The goddess of untamed nature, forests, hunting, and the moon revered by the Western Slavs is Devana, Zevana, and less frequently Zievonya. Her reference in the sources dates back to the 15th century, when Jan Dugosz linked her to the Roman goddess Diana. She occasionally performs with Morana in folk rites. Verbascum, which is used to treat respiratory issues and for skin care, is also known as dziewanna in Polish. The closest Slavic analogs to nymphs, who serve as helpers of Artemis in Greek mythology, are boginki, which are indigenous to Western Slavs, primarily in Poland. Young females known as boginki live at the edges of reservoirs, forests, and caverns where they emerge at night, particularly on nights with the summer moon. They are mostly naked or clad in white. While caring for wild creatures, they frequently displayed hostility against people, particularly men. Their behavior was controlled by the moon, which was their deity. Boginki were also expected to use a bow for shooting. These characteristics of boginki nymphs could link them to Devana-Artemis, the moon and forest goddess. A few legends may refer to Devana, yet she does not actually appear in folklore outside of the sources indicated above. The tale of Łysa Góra, which was portrayed in Polish culture as the Polish Olympus, may be an allusion to Devana. Local lore claims that there was once a Gord or a castle on Łysa Góra before the monastery was constructed there. According to the folktale, the Proud Lady, who served the castle as her seat, and giants were supposed to build the castle. The Proud Lady, who would go on to defeat Alexander the Great, erred by being self-centered and claiming to be Diana. God could not take it and used lightning to level the castle. Sometimes Devana is identified as The Proud Lady
[Information and Image Credit : Devana, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devana ]
[Image : Devana by Andrey Shishkin, 2013] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported; (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property)]
[License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia-Source-Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Devana_by_Andrey_Shishkin.jpg ]
#Mythology
In Roman and Hellenistic religion, Diana is a goddess who is principally revered as the protector of the countryside, hunters, crossroads, and the Moon. Despite having an independent Italian origin, she is often compared to the Greek goddess Artemis and adopted much of the mythology of Artemis early in Roman history. She was born on the island of Delos to parents Jupiter and Latona and had a twin brother named Apollo. Diana is revered as a virgin goddess and a maternity protector. Diana once shared a trio of roles with the water nymph Egeria, who served as her attendant and assisting midwife, and the woodland god Virbius. Many contemporary neopagan cults, such as Roman neopaganism and Stregheria, honor Diana. Diana has been seen as a triple divinity throughout history, merging with a goddess of the moon, such as Luna or Selene, and the underworld, which is typically associated with Hecate. Persona of Diana is intricate and includes a number of antiquated elements. Diana was once thought of as a goddess of the wild and of the hunt, which was an important sport in both Roman and Greek culture. Diana was principally honored as a huntress and protector of hunters in early Roman inscriptions. Later, throughout the Hellenistic era, Diana came to be equally or even more venerated as a goddess of the tame countryside, or Villa Rustica, as opposed to the wild woods, which was often idealized in Greek thinking and poetry. The Greek goddess Artemis was the first to assume this dual role as the goddess of both civilization and the wild, and consequently of the civilized countryside. By the third century CE, when Greek culture had a significant impact on Roman religion, Diana had nearly completely merged with Artemis and had adopted many of her characteristics, both in terms of her spiritual realms and how she was described physically
[Information and Image Credit : Diana_(mythology), Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana_(mythology) ]
[Image : Diana Hunting, Guillaume Seignac]
[Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic ; Wikipedia-Image Author : Seignac, Diane chassant]
[License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia-Source-Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Seignac,_Diane_chassant_(5613442047).jpg ]
#Mythology
The Königsberg Castle served as a landmark for Königsberg, Germany, the capital of East Prussia, which later became Kaliningrad, Russia since 1946. The castle stood where an Old Prussian fort called Tuwangste once stood close to the Pregel River at a crucial crossing point in Prussian territory. Three Prussian villages in the area were later named —Löbenicht, Sackheim, and Tragheim. The Teutonic Knights replaced the Prussian fort with a temporary one made of earthworks and timber after capturing the area in 1255. By 1257, a brand-new Ordensburg castle made of stone was being built. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, the castle underwent numerous rounds of significant expansion and refortification. The Teutonic Order Grandmasters lived in the fortification, which eventually evolved into a castle, and Prussian emperors later made it their home. The splendid palace is described in the 1815 Encyclopaedia Britannica as having a handsome library and a hall that is 83.5 meters long and 18 meters wide without supports to support it. With 284 steps up to the summit and a height of almost 100 meters, the gothic tower of the castle offered panoramic views. This enormous structure, which was surrounded by a sizable quadrangle and was located virtually in the middle of the city, was once the headquarters of the Teutonic Order. In the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, it was expanded and changed. On the Schloßkirche, often known as the palace church, on the west wing, Frederick I was crowned in 1701 and William I in 1861. The Order of the arms of Black Eagle members were inscribed on the walls and columns. The 83 m long and 18 m tall Moscowiter-Saal was located above the church. The apartments of Hohenzollerns and the Prussia Museum were both accessible to the general public every day up until the end of World War II. The museum housed numerous paintings by the artist Lovis Corinth as well as 240,000 exhibits from the Prussian collection, a collection from the Königsberg State and University Library, and more
[Information and Image Credit : Königsberg_Castle, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%B6nigsberg_Castle ]
[Image : Königsberg Castle courtyard in c. 1900] [The Work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. The author of this image from Switzerland is unknown, and the image was published at least 70 years ago. It is therefore in the public domain in Switzerland by virtue of Art. 31 of the Swiss Copyright Act. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)]
[ Art. 31 of the Swiss Copyright Act Link : https://shorturl.at/dnQR3 ]
[Wikipedia-Image-Source-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:K%C3%B6nigsberg_Castle_courtyard.jpg ]
#History#Castles#Architecture
Abundantia, also known as Abundita or Copia, was a deity who represented wealth and abundance in the religion of the ancient Romans. Abundantia is Latin for plenty or wealth. This name is appropriate since Abundantia was a goddess of wealth, abundance, luck, fortune, valuables, and success. She would aid in safeguarding your investments and savings. Abundantia would even help with significant purchases. She was one of the religious depictions of virtue that portrayed the emperor as ensuring Golden Age conditions. Thus, Abundantia appears in literature, worship, and art but has little actual mythology. She might have survived in some capacity in medieval France and Roman Gaul. Thus, Abundantia appears in literature, worship, and art but has little actual mythology. She might have survived in some capacity in medieval France and Roman Gaul. Abundantia would go with a cornucopia loaded with grain and money. She occasionally left some of her grain or cash as a gift at home of someone. In the legend of Acheloüs, the river deity, whose horn Hercules tore from his forehead, the Augustan poet Ovid gives Abundantia a role. The Naiads took the horn and turned it into the cornucopia they gave to Abundantia. She was equated with Annona, who represented the grain supply, and Ceres on Neronian currency. Different aetiological myths offer diverse theories for the origin of the cornucopia. Abundantia was a virtue in action in places like the waterfront, where grain entered the city, similar to Annona. She is shown on Roman coins either holding the cornucopia or emptying it of the richness of its contents. On rare occasions, she is shown standing on a ship or holding a stalk of wheat. What her presence on ships denotes is uncertain. This can represent the wealth that the Roman Empire gained via its conquests. The deity is seen sitting and holding a cornucopia as a representation of the affluence that stems from act of Mithras in Mithraic imagery on a vase from Lezoux in the Roman province of Gallia Aquitania. A Pompeii fountain also included an image of Abundantia. Numerous medals of emperors feature Abundantia as those of Trajan, Antoninus Pius, Caracalla, Elagabalus, Severus Alexander, Gordian, Decius, Gallienus, Tetricus, Probus, Numerian, Carinus, Carus, Diocletian and Galerius, to name a few
[Information and Image Credit : Abundantia, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abundantia ]
[Image : A painting of Abundantia made by Peter Paul Rubens] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The author died in 1640, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)]
[Wikipedia-Image-Source-Link :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Peter_Paul_Rubens_-_Abundance_(Abundantia)_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ]
#Mythology
In the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Queen Mab—the midwife of fairies—is mentioned as a fairy. Later, she makes appearances in other works of poetry and fiction as well as in drama and film under various guises. In the play, she is a tiny creature who plays nighttime pranks on sleeping people, as described in a famous monologue by Mercutio that was originally written in prose and frequently modified into iambic pentameter. She rides her chariot over their noses while being propelled by a team of atoms, bringing the imaginations of sleeping men. She is also referred to as a midwife who assists those who are sleeping in giving birth to their dreams. She has generally been represented in later works as the Fairy Queen. Shakespeare may have taken the name Mab from tradition, but this is debatable and there are many hypotheses as to where it came from. According to a well-liked hypothesis, Mab is descended from Medb, a legendary queen from Irish poetry from the 12th century. The little dream-bringer Mab, however, stands in stark contrast to the powerful warrior Medb. Other writers, like Wirt Sikes, asserted that Mab is derived from the Welsh word mab, which means son or child, although detractors criticized this claim for lacking evidence. A link to Habundia, also known as Dame Habonde, a goddess occasionally referred to as a queen in medieval times and associated with witches, is also postulated
[Information Credit : Queen_Mab, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Mab ]
[Image : Queen Mab, illustration by Arthur Rackham (1906)]
[The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Wikipedia-Source-Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:110_Queen_Mab,_who_rules_in_the_Gardens.jpg ]
#Mythology
In the English county of Somerset, Glastonbury Tor is a tor that is close to Glastonbury and is topped by the Grade I-listed, roofless St. Michaels Tower. The location is administered by the National Trust and is a scheduled monument. The Tor has a number of other enduring mythological and spiritual links. It is mentioned in Celtic mythology, particularly in narratives involving King Arthur. The Somerset Levels give way to a conical mound of clay and Blue Lias. It developed as a result of the erosion of nearby softer layers, which revealed the hard sandstone cap. The slopes of the hills are terraced, but the process by which they were created is still a mystery. Neolithic flint tools found at the summit of the Tor indicate that the area has been occupied since prehistory, maybe for an extended period of time. When the nearby ruins of Glastonbury Lake Village were discovered there in 1892, it was established that an Iron Age settlement had existed there between 300 and 200 BC on an easily guarded island in the fens. Although there is no proof that the Tor was inhabited permanently, discoveries like Roman pottery do indicate that it was frequented. The history of the monument and church was attempted to be clarified through archaeological digs during the 20th century, although some details of this history are still unknown. Iron Age to Roman-era artifacts from human visitation have been discovered. On the peak, there were a number of structures built during the Saxon and early medieval eras that have been identified as an early church and hermitage of monks. An ancient head of wheel cross from the tenth or eleventh century has been found. The stone Church of St. Michael was erected on the site in the fourteenth century after the earlier wooden church was destroyed by an earthquake in 1275. Although it has been repaired and partially rebuilt numerous times, the tower still stands
[Information Credit : Glastonbury_Tor, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glastonbury_Tor ]
[Image : Terraces on the Tor; Wikipedia-Image-Author : Rodw;]
[Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported ; [(Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)]
[License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia-Source-Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Glastonbury_Tor_from_north_east_showing_terraces.jpg ]
#History#Architecture
Myths, tales, and folklores of numerous cultures all involve dogs in some way. Dogs frequently act as pets or watchdogs in mythology. Dog guarding the gates of the afterlife tales are common in Indo-European myths and may have their roots in Proto-Indo-European religion. Some of these have to do with the relationship between dogs and the star Sirius, the union of humans and dogs, and the gatekeeping mentioned above in Indo-European mythology. There is evidence to support a relationship between the genetic and prehistoric records of dog domestication and the mythical heritage of many societies. For the Aztec people of central Mexico, dogs held significant religious and symbolic meaning. The Aztec god of death, Xolotl, was shown as a monster with head of a dog. One of the 12 animals revered in Chinese astrology is the dog. Chinese people frequently remember to treat dogs nicely on the second day of the Chinese New Year since it is believed that all dogs celebrate their birthdays on that day. Dogs are revered in China, Korea, and Japan as loving protectors. A dragon-dog named Panhu changed into a man and wed a princess. Yama, the Hindu god of death, is the owner of two four-eyed watchdogs. They are reported to keep watch over gates of Naraka (Hell). The Vahana, or mount, of Hindu god Bhairava is a dog. Many Hindus have the widespread notion that caring for or adopting dogs can also open the door to paradise because Yudhishthira in Mahabharata had traveled to heaven with his dog, Yama, who was the god himself. Dogs are discovered to have a sacred significance and figure as an essential symbol in religious imagery, but the Ancient Egyptians are more frequently connected with cats in the form of Bastet. Anubis, the jackal-headed god of the underworld, was associated with dogs. Dogs were occasionally interred in the Anubieion tombs at Saqqara during their time in use. Anput was the wife of Anubis, and she was frequently shown as a jackal carrying a child, breastfeeding a baby, or brandishing a weapon. In the classical era, Hecate was strongly related to dogs. For Artemis and Ares, dogs were sacrosanct. The three-headed, dragon-tailed watchdog Cerberus stands guard at the entrances to Hades. In Greek myth, a dog named Laelaps existed. The protection of Zeus was entrusted to a dog known only as the Golden Hound when he was a little child. In Christianity, dogs stand for loyalty. Specifically within Roman Catholicism, the iconography of Saint Dominic has a dog since the mother of the saint dreamed of a dog emerging from her womb and soon thereafter became pregnant. The patron saint of dogs according to the Roman Catholic Church is Saint Roch, who lived in France in the early 14th century. The dog is revered in Zoroastrianism as a particularly good, pure, and virtuous creature that has to be fed and cared for. The dog is commended for the helpful tasks it completes around the house, but it is also thought to possess unique spiritual qualities. Similar to Hinduism, dogs are associated with Yama, who uses them to guard the gates of the afterlife
[Information Credit : Dogs_in_religion, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogs_in_religion ]
[Image : AI Generated Image of Dogs as Angels] #Mythology
Roman mystery religion Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries or the Cult of Mithras, was based on the god Mithras. The Roman Mithras is associated with a new and distinctive imagery, with the degree of continuity between Persian and Greco-Roman practice being disputed, despite being inspired by Iranian worship of the Zoroastrian god (i.e., yazata) Mithra. From around the first through the fourth century CE, the mysteries were a favorite among the Imperial Roman troops. The seven levels of initiation and shared ceremonial meals were part of a complicated system used by Mithras worshippers. Syndexioi, those -- United by the Handshake, was the name given by initiates. They met in one of the several Mithraea, or underground temples, that still exist today. The worship is thought to have originated in Rome and spread throughout the western half of the empire, including Roman Africa and Numidia in the south, Roman Dacia in the east, Roman Britain in the north, and to a lesser extent Roman Syria in the east. Early Christianity is perceived as competing with Mithraism. Christians later persecuted Mithraists throughout the fourth century, and by the end of the century, the religion had been outlawed and suppressed in the Roman Empire. Throughout the Roman Empire, numerous archaeological discoveries, including gathering sites, monuments, and artifacts, have added to our current understanding of Mithraism. The most well-known images of Mithras depict him emerging from a rock or dining with the god Sol, or the Sun. There would have been at least 680 mithraea in Rome, according to estimates. Limited information may be gleaned from the inscriptions and fleeting or passing references in Greek and Latin literature; no written narratives or theology from the religion have survived. The interpretation of the tangible evidence is still up for debate [Information and Image Credit : Mithraism, Wikipedia] [Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithraism ] [Image: Mosaic (1st century CE) depicting Mithras emerging from his cave and flanked by Cautes and Cautopates (Walters Art Museum)] [Image : The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Walters Art Museum. Walters Art Museum grants anyone the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law] [Wikipedia-Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Roman_-_Fragment_of_a_Mosaic_with_Mithras_-_Walters_437.jpg ] #History
The Ormside Bowl is a mid-eighth-century Anglo-Saxon double bowl made of gilded silver and bronze with glass that may have been Northumbrian. It was discovered in 1823 in Great Ormside, Cumbria, presumably buried close to a Viking warrior, however the specifics of the discovery were not properly documented. If that is the case, the warrior probably robbed York before getting burried with the bowl. One of the greatest examples of Anglo-Saxon silverwork to be discovered in England is the bowl. The bowl is a two-piece double-shelled cup that is joined by dome-headed rivets and beaded collars. The exterior of the bowl is embellished using the chased repousse technique. The bowl was altered into a drinking vessel at some point after it was created. A blue glass and silver stud is welded to the interior cup, which is composed of gilt-bronze. There are five more rivets, of which the centre one is missing, and 16 round pieces of glass surrounded by a ring of cloisons on the base plate of the internal bowl. The gilding of the bowl was applied after the other decorations. Given that a blue-glass stud matching the inner bowl was discovered in York, the inner bowl may have been produced there. The rim previously featured a U-shaped strip of ungilded silver, but this has mostly been gone. The outer shell is constructed of silver-gilt. Four animal head-shaped clips were used to attach this strip at first, but two of them have since vanished. The exterior of the bowl is carved with intertwined Anglo-Saxon-styled strange animals amidst Continental-style vines; some of the frontal gazes of the creatures are typical in carvings of this kind. These ornaments depict plants, grapes, fruit, animals, and birds in bizarre and lifelike ways. Five dome-shaped rivets can be seen on the external base plate. The bowl may have formerly had a foot-ring constructed of wire that has been gold-plated
[Information and Image Credit : Ormside_bowl, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ormside_bowl ]
[Image : The base of the Ormside bowl ; Wikipedia Image Author : Jmiall] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported (Please Relate to Original Image URL for more Usage Properties)]
[License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia–Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ormside_bowl_british_museum_left.JPG ] #Art
The Gaelic May Day festival is known as Beltane. It is customarily celebrated on the first of May, which falls around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice of northern hemisphere. In Gaelic Ireland, the name of the festival is interchangeable with the month that ushers in summer. In the past, it was frequently observed on the Isle of Man, Scotland, and Ireland. The celebration day is known as Lá Bealtaine in Irish. Early Irish literature makes reference to Beltane, which is connected to significant moments in Irish mythology. Cattle were driven to the summer pastures at the start of the season, also known as Cétshamhain, or -- First of Summer. Rituals were carried out to promote growth and to safeguard livestock, people, and crops. It was customary to start special bonfires whose flames, smoke, and ashes were believed to have protective properties. The people and their animals would pass by bonfires or walk around them, occasionally leaping over the embers or flames. The Beltane bonfire would be used to relight all home fires after they had been extinguished. A feast would accompany these reunions, and some of the food and beverages would be offered to the Aos Sí. Yellow May flowers would be used to adorn doors, windows, byres, and livestock—possibly because they represent fire. A May Bush is often a thorny shrub or limb that has been decorated with flowers, ribbons, brilliant shells, and rushlights in some regions of Ireland. While Beltane dew was believed to bring beauty and preserve youth, holy wells were also frequented. In some regions of Great Britain and Europe, many of these traditions were a part of May Day or Midsummer festivals [Information Credit : Beltane, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltane ] [Image : Artistic Imagination of Beltane Festival] #Mythology
The fresco named the Bull-Leaping Fresco; 1675-1460 BCE. Of several stucco panels that were originally positioned on the upper story of the east wall of the palace at Knossos in Crete, the bull-leaping fresco has undergone the most extensive restoration. It depicts a sight of a bull leaping. Despite being frescos, they were painted on scenes of stucco relief. They were challenging to make. Along with the elevation of the panel, the artist had to simultaneously mould and paint brand-new stucco. Therefore, the panels do not depict the early stages of the approach. Their polychrome colours, including -- white, pale red, dark red, blue, and black -- prevent them from the Early Minoan (EM) and early Middle Minoan (MM) Periods in Minoan chronology. In other words, they are examples of -- Mature Art -- produced no earlier than MM III. The motif appears frequently in Minoan art and is just one of many that show bulls being handled. There are more pieces than are visible in the well-known reconstruction, and there may have been more than one instance of bull-leaping [Information Credit : Bull-Leaping_Fresco, Wikipedia] [Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bull-Leaping_Fresco ] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. License -Link : https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en ] [(Kindly Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Wikipedia Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bull_leaping_minoan_fresco_archmus_Heraklion_(cropped).jpg ] #Art
Cave paintings from Lascaux caves (Montignac, Dordogne, France). In the Dordogne area of southwest France, close to the commune of Montignac, is the Lascaux network of caverns. The inside walls and ceilings of the cave are covered with more than 600 parietal wall paintings. The paintings mostly feature huge creatures, indicative of the surrounding current fauna and consistent with the local Upper Palaeolithic fossil record. The paintings are the result of the work of many generations, and after much dispute, their age is now typically considered to be around 17,000 years
[Information Credit : Lascaux , Wikipedia] [Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lascaux ] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported ] [License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ] [(Kindly Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Wikipedia Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lascaux_painting.jpg ] #Art
The history of visual art in Europe is included in what is known as Western art, or art of Europe. Between the Palaeolithic and the Iron Age, mobile Upper Palaeolithic rock and cave painting and petroglyph art were the origins of European prehistoric art. Often, written accounts of European art start with the 3rd millennium BCE Aegean civilizations. The Ancient Greek art, which Rome inherited and modified before spreading it throughout most of Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia with the Roman Empire, does, however, reveal a constant trend of aesthetic evolution within Europe. Over the course of the next two thousand years, the influence of the art of the Classical period fluctuated, appearing to fade into obscurity in some areas of the Mediaeval period, reappearing in the Renaissance, experiencing a period of what some early art historians perceived as -- Decay -- during the Baroque period, reappearing in a more refined form in Neo-Classicism, and then resurfacing in Post-Modernism. Several stylistic periods that historically overlapped each other as various styles developed in various regions are used to categorise European art. Classical, Byzantine, Mediaeval, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassical, Modern, Postmodern, and New European Painting are the major historical periods
[Information and Image Credit : Art_of_Europe , Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_of_Europe ]
[Image : Apelles painting Campaspe, an artwork which shows people surrounded by fine art; by Willem van Haecht; c. 1630; oil on panel; height: 104.9 cm, width: 148.7 cm; Mauritshuis (The Hague, the Netherlands) ]
[The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The photographic reproduction is also considered to be in the public domain in the United States (Kindly Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Wikipedia Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Willem_van_Haecht_(II)_-_Apelles_painting_Campaspe_-_2.jpg ] #Art
Laelaps of Greek mythology was a canine hunter who was always successful. In a particular version of the legend surrounding Laelaps, it was a present given to Europa by Zeus. The hound was given to King Minos, who later gave it to the Athenian princess Procris as a reward. In a different telling of her tale, the Goddess Artemis gave her the animal as a gift. Cephalus, spouse of Procris, made the decision to use the dog to pursue the Teumessian fox, a fox that was impossible to capture. A dog who consistently got its prey and a fox that was elusive presented a conundrum. Zeus, bewildered by their disparate fates, hurled them both into the stars as the constellations Canis Major, or Laelaps, and Canis Minor, or the Teumessian fox, after continuing the pursuit
[Information and Image Credit : Laelaps_(mythology) , Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laelaps_(mythology) ]
[Image : Laelaps, a depiction from Death of Procris in detail]
[The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The photographic reproduction is also considered to be in the public domain in the United States. (Kindly Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Wikipedia Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Piero_di_cosimo,_morte_di_procri_03.jpg ] #Mythology
In Greek mythology, Europa was the mother of King Minos of Crete and a Phoenician princess of Argive Greek descent. She may have inspired the name of the continent of Europe herself. It is thought that the legend of her kidnapping by Zeus in the form of a bull is a Cretan tale. Europa first appears in literature in the Iliad, which is generally regarded as having been written in the eighth century BCE. Another early mention of her can be found in a section of the Oxyrhynchus-found Hesiodic Catalogue of Women. According to the Dictionary of Classical Mythology, Zeus decided to seduce Europa because he was in love with her. He became a friendly white bull and blended in with the herds of her father. Europa saw the bull as she and her companions were collecting flowers, stroked his flanks, and eventually climbed up onto his back. Zeus seized the chance, dashed into the water, and swam to the island of Crete while carrying her on his back. Europa became the first queen of Crete after Zeus disclosed his actual identity. She received gifts from Zeus which included a necklace created by Hephaestus, the Greek God of Blacksmiths, a bronze robot guard named Talos, a javelin which never missed and a hound named Laelaps who never failed to catch his quarry. Later, Zeus reshaped the white bull into what is now known as the constellation Taurus in the heavens. The Raptus myth, also known as The Seduction of Europa and The Abduction of Europa, was incorporated into Roman mythology, although Zeus was replaced there with Jupiter!
