THE SHIPS OF HY-BRASIL

Part 2 of 2

In Part 1 of “The Ships of Hy-Brasil” we learned that Howard’s poem “The Isle of Hy-Brasil” is more than a historical narration of this island and its myth. As stated previously, “Isle” essentially describes the many types of ships anchored along its shores. To envision the beauty of this ancient island shoreline when lined with these ships, pictures of each ship type as well as a description have been added below. The ships discussed in Part 1 include the galleon, the coracle, the trireme, the galley, an ancient barge-boat, and the pirate ships: the brigantine, the caravel, the carrack and finally the frigate. Part 2 begins with the bireme.

And there’s a sturdy bireme that sailed to the Holy Land.

The Bireme

The Bireme is a galley type ship with two bank of oars that was especially used by the Greeks and Phoenicians. The ship had a hull of wood and was used for both shipping and naval warfare possibly as early as 350 bc It was configured with a single square rigged sail, short mast. The two banks of oars provided man-powered propulsion in case of calm waters or for better control in battles. The bronze armored ram on the bow of the ship was designed to be driven deep into an enemy ship. In addition to the small number of crew required, there could hold as many as 45 sailors during combat as well as additional fighting men on the main deck who were ready to board enemy vessels that had been rammed. Top speed was approximately seven knots.

(Continue reading this post)

The Word of the Week Blog has appeared on The Cimmerian Blog each Monday since August 3, 2009. In May 2010, the format was slightly changed to include a monthly theme.  In the May introduction, it was mentioned the theme in June would be ships. Unfortunately, WotW will only post once this month. However, to fulfill that promise here is a two-part article on “The Ships of Hy-Brasil” from my February 2010 REHupa mailing based on the Robert E. Howard poem, “The Isle of Hy-Brasil.”  These will be the last two postings for Word of the Week on TC. Enjoy!

THE SHIPS OF HY-BRASIL
Part 1 of 2

In his poem, the “Isle of Hy-Brasil,” Robert E. Howard brings to life the fabled isle that existed even when the pre-historical islands of Atlantis and Lemuria were still afloat in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The isle, also known as Brazil, Hy-Brazil, and several other variants, is steeped in Irish myth. According to legend, it is a phantom island cloaked in mist, except for one day each seven years when it becomes visible but still unattainable. Similar in myth to that of St. Brendan’s Island [spelled Brandon in the poem], it is shown as being circular, often with a central strait or river running east-west across its diameter. Despite failure in the attempts to find Hy-Brasil/St. Brendan’s Island, it appeared regularly on maps lying southwest of Galway Bay from 1325 until 1865.

Howard’s poem “The Isle of Hy-Brasil” is more than a historical narration of this island and its myth. It essentially describes the many types of ships anchored along its shores. To envision the beauty of this ancient island shoreline when lined with these ships, pictures of each ship type as well as a description have been added below.

(Continue reading this post)

As most of you probably know by now, The Cimmerian blog will be coming to an end on June 11. Both the original print journal and the blog version have been integral parts of Howard fandom and scholarship during this first decade of the twenty-first century and I am honored and humbled to have had a very tiny place in that legacy.

(Continue reading this post)

Ouketi is the transliteration of the Greek word meaning “no longer” or “no more.” It suggests the end of the old ways and the beginning of something new. It means a change. When prior events have been painful, the change can be positive. However, a haunting lament echoes and goodbyes become painful when an enjoyable experience ends.

On June 11th, the death knell will sound for The Cimmerian Blog. Another blow to REH fandom that comes almost eighteen months after The Cimmerian published its last print issue.

While the word ouketi may apply to the future of The Cimmerian Blog, its past is rich with memories that will survive.  As his many fans well know, Robert E. Howard’s prose and poetry were filled with passion and depth. Many of the articles and essays that appeared on the TC Blog also reflected those qualities. They contributed to our knowledge of Bob Howard and explored questions about his life, his loves and who he was. They examined his words and looked at how and why he chose the ones he did. Some of the TC essays were thought provoking. Some of them were just plain provoking; so much so that at times I wished I could crawl through the electronic circuits and “strangle” the writer.

(Continue reading this post)

I announced REHupan Charles Allen Gramlich‘s upcoming Heroic Fantasy/Sword-and-Sorcery collection Bitter Steel last January here on The Cimmerian. It just came out this week and is now available through Amazon.

Here’s the back cover blurb for the book:

Gilgamesh, Odysseus, Achilles, Beowulf! Kull, Conan, Kane!

Heroes are born, but they never die. They become legends; they become myths. Bitter Steel is a collection of new myths, new heroic adventures told in the ancient tradition.

So come! Gather with me around the fire where the smoke stings our eyes. We’ll listen to the drums beat in time with our hearts. We’ll drink from the common bowl as it passes among us. The darkness whispers outside our camp, but we have no fear. There are heroes among us. Let us hear their tales.

