I had no idea what I was getting into when I took this journey with the Holy Spirit. Since Corsicana is my home for some years now, I have often wondered about the roots of the name. Bearing in mind that the root of a thing tells you what you need to know.
This journey has been another wild ride. It is full of topics made for the movies. The surreal, the haunting, the gory, the unbelievable, the historical, the lawless, the religious, the revolutionary, the romantic, the evil, the adventurous, the intriguing, the infamous, the frightful, you name it. Corsica has got it.
This first video was made by a soldier for truth who has been through a great deal for our sake. Throughout the making of this video he is often without sleep, nearly throughout he is hungry, therefore, some parts are slow moving and some are repetitive. Skip what you don’t like but don’t miss the good stuff. Don’t miss the video for sure. spacer
late 13c., “a dead body;” c. 1300, “a living body;” c. 1400, “the main part of anything,” from Old French cors, from Latin corpus “body” (from PIE root *kwrep- “body, form, appearance“). Archaic from 16c.; comparecorpse.
corpse (n.)
late 13c., cors “body,” from Old French cors “body; person; corpse; life” (9c.), from Latin corpus “body” (from PIE root *kwrep- “body, form, appearance”). The order of appearance of senses in English is “dead body” (13c.), “live body” (14c.); it also meant “body of citizens” (15c.), “band of knights” (mid-15c.), paralleling the sense evolution in French that yielded the doublet corps. French restored the Latin -p- in 14c., and English followed 15c., but the pronunciation remained “corse” at first (and perhaps remains so with some speakers) and corse persisted as a parallel spelling. After the -p- began to be sounded (16c. in English), corse became archaic or poetic only. The terminal -e was rare before 19c.spacer
The legend of the moor’s head derives from the practice of cutting off the head of a defeated chieftain. This the Genoans did to Sampiero Corso.Pope Boniface VIII, in 1297, who was the lord of the island, gave Corse and Sardinia to Jaime II, King of Aragón. He then placed three moor’s heads with bandages over their eyes in his Corsican arms. Sardinia bore four. They were shown sable for heraldic reasons and were not meant to represent negroes heads.
The large arms of Corse show two mermen as supporters:
The Flag of Corsica was adopted by the general and father of the Corsican nation Pasquale di Paoli in 1755 and was based on the traditional flag used previously. It depicts a black corn head wearing a white bandana over its eyes, all on a white background. According to a legend, it was the Saracen Mansur Ben Ismail [1] collected in Légendes du pays corse , by JA. Giustiniani[2]
Previously, the bandana covered the eyes, but Paoli moved the bandana over the eyes to symbolize the liberation of the Corsican people.The Moorish head is also used on the coat of arms of Corsica and on theflagof the neighboring island ofSardinia. [3]
It was used by the Republic of Corsica and was banned after 1769 , when France received the island of the Republic of Genoa to pay off an outstanding debt and end the rebellion endemic to the island. It was used as an official flag when Britain occupied it in 1793. [4]It fell into official disuse until 1980 , when it was re-adopted as the regional flag.
Major Cities: Arborleight, Forth Caputo, Oyster Bay, Cassinero Currency: Most Corsicans deal in Crowns, though any currency of worth can be traded to the right hands. Those inhabiting smaller islands andfishing villages often prefer to trade in goods rather than abstract currency and base their economies on a barter system. Language: Cantos. The language is one of the oldest in Europawith both ancient and modern versions of the language in existence. Ancient Corsican is a dead tongue which scholars and intellectuals study for its historical significance. While a few words and phrases fromancient Corsican linger in the proper dialect, modern Corsican is a much simpler language which is often described as mellow and musical. Religion: Corsicans practice a version of Aventism but venerate Pastacho, the sun god,above the other deities. In their religion, he is known as Theodicles, the Father of Light, wielder of the Sacred Flame. Their view of Pastacho is inherited from the country’s old religionwhich Aventism supplanted with the fall of the Meldian Empire and the passing of Corsica’s golden age; an amalgam of beliefs old and new. While Aventists in the rest of Europa (especially Espina) decry their beliefs as heretical, the Corsicans continue their practices undeterred. Priests of the Corsican Orthodox Churchare known as Primas and are led by a small group of senior clergy known as Espa Prima. Government: Constitutional Monarchy. Corsica is governed by a body of 150 elected Assemblymen and a King who leads the Crowned Assembly. While the Crowned Assembly and its King make laws, it is the responsibility of the Judicate to enforce laws and act in the interest ofnational security.
The sun-soaked coasts of Corsica are famed throughout Europa as an exotic land of beautiful olive-skinned people, exquisite foods, warm white sand beaches, and a rich cultural tapestry which has been woven across centuries. The vibrant and colorful Corsicans are known fortheir laid-back tendencies and relaxed attitude. Amongst other European nations, Corsicans have a reputation for being lazy, though the Corsicans see this tendency as a cultural emphasis on enjoying one’s life rather than one’s work. Punctuality certainly isn’t a priority – Corsicans are never in much of a hurry and are known to be incredibly late wherever they go. Each meal is an event, lasting up to several hours and consisting of several courses, wine, dessert, and of course, many friends to dine alongside. Corsicans often have a sarcastic and cynical sense of humor which can come off as rude or inappropriate to foreigners, though their natural wit and charm shines through in even their most irreverent moments. As far as appearances go, Corsicans typically have olive to dark colored skin, hair in the normal spectrum of browns or a shock white which occasionally crops up. Most have brown or hazel eyes, though a few display shades of blue, green, and even purple.
At one point in time, Corsican forces controlled much of the southern Eastmarch, their territories stretching as far south as Odain and northeastern Ishtar. With the fall of the Meldian Empire and the decline of their golden age shortly before the rise of the much more expansive Avandrian Empire, Corsica shrunk back into the isthmus andislands it now occupies, surrounded on three sides by ocean and protected in the north by a barrier of near-impassible mountains. Before their fall however, the Meldian Empire was a driving force in the development of civilization in southeastern Europa. Early on, they filled the power vacuum left by the mysterious disappearance of the Haati nation, whose descendents went on to establish much of modern Ishtar. The Meldian Empire rose to power through superior weapons made from bronze and mastery of naval warfare. They subdued and enslaved the southern Noth tribes (known as the Dallic, which remain a distinct ethnic group within Corsica to this day) and conqueredmuch of Odain and Ishtar’s eastern coastal regions as well as southern portions of the Eastmarch. Eventually, destabilizing forces from within alongside rebellions by nativessaw to the collapse of the empire. Though they had lost their holdings on the lands under their control, the influence of Corsican culture has lingered on in these places long since. Portions of language (both oral and written), religion, cuisine, and other various cultural memes in Odesian and eastern Ishtarian culture can be traced back to ancient Corsica.
If Corsica is notable for anything, it’s their mastery of the sea which surrounds them.There is no other European nation which can match the Corsican’s prowess at ship-building, sailing, and navigation. Much of Corsica’s diet also comes from the sea and the nation is famed for its exotic cuisine which features varieties of fish and other sea creatures which can be found nowhere else in the world. Despite their potential to rule the seas, Corsica as a nation seems content to lend its talent out to the highest bidder.The nation is rich with pirates, mercenaries, and buccaneers as well as naval experts and hardened merchant captains. As a result, most merchant companies who trade in goods from across the sea employ either Corsican captains to transport their goods or hire Corsican warships to guard their fleets from theft or sabatoge. Even powerful nations like Aldegan, Cardinia, and Espina hire Corsican pirates to work against their enemies or boast fleets of Corsican mercenaries to bolster their own navies.Oftentimes, the best ship in any fleet is likely to be of Corsican make.
While Corsica is comprised of a narrow isthmus of land, most of it’s total territory consists of islands, further emphasizing the country’s need for naval supremacy. These islands operate as states of the union under thegovernance of local lords who, on paper at least, are subject to the laws of Corsica. In practice however, each island’s Governor generally acts on his own impulses. So long as they do not make waves and send in the correct amount of taxes on time, Corsica’s King and the Crowned Assembly do not bother to step in unless the situation is truly egregious.Governors are given their jurisdictions every ten years by the King himself and are often appointed from among nobility the King owes favors to or individuals who have somehow distinguished themselves. Oftentimes, these individuals are military personalities, though evenformer pirates have been appointed at different points in history.Known collectively as the Sun-Kissed Isles, these island-states are much different from Corsica proper. People who live amongst the Sun-Kissed Isles are more rural in their mindset with little in the way of a formal education. They are simple, superstitious folk who subsist on limited farming and fishing. Many villages on islands near the coral reefs deal in pearls, sand rubies, coral, and other precious minerals which are gathered from the sea by divers who brave the dangers of sharks, jellyfish, and other deep-sea predators to extract these prized stones from the sea floor. Most worship local sea-gods,offering prayers and sacrifices to keep storms at bay and the bounty of the sea at hand.
