Nostradamus C4 Q43: The Isle of If becomes a military laboratory.
Copyright: Allan Webber, December 2015

This verse is included in the discussion of Nostradamus on War and has a direct link to C01 Q63 through anagrams for disseminule. It is an allusory quatrain referring back to ancient tales for its telling of the setting for modern war. There is an anagram for Lycaeus (and its alternate form Lyceus) which creates a set of specific allusions. C04Q43MrsllScyBstDdnDb8AxsWrd.png

Lycaeus (aka Lyceus) was a surname of certain divinities worshipped on mount Lycaeum in Arcadia, as for instance Zeus, who had a sanctuary on it, in which the festival of the Lycaea was celebrated. No one was allowed to enter the temple, and if any one forced his way in, he would have to stay only to lose his shadow within a year. Other fates included being stoned to death by the Arcadians, called stags, and being obliged to take to flight to save their lives.

The verse also has anagrams for Marseille beast or smaller beast which has connection to Nostradamus' youth when a rhinoceros was held captive on the Isle of If just off the coast from Marseille.

This was a major event that drew wide attention culminating in the visit of King Francis in 1515.

 Inspired by the military potential of the island the king commissioned a fortress to be built which later became a prison.

The prisoners held within its walls in the text may well be the smaller beasts that lose their Lycean shadows. Stags may also fit to the hidden reference to a smaller beast with horns.