Sunday, November 18, 2007

French Sphinx Tomb

More pictures from my visit to Montmartre Cemetery on Halloween. I love looking for the egyptian influences on french design. This is the Laver-Frantz tomb. I don't know when it was actually constructed, but the earliest death date is 1839.
An owl. Okay, that bit isn't Egyptian.

But the sphinx definitely are, even if they are far more french than egyptian.
These are the longest legged sphinxes I've ever seen.
They have wings - a very unusual feature.
Each sphinx has two snakes wound around her head and draped down to her neck. I love the scarab necklace.
Another angle to see the snakes. What an amazing amount of detail.

I ended up skipping the walk yesterday so that I could spend more time with my sweetie. Retrospectively - what a mistake. Yesterday was glorious and today the forecast is 100% chance of rain. At least I made Chili with Beer yesterday, so that will help us warm up.

8 comments:

Donna said...

the sacrifices one makes to spend time with a loved one.... Sigh. :-)

Joyce said...

It's so amazing the detail they can get with carved stone. It boggles the mind. Enjoy your day in spite of the rain. At least it's not snow! Yet.

atet said...

That deatail is amazing -- and isn't it interesting how other cultures interpret the influences?

Katie said...

Snakes for hair. Yes, so interesting. And I love your quilted bags! Got to do that now.

Anonymous said...

So, when are we going to see a liberated/wonky French-Egyptian Sphinx quilt?

Susan said...

Wow, that's amazing! I so appreciate your posting all these pictures of things you see in your walks. It's the only way I'll ever get to see them!

Magpie Sue said...

Love the owl. I can handle skulls and skeletons, even snakes for hair, but those scarabs creep me out!

I have been feeling guiltier every year about the amount of wrapping paper we go through on a Christmas morning. Especially since it's generally not recyclable. I've tried the drawstring gift bag for a couple of things but didn't like it for the same reason you mentioned. I'm kinda tempted by your gift bags though!

black bear cabin said...

chili with beer...hmmm...you both may wanna get out of the house for a while :)
love the tomb shots...very unusual!
happy Monday!
lisajo