Outside the Sun-Kissed Isles, Corsican religion venerates Pastacho, the sun, to the exclusion of all the other gods. To them, he is known as Theodicles, the Father of Light. His enemy is his twin Yumestria,the moon, and the mother of darkness (Setharkis in common mythos). Sun motifs can be found in much of Corsican art and religious paraphernalia. Temples to Theodicles often feature a great open area where worshippers bask in the sun’s light during religious ceremonies. Each individual church is led by a priest known as the Prima who inherits his title by appointment from the previous Prima. In Corsica, individual Primas hold minor political power, but are so well loved by the people that their collective influence dwarfs even that of the King and Crowned Assembly. Even in the lawless Sun-Kissed isles, the Prima are treated with deference. Leading the Prima is a select group of senior priests known as the Espa Prima. This small group of less than ten elder clergy provides the church with leadership from the grand temple, Pergerus Erre, in the nation’s capital of Arborleight. A number of religious festivals and feasts to Theodicles occur throughout the year, the most notable of which occurs on the day of the summer solstice.The winter solstice is believed to be an unlucky time of year where Yumestria is most powerful and her evil spirits are given free rein to torment mortals. According to tradition, children born during the day under the watchful eyes of Theodicles are destined to be heroes and great men while those born beneath Yumestria are bound to become villains and criminals. Those born at sunrise or twilight are believed to be less bound by the threads of destiny and able to forge their own path through life, either for good or evil.
Due to ancient rivalries and long-held hostility to one another, Ofelian outliers continuously attack cities and outlying settlements within reach of Corsica’s mountainous northern border. As a result, cities in this region are walled and garrisoned by particularly tough and unreasonable guards who constantly defend against barbaric onslaughts. Those who make these areas their homes have a much less relaxed mindset than the typical Corsican; nearly all of them are warriors of some capacity, capable of defending themselves and their homes should the walls fail and the barbarians overrun the city. These few fort cities are the only thing standing between the peaceful lands of Corsica and the hordes of the Eastmarch. Yet despite their sacrifices and bravery, these bastions of civilization quite often lackseverely in provisions, medical supplies, weapons, and manpower from the rest of the nation which seems content to leave them to their own devices. It just may happen one day soon that Forth Caputo, keystone of the north, falters and the Ofelians pour through freely into Corsica proper, looting and burning everything they come across.
Corsica is governed by a congress of one hundred and fifty elected officials, one from each island or major city, called the Crowned Assembly. Congress is headed by a King who is empowered by hereditary succession. Both the King and the Crowned Assembly are limited by a constitution which defines andchecks their political powers against one another. Seats in the Crowned Assembly change hands after an astonishing twenty years and can be passed down to a chosen heir should the Assemblyman die before completing his term. While the Crowned Assembly and the King create laws, the Judicate interprets and enforces the nation’s laws. The Judicate is charged not only with capturing and prosecuting criminals, but also with maintaining national security through the military. It is possible for an individual to serve in both the Judicate and the Crowned Assembly, and several nobles do so, acting in both the creation and enforcement of laws. Cities and islands are governed by lesser officials who defer to the authorityof the King, the Crowned Assembly, and the Judicate.
Of course, the authority of the Crowned Assembly and the Judicate is only as strong as their ability to enforce it. For the most part, the strength of the Corsican government does not extend far beyond the shores of the southern beaches. Though royal ships patrol the coastline, the islands and open waters are full of pirates and criminals.The Sun-Kissed Isles, as they are known, are notoriously lawless and dangerous for lone ships to traverse.Those who must pass through are often escorted by mercenaries, the Corsican Judicate, or even rivalpirates. While the Judicate has made some progress enforcing the laws of the land beyond the reaches of the Golden Coast, the further south one travels from Corsica, the less authority the law holds. On the open sea, there is but one law: survival.
The capital city of Corsica has stood watchful on the southeastern coast since the nation’s founding centuries ago. Arborleightis a vast labyrinthine mess of streets winding through structures both ancient and modern built practically on top of one another. The coliseum lies at the heart of the city like the spokes of a great wheel. The Royal Palace, the Chambers of Assembly, the Courts of Judication, and agreat number of large manors can be found a bit further west in Hiercapo, the palace district. With the recent events in Entei, many refugees from the formerly isolated nation have made their way across the sea, arriving in Arborleight en masse. As such, the city boasts a large population of Mekai living in slums, the largest and most infamous of which is known as Mecapo. Arborleight is also a popular tourist destination as many from the west travel to Corsica for its famed beaches, cuisine, and night life,all of which can be found in Villecapo, the city’s entertainment district. In Muncapo, the temple district, stands Pergerus Erre, a massivetemple complex to Pastacho/Theodicles and the official center of the Corsican Orthodox Church. Larger and grander in scale than a simple shrine or monastery, Pergerus Erre includes several unique temples (each dedicated to a different phase of the god’s incarnation; dawn, mid-day, twilight, and eclipse), an art gallery where religious figures and stories are immortalized in various forms of art, a treasury where various relics of the faith are stored, and a beautiful, expansive prayer garden. The complex also contains lavish quarters for visiting Prima, small manors for the Espa Prima, administration buildings, and barracks for the small standingarmy of guards and crusaders who serve the church directly under the council of Espa Prima. The complex also contains several stores, stalls, and venues where worshipers can purchase sacrifices, indulgences, and make donations to the temple.
Also known as the Keystone of the North, Forth Caputo is the largest fortress city watching over Corsica’s northern boundaries. Built from stone mined from Khyber’s Pass, the most passable route through the jagged Caputo Mountains, Forth Caputo has guarded Corsica from Ofelian incursion for centuries. Yet the problems of the city have grown worsethrough the years; food shortages, insubordination, and fewer skilled hands to repair the damages of harsh weathering and tectonic shifts in the mountains have begun to crack the foundation of the fortress city’s defenses. Not only that, but Lieutenant Creece who has led the city for decades is failing in his health and has worthy no successor to carry on his torch. With dwindling supplies and manpower and no support from the rest of Corsica, it may not be long before Forth Caputo falls and the barbaric hordes of Ofelia are free to enter Corsica as they please.
Cassinero is well known throughout Corsica as a center for thearts. A number of art galleries, statues, fountains, parks, and other adornments make Cassinero one of the finest jewels in the Corsican crown. In the center of Cassinero sits the massive Bocelle Theatre, a performing arts center which stages the most popular plays, operas, concerts, and other works of the performing arts. To perform at the theatre is the dream of nearly every entertainer in Europa, though only the best are given the honor of doing so. Despite its popularity as a venue for the performing arts, the Bocelle Theatre recently and mysteriously shut down without so much as an explanation.The current owner refuses to speak of the incidents leading to the theatre’s sudden closing, much to the frustration of the city’s many art patrons. According to rumors, a number of accidents occurred during the weeks leading up to Bocelle’s closing and several of the theatre’s actors were badly injured or killed. Patrons of the theatre as well as the staff claim to have seen a ghost shortly before the accidents. While there is wild speculation as to the veracity of these claims, the fact remains that what is arguably the greatest theatre in Europa has closed down with no sign of re-opening any time soon. Financial troubles have also been begun plaguing the city of Cassinero of late, leading to a decline in its decadent beauty and the loss of many artists as their livelihood dries up. Monetary problems are not the city’s only troubles; creatures fitting themythological description of Vampires (or Aspierte as they are known in Corsican folklore) have been sighted throughout the cityand a rash of mysterious deaths has been linked to the sudden appearance of these supposedly imaginary creatures.
Oyster Bay is Corsica’s largest port and the center of the nation’s naval activity. A great naval base and training facility can be found within the city and a number of important generals and commanders work out of Lo Bastonne, a white cube-shaped building which serves as the country’s center of military planning and preparation. As such, Oyster Bay is the seat of the Judicate’s power; a well-maintained, zero-tolerancecity of white washed buildings and clean cut people…at least that’s the way things seem on the surface. Beneath the orderly veneer is a strong criminal element which thrives on political corruption and smuggling through the city’s sizeable (and notoriously difficult to police) port. In any case, Oyster Bay is a strong and fortified city, populated by soldiers, sailors, state police, naval officers, and a number of prominent thieves, pirates, and mercenaries.
Far out to sea, beyond the reach of the Corsican government and its fleet of Judicate lies the pirate community of Dirkmouth, a city only in the loosest definition of the word. At one point in time, Dirkmouth was a proper settlement which was likely taken from its original founders and gradually expanded upon. The Judicate eventually caught wind of thesoutheastern city and razed it to the ground. However, another Dirkmouth soon cropped up on another island and when the Judicate destroyed it, yet another Dirkmouth appeared. For a time, Dirkmouth became a moniker for any city of pirates which appeared in the southern islands. Eventually, however, the pirate community took their metropolitan endeavor to the high seas, constructing a mobile, floating town from the wreck of hundreds of pirate, merchant, and naval vessels. This flotilla is considered by most to be the truest incarnation of Dirkmouth,though a number of smaller land-based pirate cities also claim the name, much to the chagrin of the eternally frustrated Judicate.
