Deryni Magical Family

In the time of the Ancients, according to Katherine Kurtz' Deryni lore, the Deryni were not persecuted, and they were free to pursue their magical activities. Whole families were involved in preserving and practicing the arcane arts. The time of the Ancients might correspond to our Later Roman Empire or Byzantine period, although for all we know the Deryni might have been active from prehistory onwards. Katherine has never written about Deryni before the medieval period. My own speculation, which the author does not endorse, is that the Deryni either were another species of humanity or even humanoid aliens marooned on Earth who had forgotten their alien origin and history. 

This painting shows a Deryni family doing magic together in their own private ritual chapel. Dad is dressed in splendid purple vestments and Mom and the two kids are wearing white trimmed with gold. They have the brilliant blonde or red hair that characterizes pure-bred Deryni. 

This painting was done in acrylic, in November of 1990, and is 11" x 14". The "sparkles" you see in the upper half are not part of the painting but are light reflections from a glossy varnish that I applied to the surface. The magical glows were not added by airbrush, but were done by hand, which was quite a difficult operation: acrylic magic.