CrowThough not generally perceived as graceful, crows are remarkably so—a single curve undulates from the tip of the bird’s beak to the end of its tail. They take flight almost without effort, flapping their wings easily and ascending into the air like spirits. Crow by Boria Sax is a celebration of the crow and its relatives in myth, literature, and life. Sax takes readers into the history of crows, detailing how in a range of cultures, from the Chinese to the Hopi Indians, crows are bearers of prophecy. For example, thanks in part to the birds’ courtship rituals, Greeks invoked crows as symbols of conjugal love. From the raven sent out by Noah to the corvid deities of the Eskimo, from Taoist legends to Victorian novels and contemporary films, Sax’s book ranges across history and culture and will interest anyone who has ever been intrigued, puzzled, annoyed, or charmed by these wonderfully intelligent birds. |
From inside the book
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Page 13
... crow's beak to the end of its tail is a single curve, which changes rhythmically as the crow turns its head or bends toward the ground. The best known members of the genus Corvus are the carrion crow (Corvus corone corone), the hooded crow ...
... crow's beak to the end of its tail is a single curve, which changes rhythmically as the crow turns its head or bends toward the ground. The best known members of the genus Corvus are the carrion crow (Corvus corone corone), the hooded crow ...
Page 21
... hooded crows systematically draw out the twine from the water and steal the catch. Many researchers over the past several decades have also reported incidents that confirm the intelligence of crows. One crow in a laboratory figured out ...
... hooded crows systematically draw out the twine from the water and steal the catch. Many researchers over the past several decades have also reported incidents that confirm the intelligence of crows. One crow in a laboratory figured out ...
Page 25
... crow and the American crow, form large assemblies in late autumn or winter. Sometimes they number in the thousands (occasionally over a million), but the reason remains ... crows are rooks A Hooded Crow from a 19th- century book of natural.
... crow and the American crow, form large assemblies in late autumn or winter. Sometimes they number in the thousands (occasionally over a million), but the reason remains ... crows are rooks A Hooded Crow from a 19th- century book of natural.
Page 26
Boria Sax. A Hooded Crow from a 19th- century book of natural history. Farmers are often ready to forgive crows for eating their grain, so appealing are these birds. and jackdaws, which form colonies, with a great many nests in a single ...
Boria Sax. A Hooded Crow from a 19th- century book of natural history. Farmers are often ready to forgive crows for eating their grain, so appealing are these birds. and jackdaws, which form colonies, with a great many nests in a single ...
Page 42
... Crows - probably, hooded crows - were most especially known as symbols of auspicious marriage. At Athenian weddings people would sing 'the crow song' in the hope that the couple would be faithful and have their union blessed with ...
... Crows - probably, hooded crows - were most especially known as symbols of auspicious marriage. At Athenian weddings people would sing 'the crow song' in the hope that the couple would be faithful and have their union blessed with ...
Contents
31 | |
38 | |
The European Middle Ages and Renaissance | 55 |
Asia | 80 |
Native American Culture | 90 |
The Romantic Era | 102 |
Lord of the Crows | 128 |
The Twentieth Century and Beyond | 144 |
References | 164 |
Bibliography | 168 |
Websites | 175 |
Associations | 177 |
Acknowledgements | 178 |
Photo Acknowledgements | 179 |
Index | 180 |
Timeline | 162 |
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Common terms and phrases
Ages and Renaissance American crow animals Apollo appear archaic associated Athena Badbh battle beak became behaviour birds body carrion crow Celtic Celts colour common raven corone corvids creatures crow Corvus crow or raven crows and ravens culture dead death deity divination Emperor Ernest Thompson Seton especially Europe fable farmers feathers fields flew genus Corvus Ghost Dance goddess Gogh Greek Grimm brothers heaven hero hooded crow Horapollo human illustration Indians Inuit Irish jackdaw Jacob de Voragine killed king legend literature live Lorenz magpie medieval Middle Ages myths Native Americans nests nineteenth century Noah numbers O'Casey Odin painted pecking perched perhaps poem popular probably prophet raven or crow Roman rooks scarecrow scaring scientists Sean O'Casey Seton shows Silverspot sometimes story symbol tale tell told traditions tree twentieth century wings wolves word wrote young