The time comes once again for the Cobalt Jade Summer of Narnia. Essays, pictures, Narnia ephemera, and much more!
( The picture above seems to be depict Lucy succumbing to her moment of temptation in The Voyage of The Dawn Treader to follow the Sea Girl shepherdess down into the briny deep. Except it’s hard to tell the gender of the being. On closer examination, it looks more male than female, so it may not be Narnia-related at all. But it’s still a lovely image. )
Another entry in my series of French editions of the Chronicles.
Here are books one and two side-by-side, published in the early 1980s. That is clear because the first is no longer titled Le Lion et la Sorcière Blanche but L’armoire Magique — The Magic Wardrobe. If you do a search on this title and misspell it as L’amour Magique (Magic Love) you will find books about Tantric sex. No kidding.
(More recent French translation have the full and correct title.)
The cover artwork is unique to these editions and looks hastily done. The White Witch has worms, or snakes, or something around her neck. What is it? Vines? Thorns? While on the Prince Caspian cover both Caspian and Trumpkin are riding Aslan, which I don’t think happened in the book, and there’s an inconspicuous badger and a bunch of mice suspended in front of him. Well, both get the main points of the story across, unlike some covers. Both look cheaply and quickly released.
Of more interest here is their publisher. Castor Poche, which means Pocket Beaver in English, is the imprint for children’s and young people’s literature under the Flammarion publishing banner. Castor Poche was created in 1980 and is still one of the leading paperback collections for young people in France.
On to Flammarion, and here’s where it gets interesting. Flammarion is now a subsidiary of Groupe Madrigall, the third largest French publishing group, but it was originally founded in 1875 by Ernest Flammarion, brother the astronomer Camille Flammarion, to publish Camille’s book Treaty of Popular Astronomy. The company also published Émile Zola, Maupassant, Jules Renard, Hector Malot, Colette, and other medical, scientific, geographical, historical works and … the Père Castor children’s series. There’s that beaver again!
Three Père Castor books from the 1950s with distinctive and colorful artwork on the covers.
An early advertisement for the imprint.
After some translation and research I found out Père Castor, or Father Beaver, was a character created by children’s book pioneers Paul Faucher and Lida Durdikova. Like any good father, Père Castor told stories to his children, young beavers Câline, Grignote and Benjamin, stand-ins for curious children who want to learn.
Père Castor and his children from a 1990s animated TV show.
So it looks like there’s where the Pocket Beaver imprint came from. It’s also very fitting for the Narnia books, because Mr and Mrs. Beaver were major characters in the first one.
Henry Justice Ford (1860-1940), ‘Adventure with Scylla’, from ”Tales of Troy and Greece”, ed. by Andrew Lang, 1907
The Voyage of The Dawn Treader has an episodic structure consisting of the many adventures Caspian, Lucy, Edmund, and Eustace have while seeking the lost lords across the Eastern Sea. Many of them derive from myths, fables and earlier fairy tales, like the encounter with the sea serpent, the isle of the dragon, and the pale-skinned sea people. Of course, Lewis added his own spin on them: the sea serpent is a not-so-bright entity who is dealt with in a practical, albeit strenuous, way; Eustace becomes the dragon who was originally lord of the island; and the sirens have their own underwater civilization and things to do.
(Lewis rather flippantly deals with the fact that Eustace ATE the original dragon, who may have been a transformed Lord Octesian — that means Eustace committed cannibalism. Let’s hope this is one of the details he wanted later to correct.)
Other adventures read like they came from combined, remixed, and re-imagined folk tales: the island with a pond that turns things to gold, tempting others with greed; the black cloud-island that brings nightmares to life; and the Island at the End of World where a feast awaits those who reach it, like Valhalla. Then there are mundane perils like the pirates mentioned in passing and the horror of being enslaved.
But there were more dangers the ship may have encountered on its journey.
| Scylla | In The Odyssey, the hero Odysseus, returning from the Trojan War, has to guide his ship through a strait where there are two perils: on one side, a giant whirlpool known as Charybdis, and on the other, a sea monster, Scylla, who lives on human flesh. The ship must be navigated exactly between the two to avoid danger, but on the sea’s moving currents this is impossible, so Odysseus chooses to err towards Scylla … weighing the loss of a few men against the loss of the whole boat.
Later myths give Scylla an origin story. She was a once-beautiful naiad who incurred the wrath of a goddess, who caused long necks with the heads of monstrous dogs to grow out of her lower body; in her anger and despair she preys, or her monster heads prey, on passing sailors who pass beneath her cave. The dog heads made keening puppylike noises, and from a modern perspective Scylla was likely no more than a cliff with dangerous underwater outcroppings where sea lions chose to rest. Over the years artists have depicted Scylla in many creative ways like the Edwardian one above, where the heads are human and bearded with tentacles. There’s enough variation that I might do a visual essay on her one day. |
| Charybdis/ The Maelstrom |
I’m lumping these together because they are both giant whirlpools that can suck down a ship and destroy it.