[Information and Image Credit : Europa_(consort_of_Zeus), Wikipedia;
Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_(consort_of_Zeus) ]
[Image : The Abduction of Europa by Rembrandt, 1632]
[The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The author died in 1669, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)]
[Wikipedia Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rembrandt_Harmensz._van_Rijn_-_The_Abduction_of_Europa_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ] #Mythology
In Eastern Baltic mythology or Yotvingian mithology, the Latvian Lauma, Lithuanian Laumė, or Yotvingian Łauma is a fairy-like woodlands spirit and the protector spirit of orphans. Her empathy for human misery led her to come to earth to experience our fate after being a sky spirit in the past. The oldest deities in Lithuanian mythology are called Laumės. These goddesses-representation may have developed during the Mesolithic era, which succeeded the Ice Age. Laumės could take the appearance of mares, female goats, bears, or dogs, among other animals. Later, took on an anthropomorphic aspect, typically having bird claws for feet and looking like ladies with a head of goat or lower body. Additional variations included half-mare, like centaurs, or half-dog or like half-humans. Laumės frequently possessed just one eye, like cyclops. They also possessed huge breasts with stone nipples, which were known as nipples of Laumės because pieces of belemnitida were often found on the ground. They were like the Lamia of Greek mythology in that they could tickle or tweak people to death and then devour their corpses. The Lithuanian legend also said that maintained enormous cows that anyone could milk. Pieces of belemnitida were thought to be the remains of udders of cows until they perished in extremely cold temperatures. Iron tools were feared by the Laumės. One could indeed think of Laumės as atmospheric deities. It is also stated that Laumės was a lovely goddess with a diamond throne who resided in the clouds. According to some tales, Laumės was the bride of thunder god Perkūnas, but their union was never consummated because Laumės fell in love with the Moon, who was regarded as a male god in Lithuania
[Information Credit : Lauma, Wikipedia;
Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauma ]
[Image : Artistic Imagination of Lauma and consequent Derivative Art] #Mythology
The Ptolemaic Kingdom of Ancient Egypt constructed the Lighthouse of Alexandria, also known as the Pharos of Alexandria, during the rule of Ptolemy II Philadelphus, who lived from 280 and 247 BC. Its total height is thought to have been at minimum 330 feet. It was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the tallest man-made edifice in the world for many centuries. Between 956 and 1323 AD, three earthquakes heavily affected the lighthouse, which eventually turned into a deserted remnant. After the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the still-standing Great Pyramid of Giza, it was the third longest-lasting ancient wonder. It continued to exist in portion until 1480 A.D., when the final of its remaining stones were taken to construct the Citadel of Qaitbay on the site. Pharos was a little island located on the western side of the Nile Delta. On an isthmus facing Pharos, Alexander the Great established Alexandria in 332 BC. Later, a mole—a substantial and mostly stone structure used as a pier, breakwater, or causeway between two bodies of water—was erected to connect Alexandria with Pharos. On the west side of the mole was the port of Eunostos, with its inner basin Kibotos now much enlarged to become the contemporary harbour, and on the east side was the Great Harbour, now an open bay. The lighthouse was was built in the third century BCE. The first Ptolemy established himself as king in 305 BC, following the demise of Alexander the Great, and shortly afterward ordered the construction of the lighthouse. It took twelve years and 800 talents of silver to erect the structure, which was completed under the rule of his son Ptolemy II Philadelphus. The tower was claimed to have been constructed primarily out of solid slabs of limestone and granite, and the light was emitted by a furnace at the top. On a dive into Eastern Harbour of Alexandria in 1994, a group of French archaeologists found several lighthouse remnants on the ocean floor. The Pharos and other underwater ancient Alexandrian ruins were part of plans for becoming an underwater museum in 2016 by the Ministry of State for Antiquities of Egypt
[Information and Image Credit :: Lighthouse_of_Alexandria, Wikipedia;
Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lighthouse_of_Alexandria ]
[Image : Lighthouse of Alexandria by Philip Galle; 1572, Rijksmuseum] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The Work (Image) is believed to be in Public Domain in the United States as well. (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)]
[Wikipedia Source-Image-Link : https://bit.ly/3n6bqqk ] #Art#Architecture
The Temple of Diana, often referred to as the Temple of Artemis or Artemision, was a Greek temple devoted to a prehistoric, regional form of the goddess Artemis. It could be found in Ephesus. The Ionic immigration occurred several years after the earliest iteration of the temple, a Bronze Age temenos. About 550 BC, Chersiphron and his son Metagenes, a Cretan architect, began to rebuild it in a grander style. Croesus of Lydia provided the funding, and it took ten years to finish the project. An arsonist destroyed this rendition of the temple in 356 BC. According to the list of Antipater of Sidon, the Seven Wonders of the World, the next, greatest, and last iteration of the temple was financed by the Ephesians themselves. It is thought to be older than the Didyma oracular shrine to Apollo. Leleges and Lydians are thought to have lived in the city prior to the Ionic period. The first temenos at Ephesus was credited by the ancient Greek poet and scholar Callimachus to the Amazons, legendary warrior-women whose religious practises, in his imagination, already revolved on an image or bretas of Artemis, their matron goddess. According to Pausanias, the temple existed even before the Amazons. The peripteral temple at Ephesus is the earliest example of its kind on coast of Asia Minor and may be the oldest Greek temple ever to be encircled by colonnades. A flood in the seventh century BC wrecked the temple and covered the original clay floor with more than half a metre of sand and flotsam. The remains of an ivory plaque depicting a griffin and the Tree of Life, as well as few drilled tear-shaped amber drops, were found among the flood wreckage. Croesus, who established empire of Lydia and ruled Ephesus, was at least partially responsible for funding the construction of the second great temple. It began to be planned and built in 550 BC. The temple burned down in 356 BC. According to a number of traditions, Herostratus committed this heinous crime of arson in an effort to gain glory at all costs. This is how the term — Herostratic Fame — came to be used to define his desire for recognition. The Ephesians condemned the offender to death for this crime and barred anybody from mentioning his name ever. According to Greek and Roman legacy, Alexander the Great was born about the time the temple was destroyed. Plutarch says that Goddess Artemis was too busy with birth of Alexander to put out the fire in her temple, but he does not say what caused it. The Ephesians politely declined offer of Alexander to pay for the reconstruction of the temple, arguing that it would be wrong for one god to construct a temple for another, and they ultimately reconstructed it after his death at their own expense. Construction began around 323 BC and lasted for a long time. The third temple, which was 450 feet long, 225 feet wide, and 60 feet high with more than 127 columns, was bigger than the second temple. In early Christian records of Ephesus, this new restoration is mentioned several times and had endured for 600 years. The Temple was eventually demolished or destroyed by 401 AD [Information and Image Credit :: Temple_of_Artemis, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Artemis ] [Image : The imagined representation of the Temple of Artemis in a 16th-century hand-colored engraving by Martin Heemskerck shows how well-known it was throughout the Renaissance Period] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The Image is believed to be in Public Domain in the United States as well] Wikipedia-Source-Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Temple_of_Artemis.jpg ] #Mythology
A Vila, sometimes known as a Víla, is a feminine Slavic fairy with long blonde hair who resembles a nymph. Although West Slavic mythology also contains certain variations of the Vila, South Slavs are the ones who are most familiar with it. The Czech word Víla refers to a woods spirit from the fifteenth century, and old place names like Vilice near Tábor, Vilov near Domažlice, and Vilín near Sedlčanyseem to suggest that she was also well-known there. The Vilas are female nature spirits who have conflicting feelings towards people. In fairy tales, they may be cruel to the population—killing people and destroying crops—but they may also be helpful, providing the hero with mounts and magical items. They might even exhibit warrior-like traits. There is still debate as to whether the Vile were actually a part of Russian folklore and not just a literary feature even if they are referenced in the eleventh century. The Vile and the Rusalki share several characteristics. Vile are depicted among South Slavs as gorgeous women with long blonde hair. There are three different types: land and forest-dwelling nymphs, water nymphs, and cloud or air nymphs. The cloud nymphs take the form of wolves, horses, falcons, swans, or falcons. They prowl the sky at night, making a dreadful racket with pipes and drums. Everyone who calls them stiffens and can only move slowly. He gets sick and passes away in a year or two. Vile enjoy riding horses or stags, going hunting, dancing in a circle, and seeking the affection of attractive, powerful men and will help them fight off their adversaries. They have a distinct fighting style in Slavic mythology that is evocative of the Teutonic Valkyrie. They are skilled in the healing arts and have superhuman abilities. They construct magnificent castles at the edge of clouds. Their arrows mislead the spirits of men. Children are abducted by them, and Changelings are used in their place. In Slovakia, it is said that dead restless spirits of girls tempt young men into a deadly circle dance. Every hero in the epic poetry of Serbia has a Vila, who may be a blood sister or an elective. Ravijojl is the most popular Serbo-Croatian figure. Females may ask their Vile blood sisters to enhance their beauty or to defend a faraway boyfriend if they have them. Despite their propensity for being outgoing, the Vile can exact terrible revenge on those who offend them, disobey their commands, or enter their circle dance without permission. They differ from the Rusalki in that they are generally friendly. People honoured them by setting offerings of food, flowers, and drink in front of the caves where they were thought to have resided. Víly frequently prove harmful in the Czech culture unless they are respected and avoided. They are described as lovely women with long flowing hair who mostly reside in forests, marches, or clearings in the woods. They allegedly make an effort to entice guys who stray into their territory with their attractive appearances and lovely vocals. Víly are also claimed to reside in groups and enjoy dancing in circles, which was another strategy to trap people because it was thought that if you joined them, one would not be able to go home again [Information and Image Credit : Vila_(fairy), Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vila_(fairy) ] [Image: AI-Based Artisitic Imagination Vila and Consequent Derivative Art] #Mythology
Swedish artist August Malmström (1829–1901) created a painting titled Dancing Fairies (Swedish: Älvalek). In the moonlit scene of the picture, fairies can be seen dancing above the water. One of the fairies bends over the river to catch a glimpse of herself as the others dance in the meadow in the lovely dusk. The morning mist transforms into fairies in this surreal painting, which shows the spirits of primeval nature. Elves are frequently depicted as having fair hair and wearing white clothing in Romantic art and literature. In its native Sweden, Dancing Fairies by August Malmström is a well-known piece of work of art. One of the Swedish artists who aimed to develop a distinct national Swedish art was Malmström, a professor at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts. He used elements from both Norse mythology and folklore, and many of his paintings featured fairies and other natural spirits
[Information Credit : Dancing_Fairies, Wikipedia;
Wikipedia-Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_Fairies ]
[The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The author died in 1901, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)]
[Wikipedia-Source-Image-URL :: https://bit.ly/3YlI3gD ] #Art#Mythology
Early eighteenth-century Irish portrait painter, translator, and art collector Charles Jervas lived between 1675 and 2 November 1739. Around 1675, John Jervas, son of Elizabeth, daughter of Captain John Baldwin of Shinrone Castle & Corolanty, High Sheriff of County Offaly, was born in Shinrone, County Offaly, Ireland. Between 1694 and 1695, Jervas worked as a working assistant for Sir Godfrey Kneller in London, England. Following the sale of several miniature copies of the Raphael Cartoons to Dr. George Clarke of All Souls College in Oxford in around 1698, he moved to Paris and Rome the following year, staying there for the majority of the following ten years before coming back to London in 1709 and getting good results as a portrait painter. Charles Jervas became a well-known artist who was frequently mentioned in the works of literary figures of the time by painting portraits of the intelligentsia of the city, including personal friends like Jonathan Swift and the poet Alexander Pope. Jervas succeeded Kneller as the Chief Painter in Ordinary to King George I in 1723 and later to King George II as a result of his expanding renown. He relocated to Hampton, London, after getting married to Penelope Hume, a wealthy widow who was rumoured to be worth £20,000. Up until his passing in 1739, he remained a resident of London. Jervas was the first to offer an introduction to the book, which also included a review of earlier translations of Don Quixote. Even though it was printed numerous times throughout the nineteenth century, it has received both great praise for being the most accurate translation of the book to that point and harsh criticism for being stilted and humourless [Information and Image Credit : Charles_Jervas, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Jervas ] [image: Self-portrait of Jervas] [The Image (Work) a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The (Image) Work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The Work is believed to be in Public Domain in the United States as well. (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [Wikipedia-Source Image URL :: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Jervas.jpg ] #Art
In Baltic mythology, Kriwe Kriwaito, also known as just Kriwe, served as the top priest. During the era of romantic nationalism, the idea of Kriwe gained popularity. The Romuva movement in Lithuania have now adopted the name. The chronicle Chronicon terrae Prussiae, completed in 1326 A.D., mentions the Kriwe. It claims that Kriwe, who resided in Romuva, enjoyed the same level of esteem as that of the Catholic pope among other Baltic tribes in addition to Old Prussians. His delegations were revered by both aristocrats and commoners alike and carried a particular rod or other emblem. The Kriwe had the ability to view the dead and describe them to their loved ones. it was also mentioned, the sacred perpetual flame was maintained by Kriwe, who was also known as the highest judge. The most thorough depiction of the pagan priest was given in a later story, which also added the dual name Kriwe Kriwaito or Criwo Cyrwaito. From the first Bruteno, who was regarded as one of the most famous kings of Prussia along with his brother Widewuto, to Alleps, their names were all listed. The Kriwe, as per the story, was the focal point of Prussian political and religious life; for instance, he had the power to launch or halt wars. An elderly Kriwe was also expected to offer himself to the gods by setting himself on fire, even if this rarely occurred. Priests and prophets of lower ranks would then choose a new Kriwe. In other later tales, a bent and twisted wooden stick named Krywule was depicted and described as an example. Village elders used the stick to summon neighbours to a meeting so they could talk about issues they had in common. In the nineteenth century, the practise continued, and ethnographers gathered a few Krywule artefacts for various museums. The very idea of a Pagan Pope rose to prominence in the era of romantic nationalism
[Information Credit : Kriwe, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kriwe ]
[Image: AI-Based Artistic-Imagination of Kriwe and Further Derivative Art of the Same] #Mythology
Irish artist John James Barralet, who lived between 1747 and January 16, 1815, devoted the last half of his professional career in the United States. Barralet was born in Dublin, Ireland, and is of French ancestry. After studying under James Mannin, he became a drawing teacher in Dublin early in his career. However, he eventually moved to London and began watercolour painting. In 1770, he sent three landscape paintings to the Royal Academy, and in the years that followed, he occasionally submitted work. He was hired to draw the covers for publications about Irish antiquities. He immigrated to America in 1795 and settled in Philadelphia, where he passed away in 1815. Infrequently between the years of 1775 and 1789, his brother J. Melchior Barralet, a teacher at the Royal Academy School, sent slightly coloured drawings to the Academy Exhibitions
[Information and Image Credit : John_James_Barralet, Wikipedia;
Wikipedia-Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_James_Barralet ]
[Image: View of Lucan House - John James Barralet; Wikipedia-Credit: Yale Center for British Art]
[Images Availed Under Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. The person who associated a work with this deed has dedicated the work to the public domain by waiving all of their rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. One can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission.
[License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia-Image-Source-Link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_James_Barralet_-_View_of_Lucan_House_-_B1975.2.160_-_Yale_Center_for_British_Art.jpg ] #Art
The feminine morning star deity Aušrinė i.e. relative to Dawning, is comparable to Venus in Lithuanian mythology. She is an opposite reflection of Vakarinė, the evening star. Her worship is linked to that of the Vedic Ushas, the Latvian Auseklis, the Greek Eos, the Roman Aurora, and the Indo-European morning goddess Hausōs. The Goddess of elegance, romance, and youthfulness, Aušrinė is associated with health, resurrection, and fresh starts. As per tradition, Aušrinė and her attendant Tarnaitis, who is most likely Mercury, prepare Carefully the path of Sun every morning. In the evening, Vakarinė gets the bed of Saulė the Sun ready. The relationship between Saulė and Aušrinė is complicated. In some cases Saulė is described as the mother of Aušrinė, Vakarinė and other planets like Indraja i.e. Jupiter , Sėlija i.e. Saturn, Žiezdrė i.e. Mars, Vaivora i.e. Mercury and even Žemyna i.e. Earth. Her name is the solution to a conundrum concerning dew in a traditional Latvian folktale. The Moon notices the lost keys of a girl or spreads-out her pearl necklace in this puzzle, but the Sun takes them. A well-known legend relates how Mėnulis, the Moon, fell in love with the lovely Aušrinė, cheated on his wife Saulė, and was punished by Perkūnas, the Thunder-God. The competition between Saulė and Aušrinė is also depicted in various stories, with Saulė being envious of the beauty and brilliance of Aušrinė. Despite the infidelity or antagonism, Aušrinė continues to be devoted to Saulė and provide morning assistance. In some tales, Aušrinė is referred to as Karaliūnė and Dangaus Kariūnė, or Queen of Heaven [Information Credit : Aušrinė, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Au%C5%A1rin%C4%97 ] [Image: AI-Based Artistic Imagination of Aušrinė and consequent Derivative Art] #Mythology
Helen Mabel Trevor was an Irish landscape and genre painter who lived from 20 December 1831 to 3 April 1900. On December 20, 1831, Helen Mabel Trevor was born in Lisnagead House in Loughbrickland, County Down. Trevor was the oldest daughter of Edward Hill Trevor, Esq. Father of Trevor gave her a studio as an early kind of support when she started to draw. She left Ireland in the 1870s, and until the 1890s, she was able to travel and pursue her education thanks to money from the Loughbrickland estate. Later in life, Trevor become deaf. On April 3, 1900, she suddenly passed away in her studio in Rue du Cherche Midi from a heart attack. She submitted The Youthful Mechanic and Portrait of William III to the Dublin Exhibition in 1853 before presenting Sketch from Life to the Royal Hibernian Academy in 1854. She later submitted artwork featuring a dog, a kitten, the hounds of the Newry Hunt, as well as a portrait, to the RHA in 1856. She provided two paintings of dogs in 1858. She spent four years studying at the Royal Academy of Arts in London in the 1870s after her parents passed away. Trevor relocated to Paris in 1880 and pursued studies there under Jean-Jacques Henner, Luc-Olivier Merson, and Carolus-Duran. In 1881 and 1882, she visited Brittany and Normandy with her sister Rose. The RA received her 1881 picture, Breton boys en retenue. Two Breton girls, another piece, was most likely created during this period. In 1883, she visited Concarneau, where it is possible that she ran upon the realism Jules Bastien-Lepage. The sisters travelled and studied the Old Masters during their six-year of travel and study in Italy after moving there in 1883. In 1889, Trevor went back to Paris and started working again for Carolus-Duran. During this time, she made regular trips to Brittany, but she spent the rest of her life in Paris at several addresses. She displayed at the Paris Salon in 1889, 1893, and 1899. She was given a honourable mention for her 1898 piece, Breton Interior. Fourteen of her paintings were sent to the RHA between 1889 and 1897, while others were sent to the RA. Two paintings by Trevor were left to the National Gallery of Ireland. Later, she was highlighted in The Centenary of Impressionism: Nineteenth Century French Art and Ireland, a 1974 NGI exhibit
[Information and Image Crdit : Helen_Mabel_Trevor, Wikipedia]
[Wikipedia-Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Mabel_Trevor ] [Image: Helen Mabel Trevor]
[The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 70 years or fewer.The photographic reproduction is therefore also considered to be in the public domain in the United States. (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for More Image Usage Property)
Wikipedia-Image-Source-Link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Helen_Mabel_Trevor_-_Self-Portrait_-_NGI502.jpg ] #Art
The -World Tree- is a motif present in several religions and mythologies, particularly Indo-European religions and certainly in Norse, Iranian and Indian religions. The world tree is represented as a colossal tree which supports the heavens, thereby connecting the heavens, the terrestrial world, and, through its roots, the underworld. In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is the world tree. Yggdrasil is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in 13th century and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century. In both sources, Yggdrasil is an immense ash tree that is central and considered very holy. The Æsir go to Yggdrasil daily to hold their courts. The branches of Yggdrasil extend far into the heavens, and the tree is supported by three roots that extend far away into other locations: one to the well Urðarbrunnr in the heavens, one to the spring Hvergelmir, and another to the well Mímisbrunnr. In Persian mythology, the legendary bird Simurgh or alternatively, Saēna bird; Sēnmurw and Senmurv, perches atop a tree located in the center of the sea Vourukasa. This tree is described as having all-healing properties and many seeds. In another account, the tree is the very same tree of the White Hōm i.e. Haōma. Gaokerena or white Haoma is a tree whose vivacity ensures continued life in the universe, and grants immortality to -- All Who Eat From It. Kalpavriksha i.e. Wish-Fulfilling Tree and Ashvattha tree of the Indian religions is also similar example. The Ashvattha tree i.e. Keeper of Horses is described as a sacred fig and corresponds to --The Most Typical Representation of the World Tree in India, upon whose branches the celestial bodies rest. Likewise, the Kalpavriksha is also equated with a fig tree and said to possess wish-granting abilities. Kalpavriksha i.e. Wish-Fulfilling Tree and Ashvattha tree of the Indian religions is also similar example. The Ashvattha tree i.e. Keeper of Horses is described as a sacred fig and corresponds to --The Most Typical Representation of the World Tree in India, upon whose branches the celestial bodies rest. Likewise, the Kalpavriksha is also equated with a fig tree and said to possess wish-granting abilities.
