© Hallgrimur P. Helgason/CatersThese dramatic images of the aurora borealis appear to show a phoenix rising from the ground
Shot in Iceland, it shows what looks like a huge phoenix with wings outstretched rising in to the night's sky.
It was captured by photographer Hallgrimur P. Helgason in Kaldársel, who said he had been shooting for an hour when the mythical creature appeared.
'It's really a thrill shooting the aurora, especially when they are so playful like they were that night,' said the 64-year-old.
© Hallgrimur P. Helgason/CatersThe stunning picture was taken in Iceland
Hallgrimur uses a camera and tripod to photograph the lights and advises snapping in the dark away from city light pollution and never using a flash.
He said that the Northern Lights were mainly showing in green and yellow colours when he was shooting that night but also sported red and blue suggesting that the aurora was strong.
Certainly symbolic. It is said that the phoneix regenerates cyclically - like our world, rising from the ashes of its predecessor.
In Persian mythology the bird is called Simurg. Si means thirty and murg means bird.
In Turkish it is called ZümrüdüAnka. Zümrüt means emerald.It is believed this bird lives over a mythological mountain called Kaf.
In Persian mythology, The Simurg tale is full of Sufi meanings.
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