Stretching from the norther coast of Corsica to the southern tip of the Sun-Kissed isles there is a stretch of coral reef full of precious gemstones and exotic sea lifewhich can be found nowhere else on the Sphere. Formed over thousands of years by calcium build-up caused by tiny marine creatures, the Red Gold Reefis a delicate ecosystem, as beautiful as it is dangerous. The reef has earned its name not only for the color of the reef itself, but because of its reputation as a death trap for sailors passing through the area; great amounts of lives and gold have been lost to the unseendangers of the coral reef, both from natural hazards to enormous sea monsters. Ships navigating through the area must take care to avoid shallows where the reef can cut through the hull of a wooden ship like a dagger; more than one careless fisherman or ignorant foreign ship has been lost to the Red Gold Reef, their treasures sinking to the depths, guarded by unbearable pressure, hungry sharks, sea monsters, and the myriad of beautiful dangers which call Red Gold Reef home.
Antellicia is an enormous series of caverns within the Caputo Mountains near Corsica which were once well known as a grand tomb for lords of the Noth in ancient times though little more than a home to bears and wyverns now. However, recent expeditions to the caverns have revealed the complex of caves to be of great historical significance. Though none are completely sure, the ancient body of what is believed to be Magnicles, the first King of Corsica, and his retinue have beendiscovered among those interred within the tomb. The ramifications of this discovery are politically and religiously enormous as Corsican tradition holds that Magnicles was an immortal being who came from Theodicles himself to found the nation of Corsica before returning to the heavens. In the eyes of the Corsican church, the implication that Magnicles was a mortal man (buried in a cave alongside ancient Noth kings, no less) is heresy of the highest magnitude. Great debate over the identity of the body has led the current King (under obvious pressure from the church) to forbid further exploration of Do’kal Otho. The academic institutions of Corsica are outraged at this development and are actively seeking to repeal the ban or find an alternate means to continue exploring the cave in search of truth.
International Business Times, local road work had been planned for nearby the ancient ruins, which prompted local authorities to contact the FrenchNational Institute for Preventative Archaeological Research (INRAP) to clear the construction. INRAP conducted excavations to ensure the new road wouldn’t inadvertently demolish any significant archaeological remains, only to discover the statue during their investigations. Led by archaeologist Philippe Chapon, the INRAP team began work in Mariana in November of 2016. The small Roman town, thought to have reached its primacy in the third and fourth centuries CE, would have been most well-known for its moderately successful commercial harbor thanks to its location next to the Mediterranean. After several months of work on site, the INRAP teamhas revealed that they have excavated the remains of a religious sanctuary dedicated to Mithra. The entire find consists of a worship room and an antechamber devoted to the Indo-Iranian deity. Chapon characterized the find as “very rare and exciting”, adding that it’s the first time evidence of worshiping Mithra has been found on Corsica. Throughout the rest of France, there are only around a dozen similar sites, the archaeologist said, with the most recent one being found in 2010near the city of Angers. Several relics were found in the ruined sanctuary, including a trio of oil lamps and a fragmented marble structure that would have depicted Mithra. Pieced back together, the marble depicts Mithra sacrificing a bull, a scene from the pre-Christian god’s mythology. One of the pieces showcases the spilled blood of the bull as both a snake and a dog lap at it. The same fragment adds insult to injury to the bull, as a scorpion is depicted pinching its testes as well. Other finds, such as pottery, bronzebells and a partial marble statue depicting a female head, were also found. While Mithra is likely to have pre-dated Christianity in its place of origin, when worship of the deity spread west it probably found itself battling for followers. There are indications that Roman soldiers and merchants returning to Rome from the east brought the religion with them, and that there was a fierce competition for new followers between Mithraism and Christianity. There’s no written record of the religion, but archaeologists have pieced together information from finding and analyzing things worshipers left behind. Thisincludes relics and ritual representations depicted on walls of sanctuaries. The resultant knowledge paints a picture of a primitive monotheistic religion likely open exclusively to men, one that spread through the elite echelons of society before expanding outward and downward. Mithras worshipers came under fire directly in 392 CE as emperor Theodosius I forbade the religion, instead proclaiming Christianity the Empire’s official religion. This may be thesource of some of the damage the artifacts at the Corsican site sustained, with the altar being broken sometime in the past. A large Christian structure being built in Mariana at around 400 CE, one of the earliest occurrences of Christianity on the island, may have been built in the wake of Mithra’s expulsion. ]]>
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Mithra – From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia – excerpts only
Late 4th-century Sasanian relief of Mithra
Mithra (Avestan: Miθra, Old Persian: 𐎷𐎰𐎼Miça) commonly known as Mehr is the Zoroastrian Angelic Divinity (yazata) of Covenant, Light, and Oath. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of Truth, and the guardian of cattle, the harvest, and of the Waters.
The Romans attributed theirMithraic mysteries (the mystery religion known as Mithraism) to “Persian” (i.e., Zoroastrian) sources relating to Mithra. Since the early 1970s, the dominant scholarship has noted dissimilarities between the Persian and Roman traditions, making it, at most, the result of Roman perceptions of (Pseudo-)Zoroastrian ideas.[1]
Etymology
Together with the Vedic common noun mitra,the Avestan common noun miθra derives from Proto-Indo-Iranian*mitrám, fromthe root *mi- “to bind”, with the “tool suffix” -tra- “causing to”. Thus, etymologically mitra/miθrameans “that which causes binding”, preserved in the Avestan word for “Covenant, Contract, Oath“.[citation needed]
Like most other Divinities, Mithra is not mentioned by name in the Gathas, the oldest texts of Zoroastrianism and traditionally attributedto Zoroaster himself, or by name in the Yasna Haptanghaiti, a seven-verse section of the Yasna liturgy that is linguistically as old as the Gathas. As a member of the Iranian ahuric triad, a feature that only Ahura Mazda and Ahura Berezaiti (Apam Napat) also have, Mithra is an exalted figure.Together with Rashnu “Justice” and Sraosha “Obedience”, Mithra is one of the three judges at the Chinvat Bridge, the “Bridge of Separation” that all souls must cross. Unlike Sraosha, Mithra is not,however, a psychopomp, a guide of souls to the place of the dead. Should the Good Thoughts, Words, and Deeds outweigh the Bad, Sraosha alone conveys the Soul across the Bridge.
As the Divinity of Contract, Mithra is undeceivable, infallible, eternally watchful, and never-resting. Mithra is additionally the protector of cattle, and his stock epithet is “of Wide Pastures.” He is Guardian of the watersand ensures that those pastures receive enough of it.
The lack of Mithra’s presence in the texts was once a cause ofsome consternation amongst Iranians. An often-repeated speculation of the first half of the 20th century was that the lack of any mention (i.e., Zoroaster’s silence) of Mithra in these texts implied that Zoroaster had rejected Mithra. This ex silentio speculation is no longer followed. Building on that speculation was another series of speculations, which postulated that the reason why Zoroaster did not mention Mithra was that the latter was the supreme god of a bloodthirsty group of daeva-worshipersthat Zoroaster condemned. However, “no satisfactory evidence has yet been adduced to show that, before Zoroaster, the concept of a supremegod existed among the Iranians, or that among them Mithra – or any other divinity – ever enjoyed a separate cult of his or her ownoutside either their ancient or their Zoroastrian pantheons.”[2]
The Avestan Hymn to Mithra (Yacht 10) is the longest, and one of the best-preserved, of the Yashts. Mithra is described in the ZoroastrianAvesta scriptures as “Mithra of Wide Pastures, of theThousand Ears, and of the Myriad Eyes,” (Yandasna 1:3),[3] “the Lofty, and the Everlasting… the Province Ruler,“(Yasna 1:11),[3] “the Yazad(Divinity) of the Spoken Name” (Yasna 3:5),[3] and “the Holy,” (Yasna 3:13).[3] The Khorda Avesta (Book of Common Prayer) also refer to Mithra in the Litany to the Sun, “Homage to Mithra of Wide Cattle Pastures,” (Khwarshed Niyayesh 5),[4] “Whose Word is True, who is of the Assembly, Who has a Thousand Ears, the Well-Shaped One, Who has Ten Thousand Eyes, the Exalted One,Who has Wide Knowledge, the Helpful One, Who Sleeps Not, the Ever Wakeful. We sacrifice to Mithra, The Lord of all countries, Whom Ahura Mazda created the most glorious, Of the Supernatural Yazads. So may there come to us for Aid, Both Mithra and Ahura, the Two Exalted Ones,”(Khwarshed Niyayesh 6-7),[4] “I shall sacrifice to his mace, well-aimed against the Skulls of the Daevas” (Khwarshed Niyayesh 15).[4]Some recent theories have claimed Mithra represents the Sun itself,but the Khorda Avesta refers to the Sun as a separate entity – as it does with the Moon, with which the Sun has “the Best of Friendships,” (Khwarshed Niyayesh 15).[4]
(that is odd, since the Corsicans believe that the sun and moon are enemies.)
In inscriptions
Although there is no known Mithraic iconography in the Achaemenid period,[5] the deity is invoked in several royal Achaemenid inscriptions.
