Mysteries Of The Snake Goddess

Mysteries Of The Snake Goddess PDF Author: Kenneth Lapatin
Publisher: Da Capo Press
ISBN: 9780306813283
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
Not only is one of the most famous pieces of ancient Greek art-the celebrated gold and ivory statuette of the Snake Goddess-almost certainly modern, but Minoan civilization as it has been popularly imagined is largely an invention of the early twentieth century. This is Kenneth Lapatin's startling conclusion in Mysteries of the Snake Goddess-a brilliant investigation into the true origins of the celebrated Bronze Age artifact, and into the fascinating world of archaeologists, adventurers, and artisans that converged in Crete at the turn of the twentieth century. Including characters from Sir Arthur Evans, legendary excavator of the Palace of Minos at Knossos, who was driven to discover a sophisticated early European civilization to rival that of the Orient, to his principal restorer Swiss painter Emil Gillieron, who out of handfuls of fragments fashioned a picture of Minoan life that conformed to contemporary taste, this is a riveting tale of archeological discovery.

Mysteries Of The Snake Goddess

Mysteries Of The Snake Goddess PDF Author: Kenneth Lapatin
Publisher: Da Capo Press
ISBN: 9780306813283
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
Not only is one of the most famous pieces of ancient Greek art-the celebrated gold and ivory statuette of the Snake Goddess-almost certainly modern, but Minoan civilization as it has been popularly imagined is largely an invention of the early twentieth century. This is Kenneth Lapatin's startling conclusion in Mysteries of the Snake Goddess-a brilliant investigation into the true origins of the celebrated Bronze Age artifact, and into the fascinating world of archaeologists, adventurers, and artisans that converged in Crete at the turn of the twentieth century. Including characters from Sir Arthur Evans, legendary excavator of the Palace of Minos at Knossos, who was driven to discover a sophisticated early European civilization to rival that of the Orient, to his principal restorer Swiss painter Emil Gillieron, who out of handfuls of fragments fashioned a picture of Minoan life that conformed to contemporary taste, this is a riveting tale of archeological discovery.

Melusine the Serpent Goddess in A. S. Byatt's Possession and in Mythology

Melusine the Serpent Goddess in A. S. Byatt's Possession and in Mythology PDF Author: Gillian M. E. Alban
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 9780739104712
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 334

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Book Description
Gillian Alban meticulously pursues the Fairy Melusine snake-woman image through the plot and the poetry of A. S. Byatt's novel Possession, into medieval legend, and beyond into her antecedents in ancient myth. The book describes the erotically inspiring force of Melusine's love story and draws parallels with goddesses such as Lamia, Ishtar or Inanna, Isis, and Asherah. Mother, creator, and leader, the figure of Melusine was ultimately vilified and tellingly converted into the demon of patriarchal accounts, as seen in the examples of Lilith, Medusa, Scylla, and the serpent in the Garden. Alban deconstructs part of Genesis, including the roles of Adam and Eve and Cain's crime, and illuminates the Old Testament worship of the goddess Asherah alongside the male Yahweh. A forceful exploration of literature, history, and myth, this study sweeps away limiting assumptions about the female sex. Melusine the Serpent Goddess restores the dignity acknowledged to women of old, making a forceful statement about the power and creativity of women.

Mysteries of the Snake Goddess

Mysteries of the Snake Goddess PDF Author: Kenneth D. S. Lapatin
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN: 9780618144754
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
An archaeological detective story investigates one of the most famous pieces of ancient Greek art, a gold and ivory statuette, exposing this piece as an invention of the early 20th century and exploring the reasons behind this brilliant forgery.

The Triumph of the Snake Goddess

The Triumph of the Snake Goddess PDF Author: Kaiser Haq
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674915119
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 342

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Book Description
Snakes exist in the myths of most societies, often embodying magical, mysterious forces. Snake cults were especially important in eastern India and Bangladesh, where for centuries worshippers of the indigenous snake goddess Manasa resisted the competing religious influences of Indo-Europeans and Muslims. The result was a corpus of verse texts narrating Manasa’s struggle to win universal adoration. The Triumph of the Snake Goddess is the first comprehensive retelling of this epic tale in modern English. Scholar and poet Kaiser Haq offers a composite prose translation of Manasa’s story, based on five extant versions. Following the tradition of mangalkavyas—Bengali verse narratives celebrating the deeds of deities in order to win their blessings—the tale opens with a creation myth and a synopsis of Indian mythology, zooming in on Manasa, the miraculous child of the god Shiva. Manasa easily wins the allegiance of everyone except the wealthy merchant Chand, who holds fast in his devotion to Shiva despite seeing his sons massacred. A celestial couple is incarnated on earth to fulfill Manasa’s design: Behula, wife to one of Chand’s slain sons, undertakes a harrowing odyssey to restore him to life with Manasa’s help, ultimately persuading Chand to bow to the snake goddess. A prologue by Haq explores the Bengali oral, poetic, and manuscript traditions behind this Hindu folk epic—a vibrant part of popular Bengali culture, Hindu and Muslim, to this day—and an introduction by Wendy Doniger examines the history and significance of snake worship in classical Sanskrit texts.

