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Post by artilect on Aug 31, 2015 19:17:14 GMT
Re: the Qrixkuor I am finishing up reading Ken Gerhard's book Encounters with Flying Humanoids: Mothman, Manbirds, Gargoyles & Other Winged Beasts, which, as the title suggests, deals with flying cryptids. To be honest, I find most of the accounts in the book to be dubious, but the fact remains that flying humanoids have been a stubborn paranormal curiosity throughout recorded history... from angels to the Mothman. I'm wondering how pervasive stories of the Owlman are/were in the UK and more specifically if Grant had any interest in or perhaps even collected literature dealing with these subjects? We know that this phenomenon has implicit overlaps with Ufology, a subject that Grant was obviously fascinated by. Pages 194-5 of Outer Gateways (Skoob edition) nod in this direction: As mentioned in Grant's later books as well as in this thread, the Qrixkuor, perhaps first encountered at Candleston Castle in Wales, is described as simultaneously possessing the qualities of an owl, bat and crab. These qualities are also associated to the Owlman, allegedly observed by two people at Mawnan Church near Cornwall, Wales in the mid 1970s. They were first alerted that something was amiss after being 'startled by a long, drawn-out hissing sound': Now, I personally feel that the Owlman story has all the makings of a hoax, especially considering that a similar character debuted in Batman comics starting in the 60s - not to mention the Mothman flap during the same time-period - a mere decade before sightings began in Wales. What I'm more interested in is that flying humanoid encounters generally include some very tantalizing Qrixkuor-like details: - The first is that if these entities emit any sound, it is either a shriek or hiss. Shrieking and hissing are mentioned often by Grant in relation to the Qrixkuor; hissing of course is linked to Solinus and Ixaxaar.
- Secondly, and this will be familiar to those who have read Keel's The Mothman Prophecies, there is a telepathic component to some of these encounters, as if the being is able to worm into the minds of those who have witnessed it, both in waking and dream states.
- The third admittedly more nebulous linkage relates to the way the entity moves... Grant makes frequent mention of 'rising', which is also found throughout the flying humanoid mythology.
Outside of the Outer Gateways quote I hadn't previously connected the Qrixkuor with the Owlman or Mothman, but it seems as if there's enough similarity to at least entertain the notion that they could be linked. What this may mean is anyone's guess!
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Post by artilect on Aug 31, 2015 21:39:39 GMT
Reading a little more on this... Christopher Josiffe makes some interesting connections in his paper 'Some Notes on Machen's Sixtystone'.
Josiffe draws attention to Machen's story within a story, 'The Novel of the Black Seal', which is found within 'Adventure of the Missing Brother', where the Ixaxaar stone makes an appearance.
From the story:
And now Josiffe's commentary:
A history of hissing (and potentially winged) entities in Wales certainly lines up somewhat with the flavour and location of the Candleston Crypt Qrixkuor encounter...
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Post by stephen on Sept 3, 2015 15:05:19 GMT
Interesting to learn of Christopher Josiffe's paper "Some Notes on Machen's Sixtystone" - fairly recent, perhaps ? (I have read some of his contributions to Fortean Times). Some of us are old hands at Sixtystone business: it was a motif of focal interest to the members of the Grey Lodge of the Miskatonic Society during the 1990s. In fact, we produced a booklet entitled "The Black Stone: Six Essays on the Sixtystone" (Sarcophagus Press, 1993), which despite the fact that it was a limited edition of 60 copies appears to be still available secondhand on the web. Perhaps an updated revision of my own contribution is in order ?
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Post by artilect on Sept 3, 2015 15:13:00 GMT
Interesting to learn of Christopher Josiffe's paper "Some Notes on Machen's Sixtystone" - fairly recent, perhaps ? (I have read some of his contributions to Fortean Times). Some of us are old hands at Sixtystone business: it was a motif of focal interest to the members of the Grey Lodge of the Miskatonic Society during the 1990s. In fact, we produced a booklet entitled "The Black Stone: Six Essays on the Sixtystone" (Sarcophagus Press, 1993), which despite the fact that it was a limited edition of 60 copies appears to be still available secondhand on the web. Perhaps an updated revision of my own contribution is in order ? Here is Christoper Josiffe's page at the Academia.edu site, where the aforementioned paper can be read, as well as some others he's put up. I'd like to read your contribution to the Black Stone booklet Stephen.
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Post by Gregory Peters on Sept 3, 2015 18:56:24 GMT
Interesting to learn of Christopher Josiffe's paper "Some Notes on Machen's Sixtystone" - fairly recent, perhaps ? (I have read some of his contributions to Fortean Times). Some of us are old hands at Sixtystone business: it was a motif of focal interest to the members of the Grey Lodge of the Miskatonic Society during the 1990s. In fact, we produced a booklet entitled "The Black Stone: Six Essays on the Sixtystone" (Sarcophagus Press, 1993), which despite the fact that it was a limited edition of 60 copies appears to be still available secondhand on the web. Perhaps an updated revision of my own contribution is in order ? Stephen, I would be very interested in reading your work on the Sixtystone. Was not aware of the Grey Lodge book and will see about tracking it down!
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Post by stephen on Sept 4, 2015 14:59:44 GMT
Hi Artilect, I read Christopher Josiffe's essay - 2008, I note - and didn't find anything to surprise me; although any help with the translation of the Latin text of Solinus is welcome. My only point of contention was his reference to 'Uncle Kenny' "(as Grant is affectionately known)" - I have no recollection of any of my fellow Order members or magical associates referring to Frater Aossic as such; I do not think he would have been impressed.