In tradition
Coin of Artabanus II of Parthia (c. 128–124 BC). The Hellenistic depiction on the reverse shows the king kneeling before an Apollo-like god, which is thought to be Mithra.[5]
In the Zoroastrian calendar, the sixteenth day of the month and the seventh month of the year are dedicated to and are under the protection of Mithra. The Iranian civil calendar of 1925 adopted Zoroastrian month-names, and as such also has the seventh month of the year named “Mihr”. The position of the sixteenth day and seventh month reflects Mithra’s rank in the hierarchy of the Divinities; the sixteenth day and seventh month are respectively the first day of the second half of the month and the first month of the second half of the year.The day on which the day-name and month-name dedications intersect is (like all other such intersections) dedicated to the divinity of that day/month, and is celebrated with a Jashan (from Avestan Yasna, “Worship”) in honor of that Divinity. In the case of Mithra, this was Jashan-e Mihragan, or just Mihragan for short.
In Zoroastrian scripture, Mithra is distinct from the divinity of the Sun,Hvare-khshaeta (literally “Radiant Sun”, whence also Middle PersianKhorshed for the Sun). However, in Zoroastrian tradition, Mithra evolved from being an all-seeing figure (hence vaguely associated with the Sun) into a divinity co-identified with the Sun itself, effectively taking over Hvare-khshaeta’s role. How or when or why this occurred is uncertain, but it is commonly attributed to conflation with Babylonian Shamash and/or Greek Apollo, with whom Mithra shares other characteristics (e.g. a judicial function). This characteristic is part of Mithra’s Indo inheritance since the Indic Rigveda have solar divinities that are not distinct from Mithra/Mitra, and in the Atharvaveda, Mitra is associated with sunrise, Sun Salutation is a daily yogic activity worldwide even in current times and ispreceded by chanting ‘OM Mitraya Namaha’ as ‘Mitraya‘[6]is one of the 108 Names for Lord Surya/Sun God.
Royal names incorporating Mithra’s (e.g., “Mithradates”) appear in the dynasties of Parthia, Armenia, and in Anatolia, in Pontus and Cappadocia.
The youthful Apollonian-type Mithra is found in images from other countries of Iranian culture in the Parthian period, such as Commagene in the Roman-Parthian border and the Kushan Empire on the Indo-Iranian border.[5]
In Manichaeism
Persian and Parthian-speaking Manichaeans used the name of Mithra current in their time (Mihryazd, q.e. Mithra-yazata) for two different Manichaean angels.
The first, called Mihryazd by the Persians, was the “Living Spirit” (Aramaic rūḥā ḥayyā), a savior-figure who rescues the “First Man” from the demonic Darkness into which he had plunged.
The second, known as Mihr or Mihr Yazd among the Parthians, is the “Messenger” (Aramaic īzgaddā), likewise a savior figure, but one concerned with setting up the structures to liberate the Light lost when the First Man had been defeated.
The second figure mentioned above, the Third Messenger, was the helper and redeemer of mankind, and identified with another Zoroastrian divinity, Narisaf (derived from PahlaviNarsēh from AvestanNairyō.saȵhō, meaning ‘Potent Utterance’, the name of a Yazata).[7] Citing Boyce,[8] Sundermann remarks, “It was among the Parthian Manicheans that Mithra as a Sun God surpassed the importance of Narisaf as the common Iranian image of the Third Messenger; among the Parthians the dominance of Mithra was such that his identification with the Third Messenger led to cultic emphasis on the Mithraic traits in the Manichaean God.”[9]
Unrelated to these Mihrs are Parthian and SogdianMytr or Mytrg. Although sharing linguistic roots with the name Mithra, Werner Sundermann established that those names denote Manicheanisms equivalent of Maitreya.
Double-faced Mithraic relief. Rome, 2nd to 3rd century CE (Louvre Museum).
Mithras killing the bull (c. 150 CE; Louvre-Lens) / Rock-born Mithras and Mithraic artifacts (Baths of Diocletian, Rome)
Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries,was a Romanmystery religion centered on the god Mithras. The religion was inspired by Iranian worship of the Zoroastriandivinity (yazata) Mithra, although the Greek Mithras was linked to a new and distinctive imagery, and the level of continuity between Persian and Greco-Roman practice is debated.[a]The mysteries were popular among the Imperial Roman army from about the 1st to the 4th century CE.[2]
Worshippers of Mithras had a complex system of seven grades of initiation and communal ritual meals.Initiates called themselves syndexioi, those “united by the handshake”.[3] They met in underground temples, now called mithraea (singular mithraeum), which survive in large numbers. The cult appears to have had its centre in Rome,[4] and was popular throughout the western half of the empire, as far south as Roman Africa and Numidia, as far north as Roman Britain,[5](pp 26–27) and to a lesser extent in Roman Syria in the east.[4]
Mithraism is viewed as a rival of early Christianity.[6] In the 4th century, Mithraists faced persecution from Christians and the religion was subsequently suppressed andeliminated in the empire by the end of the century.[7]
Numerous archaeological finds, including meeting places, monuments and artifacts, have contributed to modern knowledge about Mithraism throughout the Roman Empire.[8]The iconic scenesof Mithras show him being born from a rock,slaughtering a bull,and sharing a banquet with the god Sol(the Sun). About 420 sites have yielded materials related to the cult. Among the items found are about 1000 inscriptions, 700 examples of the bull-killing scene (tauroctony), and about 400 other monuments.[5](p xxi) It has been estimated that there would have been at least 680 mithraea in Rome.[9][full citation needed] No written narratives or theology from the religion survive; limited information can be derived from the inscriptions and brief or passing references in Greek and Latin literature. Interpretation of the physical evidence remains problematic and contested.[10]
Name
The term “Mithraism” is a modern convention. Writers of the Roman era referred to it by phrases such as “Mithraic mysteries”, “mysteries of Mithras” or “mysteries of the Persians”.[1][11] Modern sources sometimes refer to the Greco-Roman religion as Roman Mithraism or Western Mithraism to distinguish it from Persian worship of Mithra.[1][12][13]
Bas-relief of the tauroctony of the Mithraic mysteries, Metz, France.
The name Mithras (Latin, equivalent to Greek “Μίθρας“[14]) is a form of Mithra, the name of an old, pre-Zoroastrian, and, later on, Zoroastrian god[15][16] — a relationship understood by Mithraic scholars since the days of Franz Cumont.[17]An early example of the Greek form of the name is in a 4th-century BCE work by Xenophon, the Cyropaedia, which is a biography of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.[18]
The exact form of a Latin or classical Greek word varies due to the grammatical process of declension. There is archaeological evidence that in Latin worshippers wrote the nominative form of the god’s name as “Mithras”. However, in Porphyry‘s Greek text DeAbstinentia (Περὶ ἀποχῆς ἐμψύχων), there is a reference to the now-lost histories of the Mithraic mysteries by Euboulus and Pallas, the wording of which suggests that these authors treated the name “Mithra” as an indeclinable foreign word.[19]
Rituals and worship
According to M. J. Vermaseren and C. C. van Essen, the Mithraic New Year and the birthday of Mithras was on December 25.[52][53] However, Beck disagrees strongly.[54] Clauss states: “the Mithraic Mysteries had no public ceremonies of its own. The festival ofNatalis Invicti, held on25 December, was a general festival of the Sun, and by no means specific to the Mysteries of Mithras.”[55]
Mithraic initiates were required to swear an oath of secrecy and dedication,[56] and some grade rituals involved the recital of a catechism, wherein the initiate was asked a series of questions pertaining to the initiation symbolism and had to reply with specific answers. An example of such a catechism, apparently pertaining to the Leo grade, was discovered in a fragmentary Egyptian papyrus (P.Berolinensis 21196),[56][57]
Almost no Mithraic scripture or first-hand account of its highly secret rituals survives;[30] with the exception of the aforementioned oath and catechism, and the document known as the Mithras Liturgy, from 4th century Egypt, whose status as a Mithraist text has been questioned by scholars including Franz Cumont.[58][59] The walls of mithraea were commonly whitewashed, and where this survives it tends to carry extensive repositories of graffiti; and these, together with inscriptions on Mithraic monuments, form the main source for Mithraic texts.[60]
Temples of Mithras are sunk below ground, windowless, and very distinctive. In cities, the basement of an apartment block might be converted; elsewhere they might be excavated and vaulted over, or converted from a natural cave. Mithraic temples are common in the empire; although unevenly distributed, with considerable numbers found in Rome, Ostia, Numidia, Dalmatia, Britain and along the Rhine/Danube frontier, while being somewhat less common in Greece, Egypt, and Syria.[5](pp 26–27) According to Walter Burkert, the secret character of Mithraic rituals meant that Mithraism could only be practiced within a Mithraeum.[67]
For the most part, mithraea tend to be small, externally undistinguished, and cheaplyconstructed; the cult generally preferring to create a new centre rather than expand an existing one. The mithraeum represented the cave to which Mithras carried and then killed the bull; and where stone vaulting could not be afforded, the effect would be imitated with lath and plaster. They are commonly located close to springs or streams; fresh water appears to have been required for some Mithraic rituals, and a basin is often incorporated into the structure.[5](p 73) There is usually a narthex or ante-chamber at the entrance, and often other ancillary rooms for storage and the preparation of food. The extant mithraea present us with actual physical remains of the architectural structures of the sacred spaces of the Mithraiccult. Mithraeum is a modern coinage and mithraists referred to their sacred structures as speleum or antrum (cave), crypta(underground hallway or corridor),fanum(sacred or holy place), or eventemplum (a temple or a sacred space).[h]
In their basic form, mithraea were entirely different from the temples and shrines of other cults. In the standard pattern of Roman religious precincts, the temple building functioned as a house for the god, who was intended to be able to view, through the opened doors and columnar portico, sacrificial worship being offered on an altar set in an open courtyard—potentially accessible not only to initiates of the cult, but also to colitores or non-initiated worshippers.[68]Mithraea were the antithesis of this.[69]
Degrees of initiation
In the Suda under the entry Mithras, it states that “No one was permitted to be initiated into them (the mysteries of Mithras), until he should show himself holy and steadfast by undergoing several graduated tests.”[70]Gregory Nazianzen refers to the “tests in the mysteries of Mithras”.[71]
There were seven grades of initiation into Mithraism, which are listed by St. Jerome.[72] Manfred Clauss states that the number of grades, seven, must be connected to the planets. A mosaic in the Mithraeum of Felicissimus, Ostia Antica depicts these grades, with symbolic emblems that are connected either to the grades or are symbols of the planets. The grades also have an inscription beside them commending each grade into the protection of the different planetary gods.[5](pp 132–133) In ascending order of importance, the initiatory grades were:[5](pp 133–138)
The highest grade, pater, is by far the most common one found on dedications and inscriptions – and it would appear not to have been unusual for a mithraeum to have several men with this grade. The form pater patrum (father of fathers) is often found, which appears to indicate the pater with primary status. There are several examples of persons, commonly those of higher social status, joining amithraeum with the status pater – especially in Rome during the ‘pagan revival‘ of the 4th century. It has been suggested that some mithraea may have awarded honorary pater status to sympathetic dignitaries.[74]
The initiate into each grade appears to have been required to undertake a specific ordeal or test,[5](p 103) involving exposure to heat, cold or threatened peril. An ‘ordeal pit’, dating to the early 3rd century, has been identified in the mithraeum at Carrawburgh. Accounts of the cruelty of the emperor Commodus describes his amusing himself by enacting Mithraic initiation ordeals in homicidal form. By the later 3rd century, the enacted trials appear to have been abated in rigor, as ‘ordeal pits’ were floored over.
