Isle of Wight - UNITED KINGDOM - Shanklin Chine - TUCKS - H.B. Wimbush Painting: Shanklin Chine is a geological feature and tourist attraction in the town of Shanklin, on the Isle of Wight, England. A wooded coastal ravine, it contains waterfalls, trees and lush vegetation, with footpaths and walkways allowing paid access for visitors, and a heritage centre explaining its history. A chine is a local word for a stream cutting back into a soft cliff. Formation of the Chine, which cuts through Lower Greensand Cretaceous sandstones, has taken place over the last 10,000 years. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, stones were laid at the top of the waterfall to arrest this progress. There are a continuous series of spring lines on the cliff faces in the Chine. The Isle of Wight has a number of chines, but the largest remaining is Shanklin. With a drop of 32 m (105 ft.) to sea level, and a length of just over 400m (a quarter of a mile), the Chine covers an area of approximately 1.2 hectares (three acres). Prior to the Victorian era Shanklin was merely a small agricultural and fishing community, the latter nestling at the foot of the chine, and it was not until the early 19th century that it began to grow. Like most of the chines on the south of the Island, Shanklin Chine was well-used by smugglers. During the Second World War the Chine was taken over and used as an assault course by the Commandos whose HQ was at Upper Chine School. 40 Royal Marine Commando trained there in preparation for the Dieppe Raid in 1942. A fuel pipeline for Operation Pluto (Pipeline under the Ocean) also ran through the Chine and there are still 65 yards (59 m) of the pipe remaining and visible to the public. PLUTO, one of the great secret successes of the war, was the idea of Lord Louis Mountbatten who later became governor of the Isle of Wight. During the Normandy invasion in 1944, forked pipelines from the Chine and Sandown carried petrol 65 miles (105 km) under the Channel to Cherbourg. This Divided back Era (1907-15) postcard is rendered from a painting by Henry Bowser Wimbush (11 March 1858–5 May 1943), an English landscape painter, book illustrator and postcard artist. Born in London, England, Wimbush first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1888 and went on to mount several other exhibitions there over the years. He also exhibited at the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colors and Royal Society of British Artists in London, and in other cities in England. This postcard is in good condition. Tucks & Sons - Oilette. No. 9709.