the meanings of the camunian rose and solomons

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The Meanings of the Camunian Rose
and Solomon's Knot Symbols
by
Nenad M. Djurdjević
Independent Researcher
© 2016 All Rights Reserved
2
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to identify the original meaning of one of the most famous
motifs occurring in the rock art of Valcamonica, the Camunian Rose (It. “Rosa Camuna”). In
turn, identifying the meaning of the Camunian Rose allows for the decoding of another
mysterious symbol of antiquity that has puzzled scholars: the Solomon’s Knot.
I will present archaeological, ethnographic, and epigraphic evidence to create a better
understanding of the two motifs and their presence in archaic societies, replacing abstract
interpretations with empirical evidence; and I will provide proof positive that the peculiar
structures of the Camunian Rose and Solomon’s Knot were inspired by the first-hand
observation of early peoples rather than by their conceptions.
Within the context of archaeology, history, ethnography, and art, an examination of the
motifs leads to the conclusion that both motifs, which have attracted wide attention,
originated from prehistoric arts closely related to wool processing: spinning and weaving.
3
“I do regard spinning and weaving as a
necessary part of any national system or education”
– Mahatma Ghandi
4
Introduction
Since before the first human migrants left Africa, moving north and northeast into Europe
and Asia, the human ability to manipulate string and thread was the basis for the
development of sewing, spinning, and weaving.
Strings and threads of different sizes made of natural or animal fibers were laced together or
knotted to make useful tools, accessories, and cloths. Yarn made of spun fibers twisted
together, was one of the first manufacturing processes dating as far back as the Upper
1
Paleolithic. According to archaeological evidence, several discs with central holes found at
Magdalenian sites in Europe were most likely used as spindle whorls, a weight attached to a
drop spindle during the spinning of fibers into yarn.
2
A unique find at Dzudzuana Cave, located at the foothills of the Caucasus, Georgia, indicates
that people living during the Upper Paleolithic processed wild flax fibers (linen), some of
which were cut, spun, sewn, and even dyed black, grey, turquoise, and pink using plant
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pigments. The coloured fibers may indicate that the inhabitants of the cave were engaged in
producing colourful cloths. However, determining when exactly humans began the art of
weaving and wearing sophisticated clothes remains a mystery until now, because organic
materials are rarely preserved due to their highly perishable nature.
Similarly to wild flax, the raffia palm tree, which is indigenous to central and West Africa,
was a source of early weaving materials for people living in those areas. Even before the
actual process of weaving was discovered, the basic principle of weaving was applied to
interlace branches and twigs, creating fences and shelters for protection, or using the flexible
wooden rod from the palm tree for the production of tapestry and baskets. In Africa, the
culture of weaving with woven palm, raffia fronds, as well as the use of nonwoven fabric
obtained from the inner bark (bast) of a tree or plant extends back far beyond the reach of
written historical records and oral traditions.
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1
Some 30,000 years ago yarn makers of the Caucasus on the Black Sea spun and dyed flax into soft,
fine, lustrous strands. Findings made in Lascaux, France, indicate sophistication in fiber manipulation
from 13,000 BCE. In the Nile Valley, spinners turned cotton into filament as far back as 12,000 BCE.
Ref. Snodgrass M. E. 2014: World Clothing and Fashion An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and
Social Influence, p. 650.
2
Spindle whorls (known under the generic name “rondelle”) from the Magdalenian sites of Isturitz
(France), Gönnersdorf (Germany), Balzi Rossi (Italy), etc., have a central hole and are decorated with
geometric designs such as circles, triangles, radials, crosses, as well as animal motifs.
3
Kvavadze E., Bar-Yosef O., Belfer-Cohen A. 2009: 30,000-Year-Old Wild Flax Fibers – Testimony for
fabricating prehistoric linen. Science 325 (5946): 1359.
5
The Dogon of Mali say that weaving is a form in which writing was originally handed down
to men by the ancestors. Hence 'The Word' was woven into cloths and into the hair. As a
result, the African tradition of elaborate hairstyles not only served the purpose of projecting
beauty, but was also a form of coded writing to transmit information within a community.
4
Since weaving is acknowledged as one of the oldest crafts in the world and is considered one
of the earliest forms of symbolic writing, it may be suggested that the process of weaving and
5
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some related operations such as spinning or plying have originated one of the earliest
artistic languages in the world, from which derived a series of sacred symbols such as the
Camunian Rose and Solomon's Knot which are easily recognizeable but scarcely understood.
The transmission of coded information among native Africans as an early form of literacy
was accomplished not only by the art of weaving natural or animal fibers or styling the hair,
but also involved the temporary or permanent transformations of the skin and parts of the
body by various methods such as painting, tattooing, piercing, and scarification.
