Wednesday, June 27, 2012

The Mythology Of Lyonesse

The Mythology Of Lyonesse


Residing on the south- westerly tip of the United Kingdom, Cornwall stands sublime and majestic amidst the turbulent waters of the Atlantic.It is a land rich in mystery, folklore, myth and legend.For thousands of year's romantic tales have been told of pixies, fairies, mermaids ; Arthurian legends; smugglers, pirates and shipwrecks, spiritual ley lines, sacred stones, circles and ancient ceremonies.In Cornwall everything is alive, a patch work landscape of fertile farmland; infinitely deep pools; bubbling brooks; ethereal moors; granite cliffs; abandoned tin mines; golden sands; sun-drenched beaches; sepulchral caves; rocky inlets all shaped by natural forces.Everything has its own beauty, harmony and inspiration.But beyond Cornwall there lies further legends, of lost lands submerged beneath the ocean.The Land of Lyonesse, the land under the sea.There is a tenacious legacy that the lost land of Lyonesse once stretched from the Scilly Isles to Land's End.There lay a realm of fine cities and churches, said to be around 140 in total.On November 11th 1099 a devastatingly ferocious storm assimilated the south west and the marauding sea swept over Lyonesse, drowning the luckless inhabitants and submerging the kingdom beneath the waves, until all that remained in view were the mountain peaks to the west, known to us now as the Isles of Scilly.Legend whispered that only one man survived.His name was Trevilian and he rode a white horse up to high ground at Perranuthnoe before the waves could engulf him.It is said that his ancestry lives on in the Cornish Trevelyan family.The capital of Lyonesse was named the City of Lions and was founded around the hill which is now the treacherous reef off the Seven Stones at Lands End.A 16th century writer tells us that Land's End once stretched far to the west with a watchtower at the farthest point to guide seafarers.In folklore the Seven Stones were called "The Town" by sailors, who told of hauling up windows, doors and other domestic items in their nets.They also related how they had heard the church bells of Lyonesse ringing beneath the waves.It was noted in the 1930's that a journalist from the News Chronicle, Stanley Baron who was residing in the area, was awoken in the night by the muffled ringing of bells and was told by his hosts that he had heard the bells of Lyonesse.A former mayor of Wilton, Edith Oliver, claimed she had twice seen towers, domes, spires and battlements beneath the waves whilst standing on the cliffs at Land's End.The Legend of King Arthur reveals that after his death his followers fled from his enemy Mordred across the ancient land of Lyonesse.When King Arthur's men had safely reached the Scillies, Merlin caused Lyonesse to be flooded and Mordred and his followers were drowned.And some have proposed that these islands are in fact the Isle of Avalon.The Isle of Scillies embodies 55 islands, of which only 5 are currently inhabited.Positioned 28 miles south-west of Land's End they boast a sub-tropical climate; exotic white sands and exquisite flora.Prior to the end of the last Ice Age, some 10,000 years ago when the sea level was so much lower, the Isles of Scilly were one large island.This island formerly called 'Ennor' would have been settled from nearby Cornwall with the early inhabitants bringing their culture and beliefs with them.Written accounts by the Romans also indicate that they visited the single island of Sullia and other historical data suggest that the main islands did not become separated until as late as 400 or 500 AD.Today the remains of field boundaries show up at low tide along the sands of the Sampson Flats between the isles of Tresco and Sampson in the Scilly Isles.A multitude of historical evidence co-exists alongside the mythology of the region.Cornwall, The Scillies perpetually affiliated to the sea; in its tempestuous, stormy waters many a mariner has met his doom there, so it is not hard to believe that, like most legends an element of truth still prevails and breathes life into the fanciful.Believe what you will?

