In honor of Sir Sean Connery.
Question: Name the characters played by Sean Connery. (Think carefully on this one)
Sylum INspiraiton: Gorgo
Sanguen: Council Member
Note: You might notice a change in how the bios look on the wiki. We haven’t quite figured out what exactly happened, but when they updated wordpress, the tabs got screwed up and stopped working. So we changed themes … will it worked slightly. Tabs now only work on Pages, not Post. Considering all our bios used tabs this is a problem.
The plugin we used for tabs hasn’t been updated in over a year, and come to find out webpage no longer exsists – so yeah we had to come up with something new. None of the other programs worked the way we needed so we decided to showcase the bio differently.
As there are over a 1000 characters this is a slow process. When we do Sylum Inspirations – the bios will get updated. Meantime we’re first working through bios that already have new images – starting with Border and working our way forward. When we uploaded a new image, we’ll update the bio. The info is still there just doesn’t look as clean, as the new updates.
Gorgo was the daughter and the only known child of Cleomenes I, King of Sparta (r. 520–490 BC) during the 6th and 5th centuries BC. She was the wife of King Leonidas I, Cleomenes’ half-brother, who fought and died in the Battle of Thermopylae. Gorgo is noted as one of the few female historical figures actually named by Herodotus, and was known for her political judgement and wisdom. She is notable for being the daughter of a King of Sparta, the wife of another king of Sparta, and the mother of a third king of Sparta.
Her father Cleomenes was the eldest-born son of the previous Agiad king, Anaxandridas II, and succeeded his father at his death; however, he had three paternal half-brothers, of whom the second, Dorieus, would cause him some trouble. The other two half-brothers were Leonidas I and Cleombrotus. All four were sons of Anaxandridas II, one of the dual kings of Sparta of the Agiad house.
According to one version, Gorgo’s grandfather Anaxandridas II was long married without children, and was advised to remarry (i.e. take a second wife) which he did. His second wife gave birth to the future Cleomenes I who was thus his eldest son; however, his first wife subsequently became pregnant, and eventually gave birth to three sons, including Leonidas I. This version is however not supported by other sources, which imply that Cleomenes was either born by the king’s first marriage or by a non-marital alliance. In either case, there appears to have been some tension between the eldest son and his half-brothers, resolved only by the former’s death (or murder) and the accession of Leonidas I (at once his half-brother and his son-in-law).
Gorgo’s mother is unknown, but she was certainly Spartan since she was Leonidas’ Queen. Little about Gorgo’s childhood is known, although she was probably raised like other Spartan girls of noble family, well fed, encouraged in daily physical exercise, and educated, including literacy and numeracy. She would have learned to ride and drive chariots and have taken part in Sparta’s many festivals, dancing and singing in chorus.
According to Herodotus’s Histories, at about the age of eight to nine years old, she advised her father Cleomenes not to trust Aristagoras of Miletus, a foreign diplomat trying to induce Cleomenes to support an Ionian revolt against Persians. “Father, you had better have this man go away, or the stranger will corrupt you.” Cleomenes followed her advice. Scholars have suggested, however, that Herodotus intentionally reduced Gorgo’s age at the time of this incident to make her father look particularly foolish. More likely, Herodotus underestimated her age simply because in other Greek cities girls were married at age 12 or 13 and so rarely in their father’s household as teenagers or adults. It is more probable, that Gorgo was closer to 18 or 19 at the time of this incident.
Presumably, after Cleomenes’s death, his only surviving child Gorgo became his sole heiress. She was apparently already married by 490 (in her early teens) to her half-uncle Leonidas I. Leonidas and Gorgo would have at least one child, a son, Pleistarchus, co-King of Sparta from 480 BC to his death in 459 BC/458 BC.
