Tag: magic
-
Guardians, Gods, or Geodudes? Pokemon and Battling Animals in Antiquities
A Pokemon battle in Pokemon Moon (2016)In the Pokemon franchise, Pokemon (or “pocket monsters”, as it directly translates to English) are catchable creatures that can be trained for battle between Pokemon trainers. Pokemon battles have developed an extensive amount of lore through the video games and associated anime series, particularly through myths and legends
-
Vampires of Skyrim (and in Real Life Archaeology): Yesterday and Today
In the Elder Scrolls video game series, there are many fantastical creatures and monsters inhabiting the world, both friendly and hostile to the player character. One of these monsters (or perhaps that’s a bit too judgemental?) is the vampire, whose curse (or blessing?) is passed to others through a disease called “sanguinare vampiris”, also known
-
A Brief Introduction to the Vague World of Ritual: From the Past to the Present
The term “ritual” has a bit of a reputation among archaeologists. Well, less of a “reputation” and more of a “running joke”, if I’m being honest…one of the first things I learned as an undergraduate taking an “Intro to Archaeology” class was that “ritual” is what archaeologists write when they don’t know what’s happening
-
What is Old is New Again: Altars, Today and Yesterday
If you peruse a few Paganism for Beginners-type books, you’ll find that nearly all of them start with the act of assembling one’s altar. This isn’t surprising – altars are arguably, in some form or another, a ubiquitous element across religious and spiritual practices. It is a centre for activity, a focal point for
-
Not For You: Cultural Appropriation in Neo-Paganism and How Archaeology Plays a Role
Issues of cultural appropriation in “New Age” and holistic circles isn’t breaking news – over the past decade, there has been much in the media and news discussing appropriation of ritual garb, sacred herbs, and practices, often by white spiritual leaders who make financial gain through their appropriative acts without providing anything in return to
-
Studies in Skyrim: Lessons in Typologies, from Dwarven Fortresses to Nord Ruins (Part II)
Today’s blog post is the second part of our discussion of archaeological typologies as seen in Skyrim. Last week we started off the conversation with an example of using typology to differentiate between ancient Nord and Dwemer ruins in Blackreach (you can read Part One here!). For today, we’ll be continuing this conversation by looking
-
The Bog Unicorn: The Power of Preservation in Dragon Age (and in Real Life!)
Content Warning: Some images of preserved human remains are below. In the 2014 video game Dragon Age: Inquisition, you play as the Inquisitor who heads the latest Inquisition against an army of demons and heretics. As the leader of such a massive organisation, your character is able to get supplies and aid from all corners
-
Werewolf? Therewolf! Lycanthropy in Skyrim (and Real Life!)
Content Warning: Photo of human remains included in this post. “Legends can take a life of their own, particularly when there are grains of truth, as here we have the very real threat of werewolves” – Lycanthropic Legends of Skyrim, Lentulus Invenitus In the world of Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios 2011), werewolves (and other lyncanthropes
-
No One Knows Who They Were or What They Were Doing: The Many Stonehenges of the United States
In ancient times, Hundreds of years before the dawn of history Lived a strange race of people, the Druids No one knows who they were or what they were doing But their legacy remains Hewn into the living rock, of Stonehenge – Stonehenge, This is Spinal Tap Stonehenge is arguably one of the most iconic
-
Pseudoarchaeology and Neo-Paganism: A Tricky Situation
In his book Green Man: the Archetype of Our Oneness with the Earth (1990), William Anderson makes a point to say that neo-pagans want “every tradition to be as ancient as possible”. Contrary to what some may believe, however, we do not see a lineage of witch religion historically or archaeologically that can be traced
Animal Archaeology 