phenomenon

Rainbow

Nature

A named arc of spectral colors from sunlight in raindrops. Not moonbow as lunar light alone, and not halo as an ice ring around sun or moon.

Roman religion

  • Rainbow appears in Roman religion.

    Pliny’s Natural History seats the rainbow among Book 2 sky arcs and color marvels. A named rainbow in that encyclopedia, not iris as a deity dump and not a modern optics lecture.

    from Pliny the Elder · Natural History, c. 77 CE

    appears in · sourced · documented

Norse tradition

  • Rainbow appears in Norse tradition.

    Snorri’s Gylfaginning has men call Bifröst the rainbow among the three-colored bridge to Ásgarðr. A named rainbow in that prose, not bridge as the crossing already walked and not a bare weather-arc dump.

    from Snorri Sturluson · Gylfaginning, c. 1220

    appears in · sourced · documented

sources

  • Natural History · Pliny the Elder

    Pliny, Naturalis Historia.

  • Gylfaginning · Snorri Sturluson

    Snorri Sturluson, Gylfaginning, in the Prose Edda.