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Markoid 1621 posts |
Edited Apr 01, 2016, 21:54
Mar 29, 2016, 22:18
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Sanctuary wrote: Markoid wrote: Like this fella. And he did really exist! Not like King Arthur, who didn't. Shock horror, go wash you mouth out! The tour company I rode shotgun for down the far west of Cornywall made their bread and butter convincing Joe Public he was for real and would throw you off the top of Tintagel Island for saying that! :-) It was rather embarrassing for me as the tourists would ask me and I would direct them back to the driver. I was there to show them around the real antiquities not to manufacture a story up!! Didn't go down too well :-) Edited.
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moss 2897 posts |
Mar 29, 2016, 22:38
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carol27 wrote: It's a strange word " occult"; like " sinister" original meaning left handed or unlucky (bloody Romans); I, of course, take that personally:). It's so long since I've been to London; I used to go to Vauxhall a fair bit to stay with some squatting punk friends & had a blast, but the last time I was there most people I encountered seemed stressed, though that was probably just me. Anyway I'm blathering; the book sounds good. I'm trying to educate myself with some of the writing mentioned on here. I've become a bit intrigued with the Phil Rickman Merrily Watkins novels though lately; as mentioned by Moss on her blog. Thankyou Moss:) What set me off thinking about London was the London Stone; there must be so much there, hidden away. If you want a paperback Carol, there are a couple lurking on the bottom of my bookshelf, my email is here somewhere; I would be happy to post one. I just love that creepy balance between paganism and the church that Rickman evokes, I'm sure he plumbs TMA for stories as well. He lives on the edge between Herefordshire and mystical Wales. And then as we are in London there is also the talking head of Bran. King Arthur who made appearances all over Britain, and has even been mentioned in Scotland (briefly) fighting a battle I think ;) "According to the Welsh Triads, Brân's head was buried in London where the White Tower now stands. As long as it remained there, Britain would be safe from invasion. However, King Arthur dug up the head, declaring the country would be protected only by his great strength. There have been attempts in modern times to link the still-current practice of keeping ravens at the Tower of London under the care of Yeomen Warder Ravenmaster with this story of Brân, whose name means Raven" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Br%C3%A2n_the_Blessed
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Markoid 1621 posts |
Edited Mar 30, 2016, 04:45
Mar 30, 2016, 04:39
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carol27 wrote: It's a strange word " occult"; like " sinister" original meaning left handed or unlucky (bloody Romans); I, of course, take that personally:). It's so long since I've been to London; I used to go to Vauxhall a fair bit to stay with some squatting punk friends & had a blast, but the last time I was there most people I encountered seemed stressed, though that was probably just me. Anyway I'm blathering; the book sounds good. I'm trying to educate myself with some of the writing mentioned on here. I've become a bit intrigued with the Phil Rickman Merrily Watkins novels though lately; as mentioned by Moss on her blog. Thankyou Moss:) What set me off thinking about London was the London Stone; there must be so much there, hidden away. Charles Dickens wrote quite a bit about London. All of his writings are superb. And real. I wrote letter to Jeremy Corbyn, signatured, C. Dickens. He had no idea!
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Sanctuary 4670 posts |
Edited Mar 30, 2016, 08:48
Mar 30, 2016, 08:26
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Markoid wrote: Howburn Digger wrote: Markoid wrote: ... this fella... he did really exist! Not like King Arthur, who didn't. Yes he did. King Arthur just didn't live at Tintagel or fight at Cadbury Castle. You wont find him in those Southern English places. They were awash with German speaking, sauerkraut munching, leiderhosen-wearing folks who were totally getting into the whole being Angles and Saxons thing. They loved it. You'll have to look a bit further North to find King Arthur. A mythical figure, not based on non-reality reality. That's why we have gods, and godesseses, like Shiva. This link will get you a very old book (1900) on K.Arthur https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/301fb4f0-9247-471e-acb6-629ffc6bd81a
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Sanctuary 4670 posts |
Mar 30, 2016, 09:15
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carol27 wrote: It's a strange word " occult"; like " sinister" original meaning left handed or unlucky (bloody Romans); I, of course, take that personally:). It's so long since I've been to London; I used to go to Vauxhall a fair bit to stay with some squatting punk friends & had a blast, but the last time I was there most people I encountered seemed stressed, though that was probably just me. Anyway I'm blathering; the book sounds good. I'm trying to educate myself with some of the writing mentioned on here. I've become a bit intrigued with the Phil Rickman Merrily Watkins novels though lately; as mentioned by Moss on her blog. Thankyou Moss:) What set me off thinking about London was the London Stone; there must be so much there, hidden away. This is an interesting article on the London Stone as you mention it Carol. http://clioscurrent.com/blog/2015/2/3/londonstone
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tjj 3606 posts |
Edited Mar 30, 2016, 09:58
Mar 30, 2016, 09:54
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I spent over two decades living in North London and have to say when I left missed it terribly - not the hussle and bustle, certainly not the Underground but London's green spaces, some of which retained a sense of timelessness. One of my favourite places to walk was Hampstead Heath. Which, to quote the from the book: "In the Middle Ages was still part of the great forest of Middlesex, inhabited by red deer, wild boar and even wild cattle. Now only the small Kenwood and Queen's Wood, Highgate survive. In this great forest our ancestors lived a nomadic life, moving from one campsite to another as they hunted and gathered plants for food. there was a Mesolithic camp-site near Leg-Of-Mutton Pond where hundreds of flint implements were found, together with an axe and the post holes of primitive shelters from 8,000-6,000BC. There was also a Neolithic settlement for thousands of years on the west heath from 4000-2000BC. The sandy soil proved ideal for both crops and for grazing cattle. It is certain that the presence of a settlement would have meant there were sacred sites close at hand."(end quote:The Secret Lore Of London) I put the last sentence of this passage in italics because one of the lessons I've learnt by reading the contributions to this forum from people such as Tiompan, is that we shouldn't assume that evidence of settlements is the same as 'sacred' or 'ritual' landscapes. Observance of the yearly cycle may have taken place for purely practical reasons. But then we come back to the definition of 'sacred' - if it means that which sustains life e.g. spring, fresh water etc., then sacred sites probably are where people have settled and lived. That's my mental meanderings for the day, must get on ....
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