Latest anthropological research has shown that many designs and marks encountered in
indigenous African body art correspond to the signs of earliest alphabets such as ProtoSinaitic
7
(also Proto-Canaanite) from which derived all other ancient alphabets such as
Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew, Greek, Etruscan, Latin, Lepontic (also Cisalpine Celtic), etc.
It is reasonable to conclude that advanced record-keeping by early Africans involved their
bodies as 'human libraries'. As French anthropologist and ethnologist Claude Lévi Strauss
8
once stated: “The human body is a surface for the imprintation of culture”.
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4
The creation of complex hairstyles was an important cultural practice and symbolic activity since
prehistoric times. Hair has long been a medium of significant statements about self and society in which
symbolic meanings are invested. In African culture, hair often communicated age, gender, marital
status, ethnic origin, leadership role, etc. Hair also assumed spiritual significance, since it was the most
elevated part of the body, and was thus believed closest to the divine.
5
Spinning is the process in which fibers are drawn out and twisted together to form yarn.
6
Plying is the process used to create from two or more threads a strong, balanced yarn.
7
Proto-Sinaitic script (19th to 18th century BCE) is atttested in a small corpus of inscriptions found at
Serabit el-Khadim, Egypt. indigenous African body art include among others the Proto-Sinatic signs tav
(T), mem (m), nun (n), he (h), sin (f), tsade (J), teth (J), kaph (k), ayin ([), heth (X), etc.
8
Schildkrout E. 2004: Inscribing the Body Annual Review of Anthropology, Vol. 33: 319-344
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The Significance of the Camunian Rose
One of the most well-known symbols found among the prehistoric rock drawings of
Valcamonica situated at the foot of the Italian Alps, is the Camunian Rose (It. “Rosa
Camuna”). In modern times a stylized version of the Camunian Rose was adopted as the
official symbol of the region of Lombardy. Nowadays it is also used as a logo by culture and
sport associations, commercial activities, as well as a historical trademark of local food
products in the region.
The association of the symbol with its name“rose,” is derived from its peculiar design
resembling a flower with petals. Several theories have been posited by archaeologists and
scholars about its possible meaning. Because of its resemblance to traditional cross-like
swastikas, it has been classified as a solar symbol of regional and local variation. Long studied
by Italian archaeologist Paola Farina, she created a corpus of more than 90 variations of the
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motif. However, the original meaning of the Camunian Rose remained unsolved until now.
Pictures : the Camunian Rose as a circling swastika, modern logo, and equal-armed cross.
The rock engravings of Valcamonica were etched over a time span of more than 13,000 years,
dating from the late Upper Paleolithic to the end of the 1 st millennium BCE. Earliest
10
depictions of the Camunian Rose began to appear during the Bronze Age (7th c. to 1st c. BCE).
Similar versions of the motif are found in the Cucuteni-Trypillian culture of Old Europe,
ancient Mesopotamia, Great Britain, Portugal, in Greek and Roman art, among the
indigenous Salish people of North America and, last but not least, archaic forms of the circling
swastika are found among pygmies living in the Congo rainforest in Central Africa.
11
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9
Farina P. 1998: The motif of the “Camunian Rose” in the Rock Art of Valcamonica (Italy) TRACCE
Online Rock Art Bulletin May 10, 1998
10
Farina P. 1998: The motif of the “Camunian Rose” in the Rock Art of Valcamonica (Italy), NAB, 6.
pp. 185-205
11
Ethnohistorical and ethnographic research have shown that pygmy bark-cloth combine biomorphic
motifs (e.g. butterflies, birds, leopard spots) with several archaic variants of the swastika and cross
designs such as the Proto-Sinaitic tav (T) or Phoencian tet (J).
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Non-woven cloth is the earliest form of art. The examples of pygmy bark-cloth presented
below provide evidence that the earliest proto-alphabet known as Proto-Sinaitic, was known
among one of the oldest, if not the oldest, human species, going back according to genetic
evidence to perhaps 60,000 years. In terms of ethnohistorical and archaeological research, this
points to indigenous pygmy groups in the Congo region of Africa, and other pygmy groups such
as the San people of the Kalahari, who have the longest continuing art tradition in the world.
Pictures: Traditional bark-cloth; Ituri Pygmy, Congo (1950), painted with the Proto-Sinaitic letter
tav/taw (left), the Phoenician tet (centre) which is also the archaic form of the Greek letter theta (J),
and the spiraling ogee swastika (right). Source www.josgraham.com
The Phoenician alphabet, derived from the Proto-Sinaitic alphabet, is the forerunner of
many other alphabetic scripts, including Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Etruscan, and Arabic.
Image: Schematic table of Proto-Sinaitic characters (based on Simmons 2011; see also Goldwasser
2010, following Albright 1966).
