bourgogne: De 1461 à nos jours, près de 200 observations dévoilées", book by Alain Lequien, Books on Demand publishers, France, page 150, 2019.

Document history:

Version:	Created/Changed by:	Date:	Change Description:
0.1	Patrick Gross	March 27, 2003	First published.
1.0	Patrick Gross	February 27, 2009	Conversion from HTML to XHTML Strict. First formal version. Additions [goe1], [jbu1], [lcn1], [uda1].
1.1	Patrick Gross	March 14, 2010	Addition [mcs1].
1.1	Patrick Gross	June 19, 2010	Addition [jve5].
1.2	Patrick Gross	October 2, 2014	Addition [nip1].
1.3	Patrick Gross	December 12, 2016	Additions [ldl2], [lgs1], [ubk1].
1.4	Patrick Gross	January 7, 2017	Additions [ldl2], [lgs1], [ubk1].
1.5	Patrick Gross	October 4, 2019	Additions [ldl1], [pis1], [pis2], [via1], [prn2], [mft1], [mft2], Summary. Explanations changed, were "Not looked for yet."
1.6	Patrick Gross	April 4, 2022	Additions [gqy1], [gep1].

This page was last updated on October 4, 2019.