There were three images on the display screens when the students entered the classroom this morning:
two illustrations of a musician in brightly-colored clothing, and a closeup of a
small crystalline sphere, amber in color. On the table was one of the now familiar lockboxes.
"Good morning," Sakura told the class. "Today we're continuing our unit on artifacts from folklore with two items from medieval Europe. You had a chance to take a look at them three weeks ago, but now we'll be examining them in detail."
She passed this week's stack of
handouts around the room and moved to open the lockbox, revealing a
pair of ivory flutes, one trimmed with gold and the other with silver.
"The Brothers Grimm are credited with the best-known written version of this tale,
Der Rattenfänger von Hameln, drawn from various sources and published in 1816. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the author of
Faust, also wrote a poem about the Pied Piper in 1806. However, the oldest written source dates back to 1440, and a stained-glass window that once existed in the Markt church of Hamelin has been described and reproduced in several accounts dating between the 1300s and 1700s. The window was created in memory of an event that took place in Hamelin in 1284; the rats of the Brothers Grimm's account did not exist in any versions of the story before the 17th century, however. There have been various theories to explain the original event, generally centered around some outbreak of disease, and scholars generally interpret the Piper as a symbol of death." Sakura's tone grew somber.
( 'They wouldn't be far from the truth.' )[OOC: Class info/roster/linkdrop. Low interaction from me today because odds are good that I'll be up to my ears in work before I leave for two days' vacation. Intrepid TA
blessed_twice was modded with permission since the stupid flat tire held me up just long enough to keep from actually preplaying that bit. OCD is up!]