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In order to recover the original meaning of the most puzzling symbol left behind by the
Camuni people, to properly comprehend its presence in prehistoric societies and to contribute
to a new understanding of its cultural importance, a brief review of early pastoral societies ―
the interactions between humans and sheep ― and the art of weaving and spinning is crucial.
Picture : An archaic breed of sheep (Ovis
aries), also known as Forest Sheep.
The domestication of livestock species
such as cattle, goats, and sheep as well as
the production of wool represented a
fundamental step in the development of
human
society.
The
history
of
the
domesticated sheep goes back as far as
11,000 BCE, and the taming of the wild
mouflon in ancient Mesopotamia.
12
Genetic studies show that sheep may have been dispersed across Eurasia and Africa via
separate migratory episodes, and that agro-pastoralism introduced by the Neolithic
agricultural revolution became the main system of food production in prehistoric Europe.
13
The ancient Camuni people of Valcamonica lived in a region that had been an area of a
cultural tradition dating back to the Mesolithic period and, like other hill people, they were
engaged in the practice of agriculture, hunting, and raising livestock such as cattle or sheep.
Evidence of the interaction between the inhabitants of the Valcamonica and sheep in
particular is found in a great number of petroglyphs depicting scenes of daily life. One of the
most common symbols encountered in the rock art of Valcamonica is that of the circled cross,
which is the symbol par exellence for designating the sheep as far back as 8,000 BCE.
14
The cross in a circle is the pre-cuneiform sign atu, which meant “sheep,” and represented a
clay token for each sheep of a Sumerian stock-farmer.
15
In Africa, the symbol is found in the
body art of several indigenous groups who are cattle-herders and shepherds by tradition.
Among the Igbo of Nigeria, the sheep is called aturu, which is cognate of the Sumerian atu.
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12
Ensminger, Dr. M.E.: R.O. Parker 1986: Sheep and Goat Science Fifth edition
13
Revealing the History of Sheep Domestication Using Retrovirus Integrations - Science 24 Apr
2009: Vol. 324, Issue 5926, pp. 532-536
14
Schmandt-Besserat D. 1987: Oneness, Twoness, Threness – The Sciences 27, pp. 44-48
15
Papakitsos EC & Kenanidis EK 2015: Additional Palaeographic Evidence for the Relationship of
the Aegean Scripts to the Sumerian Pictography – Scholars Journals of Arts, Humanities and Social Sc.
9
Picture: Rock 11│Seradina III│2nd millenium
BCE│Relief│Signs: 1, 2, 3, 4: “sheep”│5, 6, 7:
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“lamb”│8: herding dog
Rock 11, located in Seradina-Bedolina
locality, depicts a typical daily life scene of
the inhabitants of the valley engaged in
sheep herding. In this example, the sign for
sheep is found in the same context as the
circled dot, which is the religious sign for the
lamb. This mystico-religious symbol is the
astrological icon of ancient Egypt and the
sun gods.
The circled dot is also the primordial symbol of the womb of the mother goddess, which can
be interpreted as a copulation symbol representing the eternal union between the mother
Neith and her son Ra. Neith was the creator of the world, which made her the mother of all of
the gods and connected her with Nun. She was the predynastic goddess of hunting, war, and
weaving. Her emblems varied from a shield with two crossed arrows to a weaving shuttle.
Picture: Monolith, Anvoia locality, Osimo
17
Superiore, 3rd millenium BCE
The importance of the sheep in
Camunian
culture
is
particularly
emphasized by the presence of complex
zoomorphic
engravings
found
on
monoliths. The frontal view of a longeared sheep on the Anvoia monolith
represents one striking example of
complex archaic art and transference of
coded information.
The monolith shows among other
symbols
the
Dwennimmen
18,
,
an
ancient fertility symbol of the ram and horned sheep characterized by two concentric cricles
joined by a loop (1); two concentric circles representing spun yarn on the ears of the sheep (2);
and a traditional crescent-shaped knife used for shearing the wool or to cut off sheepskin (3).
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16 , 17
18
Credit Nenad M. Djurdjevic 2016
The Dwennimmen is an ancient African Adinkra symbol, used on traditional textiles of the Asante.
10
Like other ancient cultures such as the Sumerian and Egyptian, where sheep were a leading
part of the economy and therefore immortalised through religion in the form of gods and
goddesses, the Camuni people valued sheep because they represented a fundamental resource
for survival. Sheep provide wool, skins, delicious meat (lamb, hogget, mutton), milk, and
cheese. Wild sheep were significantly smaller than today's domesticated types, were relatively
docile and thus easy to catch, tame and handle, and could be confined with primitive fences.