Like Scylla, Charybdis was once a human female. She has several origin stories, but the one I’m going with is that she stole some cattle from Heracles (Hercules) and was punished for her greedy nature by being chained at the bottom of the sea forever sucking down the seawater. The Maelstrom is Charybdis’s Norse cousin, popularized in Edgar Allen Poe’s famous story. Either one of these would provide plenty of adventure for The Dawn Treader and her crew. |
| Sargasso Sea | This feature is a real-world one, a calm section of the Atlantic Ocean bordered by four different currents. The seas here are calm and blue, the weather still, and greenish-brown sargassum seaweed abounds. Pulpy adventure stories such as Uncharted Seas portray the seaweed as being so thick it entraps ships, but that’s exaggeration; the layer of seaweed is shallow, and its structure is small and fine, allowing even small hulls to cleave through. The real danger for sailors is the lack of wind and current.
I’m surprised that Lewis never used this trope. |
| Ghost Ship | Legends abound of sailors finding abandoned ships on the open ocean (see the case of The Mary Celeste) and most of the time no good comes from exploring them. There’s room for another adventure there. |
| Giant Cephalopods/Jellyfish | Another staple of pulp fiction, these (pulpy — sorry for the pun) creatures are depicted as entwining a ship in their tentacles to draw it down into the sea. To make them even more monstrous, they snatch sailors at the same time to eat. Of course, Lewis did something similar with his sea serpent, and IMO there’s room for only one snaky or tentacled ship-wrapping creature in the book.
(Lewis does allude to Krakens existing in a later chapter.) |
| Orca attack | Killer whales have been ramming boats in Portugal for a few years now. Perhaps they do so in Narnia? |
Edmund Meets the White Witch, by Laura Alderson
The witch, in an unusual nostrils-up pose, pointing at an offscreen Edmund as if to say “And what, pray, are you?” as the dwarf pulls back the reins in surprise. A lot of action and attitude packed into one pic. Note the artist’s good use of black, white and red which differs from the usual blue/aqua palette. This is the only witch I’ve ever seen with brown hair.
The White Witch of Narnia, by Heidi Smith
A dour Jadis and hostile dwarf done in an unusual textured graphite style.
The Queen, by Jessica Lanan
The witch rides away into the distance as two beavers observe, evocative despite its lack of detail. The witch sports one of the highest crowns I’ve ever seen on her.
How the witch, sleigh, and dwarf appeared in the 1979 cartoon.
A design for an illuminated witch and sleigh for a “Festival of Lights” Christmas display at Longleat.
Another design for a Christmas display, this one showing, oddly, Edmund being brutalized by the dwarf. The design cribs from Baynes’ original but the witch is different.
The witch and sleigh from the 1988 BBC production. The costume and sleigh, with its deerskins and gargoyle heads, remains distinctive even after all these years.
Late to the party here, but I thought I’d post these new Harper Collins Narnia book covers by artist Owen Richardson. They came out in April 2025 for the 75th Anniversary of the publication of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, considered the birth of the series. They are for the hardback versions of the books.
I did some research on the artist, Owen Richardson, and his background is in fantasy illustration. He did the artwork for the Warrior Cats series, the middle school books about clans of feral cats. He also did a lot of work for trading card series, e,g, Magic: The Gathering, and I can see that in these covers. In general, they’re more flashy and violent, more action-oriented and cinematic, than the Narnia covers of past decades.
As an artist, I think they are OK. Competent, but I’m not knocked out of the park by them (save for one — more later.) My favorite of them is Prince Caspian (to the left — unfortunately, the full wraparound cover was unavailable) which is odd because it’s my least favorite book. The composition is strong, there’s no unnecessary detail, and the color range is good; I feel the action and the dynamic nature of the scene. Even though the title character is not on the cover (and to be fair, on a lot of PC covers over the years, he isn’t) it conveys the plot nicely — old Narnia vs. new Narnia. (When you think about it, Caspian is a very passive character … he’s almost a bystander in his own book. It’s only in The Voyage of The Dawn Treader that he gets to shine.)
I’ve heard complaints from some fans that they look too AI generated. Which is unfair, because it’s the reverse: AI generations look like the artist’s style, which utilizes tons of layering and other manipulation in Photoshop or a like program. This style can look overdone if you’re not careful with the embellishment.
