An Irish Mythical Creature – The Enfield

Myths and legends, there are so many of them throughout our immense world. Many came into existence as a means to interpret nature’s strength, the divine, the unexplained. But some also came from the need us humans have for security and protection. From such want, the Enfield was born.

Enfields are a lesser-known type of Chimera, a mythological creature made up of body parts of other animals. They are known to generally have the head of a fox, the body and forelegs of an eagle and the hind and rear legs of a wolf (some variations also add lion and greyhound parts into the mix). They are mainly associated with Ireland although records also place them in England. One thing is certain, the Enfield is unquestionably Celtic and of great importance to its chieftains.

A medieval Enfield

In Celtic tales, Enfields had the role of being the guardian of the leaders fallen in battle. The Celts believed in giving their dead a proper burial ceremony which gave them a motivational disadvantage as their enemies would try their best to steal the bodies of the chieftains and, to put it into milder words, disgrace them. This meant, in Celtic culture, that the deceased would be cursed to never find peace in the afterlife unless properly avenged.

The want for a guardian of their fallen, made the Celts conjure forward the Enfield, a fierce defender to protect the lifeless body of their chieftains, remaining by the dead man’s side and protecting the body from anyone with ill intent.

But not our rendition of an Enfield!

Curious and eager, as all young things are, his path has yet to burden him with such a grave task as guardian of the dead. Mind you, he doesn’t shun his future, an Enfield is proud of his legacy and grateful to those who have chosen him. But it is pumpkin season now and the Fairy Queen bestowed upon her humble vassals the possibility to become human for a day and go enjoy human things.

So this is where we caught our Enfield, in mid-transformation from chimera to human, eager and still cautious about undesirable eyes catching him off guard. Tonight he shall feast on hot minced meat and pumpkin pie before returning to his elders and learn the ways of the guardians of the Celtic Chieftains.

Check out the linework here!

Happy Autumn once again and have a wonderful weekend and as always,

★ stay inspired!★

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