Admission into the community was completed with a handshake with the pater, just as Mithras and Sol shook hands. The initiates were thus referred to assyndexioi (those united by the handshake). The term is used in an inscription by Proficentius[3] and derided by Firmicus Maternus in De errore profanarum religionum,[75] a 4th century Christian work attacking paganism.[76]In ancient Iran, taking the right hand was the traditional way of concluding a treaty or signifying some solemn understanding between two parties.[77]
Ritual re-enactments
Reconstruction of a mithraeum with a mosaic depicting the grades of initiation
Activities of the most prominent deities in Mithraic scenes, Sol and Mithras, were imitated in rituals by the two most senior officers in the cult’s hierarchy, the Pater and the Heliodromus.[78] The initiates held a sacramental banquet, replicating the feast of Mithras and Sol.[78]
Reliefs on a cup found in Mainz[79][80] appear to depict a Mithraic initiation. On the cup, the initiate is depicted as being led into a location where a Pater would be seated in the guise of Mithras with a drawn bow. Accompanying the initiate is a mystagogue,who explains the symbolism and theology to the initiate.The Rite is thought to re-enact what has come to be called the ‘Water Miracle’, in which Mithras fires a bolt into a rock, and from the rock now spouts water.
Roger Beck has hypothesized a third processional Mithraic ritual, based on the Mainz cup and Porphyrys. This scene, called ‘Procession of the Sun-Runner’, shows the Heliodromus escorted by two figures representing Cautes and Cautopates (see below) and preceded by an initiate of the grade Milesleading a ritual enactment of the solar journey around the mithraeum, which was intended to represent the cosmos.[81]
Consequently, it has been argued that most Mithraic rituals involved a re-enactment by the initiates of episodes in the Mithras narrative,[5](pp 62–101) a narrative whose main elements were: birth from the rock, striking water from stone with an arrow shot, the killing of the bull,Sol’s submission to Mithras,Mithras and Sol feasting on the bull,the ascent of Mithras to heaven in a chariot.A noticeable feature of this narrative (and of its regular depiction in surviving sets of relief carvings) is the absence of female personages (the sole exception being Luna watching the tauroctony in the upper corner opposite Helios).[5](p 33)
Ethics
A passage in the Caesares of Julian the Apostate refers to “commandments of Mithras”.[86]Tertullian, in his treatise “On the Military Crown” records that Mithraists in the army were officially excused from wearing celebratory coronets on the basis of the Mithraic initiation ritual that included refusing a proffered crown, because “their only crown was Mithras“.[87]
Mithras before the Roman Mysteries
Mithras-Helios, with solar rays and in Iranian dress,[88] with Antiochus I of Commagene. (Mt. Nemrut, 1st Century BCE)
In the colossal statuary erected by King Antiochus I (69–34 BCE) at Mount Nemrut, Mithras is shown beardless, wearing a Phrygian cap[4][90] (or the similar headdress, Persian tiara), in Iranian (Parthian) clothing,[88]and was originally seated on a throne alongside other deities and the king himself.[91]On the back of the thrones there is an inscription in Greek, which includes the name Apollo Mithras Helios in the genitive case (Ἀπόλλωνος Μίθρου Ἡλίου).[92] Vermaseren also reports about a Mithras cult in 3rd century BCE. Fayum.[93] R. D. Barnett has argued that the royal seal of King Saussatar of Mitanni from c. 1450 BCE. depicts a tauroctonous Mithras.[94]
The origins and spread of the Mysteries have been intensely debated among scholars and there are radically differing views on these issues.[95] According to Clauss mysteries of Mithras were not practiced until the 1st century CE.[5] According to Ulansey, the earliest evidence for the Mithraic mysteries places their appearance in the middle of the 1st Century BCE: The historian Plutarch says that in 67 BCE the pirates of Cilicia(a province on the southeastern coast of Asia Minor) were practicing “secret rites” of Mithras.[96] However, according to Daniels, whether any of this relates to the origins of the mysteries is unclear.[i] The unique underground temples or mithraea appear suddenly in the archaeology in the last quarter of the 1st century CE.[98]
By Julie Skurdenis This item appears on page 49 of the February 2019 issue.
The central mound, with statue-menhirs, at the megalithic site of Filitosa in Corsica, France. Photos by Julie Skurdenis
At the base of a small mound overlooking a valley in southwestern Corsica lie fragments of upright stones called menhirs (from the Brittonic words men, meaning “stone,” and hir, meaning “long”). Source
Just above them on a stone wall that was once part of a prehistoric settlement stand more menhirs. They are unique. Each has the outline of a face etched on the top part of the stone. With sightless eyes, these statue-menhirs have stood for more than 3,000 years. They are simple and hauntingly beautiful.
Corsica’s history
Ancient as these menhirs are, the history of Corsica and of this site, Filitosa, stretches much further back in time. Corsica is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean, lying southeast of mainland France. Humans have lived there for at least 10,000 years. (If you believe the earth is that old)
It is thought that in the early Neolithic period, between 5000 and 6000BC, migrants from mainland Italy arrived, living in the abundant rock shelters while hunting, fishing and gathering. By about 3500 BC, the land was being farmed and cattle were being raised. This is also the time when the first menhirs were fashioned.
Early menhirs were simply standing stones, often crudely worked. Over succeeding centuries these evolved into more carefully worked stones, some of which bear distinct and unique facial and body features like many of the stones at Filitosa.
On the way to the central mound, where many of the menhirs and statue-menhirs stand, is the first of the statue-menhirs. Called simply Filitosa V, this menhir has a partial face and is carved with a long sword and a short dagger on the front of its “body.” It stands alone — a welcoming committee of one to the other stones that stand just a short distance beyond.
Past this statue-menhir lies a rock shelter used by the first people who settled at the site, probably around 6000 BC. Nearby are the foundations of stone huts occupied after 2000 BC by later inhabitants.
Statue-menhirs
Steps away is the central mound that was probably once part of a fortified settlement. Broken menhirs lie at its base, with six statue-menhirs on the wall above
It is amazing how the stone cutters of that time skillfully created differing facial features with just a chisel cut here, a chisel cut there. These statue-menhirs look surprisingly “modern”— minimal and elegantly simple — reminding me of the creations of Brâncus¸i, Giacometti or Henry Moore.
Whom do these statue-menhirs portray? Are they portraits of deceased chieftains? Or of gods? One archaeologist has suggested that each one may represent a defeated enemy chief.
