#astragaloi

[kharmophron]

notes and quotes from Jennifer Larson's "Ancient Greek Cults: A Guide" chapter 11: "Dear to the people: Hermes, Pan, and nature deities" as i reread it

relative to the other Olympian deities, Hermes had few sanctuaries, festivals, and temples. he was pre-eminent in private, neighborhood, and domestic contexts.

the cult of Hermes was conducted at the popular level, meaning that people used modes of worship other than standard city-sponsored sanctuaries and festivals.

essentially a god of travel and boundaries, came to preside over thievery, lucky finds, and transitions between the lands of the living and the dead

often in connection with other deities worshiped in the countryside: like Apollon and Pan, has an important pastoral function > for people who support themselves by herding sheep and goats: maintaining boundaries and preventing theft of flocks > prayers, inscriptions, and votive reliefs demonstrate that Hermes was grouped in worship with other gods believed to inhabit the surface of the earth and to exert an influence over the prosperity of herdsmen - early poets agree that Hermes could aid in the multiplication of flocks

patronage of travelers grows not only from his territorial concerns but also from his role as a herdsman - Hermes accompanies and protects the traveler just as the shepherd guides and watches over his flocks

mythic function as the herald and messenger of the gods is not emphasized in worship, though he is a patron of heralds and ambassadors

oldest center of his worship: Arkadia birthplace; ancestor, having fathered the local heroes Evander, Myrtilos, and Aipytos, “of the heights” myth and cult tie him to mountain peaks, especially Kyllene Phares in Achaia: proper oracle + Hermes Agoraios (of the Marketplace) facing a hearth surrounded with lamps**

cults are most prominent on the Greek mainland: Attica, Boiotia, and the Peloponnese

archaic cult of Hermes centered on the hill/town Akakesion, etymologically related to the god’s Homeric epithet akake ̄ ta, “doing no wrong” or “benevolent”

the fourth day of the month (Hermes’ birthday in the Homeric Hymn to Hermes) was the day to present offerings of food, often figs or small cakes, at neighborhood herms.

Hermes was a “hungry” god, parodied in comedy as a food gobbler. His fondness for tasty food and drink is probably a reflection of his role as a provider of good things.

Hermes oversaw the operation of “poor man’s oracles,” that could be consulted by people who lacked the wherewithal to travel to a major oracle and offer sacrifices there; divined by casting knucklebones or other small objects and searching the resulting patterns for messages from the gods

Homeric Hymn to Hermes: the youthful god desired to share the prestige that his brother Apollo derived from Delphi, but had to be satisfied with a "lesser form of divination" involving the observation of bees.

**whoever wished to consult the oracle entered the agora at dusk, burned incense on the hearth, lit the lamps, and placed a coin on the altar. having whispered a question in the god’s ear, the petitioner covered his own ears so as to block out all sounds, and, once out of the agora, he unstopped his ears and received as the oracle the first phrases he heard

Hermes is “down to earth” (epichthonios), a deity who eschews the heavenly, watery, and underworld abodes in favor of the places inhabited by mortals. Hermes loves “to be a man’s companion.”

[ancientprettythings]

Terracotta figure of two women playing astragaloi (knucklebones). 

There was a version of the game, called the Aphrodite throw, which was said to predict the odds of the thrower getting married. It’s suggested that these were placed in the graves of unmarried women in the hopes they would find love in the afterlife.

Love that the paint can still be seen on this, too :)

Made in Capua, c. 330-300 BCE.

[iliosflower]

"In antiquity, people consulted astragaloi [the 'knucklebones' of sheep and goats] as they might now use tarot cards or read tea leaves. The use of astragaloi, however, was a poor person's method of divination, much in keeping with the offerings at the cave [Korykian cave of the nymphs at Delphi], which were almost uniformly humble and of poor quality. Those who could not afford consultation at the oracle of Apollo made the journey up to the cave to consult the nymphs, perhaps in conjunction with Hermes."

