"True Thomas lay on Huntlie Bank;
A marvel he did see;
For there he saw a lady bright,
Come riding down by the Eildon tree.
...
'All hail, thou mighty Queen of Heaven!
For thy peer on earth could never be.'
'O no, O no, Thomas,' she said,
'I'm but the Queen of fair Elfland,
That hither am come to visit thee.'"
- True Thomas, medieval Border Ballad
Having just finished the last of Warner's Elfin tales, before moving on to her cat ones, I ⬇️
Bookwomble ... picked up the Collins Albatross Book of Verse, and by a happy #LiterarySynchronicty got a classic poem of faery enchantment about Thomas the Rhymer's brush with the Queen of Elfland. Thomas accepts the Queen's invitation to visit her realm by the middle road, the other two leading to heaven and hell, establishing the Fae as being something different from human, angel or devil. After seven years, Thomas returns to mortal lands unable to tell ⬇️ (edited) 5mo
Bookwomble ... a lie and with the gift of prophecy. I'm enjoying this and the other early ballads more than I'd expected 🧚♂️ 5mo
dabbe 💚 Thomas Rhymer! 5mo
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