Arguably, Gorgo’s most significant role occurred prior to the Persian invasion of 480 BC. According to Herodotus’s Histories, Demaratus, then in exile at the Persian court, sent a warning to Sparta about Xerxes’s pending invasion. In order to prevent the message from being intercepted by the Persians or their vassal states, the message was written on a wooden tablet and then covered with wax. “The Spartans”, presumably the ephors, Gerousia or the kings, did not know what to do with the seemingly blank wax-tablet, until Queen Gorgo advised them to clear the wax off the tablet. She is described by David Kahn in his book The Codebreakers as one of the first female cryptanalysts whose name has been recorded.
There are also indications that Gorgo travelled outside of Sparta, specifically to Athens. Virtually all of Leonidas’ reign was dominated by his efforts to form a coalition of Greek states willing to resist the impending Persian invasion. This entailed close coordination with the other main opponent of Persia, Athens. It is likely, therefore, that Leonidas travelled to Athens more than once. That Gorgo accompanied can be inferred from two quotes attributed to her by Plutarch. First, he records that “a stranger in a finely embroidered robe” made advances to Gorgo earning the rebuke that “he couldn’t even play a female role”. While a stranger might have been in Sparta, it is not very likely that he would risk making advances to a Spartan Queen in the midst of her highly armed and notoriously proud subjects. More to the point, however, Gorgo could only make a reference to the theater (playing a female role), if she had experienced it. Sparta is not believed to have had theater at this time, whereas it was already very popular in Athens. Even more explicit is the fact that Gorgo’s most famous quip about only Spartan women giving birth to men was, according to Plutarch, made in answer to “a woman from Attica”. Since women from Attica were not supposed to leave the women’s quarters of their own homes, it is inconceivable that a woman from Attica would have travelled to Sparta. Spartan women, on the other hand, drove chariots and travelled around Lacedaemon on their own, making it perfectly plausible that Gorgo travelled with her husband (and his bodyguard) on one or more of his trips to other Greek cities.
According to Plutarch, before the Battle of Thermopylae, knowing that her husband’s death in battle was inevitable, she asked him what to do. Leonidas replied “marry a good man who will treat you well, bear him children, and live a good life”.
For More Information Contact Vampire Council Library
When Dilios returned to tell the story of what happened, he ended up ostracized from Sparta. Later he returned, finding Gorgo to tell her the story of her husband. She asked what was different about him, he told him the gods had given him a gift to continue the story of Sparta.
She requested the same gift.
Sylum Christmas Card Exchange 2020: Reminder
It’s that time of year!
Sign Up for Sylum’s annual Christmas Card Exchange. It’s been a rough year for all of us, so if you would like cards, but can’t send cards still sign up just let me know. If you would like to participate but can only send e-cards also sign up. Also if you feel more comfortable getting e-cards, just let me know when you sign up.
Sign Ups will close November 15th:
Will send out the list on November 20th:
Reminder the USPS is a bit unreliable right now, so don’t be surprised if cards show up late.
Please sign up below
Coffee House Friday
It’s November. We’re closer to the end of the year!
Check in time! How is everyone doing?
Sylum Advent 2020: Banners Due
If you’re participating and need a banner you should’ve already reached out to taibhrigh. If you haven’t do so now, if you need help let me know.
Afternoon Fic: The Dragon General (Part Fourteen)
Note: I missed last week’s post – it was my birthday so wasn’t even on the computer! Making up or it by posting two this week. If you were waiting for Took
Read more“Afternoon Fic: The Dragon General (Part Fourteen)”
Sylum Charity: Music for Relief
The Western United States and Canada typically see wildfires each year, especially between August and November. In 2020 “Above Normal significant fire potential is expected across much of the Great Basin, northern California, Pacific Northwest, and northern Rockies.” According to the National Interagency Fire Center’s (NIFC) National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) – the body that coordinates wildfire resources across the U.S in their August 1 update.
And we’re already seeing that prediction come to be. There are several major fires burning across North America and as of the morning of August 19, there were 75 large uncontained fires identified by the NICC with the goal of full suppression and another 18 major wildfires being managed under another strategy such as controlled burn.
