Hyperborea
Hyperborea was a legendary continent in the Arctic. Before it was overwhelmed by the advancing ice sheets of the Pleistocene age, Hyperborea was warm and fertile with lush jungles inhabited by the last remnants of the dinosaurs. A race of yeti-like bipeds known as the Voormis once populated Hyperborea, but were wiped out by the pre-human settlers that migrated here from the south. These pre-humans built the first capital of Hyperborea at Commoriom. Later they moved to Uzuldaroum when prophesies foretold of Commoriom's doom.
Hyperborea is featured chiefly in Clark Ashton Smith's Hyperborean cycle, which mixes cosmic horror with an Iron Age-style setting. Adding to the peril is the rapidly approaching ice age, which threatens to wipe out all life on the Hyperborean continent. A host of other deities play important roles in the cycle; foremost is the toad-god Tsathoggua, who dwells in Mount Voormithadreth.
Hyperborea also features in Robert E. Howard's Conan stories.
Hyperborea may correspond to modern-day Greenland.
Gods worshipped in Hyperborea include Tsathoggua and Yhoundeh.
Contents
Geographical locations
Notable denizens
References
Clark Ashton Smith's Hyperborean cycle
- "The Tale of Satampra Zeiros" (1931)
- "The Testament of Athammaus" (1932)
- "The Weird of Avoosl Wuthoqquan" (1932)
- "The Door to Saturn" (1932)
- "The House of Haon-Dor" (1933) [story fragment]
- "The Ice-Demon" (1933)
- "Ubbo-Sathla" (1933)
- "The Seven Geases" (1934)
- "The White Sybil" (1935)
- "The Coming of the White Worm" (1941)
- "The Theft of the Thirty-Nine Girdles" (1958)
Other fiction
Non-fiction
- Daniel Harms (1998). The Encyclopedia Cthulhiana
- Laurence J. Cornford - "[A Hyperborean Glossary]". The Eldritch Dark. Retrieved on July 16, 2005.
- Chris Jarocha-Ernst - "[Clark Ashton Smith connections to the Cthulhu Mythos]"