The Mythology Of Lyonesse



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      How To Collect The Ballantine Adult Fantasy Series

      How To Collect The Ballantine Adult Fantasy Series


      One of the most famous and highly collectible of the early genre series is the renowned Adult Fantasy Series published by Ballantine Books between 1969 and 1974.The series grew out of the popularity of Ballantine's paperback editions of J.R.R.Tolkien's now famous quartet, as well as a number of other fantasy classics seen in paperback for the first time.Capitalizing on the success of the first set of books and seeing a growing desire for fantasy literature, Ian and Betty Ballantine enlisted author/editor Lin Carter to produce a series of paperback fantasy books.Carter produced a seminal series of fantasy including many works that had been out of print and unavailable for some time.The series is identifiable by a distinctive "Unicorn Head" colophon in the upper right hand corner and/or the phrase "A Ballantine Adult Fantasy" in the upper left hand corner of the cover.The colophon was redesigned in December of 1969 and appears first on that month's publication, Hannes Bok's The Sorcerer's Ship.Each publication also featured an introduction by Carter.Most collectors of the BAF series include the sixteen books published by Ballantine prior to the series inception, beginning with Tolkien's The Hobbit, as precursors to the official series.Also usually included are two non-fiction books by Lin Carter himself concerning the works of J.R.R Tolkien and H.P.Lovecraft.Additionally, two other books are commonly considered part of the BAF series though published after the series colophon was dropped.The first, published in June of 1974 is H.Warner Munn's Merlin's Ring which includes the Carter introduction and the second, Evangeline Walton's Prince of Annwn, which lacks the logo and Carter introduction but completes the Mabinogi cycle started by Walton's three books issued under the Unicorn Head colophon.Due to being a paperback series, having a well defined checklist, a finite number of books and the generally inexpensive cost of most of the BAF titles, collecting the series is both easy and satisfying.Copies of many of the books frequently show up in yard sales and used bookstores.Dealers at conventions usually have a number of titles available and much of the series is available online.It is an excellent series for the beginning collector.All books in the series proper bore a distinctive Unicorn's Head colophon on the cover and included an introduction by Carter.Series precursors (August 1965 - April, 1969).Ballantine's initial line of fantasies, published before hiring Carter as editor and considered the inspiration for the series.The Hobbit, J.R.R.Tolkien (Aug.1965).The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R.Tolkien (Oct.1965).The Two Towers, J.R.R.Tolkien (Oct.1965).The Return of the King, J.R.R.Tolkien (Dec.1965).The Tolkien Reader, J.R.R.Tolkien (Sep.1966).The Worm Ouroboros, E.R.Eddison (Apr.1967 - later reprinted with colophon).Mistress of Mistresses, E.R.Eddison (Aug.1967).A Fish Dinner in Memison, E.R.Eddison (Feb.1968).The Road Goes Ever On, J.R.R.Tolkien and Donald Swann (Oct.1968).Titus Groan, Mervyn Peake (Oct.1968 - later reprinted with colophon).Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake (Oct.1968 - later reprinted with colophon).Titus Alone, Mervyn Peake (Oct.1968 - later reprinted with colophon).A Voyage to Arcturus, David Lindsay (Nov.1968 - later reprinted with colophon).The Last Unicorn, Peter S.Beagle (Feb.1969 - later reprinted with colophon).Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham, J.R.R.Tolkien (Mar.1969).The Mezentian Gate, E.R.Eddison (Apr.1969) .The BAF Series proper (May 1969 - April 1974).Based on a listing by Lin Carter in Imaginary Worlds (Jun.1973), with the inclusion of additional of volumes published up the series end in 1974.The Blue Star, Fletcher Pratt (May 1969).The King of Elfland's Daughter, Lord Dunsany (Jun.1969).The Wood Beyond the World, William Morris (Jul.1969).The Silver Stallion, James Branch Cabell (Aug.1969).Lilith, George Macdonald (Sep.1969).Dragons, Elves, and Heroes, Lin Carter, ed.