In California, as of Aug. 19, there have been at least 5,762 fire incidents so far in 2020. Compared with 5,800 incidents by the end of October in 2019. California Governor Gavin Newsome declared a state of emergency for the entire state of California on August 18th as a result of the significant fires and the critical fire weather conditions.
Immediate needs include shelter, evacuation support, family reconnection, food, health care (especially due to the excessive smoke and poor air quality during the COVID-19 pandemic) and case management. Due to COVID-19, additional resources will be required to evacuate safely into non-communal facilities.
Long-term support will be needed for the rebuilding of homes, income recovery, agricultural needs and additional preparedness support to vulnerable populations and mental health and psychosocial support. The combined threat of COVID-19 and wildfires are causing extraordinary anxiety and trauma in affected populations.
For a complete list of all active wildfire incidents across the United States, please visit the National Interagency Fire Center or the National Wildfire Coordination Group’s InciWeb.
For More Information: Music for Relief
Sylum Updates: Reminders & Odds/Ends
Lots of posts from me today!!
Just a few odds/ends to give an update and discuss.
Sylum Security: Yahoo is closing on the 15th of December, which isn’t that far away. We’re moving to Groups.io for the distribution of the password. If you haven’t joined the new group please do.
New Group: Sylum Security
Sylum Wiki: As stated on the Sylum Inspiration – the updates screwed up all the tabs on the wiki. It works on the Pages but not the posts! The developer of the plugin we used has disappeared so we’re working out a new system. If you clicked the link for Aristotle you’ll see the new bio format. At the moment we’re slowly updating the bios. We’re focusing on bios with the updated images so far we’ve updated bios in Border and Camelot. Any Bio used for Sylum Inspiration will be updated before posting, and when we get new images we’ll update the bio.
Sylum Vault: Yes, you just got a post about it, but in typical fashion, just as the post went out we were notified that Etsy was able to get everything put into place to show that the website is updated and secured, so all is good. So stop on by and check out the new digs.
Sylum Vault: We’re Back!
Through we’ve had a few setbacks, and still recovering from the move – the Vault is finally back!
We have some new changes we’re excited about! We now have our own Webpage!
Check out SylumVault.com (Heads Up: At the moment the site will show as not secure, we’re working with Etsy to get this fixed. Please note that all billing/transactions is still through Etsy and secured – it’s just the domain name that is being a problem child.)
If you would prefer to still explore the shop through Etsy – Click Here.
We’re still adjusting to the new studio space, and building a project area … but we’re excited to get back into the swing things especially as – it’s our 5th Anniversary!
Yes you read that right, today marks the 5th Anniversary for Sylum Vault!
So come on by, check out the new digs. The Holiday season is coming, you should start your shopping now!
Sylum Inspiration: Aristotle
Sanguen: Advisor
Note: You might notice a change in how the bios look on the wiki. We haven’t quite figured out what exactly happened, but when they updated wordpress, the tabs got screwed up and stopped working. So we changed themes … will it worked slightly. Tabs now only work on Pages, not Post. Considering all our bios used tabs this is a problem.
The plugin we used for tabs hasn’t been updated in over a year, and come to find out webpage no longer exsists – so yeah we had to come up with something new. None of the other programs worked the way we needed so we decided to showcase the bio differently.
As there are over a 1000 characters this is a slow process. When we do Sylum Inspirations – the bios will get updated. Meantime we’re first working through bios that already have new images – starting with Border and working our way forward. When we uploaded a new image, we’ll update the bio. The info is still there just doesn’t look as clean, as the new updates.
Aristotle, whose name means “the best purpose”, was born in 384 BC in Stagira, Chalcidice, about 55 km (34 miles) east of modern-day Thessaloniki. His father Nicomachus was the personal physician to King Amyntas of Macedon. Although there is little information on Aristotle’s childhood, he probably spent some time within the Macedonian palace, making his first connections with the Macedonian monarchy.
