ABOUT THE COVER ©Compiled by Tira Brandon-Evans
When I knew this issue was to be about horses and our ancient friendship with these wonderful animals, there seemed to be no better picture for the cover than one of the magical images drawn by our Dawn Time ancestors.
A HORSE OF LASCAUX
"Lascaux is a complex of caves in southwestern France famous for its cave paintings. The original caves are located near the village of Montignac, in the Dordogne département. They contain some of the most well-known (Upper Paleolithic) art, dating back to somewhere between 15,000 and 13,000 BC. They consist mostly of realistic images of large animals, including aurochs, most of which are known from fossil evidence to have lived in the area at the time. They were added to UNESCO World Heritage Sites list in 1979." [Go to: http://www.mazzaroth.com/ChapterOne/LascauxCave.htm for more information about the paintings in the Cave of Lascaux.]
Finding just the right poem was more difficult. I searched through my library for a quotation from our myths and legends but found none to inspire me. I finally resorted to the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations and there found a single verse from G.K. Chesterton's Ballad of the White Horse. The lines raised the hair on my arms and I felt if they moved me they might also speak to you, Dear Reader.
Before the gods that made the gods
Had seen their sunrise pass,
The White Horse of the White Horse Vale
Was cut out of the grass.
Before the gods that made the gods
Had drunk at dawn their fill,
The White Horse of the White Horse Vale
Was hoary on the hill.
Age beyond age on British land,
Aeons on aeons gone,
Was peace and war in western hills,
And the White Horse looked on.
For the White Horse knew England
When there was none to know;
He saw the first oar break or bend,
He saw heaven fall and the world end,
O God, how long ago.
[Excerpted from The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton.]
The white horse in the ballad is, of course, the White Horse of Uffington, the great figure carved in chalk near Uffington, England.
The White Horse of Uffington
In this very long poem Chesterton shows us his version of British history through the eyes of the White Horse.
To read the entire ballad, click here.
To learn more about Chesterton and his works, click here.
About the Cover copyright © 2007 by Tira Brandon-Evans, all rights reserved. Used with permission. Top of Page
Earthsongs: International Journal of the Society of Celtic Shamans copyright © 2007 by Elder Grove Press and content providers. All rights reserved. International copyright laws prohibit reproduction of or distribution of this page by any means whatsoever, electronic or otherwise, without first obtaining the written permissions of the copyright holders. We retain legal counsel to protect our copyrights.