These sketches by Jan Pospisil depict two Ernalda priestesses – the first from Esrolia and the second from Sartar.
Ernalda is the Earth Queen, the goddess of sex, women, agriculture, motherhood, and society. Her cult is extremely influential in all Orlanthi lands, but its center is Esrolia. As a result, the Ernalda priestesses of Esrolia are the template for what priestesses look like throughout the Orlanthi lands and even beyond. For example, the priestess in this picture (below) is trying to model herself on the Esrolian Earth Priestess, but this is the original deal:
This priestess wears a tight green bodice that is opened down to below her navel to reveal her breasts:
The hems of the bodice are embroidered in geometric patterns combining the Earth Rune, Life Rune, and Fertility Rune.
She wears a flounced and pleated bell-shaped skirt:
- https://classconnection.s3.amazonaws.com/190/flashcards/305190/png/a1330329026270.png (dead link) or
- https://www.deviantart.com/tadarida/art/Minoan-Greece-2-164388687
Around her neck, she wears a necklace of emeralds. She wears bracelets decorated with precious stones.Her long dark hair has been ornately braided, and is held in place with a headband decorated with pearls. She wears gold earrings and her eyes are lined with kohl, and her lips are reddened with rouge.
She might carry a copper sacrificial dagger
- (https://gallery.sjsu.edu/sacrifice/dagger) (dead link)
used to perform animal sacrifices.This priestess is barefoot, so that she might have direct contact with the Earth.
Sartar is colder and relatively poorer than Esrolia (the entire population of Sartar is only 50% bigger than the urban population of Nochet, Esrolia‘s main city). However, Ernalda is revered in Sartar, and her priestesses have high status.This priestess wears a costume similar to the Esrolian priestess, but adapted for Sartar’s climate and conditions. Her bodice is not fully opened to reveal the breasts and is looser than the Esrolian version:
Her skirt is likely a bit more practical than the Esrolian bell-shaped skirt, and might look like any of these:
She wears sandals with a lace that is wound up her legs.Her hair is braided, although not as intricately as her Esrolian counter-part (she probably has far fewer servants). She wears a copper pectoral around her neck with mythological scenes like:
She carries a copper sickle and a sheaf of sacred grain. She wears a copper ceremonial dagger used in rituals