At about the age of eighteen, Aristotle moved to Athens to continue his education at Plato’s Academy. He remained there for nearly twenty years before leaving Athens in 348/47 BC. The traditional story about his departure records that he was disappointed with the Academy’s direction after control passed to Plato’s nephew Speusippus, although it is possible that he feared anti-Macedonian sentiments and left before Plato had died.
Aristotle then accompanied Xenocrates to the court of his friend Hermias of Atarneus in Asia Minor. There, he traveled with Theophrastus to the island of Lesbos, where together they researched the botany and zoology of the island. Aristotle married Pythias, either Hermias’s adoptive daughter or niece. She bore him a daughter, whom they also named Pythias. Soon after Hermias’ death, Aristotle was invited by Philip II of Macedon to become the tutor to his son Alexander in 343 BC.
Aristotle was appointed as the head of the royal academy of Macedon. During that time he gave lessons not only to Alexander, but also to two other future kings: Ptolemy and Cassander. Aristotle encouraged Alexander toward eastern conquest and his attitude towards Persia was unabashedly ethnocentric. In one famous example, he counsels Alexander to be “a leader to the Greeks and a despot to the barbarians, to look after the former as after friends and relatives, and to deal with the latter as with beasts or plants”.
By 335 BC, Artistotle had returned to Athens, establishing his own school there known as the Lyceum. Aristotle conducted courses at the school for the next twelve years. While in Athens, his wife Pythias died and Aristotle became involved with Herpyllis of Stagira, who bore him a son whom he named after his father, Nicomachus. According to the Suda, he also had an eromenos, Palaephatus of Abydus.
This period in Athens, between 335 and 323 BC, is when Aristotle is believed to have composed many of his works. He wrote many dialogues of which only fragments have survived. Those works that have survived are in treatise form and were not, for the most part, intended for widespread publication; they are generally thought to be lecture aids for his students. His most important treatises include Physics, Metaphysics, Nicomachean Ethics, Politics, De Anima (On the Soul) and Poetics.
Aristotle not only studied almost every subject possible at the time, but made significant contributions to most of them. In physical science, Aristotle studied anatomy, astronomy, embryology, geography, geology, meteorology, physics and zoology. In philosophy, he wrote on aesthetics, ethics, government, metaphysics, politics, economics, psychology, rhetoric and theology. He also studied education, foreign customs, literature and poetry. His combined works constitute a virtual encyclopedia of Greek knowledge.
Near the end of his life, Alexander and Aristotle became estranged over Alexander’s relationship with Persia and Persians. A widespread tradition in antiquity suspected Aristotle of playing a role in Alexander’s death, but there is little evidence.
Following Alexander’s death, anti-Macedonian sentiment in Athens was rekindled. In 322 BC, Eurymedon the Hierophant denounced Aristotle for not holding the gods in honor, prompting him to flee to his mother’s family estate in Chalcis, explaining: “I will not allow the Athenians to sin twice against philosophy” – a reference to Athens’s prior trial and execution of Socrates.
For More Information contact the Vampire Council Library
Aristotle was ready to leave this earth, when he was visited by an old friend. When he saw Alexander he first thought he had already gone to the afterlife. It took a few moments for Alexander to convince him he wasn’t insane or dead. When he was told about Vampires, Aristotle knew this is what his life had led up to.
Sylum Christmas Card Exchange 2020: Sign Ups
It’s that time of year!
Sign Up for Sylum’s annual Christmas Card Exchange. It’s been a rough year for all of us, so if you would like cards, but can’t send cards still sign up just let me know. If you would like to participate but can only send e-cards also sign up. Also if you feel more comfortable getting e-cards, just let me know when you sign up.
Sign Ups will close November 15th:
Will send out the list on November 20th:
Reminder the USPS is a bit unreliable right now, so don’t be surprised if cards show up late.
Please sign up below
