Showing posts with label St George. Show all posts
Showing posts with label St George. Show all posts

Monday 23 April 2012

23rd April - St George's Day

                      

Here's a suitably gothic scene where a dragon can lurk and pounce on his prey. He has terrified the inhabitants of the castle and the scattered bones testify to the cruel fate of anyone who attempted to challenge him.
St George rides to the rescue and kills the evil beast.

It's good that someone is willing to be a hero. Happy St George's Day to all.

Saturday 23 April 2011

23rd April : Dragons and maidens...and St George

Y Ddraig Goch
This dragon is a symbol to fire the heart of anyone with Welsh blood in their veins. Here he is "passant" in heraldic terms, signifying greeting and [maybe] welcome. Of course he welcomes you in. Why not? He can eat you later.
The Welsh dragon is a Celtic symbol of great age and its origins are lost in legend. It is said that Romano-Welsh soldiers used the red dragon on their flag in the Fourth Century. The dragon is also tied into the legend of King Arthur - his father was Uther Pendragon. This dragon is a symbol to unite people [except maybe at Twickenham for the rugby...]

What a contrast with the loathsome monster of general folklore. From all corners of the world, tales represent dragons as evil, heartless beasts, seeking a bed of treasure to sleep on. Here they will slumber for up to a thousand years. But let anyone invade their lair, and they will strike in terrible revenge, killing a village or so and carrying off maidens to devour at their leisure.

In comes St George, cast forever as the fearless slayer of dragons. In this picture, he is in time to save the maiden.  There's a story in here.



Happy St George's Day, everyone and everywhere. Let all your dragons [bar Welsh ones] be slain.

Friday 23 April 2010

St George's Day

Today is a bright sunny day, and the trees are covered in clouds of pink and white blossom or else tender pinkish and palest green leaves. The gardens are bright with tulips and violets. A perfect English Spring day to celebrate St George.



It's amazing how very universal he is. Images of George slaying the dragon can be found all the way from England through the Balkans into Greece, Turkey, Syria and beyond. There is a link to the routes taken by waves of crusaders but maybe St George is popular everywhere for being a warrior and a hero. What could be more romantic?

He has also become entwined with local customs and legends, so that he is associated with a variety of traditions. On Buyuk Ada, the largest of the Princes' Islands close to Istanbul, there is a monastery dedicated to St George [Aya Yorgi ] on top of the highest hill. On 23rd April, any girl who wants to find a husband, will walk up the final kilometre barefoot, unwinding a reel of cotton as she goes. If her cotton is long enough and does not break before she reaches the church on the hilltop, she will get her husband within the year.



PS After reaching the church and going in to light a candle, examine all the pictures and hangings and writing a wish to put in the wish box, everyone heads off to the open air restaurant on the very crown of the hill. It's a fact that a simple meal here tastes like the finest feast, due to the fresh air, the sense of achievement at getting to the top and the splendid views across the sea to Istanbul in the distance.