|
| album: |
Nonsuch |
 |
| year: |
1992 |
| written
by: |
Andy Partridge |
| length: |
3 minutes 52 seconds |
Then She Appeared
Then she appeared, apple Venus
on a half open shell.
Then she appeared, the first photograph on Fox Talbot's
gel.
I was a little frightened -
Flying with my senses heightened.
Cherubim cheered!
Then she appeared.
 Then
she appeared, as the giggling crew of Marie Celeste.
Then she appeared, pale Atlantis rising out of
the west.
I was a little dazzled -
Catherine wheeled and senses frazzled.
Know it sounds weird
Then she appeared.
And the sun which formerly shone
In the clearest summer sky,
Suddenly just changed address
Now shines from her blue eyes.
Then she appeared, brittle shooting star that dropped
in my lap.
Then she appeared, dressed in tricolour and Phrygian
cap.
I was a little troubled -
Hookah with my senses bubbled.
All Edward leared.
Then she appeared.
And the moon which formerly shone
On the marbled midnight mile,
Suddenly just packed its bags
Now shines from her bright smile.
Then she appeared -
Out of nowhere.
Venus on a half open shell
Sandro Botticelli's The Birth of Venus is one of the most
famous paintings. A prime example of Italian Renaissance painting,
the painting combines classical myth with Christian imagery. Although
unproportional, Botticelli's Venus is so beautiful that her imperfections
go unnoticed by most viewers. [ Web
Museum ]
As a side note, my husband likes to call Botticelli's
Venus, "The
Adobe Girl."
Fox Talbot
Fox Talbot spent most of his life working with photographic means.
He is often considered to be one of the forefathers of modern photography.
Perhaps his most important contribution was his work with latent
negative images - for instance, his experiments exposing potassium
dichromate to colloidal gelatin. [ Fox
Talbot Museum of Photography ]
Cherubim
Cherubim are winged angels that are usually portrayed as childlike,
chubby and joyful. They are common sights in Renaissance art - including
Botticelli's The Birth of Venus.
Marie Celeste
In 1872, the Marie Celeste (also called the Mary Celeste)
set out on a voyage from New York to Genoa with a shipment of alcohol.
It's path took the ship through the Bermuda Triangle, at which point
the shore lost contact was lost with her. When the ship was found
adrift later, it was completely abandoned with all personal belongings,
the cargo and most of the supplies left intact. What happened to
the crew is a mystery. [ Occultopedia.com
]
Atlantis
Atlantis is supposedly the city of a lost civilization. The inhabitants
of Atlantis were purportedly extremely advanced compared to other
cultures at the time, but the city was lost beneath the ocean. The
story of Atlantis was first mentioned in Plato's discourse, Timaeus
and Critias. [ The
Active Mind - Atlantis ]
Catherine wheeled
The Catherine Wheel is an ancient torture device named after St.
Catherine of Alexandria. Catherine confronted Emperor Maxentius
regarding his persecution of Christians, since she considered herself
to be a bride of Christ. The emperor tried to dissuade her with
philosophers, jail and torture, but she repaid him by converting
his wife, army officers and philosophers to Christianity. Finally,
he asked her to to marry him and when she rebuked him, he sentenced
her to death. Catherine was to be killed on a contraption of four
spiked/knived/toothed wheels that turned in opposite directions
and were meant to rip a person's body apart. However, when she was
strapped to the wheel, the device exploded and killed the torturers
instead. (She ended up being beheaded.) The torture device was eventually
named after St. Catherine. Catherine Wheel is also the name of a
spinning, pinwheel shaped firework. [ National
Gallery of London - St. Catherine ]
Brittle shooting star
This is an apparent pun that combines "shooting star"
with "brittle star." A brittle star is a type of starfish
with delicate, long arms. [ Monterey
Bay Aquarium - Brittle Star ]
Tricolour and Phrygian cap
Both are symbols of freedom. Tricolour usually refers to the
three colors of the French flag - red, white, blue. The Phrygian
cap was worn by French revolutionaries as a show of their freedom.
[ Read my ramble on "tricolour and Phrygian
cap" ] [ France
Embassy in South Africa - Emblems and Symbols of the French Republic
]
Hookah
A hookah is a traditional "water pipe" for smoking tobacco
or herbs. It bubbles because the water is heated over coals to the
point of boiling. Probably the most famous hookah is the one used
by the Caterpillar
in Alice in Wonderland. [ TierraCaliente.com
- Hookah ]
Edward leared
This appears to be a pun combining "leering" with the
poet "Edward Lear." Edward Lear was best known for his
nonsensical poetry and off-the-wall drawings. [ Edward
Lear ]
|
Muse