Rosslyn Chapel: Nestled in the village of Roslin, Scotland, the Rosslyn Chapel, or Collegiate Chapel of St Matthew, was founded by William Sinclair – descended from a noble ancestry of Norman knights. Used originally to celebrate the Divine Office and Holy Mass, its sealed crypts are rumoured to have held, at different times, the mummified head of Jesus; the Holy Grail; the treasures of the Knights Templar; and the Scottish crown jewels.
However, its most famous piece of architecture is the Apprentice Pillar. As legend would have it, the master stonemason who helped build the chapel did not believe that his apprentice could complete the pillar by himself. When he returned from his travels to find that his apprentice had carved the pillar unaided, in a fit of envious rage the master mason killed his student with a mallet-blow to the head. As a punishment, the master’s face was carved into the opposite pillar, the better to look upon his novice’s work forevermore. It is also suggested that the Apprentice Pillar represents the roots of the great tree of Nordic mythology, Yggdrasil.
Pavonine: (Latin); bearing resemblance to the vivid colours and exquisite iridescence of a peacock’s plumage.
Oenghus: Also known as Aengus. The product of an illicit affair between Dagdha, chief of the Irish gods, and Boann, goddess of the rivers, Oenghus was concerned with affairs of the heart, and is considered the god of fatal love. Four birds always fluttered around his head, thought to represent kisses. He and the faerie maiden Caer lived together as swans after he proved himself and won her hand. After his foster son, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, was slain by a boar, Oenghus breathed a new soul into the man.
Pictured:
AAG18 - Oenghus
A 6?" (155mm) high goblet, featuring a unique Celtic open knot-work stem.
Nimue/Fairy of the Lake: Also known as Viviane or Nyneve, the Fairy (or Lady) of the Lake is best known for providing King Arthur with his famed sword, Excalibur, in ancient legend.
She is also thought to have raised Lancelot after the death of his parents, and to have enchanted and imprisoned the wizard Merlin in order to make him love her.
Miss Havisham: The aged spinster of Charles Dickens’ beloved novel, Great Expectations. An eerily enduring depiction of the tragedy and heartbreak of jilted love, the almost skeletal Miss Havisham was betrothed to a man named Compeyson, who went on to leave her at the altar on their appointed wedding day.
Utterly disgraced, Miss Havisham stopped all the clocks in her house, leaving them on the exact minute of her betrayal. Even into her old age, she never removed her yellowing wedding dress, and left her wedding cake on the table to decompose. Her bitter nature was passed onto her ward, Estella, making her wary and cold towards men. Only after her wedding dress caught fire and she suffered severe burns did she find death and repentance for manipulating Estella’s heart.
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