Greek Nymphs: Myth, Cult, Lore by Jennifer Larson, p. 11-12

[transdruid]

I got a set of sheep astragaloi!! I can't wait to start learning to read these

[lunarxdaydream]

What is your favorite toy to play with? Harkan

( kid muses time! )

Wide tooth grin burst free as the youth reached into the pouch secured by the tie on his waist. His ruffled hair a mess from an earlier rough play but all expect such a sight among young boys who took to their free time to play. Muffled shuffle of various items could be heard as his hand thrusted into the opening. The same jovial expression held as small objects are revealed with different edges.

"Astragaloi!" Cubed and uneven edges possessed minor cuts and stains. Upon closer inspection, one might find they resembled bones -- though their source is well known to all who lived there. Sheep, as delicious as they were, could be used in differnet methods such as collecting their knucklebones to create a form of entertainment for children and adults alike.

"Want to play a round?"

|| @arcxnumvitae ||

[bettydeng]

Assignment Name: Sketchbook Week 1

Tools: Clip Studio Paint, MacOS, Wacom Intuos Pro

Desc: Sketch 3 figures using the drawing methods we used in class.

Feedback: I used different sketching methods to draw each figure. The one on the bottom left took longer than the other three. Using large black strokes to shape the body outline seems inefficient if the posture is not stretching. I spent extra time using white lines to outline the legs.

Link to Ref:

[trustasset]

Saturnalia and christmas

#Saturnalia and christmas free

Martial’s ring epigram (speaking from the perspective of the ring itself) reflects fondly on the generous gifts of the good old days: “In time past friends often gave us as presents, but nowadays it rarely happens.

#Saturnalia and christmas free

For a gold hairpin, Martial writes, “That your oiled tresses may not injure your splendid silk dress, let this pin fix your twisted hair, and keep it up.”Įnjoy stories about art, and news about Getty exhibitions and events, with our free e-newsletter Martial wrote epigrams (short satirical poems) for the many possible gifts of Saturnalia-fattened pigs, incense, turtledoves, glass cups, ivory knucklebones, lamps, and clay statuettes, to name a few. Let everyone give his guest an appropriate gift.” The Roman poet Martial described something like a White Elephant gift exchange: “At this time of the year, when the equestrians and senators show off their party clothes, and even the emperor wears a freedman’s cap…accept the gift you have drawn, whether from a poor or a rich man. In another topsy-turvy tradition, households would appoint a mock king or “Lord of Misrule” to reign over everyone and give silly orders like telling someone to shout embarrassing insults, dance naked, or chase others around the house.Īlong with drinking, feasting, and gambling, exchanging gifts was a popular Saturnalia tradition. And everyone would wear the freedman’s cap, a conical felt hat awarded to freed slaves, to celebrate the liberty and free spirit of the holiday. Instead of the formal and unwieldy toga, Romans of all ranks would put on a synthesis, a comfortable and colorful dinner dress that was normally reserved for private dinner parties. Strict Roman dress codes were also overturned. During the holiday week, enslaved people could attend banquets and were waited on by their owners, and were celebrated with gifts and wine. “Everywhere there is clapping and singing and playing games, and everyone, slave and free man, is held as good as his neighbor,” he says. In one ancient account, the god Saturn was featured describing the festival. These “deluxe” knucklebones, pictured below, do not go together, but numerous examples have been found across the Roman Empire and are frequently depicted in painting and sculpture, suggesting the widespread popularity of the game. They were later fashioned from all sorts of materials like wood, stone, terracotta, but also fancier mediums like translucent glass, bronze, gold, ivory, and precious gems. As their name implies, they were originally made from the foot bones of a goat or sheep-easily accessible and cheap. Knucklebones ( tali or astragaloi in Greek) were used for games of chance-they could be rolled like dice or played like jacks. According to some accounts, you were only supposed to gamble for nuts, not money, to recreate the golden age of Saturn. Gambling, normally outlawed, was allowed in public. When the Roman poet Statius attended Emperor Domitian’s Saturnalia feast in the late first century AD, he left this five-star review: “Who can sing of the spectacle, the unrestrained mirth, the banqueting, the unbought feast, the lavish streams of wine? Ah! now I faint, and drunken with thy liquor drag myself at last to sleep.”ĭuring Saturnalia, a time of jovial merrymaking, many social norms were relaxed and inverted. Businesses and law courts were closed so everyone could take part.⁠ In Rome, the holiday was kicked off with a religious ceremony in the Temple of Saturn, followed by a free public banquet open to all. Originally just one day, over the centuries the festivities grew to last a whole week, starting on December 17 and coinciding with the winter solstice.⁠

