Little Librarian

Knightly Sword

Dated: 14th Century

Culture: German

Measurements: overall length 108 cm

Provenance: Karl Gimbel Collection, Lepke’s sale of June 3rd 1904, Berlin, catalogue nr. 358 with ill. (copies of the pages of the catalogue). Another illustration shows the sword in its collection room

The sword has a strong blade of lozenge section and triangular profile. The straight quillons of square section are widening toward the rectangular quillon-block, with small button at the edges. The sword features a large disc-shaped pommel with circular holes. The wooden grip is covered in leather, thickened at the centre.

The Manticore is a legendary creature found in Persia.

Appearance

It has the body of a red lion.

It has a human head.

It has three rows of sharp teeth.

It is sometimes depicted with bat wings.

It is said to have a trumpet-like voice.

It has the tail of either a dragon or a scorpion. 

Descriptions of the Manticore vary; sometimes the creature can be horned, winged, or both.

The scorpion tail allows the Manticore toshoot venomous spines to either paralyse or kill its victims. It devours its prey whole and leaves no clothes, bones, or possessions of the prey behind.

Ancient Origin

The Manticore is of Persian origin, with the original name Martyaxwar. meaning “man-eater”. It passed into European folklore first through a remark by Ctesias, a Greek physician at the Persian court of King Artaxerxes I in the fourth century BC, in his book Indica. The Romanised Greek Pausanias, in his Description of Greece, recalled strange animals he had seen at Rome and commented:

The beast described by Ctesias in his Indian history, which he says is called martichoras by the Indians and “man-eater” [androphagos] by the Greeks, I am inclined to think is the tiger.  But that it has three rows of teeth along each jaw and spikes at the tip of its tail with which it defends itself at close quarters, while it hurls them like an archer’s arrows at more distant enemies; all this is, I think, a false story that the Indians pass on from one to another owing to their excessive dread of the beast.

Flavius Philostratus however recorded a conversation he had heard and wrote:

And inasmuch as the following conversation also has been recorded by Damis as having been held upon this occasion with regard to the mythological animals and fountains and men met with in India, I must not leave it out, for there is much to be gained by neither believing nor yet disbelieving everything. Accordingly Apollonius asked the question, whether there was there an animal called the man-eater (martichoras); and Iarchas replied: “And what have you heard about the make of this animal? For it is probable that there is some account given of its shape.” “There are,” replied Apollonius, “tall stories current which I cannot believe; for they say that the creature has four feet, and that his head resembles that of a man, but that in size it is comparable to a lion; while the tail of this animal puts out hairs a cubit long and sharp as thorns, which it shoots like arrows at those who hunt it.”

In recorded stories, Manticores are said to be very fast creatures that can run swiftly. They also describe the Manticores to be extremely strong beasts that can easily attack more than one person.

Medieval & Post-Medieval Appearances

Pliny The Elder’s book was widely enjoyed and uncritically believed through the European Middle Ages, during which the manticore was sometimes described or illustrated in bestiaries. 

The Manticore first appeared in English heraldry in c.1470, as a badge of William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings; and in the 16th century it was used as a badge by Robert Radcliffe, 1st Earl of Sussex, and by Sir Anthony Babyngton. 

Randle Holme in 1688 described the Manticore as having:

“the face of a man, the mouth open to the ears with a treble row of teeth beneath and above; long neck, whose greatness, roughness, body and feet are like a Lyon: of a red colour, his tail like the tail of a Scorpion of the Earth, the end armed with a sting, casting forth sharp pointed quills.”

Oceanic Whitetip Shark by 6Doug9 “SpeedPainting: [link]

Judged as one of the most dangerous among the sharks, but an accident with this animal is very rare for him to live in the open ocean full ~

Omens/Protection

Knocking on wood is practiced in Russia as in other countries. However Russians tend to add a symbolic three spits over one’s left shoulder (or simply with the head turned to the left), and Russians will often knock three times as well. Traditionally one was spitting on the devil (who is always on the left).

Returning home for forgotten things is a bad omen. It is better to leave it behind, but if returning is necessary, one should look in the mirror before leaving the house again. Otherwise the journey will be bad.

If one feels that he or she may have been cursed by someone (the evil eye) or just has the feeling of a hostile presence, it is recommended to remove one’s coat and then put it back on starting with the hand opposing the usually used one. It is also recommended to pin a French Pin inside your clothing to avoid the curse of the evil eye in the first place.

Birds that land on a windowsill should be chased away. If they tap on the window, or fly into it (open or closed) it is considered a very bad omen (often of death).

A woman with empty water buckets coming towards you is considered a bad omen.

It is bad luck to use physical hand gestures to demonstrate something negative using oneself or someone else as the object. For example, when describing a scar you saw on someone’s face you should not gesture on your own face or someone else’s. If you must, you can demonstrate in mid-air. If one does it without realising, it can be countered by making a hand motion towards the body part used and then an abrupt motion away (as if to pick up the bad energy and throw it away) or by wiping the area with your hand and then blowing on your hand (as if to wipe off the bad energy and then blow it away).

Looking into a broken mirror almost certainly brings bad luck. The superstition says that if you look into a broken mirror, you break your inner world, and your soul becomes defenceless against the dark forces.

Love

Never give yellow flowers to your lover, as it implies that an argument will happen and your relationship will end.

Lucky in cards not lucky in love. This, however, is only a pre-marital superstition. The reason for the division is that marriage is a sacrament in the Russian Orthodox Church, and this sacrament, ordained by God, eviscerates the pre-marital superstition. Thus, when a man is bonded by divine sacrament to a single woman whom he loves the cause and effect is reversed: namely, his married love for a single woman, and her love for him, will bring him good fortune in all endeavors including cards.

During the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom carry candles. Whoever’s candle died first, was the one who would die first.

If a woman puts too much salt on the meals this means she is in love.

Do not take your wedding ring off to show it to someone else, or worse still to let them try it on. The wedding ring is worn on your fourth finger, which is the one under the influence of the sun, and is a sign of our heart’s true love. If you take it off to show to another, it means you are giving away your love and happiness to a stranger.

In Russian superstition if a couple sets a wedding date and doesn’t end up getting married on that date they can not set another date and should not get married as their union will be cursed.

Cause And Effect

If your ears or cheeks are hot, someone is thinking or talking about you (usually speaking ill).

If your right eye itches, you’re going to be happy soon. If your left eye itches, you’ll be sad.

If you have hiccups, someone is remembering you at this moment.

If an eyelash falls out you’ll receive a gift. If someone finds an eyelash on someone he or she will sometimes let the person blow it away and make a wish.

If a fork or spoon falls on the ground, expect a female guest. If a knife falls, expect a male guest.

If someone sneezes while telling something, it means he or she is telling the truth.

Miscellaneous

Russians will typically avoid talking about pending successes. They believe that it is bad luck to talk about upcoming success before it actually occurs.

Never greet, or say goodbye to someone in a doorway. The threshold divides people, and in traditional Russian folklore, the house spirit resides here, so this superstition says that your greetings and gifts will not bring fortune or good luck.

It is best to cut your hair or nails during a full moon.

When someone is talking about something very undesirable or bad, the listener should say in Russian “Типун тебе на язык!” (tipun tebe na yazyk), which is generally translated as “Curse that tongue of yours!”. This expression is not meant to be offensive at all but is rather used as a spell for prevention of evil and bad luck.

Moving to the new house one must first let a cat go in first to assure harmony in the household.

If you sing on an empty stomach, you will chase your money away.

THIS SHIT REALLY HAPPENS.