Amulets by Merlin's Blog

The Kallisti Amulet
has been a source of humor for centuries.
To understand this “Ancient Prank”,
here is a brief lesson in Greek Mythology…

Kallisti Amulet

Known for being a trouble maker,
Eris was not in the list of guests
invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis,
the parents of Achilles.
In spite of the lack of invitation
she came to the reception party
and threw a solid gold apple through the door
with the inscription:

Kallisti: “For the fairest”

Hera, Athena and Aphrodite
saw this piece of art
and started disputing who it was for.
Disgusted by the constant bickering,
Zeus sent them to Mount Ida near Troy
to be judged by the shepherd Paris,
who chose Aphrodite as the most beautiful,
accepting Helen’s hand for a bribe.

Paris, having come to fetch his bribe at Sparta,
where Helen was queen,
left the city
as her lover and sailed with her to Troy.
But her husband Menelaus
and his brother Agamemnon
took great exception for this theft,
sent a powerful army against Troy;
and the rest is history.

This symbol
is a favorite of those fans of the Science Fiction Trilogy
by Robert Anton Wilson:
the Illuminati;
and is hailed by the Discordians:
a movement which pops up now and then
who attend such conventions and festivals
and enjoy a practical joke now and then.
An amulet of mischief and humor.