Argo Cycle 4: The Historical Past
III. The Past
This section catalogues specific historical periods, events, and figures that characters within the Argo Cycle reference, claim knowledge of, participate in via non-linear time, or which form the specific historical backdrop distinct from the foundational Mythic Past. These interactions demonstrate the characters' deep entanglement with, and reinterpretation of, established human history.
A. Ancient Times (Post-Flood/Pre-Classical/Classical):
Pythagoras (c. 570 – c. 495 BC): His philosophical cataloging of cosmic dualities appears in Archipelago’s introduction to Casey’s problem of evil. The narrative gives Pythagoras’s lists distinguishing 'good' (Limit, even, one, right, male, rest, straight, light, square) from 'evil' (the unlimited, odd, multitude, left, female, motion, curved, darkness, oblong), situating the cycle's conflicts within this ancient framework [A:154].
Naxos: The narrative connects both Aegean Naxos and its Sicilian namesake. A Capuchin priest on Aegean Naxos says that its colonists founded Sicilian Naxos, which he calls the first Greek colony in Italy in the 7th century BC [D:119]. Aegean Naxos is Anastasia Demetriades' ancestral home [D:36, D:115] and one of the five islands of the foundational Pentanesia known to Finnegan [A:35]. Finnegan and Anastasia travel there [D:115, D:125].
Roman Era: This period is accessed through character memory. Private Gregory, encountered in Ward 14 in Archipelago, recalls "Roman days" and the anti-Christian stories circulating then, specifically the fear-inducing narrative of a murdered man rising as a two-day-old corpse from a sealed tomb [A:85]. His memories position him as extremely long-lived [A:77]. Melchisedech Duffey's identification with the "King of Salem" [M:166] connects him archetypally to the patriarchal age. Roman ritual is echoed in the description of the pietà form associated with the thirteenth station of the old Roman Way of the Cross on the Aventine Hill [D:92]. Saints and other figures (Linus, Clement, Cletus, Stephen, Paul, the Baptist, Gregory, Constantine) appear in Henry Salvatore's dream vision of the Navicula Petri [A:45].
Pliny the Elder (AD 23–79): His Natural History is chosen by the 8th-century Father Joseph of Maintz as essential knowledge, included in the library for his voyage to the moon [A:271].
Diocletian (reigned 284–305): Listed by the narrator alongside Caesar, Wellington, Lincoln, Sam Houston, and George Barrow as a major historical figure with unexplained 'hidden years' or temporal discontinuities in their biographies [M:72].
B. Early Christian / Dark Ages / Medieval Period:
St. Augustine (AD 354–430): His writings are deemed essential, included in Father Joseph's lunar library [A:271] and listed by Patrick Stranahan as required reading [A:109]. Casey Szymansky quotes Augustine’s former belief that sin originated from "some being of a different kind" [A:154]. Augustine's reflections on "Eddying thoughts" are also cited regarding Eternity [M:469]. He appears alongside Jerome in Henry's dream of the Navicula Petri [A:45].
St. Jerome (c. AD 347–420): His works are likewise part of Father Joseph's foundational collection for the moon voyage [A:271]. He also appears in Henry's Navicula Petri dream [A:45].
Fall of Rome: Adam Scanlon describes the period after Rome’s fall through the sea-image "dread on the Ocean," calling it the Low Middle Ages [A:234].
Boëthius (c. 480 – 524/525): The cycle quotes his distinction between the flowing instant that produces Time and the abiding instant that produces Eternity [M:469].
8th Century AD:
Father Joseph of Maintz: A holy Benedictine who, seeking escape from a world "too lovely and too treacherous" [A:271], forged a vessel, loaded it with foundational texts (Augustine, Jerome, Pliny, Scriptures), and launched himself to the moon, signaling his survival via bonfires for 90 years [A:271]. Ignacio recounts this "authentic story" to Finnegan [A:271].
Archbishop Turpin of Rheims: Named by Ignacio as the chronicler who recorded Father Joseph's story, lending it a veneer of medieval historical authority [A:271].
9th Century: The era of Kasmir Gorshok, Casey Szymansky's medieval aspect, identified as a scholar and necromancer [A:39]. His notable compassion extended even to the body louse, for which he invented artificial hosts [M:535–536]. This period follows the Roman Empire's collapse, marked by "sea-dread" [A:234].
946/947 AD: In X’s account, the Devil was imprisoned in the Crimea (Phylake/Carcer), having been transferred from Aachen via Christians to Mohammedans and finally to Devil Worshippers [M:204]. This event began the thousand-year "Devil in His Dungeon" period [M:185].
Prince Casimir of Poland: Duffey associates Casey with Prince Casimir, son of King Casimir IV, and with his vow of chastity [M:535–536].
