Category Archives: magic

Rats Live on No Evil Star: Leiber’s THE SWORDS OF LANKHMAR

Posted on March 27, 2025 by JE

In summary: The Swords of Lankhmar has a slow start. In fact, it has two slow starts. But once the beat drops, as it were, the story swings into action and lots of weird things happen at an increasingly rapid … Continue reading →

Posted in art, books, fantasy, fantasy art, magic, review or meta-review, Roman history, Rome, sff, sword-and-sorcery | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

No Maps of Hell

Posted on February 19, 2025 by JE

Saw the article below on Bluesky and felt the irritation that almost always accrues when scrolling through social media. But this irritation was really specific. Demanding a historically accurate version of a myth is like trying to find the zip … Continue reading →

Posted in academia, ancient art, art, books, fantasy, fantasy art, magic, Morlock, Roman history, Rome, science, sff, social media, sword-and-sorcery, writing | Comments Off on No Maps of Hell

What Are the Óðs?

Posted on February 19, 2025 by JE

I was thinking the other day about Hengist and Horsa, the two Saxon chieftains/gangsters who show up to assist and then overpower the usurper Vortigern in the run-up to King Arthur’s origin story. Horsa (Horsus in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Latin) … Continue reading →

Posted in art, fantasy, fantasy art, language, magic, Myth & Legend, sff, sword-and-sorcery, words, writing | Comments Off on What Are the Óðs?

Longish, Re Dilvish

Posted on January 23, 2025 by JE

Roger Zelazny was unquestionably one of the great American fantasists of the 20th century. That’s not to say he was perfect. His woman characters were often 2-dimensional, and he paired an unwillingness to work with an outline (“Trust your demon” … Continue reading →

Posted in art, Blog Gate, fantasy, fantasy art, magic, sword-and-sorcery | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Eldritch Lore of Lightning, Stars, and Magic

Posted on August 10, 2023 by JE

On Facebook, Michael Swanwick mentioned a historical (or maybe apocryphal) episode when the Pope invited Etruscan seers to use lightning magic to defend Rome against Alaric and his Ostrogoths. It’s a pretty good story, whether or not it’s actually history. … Continue reading →

Posted in academia, Adventures in the Public Domain, astronomy, books, fantasy, history, language, magic, Myth & Legend, Roman history, Rome, science, sff, social media, sword-and-sorcery | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Eldritch Lore of Lightning, Stars, and Magic

Rumba with the Rhomboi

Posted on June 23, 2023 by JE

This image of the Kylix of Durides and Calliades came up in my Mastodon newsfeed today. (The source wasn’t attributed, but see some more images here.)

Posted in academia, ancient art, art, fantasy, magic, Myth & Legend | Comments Off on Rumba with the Rhomboi