[pink-lemonade-rose]

As we know it from Anatolia, the system worked in the following way: a statue of Hermes was erected in the marketplace of a town. On the sides of these statues (which like many statues of Hermes were simple square pillars topped by the god’s head) were inscribed 56 oracles in verse, each of which was associated with a particular combination of numbers that one could obtain by rolling five dice at a time. In front of the statue was a table, on which lay astragaloi (four-sided dice made from sheep’s knucklebones). A passerby would pick up five astragaloi, roll them, note the combination of numbers they displayed and then look up the relevant oracle on the side of Hermes’ statue. Each oracle was “sponsored” by a particular divinity, whose name preceded it. Thus, rolling one six, three threes and a one, for instance, directed one to the name Heracles and the following advice: “The moment has not yet arrived, you make too much haste; do not act in vain nor like the bitch that has borne a blind puppy. Deliberate calmly and the god will lead you” (trans. Graf 2005: 88). It was up to the enquirer to figure out how these words applied to his situation, but we can imagine that freelance interpreters lingered around these spots, offering to clarify the oracle’s cryptic words for a fee.

Sarah Iles Johnston, Ancient Greek Divination

[ancientgreekwitch]

Astragaloi

Astragaloi is a form of Ancient Greek divination using the knucklebones of a sheep. They can be real, or fake ones made from pottery, metal, or wood.

Numerical Value

The curved, small side is called “Chian.” It counts as a 1. The wide, convex side is called the “belly.” It counts as a 4. The wide concave, side is called the “back.” It counts as a 3. The flat small “S” shaped side counts as a 6.

Here is a visual to show you:

Throwing

The divination can be performed two ways. One way is to throw the same bone five times, using the first throw as the first number, the second as the second, and so on. Or, one could have five bones, and read them from left to right.

Interpretation

Each series of numbers has a name and an interpretation. They are as follows:

11111 - The Sky above Olympus: you will think well and find happiness in your work. But appease beauty (Aphrodite) and the messenger (Hermes).

11113 - Warlike Wisdom: By avoiding enmity and Animosity, you will reach your prize. The activity that you have in mind will turn out as you wish it.

41111 - Fate: Don’t do the business that you are engaged in; it will not turn out well. It will be difficult and impossible around someone who tires himself out. But if you go abroad for some time, no harm will come from it.

33111 - The Eagle: you will achieve your goal; do not fear.

61111 - The Largest Daimôn: It will be better to fulfill whatever vow you made to the daimôn, if you intend to perform what you ponder in your mind. You will be saved.

11143 - Caring Fortune: Do not do the business you are about to do.

33311 - Victory: you will win; you will take what you wish, and you will achieve everything; you will be honored, and you will overcome your enemies, the plan that you are about to realize will be according to your desire.

44111 - Joyful Victory: Do all your business because it will turn out well. The sick will be healed; and he who is in another country will return home.

41133 - Healing: A storm will come about your business, but it will turn out well; who is ill from his suffering will be freed, and safely home the one who is abroad will come.

11163 - Steering Fortune: Do not yet make haste to go; rather wait, if you set out to rush mindlessly, you will do great damage to yourself, but if you wait, blameless time will accomplish everything.

11164 - Beauty: Sail wherever you wish; you will return full of joy, for you have found and accomplished everything that you ponder in your mind; but pacify beauty (Aphrodite) and the messenger (Hermes).