Curse of the Specter Queen (Volume 1)

Curse of the Specter Queen (Volume 1) PDF Author: Jenny Elder Moke
Publisher: Disney Electronic Content
ISBN: 1368066763
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
A female Indiana Jones meets Tomb Raider when Samantha Knox receives a mysterious field diary and finds herself thrust into a treacherous plot. After stealing a car and jumping on a train, chased by a group dangerous pursuers, Sam finds out what’s so special about this book: it contains a cipher that leads to a cursed jade statue that could put an end to all mankind.

Snake Goddess Rising

Snake Goddess Rising PDF Author: Tirza Schaefer
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781546517115
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 158

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Book Description
Shanti's mother, a hippie in her younger years, had not been able to conceive a child until she worshipped at the shrine of the Snake Goddess Manasa in India. Nine months later, Shanti was born. Now Shanti visits this sacred site to ask for a husband. Khaz walks past the shrine and protects Shanti from some sinister looking men. He is a wonder-ful man who has come from the city to care for his dying grandmother. While Shanti's feelings for him grow, she isn't sure, if Khaz feels the same as he has different things on his mind and heart at the moment. He takes Shanti to a temple, introducing her to his uncle, a priest. When they return home, Grandma has a last dying wish. Can Shanti fulfil it? When you purchase any of Tirza Schaefer's books in print on Amazon, you are automatically entitled to dowload the Kindle version for free.

Gun Island

Gun Island PDF Author: Amitav Ghosh
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ISBN: 0374719411
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description
Named a Best Book of Fall by Vulture, Chicago Review of Books and Amazon From the award-winning author of the bestselling epic Ibis trilogy comes a globetrotting, folkloric adventure novel about family and heritage Bundook. Gun. A common word, but one that turns Deen Datta’s world upside down. A dealer of rare books, Deen is used to a quiet life spent indoors, but as his once-solid beliefs begin to shift, he is forced to set out on an extraordinary journey; one that takes him from India to Los Angeles and Venice via a tangled route through the memories and experiences of those he meets along the way. There is Piya, a fellow Bengali-American who sets his journey in motion; Tipu, an entrepreneurial young man who opens Deen’s eyes to the realities of growing up in today’s world; Rafi, with his desperate attempt to help someone in need; and Cinta, an old friend who provides the missing link in the story they are all a part of. It is a journey that will upend everything he thought he knew about himself, about the Bengali legends of his childhood, and about the world around him. Amitav Ghosh‘s Gun Island is a beautifully realized novel that effortlessly spans space and time. It is the story of a world on the brink, of increasing displacement and unstoppable transition. But it is also a story of hope, of a man whose faith in the world and the future is restored by two remarkable women.

Serpent Daughter

Serpent Daughter PDF Author: D.J. Butler
Publisher: Baen Books
ISBN: 1625797974
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 797