[Information-Credit: World_tree, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_tree ]
[Image: Artistic Depiction of World Tree] #Mythology
Alnwick, in the English county of Northumberland, is home to Alnwick Castle, a castle and country residence. It was constructed after the Norman conquest and has had numerous renovations and remodels. It is the residence of the 12th Duke of Northumberland. The family of Ralph Percy, the Twelfth Duke of Northumberland, resides in this Grade I listed building. In 2016, the Alnwick Garden, a nearby attraction, and the castle together attracted more than 600,000 tourists annually. Road that crosses the River Aln is protected by Alnwick Castle. The first portions of the castle were built by Ivo de Vesci, Baron of Alnwick, around 1096 A.D. The son of Yves de Vescy, Beatrix de Vesci, wed Eustace fitz John, the constable of Chestershire and Knaresborough. The baronies of Malton and Alnwick were given to him through his marriage to Beatrix de Vesci. When King David I of Scotland took possession of the fortress in 1136 A.D. , it was first referenced. It was characterised as being very strong at this stage. William the Lion, King of Scotland, besieged it twice in 1172 and 1174 A.D. , and after the Battle of Alnwick, William was taken prisoner outside the city walls. Eustace de Vesci of Alnwick, the lord, was charged in 1212 for conspiring against King John alongside Robert Fitzwalter. In retaliation, John ordered the destruction of both Alnwick Castle and stronghold of Fitzwalter, Castle of Baynard, however his directives at Alnwick were not followed. When father of Ivo de Vesci passed away in Gascony in 1253, his descendent John de Vesci inherited to the titles and possessions of his father. King Henry III of England gave a foreign kinsman the wardship of his properties because John was a minor, which greatly offended the de Vesci family. The Percys bought the assets and estates of the family, which had been placed under the care of Antony Bek. The Percy family has owned Alnwick and its castle ever since, first as the earls of Northumberland and then as the dukes of Northumberland, despite the fact that they still kept their Yorkshire holdings and titles. The Percy family had a position of prominence as lords in northern England. Richard II was overthrown and Henry Percy, the First Earl of Northumberland between 1341–1408, also participated in that uprising against him. Following the loss of Harry Hotspur in the Battle of Shrewsbury, Monarch Henry IV pursued the earl who had later rebelled alongside his son against the king. In 1403, the castle gave up under the prospect of bombardment. Castles were rarely attacked during the Wars of the Roses, and most fighting took place on the battlefield. In the years 1461 and 1462, Lancastrian armies held three castles, including Alnwick. Alnwick Castle became increasingly deserted after Thomas Percy, the 7th Earl of Northumberland, was put to death in 1572. Following the Battle of Dunbar in 1650, Oliver Cromwell would utilise the fortress to imprison prisoners. Under the direction of the relocating Percy family, Robert Adam, James Paine, Daniel Garrett, and Capability Brown made numerous changes to the property in the second part of the 18th century. Algernon, 4th Duke of Northumberland, however, altered much of the design of Adam in the nieteenth century. Instead, between 1854 and 1865, he paid Anthony Salvin £250,000 to have the Gothic extensions and other architectural work removed. The kitchen, the Prudhoe Tower, the opulent accommodations, and the design of the inner ward are primarily the responsibility of Salvin
[Information and Image Credit : Alnwick_Castle, Wikipedia;
Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alnwick_Castle ] [Image : Alnwick Castle, by J. M. W. Turner] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The author died in 1851, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the Life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1928. (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for More Image Usage Property and License) Wikipedia-Image-Source-Link :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:J.M.W._Turner_-_Alnwick_Castle_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ]
#Architecture#Art
In Lithuanian mythology, the fire-spirit is known as Gabija or Gabieta. She guards the family and the household. Her name is a translation of Gaubti. Gabija could assume the zoomorphic shapes of a cat, stork, rooster, or a woman dressed in crimson. Gabija was treated with the utmost respect and compassion. People would give Gabija salt and bread to feed her. Every evening, women would wrap the charcoal with ashes to put the fire to bed so it would not roam. Mother of the home was the guardian of fire, much as Gabija was for the home. The fireplace would occasionally have a bowl of clean water left there so Gabija could cleanse herself. Gabija would take a walk while burning the house if she was enraged. Folklore frequently tells of the terrible destiny of individuals who stomped, spit, or peed on Gabija in order to anger her. The Lithuanian goddess Matka Gabia is the protector of the home and hearth. Most probably she is derived from Gabija.
[Information Credit : Gabija, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabija ]
[Image: A Derivative Art of -- Gabija as Protector of the Fire by gpalmer on DeviantArt]
#Mythology
The archaeological center of Khalchayan, also known as Khaltchaïan, is situated close to the contemporary town of Denov in the Surxondaryo Region of southern Uzbekistan. It is believed to be a tiny palace or a receiving hall. It is situated in the Surkhan Darya Valley, which is a northern tributary of the Oxus, or the contemporary Amu Darya. The earlier Kushans or their Yuezhi or Tocharian forebears are typically credited with building the site. Galina Pugachenkova dug it up between 1959 and 1963. The clay sculptures and paintings that adorn the inside walls are dated to the middle of the first century BCE, but they are believed to depict events from as early as the second century BCE. Battles, feasts, and monarch portraits are shown in a variety of panels. It is thought that the Kushans and a Saka tribe are fighting in some of the Khalchayan sculptures. The Sakas are frequently depicted with side-wiskers in more or less hideous poses, in contrast to the stately demeanour of the Yuezhis. The bust of a Parthian monarch was found among the sculptures at Khalchayan, and based on the historical period and similarity to coins, it is possible that Vardanes I is depicted as he seeks sanctuary and potentially an alliance at the Yuezhi court in Bactria. After failing at the siege of Seleucia in the year 35 CE, Vardanes reportedly sought refuge among the Bactrians. Due to these occurrences, the Khalchayan picture of the Parthian monarch may have been painted between 45 and 47 CE, during which time Kujula Kadphises was possibly the Kushan ruler in power at the time. The art of Kalchayan, which dates to the latter half of the 2nd century BCE, is thought to have been influenced by Hellenistic art in the end, as well as perhaps by that of the cities of Eucratideia and Nysa. However, it also shares characteristics with the later Art of Gandhara and could have even been the inspiration for its creation. The startling likeness between the portrait of the Kushan king Heraios and the Gandhara Bodhisattva is also noted
[Information Credit : Khalchayan, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khalchayan ]
[Image : Prince of Yuezhi of Khalchayan. The prized Saka cataphract armour with neck guard is lying at his feet. First millennium BCE. Uzbekistan Museum of Arts, nb 40. ]
[Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic ; Wikipedia-Image-Author : ALFGRN;
(Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)]
[Image-License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia-Source-Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Kalchayan_Prince_warrior_(full).jpg ]
The Vedic Goddess of Speech, Music, Art, Learning, and Wisdom is known as Saraswati. She is one of the three goddesses that make up the Tridevi, or trinity, together with Goddesses Lakshmi and Parvati. The Rigveda has the first recorded reference of Saraswati as a Goddess. She has continued to be an important deity from the Vedic era to the present day of Indian religions. She is typically depicted as having four arms and holding a book, a rosary, a water pitcher, and a Veenaa musical instrument. In Hinduism, each of these objects has a symbolic value. In various parts of India, Hindus honour Goddess Saraswati by celebrating Vasant Panchami, or the fifth day of spring, also known as Saraswati Puja and Saraswati Jayanti. On that day, it is customary to assist young children in learning how to write the alphabet. Along with some Buddhist sects, followers of the Jain religion from west and central India also hold the Goddess in high regard! [Information-Credit : Saraswati, Wikipedia] [Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saraswati ] [Image-Credit : Ms Sarah Welch, Wikipedia] [The file (Image) is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. The person who associated a work with this deed has dedicated the work to the public domain by waiving all of their rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en ] [Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1150_CE_Hoysaleswara_temple_Halebidu_Karnataka,_Dancing_Saraswati.jpg ] [Image : Three panels of the Hoysaleswara temple in Halebid, Karnataka, feature a dancing Sarasvati with eight hands (above) (c. 1150 CE). One of them is displayed above. She is holding a pen, a palm leaf manuscript, a musical instrument, and other objects used in the main arts in one of her eight hands as she assumes a traditional Indian dance position. She was therefore portrayed by the Shilpins as the goddess of all learning and the arts] #Art#Mythology
Muckross House, or Teach Mhucrois in Irish, is situated on the tiny Muckross Peninsula between Muckross Lake and Lough Leane, two of the lakes of Killarney, in County Kerry, Ireland, six kilometres from the town of Killarney. It was given to the Irish people in 1932 by William Bowers Bourn and Arthur Rose Vincent. As a result, it established the foundation for the current Killarney National Park and became the first national park in the Irish Free State , which is now the Republic of Ireland. It had 65 rooms and was constructed in the Tudor style. In the 1850s, significant upgrades were made in anticipation of the visit of Queen Victoria in 1861. It is rumoured that the upgrades made in preparation for the visit of the Queen, played a part in the consequent financial struggles of the Herbert family, which led to the selling of the estate. Arthur Guinness, 1st Baron Ardilaun, purchased it in 1899 with the intention of preserving the breathtaking surroundings. He did not live there, but rather rented it out as a hunting lodge to affluent groups. Muckross House and its holdings were once more sold to William Bowers Bourn, a prosperous Californian mining industrialist, in August 1911, just before the First World War. As a wedding gift, he and his wife gave it to their daughter Maud and her husband Arthur Rose Vincent. The two stayed there up until the death of Maud from pneumonia in 1929. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bourn, as well as their son-in-law Arthur Vincent, made the decision in 1932 to donate Muckross House and its 11,000-acre estate to the people of Ireland. As the first national park in the Republic of Ireland, it was known as the Bourn-Vincent Memorial Park and served as the inspiration for the current Killarney National Park. Later, the size of the park was significantly increased because to the purchase of property from the estate of the former Earl of Kenmare [Information-Credit : Muckross_House, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link :: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muckross_House ] [Image: North Side View of the Muckross House, Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland ; Original-Image-Credit : Людмила Шалимова, Pexels; (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for More Image Usage Property and License) Image-Source-Link : https://www.pexels.com/photo/north-side-view-of-the-muckross-house-killarney-in-county-kerry-ireland-12860074/ ] #Architecture
The Westminster Retable, the oldest known altarpiece in England made of panel painting, is thought to have been created in the 1270s for Westminster Abbey by a group of Plantagenet court artists, most likely for the high altar. It is believed that Henry III of England gave it as portion of his Gothic renovation of the Abbey. The artwork was only preserved because it was integrated into furniture between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the most of it can no longer be restored. With funding from the Getty Foundation and the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Cambridge-based Hamilton Kerr Institute started a six-year project to cleanse and protect what was left of the work in 1998. Once finished, it spent four months in 2005 on show at the National Gallery in London before being transported back to Westminster Abbey, where it was currently on view at the museum. The retable is painted on multiple linked oak panels measuring 959 x 3330 mm utilising thin colour glazes in linseed oil over gessoed surfaces. With six major flat panels and various minor wooden components, the structure is intricate. In order to replicate the lavish metalwork of goldsmiths found on some surviving retables and shrines on the Continent, as well as the now-destroyed Shrine of Edward the Confessor installed in the Abbey in 1269, the retable is divided into five sections by gilded wooden arcading, with pastiglia relief work, elaborate glass inlays, inset semi-precious stones, and paste gemstones. The painting is of exceptionally good quality, and judging by the excellent detail and several stylistic elements, it was most likely created by an artist accustomed to working on illuminated manuscripts. No accommodations were made for more popular taste since the intricate images were placed in a location on the high altar where they could only be seen by officiating clergy [Information-Credit : Westminster_Retable, Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link:: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westminster_Retable ] [Image: One of the pieces of the altarpiece that is better preserved -- The Feeding of the Five Thousand] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 70 years or fewer. The photographic reproduction is also considered to be in the public domain in the United States.] [Image-Source-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Westminster_400.jpg ] #Art
The Baltic Goddess of Fate is known as Laima. She was a benefactor of expectant mothers and was connected to delivery, matrimony, and death. Comparable to the Norse Norns or the Greek Moirai, Laima and her sisters, Kārta and Dēkla, were a triad of destiny goddesses in Latvian mythology. Laima, who is far more well-liked, decides the destiny of a person in the end. Although they all performed similar duties, Laima is the Goddess of fortune and is more associated with women and childbearing, Dēkla is in custody of the children, and Kārta has control over the life of an adult. Deity Dalia, also related to Fate, and Giltin, The Reaper, are two further similar deities. Lakshmi, the Hindu Goddess, shares similarities with Laima in her roles. The above mentioned Three Goddesses are together defined as three Laimas in contemporary Dievturi, signifying that they are the same divinity in three separate manifestations. Ritual offerings of hens, sheep, towels or other woven items to Laima were part of the birth rites at the end of the nineteenth century. The rite, which was carried out in a Sauna (a kind of room or building), was only open to female participants. Laima shared a connection with Gegutė, or the cuckoo, which the Greimas believed to be a different deity. Others believe she is also a manifestation of Laima. Time and the progression of the seasons were under the control of Gegut. The frequency of her calls was thought to indicate how long someone was left to live with. She also prophesize how an individual would spend the rest of the year in the spring; for instance, a person would be impoverished for the rest of the year if he had no money on him when he heard the cuckoo. The linden tree is a revered symbolic tree associated with Goddess Laima.
[Information-Credit : Laima , Wikipedia] [Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laima ]
[Image: An Artistic Depiction of Goddess Laima] #Mythology
It was Charles Edward Stuart, who attempted to restore his father James Francis Edward Stuart to the throne of British during the Jacobite Rising of 1745, which also came to be known as the Forty-Five Rebellion. The Uprising took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the majority of the British Army was incidentally engaged in combat on the Continental- Europe, and it proved to be the final showdown of the series of uprisings that have started in 1689 and peaked in intensity in the years 1708, 1715, and 1719. At Glenfinnan in the Scottish Highlands on August 19, 1745, Charlesled foundation to the new uprising. He later took possession of Edinburgh and triumphed at the Battle of Prestonpans in September. After Charles had promised the Scots of significant support from the English Jacobites and a simultaneous French arrival in Southern England, the Scots resolved to attack England at a meeting in October. On the basis of this plan, the Jacobite army arrived in England in early November and made their way to Derby on December 4 before deciding to turn around. Similar debates had occurred in Carlisle, Preston, and Manchester, and many believed they had already crossed a line. The invasion path had been chosen to pass through staunchly Jacobite territories, but when the promised English reinforcement did not show up, they found themselves outnumbered and in danger of having their retreat snarled. The majority of people agreed with the choice, but it irreparably divided the Scots allies of Charles. Despite winning at Falkirk Muir in January 1746, the Rebellion and major support for the Stuart cause were put an end at the Battle of Culloden in April. Charles managed to flee to France, but he was unable to secure backing for a second attempt, and he eventually passed away in Rome in 1788. Even though the Jacobite cause persisted after 1746, it was no longer a genuine political cause of concern due to the varied goals of its supporters. Irish Jacobite groups were eventually absorbed into the Society of United Irishmen since they became to express hostility to the status quo rather than love for the Stuarts. After 1745, the general public began to view Highlanders more as members of a noble warrior race who were ethnically and culturally distinct from other Scots. In 1745, Highlanders were now forbidden from serving abroad, and as a deliberate necessary measure, their recruitment into the British Army was increased! [Information Credit : Jacobite_rising_of_1745 , Wikipedia; Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobite_rising_of_1745 ] [Image: Artistic Depiction (Derivative Art) of the Rebellion of 1745]
The Divine Manifestation of Light and Spring, the very embodiment of fertility, and the guardian protector of horses and bees in Latvian Mythology is known as Ūsiņš. Among Latvian deities it is one of the few Deities for which historical evidences can be inferred that is essentially reliable testimony. Summer is officially heralded with Ūsiņš Day as they gift verdant fields and trees with green leaves. The first time that men drove horses to Piegula was on Ūsiņi. The ornamental sign for Ūsiņš resembles two letter E placed with their backs to one another. The most popular glove adornment is this symbol. According to a myth, these gloves, known as Atslēgaiņi, bring their wearer good fortune on the road. A foal is the most significant representation of Ūsiņš Day, which has multiple meanings. Because sexual power is equivalent to energy to procreate, it is both a representation of power of Dievas and human energy. A yellow foal is a symbolic representation of the energy of the sun. With Ūsiņš it is also connected to another image: the golden grass snake. A snake is a metaphor for the movement of energy. It is proposed that Ūsiņš is a typological member of the class of heavenly deities, and that because of certain characteristics, he can be identified as the deity of light. He is a morning and evening star-related cosmic deity, if this perception of him is accurate. The Greek Dioskouri or Sons of Zeus, who also transport the Sun like Ūsiņš, are comparable to Ūsiņš because they share traits with the Indian deity Ashvini. Another similarity is that both Asvins are referred to as Divo napata, or Sons of Dyaus, and Ūsiņš is also known as Son of Dievs. Farmers fully entrust him with custody of their horses, giving them to him. Folk ballads state that Ūsiņš personally has horses and takes excellent care of them. Ūsiņš is the God of Light, hence horses were used to deliver the Sun. On the day of the horse market, when they were bought and sold, Ūsiņš Day was observed. Ūsiņš Day was greeted by a rumbling and a lot of noise, which is consistent with the springtime thundering character! [Information Credit : Ūsiņš , Wikipedia] [Wikipedia-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%AAsi%C5%86%C5%A1 ] [Image: Artistic Depiction of Horses Release for the First Pieguļa after Winter on the Ūsiņš Day] #Mythology
The County Donegal of Ireland and in particular its northern side shore is popularly known as the Fanad, lying between Mulroy Bay and Lough Swilly. Fanad is home to some 700 residents and statistically some thirty percent of them speak Irish. Geographically the parishes of Clondavaddog, Killygarvan and portions of Tullyfern and Aughinish are included inside of Fanad. Although it is specifically not known where the name Fanad originated, it is rumoured to have been etymologically derived from the old Gaelic term Fana, which means sloping ground. The surveyor John O Donovan identified Rathmullan as the Fanad capital in 1835 and comprised of parishes besides Clondavaddog. When the MacSuibhne family ruled Fanad in the sixteenth century, it was said that the region of Fanaid reached far as south as the River Lennon between Kilmacrennan and Ramelton. Over the years, there have been some disagreements regarding what marked the southern border of Fanad. Today it is measured roughly twelve kilometer east-west between the townlands of Doaghbeg and Glinsk and about twenty-five kilometer in the north-south direction from Fanad Head up to the town of Ramelton. Fanad as a habitat is an amalgamation of tiny village communities including Tamney, Rossnakill, and Kerrykeel and also another neighbouring community. The majority of the underlying rocks in the peninsula are Dalradian meta-sedimentary rocks, which have been revealed over thousands of years by erosion and other weathering activities. Regarding its topography, rock alignments can be seen through the Fanad peninsula in the direction from southwest to the northeast on any geological maps of County Donegal. From Ballywhoriskey to Fanad Head, the peninsular northern side has stripes of Granodiorite igneous rocks, but the majority of Fanad geology is made up of Middle-Dalradian Quartzite and some Pellite rocks with isolated spots of Schists and Tillites. Tillites are mostly found around the northern inlet of Mulroy Bay. The elevated ground moving of south from Fanad Head to Portsalon is a basically strip of Quartzite, whereas the cliffs which surround the Fanad Head are made of bare Grandiorite. Yet another quartzite-based mountain is the Knockalla Mountain. Geological processes, including those caused by glaciers and ice sheets recurrently covered the area as recently as fourteen thousand years ago and have resulted in the creation of the terrain of Fanad. Fanad and the adjacent neighbourhood were seriously effected by the withdrawal of the ice sheet. The occurrence of Megalithic court tombs at a number of localities, such as Tyrladden, Drumhallagh Upper, and Crevary Upper, dating most probably from around 4,000 to 3,500 BCE, is most likely the oldest indication of human habitation in Fanad. Neolithic doorway tombs, also otherwise referred to as dolmens, can be found, including examples at Gortnavern, south of Kerrykeel, and above Saltpans, on the Lough Swilly side of the peninsula. These are thought to have been around between 3,800 to 2,200 BCE! [Information Credit : Fanad, Wikipedia ; Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fanad ] [Image: Artistic Depiction of Fanad Lighthouse, County Donegal]
Along with other islands in Roaringwater Bay, Sherkin Island, formerly known as Inisherkin, is located in County Cork of Ireland to the southwest. Sherkin Island is a popular tourist location, and travel time from Baltimore to Sherkin is normally not too long. It takes roughly 40 minutes to travel to the adjacent Gaeltacht island of Cape Clear. Many people who live in Sherkin are involved in the arts, including writing, painting, and crafts. Artists, writers, craftspeople, musicians, photographers, beekeepers, cow farmers, mussel and oyster farmers, oceanologists, fisherman, sailors, teachers, etc. are among the people who live in Sherkin. Two pubs, a hotel, a bed and breakfast, a community centre, a coffee shop and a religious building are all present on the island. At the occasion of the 2016 Census, Sherkin it had a community of 111 individuals and is five kilometres long by 2.5 kilometres broad. The Great Irish Famine in the middle of the nineteenth century caused the population of Sherkin, which had previously been roughly 1,000, to begin to fall. Currently, the population is declining and changes between the summer and winter seasons, rising in the summer as residents return to their vacation homes and more visitors arrive. It takes roughly 40 minutes to travel to the neighbouring Gaeltacht island of Cape Clear. Many people who live in Sherkin are involved in the arts, including writing, painting, and crafts. The start of the busiest time of year coincides with the commencement of the summer vacation for students. A sea safari tour of the islands can be reserved by guests. On Sherkin, there are several archaeological relics. Overlooking Abbey shore, where the pier is located, is a Franciscan monastery locally called as the Abbey. Locals in Sherkin care for the automated lighthouse there. It was built in 1835 and is located near Barrack Point. The Promontory fort, which dates from the Celtic Iron Age i.e. 600 BC–400 AD, is another of the major heritage places. Sherkin includes amenities for camps as well. Campers and picnickers are advised to bring as little packing as possible, transport any litter back to the mainland, or recycle the cans and bottles on Sherkin Pier due to the lack of local trash disposal setup on the island. Barbecues are popular in Silver Strand. The Sherkin Regatta festival, a rowing competition often held in late July or early August, falls on the busiest day of the year. On this day, sea rowers and their fans visit the island, where there are activities for children, live music, and food vendors. On occasion, music events are also hosted.