13333 - Lightning’s Wisdom: you are fit for every business and ready for any undertaking. He who is ill will be saved.

33331 - The Seasons: the plan that you follow is not allowed, thus wait; it is terrible to walk into enmity, competition, and a trial.

13334 - The Sea: do not hasten to do business. Now is the wrong time.

61133 - The Daimôn: Do not project terrible things and think terrible thoughts. There will accrue no gain from it, and no reward will come from this path you are walking.

44411 - The Good Daimôn: you will be lead down a good path. You will return with rich fruit and an untroubled Fate.

13344 - The Savior, the Sky: Approach with courage the business that you set out to do; do it! You will win.

11166 - The Egyptian Sky: Undertake with courage the way you set out in your mind. you will accomplish whatever your mind tells you.

33333 - Fortune the Savior: The woman who has given birth to a child, had both breasts dry, but then she again flourished and has milk in abundance. Then you too will reap the fruits about which you ask.

43611 - The King of Hosts and Guests: Do not make haste with the business for which you set out, it is not yet time. Him who is ill will be saved, and and an end to the travel of him who is in foreign land will come.

63331 - The Strong Hero: The moment has not yet arrived, you make too much haste. Do not act in vain, nor like the dog that has borne a blind puppy. Act Deliberate calmly, and you will be lead rightly.

64411 - War: Why do you hurry? Wait calmly, the moment has not yet come; if you hurry without sense and in vain, you pursue something that is not yet ready. I do not yet see the right moment, but you will have success when you wait a little while.

43333 - Time: Scorpions stand in your way, do not hurry towards the business that you intend; wait, and what you wish will arrive later; neither to buy this nor to sell is better.

44413 - Music at Delphi: Do not make haste, it will not be better to go; when you wish to rush mindlessly, you will damage yourself very much; but when you stay put, blameless time will perform everything.

66113 - Marriage: The time is ripe for marriage; you will marry and return home. You will achieve whatever you want in your business, having found the thing about which you are anxious.

16634 - The Messenger, The Savior: I do not see anything painful among the things about which you ask me; do not think small, go forward with courage; you will find everything you wish: your vow will be fulfilled, and there is a perfect occasion for you.

44333 - The Sun: Take courage and fight. You will punish your opponent.

14444 - Revenge: now everything will be fulfilled and you will be lead the right way. You will perform everything according to your mind, do not wear yourself out anymore. You will achieve beautifully whatever you desire.

66114 - She Whom You Cannot Escape: Do your business and undertake it; the time will be favorable. In the middle, difficulties and danger are waiting. As to the other oracles, things will turn out well for you.

16443 - Lightning in the Sky: What you plan will not turn out according to your liking, when you do it; it is not useful to travel to foreign lands. You will show no insight if you sell now, nor will it be useful.

44433 - The Greatest Daimôn: I do not see this plan as safe for you; thus wait. You will do well, after this there will be luck; as for now remain calm, and stay helpful.

63333 - Good Time: Do not make haste, rather wait and do not act like a dog that gave birth to a blind litter. Take counsel calmly, and things will turn out happily for you.

66133 - Good Hope: Everything about which you ask me is smooth riding for you and safe; do not be afraid, the painful difficulties will end and you will disprove the suspicions.

44461 - The King of Possessions: Proceed with courage, the oracle is about hope; it announces also that the sick person will be saved. If you need to consult an oracle, you will receive what you desire.

34444 - The Messenger who Brings Gain in Trade: you will think of a good plan, undertake what you desire; you will find whatever you ask the oracle for, and nothing will be bad for you.

33364 - Victorious: You pronounce a good oracle, once you have thought it through, you will do whatever you desire; you will win, you will reap the fruits, and you will achieve everything.

44444 - Inexorable Fate: The sun has gone down, and terrible night has come, everything has become dark. Interrupt the matter about which you ask me; it is neither better to buy nor to sell.

