POST 03 THE MYSTERIES OF APOLLO, PERSEPHONE AND THE HELGUS ANTONIUS

The Apollo Candy website has just come into TLE gameplay as well as a memorandum discussing a beverage containing a psychotropic compound developed by Apollo's Dr. Hackett.

Here's a theory we at the AC have been incubating ever since the Helgus Antonius sailed invisibly into San Remo's harbor. Back then; we spent a lot of time Googling Helgus and Antonius for clues to the ship's origin, destination or contents. Rachel pretty much confirmed our findings when in her Italy Post 04, she seemed to favor either 'The Holy Flower' or 'St. Anthony,' the Patron Saint of Lost Things, as the interpretation of the name.

So where was the Helgus Antonius "going"? Probably crazy, if our research is right. St. Anthony and Holy Flower had led us to Ergot (pronounced Air-got), a fungus that grows on rye grass. The fungus contains a chemical that makes the sufferers go berserk and causes gangrene of the hands and feet due to constriction of blood supply to the extremities. If it is not treated, victims are said to have the sensation of being burned at the stake, before their fingers, toes, hands and feet dropped off, according to MedicineNet.com

The disease is called ergotism or, more commonly, ST. ANTHONY'S FIRE.

We think the symptoms, side effects and outcomes of St. Anthony's Fire jibe pretty closely with what's been happening to folks on the Lost island, possibly explaining missing limbs and the sickness that killed the French group, not to mention the hallucinations and flashbacks. As described below, it's also a "drug" thought responsible for creating many mystical experiences because it contains the same chemicals as LSD. How 60's. How DHARMA!

The delivery system: Apollo candy bars? The water? Maybe one's the dose; the other the cure.

But why Apollo? Ergot is thought to have played a role in The Eleusinian Mystery, which were the annual initiation ceremonies for the cult of Demeter and PERSEPHONE based at Eleusis in ancient Greece. As you may remember from the Persephone myth, it was APOLLO who finally told the grief stricken Demeter that her daughter had been taken to the Underworld. She then retired to Eleusis and withheld the blessing of growth from all seeds of the Earth.

Of all the mysteries celebrated in ancient times, The Eleusinian were held to be the ones of greatest importance. During the time of Plato, people made pilgrimages to Eleusinian Temples where sacramental potions (kykeon) were taken, which among other things contained cereal grains and water. The hallucinogenic compound in ergot is an alkaloid, and all alkaloids are more or less soluble in water; but the toxic ones in ergots are less soluble than the hallucinogenic ones (lysergic acid amide). LSD doesn’t occur in ergots but is a semi-synthetic derivative made in the lab from lysergic acid amide.

The disease's name eludes to the hallucinations--seductive and horrible--the hermit-like monk St. Anthony endured in his struggle with Satan. According to MedicineNet, at times, the devil appeared to Anthony in the guise of a monk bringing bread during his fasts, or in the form of wild beasts, women, or soldiers, sometimes beating the saint and leaving him in a deathly state. Anthony endured many such attacks, and those who witnessed them were convinced they were real. Every vision conjured up by Satan was repelled by Anthony's fervid prayer and penitential acts. So exotic were the visions and so steadfast was Anthony's endurance that the subject of his temptations has often been used in literature and art, notably in the paintings not only by Matthias Grünewald, as mentioned, but also of many other artists ranging from Hiëronymus Bosch and Max Ernst.

Reference sites:
Ergotism
St. Anthony’s Fire