Wool production was second only to food production. The
wool crop that often resulted was exceedingly large, so that
the production of handmade textiles reached considerable
proportions during the Neolithic period. Figurines found in
early European settlements validates that women have been
dressing to impress for at least 7,500 years by wearing
woven short tops and mini skirts.
Picture: Bronze figurine, Vinca culture, 5th millenium BCE
18
Archaeological evidence indicates that sheep domestication
and wool production began in the Valcamonica during the
Early Copper Age (3rd millennium BCE)
19
, and that motifs
ascribable to wool cloth manufacturing played an important
20
role in the iconographic repertoire of Camunian rock art.
This becomes particularly evident on the Great Rock of Naquane National Rock Art Park in
Capo di Ponte, where scenes of daily life portray people engaged in the basic acts of wool
processing such as fiber extraction from fleece, wool carding performed with special hand
carders (wooden paddles), people managing weaving swords while working on looms, etc.
Pictures: Hand carders and looms on the Great Rock of Naquane (left); traditional hand carder (right)
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18
Cvekic L. 2007: Prehistoric women had passion for fashion, Reuters. Retrieved September 23, 2010
19
Rinetti S. & Galbiati A. Copper Age in in Valcamonica Rock Art, www.archeocamuni.it
20
Harris S. 2003-2004: Woven Textiles of Copper Age Valcamonica, Articles Dipartimento CCSP
11
Processing wool from fleece to fabric is a time consuming activity that involves different
production stages. After the sheep shearing, the precious wool must be skirted, sorted,
washed, dried, carded, and combed. Only then can the processed fleece can be spun into yarn.
The spinning wheel, the tool most commonly associated with the art of spinning, was not
introduced to Europe until in the late Middle Ages/early Renaissance. Before that period, a
hand spindle (which can be suspended or supported) was the primary tool used to spin all the
threads for clothing and fabrics from Egyptian mummy wrappings to tapestries.
21
At its simplest hand spindle is a wooden stick with a weight called
whorl. Hand spindles fall into two basic categories: drop spindles, and
supported spindles. Supported spindles are usually placed on the ground;
the yarn forming as the fiber is pulled up and away from the spindle. A
drop spindle is usually held in the air; the weight of the spindle moves it
toward the ground, and the yarn forms as the fiber is drawn toward the
spindle. A drop spindle may be top-whorl, or bottom-whorl, named for the
location of the whorl on the spindle (Figure 2). It also may have a hook,
groove, or notch at the top or bottom to balance the yarn.
The earliest whorls were made of clay or soft stone like sandstone, soapstone, or limestone
that could be shaped without metal tools. Later whorls could be ornately carved and decorated
from materials such as bone, wood, glass, porcelain, precious metals or semi-precious stones.
While the overwhelming majority of Paleolithic spindle whorls were not decorated in a
meaningful or artistic way, those made during the Neolithic and Bronze ages carry many
decorative geometric forms such as dot, herring bone or zigzag patterns, concentric circles,
spirals, meanders, chevrons, lozenges, crosses, as well as different kinds of swastikas.
The meandering Camunian Rose belongs to the variety of four-armed ogee and spiraling
swastikas, which have been found in almost every part of the world. Some of the most
meaningful examples were reported in great numbers on spindle-whorls, excavated by
Heinrich Schliemann at the ancient site of Troy on the hill of Hissarlik, Anatolia, Turkey.
22
Another example of the Camunian Rose is represented by the stationary equilateral cross,
characterized by dots or points placed equidistant in the corners of the intersections or around
each of the four ends. Since both the meandering and stationary Camunian Rose symbols are
found on spindle whorls, it can be inferred that they are directly linked to the art of spinning.
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21
Dhuinnshleibe S. 2000: A History and Evolution of Spinning – Heather McCloy
22
Wilson T. 2012: The Swastika – The Earliest Known Symbol, and Its Migration
12
Figure 3: The swastika with bent ends (a)
and equilateral cross represented with dots
or points in the corners of the intersections
(b), and an example of swastika with three
dots placed equidistant around each of the
four ends (c).
23
Figure 4: ogee and spiraling swastikas (left); ogee swastikas with circle (right)
24
Figure 5: Biconical spindle whorl with three ogee
swastikas, and two circled dots, which are the
symbol of the womb of the mother goddess, as
well as the religious sign for the lamb.
25
Figure 6: Biconical spindle whorl, flattened. Ogee swastika with
central circle, and concentric circles on the sides.
26
The sign of the
meandering swastika inside a circle is the Sumerian word ga-r,
which is the wheel (of a chariot).