[Information and Image Credit : Sherkin_Island, Wikipedia] [Image : A View from the highest location of Sherkin Island]
[Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported ; Wikipedia-Attribution or Attribution : Dunaevam at English Wikipedia ; (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ]
[Wikipedia Source-Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:From_the_highest_point_of_Sherkin_Island.jpg ]
Sigyn is a divine figure from Norse mythology. She is mentioned in the Prose Edda, which Snorri Sturluson wrote in the 13th century, as well as the Poetic Edda, which was assembled in the 13th century from older traditional sources. Little is said about Sigyn in the Poetic Edda other how she helped her husband Loki when he was imprisoned. She occurs in several kennings, her assistance in assisting Loki through his time in enslavement is emphasised, and she is twice referred to as a Goddess in the Prose Edda. Sigyn might be shown on the Gosforth Cross and has been the focus of numerous theories and cultural allusions. A völva tells Odin in stanza 35 of the Poetic Edda poem Völuspá that she witnesses Sigyn seated extremely unhappy with her chained husband, Loki, under a — Grove of Hot Springs, among several other things. In the concluding prose part of the poem Lokasenna , Sigyn is addressed once more. In the narrative, Loki is shown as having been shackled by the Gods with theguts of his son Nari; his son Váli is said to have been transformed into a wolf; and the goddess Skaði has a poisonous serpent fastened over the face of Loki, dripping venom. Under the dripping poison, Sigyn is supporting a basin. As the basin fills up, she takes it away, at which point Loki is stung with venom, writhing so frantically that tremors rock the entire planet. It has been suggested that the Gosforth Cross in Cumbria, England, which dates to the middle of the eleventh century, contains a number of Norse mythological characters. A long-haired prostrate woman holding something over another tied, is shown near the bottom half of the west side of the cross. A tangled serpent is above them and to the left of them. This has been understood as Sigyn comforting the restrained Loki. [Information and Image Credit : Sigyn, Wikipedia] [Image : Loki and Sigyn by Mårten Eskil Winge (1863)] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)]
[Source-Image-URL ::
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Loki,_by_M%C3%A5rten_Eskil_Winge_1890.jpg ] #Mythology
1. Leif Erikson was the first Viking to explore the land of Vinland–part of North America, which was most possibly near the modern-day Newfoundland! 2. Erik the Red (Father of Leif Erikson) was the first permanent European settler of Greenland and popularly credited with discovery of Greenland as well. Apparently the name “Greenland” was coined by him, supposedly in the hope that the pleasant name would attract settlers! 3. Naddodd (Great, Great, Great Grand-Uncle of Leif Erikson), the discoverer of Iceland! Family Tree- Leif Erikson son of Erik the Red, son of Thorvald Ásvaldsson, son of Ásvald Ulfsson, son of Ulf Oxen-Thorisson, son of Oxen-Thorir (brother of Naddodd). One Family – Generational contribution for three different landmasses – Iceland, Greenland and Vinland (America). [Information Credit : Naddodd; Thorvald_Asvaldsson; Erik_the_Red; Leif_Erikson; Wikipedia] [image Credit : Leif_Erikson; Wikipedia] [Image : The Landing of the Vikings by Arthur C. Michael (1919)] [The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 70 years or fewer. The Image is expected to be in Public Domain in the United States as well. (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_landing_of_Vikings_on_America.jpg ] #Mythology
Trim Castle is a 30,000 square metre castle located on the south bank of the River Boyne in Trim, County Meath, Ireland. Hugh de Lacy and his son Walter constructed it over the course of 30 years as the centre of the Lordship of Meath. Through the state organisation the Office of Public Works, the Irish government currently owns the castle and is in responsibility of its maintenance. The castle is listed as one of County historic sites of Meath. Land of Meath was originally possessed by the church, but Henry II of England gave it to Hugh de Lacy in 1172 as one of the new administrative regions of the country. On top of the hill, De Lacy constructed a massive ringwork fortress that was fortified by a sturdy double fence and an outside ditch. There might have been more defences surrounding the cliffs that surrounded the stronger high position. Under the current stone gate on the west flank of the castle, there is a portion of a stone-footed timber gatehouse. The location was picked because it is elevated and looks out over a River Boyne fording point. Around 25 miles from the Irish Sea, the region was a significant early mediaeval ecclesiastical and royal centre that was accessible by water up the River Boyne. The Norman poem The Song of Dermot and the Earl makes reference to Trim Castle. Hugh Tyrrel, baron of Castleknock, one of top lieutenants of De Lacy, was given control of the castle when he left Ireland. Walter de Lacy, Son of Hugh , inherited him as Lord of Meath after his passing in 1186. His work on the castle did not stop there; it was finished in the 1220s, most likely in 1224. At the end of the 13th and the commencement of the 14th centuries, the castle underwent its second stage of growth, adding a new main hall, a new forebuilding, and stables to the keep. The Mortimer family finally received the castle, and they held it there until Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, ended the male line in 1425. Following the death of Richard of York at the Battle of Wakefield in 1460, his son, King Edward IV, assigned London goldsmith Germyn Lynch to serve as his delegate at Trim as the warden and master worker of the new problems of moneys and coins within the Castles of Dublin and Trim, as well as the town of Galway, in 1461. Trim Castle hosted a mint and hosted seven sessions of the Irish Parliament in the fifteenth century. At the period, it served as administrative hub of Meath and the northernmost point of The Pale. It went into decay and was left to collapse in the 16th century, but it was redefended in the 1640s during the Irish Confederate Wars. The castle was given to the Wellesley family after the conflicts of the 1680s, and they owned it until Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, gave it to the Leslies. The Dunsany Plunketts eventually acquired it through the Encumbered Estates Court. The Dunsany family owned the castle and its surroundings up until 1993, when Lord Dunsany, after much deliberation, gave the land and buildings to the State, keeping only the privileges to the river and to fish there.
[Information and Image Credit : Trim_Castle, Wikipedia] [Image : The Keep and Curtain Walls of Trim Castle ] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic ; Wikipedia-Image-Author :: Andrew Parnell (Please Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en ] [Wikipedia Source Image URL ::
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Trim_Castle_6.jpg ] #Architecture
Scythian-Metallurgy :: The Scythian people of the Pontic-Caspian steppe practised metallurgy extensively from the seventh to the third century BC. Despite the fact that Scythian society was largely centred upon a nomadic, mobile existence, the people could practise metallurgy and make metal artefacts. Since then, several Scythian metalworking pieces have been discovered among other populations. Previous to the 7th Century BC, during which they were first documented in historical texts, the Scythians developed as a people. The Pontic Steppes, Caucasus and Central Asia were all home to many diverse tribal tribes that made up the Scythian civilisation. Despite being essentially a nomadic people, the Scythians created a number of villages throughout their region. As a result, a sedentary civilization and the corresponding growth of trade skills, including metallurgy, were able to flourish. The inhabitants of Iran and China are most likely the source of Scythian knowledge of metalworking, which expanded through trade routes and reached the steppes during the second and first millennia BC. Bronzeworking was the main focus of early Scythian metallurgy because their neighbours had already adopted it to a large extent. According to some theories, the raw materials utilised in Scythian metallurgy during the Bronze Age originated in the Minusinsk Basin of Siberia. Scythian access to this area propelled their later centuries of advancement. Scythians were frequently engaged by Near Eastern countries in the eighth century BC. These war veterans may have carried ironworking skills back to their homeland, and by the beginning of the sixth century BC, the practise was common on the Pontic steppes. Gold and copper works were also practised in Scythian culture in addition to the production of bronze and iron; the Greek historian Herodotus noted this in his commentary on the Scythian people. Because metalworkers were required to provide the tangible items that supported the Scythian way of life, metallurgy played a significant role in Scythian civilization. Because they lived in a nomadic culture with wide borders and frequently carried out raids on their neighbours, the Scythians needed metal weapons, especially iron swords and bronze arrowheads. It has been hypothesised that the employment of styled metal ornaments by the Scythians during these battles may have been inspired by their adversaries. Furthermore, all social classes sought after jewellery and other embellishments, as evidenced by the finding of metal ornamentation in the Scythian-attributed burial sites. The frequent deployment of metal belts was one distinctive feature of Scythian attire. Numerous other indications of Scythian metalworking can be found at locations associated with the people. The remains of metalworking activities have been discovered at a number of significant Scythian archaeological sites; at one town near the Dnieper, slag and the remains of blast furnaces have been discovered, suggesting the presence of a sizable metallurgical centre. The discovery of remnants of metalworking workshops and equipment as a result of excavations at more Scythian settlements adds credence to the idea that these people were organised crafters. Notably well-known for the superiority of their copper craftsmanship was Scythian metalwork. The Scythian cavalry was provided with portable moulds to make arrowheads during battle. The metallurgy of the North Caucasian Koban people was also impacted by Scythian metalworking. [Information and Image Credit : Scythian_metallurgy, Wikipedia] [Image : Fourth Century BCE-dated Scythian Comb] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. The Image is in Public Domain in the United States As Well] [Source-Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Scythian_comb.jpg ]
Sinthgunt is a figure in Germanic mythology, attested solely in the Old High German 9th- or 10th-century Merseburg Incantation. In the incantation, Sinthgunt is referred to as the sister of the personified sun, Sunna and the two sisters are cited as both producing charms to heal horse of Phol, a figure also otherwise unattested. The two are then followed by Friia and Uolla, also alliterative and stated as sisters. As Sinthgunt is otherwise unattested, her significance is otherwise unknown, but some scholarly theories exist about her role in Germanic mythology based on proposed etymologies, and the potential significance of her placement within the incantation. As a result of the pairing with Sunna, the personified sun, this etymology has been interpreted as a reference to the moon. However, this reading has yielded problems; the moon in Germanic mythology is considered masculine, exemplified in the personification of the moon in Norse mythology, Máni, a male figure. Sinhtgunt was also grouped as a valkyrie in the 19th century. The figures Fulla and Frigg are attested together in later Old Norse sources (though not as sisters), and theories have been proposed that the Fulla may at one time have been an aspect of Frigg. This notion has resulted in a theory that a similar situation may have existed between the figures of Sinthgunt and Sól, in that the two may have been understood as aspects of one another rather than entirely separate figures.
[Information Credit : Sinthgunt, Wikipedia] [Image : A scene from one of the Merseburg Incantations: gods Wodan and Balder stand before the goddesses Sunna, Sinthgunt, Volla, and Friia (Emil Doepler, 1905) ]
[The Work (Image) is a Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The author died in 1922, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 95 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927 ] [Source-Image-URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wodan_heilt_Balders_Pferd_by_Emil_Doepler.jpg ]
#Mythology
In the first millennium BC era, the Yuezhi were an ancient people who were first mentioned in Chinese history as nomadic pastoralists who lived in a dry grassland region in the western section of the present Chinese province of Gansu. The Greater Yuezhi and Lesser Yuezhi separated into two factions and migrated in various directions after suffering a significant defeat at the hands of the Xiongnu in 176 BC. This would set off a complicated chain reaction that would spread out in all directions, changing the course of history for a large portion of Asia for years to come. As a result, the Tókharioi and Asii, as well as other groups recorded in ancient European sources as having occupied the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, are frequently associated with the Greater Yuezhi. One of the five main Greater Yuezhi tribes in Bactria, the Kushanas, started absorbing the other tribes and surrounding peoples in the first century BCE. At its height in the third century AD, the following Kushan Empire encompassed Gangetic plain of India, from Pataliputra in the south to Turfan in the north. The Kushanas were crucial in the growth of trade along the Silk Road and the spread of Buddhism in China.
[Information and Image Credit: Yuezhi, Wikipedia]
[Image : Figures in the embroidered carpets in the Noin-Ula burial site, that have been identified as being Yuezhis over Fire-Altar (1st century BC - 1st century AD)] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The author died in 1st century BCE - 1st century CE, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927; (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Source-Image-URL :: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Noin-Ula_nobleman_and_priest_over_fire_altar.jpg ]
Puck, also referred as Robin Goodfellow in English folklore, is a household and natural sprite, supernatural entity or fairy. The word Puca, from the Old English language, predates the contemporary English word. Later versions in Old Norse, Old Swedish, as well as the Celtic languages also have similar terms. Robin Goodfellow or Hobgoblin are other names for Puck, with Hob standing in for Rob or Robin. The name Robin is Middle English in origin and is a pet version of Robert that originated in Old French. It expressed some hopeful belief and an effort to placate the fairies, acknowledging their love of adulation despite their prankish character, comparable to the application of the phrase — the good folk -- to describe fairies. Puck might perform rapid fine needlework, butter churning or little housework, all of which could be quickly wrecked by his cunning pranks if he were to become enraged. He was a household ghost who helped housewives with their work in exchange for a gift of milk and white bread. He would grab what he thought was due if this was ignored. Pucks are also well recognised for being naturally solitary entities. [Information and Image Credit : Puck_(folklore), Wikipedia] [Image : Puck and Fairies, by Joseph Noel Paton ][The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The author died in 1901, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927. ; (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)]
[Source Image-URL ::
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Joseph_Noel_Paton_-_Puck_and_Fairies,_from_%22A_Midsummer_Night%27s_Dream%22_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ] #Mythology
Beginning in the late 10th century, when Norsemen colonised Greenland and established a temporary camp close to northernmost point of Newfoundland, they began their voyage of North America. Remnant of dwellings, dating back to over 1,000 years ago, were discovered in 1960 at what is today known as L-Anse aux Meadows. Nearly 500 years were indeed spent by the Norse in Greenland. The sole known Norse settlement in modern-day Canada, however, was tiny and did not endure for very long. There is no proof of a Norse colony in continental North America that lasted past the 11th century, though it is possible that other such Norse journeys took place for some time. The Sagas of Icelanders claim that Greenland was first colonised in the 980s by Norsemen who came from Iceland. Erik the Red spent the three years of his exile in the barren southwest coast of Greenland, exploring after being exiled from Iceland for manslaughter. On the grounds that people would be more inclined to travel there since the territory had a good reputation, he created plans to encourage inhabitants to the area, dubbing it Greenland. He finally built his estate Brattahlid in the innermost part of a single, lengthy fjord that bears his name, Eiriksfjord. He distributed land parcels to his supporters. Only a few years after the Greenland towns were built did the Norse soon begin to explore the areas west of Greenland. The Norse adventurer Leif Erikson is regarded to be the first European to step foot on North American soil. He founded a Norse settlement at Vinland, which is typically thought to be coastal North America, as per to the Icelandic sagas. Erik the Red and his wife Thjodhild had a son named Leif. He was also a distant relative of Naddodd, who discovered Iceland, and the grandson of Thorvald Ásvaldsson. The sagas mention three distinct regions that were explored: Helluland, also known as -- The Land of the Flat Stones, Markland, also known as -- The Land of Forests, which was undoubtedly intriguing to early settlers in Greenland because there were indeed few trees there, and Vinland, also known as -- The Land of Wine, which was discovered somewhere south of Markland and was home to many vines and grapes. He founded a Norse settlement at Vinland, which is typically thought to be coastal North America, according to Icelandic sagas. [Information-Credit : Norse_colonization_of_North_America ; Leif_Erikson ; Wikipedia] [Image-Credit : Leif_Erikson ; Wikipedia] [Image : Leif Eriksson Discovers America by Hans Dahl (1849–1937) ] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. This media file is in the public domain in the United States. This applies to U.S. works where the copyright has expired, often because its first publication occurred prior to January 1, 1927, and if not then due to lack of notice or renewal. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)]
[Source-Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Leif_Erikson_Discovers_America_Hans_Dahl.jpg ]
The scenic Dovedale valley is the theme of five paintings by Derby-based artist Joseph Wright, including Dovedale by Moonlight from 1784. English countryside and portrait painter Joseph Wright of Derby lived from 3 September 1734 to 29 August 1797. Sometimes, pairs of these paintings were created, one depicting the scene during the day and the other during the night. Wright said that he had not actually observed this scenario. Dovedale is a well-liked dale in Derbyshire, home county of Wright, as well as Staffordshire. Wright appreciated it at the period, and the National Trust has controlled it since 1924. It is now open to the numerous Peak District visitors. Dovedale gets its name from the River Dove and is 3 miles in length. Wright claimed in a letter from 1787 that he had only once seen moonlight and firelight at night, some time before he made the decision to paint this series, despite the fact that his works looked to be inspired by nature. However, his preliminary drawings demonstrate that he was combining research with happenstance. According to popular belief, drawing techniques of Alexander Cozens were used to achieve the odd inversion of light and shade in the trees in the sketch of Dovedale. Wright possessed artwork created by Cozens, who instructed his pupils in landscape painting. He instructed them to make blots on paper, which they were to utilise as the basis for their work. [Information and Image Credit : Dovedale_by_Moonlight, Wikipedia] [Image :: Dovedale by_ Moonlight] [The Work (Image) is faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The author died in 1797, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927. (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URL for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Joseph_Wright_of_Derby_-_Dovedale_by_Moonlight_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ] #Art
In the north-western White Mountains of Middle-Earth, Helms Deep is a particular valley. Some of the Rohirrim army, led by King Théoden, seek refuge at Helms Deep with its castle the Hornburg from an attack by army of Saruman. Tolkien premised it on the Cheddar Gorge, a limestone gorge around 400 ft deep in the Mendip Hills, with a sizable cave complex network that he toured on his honeymoon in 1916 and returned to in 1940. Tolkien recognised this cave complex as the inspiration for the Glittering Caves of Aglarond at the head of Helms Deep, which lay behind the fortress Hornburg. The Deeping-coomb is a broader valley with Helms Deep being a narrow gorge or ravine at its head. However, the term is often used to refer to the defences at the mouth of the gorge and the larger valley beneath it. The Glittering Caves of Aglarond are a vast network of magnificent speleothems that are located deep within the White Mountains at the foot of the Thrihyrne peak. The battle-hardened Deeping Wall, which was 20 feet tall and wide enough for four soldiers to stand shoulder to shoulder, blocked the Helm-Gate, the entrance of the gorge and it had a culvert for the Deeping-stream, which trickled down into the valley. A steep staircase led to the back gate of the Hornburg castle and a large causeway descended in front of the main gate at one end of the wall. An outlying ditch and rampart known as Helm-Dike was constructed directly across the Deeping-coomb about two furlongs past the gate. The defences were sketched out in great detail by Tolkien. When King Helm Hammerhand of Rohan and his people fled from the pursuing Dunlendings led by Wulf during the winter of Third Age, the valley was given his name. [Information Credit : Battle of Helm’s Deep, Wikipedia] [image: Artistic Imagination of Helm’s Deep] #Mythology
Alban Arthan, which occurs around the Winter Solstice, is a seasonal event in the Druidic calendar. The documentations of the radical poet Iolo Morganwg, from the nineteenth century, are where the name originates. There has lately been speculation that Druids would congregate by the oldest Mistletoe-Clad Oak on the solstice date. While other Druids below held an opened sheet to collect the mistletoe, ensuring that none of it struck the ground, the Chief Druid worked his way to the mistletoe to be cut. The Chief Druid would slice off the mistletoe to be caught below with his golden sickle in a single motion. Pliny, dating between 24–79 CE, described this practise in his Natural History (16.24), but not as a component of a seasonal celebration but rather in the framework of a sacrifice of two white bulls to seek the blessings of the Gods on prosperity. The holiday is celebrated in a way that honours the passing of the Holly King at the hands of his son and successor, the Robin Redbreast Oak King (personification of Summer), which represents the new year and the rising sun. The Holly King i.e. the personification of Winter, is represented by the wren bird, which represents the past year and the shortened sun time. Both open and closed rituals recreated the Battle of the Holly King and Oak King. Although most of the confrontations or battles are verbal, there have been few sword fights to reenact the feud. [Information Credit :: Alban_Arthan, Wikipedia] [Image 1. Druid ; 2. Mistletoe-Clad Oak] #Mythology
Irish landscape painter George Barret Sr. RA , c. 1730 – 29 May 1784, is most known for his oil paintings, though he also occasionally created watercolours. He moved to London from Ireland in 1762 and quickly established himself as a notable artist of the day. In order to complete assignments for his clients, Barrett seems to have journeyed widely in England, visiting places like the Lake District and the Isle of Wight as well as Wales and Scotland. His asthma led him to relocate in 1772 to Westbourne Green, which at the time was a rural community west of Paddington. When he displayed his work at the Society of Artists of Great Britain, he was able to win the support of many eminent art patrons. In order to form the Royal Academy, Barrett and other influential members left the Society in 1768. He exhibited there until 1782. Edmund Burke, who had been a friend of his while attending Trinity College, Dublin, assisted him in 1782. On advice of Burke , he was hired as master painter of Chelsea Hospital, a position he kept until his passing in 1784. Despite the fact that he made a sizable fortune from his paintings, he has been dubbed — feckless --with money. His widow and children were left penniless after his passing, but the Royal Academy gave her a stipend of thirty pounds per year. [Information and Image Credit : George_Barret_Sr. ; Wikipedia] [Image : Powerscourt Waterfall by George Barret c. 1755] [The work (Image) faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The work is also in the Public Domain in the United States; (Please Relate to Individual Source Image URL for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Powerscourt_waterfall_2.png ] #Art
A popular class of female warriors from Scandinavian mythology was known as a shield-maiden. Many sagas, including the Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks and the Gesta Danorum, make reference to shield-maidens. They also show up in tales of Goths, Cimbri, and Marcomanni, three more Germanic ethnic groups. Such shield-maidens might well have served as the inspiration for the mythological Valkyries. The historical authenticity of the Shield-Maidens has however been contested. Yet that they were real, is suggested according to the most recent study, which includes work of archaeologist Neil Price. Some academics have though claimed a dearth of proof for skilled or professional female fighters, including professor Judith Jesch. Women have been believed to participate in fighting throughout the Viking Age, according to historical evidence. Women participated in combat when Sviatoslav I of Kiev battled the Byzantines in Bulgaria in 971, according to the Byzantine historian John Skylitzes. When the Varangians were decimated during the Siege of Dorostolon, the victorious army was shocked to see armed women among the dead soldiers. In certain interpretations of the Hervarar saga, there are depictions of two shieldmaidens. The earliest of these Hervors is believed to have adopted stereotypically masculine behaviours early in her upbringing and frequently preyed on travellers in the woods while costumed as a man. Later in life, she stole the cursed blade Tyrfing from the location of final resting place of her father and turned into a seagoing raider. After some time, she got married. Hervor, another granddaughter of hers, led troops against invading Huns. [Information and Image Credit :: Shield-maiden, Wikipedia] [Image : Hervor dying after the Battle of the Goths and Huns, by Peter Nicolai Arbo ] [The work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927] [Source-Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Peter_Nicolai_Arbo-Hervors_d%C3%B8d.jpg ] #Mythology
Various old Swedish history sources mention about the Geatish kings. The majority of them are though not regarded as historical now. This list adheres to the commonly accepted etymological, literary, and traditional identity of the names Götar in modern Swedish, Gautar in Old Norse and Geatas in Old English. It does not, however, associate this tribe with the Goths, in contrast to some interpretations. Old English and Old Norse sources clearly distinguish between the Geats and the Goths while yet showing their close kinship. The Swedish kings since the Middle Ages to1974, claimed to be King of Sweden and the Geats/Goths or Rex Sweorum et Gothorum. From 1362 until 1972, King of the Goths was a similar title used by the Danish kings. Some of the names of the Geatish Kingscan be found in Germanic legend and Norse mythology and in at least one instance, such as Hygelac, they were likely historical figures. However, it is unsure which of the names comes first. The Battle of Bråvalla, which took place according to the legends in a spot between West and East Gothenland, is chronologically designated to the eighth century but is only weakly attested historically. It was battled between Harald Wartooth, King of Denmark, whose domain is believed to have included Ostrogothians, and Sigurd Hring, King of Sweden, who is believed to have controlled Westrogothians.
