The Mabinogion

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A fascinating mixture of high drama, philosophy, romance, tragedy, fantasy, humor, and unique vision of ancient British history, the tales preserved in The Mabinogion represent a treasure of ancient Celtic myth as set down in the medieval age by unknown Welsh authors with groundbreaking literary skills.

Where does the title 'Mabinogion' come from? Its use for this collection of tales dates from the 19th Century when Lady Charlotte Guest's version of these 11 myths appeared in book form.Alan has illustrated dozens of fantasy books, including some nonfiction, and many more covers. Several works by J.R.R. Tolkien are among his most notable interiors: the Tolkien centenary edition of The Lord of the Rings (1992), a 1999 edition of The Hobbit that has been boxed with it, and Narn i Chîn Húrin: The Children of Húrin (2007). The latter, a first edition, is his work most widely held in WorldCat participating libraries. bw): Cedric Gibbons, Edward Carfagno, Edwin B. Willis, F. Keogh Gleason /(c): Paul Sheriff, Marcel Vertès

Rhiannon characteristically rebukes him for not considering this course before, then explains she has sought him out to marry him, in preference to her current betrothed, Gwawl ap Clud. Pwyll gladly agrees, but at their wedding feast at her father's court, an unknown man requests Pwyll grant a request; which he does without asking what it is. The man is Gwawl, and he requests Rhiannon. Not being too thoroughly versed in Welsh culture, I found it fascinating. Small clutches of mythical symbolism and characters can be seen. Glimpses of British, of Irish, of Gaul - small swaths of Orkadian creatures and belief. There's King Arthur there, there's the cult of a head, there's a cauldron of plenty. The myths are rich and strange. Here are the original versions of some characters that later got bastardized into something else. Arawn comes to mind for that one... The Dream of Maxen” also shares some similarity with an Irish tale, “The Dream of Oengus.” In both, the man dreams of a beautiful girl who, upon awakening to her absence, leaves him depressed and nearly paralyzed with heartache until he can find her in the waking world. Each tale sees its subsequent quest play out in contrasting ways. Transformation into animals is another recurring element of both Irish and Welsh lore, and so is the theme of rebirth through this metamorphosis. Watercolour painting and pencil sketches are among the media that Lee commonly uses. [3] Film [ edit ] Rhiannon appears in many retellings and performances of the Mabinogi (Mabinogion) today. There is also a vigorous culture of modern fantasy novels. [10] These include Not For All The Gold In Ireland (1968) by John James, where Rhiannon marries the Irish god Manannan. [11] Rhiannon also appears in The Song of Rhiannon (1972) by Evangeline Walton, which retells the Third Branch of the Mabinogion. [12]

Alan Lee (born 20 August 1947) is an English book illustrator and movie conceptual designer. He was born in Middlesex, England, and studied at the Ealing School of Art. Lee did cover paintings for the 1983 Penguin edition of Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast trilogy. He also did the artwork for Alive!, a CD by the Dutch band Omnia, released on 3 August 2007 during the Castlefest festival. Four of these mythical stories end with a vague allusion to being one of four branches of “the Mabinogi”, giving the collection its name, and the others are hero quests, Arthurian romances, spectacular and chemerical pseudo-historical sagas, which might or might not be related to the first four. The four “branch” tales do not seem to relate to one another except for “Manawyden, The Son of Llyr” being a sequel to, and sharing characters with “Branwen, the Daughter of Llyr”. Otherwise, some common names or places are all that link these branches. Pryderi Son of Pwyll is the common figure, appearing in each of these tales, but usually with a minor part. For the most part, each enchanting tale seems to be independent from the rest, riddled with mysteries deepened through the ages and brought to life by towering imaginations.

Reunited with Rhiannon the child is formally named in the traditional way via his mother's first direct words to him Pryderi a wordplay on "delivered" and "worry", "care", or "loss". In due course Pwyll dies, and Pryderi rules Dyfed, marrying Cigfa of Gloucester, and amalgamating the seven cantrefs of Morgannwg to his kingdom. Now, Easton Press presents Alan Lee's illustrated edition of this classic work of Celtic myth: THE MABINOGION, a leather-bound Collector Edition personally autographed by revered illustrator and Academy Award-winning designer, Alan Lee. Two of my favorites are 'The Golden Book of Mysterious' and 'The Mabinogion.' 'The Golden Book of Mysterious' may be Alan Lee's first book, as it was published in 1976, two years before 'Faeries.' The illustrations in this book touch upon different themes, from fantasy to science fiction, but Alan Lee's masterful use of watercolors was already well-developed. 'The Mabinogion' might be his most painterly work, stunning and a bit pricey to acquire, but worth every penny. The book is a joy to read, and Alan Lee's illustrations are superb. The ancient Welsh collection of Celtic myth and Arthurian Legend, illustrated by the great Alan Lee.

Alan Lee

Anyway. Here’s a list of some of my favorite dream imagery from the book, mostly from the four branches: Not being a Brit, I stumbled upon this collection quite randomly. Never heard of it before, but, they turned out to be the earliest prose stories of Britain. Collection itself felt arbitrary, not very cohesive, maybe because Lady Charlotte Guest just decided it is, the writing itself has little in common, only that the stories are quite old and written in Welsh, that's all. My usual obsessive self began searching for publications featuring Alan Lee's work, and over the years, I've been fortunate to find several books illustrated by him. No attempt at characterizing these stories together or individually would do them justice. There is a marvelous, epic atmosphere to each of them, a feel of adventure and magic and peculiarity. They often span a huge geography, taking place not only all across Wales, but in England, Cornwall, Ireland, Rome, and the Otherworld. I enjoyed it and will probably read it again some time. It got me wanting to read Le Morte D'Arthur (I have a copy somewhere) and to play Gwyddbwyll

Jones, Gwyn and Jones, Thomas. "The Mabinogion ~ Medieval Welsh Tales." (Illust. Alan Lee). Dragon's Dream., 1982. I cannot say why I resonate with some cultures and times more than others - why, for example, I love the literature of Sumer but not Egypt. I can say that I am grateful that we have the Mabinogion to puzzle over, to study, and to treasure as an invaluable source of information about the literature and history of the Welsh, even if I do not deeply respond to it on an artistic level to the same degree as, say, The Book of Invasions, with which it was approximately contemporaneous. The people in these stories come from all over Celtic history and folklore, and some are pure products of the imagination of those sharing these tales. Others are more ambiguous, being possibly based on real people or the fusion of multiple legendary people into a single character. In the epic “Owein, or the Countess of the Fountain”, one of the members of Arthur’s court is Kynan, a man also mentioned in Y Gododdin, said to be at the Battle of Catraeth. In this same tale, Owein is said to be the son of Urien, historical king of Reghed, who appears as the subject of many old Welsh poems. You’re hunting alone in the forest and encounter a stag being chased by brilliant white hounds with blood-red ears. Seeing no one around, you chase the hounds off and let your own dogs feed on the kill. But out of the forest appears the king of the Otherworld who says the stag was his and claims offense. The only way make amends, he says, will be to trade places with him for a year—he will become you and you will become him.

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The three stories that end the collection are similar to Arthurian legends that people may be familiar with. Heroic knights seeing off those who oppose them in huge numbers whilst being admired for their exploits. Lee, Grant Major and Dan Hennah earned the 2004 Academy Award for Best Art Direction for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, third in the film trilogy. [19]