27
In her book Handspindles, Bette Hochberg, a scholar who helped bring spinning and
weaving into popularity during the 1970s and 1980s, suggested that, since the wheel is
generally agreed upon to have been invented somewhere around 3,500 BCE, it is possible that
the use of drop spindles helped man to discover the wheel. By observing the process of rotation
as it applied to the whorl of a spindle, early man might have experimented with that rotation
28
by placing it upon a vertical plane instead of a horizontal one, thus created the wheel.
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23, 24, 25, 26
Wilson T. 2012: The Swastika – The Earliest Known Symbol, and Its Migration
27
Papakitsos EC & Kenanidis EK 2015: Additional Palaeographic Evidence for the Relationship of
the Aegean Scripts to the Sumerian Pictography
28
Hochberg B. 1977: Handspindles
13
Archaeological and ethnographic evidence indicates that the most common spindle used in
most parts of Europe was a straight spike made of wood with a hooked or pointed top and a
rounded whorl. Another type of weighted spindle commonly used was a cross-shaped spindle,
made of two wooden bars that intersect at right angles to form a cross attached to the hooked
29
spike instead of a rounded whorl, known today as a Turkish drop spindle.
The two crossbars serve both as a whorl and a winding tool. As thread is spun, it is wrapped
around the crossbars. When the spindle is full, the crossbars and ball of yarn are removed
from the spike. This type of spindle can be used either as top or bottom whorl spindle.
30
31
Pictures: Top-whorl-spindles with hook and cross-shaped spindle whorl from the Middle East (a + c );
32
Portuguese Fiandeira spindle with the hook placed at the opposite end of the cross-shaped whorl (b ).
The design of the cross-shaped top-whorl-spindles, but especially that of the traditional
Portuguese Fiandeira characterized by a hook placed at the opposite end of the cross-shaped
whorl, strikingly replicates the structure of one particular example of the Camunian Rose
etched on rock 24 in locality Foppe di Nadro, Valcamonica, dating to the 1st millennium BCE.
The Camunian Rose, which can be linked to other examples of swastika motifs such as those
found in Ilkley Moore (UK) and Guifoes (Portugal), will be identified as the symbol par
excellence of the art of spinning. Evidence suppports the thesis that both stationary and
meandering variations of the Camunian Rose found in the Valcamonica, are artistic
representations of cross-shaped top-whorl or bottom-whorl spindles provided with a hook.
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29
Dhuinnshleibe S. 2000: A History and Evolution of Spinning – Heather McCloy
30
Credit Karina Grömer, Natural History Museum, Vienna - University of Innsbruck, Austria
31
Credit Beatrix Nutz, Institute for Archaeologies, University of Innsbruck, Autria
32
Credit Rosa Pomar, Lisbon, Portugal
14
Picture: Camunian Rose motif, rock 24, loc. Foppe di Nadro (Ceto), Valcamonica.
33
The Camunian Rose inscribed on rock 24 in Foppe di Nadro clearly mirrors the design of a
traditional cross-shaped top-whorl-spindle, where the yarn wraps next to the whorl and is
provided with a single or double hook at the opposite end of the cross-shaped whorl.
Picture: The wrapping of the yarn on a cross-shaped spindle.
34
Like other examples of cross-shaped Camunian Roses
discovered in Valcamonica, the Foppe di Nadro example
features nine cup or dot marks. These can be explained as
two-dimensional renditions of the spun yarn, with exception
of the dot at the center of the cross-shaped whorl, used to hold
the spindle. The other eight dots (four at the intersections of
the four arms, and four on each of the four arms) are symbolic
of the space used to wrap the spun yarn under and over each
of the four arms in a clockwise fashion.
____
33
Credit Nenad M. Djurdjevic
34
Source www.wizzley.com
15
Beyond the Ilkney Moore and Guifoes sites where amazingly the Camunian Rose is
displayed with a hook, examples appear at other locations, such as Hovenas (Sweden), and
Turku (Finland). Beyond Europe, the motif is found in Turkey
35
36
, and Mali (Africa).
Among
the Salish people of North America, the motif is found on traditional spindle whorls.
37
38
Figure 7: Meandering swastika motifs from Ilkney Moore, UK (a ); and Guifoes, Portugal (b ).
Like their Italian counterpart, the two examples of the Camunian Rose from Ilkney Moore
and Guifoes, portray a cross-shaped design with nine dots, and hooks such as those found on
top-whorl or bottom-whorl spindles used to guide the yarn during the spinning process.
The evidence is entirely in harmony with the possibility
that the drop spindle and its artistic representation, as both
a tool for spinning and non-verbal communication system,
was a single invention, and that its slight differentiations
resulted from its employment by different peoples as a result
of prehistoric intercultural migrations.
Picture: Coast Salish spindle whorl made of wood.
