Ouranos
2006
by Eric Whollem
oxides on white earthenware clay
COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST
CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE
Ouranos, the Sea Sky
NOTES ON ANCIENT MYTHOLOGY
Ouranos, or Uranos, is the God of the Sea Sky according
to ancient Greek mythology. He is said to have mated with
Gaia, the Earth Goddess and brought forth Oceanos and Tethys
and a host of Titans. Ouranos as the Sea Sky represents the
sea of the stars of night.
Ouranos may stem from a Egyptian mythology where Ura is
said by some to have been the original name of the Sphinx.
The Sphinx, as a conglomerate of different animals, may
also have been intended to blend the contraries of male and
female. The Sphinx was a prototypical chimaera.
Astarte of the Mesopotamians was also such a chimaera,
blending the iconography of diverse creatures.
The Etruscans worshipped the Sea Horse as Voltumna. The
seahorse is another chimaera, having the qualities of
horse, serpent, and fish. As such it was considered by the
Etruscans to be a Universal Deity. It is also an androgynous
being, insofar as it is well known that the Sea Horse male
is the one who gets pregnant and carries the babies in it's
womb.
Dionysius, the Womb Bull, was another androgynous concept
from the ancient matriarchies of ancient Greece. The Womb
Bull has been traced to Catal Huyuk in Turkey, now considered
to be the most ancient centers of civilization on earth, having
predated the Sumerians.
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See my posts on MYTHOLOGY here:
A video that relates 'The Story of Voltumna'
~with comments on the chimaera.
Read about MYTHOGRAPHIC ART on these links:
Ceramic sculpture video.
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MYTHOGRAPHIC ART
Anthropology
Mythology
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