43661 - The Moon: Do not undertake this business; it will not turn out well for you. One will help the one who is ill, and if there is any fear, nothing bad will happen to you.

63344 - The Protecting Boys of the Sky: A man who makes haste does not achieve what opportunity offers. You have a profit, and there is fear everywhere because of evil; your business is ill-fated, and everything is painful; watch out!

66611 - The Fire: It is impossible to do business; do not toil in vain! And do not turn every stone, lest you chance upon a scorpion. Fussiness will not bring you luck, be on your guard for all sorts of misfortune!

66441 - The Harvest: Everything about which you ask me is on a smooth way for you and safe; do not be afraid; I see nothing that will bring you harm; take heart and go forward.

44463 - The Sun, Bringer of Light: You will achieve whatever you desire, and you will find whatever you worry about. Make an attempt, having taken heart; everything is ready; you will find what is invisible, you will come to the day of salvation.

33366 - Fortune, who Leads to Good Things: Your matters are doing well; this oracle tells you to press forward; you will get away from difficult illness and master everything, and he who is erring in a foreign land will return.

16663 - The Manifest Fates: Do not put your hand into a wolf’s mouth, lest some harm happens to you; the matter about which you ask is difficult and delicate; but you stay quiet, avoiding travel and business transactions.

44446 - The Ocean: throwing seeds and writing letters on the sea are both pointless and fruitless doing.

43366 - Terrible War: Do not undertake the travel that you intend! Nobody will do it. A large fiery lion is about, against whom you have to be on your guard, a terrible one. The oracle is untractable, wait quietly.

16664 - Wisdom: Honor wisdom (Athena), and you will get everything, whatever you wish, and everything which you are planning will turn out well; she will free from bonds and will save the sick person.

66443 - Happiness: Sail, wherever you want, you will return home again, having found and done everything according to your wish; you will achieve everything, and thus to buy and to trade is happiness.

66633 - The Music of Delphi: Stay put, do not act, obey oracles. With time, you will find an occasion, but for now stay quiet. If you wait a short while you will achieve everything, whatever you desire.

44466 - Time, the Eater of Children: Stay at home with your possessions and do not go somewhere else, lest a terrible monster and a revengeful demon approach you. I do not see this business as reliable and safe.

46663 - The Moon, who Brings Light: Take courage; you have an opportunity; you will achieve what you desire, and you will come upon the right time to begin your travel; your toil will have its chance; is is good to engage in work, competitions and litigation.

66661 - Mother of Gods: As wolves overpower sheep and powerful lions overpower broad hoofed oxen, so you too will master all this, and everything about which you ask will be yours.

66644 - Thunder of the Underwold: The business has its obstacles, do not make haste, but wait; there is a road, painful, impossible and not to be approached; to buy is painful and to sell brings loss.

66663 - Heavenly Beauty: a good oracle, travel to you will be granted; you will escape from sickness and vainglorious thoughts.

66664 - Damage: It is impossible to undertake something vain; do not in vain toil uselessly, lest you incur damage by pressing on. It is not good to begin traveling nor doing business.

66666 - The Square Messenger: Do not go, wherever you intend to; it will be better for you to stay; I see something hostile to you, thus wait; afterwards, it will be possible, and you will be freed from fear and saved from toil.

[silezukuk]

http://bit.ly/2OGB5BE

[bayleafwitch]

So I handmade myself some astragaloi for divination with Apollon! Astragaloi were the knucklebones of goats, cows and sheep that in Ancient Greece were used for divination and playing games. Basically each side of the bone is prescribed a number. The numbers added together then relate to a letter of the Greek alphabet, which is then used for divination.* I used clay to sculpt the knucklebones (clay and glass versions are actually traditional as well, and in my opinion more desirable than bone) and then painted them gold. I then consecrated them ritualistically with offerings to Apollon. I plan to use them for divination in the future! I’ll make a tutorial on how to make these guys if anyone is interested. They’re fairly easy to make. *For more information on this, John Opsopaus’ “The Oracles of Apollo” has been a fantastic resource for me for divination with Apollon.

