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| The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sidney Paget |
[Writing on the Cron Annwn – Welsh hounds of the other world] "And they must recall to the minds of our readers the Wisk, Wisked, or Yesk hounds of Devon, which are described in the Atheneum for March 27. 1847, as well as the Maisue Hellequin of Normandy and Bretagne."
NOTES AND QUERIES. [No. 19. Mar. 9. 1850.]
From 'Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology,' via Google Books: 'Gabriel Hounds (Variations: Cron Annwn, Cwn Annwn, Dogs of Hell, Gabble Retchets, Gabriel Ratchets, Gabriel Ratchet's Hounds, Gobble-ratches, Gytrash, Heath Hounds, Hell Hounds, Sky Yelpers, Wish Hounds, Wisk, Yell Hounds, Yesk, Yeth Hounds) Similar to Cwn Annwfn, (see Annwn, Hounds of) in Welsh fairy lore, the Gabriel hounds are a pack of spectral hounds prowling Durham, Lancashire, North Devon, Staffordshire and Yorkshire, England led by the Archangel Gabriel when the Wild Hunt is under way. Described as being overly large and having red ears and eyes, their bodies glow eerily green or white, they fly through the air, sometimes the hounds are said to have a human head. A Gabriel hound is believed to be created when an unbaptized baby dies. If seen hovering over a house, it is reputed these spectral hounds foretell death for one of its occupants. Sometimes the cries and the wing beats of geese Bean Goose (Anser segetum) flying at night are mistakenly interpreted as the sounding of the hounds.'
ReplyDeleteAnd the entry for Hounds of Annwn: '(Variations: Cwn Annwn, Herla's Hounds, Hounds of the Hills) The Hounds of Annwn were the spectral fairy hounds associated with Annwn, the underworld in Welsh mythology. Owned by Arawn, Lord of Annwn, the pack was usually sent out on their own to retrieve souls for Annwn or to reveal and occasionally consume a corpse. In the 'First Branch of the Mabinogi' (Pedair Canc y Mabinogi) the hounds were described as being shining white with red ears but other sources say they were small, grey hounds with red speckles. To see them was an omen of death. After the introduction of Christianity the Hounds of Annwn were reclassified as hell hounds; however, Annwn itself was more accurately defined as paradise.'
And that description of these hounds reminds me of the book Dogsbody by Diana Wynne Jones, in which the canine main character (actually the Dog Star, Sirius, reincarnated as a mundane dog, though the exact details are sorta complicated) at one point joins the Wild Hunt in the company of red-eared, pale-coated dogs that remind me of this description of the Hounds of Annwn. It's been years since I read it, so I can't remember much more than that; but the book is anyway one of my favorites--just had to mention it, this post and ensuing internet search having jogged my memory.