(Continue reading this post)

Just one month until Howard Days 2010, REH fans. REHupa and the REH Foundation are working with Project Pride to prepare for the most important annual gathering of REH fans in Cross Plains, Texas. Since 1986, people have come from all around the world on the second weekend in June to render homage to the life and writings of Texan author Robert E. Howard.

(Continue reading this post)

The Dark Man, The Journal of Robert E. Howard Studies No. 1 (1990)

Previous Installments:
Collecting REH: Fanzines and Chapbooks, Part 1
Collecting REH: Fanzines and Chapbooks, Part 2

As the Howard-mania of the 1970s began to die down by the following decade, the deluge of small press and fan publications slowed to a trickle. The venerable Amra ceased publication in the early 1980s, but REHupa remained, still producing its mailings on a regular basis. REH fanzines did not vanish altogether, though, and several new small presses continued to print Howard-material related through the 1980s and 1990s. By the turn of the millennium, Howard and his characters began to creep back into the public consciousness with the publishing of the Wandering Star limited editions and their mass-market Del Rey reprints, as well as a popular new Conan comic book series by Dark Horse. With this renewed interest in the Man from Cross Plains, new journals and publications began to appear and even a few once-defunct periodicals returned from the grave. This article will give a brief overview of some of these publications from the last three decades, but for a more comprehensive listing of Howard-related publications, I once again refer the reader to the Howard Works site, or Paul Herman’s print bibliography, The Neverending Hunt.

As mentioned above, several new small publishers cropped up in the 1980s. One of the first was Gibbelins Gazette Press, based out of Knoxville, Tennessee. In 1982 they released The Ghost Ocean, a collection of poetry edited by Rusty Burke and Vernon Clark. The Ghost Ocean had a print run of 360 numbered copies, the first 50 of which were hardbound. This was followed by The Ballad of King Geraint in 1989, featuring the long title poem. It had a print run of just 70 copies and is very difficult to find. These two Gibbelins Gazette publications run around $75-125 when they come for sale.

Another small press that appeared in the 1980s was Thomas Kovacs’ Dark Carnival Press. Although based out of Zurich, they produced several English-language items of Howard ephemera, beginning in 1983 with The Rhyme of the Three Slavers. This was a simple broadside sheet printing the title poem. 250 copies, numbered and signed by Kovacs were produced for the Raven Club. Another of these broadside sheets, Neolithic Love Song was produced in 1987 with only 36 copies printed, also signed and numbered.

(Continue reading this post)

The Cimmerian wasn’t the only site that paid tribute to the legacy of Steve Tompkins today.  Not by a long shot.

Damon Sasser had a post up bright and early this morning at his REH: Two-Gun Raconteur site entitled “One Year Gone, One Year Missed.”

Over at Jim & Ruth Keegan’s Two-Gun Blog, the two gave props to Mr. Tompkins in their essay, “Remembering Steve.”

This afternoon, Morgan Holmes reminisced about Tompk in “Corporate Deathburger” at the REHupa blog.

Finally, Mr. Sasser posted a fine wrap-up of the day’s testimonials with “Steve Tompkins: Tribute to a Fallen REHupan” at, fittingly enough, the REHupa blog.

Steve Tompkins was not forgotten.

It’s fair to say that Steve Tompkins brought me back to Robert E. Howard.

I never lost my appreciation for Howard’s work; how could I? It had inspired me to become a writer. But by millenium’s turn it had been years since I’d actually read a Conan story or plunged into the adventures of El Borak or Solomon Kane. I never decided to put aside Howard, it just sort of happened as I explored new horizons, new frontiers.

As the Internet developed into a massive cultural resource, I got curious about what the Web could tell me about Howard. I found The Barbarian Keep and read Don Herron’s The Dark Barbarian. It was gratifying to see that the stories that had brought me so much pleasure in my youth still had resonance for so many people.

Then I found the Robert E. Howard United Press Association Web site and discovered an essay by one Steven Tompkins: “Grinning, Unappeased Aboriginal Demons — Every Pict Sure Tells a Story — and an American One At That.”

(Continue reading this post)

Exactly one year ago, on March 23, 2009, Steve Tompkins passed. Tempus fugit…

Morgan Holmes once wrote on the REHupa blog how he mourned the loss of his friend. He noted back then that some Cimmerian bloggers never knew Steve Tompkins. Indeed, I had not that privilege. When our managing editor Deuce Richardson asked me to join the shieldwall, one of my fears was that my English would not be up to the standards that TC‘s readers were accustomed to. Steve Tompkins’ essays — his weekly production was above and beyond mere “blogging” — set a high standard. I don’t even think that my mastery of French equals his English skills, so how could my skills in the latter language be good enough to not disappoint? I would probably have had about the same feeling if Deuce had asked my overweight self to run after Usain Bolt!

(Continue reading this post)