St George slayer of the dragon found in Syria

[emad]

Mosaic inspired image of England's favourite saint
By Norman Hammond, Archaeology Correspondent



http://images.thetimes.co.uk/TGD/picture/0,,212107,00.jpg
THE earliest known template for the image of St George slaying the dragon has been found in Syria, archaeologists believe.

A mosaic floor dating from approximately AD260 depicting the figure who became the patron saint of England has been found in the city of Palmyra in the Syrian desert. Experts say that the portrait is one of the finest classical mosaics yet uncovered and may even be the source of the St George legend.

George was reputedly a Roman soldier, martyred in Palestine some 1,700 years ago. The mosaic shows Bellerophon, a hero in Greek mythology, killing a chimera, and it was found in what appears to have been a dining room in Palmyra.

The warrior is wearing a wide-rimmed Roman helmet with a red streamer and is flanked by two eagles bringing wreaths of victory. Bellerophon is riding the winged Pegasus and thrusting a spear down into the lion’s head of the chimera, while its two other heads, a snake forming its tail and a goat on its back, hiss up at him.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,174-1684979,00.html

[REP]

1. That's Gorgeous

What a beautiful mosaic, and it's in such wonderful condition. Thanks for posting this.

[TlalocW]

2. That's the dragon?

It's the same size as a medium-sized dog! I'm not impressed with St. George. Plus he's on a flying horse - huge advantage! :)

TlalocW

[displacedtexan]

3. Wow!

Just WOW!

Add this to the 30,000 year-old American footprint and watch the fascist fundie freepers go ape shit.

[HereSince1628]

4. Isn't St. George also a big part of Russian culture?

[acmavm]

5. All this and a dinosaur footprint found in the interior of Alaska, away

from the coast.

Bad day for fundies. Bad month for bush suporters

[Solly Mack]

6. Beautiful. (Please don't let Bush bomb it and destroy it)

[SpiralHawk]

7. A wee bit about Bellerophon

For those who might wish to take this discovery as an omen that the self-annointed Chimperor of today might someday be in exile:



Making History was asked about HMS Bellerophon, the ship on which
Napoleon spent time before his exile in St Helena. We consulted maritime historian David Cordingly who is currently writing a book about the ship.

HMS Bellerophon was launched in 1786 on the River Medway near Chatham. She had been designed by Sir Thomas Slade, the Royal Navy's surveyor. Her name came from Greek mythology: Bellerophon rode the winged horse Pegasus and killed the monster Chimera, but then displeased the gods by presuming to visit them on Mount Olympus. The sailors on board the Bellerophon found the name difficult to pronounce and called her the 'Billy Ruffian'.

The Bellerophon is best remembered now because of the Napoleon episode but she had a very chequered career. Early on she had been at the Battle of the 'Glorious First of June' in 1794, in which the British Fleet commanded by Lord Howe attacked the French fleet off the Dutch coast. At the Battle of the Nile in 1798 she was engaged in a desperate battle, and she was also at Trafalgar where her captain was killed.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/beyond/factsheets/makhist/makhist5_prog10a.shtml