| Rainbow Serpent Scale | |
|---|---|
| |
|
Origin |
Rainbow Serpent |
|
Type |
Scale |
|
Effects |
Releases water from the concave side |
|
Downsides |
None Identified |
|
Activation |
Shining light upon it |
|
Collected by |
|
|
Section |
|
|
Aisle |
134784-5726 |
|
Shelf |
105926-3748-504 |
|
Date of Collection |
June 12, 1984 |
| [Source] | |
Origin[]
The Rainbow Serpent is a deity shared across nearly all Australian Aborigine cultures, described as a large snake creature that controls the world's most precious commodity - water. It is also attributed to forming the landscape and weather of Australia itself. Legend has it that before everything else existed, the Rainbow Serpent awoke from a deep slumber and flew around the world, carving its gorges and canyons as she went. She then filled her tracks with water to create rivers, oceans, and streams. As life began in this world, she would turn the wicked and quarrelsome into stone, and turn the wise and obedient into humans.
Mythological, yes, but there is fossil evidence to suggest that the stories of this serpent are based on very real, very large snakes from the genus Wonambi, which last lived in Australia before going extinct.
The Scale inspired Disney’s animated movie “The Rescuers Down Under”.
Effects[]
This scale is a large, iridescent serpent scale, about the size of a dinner plate. Curiously enough, when light it shone on the scale, a blast of water flows from its concave side. Perhaps the Rainbow Serpent wasn't just a myth after all.