Engraving by Bernardino Genga, which is included in his work on anatomy: "Anatomia per Uso et Intelligenza del Disegno" (1691)

Work by  Cornelis Anthonisz. 1537

Work by Albrecht Dürer entitled "Death and the Landsknecht" (1510)

Series of engravings made by Hans Holbein around 1523 and collected in his famous work "The Dance of Death" where he shows the conquering and equalizing power of death before all human beings.

Series of engravings made by Hans Holbein around 1523 and collected in his famous work "The Dance of Death" where he shows the conquering and equalizing power of death before all human beings.

Series of engravings made by Hans Holbein around 1523 and collected in his famous work "The Dance of Death" where he shows the conquering and equalizing power of death before all human beings.

Series of engravings made by Hans Holbein around 1523 and collected in his famous work "The Dance of Death" where he shows the conquering and equalizing power of death before all human beings.

Series of engravings made by Hans Holbein around 1523 and collected in his famous work "The Dance of Death" where he shows the conquering and equalizing power of death before all human beings.

We all know the Golden legend where Saint George must save a princess who is going to be sacrificed as a tribute so that a Dragon allows the people to drink from the fountain. When Saint George kills him, the citizens decide to leave their paganism to embrace Christianity. It is said that this story is a translation of the Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda, or of Hercules and Hesione, others relate it to the Egyptian god Horus as the horseman who surpassed Evil with his spear. In any case it is clear that early Christianity adapted the new religion to the existing one, to the old beliefs.

In this process of syncretism, Christian mythology presents us with Saint George as the white knight of the Church and the dragon would be the image of Satan, idolatry and paganism. His image was venerated for centuries, in 494 Georgios - that Roman soldier executed in Nicomedia for his faith in the time of Emperor Diocletian - is canonized and venerated ever since. His cult spread, he became patron of knights and soldiers (miles Christi), protector of the crusaders. During the reconquest, Pedro I and later Jaime I of Aragon appeared to him to help in the fight against the Muslims in the battles of Alcoraz and El Puig respectively.

From here we are left with the symbols of the knight of courage and the wisdom of the dragon, discarding that representation as an incarnation of evil, as a relative of the serpent.

We all know the Golden legend where Saint George must save a princess who is going to be sacrificed as a tribute so that a Dragon allows the people to drink from the fountain. When Saint George kills him, the citizens decide to leave their paganism to embrace Christianity. It is said that this story is a translation of the Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda, or of Hercules and Hesione, others relate it to the Egyptian god Horus as the horseman who surpassed Evil with his spear. In any case it is clear that early Christianity adapted the new religion to the existing one, to the old beliefs.

In this process of syncretism, Christian mythology presents us with Saint George as the white knight of the Church and the dragon would be the image of Satan, idolatry and paganism. His image was venerated for centuries, in 494 Georgios - that Roman soldier executed in Nicomedia for his faith in the time of Emperor Diocletian - is canonized and venerated ever since. His cult spread, he became patron of knights and soldiers (miles Christi), protector of the crusaders. During the reconquest, Pedro I and later Jaime I of Aragon appeared to him to help in the fight against the Muslims in the battles of Alcoraz and El Puig respectively.

From here we are left with the symbols of the knight of courage and the wisdom of the dragon, discarding that representation as an incarnation of evil, as a relative of the serpent.

Hyperborea was one of those lost continents like Atlantis, Lemuria, and Mu that is believed to be located in the Arctic regions. Along with Tule, it was one of several terrae incognitae of the Greeks and Romans. People were said to live to be a thousand years old and to enjoy lives of complete happiness.

This mythical place full of legends, immortal beings and demigods, has been considered as the polar center of civilization and spirituality of the Golden Age.

Hyperborea has been extensively referenced in literature, from Joyce's Ulysses to the works of the Three Musketeers of the Weird Tale: Clark Ashton Smith in his Hyperborean cycle connects with the literature of HP Lovecraft (with whom he shared a great affinity) and the Cthulhu myths. And good old Robert E. Howard used the name Hyperborea (the first kingdom to form after the destruction of Thuria) as part of the geography of the literary universe of Conan the Barbarian.