[themaskuponthevines]

A Bacchic Orphic still-life.

[iliosflower]

Masterlist of my posts

Demeter

🌾Demeter epithets

🌾Orphic Hymn to Demeter

🌾Demeter's island; Sicily

🌾Homeric Hymn to Demeter excerpts: Hades' speech to His wife, hard for mortals to see, reunion Demeter and her daughter, Hades abducting Persephone, the unwillingness of Persephone

🌾Prayer request to Demeter, written by @theoiprayers / @arrowoferos

🌾Adeia, a modern festival for Demeter, collab with @thegrapeandthefig, #adeiafestival + 2023 update

🌾Chthonia, an annual festival to Demeter in Hermione

Hekate

🌿Hekate epithets; terrifying, soft, animal-centered, protective

🌿Restless Dead: Hekate as a magicians goddess

Eleusis

🌿Lesser Mysteries

🌿Eleusinian Mysteries: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, day 6, day 7, day 8 (the Charge), day 9

Artemis

🌿Potnia Theron: Mistress of Animals

Nymphs

🌿What is a Nymph?

🌿30 days of devotion, Nymphs: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, day 6, day 7, day 8, day 9

🌿Astragaloi, divination of nymphs

Poetry

🌿'Circe', poem by Nikita Gill

🌿'Odysseus', poem by Adonis

Photography

🌿Ploutonion, Eleusis, Greece

🌿Telesterion, Eleusis, Greece

🌿Akropolis, Athens, Greece

🌿Shrine of Nymphe, Athens, Greece

🌿Fontana di Diana, Ortigia, Sicily

🌿Tempio di Apollo, Ortigia, Sicily

+ bonus: Efteling, the Netherlands

[dustedmagazine]

Dusted Midyear Round-Up: Part 3 The Lists

Cate Le  Bon

After two days worth of record trading, Dusted writers retreat to their various obsessions and share lists of their favorite records of early 2022.  If you missed our two-part midyear exchange coverage, check out Part 1 and Part 2.  

Jennifer Kelly

Winged Wheel — No Island (12XU)

Destroyer — Labyrinthitis (Merge)

Oneida  —  Success (Joyful Noise)

Cate Le Bon — Pompeii (Drag City)

Fontaines D.C. — Skinty Fia (Partisan)

Jake Xerxes Fussell — Good and Green Again (Paradise of Bachelors)

Reds, Pinks and Purples — Summer at Land’s End (Slumberland)

Yard Act — The Overload (Rough Trade)

Superchunk — Wild Loneliness (Merge)

Horsegirl — Versions of Modern Performance (Matador)

Jonathan Shaw’s horrendous half-dozen:

Black Fucking Cancer — Procreate Inverse (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)

Cosmic Putrefaction — Crepuscular Dirge for the Blessed Ones (Caligari Records)

Kostnateni — Ohen Hori Tam, Kde Padl (Mystiskaos)

Merihem — Incendiary Darkness (I, Voidhanger)

Mizmor and Thou — Myopia (Gilead Media)

Mutilatred — Determined to Rot (Redefining Darkness) 

Tim Clarke

The Smile — A Light for Attracting Attention (XL)

Big Thief — Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You (4AD)

Black Country, New Road — Ants From Up There (Ninja Tune)

Aldous Harding — Warm Chris (4AD)

Shearwater — The Great Awakening (Polyborus)

Cate Le Bon — Pompeii (Mexican Summer)

Daniel Rossen — You Belong There (Warp)

Oren Ambarchi, Johan Berthling and Andreas Werliin — Ghosted (Drag City)

Robert Stillman — What Does it Mean to be American? (Orindal)

Claire Rousay — Everything Perfect is Already Here (Shelter Press)

Ray Garraty

Bandgang Lonnie Bands x ShredGang Mone — Shottas (TF Distribution)

Wayne616 — Grease Files (Still Grinding)

Young Bleed — Dare Iza God (Trap Door Entertainment)

