#loki: and then there was a huge dragon and I was riding a unicorn and swept down and killed it and saved the prince- | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

culture-robertosn · 3 years

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Scottish Legends

Just like all places in the world Scotland has no small amount of legends/myth that come from many times and areas, stories of ghost, demons and monster. Most of these tales sprout from mythology and fear. I have decided to research these mysterious stories and I will make my own artwork of some of these entities, as well I shall explain what they “creatures” are.

Unicorn

The unicorn is actually Scotlands national anime if you didn't know but why is that? Unicorns have been featured in many cultures all over the world, the body of a white horse with a single spiralling horn atop its face, in the Celtic mythology unicorns are a symbol of purity, innocence and power. There are legends that say the horns can cleanse poisoned water such is the power of their healing properties, maybe if these creatures were once real it could explain why Scotland has such pure waters. These untameable and proud beasts are fiercely independent and are almost impossible to capture/conquer, perhaps that is why they are Scotlands national animal as their unbreakable will is like so many of Scotlands heros of old.

Kelpie

The kelpie is a supernatural water horse that is said to haunt the lochs and lonely rivers of Scotland. Described as a horse but with the power of taking human form, some tales state the kelpie retains its hooves even in human form this also links to the Christain idea of Satan. The victims would be approached by a dark grey or white pony but would always have a soaking wet mane constantly dripping, its target would be lured almost hypnotised to ride the horse and would be dragged down to a watery grave. There is one story that speaks if a captured Kelpie, Laird of Morphie captured and harnessed the power for his own. He made the kelpie carry heavy stones so he could construct his castle and when finished he did release the horse but many believe the kelpie cured his line and explains the extinction of the Laird family.

Loch Ness Monster “Nessy”

Likely Scotlands most famous legend, this is a large dinosaur-like creature suspected to be that of a Plesiosaurus this creature is believed to live in Loch Ness. The first record of “Nessy” sightings was almost 1’500 years ago when a huge beast was seen leaping out of the lake and devoured a farmer and from that day on the legend of the Loch Ness monster was born. 1934 a doctor from London manged to take a photograph that seemed to show the monster emerging from the water, many sightings have been reported since then and yet no creature has been found however in 2009 loads of people claimed google earth had found proof of “Nessie” existence but nothing came of this. Loch Ness hold an estimated 263 billion cubic feet of water, more than all the lakes and rivers in the whole of England and Whales combined, its believed that Loch Ness’s deepest pint is over 800ft deep just for a comparison this is twice the average depth of the North Sea. So given how deep the Loch is perhaps “Nessy” lives at the deepest depth and is just waiting to strike once more.

The Stoor Worm

A gigantic evil sea serpent in Orcadian folklore, capable of contaminating the earth and destroying anything in its past with only its putrid breath. It sounds like an Orkney variant of the Norse world serpent, Jormungandr. Jormungandr is a child of Loki and is so massive its entire body covers the entire worlds oceans and he bites down on his own tale, he is described to be like a sea dragon hence the comparison to The Stoor Worm. At sunrise on Saturday the Stoor Worm would wake and yawn nine times then would demand seven virgins to feast on, a king of one country threatened by the Worms arrival was advised to offer the seven scarifies however the king would suffer this beast no longer. In a desperate attempt to end the monster he issued a proclamation offering his entire kingdom, his daughter’s hand and a magic sword to anyone who could slay the Worm. The youngest son of a local farmer, Assipattle took up the challenge and slayed the creature as the monster died its said its teeth fell out to become the island of Orkney, Shetland and Faroes, its body became what would be known as Iceland.

Note: The symbolic artwork is interesting as it tells the story of the Stoor worm and I like that type of art style its good when the art tells a story.

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