SATAN AND A SOUL, EWELME, OXON.
REMORSE, YORK.
Not entirely, though in some degree, the two next illustrations support the theory, of punishment rather than conflict, for the others.
The carving in York Cathedral is of a graceful type; there is one closely resembling it at Wells. The Glasgow sketch is from the drawing of a fragment of the cathedral; it is more vivid and ludicrous than the other. A comparison of these two affords a good idea of the excellent in Gothic ornament. The Glasgow carving lacks everything but vigor; the York production, though no exceptional example, has vigor, poetry, and grace.
We will now revert to the more personal and “human” aspect of Satan.
REMORSE, GLASGOW.
A writer[4] in the Art Journal some years ago offered excellent general observations upon the ideas of the Evil One found at various periods. He pointed out that the frolicsome character of the mediæval demon was imparted by Christianity, with its forbidden Satan coming into contact with the popular belief in hobgoblins and fairies which were common in the old heathen belief of this island, and so the sterner teaching was tinged by more popular fancies.
There is much truth in this, except that for the hobgoblins and fairies we may very well read ancient deities, for the ultimate effect of Christianity upon Pagan reverence was to turn it into contempt and abhorrence for good and bad deities alike. We can read this in the slender records of ancient worships whose traces are left in language. Thus Bo is apparently one of the ancient root-words implying divinity; Bod, the goddess of fecundity; Boivani, goddess of destruction; Bolay, the giant who overcame heaven, earth and hell; Bouders, or Boudons, the genii guarding Shiva, and Boroon, a sea-god, are in Indian mythology. Bossum is a good deity of Africa. Borvo and Bormania were guardians of hot springs, and with Bouljanus were gods of old Gaul. Borr was the father of Odin, and Bure was Borr’s sister. The Bo-tree of India is the sacred tree of wisdom. In Sumatra boo is a root-word meaning good (as in booroo). Bog is the Slavonic for god. These are given to shew a probable connection among wide-spread worships.