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Fairy Prints
The Fantasy Art of Jennifer L Saeger
Available for purchase with free shipping in the continental US only.
Orders outside the continental US please contact before purchase for shipping rates.
The Fantasy Art of Jennifer L Saeger
Available for purchase with free shipping in the continental US only.
Orders outside the continental US please contact before purchase for shipping rates.
 | |  | |  | |  | |  |
Swan Princess Fairy on Parchment
$10.00
$10.00
Starlight Fairy
$12.00
$12.00
Moonlight Fairy
$12.00
$12.00
- Free shipping in the continental US.only
- Orders outside the US please contact me for rates BEFORE payment!
- Each print will be shipped within 3 business days, packaged with a sturdy mounting board in a plastic
sleeve for protection. Multiple prints to the same location will be shipped together.
- (Due to the nature of these items I do not accept returns, please be aware before purchasing.)
Thank you!!
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Fairie Rings
A fairy ring, also known as fairy circle, elf circle or pixie ring, is a naturally occurring ring or arc of mushrooms. The rings may
grow over ten meters in diameter and become stable over time as the fungus grows and seeks food underground. They are
found mainly in forested areas, but also appear in grasslands or rangelands. Fairy rings are not only detectable by sporocarps
in rings or arcs, but also by a necrotic zone (dead grass) or a ring of dark green grass. If these manifestations are visible a
fairy fungus mycelium is likely present in the ring or arc underneath.
Fairy rings also occupy a prominent place in European folklore as the location of gateways into elfin kingdoms, or places where
elves gather and dance. It is said that if you sit in a fairy ring at night you will fall under a spell and fall asleep until dawn and
the fairies will never return.
A great deal of folklore surrounds fairy rings. Their names in European languages often allude to supernatural origins; they
are known as ronds de sorciers ("sorcerers' rings") in France, and hexenringe ("witches' rings") in German. In German
tradition, fairy rings were thought to mark the site of witches' dancing on Walpurgis Night,and Dutch superstition claimed that
the circles show where the Devil set his milk churn. In Tyrol, folklore attributed fairy rings to the fiery tales of flying dragons;
once a dragon had created such a circle, nothing but toadstools could grow there for seven years. European superstitions
routinely warned against entering a fairy ring. French tradition reported that fairy rings were guarded by giant bug-eyed toads
that cursed those who violated the circles. In other parts of Europe, entering a fairy ring would result in the loss of an eye.
Fairy rings are associated with diminutive spirits in the Philippines.
Scandinavian and Celtic traditions claimed that fairy rings are the result of elves or fairies dancing. Such ideas dated to at least
the mediæval period; The Middle English term elferingewort ("elf-ring"), meaning "a ring of daisies caused by elves' dancing"
dates to the 12th century. In his History of the Goths (1628), Olaus Magnus makes this connection, saying that fairy rings are
burned into the ground by the dancing of elves.British folklorist Thomas Keightley noted that in Scandinavia in the early 20th
century, beliefs persisted that fairy circles (elfdans) arose from the dancing of elves. Keightley warned that while entering an
elfdans might allow the interloper to see the elves—although this was not guaranteed—it would also put the intruder in thrall to
their illusions.
The Celtic folklore of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales contain a wealth of fairy lore, including the idea from which fairy
rings take their name: the phenomena result from the dancing of fairies. In 19th century Wales, where the rings are known as
cylch y Tylwyth Teg, fairies were almost invariably described as dancing in a group when encountered, and in Scotland and
Wales in the late 20th century, stories about fairy rings were still common; some Welsh even claimed to have joined a fairy
dance. Victorian folklorists regarded fairies and witches as related, based in part on the idea that both were believed to dance
in circles.These revels are particularly associated with moonlit nights, the rings only becoming visible to mortals the following
morning. Local variants add other details. An early 20th century Irish tradition says that fairies enjoy dancing around the
hawthorn tree so that fairy rings often centre on one. One resident of Balquhidder, Scotland, said that the fairies sit on the
mushrooms and use them as dinnertables, and a Welsh woman claimed that fairies used the mushrooms as parasols and
umbrellas.Olaus Magnus in "De Gentibus Septentrionalibus" wrote that the brightness of the fairy ring comes not from the
dancing of the fairies, who harm it with their feet, but from Puck, who refreshes the grass. A Devon legend says that a black
hen and chickens sometimes appear at dusk in a large fairy ring on the edge of Dartmoor. A Welsh and Manx variant current in
the 1960s removes dancing from the picture and claims that fairy rings spring up over an underground fairy village.These
associations have become linked to specific sites. For example, "The Pixies' Church" was a rock formation in Dartmoor
surrounded by a fairy ring, and a stone circle tops Cader Idris in northern Wales, believed to be a popular spot for fairy dances.