[Information Credit : King_of_the_Geats , Wikipedia] [Image-Credit : Hlöðskviða, Wikipedia] [Image :
Geatish King Gizur challenging the Huns according to the Hlöðskviða, by Peter Nicolai Arbo, 1886] [The Work (Image) was a faithful Photographic Reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 70 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States as well]
[Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Peter_Nicolai_Arbo_%E2%80%93_Gizur_challenges_the_Huns.png ] #Mythology
The Völsunga saga, which is based on Norse mythology, tells the tale of the hero Sigmund. He is the brother of Signý and the son of Völsung and Hljod. Although story of Sigurð has absolutely no parallels to the Völsung cycle other than the fact that he was a dragonslayer, Sigmund is most known for fathering Sigurð, the dragon-slayer. The king of Gautland, Siggeir, is married to Signý in the Völsunga saga. Völsung and Sigmund were present at the wedding banquet when Odin, posing as a beggar, stabs the living tree Barnstokk, around which the hall of Völsung is constructed, with the sword Gram. The masked Odin declared that the sword will be given as a gift to the one who can take it out. The sword could only be freed from the tree by Sigmund. Jealousy and a longing for the sword gripped Siggeir. When he tries to purchase the sword, Sigmund rejected him. Three months after the wedding, Siggeir extends an invitation to Sigmund, his father Völsung, and the nine brothers of Sigmund to come and meet him in Gautland. The Gauts assaulted the Völsung clan when they arrived, killing King Völsung and capturing his sons. Signý pleads with her husband to hold her brothers in stocks rather than executing them. Siggeir agrees to that, considering the fact that the brothers should be tormented before being executed. Then, each night, he permits his shape-shifting mother to transform into a wolf and consume each of the brothers one by one. Signý attempted a number of ploys over that time to save her brothers but was unsuccessful and eventually it was only Sigmund who was left. The she-wolf showed up on the ninth night, but instead started licking the honey off of the face of Sigmund which was applied over his face by a servant at the orders of Signý. As the she-wolf pushed her tongue inside the mouth of Sigmund, he bit her tongue off and thus killed her. Then Sigmund broke free of his chains and ran away into the woods! [Part 1] [Information and Image-Credit : Sigmund, Wikipedia] [Image : Am Imagination of Sigmund by Arthur Rackham, 1910] [The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. The work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ring21.jpg ] #Mythology
Selene is the goddess and embodiment of the Moon in the mythological culture and worship of ancient Greece. She is also referred to as Mene and is regarded as the sister of the sun god Helios and the dawn goddess Eos, as well as the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia. She traverses the heavens on her moon chariot. In various tales, she is said to have had a number of lovers, including Zeus, Pan and the mortal Endymion. Similar to how her brother Helios was associated with Apollo in post-classical periods, Selene was frequently associated with Artemis. All three i.e. Selene, Hecate and Artemis were considered moon and lunar goddesses, although only Selene was thought to be the embodiment of the Moon itself. Both Selene and Artemis were thus identified with Hecate. Luna would be her Roman equal. Mene was another name for Selene. The moon and the lunar month were denoted by the Greek word mene. The Phrygian moon deity Men was the male version of Mene. Selene and Men, according to the Greek Stoic philosopher Chrysippus, were the female and male facets of the same deity. Similar to how Helios is referred to as Phoebus or Bright, due to his affiliation with Apollo, Selene is also referred to as Phoebe in feminine form due to her identification with Artemis.
[Information and Image Credit : Selene, Wikipedia] [Image : Selene in a flying chariot drawn by two white horses from Flora, seu florum..., Ferrari 1646] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (Kindly Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [License Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en ]
[Original Source Image URL: https://bit.ly/3O6piKE ] #Mythology
Between 29 and 19 BC, Virgil penned the Latin epic poetry known as The Aeneid, which recounts the narrative of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the collapse of Troy and made his way to Italy, where he eventually settled and became the ancestor of the Romans. It has 9,896 dactylic hexameter lines. The first six of the twelve books of the poem describe the wanderings of Aeneas from Troy to Italy. The second part of the poem describes the eventually successful fight of the Trojans against the Latins and under name of Aeneas the Trojan followers are bound to be absorbed. Due to his appearance in the Iliad, the hero Aeneas was already well-known in both Greek and Roman myths and legends. The fragmented accounts of wanderings of Aeneas, his hazy connection to the establishment of Rome and his explanation as a figure of no fixed character-traits other than a scrupulous pietas, were used by Virgil to create the Aeneid, a persuasive foundational tale or national epic that linked Rome to Trojan legends, justified the Punic Wars, extolled conventional Roman virtues and established the Julio-Claudian monarchy as legitimate successors of the Champions, Founders and Gods of both Rome and Troy. One of the best pieces of Latin literature and largely recognised as masterpiece of Virgil is thus The Aeneid. [Information and Image Credit : Aeneid, Wikipedia] [Image : Aeneas Flees Burning Troy, by Federico Barocci (1598). Galleria Borghese, Rome, Italy] [ The Work (Image) is faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art; The work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The Image is in Public Domain as well in the United States] [Original Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Aeneas%27_Flight_from_Troy_by_Federico_Barocci.jpg ]
#Mythology
The Palace of Sassanian Emperor Ardashir Pāpakan is a castle located on the mountainside where Dezh Dokhtar is located. It was constructed in AD 224 by King Ardashir I of the Sassanian Empire and is situated two kilometres north of the ancient city of Gor in Pars, ancient Persia, or modern-day Iran. Artakhsher Khwarah is also known as the Glory of (King) Ardasher. After Ardashir founded the Sassanian Empire, the old city where the palace is located was renamed Peroz, which literally translates to Victorious. [Information-Credit : Palace_of_Ardashir, Wikipedia] [Image : Palace of Ardeshir Babakan, the founder of Sasanid dynasty, in Firouzabad, Iran] [The copyright holder of the Work (Image) released the work into the Public Domain; Author : Ali Parsa , Wikipedia] [Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ardeshir.jpg ] #Architecture
In the Matter of Britain, the corpus of mediaeval literature and mythology connected with the legend of King Arthur, the term or title — Lady of the Lake —is referred to a number of spell casters who are either fairies or fairy-like but mortal. They had important parts in several stories, such as giving Arthur the Excalibur sword, slaying Merlin, raising Lancelot after the passing away of his father and assisting in getting the dying Arthur to Avalon. Since at least the Post-Vulgate Cycle, various sorceresses identified as the Lady of the Lake have made simultaneous appearances as distinct personalities in some accounts of the mythology. The Lady of the Lake is better known now as Nimue or one of the many scribal spellings for Ninianne and Viviane. Different varieties of the latter were generated by mediaeval writers and copyists. In one of the many origin stories, an unidentified Lady of the Lake makes an appearance in the Post-Vulgate narrative to present Arthur with the legendary Excalibur magic sword from Avalon. She is portrayed as a shady early benefactor who gave King Arthur Excalibur and its unique scabbard after his primary, unidentified sword is damaged during the battle with King Pellinore. King Arthur is guided and led to her by Merlin. This occurs while Merlin is still by the side of Arthur and before Viviane is introduced in the same narrative. This Lady of the Lake is however abruptly executed in the court of King Arthur by Sir Balin as a consequence of a family dispute between them, later in the Post-Vulgate Suite du Merlin. However, contemporary renditions frequently make her the very same individual as Viviane and typically leave out that incident. [Information Credit : Lady_of_the_Lake, Wikipedia] [Image: A Fantasy Description of the Lady of the Lake] #Mythology
A wizard is an individual who employs or practises magic drawn from supernatural, occult or esoteric sources. Other names for wizards include magician, enchanter/enchantress, mage or magic-user, archmage or sorcerer/sorceress, spell-caster, warlock a or witch. Magicians have a rich heritage in mythology, folk-stories, fiction and folklore as a result of which they are frequently depicted in works of fiction, such as fantasy literature and role-playing games. Merlin from the King Arthur legends is a perfect illustration of a wizard who frequently assumes the role of a wise old man and serves as a mentor in mediaeval knightly romance. The character of the wizard is commonly incorporated as a protagonist in contemporary fantasy. Contemporary fantasy has expanded on this motif, frequently featuring wizards as heroes on independent missions. Such heroes might also have a wizard as a guru. Wizards can be compared to the forgetful professor in that they are both stupid and prone to making mistakes. They have the capacity for powerful magic, both good and bad. Wizards are frequently portrayed as elderly men with white hair and long, impressive beards that can occasionally house nocturnal forest entities. Due to its origins in the conventional picture of wizards like Merlin, this representation predates the contemporary fantasy genre. Grimoires are old books with magical potential that are typically used by magicians to learn spells. Enchanters frequently use a sort of magic that has no tangible impact on things or people but instead deceives the viewer or target by creating illusions. Particularly enchantresses use this kind of magic frequently for seduction. When a magician is being discussed is a relatively malevolent one, the term sorcerer is more usually employed. This may be a result of its application in Sword and Sorcery, where the hero would be the one wielding the blade while leaving the wizardry to his adversary. The capacity to wield magic is either innate and frequently rare or acquired via extensive study and practise, which is a prevalent theme in almost all novels. [Information and Image Credit : Magician_(fantasy), Wikipedia] [Image: A Magician uses magic to survive in — The Enchanted Garden of Messer Ansaldo from 1889 by Marie Spartali Stillman] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain work of Art. The author died in 1927, so the Image Work is in the Public Domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the Life of Author plus 80 years or fewer. The Image work is in the Public Domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927. (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Enchanted_Garden_of_Messer_Ansaldo_by_Marie_Spartali_Stillman_(1889).jpg ] #Mythology
The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent, a collection of 34 essays and small tales by American author Washington Irving, include the gothic tale The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow was initially released in 1819 and was written while Irving was a foreign resident of Birmingham. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, along with companion work of Irving i.e. Rip Van Winkle, is one of the earliest works of American literature that has maintained iconic status, particularly around Halloween because of a figure known as the Headless Horseman who was thought to be a Hessian soldier whose head was severed by a cannonball during combat. The story took place in 1790 in a remote valley known as Sleepy Hollow, in the countryside near the Dutch hamlet of Tarry Town i.e. the actual Tarrytown, New York. Sleepy Hollow was well known for its ghosts and the eerie ambiance that captures both its residents and imaginations of the guests. Some locals thought that the village was cursed when the Dutch first settled there, while others assert that an ageing Native American chief was to blame for the eerie atmosphere. The citizens of the town appeared to experience a variety of eerie and paranormal phenomena. They frequently experienced eerie sights, music and voices right from the thin air as well as trance-like visuals. Due to the strange incidents and eerie ambiance in Sleepy Hollow, the locals were attracted by local folklore, haunted sites and nightfall superstitions. The Headless Horseman served as the most notorious ghost in the Hollow and suggestively the commander-in-chief of all the powers of the air. According to legend, He was the restless ghost of a Hessian soldier whose head was amputated by an errant cannonball during some unidentified battle of the American Revolution and who rode forth to the place of battle-site in nightly pursuit of his severed head. [Information and Image Credit : The_Legend_of_Sleepy_Hollow, Wikipedia] [Image: The Headless Horseman Pursuing Ichabod Crane (1858) by John Quidor] [The Work (Image) is a Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The author died in 1881, so the work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer; (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Source Image-Link :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Quidor_-_The_Headless_Horseman_Pursuing_Ichabod_Crane_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ] #Mythology
In Germanic and Slavic folk-legends, a Mare is an evil spirit who mounts on chests of people while they are sleeping and causes them to see nightmares. The Old English feminine noun Maere is where the word Mare first originated. They were worn out and drenched in sweat by dawn, and the Mare was thought to ride horses. She could also twist the hair of a sleeping human or animal, creating Marelocks. The word may actually have etymological origin from Proto-Germanic *marōn. Surprisingly the terms for Nightmare in Norwegian and Danish are Mareritt and Mareridt, respectively, which might be rendered as — Mare-Ride. The theory of Marelocks most likely developed as an account for the hair illness known as the Polish plait syndrome. Branches of Trees were also thought to get entwined since it was believed that the Mare even rode even trees. The undersized, twisted pine trees that grow on damp grounds and coastal rocks are referred to as Martallar or Mare-Pines in Sweden or Alptraum-Kiefer i.e. Nightmare Pine in German. It has also been proposed that ilk of Mares even comprised of witches who assumed animal forms when their spirits wandered free and when they were tranced. Frogs, cats, horses, hares, dogs, oxen, birds and even frequently bees and wasps were among these creatures whose animal forms were taken by these Mare-witches. The Norse Ynglinga saga from the thirteenth century has one of the earliest known mentions of the Mare in Scandinivia. Here, the Finnish witch Huld or Hulda, hired by the abandoned wife Drífa of the King, produced a nightmare i.e. Mara that killed King Vanlandi Sveigisson of Uppsala. These entities were also referred to as Mara, Mahr or Mare in Germany. [Information and Image Credit : Mare_(folklore), Wikipedia] [Image: The Nightmare, by Henry Fuseli, 1781] [The Work (Image) is faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The Work (Image) is in the Public Domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The work is in the public domain in the United States as well; (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Henry_Fuseli_-_The_NightmareFXD.jpg ] #Mythology
Similar to the Knights of Western Europe, Bogatyr is the equivalent mythical hero of the mediaeval East Slavs. According to the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, the Sanskrit term - Baghadhara is the source of the word Bogatyr. The Indo-Iranian term Bhaga, which means God or Lord, is perhaps the initial constituent of the word. Another theory links the word to the Turkish-Mongolian word Baghatur, which means Hero. Bogatyr chiefly appears in the epic poem Bylinas by the Kievan Rus. They were historically born as members of the prestigious Druzhina warrior order under King Vladimir the Great, the Grand Prince of Kiev from 980 to 1015. According to legend, Bogatyr was a superb warrior with courage, gallantry and power. They are renowned for having a loud voice and for wanting to defend Russia against both its foes outside and their own religious ideals. The word Bogatyr in contemporary Russian refers to a valiant hero, an athlete or a physically powerful man. The epic poems are typically separated into three collections: the mythical and ancient legends, which were gathered from eras before Kiev-Rus was created and feature magic and the supernatural. The following is from the Kievan cycle, which contained the most Bogatyr tales, then is from the Novgorod cycle. Stories about these warriors were extensively featured in numerous epic poems of Kievan Rus i.e. the Bylinas, as well as multiple chronicles, such as the Galician-Volhynian Chronicle from the thirteenth century. While certain Bogatyrs, like the enormous Svyatogor, are purportedly mythical creations descended from Slavic paganism while other Bogatyrs are assumed to be historical individuals. Numerous authors and artists in Russian literature and art have been influenced by Bogatyrs and their noble stories, including Victor Vasnetsov, Andrei Ryabushkin as well as Alexander Pushkin, the author of the legendary fairy-lore poem Ruslan and Ludmila from 1820. [Information and Image Credit: Bogatyr, Wikipedia] [Image: In 1898 painting — Bogatyrs by Victor Vasnetsov , Three of the Most Well-Known Bogatyrs—Dobrynya Nikitich, Ilya Muromets and Alyosha Popovich—are depicted together.] [The Work (Image) is faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The author died in 1926, so this work is in the Public Domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 95 years or fewer. The work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927; (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URL for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Viktor_Vasnetsov_-_%D0%91%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%B0%D1%82%D1%8B%D1%80%D0%B8_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ] #Mythology
In Nordic folk-tradition, notably Norse mythology, a troll is a supernatural entity. Trolls are creatures that appear in Old Norse literature. According to these texts, they live in solitary places like caverns, mountains or rock outcroppings. Trolls evolved into beings in their own capacity in later Scandinavian legend, where they dwell far away from human civilization, are not Christianized and are regarded as hazardous to humans. Their looks vary significantly depending on the source of origin; trolls may be hideous and dimwitted or may also act and appear just like humans, lacking any notable repulsive characteristics. In Scandinavian folktales, trolls are occasionally connected to specific locations, which might occasionally be explained as being created when a troll is exposed to sunlight. Trolls appear in a range of contemporary contemporary cultural media. Troll is a term used to refer to Jötnar in Norse mythology and is present all through the Old Norse literature, just like Thurs. Trolls are reported to reside in solitary mountains, rocks and caves, occasionally live in pairs, typically as mother and son or father and daughter and are infrequently portrayed as helpful or pleasant in Old Norse literature. An interaction between an unknown troll woman and the ninth skald (Poets who composed Skaldic Poetry) Bragi Boddason is detailed in the Prose Edda book Skáldskaparmál. In later Scandinavian legend, trolls are referred to be a specific kind of entity. The Proto-Germanic neuter noun *trullan gave rise to the Old Norse nouns troll and trǫll, which have variously been translated as Fiend, Demon, Werewolf and even Jötunn, and the Middle High German troll and trolle. However, it is unknown where the Proto-Germanic term came from Trolls are frequently depicted in numerous stories as being very ancient, very strong but also slow and buffoonish. They are also occasionally characterised as man-eating and as also turning in to stones when exposed to sunlight. Trolls, however, are also reported to have a close similarity to humans, not being particularly repulsive in appearance living far from human civilization, and typically possessing some kind of social structure. Numerous Scandinavian folktales contain the Scandinavian folk conviction that lightning scares away trolls and Jötnar. This concept may be a late manifestation of the role of the god Thor in battling these creatures. According to Scandinavian folklore, smaller trolls reside in mountains and burial mounds. These entities are known as troldfolk, bjergtrolde or bjergfolk in Denmark and as troldfolk and tusser in Norway. The name Troll, given to a Norwegian research outpost in Antarctica, derives from the rocky mountains that surround it and resemble trolls. It has a ground station for tracking polar-orbiting satellites. [Information and Image Credit : Troll, Wikipedia] [Image: Look at them, troll mother said. Look at my sons! You would not find more beautiful trolls on this side of the moon. (1915) by John Bauer ] [The Work (Image) is faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The author died in 1918, so this work is in the Public Domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer. The work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927; (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Bauer_1915.jpg ] #Mythology
A cross-animal entity known as the Questing Beast or the Beast Glatisant can be found in numerous mediaeval works of Arthurian mythology and contemporary works that draw inspiration from them. In the French prose cycles and as a result in the quasi-canon of Le Morte d Arthur, the pursuit of the Beast is the focus of quests that King Pellinore and his family attempt in vain before Sir Palamedes and his allies successfully complete. The unusual animal has the body of a leopard, the haunches of a lion, the head and neck of a snake and the feet of a hart i.e. a male red deer. It gets its name from the loud noise it makes from its belly, which is described as sounding like that of — thirty couple hounds questing. The French word Glapissantt, which means Yelping or Barking, particularly of little dogs or foxes, is connected to the word Glatisant. The Creature makes appearance to the young King Arthur in the Post-Vulgate Suite du Merlin tale after he had had a relationship with his half-sister Morgause and gave birth to Mordred. It was because Arthur and Morgause had no idea that they were related to each other when the depraved act was done. Just as Arthur is waking up from a terrifying dream that predicts the downfall of the realm by Mordred, he spots the beast sipping from a pool. King Pellinore then approaches him and confides that it is the mission of his his family to pursue the beast. The Beast was bore by a human lady, a princess who yearned after for her own brother, according to Merlin. She had slept with a demon who had made a vow to make the lad fall in love with her, but the demon tricked her into saying that her brother had raped her. The brother was punished by his father by having dogs tear him apart. However, before he passed away, he made a prediction that his sister would bear a child, an abomination, that would sound like the pack of dogs that were about to murder him. Eventually the Saracen Knight Palamedes pursues and hunts down the Beast in the Post-Vulgate, the Prose Tristan, and the portions of Malory based on those writings. [Information and Image Credit : Questing_Beast, Wikipedia] [Image: The Questing Beast as seen in illustration by Arthur Rackham for The Romance of King Arthur (1917), written by Alfred W. Pollard] [The Work (Image) is in the Public Domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. The Work (Image) is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1927; (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:322_The_Romance_of_King_Arthur.jpg ] #Mythology
A strong and enigmatic enchantress from the King Arthur legend, Morgan le Fay is known by a variety of names and spellings. Most frequently, she and the legendary king are siblings. Morgan first appears in Arthurian literature, but her character is only briefly described as a goddess, fairy, witch or a sorceress who is tied to Arthur as his magical rescuer and guardian. Her moral ambiguity and prominence both grew with the history of tales, and in some texts, she evolved into an adversary, especially as it is depicted in cyclical literature like the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle. The volatile personality of Morgan, with the capacity for doing both good and bad, is a key element in many of her mediaeval and later versions. She may have drawn inspiration from other historical persons and other old traditions, in addition to Welsh mythology. The Isle of Apples (Avalon), where Arthur was taken after being mortally wounded at the Battle of Camlann, is mentioned in connection with Morgan as the head of the nine enchanting sisters who are unrelated to Arthur in the earliest known account of Vita Merlini by Geoffrey of Monmouth, which was authored around 1150 CE. The main function of Morgan in those works, as well as in the early chivalric romances of Chrétien de Troyes and others, is that of a renowned healer. Countless and frequently unnamed fairy-mistress and maiden-temptress characters might likewise be regarded as representations of Morgan in her various guises. These characters can be found throughout the Arthurian romantic storylines. [Information and Image Credit : Morgan_le_Fay , Wikipedia] [Image : Morgan le Fay by Frederick Sandys, 1864] [The Work (Image) is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The author died in 1904, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 100 years or fewer] [Original Source-Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sandys,_Frederick_-_Morgan_le_Fay.JPG ] #Mythology
