Ramnu And Eriu

In a Ramunan meeting room, the presiding Lord of the Volcano sits on a dais between carved beasts before tiers of benches. Each successive speaker either walks or glides down to the dais. Ramnuans are vaned gliders - but not winged fliers like the Diomedeans or Ythrians.

If a Seeker makes a satirical poem against Yewwl, then the council will no longer heed her. This custom resembles one in Eriu, ancient Ireland. Poul and Karen Anderson inform us that:

in Eriu, the highest ranking poets were in some ways more powerful than kings;

like druids, poets were highly trained;

skilled in both language and memory, they could make or break reputations;

poetic satires were believed to be physically destructive - and one poet's victim does suffer facial disfigurement later in the Ys sequence;

violence to a poet, druid or scholar was a serious crime;

lesser versifiers were entertainers.

Poul And Karen Anderson, The King Of Ys: Roma Mater (London, 1987), Afterword and Notes, 2, p. 456.