... I once bought a tattered old leopard skin at an antique shop in Arbroath... it was dried hard like parchment... clean, but a bit worse for wear... the skin where the lower jaw had been was pierced on both sides, and a small piece of handmade cord connected both jaws... I asked the owner of the shop for the purpose, and he dropped the bomb... that pelt had been used as a cape - of sorts - by some unknown African tribesman... using the handmade cord, the wearer could place the top of the leopard's head on top of his head, and the cord would could be slipped beneath his chin... thus hold the ensemble in place... with the body, legs, and tail hanging down behind the warrior.. protecting his back from the sun, camouflaging him, and showing everyone who passed that he was a badass leopard killer...
... I had just de-mobbed from the Corps, and standing in that cold shop holding that skin, I knew that I had to have it... 50 pounds sterling was the price, and I paid it... later that night, with much ceremony, I hung it on my manroom wall... alongside my military photos, mementos, and keepsakes that 5 years in the Corps had given me... it stayed on that wall for 8 years... when we were packing up to move to the United States, I gifted it to my friend John.. he was a local Scottish Nationalist politician and had been born in Africa, so I knew he would appreciate it... and besides, I didn't think US Customs would appreciate a 100 year old leopard pelt as much as I did... so, I abandoned it...
... sitting here now, I can tell you truly that I miss having that cape around... once upon a time, I too was a badass leopard killer... I knew the feeling of wearing a skin uniform that celebrated my victories with ribbons, medals, and badges... common threads were shared with the long-dead spearman who had felled that leopard...
.. today, a new breed of warriors are in need of their capes... Kevlar blankets, to be precise... these men and women keep the leopards away, friends.. they are our protectors.... go now, and donate if you can....
You just miss dancing nekkid around a campfire wearing that thing and being called "LORD OF ALL" by your minions.
You don't fool me.
Bullshitted by Acidman on February 26, 2005 04:44 PM... I was not naked.. I had a ceremonial loin cloth... made of hippo leather...
Bullshitted by Eric on February 26, 2005 08:46 PMI had a comment in mind... but after that bullshit... forget it!
Bullshitted by Intellectually inept on February 27, 2005 10:20 PMWhat part of the hippo was this so-called loin cloth made of?? The lip?
Bullshitted by Michele on February 28, 2005 08:00 AMleopard-skin wearers are closely associated with shaimanism. The office of the leopard was stated in the book of Jeremiah(650 BC) "and the leopards shall guard over thier cities and shall tear them to pieces..." The office was associated with King Tut (3300 BC)Hannibal (331 BC), Alexander the Great (233 BC) and up through at least King Henry VII (1680 AD) They (leopard skin wearers) were basically the gentleman classes and associated with knight commanders (See Charles Le Brun (1610-87)artwork). My family coat of arms was "three leopards heads affront on a bend sable (black)..." designating knight commanders, closely associated with the Knights Templar (the Modern day Masons) and the Priory of Scion (guardians of the Holy Seplechler. for what it's worth...