Arialim
8th October Air-Fire Owl-Lion Philosophers Azoth
Federico II Hohenstaufen
Federico II Hohenstaufen's sword - 1220
(Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Schatzkammer, inv. XIII 16)
Federico's castle - Andria - Italy
Federico's tower, Enna Sicily
Tower of the Winds
The Tower of the Winds, also called horologion (timepiece), is an octagonal Pentelic marble tower on the Roman agora in Athens. It was supposedly built by Andronicus of Cyrrhus around 50 BC. The 12 m tall structure has a diameter of about 8 m and was topped in antiquity by a weathervane-like Triton that indicated the wind direction.[2] Below the frieze depicting the eight wind deities — Boreas (N), Kaikias (NE), Eurus (E), Apeliotes (SE), Notus (S), Livas (SW), Zephyrus (W), and Skiron (NW) — there are eight sundials.[2] In its interior, there was a water clock (or clepsydra), driven by water coming down from the Acropolis. Recent research has shown that the considerable height of the tower was motivated by the intention to place the sundials and the wind-vane at a visible height on the Agora, making it effectively an early example of a clocktower.
Tower of Winds ( Vaticano )
The fable of the witch
...Once upon a time there was a witch that lived in a castle which sat on the cliffs above the sea. Her hair was red and her eyes were black as brands of the fireplace.
The nearby villagers whispered that at night she wandered like a predator on the beach below her castle nestled between the rocky cliffs , with her hair dishevelled and her feet bare. The hems of her clothes looked like black serpents reflected in the seawater.
Wherever she went, her cat faithfully followed and the shadows they cast stood out disquietingly against the glow of the moonlight.
It was narrated that youngsters, intrigued by her wild aspect, at night and never returned again.
It was whispered that she held infernal sabbaths and often from the castle one could unexpectedly catch glimpses of light and flashes of lightening. The wind brought chills and the sounds of desperate cries.
At dawn she climbed onto the highest tower of the castle and entered into the aviary where she In spite of the deafening noise which rose up, she wandered among the cages with an unscrutable gaze. Listening carefully to the screech of the birds it seemed like you could hear the cries of human beings.
Rarely did she venture into the village, sometimes for supplies or when travellers with exotic merchandise from distant countries arrived.
Only then did she walk about the market, among the stalls, with the air of a curious child. The people retreated from her, whispering “Look at the witch!†When the voices reached her ears, her eyes became defiant and they lit up like embers...
One day happened... while she was wandering without a care about the alleys a storm suddenly broke out...
A freezing wind came up and the air filled with electricity. For one moment there was a mysterious and forbidding silence... then a violent downpour came from the swollen and threatening clouds.
Everone took shelter at home and only the witch remained outside in the street. She was a bit surprised and was looking for the quickest street to return to her castle, while the rain streamed down her face and her cold and wet clothes clung to her.
It was then... it was then that she heard a voice behind her say:
Can I help you? Can I give you shelter?
She turned and saw him. she saw two eyes as green as forest leaves and black curly hair above a childlike face. And the look, the look was distant, seemingly deep in thought, and melancholy.
He was holding an umbrella in his hands and stood before her without fear, calmly waiting without adding anything else.
She intensely gazed into his eyes, trying to penetrate his soul with her third eye. And the color that she saw there was white. Almost annoyed, she looked away.
Then they set off silently to the castle. She studied him attentively out of the corner of her eyes, but he seemed intent on listening to the sound of the rain. When they arrived, she took his hand in hers as she had done many times , everything was happening again...
Then she began climbing the stairs.At the top of the stairs her cat Cagliostro was waiting for her. He bent over, gently stroked the cat and then follwed. Everything was happening again...
The witch woke up at dawn and saw him, hanging with his head on her breast, clinging to her like a castaway to land.
She thought not today... tomorrow...Surely tomorrow... and she let him sleep on her breast.
The day after the witch was walking along the beach and he arrived. He played with the cat again and then he took her by the hand and this time it was him who took her up the stairs.
The morning after she found him still embracing her and she thought not today... tomorrow... Surely tomorrow.
The days passed and the witch realized that she waited anxiously for his arrival.
It was an unknown feeling that filled her with dismay, but her eyes lit up when she discerned his form, at first small and then larger and larger as he approached along the beach.
Her heart was also growing larger and larger.
He was always quiet, but when he watched the sea and saw a ship on the horizon, he suddenly became excited and he spoke of trips he would like to take, of distant countries he had seen.
He told her of trees, animals, forests, esotic and magnificient places and his face lit up, then... then his eyes turned to her...
One night he looked at her with a smile, a silent smile full of words and the witch felt a tear slowly slide down her eyelashes...
(...continued see blog)
Glastonbury
Isle of Sky
Tintagel
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