Celtic folk beliefs generally paint fairy rings as dangerous places, best avoided. Sikes traces these stories of people
trespassing into forbidden territory and being punished for it to the tale of Psyche and Eros. In it, Psyche is forbidden to view
her lover, and when she does so, her palace disappears and she is left alone. Superstition calls fairy circles sacred and warns
against violating them lest the interloper (such as a farmer with a plough) anger the fairies and be cursed. In an Irish legend
recorded by Wilde, a farmer builds a barn on a fairy ring despite the protests of his neighbours. He is struck senseless one
night, and a local "fairy doctor" breaks the curse. The farmer says that he dreamed that he must destroy the barn.Even
collecting dew from the grass or flowers of a fairy ring can bring bad luck. Destroying a fairy ring is unlucky and fruitless;
superstition says it will just grow back.
A traditional Scottish rhyme sums up the danger of such places:
He wha tills the fairies' green
Nae luck again shall hae :
And he wha spills the fairies' ring
Betide him want and wae.
For weirdless days and weary nights
Are his till his deein' day.
But he wha gaes by the fairy ring,
Nae dule nor pine shall see,
And he wha cleans the fairy ring
An easy death shall dee.
Numerous legends focus on mortals entering a fairy ring—and the consequences. One superstition is that anyone who steps
into an empty fairy ring will die at a young age.A 20th century tradition from Somerset calls the fairy ring a "galley-trap" and
says that a murderer or thief who walks in the ring will be hanged. Most often, someone who violates a fairy perimeter becomes
invisible to mortals outside and may find it impossible to leave the circle. Often, the fairies force the mortal to dance to the point
of exhaustion, death, or madness. In Welsh tales, fairies actively try to lure mortals into their circles to dance with them. A tale
from the Cambrian Mountains of Wales, current in the 19th century, describes a mortal's encounter with a fairy ring:
. . . he saw the Tylwyth Teg, in appearance like tiny soldiers, dancing in a ring. He set out for the scene of revelry, and soon
drew near the ring where, in a gay company of males and females, they were footing it to the music of the harp. Never had he
seen such handsome people, nor any so enchantingly cheerful. They beckoned him with laughing faces to join them as they
leaned backward almost falling, whirling round and round with joined hands. Those who were dancing never swerved from the
perfect circle; but some were clambering over the old cromlech, and others chasing each other with surprising swiftness and
the greatest glee. Still others rode about on small white horses of the most beautiful form. . . . All this was in silence, for the
shepherd could not hear the harps, though he saw them. But now he drew nearer to the circle, and finally ventured to put his
foot in the magic ring. The instant he did this, his ears were charmed with strains of the most melodious music he had ever
heard.
A fairy ring, also known as fairy circle, elf circle or pixie ring, is a naturally occurring ring or arc of mushrooms. The rings may
grow over ten meters in diameter and become stable over time as the fungus grows and seeks food underground. They are
found mainly in forested areas, but also appear in grasslands or rangelands. Fairy rings are not only detectable by sporocarps
in rings or arcs, but also by a necrotic zone (dead grass) or a ring of dark green grass. If these manifestations are visible a
fairy fungus mycelium is likely present in the ring or arc underneath.
Fairy rings also occupy a prominent place in European folklore as the location of gateways into elfin kingdoms, or places where
elves gather and dance. It is said that if you sit in a fairy ring at night you will fall under a spell and fall asleep until dawn and
the fairies will never return.
A great deal of folklore surrounds fairy rings. Their names in European languages often allude to supernatural origins; they
are known as ronds de sorciers ("sorcerers' rings") in France, and hexenringe ("witches' rings") in German. In German
tradition, fairy rings were thought to mark the site of witches' dancing on Walpurgis Night,and Dutch superstition claimed that
the circles show where the Devil set his milk churn. In Tyrol, folklore attributed fairy rings to the fiery tales of flying dragons;
once a dragon had created such a circle, nothing but toadstools could grow there for seven years. European superstitions
routinely warned against entering a fairy ring. French tradition reported that fairy rings were guarded by giant bug-eyed toads
that cursed those who violated the circles. In other parts of Europe, entering a fairy ring would result in the loss of an eye.
Fairy rings are associated with diminutive spirits in the Philippines.