40
____
35
Coimbra F, PhD 2014: Rock Art and Cultural Contacts in Protohistoric Europe: Two Case Studies
(pers. comm. Sansoni U.)
36
Dupuy Ch. 2010: Une gravure rupestre dans l'Adrar des Iforas (Mali) identique aux “roses
camuniennes” du val Camonica (Italie). Les Cahiers de l'AArs, Saint Lizier: Association des amis de
l'art rupestre Saharien, pp. 117-126.
37
As drawn by Eric Crowling
38
As drawn by Fernando Coimbra and Léo Dubal
40
Credit The Royal BC Museum, Victoria, BC
16
Picture: Brotlaibidol (“loaf of bread idol”) from prehistoric
pile-dwellings, loc. Bor Pacengo, Lake Garda, Verona, Italy.
41
An example of a stylized Camunian Rose is also found
engraved on a Brotlaibidol recovered from Bronze Age
pile-dwellings at the shores of Lake Garda, not too far
from Valcamonica. As in other cases, the motif of the
Camunian Rose is often juxtaposed with the striated (or
dotted) equal-armed cross, a symbol encountered on
prehistoric loom weights, and three variations of the
circled cross which are linked to sheep and woolen yarn.
The artistic importance of the Camunian Rose symbol
hasn't diminished through the ages. It can be frequently
found in Roman, Paleo-Christian, Byzantine, and
Jewish floor mosaics, combined with ogee and spiraling
swastikas, the Flower of Life, Solomon's Knot, etc.
During the Middle Ages and early
Renaissance, the Camunian Rose
symbol was found in illuminated
manuscripts as a decorative element
in themes related to yarn, textile,
and clothing fabrication.
42
Today, beautiful examples of the
prominent motif can be also seen on
Roman Catholic cathedrals.
Picture: The Camunian Rose at the
center of a rose window on a 13 th
century Roman Catholic cathedral.
43
Multiple Camunian Roses can be admired on the west façade of Saint Etienne's cathedral in
Bourges, France. Here the motif is central to the rose window over the entrance and then
appearing as a trinity above a statue of Jesus Christ holding a book with two Solomon's Knots.
____
41
Courtesy Civic Natural History Museum, Verona, Italy – www.museostorianaturaleverona.it
42
See Women winding yarn, from Augustine, La Cité de Dieu, Book IX, illustrated by Maitre
Francoise, c. 1475-1480 - The Morgan Library and Museum – Section 53, Manuscripts Textiles
43
Western facade, Saint Etienne Cathedral, Bourges, France
17
Untangling the Mystery of the Solomon's Knot
Another powerful motif encountered in the monumental Valcamonica composition of rock art
that has fascinated scholars for decades is the Solomon's Knot (Lat. Sigillum Salomonis). The
symbol, since antiquity attributed with glorified powers, derived its name from King Solomon
and the pseudo-epigraphical work The Testament of Solomon, a popular magical treatise
incorporating Jewish, Christian, and Islamic elements.
Solomon, king, sage, architect, and also magician, second only to King David, was one of the
more complex and intriguing characters in the history of Israel. An Ethiopian legend tells that
the “Knot,” which served as the most powerful device for subduing demons, was the seal of G-d
engraved on a ring that Solomon received from the Archangel Michael..
44
Picture: Solomon's Knot, San Tomé,
Almenno San Salvatgore (BG), Italy.
The
basic
Solomon's
structure
Knot
consists
45
of
the
of
two
overlapping loops that interweave
under and over each other. The
extending loops may have pointed,
oval, or square endings, and may
terminate in some occasions with
decorative
motifs
such
as
dots,
spirals, leafs, wings, hooks, etc.
In mosaic art, the knot often appears inside circles or squares, combined with motifs such as
the circled cross and intertwined cords, or superimposed on ogee swastika and Camunian Rose
symbols. As with the Camunian Rose symbol, the Solomon's Knot repeatedly occurs as
mosaics in places of worship, where it was regarded as a symbol of immortality and eternity.
During the Renaissance, the Solomon's Knot was used by Leonardo Da Vinci as the basis of
a design for a centrally planned church.
46
The Florentine sculptor Verrocchio, used it for the
tombslab of Cosimo de' Medici, laid in the crossing pavement of the Basilica of San Lorenzo in
Florence, emphasizing the sacred nature of the design, by attributing to it the symbolism of
eternal return―life, death, and rebirth.
