muddied hands
Taurus III
Taurus III
Taurus III • A String of Prayer Beads • Lord of Failure
Ruled by Saturn, the god of both agriculture and death, Taurus III is confronted with the role of destruction in all living cycles. Concerned with necessity and the preservation of resources, this decan has a keen awareness, obtained through experience, that difficult circumstances are inevitable. Taurus III holds the capacity for wisdom and humility to make preparations for the long winter.
The Litai, the personified spirits of prayer, are the residing spirits of this decan. Carrying litanies to the gods on behalf of mortals, they are depicted as the counterpart to Ate, ruin incarnate. The Litai follow after Ruin to offer healing and restoration to those caught in its path, giving this face a natural capacity to call upon the powers that be. Taurus III may be well acquainted with destruction (Saturn) but in Venus’ domain, with the assistance of the Litai, there is support and power to be found in remediation.
Additionally, the dark fixed star Algol, “The Eye of Medusa”, resides at 26 degrees of Taurus. Invoking the myth and tragedy of Medusa and further emphasising this Decans familiarity with dark terrain, the confronting of fears and the unseen. Kira Ryberg calls Taurus III “holy and harrowing”. There are gifts to be found in the darkness that can’t be earned elsewhere.
The tarot card for this face is the 7 of Pentacles where we see a figure leaning on their hoe, observing their crops, perhaps daunted by the job in front of them. Failure is often associated with this card and T Susan Chang interprets this as a “Fail Better”. In Saturnian time and thought, failure is a vital part of progress.
In mapping out Taurus III, serpentine imagery caught my minds eye. Agrippa depicts a man whose hand is a serpent as part of the image for the decan. As mentioned, Algol and Medusa are influences. And finally, Coppock speaks to Taurus III as “confrontation with destruction as completion” — this idea along with other themes in Taurus III continued pulling me back to the Ouroboros. There is no renewal without decay.
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The Taurus III Talisman is sterling silver and brass with a black sapphire, consecrated during Saturns hour during the solar transit through the decan.
Strung on 18 in. sterling silver chain
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muddied hands jewellery
Handcrafted, Always
Each piece is designed and lovingly crafted by myself, Daisy, in the Blue Mountains, NSW. With each purchase you are supporting my ability to continue making art in this way.
Conciously Sourced, Traceable Stones
Conciously sourced, traceable stones means ethical mining and living-wage paid workers. Unfortunately, there are no current international standards for mining rocks and gemstones and greenwashing has become increasingly popular in the industry. I moved away from the phrasing
"ethically sourced" for this reason.
I primarily source my stones from small lapidary artists who have mined the rock themselves or can trace who did.
Recycled Silver and Gold
My metal suppliers provide recycled silver and gold
I take part in the cycle by recycling all my scrap metal
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Handcrafters Manufacturing Warranty
I take care to test all pieces for quality assurance. It's important to me that I create jewellery that can live many lifetimes.
In the event that there are structural issues within 6 months of your order and it is clearly a quality fault, I will happily repair the piece or exchange where possible.