Raven

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A raven or crow is one of several species of birds belonging to the genus Corvus. Recognizable as black birds, they inhabit most of the globe. There is no consistent distinction between "crows" and "ravens", though generally crows are considered smaller than ravens.^[1]

Mythology[edit | edit source]

In Greek mythology, a place called Raven's Rock was where Odysseus planned the demise of his wife Penelope's suitors.^[2] Even by the time of the Peloponnesian War, the place was home to a sizable flock of ravens.^[3]

In Norse mythology, Odin was said to have two ravens, Huginn and Muninn, who kept him informed of all the goings-on across the Nine Realms.^[4]

History[edit | edit source]

While travelling through the Realm of Svartálfaheimr in the days leading up to the Great Catastrophe, Odin often came across giant ravens, which he could kill and collect feathers from to upgrade the Hugr-Rip.^[5] Unlike their smaller counterparts, these large birds tended to be more solitary in nature, thought they were known to be exceptionally dangerous if gathered in groups.^[6]

During the 9th century, a raven named Sýnin accompanied the Viking Eivor Varinsdottir on her journeys throughout Norway, England,^[4] Ireland,^[7] and Francia.^[8] Eivor was also a member of the Raven Clan, whose settlement was named Ravensthorpe.^[4]

During the Renaissance, at the underground arenas of Rome, Corvo Antonelli was an unofficial gladiator champion and adopted his title of "The Crow".^[9] In the early 16th century, the Italian Templars Cesare Borgia and Sirus Favero were in command of an "Assassin troop" called the Crows, whom they used in their war against the Assassins.^[10]

Similarly to pigeons, ravens could be used to deliver messages across large distances. Such was the case in 1725, when a Shimazu ninja, mortally wounded in an ambush by the Zhang Wei Union, gave a note to a raven that had come to feed on the ninja's lifeless bodies. This raven subsequently flew to Zheng's ship, where the admiral received the message and learned about the ninja's devastating defeat.^[11]

During the Victorian era, ravens were a common sight in London.^[12]^[13] Maxwell Roth, the gang leader of the Blighters, raised a baby crow named Rook as a pet, until snapping its neck and sending the body to Jacob Frye, alongside an invitation to the Alhambra Music Hall.^[14] The Rooks, the gang started by Jacob and his sister Evie Frye, also utilized a stylized crow as their emblem.^[12]