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44
Verheyden J. 2012: The Figure of Solomon in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Tradition: King, Sage,
and Architect, pp. 1-2
45
Credit Nenad M. Djurdjevic 2016
46
Pevsner N. 1972: An illustration of Leonardo's design, p. 202, Fig. 143
18
Evidence of the close relationship between the Solomon's Knot, ogee swastika, and
Camunian Rose symbols can be found in Paleo-Christian mosaics distinguished by pastoral
and rural scenes. An outstanding example of mosaic pavement is preserved in the Patriarchal
Basilica of Aquileia, a vast archaeological site in northern Italy. The mosaic floor of the
basilica, dating from the 4th century AD, is an imposing work of more than 700 square meters,
making it the largest ancient mosaic in the world, and one of the most important sites of early
Christian art. Its illustrations feature the biblical story of Jonah, the Four Seasons, the
Eucharistic Victory, the Good Shepherd, images of different animals including lamb, archaic
horned sheep (Ovis aries) and nibbling sheep, etc; and motifs of ogee swastika, Solomon's Knot
and Camunian Rose.
Picture: Floors excavated from Paleo-Christian sites dating to the 4 th century portray the Solomon's
Knot superimposed on multiple ogee swastikas (left
47
); and Camunian Rose symbols (right
48
).
Picture: Archaic sheep (Ovis aries) associated with different variations of the Solomon's Knot.
49
The
association of the Solomon's Knot with sheep is neither an isolated phenomenon nor coincidental, but
establishes an evident link between the knot, sheep, and the arts of spinning and weaving.
____
47
Floor mosaic from ancient Ostia, detail. Source www.madeinroma.eu
48
Credit The National Archaeological Museum of Aquileia.
19
49
Source www.friuliveneziagiulia.net
Beside the Solomon's Knot, ogee swastika, and Camunian Rose symbols, several other motifs
are found in ancient floor mosaics attributable to the arts of spinning and weaving.
First and foremost, the interlace ornament consisting of two or more intertwined cords and
characterized by a dot between the intersections. In the textile arts, this motif is symbolic of
plying, a process performed to create a strong, balanced single yarn, by taking two or more
strands of yarn that each have a twist to them and putting them together. As in the case of the
Camunian Rose symbol, the dot is a two-dimensional representation of the spun thread.
In venerable mystery traditions, intertwined cords correspond to the Canaanite letter Ain
(as in Ain Soph — “God”). It is portrayed on countless ancient artifacts in the form of
intertwined cords or serpents. And in Cabalistic writings, Ain Soph is explained as the vessel
that contains the Ain (the limitless, unmanifest condition before creation).
Picture: Roman mosaic portraying the
Solomon's Knot in the same context with
the spider's web (a symbol of weaving),
the Flower of Life with four petals
(another
symbol
of
spinning),
the
herringbone or zigzag pattern (one of
the earliest weaving patterns), and
intertwined cords (the symbol of plying);
historical centre, Asciano, Italy.
50
Another motif having a symbolic
relationship to the arts of spinning
and weaving is the spider's web.
Evidence of it is not only found in ancient floor mosaics, but also in the mythological narrative
of several ancient cultures. For example, in Greek mythology, the goddess Arachne, was a
weaver who challenged Athena and consequently, was transformed into a spider. In ancient
Egypt, the spider was associated with the goddess Neith in her aspect as the spinner and
weaver of destiny. Among the Ashanti of Ghana, the creation deity Ananse (Akan word for
“spider”), is sometimes depicted as an ordinary spider, sometimes as a spider wearing cloth.
Other common motifs encountered in ancient floor mosaics associated with the Solomon's
Knot and the arts of spinning and weaving are the chessboard, herringbone, and tweed
patterns; the four-, six-, or eight-petaled Flower of Life, a recurring decorative element also
found on the boards of traditional distaffs, a spinning tool designed to hold unspun fibers.
____
50
Ciampoltrini G. 1991: Mosaici Tardoantichi Dell'Etruria Settentrionale, Vol. 40, Tav. XIII, p. 376
20
The presence of the Solomon’s Knot among motifs whose artistic imagery derived from the arts
of spinning and weaving―with particular regard to the ogee swastika resembling a wheel in
motion, and the Camunian Rose representing a cross-shaped spindle―is not coincidental. The
superimposition of the Solomon’s Knot on ogee swastika and Camunian Rose symbols conveys not
only an artistic relationship between the three motifs, but also empirical evidence suggesting that
the design of the Solomon’ Knot may have derived from the art of spinning.
The cross-shaped spindle besides being an ancient tool as efficient as a spinning wheel, also
applies the physics of spinning to create geometric patterns as the bundle of spun yarn is
wound around the four-armed spindle shaft. The traditional wind consists of creating a central
pull ball called a 'cop,' by wrapping the yarn under one arm, then over the next two in a
clockwise fashion. At the very start of the winding process, as the yarn is wound around the
four arms it creates the geometric pattern popularly known as the Solomon's Knot.
Pictures: The Solomon's Knot motif created by the traditional 'under one arm and over two' system.