(Oct.1969).The Young Magicians, Lin Carter, ed.(Oct.1969).Figures of Earth, James Branch Cabell (Nov.1969).The Sorcerer's Ship, Hannes Bok (Dec.1969).Land of Unreason, Fletcher Pratt and L.Sprague de Camp (Jan.1970).The High Place, James Branch Cabell (Feb.1970).Lud-in-the-Mist, Hope Mirrlees (Mar.1970).At the Edge of the World, Lord Dunsany (Mar.1970).Phantastes, George Macdonald (Apr.1970).The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, H.P.Lovecraft (May 1970).Zothique, Clark Ashton Smith (Jun.1970).The Shaving of Shagpat, George Meredith (Jul.1970).The Island of the Mighty, Evangeline Walton (Jul.1970).Deryni Rising, Katherine Kurtz (Aug.1970).The Well at the World's End, Vol.1, William Morris (Aug.1970).The Well at the World's End, Vol.2, William Morris (Sep.1970).Golden Cities, Far, Lin Carter, ed.(Oct.1970).Beyond the Golden Stair, Hannes Bok (Nov.1970).The Broken Sword, Poul Anderson (Jan.1971).The Boats of the 'Glen Carrig', William Hope Hodgson (Feb.1971).The Doom that Came to Sarnath, H.P.Lovecraft (Feb.1971).Something About Eve, James Branch Cabell (Mar.1971).Red Moon and Black Mountain, Joy Chant (Mar.1971).Hyperborea, Clark Ashton Smith (Apr.1971).Don Rodriguez. Chronicles of Shadow Valley, Lord Dunsany (May 1971).Vathek, William Beckford (Jun.1971).The Man Who Was Thursday, G.K.Chesterton (Jul.1971).The Children of Llyr, Evangeline Walton (Aug.1971).The Cream of the Jest, James Branch Cabell (Sep.1971).New Worlds for Old, Lin Carter, ed.(Sep.1971).The Spawn of Cthulhu, Lin Carter, ed.(Oct.1971).Double Phoenix, Edmund Cooper and Roger Lancelyn Green (Nov.1971).The Water of the Wondrous Isles, William Morris (Nov.1971).Khaled, F.Marion Crawford (Dec.1971).The World's Desire, H.Rider Haggard and Andrew Lang (Jan.1972).Xiccarph, Clark Ashton Smith (Feb.1972).The Lost Continent, C.J.Cutcliffe-Hyne (Feb.1972).Discoveries in Fantasy, Lin Carter, ed.(Mar.1972).Domnei, James Branch Cabell (Mar.1972).Kai Lung's Golden Hours, Ernest Bramah (Apr.1972).Deryni Checkmate, Katherine Kurtz (May 1972).Beyond the Fields We Know, Lord Dunsany (May 1972).The Three Imposters, Arthur Machen (Jun.1972).The Night Land, Vol.1, William Hope Hodgson (Jul.1972).The Night Land, Vol.2, William Hope Hodgson (Jul.1972).The Song of Rhiannon, Evangeline Walton (Aug.1972).Great Short Novels of Adult Fantasy #1, Lin Carter, ed.(Sep.1972).Evenor, George Macdonald (Nov.1972).Orlando Furioso. The Ring of Angelica, Volume 1, Ludovico Ariosto, translated by Richard Hodgens (Jan.1973).The Charwoman's Shadow, Lord Dunsany (Feb.1973).Great Short Novels of Adult Fantasy #2, Lin Carter, ed.(Mar.1973).The Sundering Flood, William Morris (May 1973).Imaginary Worlds, Lin Carter (Jun.1973).Poseidonis, Clark Ashton Smith (Jul.1973).Excalibur, Sanders Anne Laubenthal (Aug.1973).High Deryni, Katherine Kurtz (Sep.1973).Hrolf Kraki's Saga, Poul Anderson (Oct.1973).The People of the Mist, H.Rider Haggard (Dec.1973).Kai Lung Unrolls his Mat, Ernest Bramah (Feb.1974).Over the Hills and Far Away, Lord Dunsany (Apr.1974).Additional books associated with the series.Published after the Unicorn's Head colophon was retired, these are usually included with the series.The first has a Carter introduction and the second lacks Carter's introduction but completes a set begun under his editorship.None have the series colophon on the cover.Merlin's Ring, H.Warner Munn (Jun.1974).Prince of Annwn, Evangeline Walton (Nov.1974).Companion books associated with the series.Tolkien. A Look Behind the Lord of Rings, Lin Carter (Mar.1969).Lovecraft. A Look Behind the Cthulhu Mythos, Lin Carter (Feb.1972).

      How To Collect The Ballantine Adult Fantasy Series



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