Were they placed there to honor the dead,to “protect” the settlement or perhaps to humiliate the enemy? At least 3,000 years separates us from the answers.
On the other side of the mound stands a statue-menhir broken into pieces, with a steep path leading down into a valley to five more statue-menhirs standing beneath an olive tree that is supposedly 1,000 years old.
Filitosa’s history did not end with the creation of the statue-menhirs. Sometime after about 1800 BC, invaders arrived on the island, possibly coming from Asia Minor. Called Torréans, they built small, beehive-like towers, enclosed their settlements within walls and, most importantly, either destroyed the menhirsor incorporated them into their own structures.
In our 10 days in Corsica in May 2018, my husband, Paul, and I visited three other menhir sites: I Stantari, where there are three statue-menhirs plus other menhirs enclosed within a low stone wall; Renaghju, beneath a grove of trees, and Palaghju, with 258 menhirs, many of which lie in a jumble on the ground.
Two other impressive archaeological sites we visited were Funtanaccia and Cucuruzzu. Funtanaccia, located close to the two menhirsites of I Stantari and Renaghju, is Corsica’s best-preserved dolmen, dating from the 2nd millennium BC. It was once a communal burial chamber constructed of large vertical stones, with a single immense stone slab serving as a roof.
Cucuruzzu is a casteddu, a hill fort or fortified settlement built toward the end of the 2nd millennium BC. Grain was probably stored there, but in troubled times it served as a place of refuge as well.spacer
Corsica was taken from the Roman Empire in 469 AD by Genseric, king of theVandals, and recovered by the Eastern Empire in 534. The Lombards having taken it again in 725, Charlemagne cleared them out by 774 and handed the island over to the Papacy, which had been the most powerful complainant of the island’s devastation by Germanics. Starting in 806 the Moors of Spainbegan to contend for the island and held it for a short time but in 828 the Papacy assigned its defense to the margrave of Tuscany, a powerful state of the Holy Roman Empire nominally under the Kingdom of Italy.[9]SOURCE
Armed pirates ‘yacht-jacked‘ a trio sailing off the idyllic island of Corsica. Photo. Christian/Flickr
Armed pirates struck in the Mediterranean sea off the coast of Corsica this week, when they stole a luxury French yacht. The boat’s terrified owner, wife and friend were tied up for several hours before being set adrift in a life boat.
French police were hunting for four armed pirates who stole a luxury yacht in waters off the coast of Corsica on Sunday.
The 17-metre-long boat was taken from its owners by a gang of masked and armed pirates as they sailed in the beautiful waters off the idyllic south-western coast of Corsica, which is a popular yachting destination.
No one was hurt, but the owner, his wife and a friend were tied up by the pirates who snuck up on the yacht, named Armageddon, in a motor boat, Europe 1 Radio reported. The group had been sailing near the Îlots des Moines (islets of the Monks), north of Bonifacio, when they were taken hostage. (Are you kidding? The boat is named Armegeddan? lol. Believe me the monks on this island, well really monks in general are not CHRISTIAN. They were trained by the wrong camp.)
After holding the terrified trio captive for three hours in a cabin, the pirates loaded then them into one of the yacht’s life boats and set them adrift in the Mediterranean Sea. They eventually washed ashore near the tiny village of Campomoro, which is north of where they were attacked, at around midnight.
Authorities said that type of attack was rare, but it will no doubt leave a few boat owners concerned about sailing in an area that is popular with private yachts and pleasure cruise boats.
A yacht trafficking ring that sent its plunder from France to Tunsia was busted at the end of the 2000s.
Five Frenchmen who participated in the network got 30 years in Prison in 2009, though the gang had some high-placed foreign connections. Two of the alleged masterminds were nephews of former Tunisian dictator Ben Ali, who is now in exile in Saudi Arabia.
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Here are several more recent accidents in the same area. They seem to all have very interesting circumstances, locations, and symbology associated with them. Take a look and see what you think.
On the night of May 16 to 17, a 30-meter yacht struck the islets of Les Moines, off Roccapina in the town of Sartène.
Difficult to say. Four days after being stranded on the islets of the Monks in the Bouches de Bonifacio nature reserve, the ship has not moved. Four days later, he is still there. The capricious weather prevents towing the boat for the moment.
It hit the rocks overnight from Thursday to Friday causing a major breach in the hull. The captain then preferred to let the boat run aground the coast.
The rainy and windy weather of the past few days has made it impossible to tow the yacht.
As for the circumstances of the accident, they are still unclear today.
The 30-metre yacht Stoli with three sailors on-board (or 33) struck a small group of islands Les îlots des Moines (the islets of the Monks), 3.5 km off Roccapina, on the night of May 16-17, according to local media Corse Matin. The vessel reportedly departed from Sardinia heading to Saint-Tropez.
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Saint-Tropez
Saint-Tropez is a Provençal town, 104 km to the east of Marseille, in the Var department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region of southeastern France. It is also the principal town in the canton of Saint-Tropez. Saint-Tropez is located on the French Riviera. It was a military strongholdand an unassuming fishing village until the beginning of the 20th century. It was the first town on this coast to be liberated during World War II. After the war, it became an internationally-known seaside resort, renowned principally because of the influx of artists of the French New Wave in cinema and the Yé-yé movement in music. It later became a resort for the European and American jet setand a goal for tourists in search of a little Provençal authenticity and an occasional celebrity sighting. (Idol Worship)The inhabitants of Saint-Tropez are called Tropéziens, and the town is familiarly called St-Trop.
The captain stranded the boat at Tradicettu (best as I can discover this means Translation) beach after the collision to avoid sinking, where she stayed for more than a week on the shore. Last weekend, Stoli was bailed out and towed to the port of Propriano. The crew members were taken care of, found shocked though not injured. (SO, the crew members were there for a week…symbolic of the time of tribualtion?)
(SO, the Ships name means SHORTENING.. as in the TIME is being shortened?)
The operation of carrying the 115-tonnes boat was performed by the sea rescuers of the SNSM Propriano, the Sea and Assistance Company and BEXMA Expertises Maritimes.
Earlier, hazard weather conditions did not allow the towing of the yacht.During the operation, the rescuers had to pump fuel into the bunkers, mandated by the shipowner and insurance terms.
The specialised team extracted 10,000 litres of diesel oil, sea water and viscous liquid within 19 hours. Meanwhile, the risks of pollution were eliminated, thanks to erected floating pollution barriers.
This operation has mobilised for more than a week more than thirty marine rescuers of SNSM Propriano. Further investigations are under way to permanently secure the boat to a port where it will be landed.
Since the accident, the three sailors have been heard by the Maritime Gendarmerie. For the moment, the collision with the islands remains unexplained, even if the yacht was sailing at a rather high speed.
The accident happened in the Strait of Bonifacio, an Aicon 72 SL(THE ICONIC AICON IS BACK72 = 9 x 8 or 12 x 6) used for charter. A few minutes after scraping against a rockunder water, it began sinking (sunk by a ROCK (Jesus) just like the Concordia)
The name of the yacht, flying under the Italian flag, which sank near Isola di Cavallo in Corsica, after scraping against a rock on the sea floor, is Regis ( from Latin rex -genitive – regis = “king”). The vessel, a 22 metre Aicon 72 SL, was being chartered at the time, to an Italian captain, with another 11 people on board, as well as one other crew member.
While the boat, which docks in one of the marinas along the Emerald Coast, was navigating along the Strait of Bonifacio, it scraped against a rock of Isola di Cavallo (Isle of the Knight or Horse maybe as in the Knights Templar?). The impact collapsed a support trestle for the propeller and created a breach in the hull, so much so that the Regis quickly began taking on water. In a short time the boat began sinking from the stern, because of the weight of the water that was flooding in. (The stern is the place where the shipped is steered.)
The stern of the yacht settled against the seafloor, at a point 18 metres deep, leaving only the bow out of the water.
The captain skilfully made sure everyone was safe, getting the passengers off the boat using the tender and life boats. A Gendarmerie patrol boat transported the passengers to the port of Isola di Cavallo.
The risk of serious leaking was forestalled, with only a small amount of fuel leakage, at the time of writing it has been impossible to recover the wreck due to adverse weather conditions and the strong Northwest winds blowing across that tract of the Strait.
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Indeed in spring 1838 a commission arrived in Corsica. She is responsible for determining the appropriate location of the five lighthouses provided as part of general illumination. The first will be located in the islands of the Bloodthirsty, the second Pertusato, third Chiappa, the fourth to the Giraglia (extreme tip of Cap Corse) and the last to Revellata, only lighthouse north west of the island. SOURCE
A curious name, almost alarming, for a natural wonder of the city of Ajaccio. The Iles Sanguinaires (Isle of the Bloodthirsty) are, for any visitor of the Corsican capital, an absolute must. Their name intrigues, their history fascinates and their beauty fills with wonder all those who are privileged to admire them.
