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. |
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Page 7
... sometimes appeared to meet my gaze. At first I thought the crow might be hurt, and thought of calling the humane society or a veterinarian. The crow, however, showed no sign of pain and seemed to be rather less worried than I. There ...
... sometimes appeared to meet my gaze. At first I thought the crow might be hurt, and thought of calling the humane society or a veterinarian. The crow, however, showed no sign of pain and seemed to be rather less worried than I. There ...
Page 8
... sometimes be discreetly watching me. Rejoining other crows after a brief sojourn in the world of human beings, it may carry happy memories and share these with other crows. On the surface, relations between crows and human beings ...
... sometimes be discreetly watching me. Rejoining other crows after a brief sojourn in the world of human beings, it may carry happy memories and share these with other crows. On the surface, relations between crows and human beings ...
Page 17
... sometimes confused with the carrion crow, even though the two are not closely related, simply because they had similar plumage. But to enter into the spirit of archaic tales, we must be able to lay aside some of the knowledge that we ...
... sometimes confused with the carrion crow, even though the two are not closely related, simply because they had similar plumage. But to enter into the spirit of archaic tales, we must be able to lay aside some of the knowledge that we ...
Page 22
... Sometimes she held it down with her feet and bent it with her beak; sometimes she wedged one end with sticky tape and twisted the other. Chimpanzees and monkeys were presented with the same task, and none could grasp how to accomplish ...
... Sometimes she held it down with her feet and bent it with her beak; sometimes she wedged one end with sticky tape and twisted the other. Chimpanzees and monkeys were presented with the same task, and none could grasp how to accomplish ...
Page 24
... sometimes more than two decades, enables crows to develop familial ties over generations. Crows have courtship dances, in which they lower their wings and make their tales quiver, and their sexual relationships are monogamous. Ancient ...
... sometimes more than two decades, enables crows to develop familial ties over generations. Crows have courtship dances, in which they lower their wings and make their tales quiver, and their sexual relationships are monogamous. Ancient ...
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