INITIAL SKETCH OF "THE MORRIGAN"
The Morrigan plays a prominent role in Irish mythology. She is associated with war, and is a shape-shifter, often taking the form of a battle crow. In the form of the battle crow, she is said to control fate; predicting which warriors shall live or die. In this capacity, she is quite similar to the Norse Valkyries.
She has several encounters with Irish mythological hero Cú Chulainn, and, in one tale, appears to him as an old hag washing his bloody armor in a stream, an omen that he would die in his next battle. Before Cú Chulainn dies as predicted by the Morrigan, he famously ties himself upright, so that he may die facing his enemies on his feet. Cú Chulainn's enemies so feared him that they refuse to approach him until the Morrigan landed on his shoulder in her battle crow form. Thereby, proving that the mighty Cú Chulainn was indeed dead.
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| FINAL COMPLETED IMAGE OF "THE MORRIGAN" |
Another detail about the Morrigan that's important to know for my interpretation of her is the fact that scholars trace the entymology of her name "Morrigan" to a root word meaning "terror" or "monster." However, she also often appears as a beautiful seductress in the mythology stories. So, I did my best to try to give my Morrigan a slender, effeminate look. She's almost beautiful, but her long talons, pale skin with green veins, and dead eyes give away the fact that she is indeed something terrifying. Since her role in much of the Irish mythology is often unsettling, I wanted to give her a more terrifying appearance.
Most important, was the headdress. The first thing I had in my head when coming up with my Morrigan was that I knew I wanted to give her a scary looking crow's skull headdress with large black feathers. The idea being that the headdress would personify her association with the battle crow, while making her look like a shamanistic-type warrior. It all just fits together perfectly to capture this enigmatic figure into one comprehensive piece.
Some other details I'd like to point out. I made her hair flowing and beautiful to contrast and balance her more creepy elements. Again, I wanted her to be beautiful at first glance, and terrifying upon a closer look. She is wearing a golden neck torque typical of Ancient Celts. Her belt contains the skull of a fallen warrior. Her sword is not a normal sword. Since she is a member of the super natural race, the Tuatha Dé Danann, who were driven underground to become the fairy people of Ireland by the Celts, I wanted her sword to look as if it was grown out of the earth rather than forged by man's hand. Therefore, the hilt looks like a knobby vine the spreads down and over the blade. The hilt also has claws growing from it making the sword a sort of biological, living creature. A monster unto itself; covered in the blood of fallen warriors.
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| SKETCH OF THE CELTIC STYLE BORDER AROUND THE MORRIGAN |
The border around the Morrigan was done in a Celtic style and includes decorative battle crows for obvious reasons.
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