51
Figure 8: Painted bowl from Karanovo VI. Tangiru, Bucharest (RO);
5 millennium BCE; as drawn by Marija Gimbutas.
th
52
The antiquity of the Solomon's Knot design, formed by two
overlapping loops that interweave under and over each other,
and distinguished by a central lozenge with a spiral at its
centre, is substantiated by the 6,500-year-old ritual bowl found
near Bucharest, Romania. The Solomon's Knot motif shows four
dots on each of the four arms, and four dots at the intersections
symbolic of the space used to wrap the spun yarn under and over each of the four arms. The
spiral symbol at the centre represents the rotation axis of the spindle and spun yarn.
____
51
Sources The Ways of the Whorl – The Center Pull Ball – Whorl Wind Romance
52
Gimbutas M. 1989: The Language of the Goddess
21
Conclusion
Within the context of archaeology, history, ethnography, and art, an examination of the
Camunian Rose and Solomon's Knot symbols leads to the reasoning that both motifs, which
have attracted wide attention, originated from prehistoric arts closely related to wool
processing: spinning and weaving.
The evidence presented in this paper corroborates the conclusion that the peculiar structures
of the Camunian Rose and Solomon’s Knot were inspired by the first-hand observation of early
peoples during the art of spinning rather than by their conceptions.
22
Bibliography
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2. Fortea J., Rasilla Vives M., Rodrigues-Otero V., 1990: Sobre un rodete perforado
magdaleniense de Llonín, Archivo de Prehistoria Levantina, vol. XX, pp . 95 y ss., Valencia.
3. Sieveking A., 1971: A catalogue of Palaeolithic art in the British Museum, London
4. Bollettino Del Centro Camuno Di Studi Preistorici, Volume 33 (BCSP 33) 2002, p. 45.
Centro Camuno di studi preistorici
5. Anati E. 2007: Capire l'arte rupestre, Fig. 17, p. 33. Edizioni del Centro
6. Anati E. 2004: La civiltà delle pietre – Valcamonica una storia per l'Europa, pp. 38, 43, 306
7. Hochberg B. 1979: Spin Span Spun – Facts and & Foklore for Spinners
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ethnography
9. Clutton-Brock J. 1999: A Natural History of Domesticated Mammals, pp. 68-75
10. Sansoni U. 1998: Il Nodo di Salomone - simbolo e archetipo di alleanza. Edizioni Electa
11. Cuthbert R. 2015: The Esoteric Codex: Amulets and Talismans, Chapter 50. Seal of
Solomon, p. 102
12. Thomas K. T. 2016: Designing Identity – The Power of Textiles in Late Antiquity, p. 59.
Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University
13. Gimbutas M. 1989: The Language of the Goddess /Il Linguagio della Dea, Italian Edition
2008, reprinted in January, 2014, Fig. 443 (2), p. 283
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Wool Processing - Terminology
Shearing – The process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is removed. This can be done
once or twice a year depending on climate zones and sheep breed. Every fleece is comprised of
several kinds of wool. The finest and best wool of the fleece is that on the shoulders. Then
follow in order of merit the wool from the flanks, the sides of the neck, and the hips. Inferior
grades of wool are obtained from the withers, saddle, croup, top of the neck etc.
Sorting – The first thing that must be accomplished right after shearing is sorting the wool.
Wool from ewe’s, rams and lambs must be sorted from each other and kept separately. The
quality of wool varies not only due to the different types of breed, but it also depends on the
geographic location of animals, climatic conditions of the region, the seasons of shearing, the
quality and composition of fodder etc.
Washing
– After the wool is sorted, it must be washed to remove dirt, fat, and other
impurities. In ancient times this process has been normally carried out on the bank of a river
or by using rain water. After wool is properly washed, it is spread over the rocks or bushes for
drying.
Carding – After the wool has dried, carding is carried out until the fibers align in the same
direction, which creates a fluffy smooth pile. This straightens and smoothes the fibers,
preparing them for spinning. The result is called a lock. In the past carding was performed
with special hand carders, a type of wooden paddles with a bed of thorns or nails on one side.
Spinning – The process of creating a single strand of yarn by pulling fibres out of the
prepared lock is called spinning. Turning wool into yarn usually required a hand spindle.
Hand spindles make yarn by twisting fiber into thread.
Plying – the creation of a strong and balanced yarn is done by taking two or more strands of
yarn that each have a twist to them and joining them together. The direction that yarn is spun
or plied is called “twist”. According to the direction of spinning or plying, yarns are
characterized as S-twist or Z-twist. S-twist is when you spin yarns counter-clockwise, while Ztwist is when the yarn is spun in a clockwise direction.
Weaving – A method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads―the
basic warp and weft, one vertical one horizontal―are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric
or cloth.
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