Thanks Rhodri! JP Qui mieux fait, mieux vault. On Mon, Apr 14, 2014 at 3:59 PM, Rob Howell <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Greetings all > > A number of you have answered this correctly and Rhianwen requested that I > explain it. Since they were for her originally, here it is :) > > The answer is the Royal Pavilion. > > I am taller than any man but my arms touch the earth > The center pole is taller than any man but its ropes and stakes touch the > earth. In a sense, they stretch like arms covered in a cloak. > > My kin hosted the bee-wolf and I ward bee-sisters > I see the Royal Pavilion as serving much the same role as a mead-hall > would for Anglo-Saxon kings. In the poem Beowulf, much of the action > happens in Heorot Hrothgar's mead-hall. Beowulf essentially means Bee-wulf. > This made me think of the Bee-sisters, so I used the connection to ensure > we'd think of Calontir. > > Many hands have dressed me drawn by love to adorn me > Here I was thinking of the floor, the table, the light hooks, and frankly > the pavilion itself. Not many tents have cooler things :) > > I have seen kings give gold and queens give cups > Lots in this line. This, as does the next line, refers to our pay that we > have been given for wars, but also for awards given out. Notably, for the > queens, this includes the Queen's Chalice. Also, I have a soft spot for the > year that Maerwynn gave cups to everyone at Gulf Wars. > > Coins uncounted have I held yet I can claim no wealth > Again, a reference to the pay that has been given at wars. > > Long roads have I traveled lit only moonlight > This is fairly obvious, but is also an oblique thank you to all of those > who have driven the Kingdom trailer for the benefit of the rest of us. > > I have seen blood and pain and bliss and love > Basically a brief way to describe the muddle of all of us after the day's > battle. Bliss, by the way, is a very oblique reference to the taste of > chicken soup after fighting, and is therefore, a subtle thank you to the > Soup Kitchen. > > I am crossed by few for I am warded by falcons > This is a reference to the actual crosses and falcons on the pavilion > itself. It is also a thank you to those involved in making it ("crossed by > few"), which of course includes Rhianwen herself. > > I am the soul of a kingdom so say what I am called > To me, the Royal Pavilion is truly the soul of Calontir. For those who > have never had the opportunity to be there on a foreign battlefield after a > day's battles with a pile of us, in the afternoon with a few people doing > projects or just hanging out, or with it shaking as we sing Cruiscin Lan in > lantern light, I am afraid I cannot truly do it justice. For those who have > had the opportunity, I have no need to try. > > So there it is, the Royal Pavilion. > > Now, I promised a hint for Riddle Two. Halvgrimr's direction to me was to > write riddles that referred to Rhianwen. She's definitely referred to in > the second riddle, and once you figure out the method I used, it will > probably unlock much of the rest of it. > > Ironically, by the way, I thought the first riddle harder than the second > even after I removed the two lines in the second riddle that simply made it > too obvious. > > Thanks all > > Rhodri >