Portents

dreams

Bodleian Junius 23:150-2; BL Cotton Tiberius A.ii.f.36-37

BL Cotton Tib. A.iii

1-2. eagles

2. struck by iron [cf. Argonaut struck by metallic feather of bird, GM 151.f]

3-5. bees

3. sword [cf. simile of weapon "sharp as a bee's sting", CL, pp. 75-6]

6-7. fowls

4. jewel [cf. variegation in fowls]

8. snake

 

9. eagle

 

10. dragon

6. a water-spring [cf. "dragon" at Kastalian water-spring, CDCM, s.v. "Cadmus"]

11-13. hunting, hounds

7. hounds

14. fishes

9-10. coins of money [cf. silveriness of fish-scales]

15. white horse

 

16. black horse

 

17. bay horse

 

18. dun horse

 

19. adder

13. strike down person

20. white sheep

 

21. bull

14-7. oxen

22. swine

 

23-4. hens[' eggs]

 

25. goat

 

26. stud stallions

 

27. geese

 

28. sheep

 
   

AA-SM 25 (pp. 221-4)

AA-SM 27 (pp. 226-8)

GM = Robert Graves: The Greek Myths. 1955.

CDCM = Pierre Grimal: Concise Dictionary of Classical Mythology. Basil Blackwell, 1990.

CL = Lu Gwei-Djen & Joseph Needham: Celestial Lancets. Cambridge U. Pr, 1980.

directions of thunder portending death -- De Tonitruis Libellus

east

battle

west

plague

south

inhabitants of the ocean

north

pagans, haeretics

AA-SM 30.1 (p. 230)

thunder by months with portents

Jan

sheep, orchards

Feb

ears of hearers

Mar

judgement

Apr

waves of ocean

May

rainfall

Jun

fish

Jul

trees

Aug

snakes

Sep

human migration

Oct

gales

Nov

sterility

Dec

health

AA-SM 30.2 (pp. 230-2)

thunder according to 7 days of week -- Cotton Tiberius A.ii.f.38

Latin

Latin

O-E

O-E

Sun

monks & nuns

Mon

 

Mon

married couples

Tue

 

Tue

 

Wedn

land-workers & mechanics

Wedn

prostitutes

Thur

womenfolk

Thur

inhabitants of sea

Fri

sea-creatures

Fri

king

Satur

officials

Satur

 

Sun

children

AA-SM 30.3 (pp. 232-3)

signs of 15 days of apocalypse -- Vespasian D.xiv

1st

sea will rise 40 ells above normal

2nd

sea will descend 40 ells below normal

3rd

sea will return to normal level

4th

fishes will show themselves above water & speak

5th

plants will exude red sap

6th

stones will clash together & shatter each other

7th

earth will be levelled (poor & rich aequalized)

8th

earthquake

9th

castles & towers will collapse

10th

corpses will re-assemble their limbs

11th

animals will stampede

12th

people will be speechless, fasting

13th

sun, moon, stars will all fall

14th

all the living will die; world-fire

15th

flood over ashes of that world-fire

AA-SM 36 (pp. 242-5)

Bill Griffiths: Aspects of Anglo Saxon Magic. Anglo-Saxon Books, Hockwold-cum-Wilton, Norfolk, England, 1996