21 March 2019

Minerva's Owl

Jacob van Campen, c. 1645 (source)


[063/04] 9a1. The War of Kelta and Minerva, ca. 1630 BCE
THÁ GVNG MIN.ERVA [5] TO ÀND MÍK EN HÀRDER.HVND ÀND EN NACHT.UL INVPPIRA FÁNE. Minerva responded by depicting a herding dog and an owl on her banner.
THENE HVND SÉIDE HJU WÁKTH OVIR SIN HÉR ÀND OVIRA KIDDA ÀND THENE NACHT.UL WÁKTH OVIRA FJELDA TILTHJU HJA THRVCH THA MUSA NAVT [10] VRDÉN NE WRDE. The dog, she said, watches over his owner and the herd, and the owl watches over the field, to keep it from being devastated by mice.


[035/01] 4d. Minos: Minerva
[1] HVAT IS THJU BITJVTENISE FON THI NACHT.ULE. THÉR IMMER BOPPA THIN HOLE SIT. IS THAT LJUCHT.SKVWANDE DJAR ALTOMET THET TÉKEN THINRA KLÁR.SJANHÉD. what is the meaning of the night owl that is always sitting on your head? Might that light-shunning animal be the sign of your clairvoyance?
NÉAN ANDERE HEL.LÉNJA HI HELPTH [5] MY HÜGJA THAT.ER EN SLACH FON MÀNNISKA OVIR JRTHA OMME.DWÁLTH. THÉR EVEN LIK HI IN KÀRKA ÀND HOLA HÉMA. THÉR AN TJUSTER FROTA. No, Helena [a.k.a. Minerva] answered, he helps me remember that a certain kind of people is wandering the earth, also living in temples and holes, gnawing in the dark,
THACH NAVT AS HI. VMB.VS FON MÛSA ÀND ÔRA PLÀGA TO HELPANE. MEN RENKA TO [10] FORSINA. THA ÔRA MÀNNISKA HJARA WITSKIP TO RÁWÁNE TILTHJU HJA THAM TO BÉTRE MÜGE FÁTA VMBER SLÁVONA FON TO MÁKJANDE ÀND HJARA BLOD UT TO SÛGANE. ÉVEN AS VAMPÍRA DVA. but not like him, helping to rid us of mice and other plagues, but rather to invent tricks to rob other people of their knowledge, so they can more easily seize and enslave them, and suck their blood like leeches.


G.W.F. Hegel, 1821 in "Grundlinien der Philosophie des Rechts"

UL, ULE, ULA - Old Frisian
owl - English
ûle - Frisian (üül - Nordfrisian)
uil - Dutch, Afrikaans
Eule - German
ugle - Danish, Norse
uggla - Swedish
ugla - Icelandic, Faroese

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous3/4/19 14:17

    (A certain kind of people wandering....) I really must find the time and funds to invest in an owl. ��

    ReplyDelete