Located at the entry of the gulf of Ajaccio [a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the Collectivité territoriale de Corse (capital city of Corsica), and the place where Napoleon was born. No one knows the origin/etymology of the name. They imagine that the city might have been city was founded by the Greek legendary hero Ajax and named after him. It is also the largest settlement on the island.] the Iles Sanguinaires archipelago is composed of four porphyry islets of a dark redwhich gives them their emblematic name. Baptized Mezzu Mare, Des Cormorants, Cala d’Alga et Porri, you also have to add the bare rock “ U Sbiru ”.
porphyry (n.)type of very hard stone made of crystals embedded in a homogeneous base, late 14c., porfurie, from Old French porfire, pourfire, from Italian porfiroand in some cases directly from Latin porphyrites, name given by the Romans to a purple stone used extensively for ornamental purposes and quarried near the Red Sea in Egypt, from Greek porphyrites (lithos) “the purple (stone),” from porphyra (n.) “purple, purple dye” (see purple).
Another remarkable feature of the site, is the Ile s Sanguinaires’ lighthouse, dating back to 1870, which is built on the highest point of the Grande Île (Large Island), at 80 metres above sea level. An old semaphore can be found further south. It marks out the south-western coast of Corsica and the entry to the gulf of Ajaccio.
The Îles Sanguinaires and their lighthouse received a visit from a special guest: Alphonse Daudet who stayed on the Grande Ile in 1863. This obviously unforgettable stay inspired him to describe “ the Sanguinaires lighthouse ” in “ The letters from my mill ”:
“ Just imagine a reddish island and of savage aspect; the lighthouse at one point, an old Genoese tower at the other where, during my time, an eagle nested. Lower down, at the edge of the water, a ruined lazeretto, invaded everywhere by grasses; then, ravines, scrubland, large rocks, wild goats, small Corsican horses roaming with the wind in their manes; finally, up above, in a swirl of sea birds, the lighthouse with its platform of white masonry, where the guards walk at length, the green door with a lancet arch, the small cast iron tower, and above the large faceted lantern which blazes in the sun and shines its light even during the day… Here is the Iles Sanguinaires, as I saw it last night, whilst listening to my snoring pines. It was in this enchanted island before having a mill, that I’d shut myself away sometimes when I needed fresh air and solitude .”
No other description can better convey the beauty and tranquillity of this magical place which reveals all its splendour during sunset. An unforgettable show that Air Corsica will help you to discover in just a few clicks.
There are multiple lighthouses on the island(s) of Corsica. To see them all click the following link.
This page shows the documentation of the Lighthouses of Corsica. Some of the photos below are available on webshots some of the are on Flickr (and are reproduced with permission) and you can always click on the light to go to it's specific (larger resolution) copy. Each lighthouse is linked to (in our editorial opinion) the best reference site for that light. I would like to include directions on how to get to these lights. If you know such data[] could you eMail me and I’ll post it here (with your choice of attribution.)mailme
These are not all of the Lighthouses in Corsica. There are many more. Some small and some large. But, I wanted you to get an idea of how dangerous the waters are around this island. There are all types of configurations that can pose great risk to boats in the area.
East Coast
FR 219
La Giraglia (Cap Corse) latitude 43° 1′ 35.9″ N longitude 9° 24′ 19.4″ ELocated on the Île de la Giraglia, a small island about 2 km off the point of Cap Corse. Accessible only by boat, but there are good views from the vicinity of Barcaggio.Photo courtesy ben7va [Flickr]
FR 220
Macinaggio latitude 42° 57′ 41.2″ N longitude 9° 27′ 16.9″ EThis modest light replaced a cast iron tourelle. Located at the end of the breakwater at Macinaggio, the northernmost port of Corsica’s east coast.Photo courtesy Alberta [Flickr]
In Mandrake Harbor on the Fort of St Nicholas stands a lighthouse on a stone pier. It was built by the French in 1863, and is also known as the Rodos Light. Because of damage and deterioration over the years, the lighthouse tower was rebuild in 2007. While you can walk to the lighthouse to get better pictures, it is not open to the public.
Date of experience: August 2016
Located at the end of the breakwater enclosing the newer harbor of Bastia. photo
FR 222
Bastia Môle Génois latitude 42° 41′ 41.2″ N longitude 9° 27′ 10.9″ ELocated at the end of the north mole enclosing the old harbor of Bastia.On the left is this light, on the right is the light below.Photo courtesy Matthias Hoss [Flickr]
FR 223
Bastia Jetée du Dragon latitude 42° 41′ 39.1″ N longitude 9° 27′ 14.5″ ELocated at the end of the south mole enclosing the old harbor of Bastia.Photo courtesy Roby Ferrari [Flickr]
FR 224
Alistro latitude 42° 15′ 37.5″ N longitude 9° 32′ 25.6″ EThis lighthouse is near the easternmost point of the island, but it does not mark any particular cape or hazard; its purpose is to fill in an otherwise dark section of the coastline. Located on the heights about 2 km from the coast near Alistro.Photo courtesy Iolo [Flickr]
FR 225
Punta San Ciprianu (Giovan Lungo, Pointe Saint-Cyprien) latitude 41° 37′ 3.7″ N longitude 9° 21′ 19.1″ EThis lighthouse marks the north side of the entrance to the Golfe de Porto-Vecchio, the largest and best harbor on the east coast of Corsica. Located on the Punta San Ciprianu in Cala Rossa.Photo courtesy ben7va [Flickr]
FR 226
PecorellaLocated on a rock (Rocher Pecorella) in the center of the entrance to the Golfe de Porto-Vecchio, warning ships to pass to the south; the rock is about 1.5 km east of Punta San Ciprianu and the same distance north of Punta Chiappa. Accessible only by boat.
La Chiappa (Porto Vecchio) latitude 41° 35′ 42.5″ N longitude 9° 21′ 55.7″ ELocated on Punta Chiappa, the south side of the entrance to the Golfe de Porto-Vecchio, at the end of Route du Phare about 5 km northeast of Piccuvaghjia.Photo courtesy ben7va [Flickr]
Strait of Bonifacio
FR 228
Perduto latitude 41° 22′ 5.5″ N longitude 9° 18′ 24.1″ E
The light was installed as part of France’s responsibility under an agreement with Italy to improve the safety of navigation in the Strait of Bonifacio. Located on an isolated rock in the approach to the Strait from the northeast, about 7 km east of the southern tip of Corsica. Accessible only by boat.
FR 229
Les Lavezzi (Îles Lavessi) latitude 41° 20′ 4.4″ N longitude 9° 15′ 32.4″ EThe Îles Lavezzi, located in the middle of the eastern entrance to the Strait of Bonifacio, have been the scene of countless shipwrecks, including the loss of the French frigate Sémillante and all 750 men aboard in February 1855. The islands are now a protected nature reserve; ecotours are available from Bonifacio. Located on the southern point of the largest island of the group. Accessible only by boat.Photo courtesy Daniel Witting [Flickr]
FR 230
Écueil Lavezzi (Tourelle des Lavezzi)The word écueil means a reef, and this one is particularly hazardous. Located on an isolated rock in the very center of the Strait of Bonifacio about 1.5 km south of the Phare des Lavezzi. Accessible only by boat.
Pertusato latitude 41° 21′ 59.9″ N longitude 9° 13′ 12.2″ EOne of the great lighthouses of the Mediterranean, this historic light marks the southernmost tip of Corsica. For ships eastbound through the Strait of Bonifacio, it is the rear light of a range, Cap Feno being the front light. Located on Mont Pertusato at the point of the cape, about 5 km southeast of Bonifacio.Photo courtesy Agata Lucka [Flickr]
FR 232
La Madonetta latitude 41° 23′ 13.5″ N longitude 9° 8′ 40.2″ EThis lighthouse has a remarkable site atop a triangular block of sandstone attached to the mainland by a narrow peninsula. Located on the west side of the narrow entrance to the harbor of Bonifacio. There does not appear to be road access to this location.Photo courtesy pfjc2 [webshots]
FR 233
Cap Feno latitude 41° 23′ 31.8″ N longitude 9° 5′ 46.5″ ELocated on the point of the cape, about 6 km west of Bonifacio, marking the north side of the western entrance to the Strait of Bonifacio. There does not appear to be road access to this location.Photo courtesy Eric Lecaroubier [phares]
Southwest Coast
FR 234
Les MoinesThis light was built when it became clear that the Phare de Sénétosa did not provide enough protection for ships off the southwest coast of Corsica. Located on the rocky reef called the Éceuil des Moines (Monks’ Reef), about 6 km off the rugged coastline. Accessible only by boat.