Z Money — Back 2 The Blender (4EverPaidRecords)

Boldy James & Real Bad Man — Killing Nothing (Real Bad Man)

Andrew Forell

billy woods - Aethiopes (Blackwoodz Studioz)

Kids On A Crime Spree - Fall in Love, Not In Line (Slumberland)

700 Bliss - Nothing To Declare (Hyperdub)

Brainwaltzera - ITSAME (Film Recordings)

Artsick - Fingers Crossed (Slumberland)

Blackhaine - Armour II (Fixed Abode)

Bill Meyer

Sophie Agnel / John Butcher, La Pierre Tachée (Ni Vu Ni Connu)

Rhodri Davies, For Simon H. Fell (Amgen)

Jake Xerxes Fussell, Good And Green Again (Paradise of Bachelors)

Mary Halvorson, Amaryllis & Belladonna (Nonesuch)

Haptic, Ladder of Shadows (901 Editions)

Glenn Jones, Vade Mecum (Thrill Jockey)

Shane Parish, Viscera Eternae (Ramble)

Dave Rempis / Elizabeth Harnik / Michael Zerang, Astragaloi (Aerophonic)

Masayuki Takayanagi, Eclipse (Black Editions)

Reinier van Houdt, Drift Nowhere Past / The Adventure Of Sleep (Elsewhere)

Bryon Hayes 

Pan•American — The Patience Fader (Kranky)

Robbie Lee & Lea Bertucci — Winds Bells Falls (Telegraph Harp)

Ayal Senior — Az Yashir (Medusa Editions)

Cate Le Bon — Pompeii (Mexican Summer)

Winged Wheel — No Island (12XU)

Julia Reidy — World in World (Black Truffle)

Horsegirl — Versions of Modern Performance (Matador)

Tilth — Rock Music (Round Bale Recordings)

p2p — Impossible Burger (Rat-Drifting)

Modern Lamps — Lucid Cartography (Hooker Vision) 

Patrick Masterson

Yard Act — The Overload (Rough Trade)

Overmono — Cash Romantic EP (XL)

Oneida — Success (Joyful Noise)

Angel Olsen — Big Time (Jagjaguwar)

Yung Kayo — DFTK (Young Stoner Life)

HAAi — Baby, We're Ascending (Mute)

Cloakroom — Dissolution Wave (Relapse)

Saba — Few Good Things (The Orchard)

Heavenly Bodies — Universal Resurrection (Petty Bunco)

Axel Boman — Luz / Quest for Fire (Studio Barnhus)

Cate Le Bon — Pompeii (Mexican Summer)

Sauce Walka — AI Rage Walka (Sauce Familia)

Christian Carey

Destroyer — Labyrinthitis (Merge)

Oneida — Success (Joyful Noise)

Cate Le Bon — Pompeii (Drag City)

Superchunk — Wild Loneliness (Merge)

Jenny Hvall — Classic Objects (4AD)

Steve Reich — Reich/Richter (Nonesuch)

Ches Smith — Interpret it Well (Pyroclastic)

Steven Schick — A Hard Rain (Islandia)

Mark Turner — Return from the Stars (ECM)

Walter Zimmermann — Voces (Mode)

Derek Taylor

Andrew Cyrille/William Parker/Enrico Rava — 2 Blues for Cecil (TUM)

Michael Bisio Quartet — MBefore (Tao Forms)

Ingrid Laubrock/Brandon Lopez/Tom Rainey — No Es La Playa (Intakt)

Survival Unit III — The Art of Flight/For Alvin Fielder (Astral Spirits/Instigation)

Ches Smith — Interpret it Well (Pyroclastic)

Chris Byars — Rhythm and Blues of the 20s (Steeplechase)

Cecil Taylor — The Complete, Legendary, Live Return Concert at the Town Hall, NYC, November 4, 1973 (Oblivion)

Albert Ayler — Revelations: The Complete ORTF 1970 Fondation Maeght Recordings (Resonance)