If you have seen women running through the streets from one place to another being chased by some half naked guys in wolf skins who whipped and whipped them with bloody strips of ram, do not be alarmed! they are just remembering an old pagan festival, something lewd that yes, but it was a sacred rite of purification and fecundity celebrated in Ancient Rome every February 15 called the lupercales or Lupercalia.

The word comes from lupus, that is, wolf and its Roman god of fertility and male sexuality Fauno Luperco (Greek mythological deity Pan, the one who protected the wolf), a strange, hairy being, with legs and horns of a goat and large, pointed ears with a voracious and infinite sexual appetite.

One of the legends tells that in the ancient city of Alba Longa, the evil Amulio after deposing his brother Numitor from the throne, ordered to kill all his first-born, turning his daughter Rea Silvia into a virgin so that she would not have successors, but The god of war Mars was enraptured by the girl and they procreated the brothers Romulus and Remus, who managed to escape from the clutches of their uncle Amulio, managing to survive in the forests thanks to the woodpecker and the she-wolf Luperca who nursed and raised them. Years later they would return to their homeland to take revenge and kill him.

Due to the shortage of fertility and women in Rome, the oracle of the goddess Juno announced that the mothers of Lazio would be fertilized by a male goat. For this purpose, a ritual was held every February 15 in the Lupercal cave - there where Romulus and Remus were suckled by the she-wolf - where the most virile young men were selected - those ephebos who, on their initiation path, had lived in the forests as human wolves—, called loberos or luperci (friends of the wolf), and their faces were marked with the blood of a dog and a sacrificed male goat.

To make the rite more fun and interesting, virile members were created in the form of strips with the skin of the goat ... The libido to the surface, the lustful participants launched themselves in the carnal search for women eager to be impregnated, who agreed in a Shameless sexual play, whipping and spanking included, in a depurifying act that increased fertility.

Christianity erased with a stroke of the pen this fun bacchanal, so beneficial to health and to the women of Ancient Rome, moving it to February 14, Valentine's Day.

If you have seen women running through the streets from one place to another being chased by some half naked guys in wolf skins who whipped and whipped them with bloody strips of ram, do not be alarmed! they are just remembering an old pagan festival, something lewd that yes, but it was a sacred rite of purification and fecundity celebrated in Ancient Rome every February 15 called the lupercales or Lupercalia.

The word comes from lupus, that is, wolf and its Roman god of fertility and male sexuality Fauno Luperco (Greek mythological deity Pan, the one who protected the wolf), a strange, hairy being, with legs and horns of a goat and large, pointed ears with a voracious and infinite sexual appetite.

One of the legends tells that in the ancient city of Alba Longa, the evil Amulio after deposing his brother Numitor from the throne, ordered to kill all his first-born, turning his daughter Rea Silvia into a virgin so that she would not have successors, but The god of war Mars was enraptured by the girl and they procreated the brothers Romulus and Remus, who managed to escape from the clutches of their uncle Amulio, managing to survive in the forests thanks to the woodpecker and the she-wolf Luperca who nursed and raised them. Years later they would return to their homeland to take revenge and kill him.

Due to the shortage of fertility and women in Rome, the oracle of the goddess Juno announced that the mothers of Lazio would be fertilized by a male goat. For this purpose, a ritual was held every February 15 in the Lupercal cave - there where Romulus and Remus were suckled by the she-wolf - where the most virile young men were selected - those ephebos who, on their initiation path, had lived in the forests as human wolves—, called loberos or luperci (friends of the wolf), and their faces were marked with the blood of a dog and a sacrificed male goat.

To make the rite more fun and interesting, virile members were created in the form of strips with the skin of the goat ... The libido to the surface, the lustful participants launched themselves in the carnal search for women eager to be impregnated, who agreed in a Shameless sexual play, whipping and spanking included, in a depurifying act that increased fertility.

Christianity erased with a stroke of the pen this fun bacchanal, so beneficial to health and to the women of Ancient Rome, moving it to February 14, Valentine's Day.

If you have seen women running through the streets from one place to another being chased by some half naked guys in wolf skins who whipped and whipped them with bloody strips of ram, do not be alarmed! they are just remembering an old pagan festival, something lewd that yes, but it was a sacred rite of purification and fecundity celebrated in Ancient Rome every February 15 called the lupercales or Lupercalia.