Sénétosa latitude 41° 33′ 30.7″ N longitude 8° 47′ 38.9″ EOnly a few twin lighthouses were built in France, and it is not clear whether the second tower here was ever lit. Located on the rather rugged coastal road roughly 15 km southwest of Grossa.Photo courtesy marinas.com [Marinas.com]
FR 236
Propriano latitude 41° 40′ 42.4″ N longitude 8° 53′ 58.4″ EPropriano is a small port on the Golfe de Valinco in southwestern Corsica. Located at the end of the Jetée du Scoglio-Longo, which also serves as a breakwater mole for Propriano.Photo courtesy Catharine Boyer [Phares]
FR 237
Cap Muro latitude 41° 44′ 29.9″ N longitude 8° 39′ 44.9″ E
Located on the point of the cape, marking the southern entrance to the Golfe d’Ajaccio and the northern entrance to the Golfe de Valinco, about 7 km west of Acqua d’Oria. There does not appear to be any road access to this site. There is a small chapel at the base, you can barely see it. Just a small square box, dedicated to the Madonna.
FR 238
Ajaccio CitadelleThe lighthouse was built on the 16th century Citadelle d’Ajaccio, which stands on a peninsula projecting into the Golfe d’Ajaccio. The city’s traditional harbor is sheltered behind the peninsula and the citadel.
Îles Sanguinaires “Les îles sanguinaires” meaning the bloody Island latitude 41° 52′ 43.5″ N longitude 8° 35′ 39.2″ EThis is the landfall light for Ajaccio; it is built atop a steeply conical island in the northern entrance to the Golfe d’Ajaccio about 16 km west of the city. Ships arriving from France often pass through a narrow channel between the island and the mainland. Accessible only by boat.Photo courtesy George Petit [TrekEarth]
Northwest Coast
FR 241
La Revellata latitude 42° 34′ 59″ N longitude 8° 43′ 28.1″ EThis is the landfall light for Calvi, a port on Corsica’s northwest coast. Located at the tip of the Pointe de la Revellata, about 8 km northwest of Calvi via twisting mountain roads.Photo courtesy Marlene Lokin [Flickr]
FR 242
Calvi Jetée latitude 42° 33′ 59.4″ N longitude 8° 45′ 44.2″ ELocated at the end of a sturdy groin extending into the sea at the foot of the citadel.Photo courtesy dvorak89 [webshots]
FR 243
La Pietra (Île Rousse) latitude 42° 38′ 40.3″ N longitude 8° 55′ 54.9″ EThis lighthouse is built on a near-island, connected to the mainland by only a narrow isthmus. The light is the landfall light for Ile Rousse, which is a terminal for ferries from Marseille. Located at the end of the D81A highway about 1 km north of Île-Rousse.Photo courtesy Iolo [Flickr]
FR 244
Île Rousse Jetée latitude 42° 38′ 28.4″ N longitude 8° 56′ 22.7″ ELocated at the end of the mole sheltering the ferry terminal of Île-Rousse. Accessible by walking the mole. (E 0928)Photo courtesy Arno + Evelin Siering [ListOfLights]
FR 245
Mortella latitude 42° 43′ 2.9″ N longitude 9° 15′ 19.4″ EThis lighthouse marks the west side of the entrance to the Golfe de Saint-Florent on the north coast of Corsica. High above the lighthouse is a historic signal station (sémaphore). Located on Punta Mortella, about 6 km by sea northwest of Saint-Florent. There does not appear to be any good road access to this location.Photo courtesy ben7va [Flickr]
FR 246
Fornali latitude 42° 41′ 19.8″ N longitude 9° 16′ 46.5″ EThis lighthouse is on the west side of the Golfe de Saint-Florent opposite the town of Saint-Florent. There is a road in this area but it’s not clear if the lighthouse is accessible. Located about 2.5 km west of Saint-Florent.Photo courtesy Joseph Panza [camping]
FR 247
Tignoso latitude 42° 40′ 56.4″ N longitude 9° 17′ 38.8″ Ein Saint Florent harborPhoto courtesy Joseph Panza
Jetee du Dragon Lighthouse built in 1904 is located at the end of the south mole enclosing the old harbor and Port of Bastia, island of Corsica, France.
Pointe de la Revellata is a 5.5 mile loop trail located near Calvi, Corsica, France that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, running, and nature trips and is accessible year-round. (except we don’t know what they are doing in their underground base.)
(Sorry, when I saw this place on a map, I had to pull it up and post it. To me, this looks like The Devil or a Demon, and the lighthouse is on the tip of one of his horns. Then I saw this one and had to add it.)
Ángel Navarro to Governor Manuel Muñoz, May 14, 1792. Courtesy of the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin, Béxar Archives
Ángel Navarro, father of José Antonio Navarro, was a worldly man of 44 when he described his journey from the Mediteranean island of Corsica in a letter to the Spanish Governor of Texas, Manuel Muñoz, in 1792:
“I am from the island of Corisca, province of Ajaccio and I left there in the year 1762. I left my parents without their permission at the age of thirteen or fourteen and embarked for Genoa. After a while I embarked for Barcelona, and from there to Cadiz, always seeking to serve various persons to earn my keep…”
When Ángel Navarro (most likely known as Angelu in his homeland) was born in the late 1840s, the Mediteranean island of Corsica had been ruled by the Republic of Genoa for centuries. Corsica proclaimed its independence from the Genoese government in 1755 but it was short-lived as Genoa, and ultimately, France would govern the island.
Navarro traveled from his home in Ajaccio on the western edge of Corsica to Genoa, then to Barcelona, and finally to Cadiz on the North Atlantic side of the Iberian Peninsula. Cadiz was the primary port for ships sailing to and from the Americas when Navarro arrived in Spain. It was here that Navarro likely learned about the merchant trade and opportunities that existed in New Spain.
Veracruz and Vallecillo
Humboldt, Alexander von. A Map of New Spain. London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, 1810. Courtesy of UTA Libraries
The twenty year-old Navarro made the journey to New Spain around 1768. The Port of Veracruz was likely where he landed. If that is the case, he would have disembarked at San Juan de Ulua, the island fortress at which his son, José Antonio, would later be imprisoned.
A silver strike in 1766 attracted many fortune seekers to the desert north of Monterrey in the province of Nuevo Leon.
“…and it was thus that I came to these kingdoms. I arrived with the obligation of finding employment with Don Juan Antonio Agustin in the Mining district of Vallecillo. I served him for about eight years…”
Vallecillo was often times hostile, the area’s settlements were vulnerable to raids, highway robberies and corruption. The mines in the region were dependent upon the labor of indigenous people who were brutally exploited in order to hastily extract silver. Ángel likely served Juan Antonio Agustín as an apprentice of the merchantile trade from around 1770 until 1778. The two sold manufactured goods such as cloth and housewares at trade centers where they were otherwise unavailable.
San Antonío de Béxar
Ángel first appears in the 1779 Bexar census and is identified as a merchant. Ángel likely bought and sold goods that would be difficult to acquire in Spanish Texas such as cloth and crockery. According to census records he was an active participant in the slave trade at this time.
By 1792 Ángel married María Gertrudis Joséfa Ruiz y Pena who was from a prominent family in San Antonio. The couple had seven living children. José Antonio was the third child. The Navarro family home was located on what is now the corner of W. Commerce and N. Flores Streets.
“from there I came here as a merchant to this Presidio of San Antonio de Bexar. I maintained myself six years as a single man and nine years, to the present year, as a married man with two children that God has given me.”
Bexareños (residents of San Antonio de Béxar) elected Ángel as alcalde (mayor), four times as assistant alcalde and numerous times as an alderman.
On October 31, 1808Ángel Navarro died at the age of fifty-eight. He was the first to be buried west of San Pedro Creek, in Campo Santo Cemetery which is in the present-day area of Santa Rosa Hospital and Milam Park. Ángel had helped fund the cemetery’s construction the previous year.
The Navarro Legacy in Texas
Ángel and his wife, María Gertrudis, raised seven children to adulthood, José Ángel, María Joséfa, José Antonio, José Francisco, María Antonia, José Eugenio, and Luciano. According to José Antonio, his father, “by means of commerce was able to maintain the family in good circumstances and educate his children.”
Ángel’s sons, daughters and grandchildren played active roles in the development of Texas in the coming decades. Their accomplishments as elected officials in civic and state government, the military, and education demonstrate the beginnings of Tejano integration into America.
Corsicana was given its name by Jose Antonio Navarro, a hero of the fight for Texas independence. He said, “Call the town Corsicana after Corsica the island of my father’s birth.”
At the base of a small mound overlooking a valley in southwestern Corsica lie fragments of upright stones called menhirs (from the Brittonic words men, meaning “stone,” and hir, meaning “long”). Source
![Corsica / Ecueil de Perduto light Author of the photo: [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/21475135@N05/]Karl Agre[/url] Keywords: Corsica;France;Strait of Bonifacio;Offshore](https://www.lightphotos.net/photos/albums/userpics/10001/normal_Perduto_Lighthouse2C_Strait_Of_Bonifacio2C_Corsica2C_France.jpg.pagespeed.ce.PAmLe0UZP5.jpg)
Located on the point of the cape, marking the southern entrance to the Golfe d’Ajaccio and the northern entrance to the Golfe de Valinco, about 7 km west of Acqua d’Oria. There does not appear to be any road access to this site. There is a small chapel at the base, you can barely see it. Just a small square box, dedicated to the Madonna.
A 20′ tall white column in the Ajaccio harbor
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