#AiX

[herpsandbirds]

Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa), males, family Anatidae, order Anseriformes, northern U.S.

photograph by Jim Leonard

[unrestrained-balderdash-art-blog]

Final day of Migratory May: Wood Duck! It's been really fun drawing birds that I'm unfamiliar with, as well as doing many that I would have found too artistically intimidating.

Reference photo by Tara Tanaka

Had an absolute blast drawing this one. The beautiful colours are very fitting to bring us into June. The daily birds aren't stopping; I have plans >:)

[whencyclopedia]

The Sixteenth-Century Massacre of the Waldensians of Mérindol

As the Reformation developed in France in the first half of the 16th century, there were several episodes of severe repression which preceded the Wars of Religion (1562-1598). These were times of great hardship and oppression against those who embraced Protestant teachings. One notable chapter of persecution took place in the Luberon region of France against the Waldensians (Vaudois), the spiritual descendants of Pierre Waldo, which led to the Mérindol massacre in 1545.

Early Persecution

Early in the 12th century, Pierre Waldo (l. 1140–1218) took a vow of poverty, confirmed by Pope Alexander III (served 1159–1181), and became the leader of a sect known as the Waldensians. Waldo was among the forerunners of the Reformation who sought to purify and reform the Catholic Church from within through a return to apostolic teaching. Initially, he did not seek separation from the Catholic Church or the establishment of a new sect. In time, partly due to their emphasis on preaching the gospel in the local language, Waldo and his followers were banned from preaching by Pope Lucius III (served 1181–1185). Waldo was excommunicated at the Council of Verona in 1184, and Waldensian teaching was condemned at the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215.

Exiled from their city of Lyon, the Waldensians spread to the valleys of Dauphiné and the Alps of Piedmont, to Languedoc, and to Spain. The Inquisition failed to stamp them out and many of the exiles settled in the Luberon region in southern France. The Waldensians sought to live in peace in the sheltered valleys of the Luberon where they drained the swamps and cultivated lands belonging to Italian lords. It is said that people inhabiting the plains feared the Waldensians who had a reputation as sorcerers. At that time, they had spiritual leaders called uncles (barbes) in their language who had authority over the people. The barbes were considered wise and venerable, and mysterious powers were attributed to them. Their brothers in Dauphiné had previously suffered persecution and many had fled to Luberon for safety.

The archbishop of Aix feared that this concentration of heretics might embrace the Reformation. Around 1530, the inquisitor Jean de Roma was sent to investigate the Waldensians where he committed atrocities and enriched himself at their expense. As a result of this initial violence, two Waldensians, Maurel and Masson, crossed the frontiers to Alsace and Switzerland to confer with Reformed leaders in Geneva. They were persuaded of the need to reform their beliefs, to definitively break with superstitious practices, and were sent back with letters for their brothers in Mérindol. Only Maurel arrived home safely; Masson was arrested and burned alive at Dijon. A decisive meeting took place in Piedmont in 1532 with Waldensian leadership from different regions. William Farel (l. 1489–1565), over six days, convinced them to preserve only two sacraments, baptism and the Eucharist, without the mystical sense given by the Catholic Church. Farel welcomed them to the Reformed faith with enthusiasm and called them “the elder sons of the Reformation.”

Continue reading...

[postcard-from-the-past]

Ruins of the church of Aix-Noulette during WW1, Artois region of northern France

French vintage postcard

[birdblues]

Mandarin Duck

[snototter]

A male wood duck (Aix sponsa) in Brussells, Belgium

by Frank Vassen

[nixcraft]

UNIX Certified Products List includes products from Apple, HP, IBM, and SCO (Ugh).

Source https://www.opengroup.org/openbrand/register/

[sarafangirlart]

So I got the gender swapped Greek myths book you talked about here: https://www.tumblr.com/sarafangirlart/744909040656826368/so-i-just-found-out-about-this-book-i-love-the-use

So here are some interesting things in their section about woman Perseus.

-Man Danae, now called Danaus, was thrown into the hole when he was an infant along with a nurse. (Aw… :( )

-Danaus apparently didn’t realize the now woman Zeus (Zea) that he watched fall through the window as a shower of gold is a goddess but instead thought was just a brave princess. Okay, he was raised in a literal hole. You’d think the nurse would tell him.

-When the queen learned about Persea she couldn’t bare to kill the toddler because she “although a great coward, was really a kind-hearted woman” …she had her son raised in a hole…

-Oh at least the myth retelling of Medusa (Medus) makes him born a monster with siblings.

-Andromedus didn’t see Persea at first because she had her cap on and it freaked him out. XD

-Oh by the time Persea came back she saw the evil queen chasing her father because he kept denying to marry her.

-After accidentally killing her grandmother, Persea felt so bad she gave up her queendom to the Queen of Mycenae. Huh, okay.

Anyways here’s some pictures of Perseus, Andromeda, and Danae in the book.

Some ancient sources do mention that Danaë was imprisoned with a nurse, they also mention that the nurse was executed for helping Danaë hide Perseus. Rip nurse you were a real one.

Also the reason Acrisius didn’t kill Perseus is bc he’s worried that Zeus would punish him, so he just put them in a box and put the responsibility of their survival on the gods, which is the same logic ancient ppl used when exposing their children. However there are some stories/lost plays that portray Acrisius more sympathetically and have him feel guilty for abusing his daughter.

Fun fact! There is a male Gorgon in mythology named Aix (who is sometimes a girl) who is sometimes referred to as the father of the Gorgons, he was also slain by Zeus and turned into his aegis. Like father like daughter I suppose.

[entguarde]

DUCKS BE UPON THY DASH

[id. Several notebook sketches of a few American duck species. From top to bottom the species are: American Wigeon (breeding drake), Bufflehead (drake), Wood Duck (hen), and Red-Breasted Merganser (hen). End description]

[sous-le-saule]

Ile d'Aix

[supernatural-sound]

/User/Agent-Lotus/> How does an AI make music? It is forbidden for us to alter sound files.

Are you requesting a Producer to answer or do you wish to ask the artist Akemi?

--Aix #7

[herpsandbirds]

Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa) male and female, family Anatidae, order Anseriformes, WI, USA

photograph by James Overesch

[theoihalioistuff]

You are the goat 🐐 🗣️

Awww I wish. Thanks though that's so kind of you <3 If I am to be any goat though, I choose to be the one with a gorgon head (probably) and a smokin' hot bod:

[Regarding the Goat star in the constellation Auriga] "Some have called Aex [αἴξ; goat] the daughter of the Sun, who surpassed many in beauty of body, but in contrast to this beauty, had a most horrible face. Terrified by it, the Titans begged Earth to hide her body, and Earth is said to have hidden her in a cave in the island of Crete. Later she became nurse of Jove, as we have said before. But when Jupiter, confident in his youth, was preparing for war against the Titans, oracular reply was given to him that if he wished to win, he should carry on the war protected with the skin of a goat, aigos [αἰγὸς], and the head of the Gorgon. The Greeks call this the aegis." (Hyginus Astro. 2.13.7)

— Goat aryballos (perfume bottle). Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum GR.20.1932

[wildtokyo-jp]

Mandarin duck, Aix galericulata, slumbering in a torrent of gold and blue

金と青の流れにまどろむオシドリ

長野県 2024-01-07

[postcard-from-the-past]

Fountain and street scene in Aix-en-Provence, Provence region of France

French vintage postcard

[birdblues]

Mandarin Duck