Here’s the rest of the artwork along with my critiques — click on the pics to see them full size.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It’s OK, but having all the Pevensies fighting the Queen together, armed with weapons even, is a bait-and-switch. It doesn’t happen in the book! Still, I could tolerate if only Lucy was armed correctly; she had a dagger, according to Lewis, which was gifted to her by Father Christmas, so she should have been in a knife-fighting stance. And why do so many artists ignore that the witch has a golden crown on her head?
This pic was from an ad campaign for the North Caroline Zoo. But it could be applied to Aslan as well … and one’s faith if you want to go meta.
In the Chronicles life in Tashbaan is presented as one of decadent, ostentatious luxury. That would include the foods on which the nobles dined.
Lewis doesn’t mention which foods, with the exception of garlic and the cool sherbet Aravis and Shasta dream about when crossing the Great Desert. But we can infer from descriptions of real-life Turkish and Ottoman banquets and what ingredients were generally available in the Middle East. Mashing all these up, I came up with something unique.
(I figured many of these dishes would have elaborate names, Chinese court style.)
| The Tisroc’s Moonbread: A pocket bread made with exceptionally white, fine-ground flour and egg whites said to resemble a full, rising moon when cooked.
Serpent Jelly: Like the English dish jellied eels, but dyed bright green and served in small bowls with green crushed pistachios on top. (Eels are rare in Calormen and a luxury item.) Salanika: Any kind of fish stuffed with sweet dates and tangy blue cheese. Jewelbox of the Sea: A stew of small mussels, clams, and oysters in a citrus and mint based sauce. Black wine: No one knows the recipe for the alcoholic drink, but it is very black, tastes strongly of sweet grapes, and is highly alcoholic. Four Slave Treasure: Called so because the dish was so huge four slaves were required to carry it out on a platter. It consisted of a pigeon stuffed with anchovies sewn inside a duck, which was then used to stuff a large hen, then a small, suckling pig, then a kid, and finally a calf, all roasted slowly and basted with exotic spices including cinnamon. So elaborate it was served only at the most special of occasions, like nobles’ weddings, the Autumn Feast, and the like. Towers of Sunrise: Stacks of thin-sliced, slow-roasted lamb meat served on a vertical skewer, drizzled with a pomegranate glaze. Named for its rosy pink color. The meat is shaved off and served inside moonbread with spiced chickpeas. Royal Kebabs: Skewers loaded with marinated chunks of lamb’s heart, cooked over a smoky charcoal grill. Game-playing Beans: Boiled white and black beans arranged in a checkerboard pattern on a large, flat platter, topped with chopped parsley and nisa-nisa (see below.) Tastyhearts: A type of pancake made with chickpea flour and soft farmer’s cheese, served with honey and molasses. Lovers in the Blankets: Eggplant puree served over the largest of hen eggs, which were soft-boiled and halved and placed yolk-side down. Orange rice: A pilaf-like dish made of yellow rice suffused with orangewater. It was cooked with dried chopped fruits and nuts and slivers of quail meat. Nisa-nisa: Chopped walnuts sautéed in butter, used as a topping for vegetable dishes. Pearls of the Phoenix: Hollowed pomegranate shells filled with a crème of goat milk, saffron and honey. (This is a figurative name only; Calormenes really don’t believe in phoenixes.) Marzipan flowers: Almond paste shaped and colored to look like exotic blossoms. Tashbaan sherbet: No one makes sherbet like the Tashbaani confectioners. The ice comes from the Western mountains, packed in deep layers of hay to keep it cool on its trip downriver. Some flavors are rosewater, lemon, violet, honey, mango, melon, and lavender. |
Artwork by Laura B. Hallett
Let’s look at some more depictions of the White Witch — Jadis — riding in her sleigh.
This one, by Laura B. Hallett, is a doozy of bizarreness. The runners seem to be made of mammoth tusks, which seems appropriate for Narnia in its frozen state, and there’s two bald dwarves, a wolf in a doggie coat, and a bat (where’d that come from?) while the witch simpers sweetly as she offers Edmund the Turkish Delight. Altogether a unique vision.
Artwork by illustrator Alice Ink
A professional children’s book illustrator made this version, in watercolor, and it’s polished and delightful, especially in the art nouveau design of the sleigh. Here the witch’s hair serves as her crown, moussed upward in a style resembling the legs of on octopus. Edmund cradles his hot drink and is barely seen amongst the furs. But the real surprise is the dwarf, who is sulking off to the side as if he’s jealous of all the attention Edmund is receiving.
