The word gargoyle comes from the French word gargouille which means gullet or to gargle. In architecture, gargoyles are grotesque ornaments, which serve as waterspouts. The term gargoyle in architecture refers to any such device—no matter what it depicts. Strictly speaking, the term grotesque in architecture refers to ornaments, which do not serve as water spouts. Gargoyles are supposed to protect the building from evil spirits. In a legend dating back to the 7th century, a nasty dragon named La Gargouille lived […]
Magic
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A two-fer Day with stories from Celtic and Native America (Iroquois) cultures. Fairy Dogs The Scottish Cu’ Sith—Fairy Dogs– are harbingers of death. They usually remain silent but sometimes bay three times so loudly they can be heard for miles. They are the size of bull calves with paws as big as a man’s hand. They may steal nursing mothers away and take them to the fairy mound or they may transport souls of the dead to the afterlife—whether they […]
See that title and the clever play on words? That’s the kind of thing you can expect here in Sorchia’s Universe–and it will only get better (or worse, depending on how you look at it) as the April Challenge goes on. Greek mythology is rife with half this’s and half that’s. According to one Ancient Astronaut theory (you see how I spend time when I should be writing) all of the weird combinations were the result of alien DNA manipulation […]
A couple of D monsters to start off your day: the Irish Dearg Due and , what else, Dragons. The Dearg Due is an Irish vampire. Dearg-Due means “red-blood sucker” in Irish (pronounced DAH-ruhg DU-ah / DAH-ruh-guh DU-ah). In true Irish fashion, her story is one of betrayal and vengeance. The original Dearg Due was a beautiful lass who fell in love with a handsome peasant boy. Unfortunately, her father arranged for her to marry a rich, but evil nobleman. […]
Who doesn’t love a good monster? For this year’s blog challenge, Sorchia’s Universe plays host to long-legged beasties and evil fairies from all over the world. If the sight of it gives you the creepy-crawlies, the heebie-jeebies, or the all-overs you’ll most likely find it here. And if you don’t, let me hear from you! Tell me a story about the nasty critter most likely to send you screaming to your mommy. C is for Caoiniag She […]
Welcome to Day two of the Fabulous A-Z Blogging challenge. The B topic is not quite as blood-curdling as yesterday’s Joint-Eaters. But don’t let the fairy tales fool you–Bauchans and Brownies have their dark sides, too. Many cultures have creatures who are variations on this theme. The Scandinavians call them tomte, the Slavic domovoi and the German Heinzelmännchen. They seem to be a kind of hobgoblin—loyal to a family or place. They can be friendly and helpful or . . […]