The word comes from lupus, that is, wolf and its Roman god of fertility and male sexuality Fauno Luperco (Greek mythological deity Pan, the one who protected the wolf), a strange, hairy being, with legs and horns of a goat and large, pointed ears with a voracious and infinite sexual appetite.

One of the legends tells that in the ancient city of Alba Longa, the evil Amulio after deposing his brother Numitor from the throne, ordered to kill all his first-born, turning his daughter Rea Silvia into a virgin so that she would not have successors, but The god of war Mars was enraptured by the girl and they procreated the brothers Romulus and Remus, who managed to escape from the clutches of their uncle Amulio, managing to survive in the forests thanks to the woodpecker and the she-wolf Luperca who nursed and raised them. Years later they would return to their homeland to take revenge and kill him.

Due to the shortage of fertility and women in Rome, the oracle of the goddess Juno announced that the mothers of Lazio would be fertilized by a male goat. For this purpose, a ritual was held every February 15 in the Lupercal cave - there where Romulus and Remus were suckled by the she-wolf - where the most virile young men were selected - those ephebos who, on their initiation path, had lived in the forests as human wolves—, called loberos or luperci (friends of the wolf), and their faces were marked with the blood of a dog and a sacrificed male goat.

To make the rite more fun and interesting, virile members were created in the form of strips with the skin of the goat ... The libido to the surface, the lustful participants launched themselves in the carnal search for women eager to be impregnated, who agreed in a Shameless sexual play, whipping and spanking included, in a depurifying act that increased fertility.

Christianity erased with a stroke of the pen this fun bacchanal, so beneficial to health and to the women of Ancient Rome, moving it to February 14, Valentine's Day.

Naked, in front of oneself, next to the oak, the sun awaits us, it plays night vigil.

Let the log burn, let us burn the old,

and with its ashes we purify our soul,

their fertile sowing give us an abundance of heart and wisdom.

May the ancestors join us in the great banquet until dawn.

The life that sleeps under the earth will be reborn after darkness.

Yule.

February 27, 380, the emperor Theodosius abolished the religion and festival of the Sun Invictus by the famous edict of Thessalonica. Until then the Romans worshiped the Sun god during the Republic, and with greater prominence in the Imperial era, since the gradual entry of different religions of salvation of monotheistic tendency, such as Christianity and Mithrism, was giving greater weight to the power of the star king, the one who conquered the darkness ...

Emperor Aurelian made it official on December 25 as the day of the birth of the Undefeated Sun (the main divinity of the Roman pantheon at that time) back in the year 274 and later Juliano the Apostate would declare Helios (Greek equivalent) as the only divinity, and would try to prevent the spread of growing Christianity.

Finally, during a long process of syncretism, both the Festival of the Birth of the Invincible Sun "Dies Natalis Solis Invicti" held after the Winter Solstice, when daylight increased, as well as many other acts and celebrations were gradually reconverted. Paganism would come to an end, a new stage would begin with a victorious sun reborn in the arms of a Galilean.

An ancient Persian myth told us of the coming of an envoy from the Sun, Mithras, who, dressed with Phrygian, torch and dagger, will be worshiped by shepherds, and in a primordial cave he will redeem men through the sacrifice of a primeval bull. According to legend after being captured, he will carry it on his shoulders and kill him. The new world will be reborn after its ascension to heaven together with its resurrected dead beyond the stars ...

As often happens, the myth was lost in time until Rome rescued it back in the 1st century BC. assimilating him to the God Invictus, where after the Saturnalia every December 25, Mitra would be reborn victorious "natalis solis invicti" (death, resurrection and growth of the crops).

The light is reborn and returns, the end of the darkness of days is approaching. With the sowing and the field work completed, it is time to celebrate the coming of light. Let's light candles, decorate our homes with plants, get together with family and friends, exchange gifts, drink and eat, these are days of fun.

Rome dresses up with sacrifices in honor of Saturn and agrarian cults, there are no slaves or masters, no wars or executions, no sickles or hoes, just public banquets, joy, laughter, happiness, country delight and carnival, let's rejoice for a year more of this ancient pagan celebration !! The winter solstice is soon over, our undefeated Sun is returning soon. Happy Saturnalia!!