Selkies and Their Tales
People of the islands truly believed that by day the Selkie took the form of seals and laid on the rocks in the sunshine, or played in the foam watching the happenings of land-bound humans. By night they shed their pelts and became men or women. It was said that these Selkies were Fin Folk, Merfolk, or Mermaids, and that just off shore there were crystal palaces down at the bottom among the silky grasses. If you were brave enough to walk on the beach without a lantern on certain nights, particularly on Midsummer's Eve, you might spot one of these amazing creatures. Selkie BridesMost of the stories concentrate on a particular theme, that of a lonely fisherman finding one of the female's pelts, hiding it and claiming the young woman as his wife.Without her sealskin, she could not return to the waves. Sometimes she would become a mother to human children. As wives and mothers they were reportedly warm and kind, but their longing for the sea usually won out. If she went back to the foam and the waves, husbands could be left with motherless children.
A Selkie StoryI am presenting you with a story of similar theme in it's entirety. It is called The Lady of Gollerus and it is a Selkies story.This story was a verbal-tradition folk story, and was finally written down by Yeats. It is important that this story was preserved as it is describing the tale of a Merrow. Merrows were very similar to Selkies, different parts of the world called them different things. It is amazing how many different cultures actually described the same entity. Makes you think doesn't it? They are mermaids, and respond to all the rules of the sea gods, such as Neptune and Poseidon of Greek Mythology.
Mermaid ColoringBelow also find a coloring sheet of a Selkie.If you want more mermaids to color don't forget to check out my Mermaid Coloring section.
More Mythological and Fairy CreaturesUnicornsMore HistoryPirate-History
Back to Fairys Back to Home
|
