Sunday, 18 June 2023

Goose Fair And The Fishtail

 

Roma Mater, IX, 3.

There is a Goose Fair in Ys and another in Nottingham, England.

Two legionaries, Cynan and Adminius, go drinking with the Ysan sailor, Herul. They pass the palace which has to be guarded both by Ysan marines and by Roman soldiers because Gratillonius is both King and prefect. We get a feel of the city:

sellers and hawkers packing up at Goose Fair
New Town
Old Town
cobblestones
no signs of poverty or refuse
sea air, smelling of salt and kelp, throughout the town
the old shrine of Melqart/ Taranis where Herul makes reverence
Melqart's Shrine open at solstice; Ishtar's at equinox
a pre-Ysan menhir to a God unknown
Celts and Christians carve their symbols on such stones but not Ysans
Fishtail slum
an inn damaged by the sea before the rampart was built
Herul and the Romans drink with fishers and a Ferrier of the Dead

We are already familiar with Ys and will be there for a long time. The King of Ys Tetralogy comprises an Ys Trilogy and a post-Ys sequel.

1 comment:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

We see both high end inns like the Old Phoenix and somewhat more disreputable establishments in Anderson's works! An example of the latter being the dive where Lucas recruited the leader of a gang of cutthroats for that raid on the Catalans in ROGUE SWORD.

Ad astra! Sea