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Book Description
DRAGON AWARD–NOMINATED SERIES. New entry in the Witchy War series, blending alternate history, Appalachian Folklore, and epic fantasy. Sarah Calhoun has taken her father’s throne and ascended into her goddess’s presence in Unfallen Eden as her father never did. And Sarah Calhoun is dying. Her uncle Thomas Penn isn’t done with her. Armed with new powers conferred upon him by the Necromancer and with new allies won via his impending marriage, Penn aims to remove Sarah from her throne—and from the world of the living. In the meantime, Sarah has fallen out with one of her best allies. Against Sarah’s advice, her brother Nathaniel heads into Imperial Philadelphia with the reckless and likely impossible aim of healing the Emperor Thomas. On the shores of the northern seas, agents of Franklin’s Conventicle with an unlikely connection to the Emperor struggle to win allies among the pole-dwelling giants, who are torn between seizing land covertly from the Firstborn of the Ohio and entering the war openly on the side of Simon Sword. In the west, the Heron King rides an explosive storm into war, crushing the mortal kingdoms in his path and bearing down on Sarah’s Cahokia. To survive—and to gain the strength she needs to fight this impossible war—Sarah must unite the Moundbuilder kings to enact an ancient rite that will propel her beyond mortality. To do so, she must not only win over doubters among the Firstborn kings, but she must also beat back a rebellion among the Handmaids of her goddess—for there are some of the goddess’s priestesses who long for the dark days of human sacrifice, and who are willing to throw Sarah herself upon the altar. Praise for Witchy Winter: “Butler follows Witchy Eye with a satisfying second tale of a magic-filled early America. . . . Deep and old magic influences both places and characters, and the story is tightly focused on the determined Sarah . . . Fans of epic and alternate historical fantasy will savor this tale of witchery and intrigue.”—Publishers Weekly "For readers who love history-based fantasy, steampunk, or urban fantasy . . . this series that gives the genre a new twist."—Booklist Praise for Witchy Eye and D.J. Butler: “ . . . you can’t stop yourself from taking another bite . . . and another . . . and another . . . I didn’t want to stop reading . . . Kudos!”—R.A. Salvatore “Excellent book. I am impressed by the creativity and the depth of the world building. Dave Butler is a great storyteller.”—Larry Correia “Witchy Eye is an intricate and imaginative alternate history with a cast of characters and quirky situations that would make a Dickens novel proud.” —Kevin J. Anderson "Butler’s fantasy is by turns sardonic and lighthearted; ghoulish shadows claw into the most remote areas and heroism bursts out of the most unlikely people. Sarah is the epitome of the downtrodden hero who refuses to give up until she gets what she needs, and her story will appeal to fantasy readers of all stripes."—Publishers Weekly "David's a pro storyteller, and you're in for a great ride."—Larry Dixon " . . . a fascinating, grittily-flavored world of living legends. Hurry up and write the next one, Dave."—Cat Rambo "This is enchanting! I'd love to see more."—Mercedes Lackey “Goblin Market meets Magical Musketpunk . . . A great ride that also manages to cover some serious cultural terrain.” —Charles E. Gannon "Witchy Eye is a brilliant blend of historical acumen and imagination, a tour-de-force that is at once full of surprises and ultimately heart-warming. This is your chance to discover one of the finest new stars writing today!"—David Farland “A gritty, engrossing mash-up of history, fantasy, and magic. Desperate characters careen from plot twist to plot twist until few are left standing.”—Mario Acevedo "Captivating characters. Superb world-building. Awesome magic. Butler fuses fantasy and history effortlessly, creating a fascinating new American epic. Not to be missed!"—Christopher Husberg "[A] unique alternative-history that is heavily influence by urban and traditional fantasy and steeped in the folklore of the Appalachians. . . . Fans of urban fantasy looking to take a chance on something with a twist on a historical setting may find this novel worth their time."—Booklist

Minoans

Minoans PDF Author: Rodney Castleden
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134880642
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 237

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Book Description
Thoroughly researched, Rodney Castleden's Minoans: Life in Bronze Age Crete here sues the results of recent research to produce a comprehensive new vision of the peoples of Minoan Crete. Since Sir Arthur Evans rediscovered the Minoans in the early 1900s, we have defined a series of cultural traits that make the ‘Minoan personality’: elegant, graceful and sophisticated, these nature lovers lived in harmony with their neighbours, while their fleets ruled the seas around Crete. This, at least, is the popular view of the Minoans. But how far does the later work of archaeologists in Crete support this view? Drawing on his experience of being actively involved in research on landscapes processes and prehistory for the last twenty years, Castleden writes clearly and accessibly to provide a text essential to the study of this fascinating subject.

Journey of a Goddess

Journey of a Goddess PDF Author:
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438467095
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 186

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Book Description
This book offers the first translation into English of the Chinese novel Haiyouji, as well as excerpts of a marionette play based on the cult lore of the goddess Chen Jinggu (766–790), a historical shaman priestess who became one of Fujian's most important goddesses and the Lüshan Sect's chief deity. The novel, a 1753 reprint of what is possibly a Ming dynasty novel, was both a popular fiction and a religious tract. It offers a lively mythological tale depicting combat between the shaman goddess and a snake demon goddess. Replete with the beliefs and practices of the cult of this warrior goddess, the novel asserts the importance of Shamanism (i.e., local religious beliefs) as one of the four religions of China, along with Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. To further develop the links between literature and local religion, Fan Pen Li Chen includes translations of two acts from a Fujian marionette play, Biography of the Lady, featuring the goddess.