Page 249 - The Grotesque Children's Book

red (rubedo). Trad., Calcination. Megl., See colors of alchemy

red spheres. See Medici balls.

right leg longer than the left. Trad., There is no classical tradition for making one leg longer
than the other. Megl., A careful study of the anatomy of our characters will reveal that
the right leg is longer than the left, by which we mean everyone, including you, is
imperfect. None of us is capable of walking in a straight line without deliberate
concentration and effort. The cynics among you (and you know who you are) will
correctly interpret this to mean that mankind is inherently crooked. The more simple-
minded among you (and you don’t know who you are), will simply walk in a large circle,
returning to your point of origin without having accomplished a single thing; worse, you
won’t have noticed along the way.

salamander. Trad., Resurrection, second life. Megl., By extension, the future workers of the
world, the ones who will inherit the next generation's burden.

scallop. See seashells.

scarf, strophium. Trad., The strophium is a long scarf which Roman women roll into a band,
and fasten round the body and breast; often symbolizing the cable of an anchor; women
being the sturdying force in the Ship of State. The long tail can be worn to the rear, loose
or tucked into the other clothes at the back of the neck, whilst the top part (called the
cornette) is wrapped round over the top of the head and under the chin a couple of times
and secured. Often used for cold or windy weather, especially when riding. See
chaperon, contoise. Megl., Watch for the shape of the scarves’ curves; the more round
the curve, the more we’re mocking the person who’s wearing it, as though to say the scarf
is trying its level best to get away from its owner.

seashell. Trad., Baptism; the apostle James the Greater. Megl., House of Cappello; specifically
Bianca Cappello; occasionally represents the union between Bianca Cappello and
Francesco de’ Medici.

sphynx. See llamasu.

squirrels. Trad., Diligence, infidelity; St. Francis. Megl., Squirrels represent paintbrushes to
us. We often will call our brushes “squirrels” because they’re made from squirrel hair,
many of them.

stairs. Trad., A curtail step, or curtail arch, is the first step of a stair when its outer end is
finished in the form of a scroll, representing the Stair of Knowledge. Megl., Over at the

249