In the Matter of Britain literature cycle, the Knights of the Round Table are the knights from the company of King Arthur. The Knights are a fraternity committed to maintaining the peace of the kingdom of Arthur. After an early fighting period, they were later given the responsibility of engaging in a mysterious quest for the Holy Grail. The Knights first appear in literature around the middle of the 12th century. The Round Table, where they gathered, was a representation of the equality of its participants, who span from mighty kings to lowly lords. A variety of knights from Great Britain and other places abroad, some of them even from outside of Europe, were featured in the numerous storylines of the cycles. Far away relatives of Arthur like Agravain and Gaheris, as well as his accommodated foes and those he conquered in combat, such Galehaut and Lot, were frequently found in the ranks of the Round Table. The most famous knights, such as Bedivere, Gawain, Kay, and Yvain were modelled after older figures who were connected to Arthur in the Welsh version of the narrative. Numerous knights, including Gawain, Lancelot, Perciva and Tristan, frequently showed up in knightly romances as the main character or the title character. Galahad, a saintly knight who succeeded Percival in obtaining the Holy Grail and Mordred, a disloyal son of King Arthur, were among the other notable members of the group. After the infidelity of Lancelot with wife of King Arthur, Queen Guinevere, was made public toward the conclusion of the Arthurian prose cycles, the knights got divided into rival factions. The Knights of the Queen, i.e. the own exclusive order of youthful warriors and knights of Guinevere, were depicted alongside her in the same manner. Some of these love interests recount the history of the Knights of the Old Table, led by Uther Pendragon, father of Arthur, while other stories centre around the representatives of the Grail Table, who were the adherents of early Christian Joseph of Arimathea, whose Grail Table later served as the model for the subsequent Round Tables of Uther and Arthur. [Information and Image Credit : Knights_of_the_Round_Table , Wikipedia] [Image : The Arming and Departure of the Knights,The Holy Grail-themed 19th-century tapestries by Edward Burne-Jones, William Morris, and John Henry Dearle] [The work (Image) is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. The Image is also in Public Domain in the United States] [Original Image Source-URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Holy_Grail_Tapestry_-The_Arming_and_Departure_of_the_Kniights.jpg ] #Mythology
The Battle of Camlann is the fabled conflict in which King Arthur fought alongside or against Mordred, who also died fighting, and either perished or was gravely wounded. The earliest tale of Camlann, which was allegedly based on an incident that happened in Britain in 537, is only briefly mentioned in a number of mediaeval Welsh literature that date from the 10th century or earlier. Since the 12th century, significantly more accurate representations of the fight have arisen, usually based on the devastating combat depicted in the pseudo-historical-chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae. The subsequent French knightly romantic heritage, in which it became known as the Battle of Salisbury, is where the further substantially inflated variants come from. The Welsh annals Annales Cambriae from the 10th century contain the oldest dateable mention of the conflict. The occurrence of the battle is mentioned in a record for the year 537. It is argued that the conflict is real and that it followed the famine brought on by the terrible weather disasters that occurred in 535 and 536. However, the majority of historians believed that Arthur and the Battle of Camlann were mythological. In the Arthurian chivalric romances, further legends concerning decisive conflict of Arthur are formed. Arthur was subsequently transported from the Camlann battlefield to Avalon, a frequently unearthly and magical island, in the hope that he could be healed. Geoffrey had Taliesin, under the direction of Barinthus, deliver Arthur to Morgen (Morgan le Fay) in Avalon. Later writers of the prose cycles included Morgan herself, frequently travelling in a fairy boat with two or more other women, coming to pick up the king. Many later works, such as the Old French Post-Vulgate Cycle and the Middle English Stanzaic Morte Arthur, included adaptations of the final conflict of Arthur. [Information and Image Credit : Battle_of_Camlann, Wikipedia] [Image : Battle Between King Arthur and Sir Mordred by William Hatherell]
[Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The Work (Image) is in the Public Domain in its Country of Origin and other Countries and Areas where the Copyright term is the Life of Author Plus 90 years or Fewer; The Work (Image) is in Public Damain in the United States as well; (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Battle_Between_King_Arthur_and_Sir_Mordred_-_William_Hatherell.jpg ] #Mythology
The Crimean Mountains and the small stretch of territory between them and the Black Sea were home to the ancient Taurians or Tauri Scythae or Tauroscythae or Scythotauri, who were based on the southern shore of the Crimean peninsula in the first millennium BC. Beginning towards the end of the third century BCE, Taurians intermingled with the Scythians and in the writings of the ancient Greeks, they are referred to as Tauroscythians and Scythotaurians. The evidences state that the Taurians were the first people to live on the Crimean peninsula and they never left its confines. They gave the peninsula their name; it had previously been called Taurica, Taurida and Tauris. In the second century BCE, the Pontic Kingdom ruled over the Taurians. Taurians underwent Romanization in the first century AD as a consequence of the Roman control. The Taurians persisted until the fourth century AD before being absorbed by the Alans and Goths. Herodotus mentions the Tauri as surviving through looting and warring in his Histories. They gained notoriety for their worship of a Virgin Deity, to whom they offered sacrifices by waylaying Greeks and stranded travellers. He emphasised that although they are not Scythians, they physically reside in Scythia. Strabo described the Tauri as a Scythian tribe in Geographica. Greeks associated Artemis Tauropolos or Iphigeneia, the daughter of Agamemnon, with the Tauric deity. The Greek myths of Iphigeneia and Orestes, which are described in Iphigeneia in Tauris, were inspired by the Tauric practise of human sacrifices. Even though Greek and the later Roman colonies finally took over the Crimean coast, particularly the one at Chersonesos, the Tauri remained a serious challenge to Greek sovereignty in the area. They mounted raids from their stronghold at Symbolon and engaged in piracy against Black Sea shipping. They were allied with the Scythian king Scilurus by the second century BC. The evolution and habitation of the Kizil-Koban Culture (KKC) around the eighth–fourth century BC was also significantly influenced by Taurians. [Information and Image Credit : Tauri, Wikipedia] [Image: Map of the Roman Empire under Hadrian, who ruled from 117 to 38 AD, highlighting the location of the homeland of the Tauri, Chersonnesos Taurike (Crimean peninsula)] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, Author : - User:Andrein
; (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [License-Link :
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ]
[Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Roman_Empire_125.png ]
In Germanic mythology and culture, an Elf is a particular kind of human-like supernatural entity, particularly in North Germanic mythology and folk-tales. Elves appear to have been viewed in mediaeval Germanic-speaking societies as entities with magical abilities and extraordinary beauty who were indifferent toward common people and capable of either aiding or hurting them. The specifics of these ideas, meanwhile, have developed in both pre-Christian and Christian cultures and have changed significantly across time and geography. All of the Germanic languages contain the word Elf, which appears to have initially meant just -- White Being. However, the Old and Middle English, mediaeval German and Old Norse texts written by Christians played a significant role in rebuilding the older idea of an Elf. These connect the Elves in different ways to the Deities of Norse mythology, to the ability to inflict disease, to magic, to beauty and allurement and more. After the Middle Ages, the name Elf tended to become less prevalent throughout all of the Germanic languages, losing ground to loanwords like Fairy, being borrowed from French into most of the Germanic languages and alternative native meanings like Zwerg (i.e. German for the meaning Dwarf) and Huldra (which is North Germanic for Hidden Beings) . Nevertheless, Elven superstitions remained during the early modern era, especially in Scotland and Scandinavia, where Elves were perceived as mysteriously powerful individuals coexisting with regular human populations while typically remaining invisible. They kept getting blamed for spreading diseases and making sexual harassment. For instance, a number of early modern songs from Scandinavia and the British Isles that date back to the Middle Ages show Elves attempting to woo or kidnap human people. From the early modern age onward, Elves became more prevalent in the literature and art of intellectual elite. These fictional elves were pictured as beings that were small and joyful. This idea of the Elf impacted German Romantic writers in the eighteenth century, who brought the English word Elf back into the German language. The Elves of popular culture that appeared in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries were inspired by this romantic notion of the Elves. Following the publication of works by authors like J. R. R. Tolkien, who helped re-popularize the notion of Elves as human-shaped and human looking entities, Elves made their way into the high fantasy genre of the twentieth century. Elves continue to be a common element in modern fictional entertainment. [Information and Image Credit : Elf, Wikipedia] [Image : Ängsälvor i.e.Swedish for Meadow Elves by Nils Blommér (1850)] [Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The Work (Image) is in the Public Domain in its Country of Origin and other Countries and Areas where the Copyright term is the Life of Author Plus 100 years or Fewer; (Kindly Relate to Individual Source Image URLs for More Usage Properties)] [Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:%C3%84ngs%C3%A4lvor_-_Nils_Blomm%C3%A9r_1850.jpg ] #Mythology
One of the most well-known emblems of Ireland is the Harp. The Celtic harp, which is depicted on Irish currency and used in Guinness advertisements, was first played in the 10th century. Harpists were once highly revered and were given a prominent place among the most important retainers of the old Gaelic order of lords and chieftains, along with poets and scribes. Turlough Ó Carolan, an 18th-century Blind Harper who is frequently referred to as the unofficial national composer of Ireland, is perhaps the best-known practitioner of this heritage of harping today. Traditional Irish harping was an aristocratic art form with its own canon, regulations for compositional structure and standards for organization. It was only distantly related to folkloric music of the common people, the forerunner of modern Irish traditional music. The Italian Baroque art music of composers like Vivaldi, which could be heard in theatres and concert venues of Dublin, had an impression on some of the later practitioners of the harping heritage, including O Carolan. The local Gaelic royalty that fostered the harping culture did not persist very long. The Irish harp and its melody were essentially extinct by the early 19th century. Melodies without any harmony that had been adopted by the folkloric legacy or that were kept as notated in compilations like that of Edward Bunting, managed to remain of the harping tradition. The new generations of the 20th-century revivalists tried to take Irish native dance tunes and song airs along with any old harp tunes they could get their hands-on and played the gut-bounded neo-Celtic harp. However, the old brass-strung harp plucked with long fingernails where now replaced with the pads on their fingers. They introduced to them orchestral harp techniques as well as rhythmic, melodic and harmonic ideas that frequently had more in common with popular classical music than with both the ancient harping legacy and the current Irish music heritage. [Information and Image Credit: Irish_traditional_music, Wikipedia] [Image: 1. Photograph of Patrick Byrne, harper, by Hill & Adamson (1845), calotype print, 203 × 164 mm, Scottish National Gallery ; 2. A Medieval Clarsach in the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh] [Images Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported and Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [License-Link : https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ] [Original Source Image URL : 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:David_Octavius_Hill_and_Robert_Adamson_-_Patrick_Byrne,_about_1794_-_1863._Irish_Harpist_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Celtic_harp_dsc05425.jpg ]
The social or Céilí dances of Ireland are very diverse not only in Ireland but also throughout the world. There might be as little as two dancers or as many as sixteen dancers in a Céilí. Céilí dances can also be performed with an infinite number of couples moving in a circle or in a continuous line such as in The Walls of Limerick, The Waves of Tory, Haymakers Jig, An Rince Mor or Bonfire Dance. Céilí dances are frequently quick and others are highly intricate like the Antrim Reel, Morris Reel etc. A Céilí dance may be — Called —in a social context, meaning that the next few steps are announced for the convenience of beginners as the dance progresses. In addition to the concertina and other related musical instruments as well as guitar, whistle or flute, the Céilí dances are also frequently performed to Irish instruments like the Irish Bodhrán or violin. The Gaelic League created the phrase Céilí Dance in the late 19th century. The noun Céilí is distinct from the adjective Céilí. Irish music and dance are featured during Céilí, which are social gatherings. In Irish dancing Céilí is particular style. A Céilithe (plural of Céilí) may feature only Céilí dance or sometimes only set dancing or a combination of the two. Irish dance in general refers to a collection of traditional dance styles that have their roots in Ireland and include solo and group dancing as well as dancing for societal, competitive and entertainment purposes. Irish dance evolved from several influences, including early native Irish dancing, to take on its modern form. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Travelling-Dance-Teachers taught dance around Ireland, and many dance styles evolved based on local customs and different goals. Irish dance developed into a vital component of Irish culture. [Information and Image Credit : Irish_dance, Wikipedia] [Image: Children Dancing at the Crossroads (1835)] [Image Availed Under Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of Author plus 70 years or fewer. The Work is in Public Domain in the United States.] [Original Source Image URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Children_Dancing_at_the_Crossroads_(1835).gif ]
In English folklore, a phantom black dog known as Black Shuck, Old Shuck, Old Shock or just Shuck is one of several such black dogs mentioned in folktales throughout the British Isles. It is claimed to prowl the coastline and farmland of East Anglia. Black Shuck tales are common in the folklore of Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk and the Cambridgeshire Fens and there are many different accounts of the entity. Some accounts characterise it as a death omen, while others describe it as friendly. Black Shuck is described as having a variety of shapes and sizes, including those of a huge dog, a calf, or a horse. The Oxford English Dictionary states that the term Shuck is derived from the Old English word Scucca, possibly from the root word Skuh, which means — to terrify. According to W. A. Dutt, Shuck appeared as a large black dog that prowls through isolated field footpaths and dark roads while howling loudly enough to make the blood of the hearer chill. The footfalls of the dogs are however silent. [Information and Image Credit : Black_Shuck, Wikipedia] [Image : A depiction of the Black Shuck by an Artist -- Large crimson eyes, bared teeth, and shaggy black fur are characteristics that are frequently mentioned] [Images Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [License-Link :
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en ]
[Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Blackdog.jpg ] #Mythology
Founded in West Asia in 550 BC, the Achaemenid Empire was a former Iranian dynasty. Cyrus the Great founded it. Under Xerxes I, the Achaemenid dynasty expanded to its greatest extent, spanning from the Balkan Peninsula and Eastern Europe in the west to up to the Indian border in the east. The empire, which spanned 5.5 million square kilometres, was the biggest in history up to that point (2.1 million square miles). The founder of the Achaemenid Empire, Cyrus the Great, was a related descendant of Achaemenes, from whom the empire took its name. It was the Persian nomads who created the Achaemenid Empire. Around 1000 B.C., Iranians known as the Persians came in what is now Iran and coexisted with the local Elamites in regions such as northwest Iran, the Zagros Mountains and Persis. Cyrus rebelled against the Medes in 553 BC. Around 550 BC, he overthrew the Medes, subjugated the Astyages, and took control of Ecbatana, the centre of Medes power. The Hebrew Bible relates that King Cyrus freed the Hebrew prisoners of war in Babylon after Babylon fell in order to rebuild Jerusalem, including the Second Temple, and that this earned him a respectable position in Judaism. In The Achaemenid Empire the most respected and worshipped deity was Mithra. The Achaemenid dynasty is praised for having a unique quality of religious tolerance. Varuna and Mithra were the two main deities revered in ancient Iranian religion from Iran to Rome, but Agni was also adored as names of monarchs and members of the general public displaying dedication to these three appear in the majority of cases. However, certain groups, who were the forerunners of the Magi, also praised Ahura Mazda, the leader of the Asuras. Zoroastrianism made its way to southwest Iran during the Achaemenid Empire, where its kings welcomed it and it eventually formed a significant part of Persian culture. The Religion included various innovative concepts, such as free will, in addition to the old Iranian concept of the Pantheon and the formalisation of the Gods. Zoroastrianism spread throughout the empire under the patronage of the Achaemenid kings, and by the fifth century BC, it had become the official religion of the realm. [Information and Image Credit : Achaemenid_Empire, Wikipedia] [Image 1: Standard of Cyrus the Great ; 2: Growth of the Achaemenid Territories on Map; 3: The tomb of Cyrus the Great, who established the Achaemenid Empire, at Pasargadae, Iran; 4: According to the Bible, Cyrus the Great is credited with releasing the Hebrew prisoners held in Babylon to return and rebuild Jerusalem, gaining Him a prestigious position in Judaism; ] [Images Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported , Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International and Faithful photographic Reproduction of a two-dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art (Please Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [License-Links: 1. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en 2. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en ] [Original Source Image URL: 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Standard_of_Cyrus_the_Great.svg 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Achaemenid_Empire_under_different_kings_(flat_map).svg 3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pasargad_Tomb_Cyrus3.jpg 4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cyrus_II_le_Grand_et_les_H%C3%A9breux.jpg ]
The Ordos culture was a material culture that existed between the sixth and second centuries BCE in a region centred on the Ordos Loop (equivalent to the region of Suiyuan, encompassing Baotou to the north, all found in modern Inner Mongolia, China). Significant Scythian art findings have been found in the Ordos civilization, which may be the farthest eastern extension of Indo-European Eurasian nomads like the Saka or may also be related to the Palaeo-Siberians or Yeniseians. The grass, bushes and trees that blanketed the Ordos Plateau were properly hydrated by numerous rivers and streams to create lush grazing areas. It had the best pasture grounds on the Asian Steppe at the time. Equine nomads from the north-west lived in the region that had been inhabited by the Zhukaigou civilisation, from the sixth to the second century BCE, before being chased out by the Xiongnu. According to some scholars, these nomads who engaged in horseback combat arrived from the north and west about the fourth century BC, which roughly corresponds to the time of conquests of Alexander the Great in Central Asia. Before establishing in the Ordos region, they travelled through the Gansu corridor in multiple waves from Central Asia and Southern Siberia. Skeletal bones and artefacts from the Ordos are mostly what are known about them. The Ordos culture, which existed between 500 BCE and 100 CE, is famous for its Ordos bronzes, blade weapons, tent pole decorative, horse equipment, small plaques and fittings for clothing and horse harness. This culture also used animal-style decoration and had connections to both Chinese art and Scythian art from areas much further west. Located immediately to the east of the more well-known Yuezhi, another Indo-European-speaking group, the Ordos are regarded to be the most eastern of the Iranian peoples of the Eurasian Steppe. Scholars assert that the Ordos civilisation had related a Scythian connection since the people depicted in archaeological findings frequently exhibit Europoid traits. The Ordos steppes have tombs with weapons that are extremely similar to those used by the Scythians and Saka. [information and Image Credit : Ordos_culture, Wikipedia] [Image: 1. Belt plaque, with a tiger subduing an ibex, Ordos, 6-5th century BCE. 2. Gold stag with head of Eagle. 3. Nomadic gold crown excavated in the Ordos, 3rd century BCE][Images Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported ; Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International ; Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication (Kindly Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [License-Links: 1. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en 2. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en 3. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en ] [Source-Image URLs : 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Arte_dei_pastori_nomadi,_placca_da_cintura_con_tigre_che_sottomette_uno_stambecco,_mongolia_interna_(ordos),_VI-V_sec._ac..JPG 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gold_monster.jpg 3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Warring_States_Xiongnu_Gold_Crown_-_a_(cropped).jpg ]
The Lady of Shalott (1832) is a lyrical narrative set of Music composed by the Victorian Age Poet Alfred Lord Tennyson, narrating the tragic story of Elaine of Astolat (A Character from Arthurian Legend). She is narrated as a Young Woman of a Noble House-Hold, who is grounded in a Tower up the river from Camelot. Lord Bernard, Father of Elaine and the Lord of Astolat, arranges a Jousting Tournament, where King Arthur, as well other Knights including Sir Lancelot attended. It was Lancelot who attended the event after a lot of persuasion by Lord Bernard and his two sons. Elaine was filled with love for Lancelot at first sight and begs Lancelot to carry her token while participating in the tournament. As Queen Guinevere was supposed to attend the tournament as well, Lancelot though wore the token of Elaine, yet participated in disguise and went on to win the competition after defeating some forty participants from the party of King Arthur. In the tournament, Lancelot borrowed a Shield from Sir Torre, the brother of Elaine, while his own Recognizable Shield was left with Torre. During the tournament, Lancelot received an injury to his side from the lance of Sir Bors and was carried away later to the cave of the Hermit Sir Baudwin by another brother of Elaine. Elaine begged her father to bring back the wounded Lancelot to Her Chamber, where she nursed him back to health. As Lancelot recovered, he prepared to leave and offered to pay Elaine for all her services. But to his surprise Elaine brought him back his Shield, which she was guarding all this time. A Cautious Lancelot now did leave the Castle and never to return again, but now cognizant of the feelings of Lady Elaine. After Ten Days, Elaine died of a Heart-Break and according to her last will she was given her last farewell on a small boat, with a lily being clutched in her one hand and her last letter in the other. As she drifted down the river to Camelot, she was discovered by the court of King Arthur and they called Her – A Little Lily Maiden. Lancelot was asked for and arriving he got to know of the content of the letter. Ashamed of Himself, Lancelot paid for Her Rich Burial. Probably what a Husband would have done for His Wife or a Beau for His Lover. What Elaine could not Achieve in Her Life, Probably She Achieved in Her Death --They crossed themselves, their stars they blest, Knight, minstrel, abbot, squire, and guest; There lay a parchment on her breast, That puzzled more than all the rest, The wellfed wits at Camelot; The web was woven curiously, The charm is broken utterly, Draw near and fear not,—this is I, The Lady of Shalott. -- [Image: The Lady of Shalott by John Atkinson Grimshaw (1875)] [Info and Image Credit : The_Lady_of_Shalott , Elaine_of_Astolat , Wikipedia ; Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ] [Source Image-URL :: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Atkinson_Grimshaw_-_%22The_Lady_of_Shalott%22_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg ] #Mythology
Hy-Brasil and various other variations of the name Brasil refer to a fictitious island that is supposed to be located in the Atlantic Ocean west of Ireland. It was said to be shrouded in mist in Irish tales, with the exception of one day every seven years when it became visible but remained inaccessible. The origin of the names Brasil and Hy-Brasil are not known, but according to Irish mythology, they derive from the Irish Uí Breasail, which means -- descendants i.e. clan of Bresail -- and refers to one of the illustrious old clans of northeastern Ireland. Other Native Names: Hy-Brasil, Hy Brasil, Hy Breasil, Hy Breasail, Hy Breasal, Hy Brazil, I-Brasil. As early as 1325, a portolan chart by Angelino Dulcert showed an island called Bracile west of Ireland in the Atlantic Ocean. Inside the Venetian map of Andrea Bianco (1436), the Island later was mentioned as Insula de Brasil, connected to one of the bigger islands in a group of islands in the Atlantic. For a while, this was mistaken for the modern island of Terceira in the Azores, whose major town is still known as Angra do Heroismo and whose volcanic hill at its bay is still known as Monte Brasil. Two islands are designated Illa de Brasil on a Catalan map from around 1480; one is south of Illa Verde or Greenland and the other is to the south-west of Ireland, the claimed location of the fabled place. On charts, the island was frequently depicted as circular, with a central channel or river cutting through its circumference from east to west. Despite unsuccessful attempts to locate it, this was frequently shown on maps as located south-west of Galway Bay until 1865, when it was given the name Brasil Rock. [information and Image Credit : Brasil_(mythical_island), Wikipedia][Image: Map by Abraham Ortelius, with Brasil (far left) in reference to Ireland (1572)] [Image Availed Under Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 70 years or fewer. The photographic reproduction is also considered to be in the public domain in the United States. (Kindly Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)]
