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Post by sol on Sept 28, 2016 0:50:29 GMT -5
Last Saturday I visited the Cistercian Abbey of San Galgano,the one that appears in the movie The English Patient , very ancient and big, impressive in the silence of the hills
In a small chapel, you can see the sword in the stone: from the terracotta floor it sticks out a rock, in which is embedded a cruciform sword, by the analysis it was roughly forged in 1170
There is a small subscription, in the round chapel: twice blessed be those who gave up wealth and gave up war
According to many historians Galgano'ld be Guillame X of Aquitaine, father of the queen Eleanor, troubadour whose court was frequented by Chretien de Troyes, one of the poets of the Arthurian cycle
Why this story?
To reiterate that Twice Blessed - that only appears in the quatrain, never more Charmed - is not a title nor an indication of some particular power
It's just a formula of benediction and greeting, widespread in the Middle Ages, as in my region, the northern meseta, it's said: blessed by the fairies
And to reiterate that the Sword is powerless: in Arthurian legend it symbolizes the real blood that resumes its rights, in Tuscany reality symbolizes a total rejection of power and weapons
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Post by magena on Sept 28, 2016 16:51:42 GMT -5
What's a nice story! A real sword in the stone! I'm goingto search for news about it
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