Tzadkiel's ship

Jeff Wilson · 29 Nov 2007, 05:31 · from 2007-November.txt.gz

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From: jwilson at io.com (Jeff Wilson)
Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2007 23:31:29 -0600
Subject: (urth) Tzadkiel's ship
In-Reply-To: <c873c2920711281714i62ee9d69m43cc62a4f2aaacc5 at mail.gmail.com>
References: <9a33123d0711280610g2ebe9adbte27022bd9af837ca at mail.gmail.com>	<9093.24.119.55.228.1196284333.squirrel at webmail.io.com>	<1f7617370711281424v4bfcea00h74573d3ef77a6f2f at mail.gmail.com>	<8851.24.119.55.228.1196294766.squirrel at webmail.io.com>
	<c873c2920711281714i62ee9d69m43cc62a4f2aaacc5 at mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <474E4EB1.1020605 at io.com>

Mark Millman wrote:
> Dear Mr. Wilson:
> Heraldic art, as you're no doubt aware, is not remarkable for its
> subtlety. 

Rather, it is subtle about different things than non-heraldic 
illustration. The relative position of heraldic animals' body parts, for 
example, conveys considerable information, comparable with or greater 
than the appearance of the overall animal itself.

> It seems very likely that the sails are prominently
> featured, and in such a way that the result does not resemble a
> bottle-brush.  Whether or not they obscure the hull is another
> question; but it may not be a relevant one.
> 
> Recall also that the torturers' apprentices are relatively well
> educated, and that Severian possesses an unusually tenacious memory.
> By the time he encounters the tomb, or at least by the time from which
> he recounts the memory, he may well have seen, and having seen will
> remember, images of spacegoing ships.

But the Tzadkiel would be radically different in plan from other 
spacegoing ships. The statement that "there's only one Ship" would 
support this. The outer portion would more closely resemble the deck and 
masts of a seagoing ship, or rather several seagoing ships bundled with 
keels together.


-- 
Jeff Wilson - jwilson at io.com
< http://www.io.com/~jwilson >

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