As for my 1993 essay "Black Seals & Sixtystones", while it obviously needs updating, I found that it still read quite well and would have no objection to making it available. However, this will require me typing it into Word as it only exists in an original hard copy (somewhere in my files) and my copy of the booklet which I have to hand. As Gregory expressed an interest also, I thought that I might as well post it here on the website unless anyone has any better suggestions; it will serve as a 'historical document' at least and possibly a basis for further delineation.
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Post by Gregory Peters on Sept 4, 2015 15:41:44 GMT
Hi Artilect, I read Christopher Josiffe's essay - 2008, I note - and didn't find anything to surprise me; although any help with the translation of the Latin text of Solinus is welcome. My only point of contention was his reference to 'Uncle Kenny' "(as Grant is affectionately known)" - I have no recollection of any of my fellow Order members or magical associates referring to Frater Aossic as such; I do not think he would have been impressed. As for my 1993 essay "Black Seals & Sixtystones", while it obviously needs updating, I found that it still read quite well and would have no objection to making it available. However, this will require me typing it into Word as it only exists in an original hard copy (somewhere in my files) and my copy of the booklet which I have to hand. As Gregory expressed an interest also, I thought that I might as well post it here on the website unless anyone has any better suggestions; it will serve as a 'historical document' at least and possibly a basis for further delineation. Josiffe's essay did not seem to add much of anything new to the subject. Stephen if you are willing to post your booklet I know I (and presumably many others!) would find this a great boon. The sixtystone has started to play a role, along with Lam and related threads, in my own work for the Order. As there is a long history of experience with it, would be interesting to see anything related.
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Post by stephen on Sept 28, 2015 14:01:30 GMT
Posted by Artilect: Aug 31, 2015 at 8:17pm
There is an article in the September issue of 'Fortean Times' lamenting the current state of cryptozoology. With reference to the Owlman of Cornwall, I have extracted the following article out of the archives, FRAGMENTS, Three, The Official Organ of the Esoteric Order of Dagon, 1992 e.v. - to be precise. I think it presents the best way of approaching the subject from our point of view.
THE MOUNTING OF MADNESS?
“We are the fowl people, the winged ones.” John Fire Lame Deer
In 1937, H.P. Lovecraft died, and Leonora Carrington, the surrealist sorceress, wrote her first published story ‘The House of Fear’ in which a shamanic birdman, Loplop, freed the heroine from Fear.(1) Loplop was/is the totem creature of Max Ernst, the surrealist seer, who (also in 1937) painted a demonic, beaked ‘Angel of the House’. Carrington and Ernst visited Cornwall that same year, and took part in surrealchemical ceremonies. It is quite possible that they involved a sea-serpent and a birdman.
In 1976, Max Ernst died, and a winged thing, Owlman, was seen near Mawnan Old Church, Cornwall. A sea-serpent, Morgawr, raised its head and humps in the Helford River, just below the area where Owlman had appeared. Surrealchemy was involved.
In 1978, the bizarre Cornish Owlman appeared to me in a dream. It was like a huge Lovecraftian whippoorwill (poor Wilbur Whately), as envisaged by Lee Brown Coye (‘Owly Cree Bone’) in an illustration to “The Dunwich Horror”. Leonora Carrington also appeared in my oneiromantic vision.(2)
In 1991, there was an important exhibition, in London, of the work of Max Ernst. Also in 1991, there was an unimportant exhibition, in Cornwall, of my own work. Again, in 1991, there was an important exhibition, in London, of the work of Leonora Carrington. These three exhibitions all contained images of magical mountains, winged entities, and weird monsters. In the autumn of that year, I dreamed of witchcraft and a tentacled being in the deep water of a mountain lake. I wrote to Soror Eliza about my dream. She replied, giving me information about the lake in my dream, Crater Lake, Oregon, in the Cascade Range of mountains. The I told Bob Rickard, the editor of ‘Fortean Times’, about my dream. In mid-December, 1991,Rickard visited me in Cornwall and handed me a new book in French, by Michel Meurger.(3) It was all about Lovecraft, tentacle entities, flying creatures, and phenomenal happenings in the Cascade Range of magical mountains. A few days after Bob’s visit, I received a card from Chicago, from Leonora Carrington. She expressed great interest in my book MONSTRUM! (4)
In 1992, weird, winged things and huge squid-like creatures will be invoked and seen in the mountainsof the Cascade Range. There will be surrealchemical madness in the air. I know these things will happen. My dreams tell me and I tell you.
Frater MONSTRUM 0*
(1) Carrington, Leonora, ‘La Maison de la peur’. Paris, 1938. (2) Fortean Times, No.27, London, 1978. (3) Meurger, Michel, ‘Lovecraft et la S.F./I.’ Amiens, 1991. (4) Shiels, Tony ‘Doc’, ‘MONSTRUM! A Wizard’s Tale’. London, 1990.
I believe that 'MONSTRUM! A Wizard's Tale' has been republished more recently, so I hope that Frater Monstrum will regard my posting of his article here as something of an advertisement should he happen to come across it.
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Post by The Double-wanded One on Dec 8, 2017 12:54:26 GMT
I just have to say, this thread is a huge reference, very insightful for me Thank you 93
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