Peter Brötzmann/ William Parker/ Milford Graves — Historic Music Past Tense Future (Black Editions)

Sam Rivers — Caldera (No Business)

Virgil Gonsalves — Jazz in the Bay Area 1954-1959 (Fresh Sound)

Toots Thielemans & Rob Franken — The Studio Sessions 1973-1983 (Dutch Jazz Archive)

Michael Rosenstein

A baker’s dozen of releases that have caught my ear in the first half of the year:

John Butcher — 5 LP set from ausland (Ni Vu Ni Connu)

Zhao Cong — REW (Eminent Observer)

Anne-F Jacques, Chemiefaserwerk, Zhu Wenbo — La Cinta Flotante (Bolinga Everest Records)

Rie Nakajima/Takahiro Kawaguchi — Utsuho (tsss tapes)

Oùat — Elastic Bricks (Umlaut Records)

Manja Ristić — the concrescence (Self Released)

Vanessa Rossetto / Lionel Marchetti — The Tower (The City) (Erstwhile Records)

Li Song — Two Snare Drums (Infant Tree)

Staubitz and Waterhouse — Common Metals (music is the worst)

Tarab — Rooms (Ferns recordings)

Bardo Todol — La Siembra Eterna (Never Anything Records)

Yu Yiyi — Hypnos (self-released)

Sun Yizhou, Zheng Hao — Another Time (bluescreen)

Ian Mathers

15 in personal chronological order:

Cloakroom — Dissolution Wave (Relapse)

Pan•American — The Patience Fader (Kranky)

Aoife O'Donovan — Age of Apathy (Yep Roc)

Broadcast — Maida Vale Sessions (Warp)

Nadja — Nalepa (Broken Spine)

Sasami — Squeeze (Domino)

Picastro — I’ve Never Met a Stranger (3490032 Records DK)

Michael Beharie — Promise (Clandestine)

Chelsea Jade — Soft Spot (Carpark)

Spiritualized — Everything Was Beautiful (Fat Possum)

Diatom Deli — Time​~​Lapse Nature (RVNG Intl.)

loscil — The Sails p.1/p.2 (self-release)

Z Money — Back 2 the Blender (4EVERPAID)

Oneida — Success (Joyful Noise)

Billow Observatory — Stareside (Felte)

[hellenic-reconstructionism]

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Thanks for visiting my blog! I talk a lot about Greek paganism and community issues, as well as politics, since those are all intricately entwined. This is a sideblog, and I don't follow minors back. Anti-fascist. Trans women are women. I block people.

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Readings: CLOSED

While you’re here -- learn how to use Narcan and save a life. Harm reduction is important.

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About me

Recommended Reading List (I’ll try to keep this updated as I slowly work through my books)

Useful Links for Hellenic Polytheists

Antifascism links

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My original content (includes quotes)

My big informational posts

My Hellenismos book reviews

Divination Using Astragaloi (knucklebone dice)

Not every practice is valid and why

Tips on spotting racist/fascist dogwhistles in paganism

WyrdCuriosities is run by a NeoNazi

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[krystaltheartist]

-The game of knuckle bones was played in ancient Egypt and Greece (astragaloi) . It has been depicted in many art works. They were used differently according to the player’s age and gender. -The children’s game: 5 pieces pieces were thrown into the air, and caught on the back of your hands.  -Women could play an oracular version, thereby placing herself in the hands of fate- young Greek women were known as ‘philastragalai’, or “loving knucklebones.” ‘Aphrodite’s throw is when all knucklebones landed on different sides.  -Men roll the knucklebones like dice thirty-five times. Each side was marked (not always because each side was unique) with a different numerical value, so that each knucklebone throw was calculated. The side faces were counted, not the top face (its not read like a dice).

The Game of "Knucklebones" in AustraliaDorothy Howard (JSTOR) Children would collect sheep’s knucklebones from a butcher, have them boiled and dyed using ink or the juice of berries. Children who couldn’t collect them used stones.