For those who have never seen or don't remember the 1939 fantasy adventure, The Wizard of Oz, my post title is taken from a scene in the movie. Dorothy has joined forces with Tin Man and Scarecrow. When they enter a forest Dorothy is nervous and says she doesn't like it because it's dark and creepy. She asks the other two if they think they'll come across any wild animals. Tin Man tells her they might and Scarecrow wants to know if the animals will eat straw. Tin Man replies that some might but mostly they'll meet up with lions, tigers and bears. Dorothy cries, "Lions?", Scarecrow cries, "Tigers?" Tin Man nods. "And bears". To bolster their courage they make a chant of it and skip through the forest singing, "Lions and tigers and bears. Oh my!" over and over. However, they only meet up with the fellow in this picture, the Cowardly Lion.
LIONS
In ancient Babylon, the processional road leading to the principal gate of the city was flanked by tall walls of intimidating guardian lions, mouths agape in warning roars. The road itself was called Aibur-shabu, 'the enemy shall never pass'. Archaeologists excavated these walls in the early 20th century. Reconstructed, they now reside in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, Germany.
TIGERS
In ancient China the tiger was revered as the mightiest of the wild beasts. The tiger inspired Chinese folk tales in which the tiger kills evil men and protects good men. The 'tiger claw' amulet is said to ward off sudden fright and give the wearer the courage of the tiger.
BEARS
This guy may look cute now but he grows up to be this guy.
In the mid 1800's James C. Adams attempted to 'tame' a grizzly bear by repeatedly hitting it with a club. The bear was not amused and Adams suffered a fatal blow when the animal returned the favor. Grizzly bears are unpredictable and have a powerful bite, making them extremely dangerous. Early Native American Indians regarded grizzlies with awe and at times even as gods.
"If you go down to the woods today,
You're sure of a big surprise.."
It won't be a teddy bear's picnic but it might be lions and tigers and bears. Oh my!
Today's post is in response to the October Absolute Write Blog Chain prompt of the same name.
My fellow blog chain participants are:
orion_mk3 http://nonexistentbooks.wordpress.com
Ralph Pines http://ralfast.wordpress.com
skunkmelon http://www.jenniferponce.com/skunkblog
pyrosama http://matrix-hole.blogspot.com
julzperri http://www.fishandfrivolity.blogspt.com
dclary URL TBD
Angyl78 http://jelyzabeth.wordpress.com
If I'm not mistaken, those lions flank the Ishtar Gate, source of your Absolute Write username! It's too bad lions have been extirpated from that part of the world since practically the 1950s, and tigers since the last Caspian tiger bit it in the 1970s. Bears alone seem to be doing okay these days.
ReplyDeleteAlso, there shouldn't be commas around "Wizard of Oz" as it wasn't the only fantasy adventure released in 1939 :)
The Ishtar Gate was flanked by bulls (symbol of the god Adad) and dragons (symbol of the god Marduk). Pretty tough about the loss of all those lions and tigers. You bet bears are doing okay. We have plenty around here!
DeleteThe Wizard of Oz was an annual viewing for us when I was growing up, loved it! Then I found out some lady committed suicide during filming of that movie and supposedly there is an uncut version where you can actually see her hanging silhouette somewhere. Ick.
ReplyDeleteFun piece here. Thanks for sharing this. :)
Really? How awful. Glad you liked the post though.
DeleteDiane, Snopes says that's a false rumor. You can enjoy the movie again. :-)
DeleteYou can find tigers, lions and bears in India, but only lions in Africa.
ReplyDeleteLove the photos, especially the wall of lions.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ruth. I love that photo too as it ties so nicely into my current work-in-progress.
DeleteLove the facts! Those walls are absolutely stunning, what a great treasure to have!
ReplyDeleteAren't they terrific? As my current work-in-progress is set in ancient Babylon it's inspirational to have these to look at.
DeleteOk, this one is my favorite of all the blogchain entries so far... Because it has pictures! LOL.
ReplyDeleteI'm a sucker for nice animal pictures.
Me too. I love animal pictures.
DeleteYeay, pictures! The bear cub is too cute. I wished they stay that way, but alas...
ReplyDeleteAnd how could anyone think hitting a grizzly bear with a club would tame it. *shakes head*
I know, I can't imagine thinking violence will tame anything. It might make an animal fear you but it certainly won't allow you to develop any kind of cooperative relationship with it. That was the "Grizzly" Adams by the way. It's no different with any large animal. We had huge draft horses for many years and when we bought them most would shake violently when they were touched until they realized we weren't going to hurt them. They are big and sometimes stubborn but generally very docile and eager to please.
DeleteNice tidbits, especially the bit about Babylon.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked them. As ancient Babylon is the setting for my next novel I'll likely share more about it in the months ahead.
Deletehmmm..very creative. Informative and fun. OMG! It was kinda like reading a dictionary but for animals.
ReplyDeleteThanks, I'm glad you thought it was fun because I had fun putting it together.
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