[Original Source Image URL:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ortelius_1572_Ireland_Map.jpg ] #Mythology
The fabled island of Avalon, which literally translates into — the island of fruit trees, is a central element of the Arthurian legend. It first popped up in the influential Historia Regum Britanniae by in 1136 as a location of magic where the Excalibur sword of King Arthur was forged. Later, Arthur was taken there to recover after suffering a serious injury at the Battle of Camlann. Since that time, the island has taken on Arthurian mythological significance alongside the Camelot castle of King Arthur. Since its inception, Avalon has been linked to mysticism and magical beings like the sister Morgan of King Arthur, who was portrayed by Geoffrey and some later writers who took their cues from him as the monarch of the Island. The specific motif of Arthur resting in treatment of Morgan in Avalon has grown particularly celebrated and can be seen in various variants in many French and other mediaeval Arthurian works written after Geoffrey. According to some Briton traditions, Arthur is an everlasting king who had never absolutely died but would come back. Avalon has frequently been thought to be the former island of Glastonbury Tor, a long-held and widespread theory that was notable for involving the alleged discovery of the remains of King Arthur and their subsequent majestic reburial in conformance with the medieval English tradition that stated that Arthur died from the fatal wounds he sustained in his final battle. Several additional Avalon locations outside of Glastonbury have also been suggested or claimed. Occasionally, the location was referred to as a valley in mediaeval writings. Morgan and a few other mystical queens or enchantresses appear in several later renditions of the Arthurian legend to transport the mortally wounded Arthur from the Camlann battlefield (or from the Salisbury Plain as in the novels) to Avalon in a black boat after the battle. Sometimes nothing is said about fate of Arthur, or it is unclear. In other cases, his actual demise is truly verified. [Information and Image Credit: Avalon, Wikipedia] [Image: The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon by Edward Burne-Jones] [Image Availed Under Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. (Kindly Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URL:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Burne-Jones_Last_Sleep_of_Arthur_in_Avalon_v2.jpg ]
The fabled island of Avalon, which literally translates into — the island of fruit trees, is a central element of the Arthurian legend. It first popped up in the influential Historia Regum Britanniae by in 1136 as a location of magic where the Excalibur sword of King Arthur was forged. Later, Arthur was taken there to recover after suffering a serious injury at the Battle of Camlann. Since that time, the island has taken on Arthurian mythological significance alongside the Camelot castle of King Arthur. Since its inception, Avalon has been linked to mysticism and magical beings like the sister Morgan of King Arthur, who was portrayed by Geoffrey and some later writers who took their cues from him as the monarch of the Island. The specific motif of Arthur resting in treatment of Morgan in Avalon has grown particularly celebrated and can be seen in various variants in many French and other mediaeval Arthurian works written after Geoffrey. According to some Briton traditions, Arthur is an everlasting king who had never absolutely died but would come back. Avalon has frequently been thought to be the former island of Glastonbury Tor, a long-held and widespread theory that was notable for involving the alleged discovery of the remains of King Arthur and their subsequent majestic reburial in conformance with the medieval English tradition that stated that Arthur died from the fatal wounds he sustained in his final battle. Several additional Avalon locations outside of Glastonbury have also been suggested or claimed. Occasionally, the location was referred to as a valley in mediaeval writings. Morgan and a few other mystical queens or enchantresses appear in several later renditions of the Arthurian legend to transport the mortally wounded Arthur from the Camlann battlefield (or from the Salisbury Plain as in the novels) to Avalon in a black boat after the battle. Sometimes nothing is said about fate of Arthur, or it is unclear. In other cases, his actual demise is truly verified. [Information and Image Credit: Avalon, Wikipedia] [Image: La Mort d Arthur by James Archer (1860)] [Image Availed Under Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. (Kindly Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URL:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Death_of_King_Arthur.jpg ] #Mythology
As a combatant of the Fianna in the Ossianic or Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology, Oisín, also pronounced Osian or Ossian in Irish and anglicised as Osheen, was revered in legend as the most famous poet of Ireland. As the demigod son of Fionn mac Cumhaill and Sadhbh, the daughter of Bodb Dearg, Oisín serves as the main narrator of the cycle, and is credited with writing many of the poetry. He was named after his mother, Sadhbh, who was allegedly transformed into a deer by the druid Fear Doirche. Consequently his name roughly translates as the — young deer or fawn. Sadhbh was captured by a young hunter named Fionn, but he did not murder her; instead, Sadhbh changed back into a human. Sadhbh quickly became pregnant when Fionn decided to give up hunting and combat to start a family with her, but Fer Doirich changed her back into a deer and sent Sadhbh back into the wild. Fionn discovered his child naked on Benbulbin seven years later. The most well-known adventure story of Oisín, Oisín in Tir na nÓg, features a visit from Niamh Chinn Óir, a fairy. Because of a prophecy, father of Nimah changed her head into a pig. She tells Oisín this and lets him know that if he marries her, she would revert to her previous appearance. Oisín becomes king in Tir na ng once they return there after he accepts her proposal. Oisín chooses to go back to Ireland to visit his former Fianna allies after what he believes to be three years but was actually 300 years. One story has him travelling to Ballinskelligs Bay, close to Ballaghisheen, where he tried to assist in moving a massive stone and fell off his horse. When Niamh gave him her white horse Embarr, she cautioned him not to get off because doing so would force the 300 years to catch up with him and cause him to grow old and shriveled. Just as Niamh had warned, Oisín ages and grows old. The equine travels back to Tir na nÓg. [Information and Image Credit : Oisín, Wikipedia] [Image: Ossian playing his harp, by François Pascal Simon Gérard, 1801] [Image Availed Under Faithful Photographic Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art. The work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer. (Kindly Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URL:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fran%C3%A7ois_G%C3%A9rard_-_Ossian.jpg ] #Mythology
The Gaelic holiday Samhain celebrates the completion of the harvest and the onset of winter i.e. the - darker half - of the year. Since the Celtic day began and finished at sundown, it is celebrated on November 1st, but festivities get underway on October 31st. This falls roughly in the middle of the autumnal equinox and the winter solstice. In addition to Imbolc, Beltaine, and Lughnasa it is also one of the four Gaelic seasonal celebrations. In the past, it was frequently observed in Scotland, the Isle of Man, Galicia and Ireland (where it is pronounced as Sauin). The Brittonic Celtic people known as Calan Gaeaf in Wales, Kalan Gwav in Cornwall and Kalan Goañv in Brittany also celebrated a similar holiday. While the classic Manx Gaelic name is Sauin, the name Samhain is used in modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic. Samhain serves as the root for the name of November in Gaelic. In Mythology of Ireland Samhain is listed as the first of the four seasonal celebrations of the year in the tenth-century story Tochmarc Emire. According to the literature, there would be a declaration of peace and crowded gatherings where people would hold discussions, feast, partake in alcohol consumption and compete. The scenes of early Irish stories frequently take place at these gatherings. According to the legend Echtra Cormaic, the High King of Ireland staged the Feast of Tara every seventh Samhain, at which new laws and obligations were enacted. Anyone who disobeyed these regulations would be exiled. While Bealtaine was a summer holiday for the living, Samhain was basically a celebration for the dead, according to Irish mythology, Samhain was a time when the doorways to the Otherworld unlocked, enabling supernatural entities and the spirits of the dead to enter our realm. During the Samhain feast, the fire-breather Aillen arrivesd from the Otherworld and after luring everyone to sleep with his music, burned down the palace of Tara. One Samhain, the young Fionn mac Cumhaill managed to stay awake and used a magical spear to kill Aillen, earning him the position of Fianna-leader. Some myths also claim that at Samhain, sacrifices or offerings were made. According to legend the feast of the Ulaid at Samhain, this included Samhain itself and the three days before and after it, lasted a whole week. It involved large gatherings where people held discussions, feasted, drank alcohol and participated in competitions. At Samhain, bonfires were also built on hilltops and ceremonies involved them, just like at Bealtaine. On the eve of Samhain, people in certain places put out their household fires. The neighbourhood came together as each family respectfully re-lit its fireplace using embers from the community bonfire. [Information and Image Credit : Samhain, Wikipedia] [Image : Painting of Daniel Maclise — Snap-Apple Night (1833) --depicting people in Ireland on October 31st performing divination games] [Images Availed Under Reproduction of a Two-Dimensional, Public Domain Work of Art; Work is public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the life of author plus 100 years or fewer; Work is in Public Domain in the US as well; (Please Also Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URL:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Snap-Apple_Night_globalphilosophy.PNG ]
The Dullahan, Durahan or Dullaghan is a type of mythical creature in Irish folklore. It is also known as Gan Ceann meaning the one without a head in Irish. He is portrayed as a Headless Horseman riding a black horse while holding his own head aloft in one hand. According to legend, it represents the Celtic deity Crom Dubh. Ireland is where the house of Dullahan tale originated. A horrible smirk that reaches both ends of the skull is typically present in the mouth. Even on the darkest nights its eyes, which are continually moving, can be see across the countryside. It is reported that the flesh of the head resembles mouldy cheese in both colour and texture. The Dullahan are said to use the human spine of a corpse as a whip and its cart is decorated with funeral relics: it includes candles in skulls to illuminate the route, thigh bone spokes for the wheels, and worm-chewed pall or dried human skin for the covering. An individual is destined to pass away where the Dullahan finishes riding, according to old Irish belief. The victim promptly passes away after hearing the Dullahan cry out their name and steal their soul. There are claims that golden items have the power to make the Dullahan vanish. [Information Credit : Dullahan, Wikipedia] [Image-Created by Artificial Intelligence Using the Craiyon AI from www.wandb.ai ] #Mythology
The Dullahan, Durahan or Dullaghan is a type of mythical creature in Irish folklore. It is also known as Gan Ceann meaning the one without a head in Irish. He is portrayed as a Headless Horseman riding a black horse while holding his own head aloft in one hand. According to legend, it represents the Celtic deity Crom Dubh. Ireland is where the house of Dullahan tale originated. A horrible smirk that reaches both ends of the skull is typically present in the mouth. Even on the darkest nights its eyes, which are continually moving, can be see across the countryside. It is reported that the flesh of the head resembles mouldy cheese in both colour and texture. The Dullahan are said to use the human spine of a corpse as a whip and its cart is decorated with funeral relics: it includes candles in skulls to illuminate the route, thigh bone spokes for the wheels, and worm-chewed pall or dried human skin for the covering. An individual is destined to pass away where the Dullahan finishes riding, according to old Irish belief. The victim promptly passes away after hearing the Dullahan cry out their name and steal their soul. There are claims that golden items have the power to make the Dullahan vanish. [Information Credit : Dullahan, Wikipedia] [Image-Created by Artificial Intelligence Using the Craiyon AI from www.wandb.ai ]
The Otherworld is the Home of the Gods and possibly the dead in Celtic mythology. It is typically a celestial place of immortality, elegance, wellness, prosperity, and pleasure in Gaelic and Brittonic myth. It goes by a number of names in Irish mythology, including Tír na nÓg, Mag Mell, and Emain Ablach. In Irish myth, Tech Duinn is another location where the spirits of the dead congregate. In Welsh mythology, the Otherworld is typically referred to as Annwn and in the Arthurian tale, as Avalon. It is referred as either a heavenly place beyond the sea or beneath the earth, or as a parallel realm that coexists with our own. Although the Otherworld is typically inaccessible, a number of fabled heroes have made accidental or invited visits there. They frequently enter old burial mounds or caverns to get there, or they may swim across the western sea or go beneath water. They occasionally find themselves in the Otherworld by accident, where strange animals, magical beings or a mystical mist may be present. An otherworldly woman might present the hero an apple, a silver apple branch or a ball of thread to follow as it unfurls as an invitation to enter the Otherworld. The term Otherworld indeed refers to a paranormal dimension where time is said to operate differently and where there is perpetual youth, beauty, health, affluence and happiness. It is where the gods, as well as some ancestors and heroes, reside. It was presumably comparable to the Elysium of Greek mythology, and it is possible that long before both the places had their roots in Proto-Indo-European religion. The holidays of Beltane and Samhain are transitional occasions in Irish mythology and later folklore, during which communication with the Otherworld is more likely. [Information and Image Credit : Celtic_Otherworld, Wikipedia] [Image: The Land of the Ever Young as protrayed by Arthur Rackham in Irish Fairy Tales (1920)] [The Image File is in public domain in the United States (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ]
[Source Image-URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Irishfairytales01step_0137.jpg ] #Mythology
The medieval heroic love-tale of Tristan and Iseult, also known by other names including Tristram and Isolde, has been told multiple times since the twelfth century. The story is a tragic lamentation about the forbidden love affair between the Cornish knight Tristan and the Irish princess Iseult, and it is founded on a Celtic legend and probably other sources as well. It tells the story of journey of Tristan to take Iseult from Ireland to Cornwall so that she may wed King Mark of Cornwall, his uncle. Tristan and Iseult use a love potion while travelling, starting a secret romance between them. The tale has left a profound impression on Western civilization. In several documents written in numerous languages throughout Europe during the Middle Ages, its varied variants were documented. The royal branch and the common branch are the two main forms of the earliest occurrences of the tale. While the later is a reflection of a now-lost original version, the first one starts with poems by Thomas of Britain and Béroul from the twelfth century. After the substantially extended Prose Tristan, a later version that combined the King Arthur legend with the romance of Tristan appeared in the thirteenth century. The narrative has remained well-known in the contemporary days because of the resurgence in interest in the Middle Ages, particularly the operatic rendition of Wagner. This was a direct result of the influence of Romantic Nationalism of the time. There are also different interpretations of the story of Tristan and personality. The youthful prince Tristan goes to Ireland after overcoming the Irish knight Morholt in order to bring back the lovely Iseult for his uncle, King Mark of Cornwall, to wed. They take a love potion along the road, which sets off their madly-in-love relationship. In the courtly branch of the legend, the benefits of the potion continue forever, but in the common branch, they start to wear off after three years. They unintentionally consume the potion in certain versions. In other instances, the creator of the potion hands it to Iseult with the intention of her sharing it with Mark, but she purposefully gives it to Tristan. Iseult marries Mark, but the enchantment pushes her and Tristan to look for love from one-other. The pair resists attempts by the counselors of the King to convict them of adultery by maintaining their appearance of innocent through deception. The love potion finally wears off in the version of Béroul, and the two lovers decide to carry on their romantic relationship on their own. Tristan, King Mark and Iseult all share a love for one another, much like the Arthur-Lancelot-Guinevere love triangle as seen in the mediaeval royal love theme. Iseult is appreciative of care of Mark towards her; Tristan appreciates and regards his uncle King Mark as his tutor and adopted father; Mark adores Tristan as his son and Iseult as his wife. However, each person gets dreadful visions every night about the future . After discovering the affair, Mark tries to trap his wife and nephew. And at the same time a weak monarchy was in peril and the war between Ireland and Cornwall (Dumnonia) was coming to a conclusion. Mark decides to punish them by hanging Tristan and burning Iseult at the stake after acquiring what appears to be proof of their guilt. Iseult ends up in a leper colony after Mark changes his mind. However, Tristan manages to escape while being led to the scaffold and miraculously escapes from a chapel to save Iseult. The couple makes their way into the Morrois forest, where they hide themselves until Mark eventually comes to them. After Tristan consents to give Iseult back to Mark and depart the country, they come to an understanding. Eventually Tristan arrives in Brittany and then marries Iseult of the White Hands, the sister of Kahedin and the daughter of Hoel of Brittany, for her reputation and beauty. [Information and Image Credit : Tristan_and_Iseult, Wikipedia] [Image : Tristan and Isolde by Herbert Draper (1901)] [Image Availed Under Faithful Reproductions of two-dimensional Public Domain Works of Art (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property)] [Source Image-URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Herbert_James_Draper_-_Tristan_%26_Isolde.jpg ] #Mythology
The medieval heroic love-tale of Tristan and Iseult, also known by other names including Tristram and Isolde, has been told multiple times since the twelfth century. The story is a tragic lamentation about the forbidden love affair between the Cornish knight Tristan and the Irish princess Iseult, and it is founded on a Celtic legend and probably other sources as well. It tells the story of journey of Tristan to take Iseult from Ireland to Cornwall so that she may wed King Mark of Cornwall, his uncle. Tristan and Iseult use a love potion while travelling, starting a secret romance between them. The tale has left a profound impression on Western civilization. In several documents written in numerous languages throughout Europe during the Middle Ages, its varied variants were documented. The royal branch and the common branch are the two main forms of the earliest occurrences of the tale. While the later is a reflection of a now-lost original version, the first one starts with poems by Thomas of Britain and Béroul from the twelfth century. After the substantially extended Prose Tristan, a later version that combined the King Arthur legend with the romance of Tristan appeared in the thirteenth century. The narrative has remained well-known in the contemporary days because of the resurgence in interest in the Middle Ages, particularly the operatic rendition of Wagner. This was a direct result of the influence of Romantic Nationalism of the time. There are also different interpretations of the story of Tristan and personality. The youthful prince Tristan goes to Ireland after overcoming the Irish knight Morholt in order to bring back the lovely Iseult for his uncle, King Mark of Cornwall, to wed. They take a love potion along the road, which sets off their madly-in-love relationship. In the courtly branch of the legend, the benefits of the potion continue forever, but in the common branch, they start to wear off after three years. They unintentionally consume the potion in certain versions. In other instances, the creator of the potion hands it to Iseult with the intention of her sharing it with Mark, but she purposefully gives it to Tristan. Iseult marries Mark, but the enchantment pushes her and Tristan to look for love from one-other. The pair resists attempts by the counselors of the King to convict them of adultery by maintaining their appearance of innocent through deception. The love potion finally wears off in the version of Béroul, and the two lovers decide to carry on their romantic relationship on their own. Tristan, King Mark and Iseult all share a love for one another, much like the Arthur-Lancelot-Guinevere love triangle as seen in the mediaeval royal love theme. Iseult is appreciative of care of Mark towards her; Tristan appreciates and regards his uncle King Mark as his tutor and adopted father; Mark adores Tristan as his son and Iseult as his wife. However, each person gets dreadful visions every night about the future . After discovering the affair, Mark tries to trap his wife and nephew. And at the same time a weak monarchy was in peril and the war between Ireland and Cornwall (Dumnonia) was coming to a conclusion. Mark decides to punish them by hanging Tristan and burning Iseult at the stake after acquiring what appears to be proof of their guilt. Iseult ends up in a leper colony after Mark changes his mind. However, Tristan manages to escape while being led to the scaffold and miraculously escapes from a chapel to save Iseult. The couple makes their way into the Morrois forest, where they hide themselves until Mark eventually comes to them. After Tristan consents to give Iseult back to Mark and depart the country, they come to an understanding. Eventually Tristan arrives in Brittany and then marries Iseult of the White Hands, the sister of Kahedin and the daughter of Hoel of Brittany, for her reputation and beauty. [Information and Image Credit : Tristan_and_Iseult, Wikipedia] [Image : The End of the Song by Edmund Leighton (1902)] [Image Availed Under Faithful Reproductions of two-dimensional Public Domain Works of Art (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ] [Source Image-URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Leighton-Tristan_and_Isolde-1902.jpg ]
Brigid — which is the Old Irish for — the Exalted One, — (sometimes spelled as Brigit or Bríg) is the name of an ancient Irish deity. She is described in Irish mythology as a part of the Tuatha Dé Danann, also the wife of Bres with who she bore a son by the name of Ruadán. She is also referred to as the daughter of the Dagda. She is linked to tamed animals, blacksmithing, poetry, healing as well as knowledge. Additionally, according to mediaeval sources, Brigid was both the divinity that poets worshipped and a wise lady or sage also known for her protective guardianship. Brigid the healer and Brigid the smith are thought to be her two sisters. She thus might have been a triple divinity, according to this observation. She is also believed to share a connection with Brigantia, a British Celtic divinity. Many of the characteristics of the goddess are shared by Saint Brigid and her feast day, February 1, was originally a native festival called Imbolc, which heralded the arrival of spring. Sacred wells are connected to both the goddess and the saint at Kildare and numerous other locations throughout the Celtic countries. Some parts of the British Isles and the overseas population still practise well-dressing, the binding of rags to trees close to curing-wells (known as clooties in Scotland) and other forms of petitioning or honouring of Brigid. Brigid is revered as the patroness of early spring season, cattles and other livestock, sacred-wells, smithing, medicine, that of arts and crafts as well as that of serpents (namely in Scotland). [Information and Image Credit : Brigid, Wikipedia] [Image : The Coming of Bríde -- by John Duncan (1917)] [Image Availed Under Public domain Work of Art in its Country of Origin and United States based on {{PD-Art |1= |deathyear=1945 |country= Scotland}} (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Thecomingofbrideduncan1917.jpg ] #Mythology