Scandinavian and Celtic traditions claimed that fairy rings are the result of elves or fairies dancing. Such ideas dated to at least
the mediæval period; The Middle English term elferingewort ("elf-ring"), meaning "a ring of daisies caused by elves' dancing"
dates to the 12th century. In his History of the Goths (1628), Olaus Magnus makes this connection, saying that fairy rings are
burned into the ground by the dancing of elves.British folklorist Thomas Keightley noted that in Scandinavia in the early 20th
century, beliefs persisted that fairy circles (elfdans) arose from the dancing of elves. Keightley warned that while entering an
elfdans might allow the interloper to see the elves—although this was not guaranteed—it would also put the intruder in thrall to
their illusions.
The Celtic folklore of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales contain a wealth of fairy lore, including the idea from which fairy
rings take their name: the phenomena result from the dancing of fairies. In 19th century Wales, where the rings are known as
cylch y Tylwyth Teg, fairies were almost invariably described as dancing in a group when encountered, and in Scotland and
Wales in the late 20th century, stories about fairy rings were still common; some Welsh even claimed to have joined a fairy
dance. Victorian folklorists regarded fairies and witches as related, based in part on the idea that both were believed to dance
in circles.These revels are particularly associated with moonlit nights, the rings only becoming visible to mortals the following
morning. Local variants add other details. An early 20th century Irish tradition says that fairies enjoy dancing around the
hawthorn tree so that fairy rings often centre on one. One resident of Balquhidder, Scotland, said that the fairies sit on the
mushrooms and use them as dinnertables, and a Welsh woman claimed that fairies used the mushrooms as parasols and
umbrellas.Olaus Magnus in "De Gentibus Septentrionalibus" wrote that the brightness of the fairy ring comes not from the
dancing of the fairies, who harm it with their feet, but from Puck, who refreshes the grass. A Devon legend says that a black
hen and chickens sometimes appear at dusk in a large fairy ring on the edge of Dartmoor. A Welsh and Manx variant current in
the 1960s removes dancing from the picture and claims that fairy rings spring up over an underground fairy village.These
associations have become linked to specific sites. For example, "The Pixies' Church" was a rock formation in Dartmoor
surrounded by a fairy ring, and a stone circle tops Cader Idris in northern Wales, believed to be a popular spot for fairy dances.
Celtic folk beliefs generally paint fairy rings as dangerous places, best avoided. Sikes traces these stories of people
trespassing into forbidden territory and being punished for it to the tale of Psyche and Eros. In it, Psyche is forbidden to view
her lover, and when she does so, her palace disappears and she is left alone. Superstition calls fairy circles sacred and warns
against violating them lest the interloper (such as a farmer with a plough) anger the fairies and be cursed. In an Irish legend
recorded by Wilde, a farmer builds a barn on a fairy ring despite the protests of his neighbours. He is struck senseless one
night, and a local "fairy doctor" breaks the curse. The farmer says that he dreamed that he must destroy the barn.Even
collecting dew from the grass or flowers of a fairy ring can bring bad luck. Destroying a fairy ring is unlucky and fruitless;
superstition says it will just grow back.
A traditional Scottish rhyme sums up the danger of such places:
He wha tills the fairies' green
Nae luck again shall hae :
And he wha spills the fairies' ring
Betide him want and wae.
For weirdless days and weary nights
Are his till his deein' day.
But he wha gaes by the fairy ring,
Nae dule nor pine shall see,
And he wha cleans the fairy ring
An easy death shall dee.
Numerous legends focus on mortals entering a fairy ring—and the consequences. One superstition is that anyone who steps
into an empty fairy ring will die at a young age.A 20th century tradition from Somerset calls the fairy ring a "galley-trap" and
says that a murderer or thief who walks in the ring will be hanged. Most often, someone who violates a fairy perimeter becomes
invisible to mortals outside and may find it impossible to leave the circle. Often, the fairies force the mortal to dance to the point
of exhaustion, death, or madness. In Welsh tales, fairies actively try to lure mortals into their circles to dance with them. A tale
from the Cambrian Mountains of Wales, current in the 19th century, describes a mortal's encounter with a fairy ring:
. . . he saw the Tylwyth Teg, in appearance like tiny soldiers, dancing in a ring. He set out for the scene of revelry, and soon
drew near the ring where, in a gay company of males and females, they were footing it to the music of the harp. Never had he
seen such handsome people, nor any so enchantingly cheerful. They beckoned him with laughing faces to join them as they
leaned backward almost falling, whirling round and round with joined hands. Those who were dancing never swerved from the
perfect circle; but some were clambering over the old cromlech, and others chasing each other with surprising swiftness and
the greatest glee. Still others rode about on small white horses of the most beautiful form. . . . All this was in silence, for the
shepherd could not hear the harps, though he saw them. But now he drew nearer to the circle, and finally ventured to put his
foot in the magic ring. The instant he did this, his ears were charmed with strains of the most melodious music he had ever
heard.