Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Alatriste's Hidalgos: Gurriato the Moor

 A late comer to Alatriste's circle of companion the Moor Gurriato joins forces with him after the Captain intervenes to prevent the rape of a Moorish woman, by two Spaniards. Gurriato and his knife (with which he is an expert fighter) keep the fight even.  Gurriato then joins the galley crew as a volunteer rower.
 In the book Gurriato is described as having a cross tattoo and having red hair both seeming a bit odd for a Berber (Moorish) tribesman. Supposedly his tribe had intermarried with the Vandals or Visigoths and had adopted Christianity.  Since then they had converted to Islam but retain some earlier traditions like the cross tattoo.  I think the tribe is wholly fictional though I recall form my college studies that some Berbers did adopt Christianity before the coming of Islam.
 The figures is a kit bash, Warlord Body (the spruce I got had 13 bodies but only 12 sets of arms) the arms, weapon and buckler shield are from the excellent Frostgrave Cultist set.  I also took the belt pouch and curved knife form that set it seemed to fit.
I was unable to get a good sense of what the author intended the cross tattoo to look like.  I googled some images but all the images I found of Berbers with traditional tattoos where women. Those crosses where of dot type but I couldn't paint that so when with a line of paint.. its not perfect but it look OK especially at a distance this close up is for those who I know will want such an image.

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