In Irish mythology, a supernatural species known as the Fomorians or Fomori is sometimes described as a hostile race of terrible creatures. They were first believed to have originated from the earth or beneath the sea. They were then represented as giants and later as sea raiders. Despite the fact that certain members of the two races had progeny, they are the rivals of the and the adversaries of the early settlers of Ireland. In the Battle of Mag Tuired, the Tuath Dé triumph over the Fomorians. The story has been compared to various Indo-European tales of Gods at War, such as the Norse epic of the and Vanir, the Greek myth of the Olympians and Titans as well as the Vedic myth of the Devas and Asuras. According to Dáithí Ó hÓgáin, the Norse and Vedic versions, in which the vanquished races stand in for the fertility of the earth, are analogous to the Tuath Dé learning agricultural expertise from the Fomorians. One idea holds that the Fomorians were supernatural entities personifying anarchy, gloom, death, infestation and drought; they represented the untamed or destructive forces of nature. The race is typically referred to as the Fomóire or Fomóiri in plural form in Old and Middle Irish, and a single member is referred to as a Fomóir (in singular form). They are also referred to as the in plural form in Middle Irish. The Fomorians appear to have first been thought of as evil spirits that lived beneath the surface of the earth and in its water depths. They are stated to reside—under the worlds of men—in one of the earliest accounts of them, a lamenting poem for Mess-Telmann that dates back to the 7th century. They were later represented as maritime raiders as well. The term Fomorians was later applied to any land-based or sea-based pirates, and its true meaning was lost. [Information and Image Credit : Fomorians , Wikipedia] [Image : The Fomorians, as depicted by John Duncan (1912) ] [Original Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Fomorians,_Duncan_1912.jpg ] #Mythology
Several nations of Northern Europe have folklores containing the folklore-motif known as the Wild Hunt. Typically, a wild hunt involves a pursuit led by a mythological person who is accompanied by a pack of ghostly or supernatural hunters. The leader of the hunt is frequently a named character connected to Odin in Germanic mythology, however he or she may also be a legendary or historical figure such as Theodoric the Great, Valdemar Atterdag - the Danish monarch, etc. They may also be an unknown spirit or lost soul, both male and female. The hunters are typically the spirits or souls of deceased dogs, however occasionally they are fairies, valkyries or even elves as well. Seeing the Wild Hunt was believed to portend some calamity, such as war or plague, or, at the least, the demise of the witness. People that run into the Hunt may also be kidnapped and taken to the underworld or the land of fairies. In rare cases, it was even thought that spirits of people may be drawn toward the cavalcade while they were asleep. The term Wilde Jagd or Wütendes Heer is frequently used to describe the phenomenon based on a comparative analysis of German folklore. There is no obvious distinction between northern and southern Germany regarding the alternate usage of the words Hunt and Host, since some sections of southern Germany are familiar with the phrase Hunt while other portions of northern Germany are familiar with the term Host. The pre-Christian origins of the Wild Hunt phenomena were interpreted by German folklorist Jacob Grimm, who said that the masculine character who appeared in the event it was a relic of folk beliefs about the God Wodan. [Info and Image Credit: Wild_Hunt, Wikipedia] [Image : Asgårdsreien [The Wild Hunt of Odin] (1872) by Peter Nicolai Arbo] [Original Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Source Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:La_caza_salvaje_de_Od%C3%ADn,_por_Peter_Nicolai_Arbo.jpg ] #Mythology
Artifacts of female goddesses worshipped in Northwestern Europe between the first and fifth centuries AD are known as the Matres (Latin for Mothers) and Matronae (Latin for Matrons). They are portrayed on dedicatory offerings and altars that have visuals of goddesses, almost always in groups of three that have inscriptions (roughly fifty per cent of which showcase Continental Celtic monikers and half of which highlight Germanic names) and that were revered in areas of Germania, Eastern Gaul and Northern Italy (with a tiny allocation elsewhere) that were inhabited by the Roman army from the first to the fifth century. A total of twenty inscriptions from Spain and Portugal are known, several of which contain regional epithets like a commitment to the Matribus Gallaicis or Galician Mothers. Matres also appear on dedicatory reliefs and writings in other regions controlled by the Roman army such as southeast Gaul at Vertillum. Additionally, identical reliefs and inscriptions to the Nutrices Augustae or August Nurses found in Roman remains of Ptuj, Lower Styria, can be found in the Romano-Celtic civilization of Pannonia. Both stones with and without inscriptions do feature images of Matres and Matronae as altars and dedications. The Goddesses are either upright or seated; all of the images are frontal and they nearly always appear in groups of three that have at least one figurine holding a fruit basket in her lap. Some representations show the middle person with loose hair and a headband, while the other two are shown wearing headgear. Additionally, there are snakes, kids, and diapers depicted. Other themes include representations of sacrifice, such as incense burning and fruit-filled bowls as well as decorations of fruits, plants, and trees. The offering stones and altars are typically discovered in groupings rather than by themselves around temple structures and cult sites. [Image : The Matres (also known as the Vertault relief) is a terracotta relief from the Gallo-Roman town of Vertillum in Gaul] [Information and Image Credit : Matres_and_Matronae , Wikipedia] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ] [Source Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Deesses_de_Vertault_(mus%C3%A9e_de_Bibracte).jpg ] #Mythology
A well-known dragon in Polish folklore is the Wawel Dragon, often called the Dragon of Wawel Hill. It is referred to as Smok Wawelski in Polish. According to the earliest accounts (thirteenth century), a dragon tormented Kraków, the fabled capital city of . A weekly feed of cattle was used to pacify the man-eating monster until it was finally slain by the Sons of the Kings using sulfur-stuffed dummy cows. However, in order to claim sole credit, the younger prince, Krak the Younger, killed his elder brother. As a result, he was exiled. Princess Wanda had to take over the throne as a result. In a later chronicle from the fifteenth century, the royal names were reversed, with the elder being referred to as Krak-Junior and the younger as Lech. The carcasses that were packed with sulphur and other chemicals were also credited to the monarch himself. A further chronicler (Marcin Bielski, 1597) added that the Cave of the Dragon was located under Wawel Castle on Wawel Hill on the bank of the Vistula River and attributed the incident to a cobbler by the name of Skub (Skuba). [Information and Image Credit : Wawel_Dragon, Wikipedia] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ] [Source Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:M%C3%BCnster_wawelski.jpg ] #Mythology
The Rusalka (plural Rusalky/Rusalki) is a generally feminine figure from Slavic mythology that has equivalents in various parts of Europe, such as the French Melusine and the Germanic Nixie. She is frequently cruel to humans and frequently associated with water. Folklorists have put out a number of origin theories for the being, including the possibility that it may have its roots in Slavic paganism, where it might also have been viewed as a beneficent spirit. Vladimir Propp claims that the Slavic pagans who first used the term Rusalka associated them with fertility and did not view Rusalki as bad before the nineteenth century. In the spring, they emerged from the water to assist the crops grow by bringing moisture that is necessary for life to the fields. Rusalki are shown in a wide range of mediums in modern culture, especially in Slavic-speaking nations where they typically mimic the idea of the mermaid. The rusalka was also referred to in northern Russia as the vodyanitsa, kupalka, shutovka, and loskotukha. The rusalka was referred to as a mavka in southern Ukraine and Russia. Such names were more prevalent up until the twentieth century, and the word rusalka was thought of by many as academic and erudite. According to nineteenth interpretations, a rusalka is an eerie, perilous entity that is no longer alive and is connected to the impure soul. Young women who have either committed suicide by drowning owing to an unpleasant marriage or who were forcibly drowned (particularly after falling pregnant with undesired children) shall spend the remainder of their allotted time on Earth as Rusalki, according to Dmitry Zelenin. The original Slavic tradition, however, indicates that not all Rusalki incidents were associated with drowning. [Information and Image Credit : Rusalka , Wikipedia] [Image : The Mermaids, 1871, by Ivan Kramskoi Rusalki] [[Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Iwan_Nikolajewitsch_Kramskoj_002.jpg ] #Mythology
In paganic Slavic folklore, the Leshy (also known as Leshi, Literal-Meaning from the Forest in Russian) is a patron deity of the woodlands. The deity may be tied to the Slavic deity Porewit because he governs the woods and hunting. Additionally, a deity by the name of Svyatibor is attested in the Eastern and Western Slavic pantheons as the forest god and the ruler of the leshies. He performed the same duties as the divine Veles. The Leshy may take on any appearance, is manly and humanistic in appearance, and can alter its dimensions and height. According to some tales, Leshy had a wife (Leshachikha, also known as the Kikimora of the marsh), as well as children (Leshonki, Leszonky). He is considered by a few to have a tendency to misdirect travellers and kidnap children (whom he shares with Chort, the Black One), that would cause others to believe he is an evil spirit. Depending on the actions and belief of the concerned person or the native communities, regarding the forestlands. he is also believed to have a more impartial temperament toward people. Kids who were damned by their family, especially their parents, may be taken away by Leshy to the forest people. Therefore, some may characterise him as a more unpredictable being, similar to a fairy. [Info and Image Credit: Leshy, Wikipedia] [Image: An illustration of Leshy, 1906] [Original Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Source Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Leshy_(1906).jpg ] #Mythology
A Changeling is a humanoid-like entity that has appeared in European folklore and has also traditionally gone by the names Auf or Oaf. A Changeling was said to be a fairy that other fairies had abducted and replaced with a person (usually a youngster). A changeling can be recognized by a number of characteristics; in Irish mythology, a fairy child may appear sickly, would not develop normally, and could have distinguishing facial attributes like a beard or long fangs. Additionally, they could exhibit intellect much above their seeming years and have extraordinary intuition. Whenever a Changeling feels it is alone, it frequently exhibits strange behavior, such as bouncing around, dancing, or playing a musical instrument; however this latter instance is only seen in Irish and Scottish folklore. A human baby may be kidnapped for a variety of reasons, including servitude, affection again for the human baby or even evil intent. Most frequently, it was believed that fairies traded the kids. Rarely, a very old fairy would be swapped for a human infant in order for the elderly fairy to live comfortably and be pampered by its human parents. Ordinary protective charms like an overturned coat or an opened-pair of iron scissors left where the infant slept were believed to scare them off. Other precautions included keeping a close eye on the youngsters. In particular, newlyweds and new- mothers were frequently stolen by fairies to feed their fairy offspring while young adults were frequently taken to marry fairies. Fairies would even abduct adult humans. An object, such as a log, was frequently placed in place of the abducted human, enchanted to seem like the person, when an adult was taken instead of a youngster. While the living human would be among the fairies, this object in the place of the human would appear to fall ill, die and to be buried by the family of the human. [Info and Image Credit: Changeling, Wikipedia] [Image: Der Wechselbalg by Henry Fuseli, 1781] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:F%C3%BCssli_-_Der_Wechselbalg_-_1780.jpeg ] #Mythology
The Snow Maiden, also known as Snegurochka or Snegurka, is a figure from Russian folklore. This character initially appeared in Russian folklore in the 19th century, and it is not clear whether it has any roots in the conventional Slavic mythology and practises. Snegurochka has also been portrayed as the granddaughter and helper of Ded Moroz during New-Year-Celebrations for kids since the mid-20th century during the Soviet era. In the second book of The Poetic Outlook on Nature by the Slavs, which was released in 1869, Alexander Afanasyev included a rendition of a folktale about a snow-white girl with the name Snegurka. He also mentioned the German equivalent, Schneekind (Snow Child). Ivan and Marya, two childless Russian peasants, created a snow doll in this rendition, and it came to life. Snegurka swiftly matures. She is invited by a group of girls for a walk in the woods, following which they build a little fire and alternate jumping over it. Snegurka begins to jump when it is her turn, but she only makes it halfway before dissipating into a tiny cloud. She is the daughter of Spring the Beauty (Веснa-Красна) and Ded Moroz in another narrative, and she longs for the company of mortal humans. She develops a liking for Lel, a shepherd, but her heart is incapable of experiencing love. Her mother bestows this talent on her to Love out of compassion, but the moment she falls in love, she melts away. [Info and Image Credit: Snegurochka, Wikipedia] [Image : Snow Maiden (1899) by Victor Vasnetsov] [Original Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Source Image-Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Vasnetsov_Snegurochka.jpg ] #Mythology
Brigid — which is the Old Irish for — the Exalted One, — (sometimes spelled as Brigit or Bríg) is the name of an ancient Irish deity. She is described in Irish mythology as a part of the Tuatha Dé Danann, also the wife of Bres with who she bore a son by the name of Ruadán. She is also referred to as the daughter of the Dagda. She is linked to tamed animals, blacksmithing, poetry, healing as well as knowledge. Additionally, according to mediaeval sources, Brigid was both the divinity that poets worshipped and a wise lady or sage also known for her protective guardianship. Brigid the healer and Brigid the smith are thought to be her two sisters. She thus might have been a triple divinity, according to this observation. She is also believed to share a connection with Brigantia, a British Celtic divinity. Many of the characteristics of the goddess are shared by Saint Brigid and her feast day, February 1, was originally a native festival called Imbolc, which heralded the arrival of spring. Sacred wells are connected to both the goddess and the saint at Kildare and numerous other locations throughout the Celtic countries. Some parts of the British Isles and the overseas population still practise well-dressing, the binding of rags to trees close to curing-wells (known as clooties in Scotland) and other forms of petitioning or honouring of Brigid. Brigid is revered as the patroness of early spring season, cattles and other livestock, sacred-wells, smithing, medicine, that of arts and crafts as well as that of serpents (namely in Scotland). [Information and Image Credit : Brigid, Wikipedia] [Image : The Coming of Bríde -- by John Duncan (1917)] [Image Availed Under Public domain Work of Art in its Country of Origin and United States based on {{PD-Art |1= |deathyear=1945 |country= Scotland}} (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Thecomingofbrideduncan1917.jpg ]
In Irish mythology, a supernatural species known as the Fomorians or Fomori is sometimes described as a hostile race of terrible creatures. They were first believed to have originated from the earth or beneath the sea. They were then represented as giants and later as sea raiders. Despite the fact that certain members of the two races had progeny, they are the rivals of the and the adversaries of the early settlers of Ireland. In the Battle of Mag Tuired, the Tuath Dé triumph over the Fomorians. The story has been compared to various Indo-European tales of Gods at War, such as the Norse epic of the and Vanir, the Greek myth of the Olympians and Titans as well as the Vedic myth of the Devas and Asuras. According to Dáithí Ó hÓgáin, the Norse and Vedic versions, in which the vanquished races stand in for the fertility of the earth, are analogous to the Tuath Dé learning agricultural expertise from the Fomorians. One idea holds that the Fomorians were supernatural entities personifying anarchy, gloom, death, infestation and drought; they represented the untamed or destructive forces of nature. The race is typically referred to as the Fomóire or Fomóiri in plural form in Old and Middle Irish, and a single member is referred to as a Fomóir (in singular form). They are also referred to as the in plural form in Middle Irish. The Fomorians appear to have first been thought of as evil spirits that lived beneath the surface of the earth and in its water depths. They are stated to reside—under the worlds of men—in one of the earliest accounts of them, a lamenting poem for Mess-Telmann that dates back to the 7th century. They were later represented as maritime raiders as well. The term Fomorians was later applied to any land-based or sea-based pirates, and its true meaning was lost. [Information and Image Credit : Fomorians , Wikipedia] [Image : The Fomorians, as depicted by John Duncan (1912) ] [Original Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Fomorians,_Duncan_1912.jpg ]
Artifacts of female goddesses worshipped in Northwestern Europe between the first and fifth centuries AD are known as the Matres (Latin for Mothers) and Matronae (Latin for Matrons). They are portrayed on dedicatory offerings and altars that have visuals of goddesses, almost always in groups of three that have inscriptions (roughly fifty per cent of which showcase Continental Celtic monikers and half of which highlight Germanic names) and that were revered in areas of Germania, Eastern Gaul and Northern Italy (with a tiny allocation elsewhere) that were inhabited by the Roman army from the first to the fifth century. A total of twenty inscriptions from Spain and Portugal are known, several of which contain regional epithets like a commitment to the Matribus Gallaicis or Galician Mothers. Matres also appear on dedicatory reliefs and writings in other regions controlled by the Roman army such as southeast Gaul at Vertillum. Additionally, identical reliefs and inscriptions to the Nutrices Augustae or August Nurses found in Roman remains of Ptuj, Lower Styria, can be found in the Romano-Celtic civilization of Pannonia. Both stones with and without inscriptions do feature images of Matres and Matronae as altars and dedications. The Goddesses are either upright or seated; all of the images are frontal and they nearly always appear in groups of three that have at least one figurine holding a fruit basket in her lap. Some representations show the middle person with loose hair and a headband, while the other two are shown wearing headgear. Additionally, there are snakes, kids, and diapers depicted. Other themes include representations of sacrifice, such as incense burning and fruit-filled bowls as well as decorations of fruits, plants, and trees. The offering stones and altars are typically discovered in groupings rather than by themselves around temple structures and cult sites. [Image : The Matres (also known as the Vertault relief) is a terracotta relief from the Gallo-Roman town of Vertillum in Gaul] [Information and Image Credit : Matres_and_Matronae , Wikipedia] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ] [Source Image-URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Deesses_de_Vertault_(mus%C3%A9e_de_Bibracte).jpg ]
A well-known dragon in Polish folklore is the Wawel Dragon, often called the Dragon of Wawel Hill. It is referred to as Smok Wawelski in Polish. According to the earliest accounts (thirteenth century), a dragon tormented Kraków, the fabled capital city of . A weekly feed of cattle was used to pacify the man-eating monster until it was finally slain by the Sons of the Kings using sulfur-stuffed dummy cows. However, in order to claim sole credit, the younger prince, Krak the Younger, killed his elder brother. As a result, he was exiled. Princess Wanda had to take over the throne as a result. In a later chronicle from the fifteenth century, the royal names were reversed, with the elder being referred to as Krak-Junior and the younger as Lech. The carcasses that were packed with sulphur and other chemicals were also credited to the monarch himself. A further chronicler (Marcin Bielski, 1597) added that the Cave of the Dragon was located under Wawel Castle on Wawel Hill on the bank of the Vistula River and attributed the incident to a cobbler by the name of Skub (Skuba). It is also believed, that the Dragon was never malevolent to begin with and the story itself is probably perhaps a result of later manipulation. As the Protector of Krakow, the Dragon is itself a form that God Veles takes and both God Veles and Perun protect the city through the wheel of the year: i.e. Perun in the summer and Veles in the winter. [Information and Image Credit : Wawel_Dragon, Wikipedia and Other Web Dialogues] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Source Image-URL for more Image Usage Property) ]
[Source Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:M%C3%BCnster_wawelski.jpg ]
It is known that around 115 BC, King Antialkidas (Indo-Greek) sent Heliodorus to the court of Sunga King Bhagabhadra in Vidisha, India. Around the same time or around 115 BC, artisans from the northwest built decorative reliefs for the first time at Sanchi, which is six miles from Vidisha. Instead of using the regional Brahmi alphabet, these artisans left their markings as masons in Kharoshthi, which was mostly used in the region around Gandhara. This suggests that some of the earliest designs and figures that can be seen on the railings of the Stupa were created by these foreign labourers. The more elaborate pillar carvings at Sanchi are dated to 80 BC, while the earlier reliefs (which are at Sanchi Stupa No 2) there are dated to 115 BC. According to general-acceptance, these reliefs are the oldest elaborate stupa adornment in existence. They are regarded as the creators of the Indian Jataka drawings. [Images : 1. Lakshmi with lotus and two child attendants, probably derived from similar images of Venus 2. Foreigner on a horse. The medallions are dated circa 115 BC 3. Griffin 4. Female riding a Centaur 5. Lotus within Hellenistic beads and reels motif 6. Floral motif. ] [Information and Image Credit : Indo-Greek_Kingdom, Wikipedia] Images Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic and Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URLs :: 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lakshmi_Sanchi_Stupa_2.jpg 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sanchi_Stupa_2_man_on_horse.jpg 3. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanchi_Stupa_Nr._2_Chim%C3%A4re_(1999).JPG 4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Female_riding_a_Centaur_Sanchi_Stupa_2.jpg 5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lotus_within_beads_and_reels_motif_Stupa_No2_Sanchi.jpg 6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flower_motif_Stupa_No2_Sanchi.jpg ]
Domovoy, which literally translates to — (the one) of the household — is the domestic spirit of a particular family in the Slavic religious tradition. They are venerated ancestors, or, to put it another way, the founding forebears of the kin. The Domovoy is a manifestation of the ultimate Rod in the smaller unit of kinship, according to Russian folklorist E. G. Kagarov. Though he is typically a single god, he occasionally has a female counterpart in the form of Domania, the goddess of the home. The Domovoy manifests himself in the many activities of the family as a variety of other spirits. The word Domovoy derives from the Indo-European root word *dom, which is inherited by numerous terms in the Indo-European languages that have the semantic meaning of - abode or domain. The Domovoy are thought to guard the welfare of the family in all of its facets. They continually take care of the family animals and children and are highly protective of them. These gods are frequently shown as engaging in combat with one another in order to safeguard and advance the wellbeing of their tribe. In such battles, it is thought that the Domovoy of the family that prevails ultimately takes control of the home of the defeated adversaries. They are thought to be able to predict and foretell future occurrences, such as the impending death of a relative, plagues, wars, or other tragedies that endanger the wellbeing of the kin. They are also thought to share the happiness and grief of the family. If the Domovoy family is tainted by inappropriate behaviour and words, the Domovoy grow enraged and exhibit their demonic side. The god might even give up in this situation, leaving the clan defenceless against disease and catastrophe. . [Information and Image Credit : Domovoy, Wikipedia] [Image : Domovoy, by Ivan Bilibin (1934)] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)] [Original Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Domovoi.jpg ]
Two fictitious twin brothers named Waligóra and Wyrwidab served as the protagonists of a Polish folktale. They served as both a living example of the rewards of collaboration and the embodiment of brotherhood. They were orphans in one version of their fairy tale because their mother passed away while giving birth in the woods. The female wolf has taken care of Waligóra, while the female bear has taken care of Wyrwidab. Both of them were incredibly powerful; Wyrwidab could rip oak trees out of the ground, while Waligóra could crush the mountain with a single blow. By killing the dragon that terrorised the realm, brothers acting together had saved it. The monarch rewarded them for doing so by allowing them to wed his two daughters. [Information and Image Credit : Waligóra_and_Wyrwidąb, Wikipedia] [Image: Illustration of Waligóra and Wyrwidąb by Michał Elwiro Andriolli in the 1876 book -- Klechdy, starożytne podania i powieści -- written by Kazimierz Władysław Wóycicki][Imagge Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Original Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Micha%C5%82_Elwiro_Andriolli_-_Walig%C3%B3ra_i_Wyrwid%C4%85b.png ]
Alexandre Nikolayevich Benois (3 May, 1870 -- Saint Petersburg – 9 February 1960, Paris) was a founder member of the Russian art movement and periodical Mir iskusstva (World of Art), as well as an artist, art critic, historian, and preservationist. [Image : At the German Quarter (1911) by Alexandre Nikolayevich Benois] [Information and Image Credit : Alexandre_Benois , Wikipedia] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work (Please Relate to Individual Image URL for More Usage Property)] [Source-Image-URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Nemetskaya.jpg ]
.jpg)
