Come on in...
Faerytale Friday has roots beyond my lil' blog... most recently Amber @ Down the Rabbit Hole, but also Jaded Little Girl, who is rather busy oversees at the moment and all sorts of other people that are Google-able who I had no idea started this thing that has such a fine ring to it. I give 'em all credit as I happily go about my way discussing Faerytales on Fridays. :-D
I recently saw this picture on Pinterest and started tracking down this story...
Herne the Hunter
What an intriguing name, story, picture...
According to Wikipedia, he's a very old legend. Shakespeare wrote of him as a ghost:
Sometime a keeper here in Windsor Forest,I've read of him... or something like him... in Robin McKinley's short story & Paksenarrion - which is more of a religious sect than a stagman, but it's sort of similar.
Doth all the winter-time, at still midnight,
Walk round about an oak, with great ragg'd horns;
And there he blasts the tree, and takes the cattle,
And makes milch-kine yield blood, and shakes a chain
In a most hideous and dreadful manner.
You have heard of such a spirit, and well you know
The superstitious idle-headed eld
Receiv'd, and did deliver to our age,
This tale of Herne the Hunter for a truth.
— William Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor
Both of these stories have instilled in me an awe. There is something fearful, mysterious & powerful about Herme the Hunter. The short story of Ruen, however, makes me feel like there is love hidden here.
Ruen. A princess whose uncle leaves her deep in a cave to die at the hands of a stagman. But when she meets the stagman at last, Ruen discovers fate has a few surprises in store for her.It's a bittersweet story. The stagman changes her, and her heart belongs to him forever in a rather achingly beautiful way. With that in mind... I hunt down some pictures...
1 - Possibly tribal, definitely of unknown background.
2 - Unparalleled Warrior
3 - Spooky enough for October
4 - Of ancient tradition
5 - Lord over wild forest depths
6 - A changeling?
7 - Tamed by love?
Herme the Hunter is mysterious enough to attract some wild artists & creative minds. I've shared G-Rated stuff that sparks my imagination. Click on any pic to follow it to it's source thru Pinterest or whatever. As always... if you're on Pinterest, do let me know so I can follow you!!
Which picture intrigues you the most?
