Dante Gabriel Rosetti painted this wonderful image of Proserpine or Persephone. Thanks to A brush with colour, who kindly supplied the artist's name.

I am not sure how the image posted yesterday is related.

I am sorry I have forgotten how to make all the right links.

Persephone

Thanks to Laura, I had an interesting time reading on the net about Persephone, and I found this wonderful image of her (artist not acknowledged... pre Raphaelite? Anyone know?). She is clutching the pomegranate offered to her by her husband and uncle, Hades (who was foisted upon her by her father, Zeus),and of which she ate just 7 seeds. Having tasted the fruit, she was bonded to spend part of each year in the underworld with Hades. Her mother Demeter, Greek goddess of the abundant harvest mourned her absence each year by withdrawing her favours from the Earth. Hence winter. With Persephone's return from her marital and underworld duties, Demeter restored growth and fertility in Spring.
"In Greek mythology Persephone, goddess of the soul, is the possessor of its dark and frightening wisdom. But the goddess Persephone is also the harbinger of spring . . . and a reminder of all the growth and hope that it brings. "
Interesting parallels with Eve? Without the concept of sin... the polytheist vs the monotheist approach? I find it all very interesting, and love the stories.

Pomegranates again

Hello blogging world. I have been absent from my page for quite a while.

I left thinking about pomegranates, and my thoughts return to them now, with a little story!Well it might ramble on a bit...

A few years ago, I asked a painting group if anyone knew where I could find a pomegranate to paint. Lovely and talented Liz turned up the next week with two beautiful, ripe pieces of the fruit . She had visited her sister in the town of Dwellingup at the weekend, to find her tree full of pomegranates, and kindly thought of me.

I was touched by her kindness, but also by the thought that Dwellingup is a pretty little forest town in Western Australia, which was almost completely destroyed by fire, over 20 years ago .

The fruit seemed to me a symbol of resurgeance and new life.

I think I am right in recalling that Liz's sister's family had experienced the whole trauma. Recent fires have devastated similar towns in the state of Victoria, on the other side of the country. Far worse as so many lives were lost. WA has been less affected of late, and I am sure our preventative burning of fire breaks is the reason. Greenies, beware of what you wish for!

Anyway, back to the pomegranates!

I painted them in oils.

This hangs in our dining room , with some quince and fig paintings, each 12" X 16".......................................................

Then we ate them.

But I kept some seeds to plant.

They grew into tough, thorny little bushes.

I had bought two cast iron urns for my husband's birthday, which got so hot and dry in the sun, that almost nothing would survive in them.
But I thought of the pomegranate that survives in the desert and is in so many Middle Eastern recipes.

Two bushes went into the urns, where they have done really well, and after a couple of years there, have started producing fruit.

I have almost killed them a few times, when they have been deprived of water while we have been away,but they keep coming back. One is being nursed back AGAIN as I write, so I thought I must photograph the other for posterity, just in case. My husband just ate the biggest pomegranate!

I have every intention of painting the daughter fruit, and hopefully growing grandbaby pomegranate trees for the Dwellingup parent.

My photo shows a very sparse lookng plant. The leaves are small, and it has lost quite a lot in our recent absence, but looks better in real life.

Excuse the messy area.. ahem... that is where I should be at work, not on the computer.

The dog is Harrison, licking his lips. He probably would eat the pomegranates, as he has just consumed our pretty crab apples, green tomatoes on the bushes, and is eyeing the ripening passion fruit..