The White Witch’s Sleigh, by James Philip
I like this one even though the sleigh is too boxlike, like a stage prop. The witch has what I consider the correct color hair — black as night — plus a bouffant which highlights her crown. Edmond, dressed in his usual garb of short pants, sweater vest, button-down shirt, and knee socks, is surprised and a little puzzled, while the reindeer, with their backward glances, are all too knowing of the outcome.
Artwork by Ali Yildiz
Here’s another unique stylized vision. Both Edmund and the witch look to be sitting within a cloud of fluffy, fleecy fur. Jadis sports a heavy gold bracelet and her dreadlocks, inspired by the Walden film, take on the aspect of coiled snakes. Note the stain on Edmund’s mouth, indicative of his greed and lapse in moral character. A++ !
Also based on the film, this one is too happy-happy joy-joy for my taste.
This artist took Baynes’ original illustration and pushed it further. The sleigh is a frothy, lacy confection — surely that elaborate backpiece is translucent — and the witch simple yet majestic — while edmund stands in front, in his bathrobe, alone and vulnerable. Here he’s in his bathrobe, which is from the Walden movie. In the text of the book, he’s wearing everyday clothing, though not for wintry weather.
Though C. S. Lewis apparently had a hatred for small cats (look at Ginger’s fate in The Last Battle) he admired the larger species. Aslan was a lion, after all, and his attendants were leopards, panthers, and other (unnamed) species of big cats; a cat-a-mount is mentioned as being one of the statues in the witch’s courtyard, which might be a puma or cougar or some other wild cat like a lynx. But it was the leopards who were mentioned most, which makes sense, as they were featured on European royal crests and sigils almost as much as lions were.
They also took on some human characteristics, as in the above picture from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
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Next to Aslan stood two leopards of whom one carried his crown and the other his standard.
— The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardobe |
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Now, “stood” could just mean standing on legs, whether they were two or four. But the leopards couldn’t have carried the objects if they didn’t have the use of forelimbs.
So it does appear the big cats had prehensile paws and the choice of a bipedal posture, at least in this book. That includes Aslan. In one of Pauline Baynes’ original illustrations he walks alongside the White Witch on two legs with his paws folded behind his back. He also claps his paws — which wouldn’t have made much noise, having pads — and touches Peter on the shoulder with a paw to direct his attention; a few paragraphs later he waves a paw to indicate Peter should respond to Susan’s horn. Then, after Susan is saved from the wolf:
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“Hand it [the sword] to me and kneel, Son of Adam,” said Aslan. And when Peter had done so he struck him with the flat of the blade and said, “Rise up, Sir Peter Fenris-Bane. And, whatever happens, never forget to wipe your sword.”
— The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardobe |
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Well, hmmm. There’s more in this section I could analyze, such as Aslan’s priggish harping on cleaning the sword, but that is for another post.
Later, there’s this:
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“Wow!” roared Aslan half rising from his throne
— The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardobe |
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Sitting on a throne and half-rising from it is what humans do. If Aslan was sitting on the throne as a cat would, he couldn’t half-rise, because he’s already half-risen with his haunches on the ground and his front paws supporting his upper body.
In Prince Caspian though, Aslan doesn’t evince any of this anthropomorphic behavior save, in one part, where he shakes hands with Peter (!) Of course Aslan was not present for a good chunk of the book, at least until Lucy spots him in the woods for which she is jeered at. But when he is present, he is more cat than human.
By The Voyage of the Dawn Treader Lewis is rethinking entirely his earlier conceptions of what Aslan can and can’t do. When Eustace is de-dragoned he tells Edmond:
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“After a bit the lion took me out and dressed me—”
“Dressed you. With his paws?” “Well, I don’t exactly remember that bit. But he did somehow or other: in new clothes—the same I’ve got on now, as a matter of fact.” — The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardobe |
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The implication is Aslan doesn’t do that kind of mundane physical stuff. In fact, as the books progress, he grows more distant, more mysterious, more iconic, and more static. By The Silver Chair, he doesn’t even pierce his own paw with a thorn — he has Eustace do it. This is actually a pretty neat trick of author, going from the fairy-tale hands-on character of the first book, meant for young children, to the almost-forgotten myth he was in the last, which was meant for young adolescents. The idea of Aslan changed as the reader did, with the object of deepening their faith and interiorising it.
Back to the leopards and other big cats. If they can carry standards and crowns, it’s possible they had names like these.
| Duskpad
Frecklebreast Graypard Lygerion Moongrace Nightwind Oscellan Servaline Sunchase Tyrannus Yellowbrow |
Dappleshade
Embercoat Felimare Flare Flint Goldmellow Moongaunt Myrelot Streak Sundrift Tangletail |
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