| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Voyage to Arcturus by David Lindsay: As he stared at the object, a strange, sudden flush of confident
vanity and self - sufficiency seemed to pass through him, but it was
so momentary that he could be sure of nothing.
"What may that be, Tydomin?"
"It is Hator's Trifork."
"And what is its purpose?"
"It's a guide to Sant."
"But who or what is Hator?"
"Hator was the founder of Sant - many thousands of years ago. He
laid down the principles they all live by, and that trifork is his
symbol. When I was a little child my father told me the legends, but
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from At the Mountains of Madness by H. P. Lovecraft: aeons had disintegrated and banished any pigments which may have
been applied. The more one studied the marvelous technique, the
more one admired the things. Beneath their strict conventionalization
one could grasp the minute and accurate observation and graphic
skill of the artists; and indeed, the very conventions themselves
served to symbolize and accentuate the real essence or vital differentiation
of every object delineated. We felt, too, that besides these recognizable
excellences there were others lurking beyond the reach of our
perceptions. Certain touches here and there gave vague hints of
latent symbols and stimuli which another mental and emotional
background, and a fuller or different sensory equipment, might
At the Mountains of Madness |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Rise and Fall of Cesar Birotteau by Honore de Balzac: canals, loans, and peaceful governments. I'm a good fellow when I've
got my pockets lined. Thunder! let's travel."
"One word, monsieur, and I will release you," said Birotteau. "You
made over my notes to Monsieur Bidault."
"You mean Gigonnet, that good little Gigonnet, easy-going--"
"Yes," said Cesar; "but I wish,--and here I count upon your honor and
delicacy,--"
Claparon bowed.
"--to renew those notes."
"Impossible!" snapped the banker. "I'm not alone in the matter. We
have met in council,--regular Chamber; but we all agreed like bacon in
Rise and Fall of Cesar Birotteau |
The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from Catherine de Medici by Honore de Balzac: Unfortunately, the art of genre painting did not exist in those days,
and that of engraving was in its infancy. We have therefore lost that
curious spectacle, still offered, though in miniature, by certain
provincial towns, where the rivers are overhung with wooden houses,
and where, as at Vendome, the basins, full of water grasses, are
enclosed by immense iron railings, to isolate each proprietor's share
of the stream, which extends from bank to bank.
The name of this street, which has now disappeared from the map,
sufficiently indicates the trade that was carried on in it. In those
days the merchants of each class of commerce, instead of dispersing
themselves about the city, kept together in the same neighborhood and
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