1348: The year of the Black Death plague, suggested by Zabotski as an origin point for idea of the 'Dark Ages', possibly stemming from the "delirious dream of a vivid boy" writing history during the crisis [M:281–282].
King Richard of England (reigned 1189–1199): In the talking oak’s account, credited with recapturing the Argo from Saracen control during the Crusades era [M:404].
Robert of Namur (14th Century): Sailed the Argo, then named Salle du Roi, for an English King, tying the ship to late medieval European history [M:404].
C. Renaissance / Early Modern Period:
Christopher Columbus (1451–1506): Ignacio identifies St. Kitts (St. Christopher) as one of his landfalls [A:272].
Martyr-Bell Event (Ste. Genevieve): The novella recounts that in 1594, English raiders murdered 39 Christian people of color on Ste. Genevieve. The raiders' ship, Lord Cramner, subsequently wrecked, and its bronze cannons were salvaged and recast into the Martyr-Bell. This bell, set up to seaward, acquired the supernatural property of ringing prophetically when enemies approached, doing so for four centuries until Finnegan transported it [M:575–576].
17th Century: The era provides an aesthetic benchmark via Havelock Ellis's Mermaid Series of Old Dramatists, which sought to revive the period's plays [M:476].
King Melchisedech (an earlier tradition): Duffey’s primary identity associates him with the biblical Priest-King of Salem [M:38, M:166], and he is "always intrinsic to our crew" [M:180].
St. Francis de Sales (1567–1622): Finnegan reads his description of Paradise while Le Marin reads over his shoulder [D:233]. His definition of Chastity as integrity and honor is also presented as a moral benchmark [M:27].
Shakespeare (1564–1616): His phrase "Africa and golden joys" is invoked when discussing the inherent, almost primordial, joy associated with money and wealth [M:124].
Other Renaissance Figures: Papa Piccone names Buonarroti (Michelangelo), Sancho, and Cellini in answer to Patrick Stranahan’s dismissal of later artists [A:111]. Stein notes Michelangelo's own flattened nose influenced conventional iconography, particularly regarding noses [A:127]. Machiavelli is mentioned alongside figures like Nietzsche and Shaw [M:114].
D. Patterns Across Historical Pasts:
Character Intersection & Anachronism: Core characters repeatedly demonstrate knowledge of, or presence within, multiple historical periods, violating standard chronology. This non-linearity is fundamental to their nature. Examples include Duffey's simultaneous childhoods [M:6], Private Gregory's detailed memories of Roman times [A:85], Finnegan’s awareness of an "upper and a lower life" [D:11] and his existence as both himself and the double Doppio di Pinne [D:121], and Casey's medieval aspect as Kasmir Gorshok [M:535–536, A:39]. The Argo itself spans millennia [M:404-405]. Characters are of 'other blood' [A:39] or the 'other human race' [D:50, A:39], existing outside typical human constraints. Duffey, for instance, can pirate the minds and experiences of others [M:16].
Cyclical History: History appears non-progressive, operating in cycles. This is seen in themes of the fall and restoration of entities like Rome [A:234] or the Ekklesia [M:561]; the thousand-year cycle of the Devil's imprisonment and release [M:184–185, M:204]; the recurrence of character archetypes like the two Papadiaboloi [D:285] or the various Argo Masters across time; and the "alternation of generations in the names" within families [D:278]. The narrative even entertains the idea of discarded and replaced worlds [M:291–292].
Subjectivity & Fabrication of History: Objective historical truth is consistently challenged. History is malleable, shaped by perception, unreliable memory (Amnesia [A:39]), and deliberate fabrication. The existence of historical locations like Athens is questioned [M:337], the nature of the Dark Ages is reinterpreted as a delirious dream arising from the 1348 plague [M:281–282], and historical records are subject to manipulation or multiple interpretations [M:122, M:282]. Characters like X admit to fictionalizing events and people [D:186]. The concept of "Pop History" [M:308] and the contrast between the Pristine World and Molasses World time scales [M:279] further emphasize alternate, subjective historical tracks. Even the Argo's log requires interpretation [M:411].
Lore as Fact: Mythological narratives (the voyages of the Argo [M:406], the Golden Fleece, figures like Iason and Orpheus, Pan, and the Oreads), biblical accounts (the Genesis account of evil [A:154], the Flood [A:164], figures like Cain [D:213], King Melchisedech of Salem [M:166], the Fall [M:177], Paradise [D:233–235, A:1, A:282]), and folkloric elements (changelings [A:39, D:18], talking animals like Amoy the parakeet [A:79]) enter the cycle as accounts, memories, and experienced events, blurring the line between myth and history.
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