Ancient/Mythological Mazes
From Maze
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| − | Of course, the most famous maze is the Cretan Labyrinth, where Theseus slayed the Minotaur, finding his way with the help of Ariadne's string. | + | Of course, the most famous maze is the Cretan Labyrinth, where Theseus slew the Minotaur, finding his way with the help of Ariadne's string. |
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| − | Starting from the exterior, the 'path' runs inwards a short distance, turns so as to run parallel with the other wall until nearly a full circuit has been completed, then doubles back on itself and runs round in the opposite direction, doubles upon itself again, and so on until it finally comes to a stop in a blin end, having traversed all of the space within the outer walls without covering any part twice and without forming any branches or loops. (45). | + | Starting from the exterior, the 'path' runs inwards a short distance, turns so as to run parallel with the other wall until nearly a full circuit has been completed, then doubles back on itself and runs round in the opposite direction, doubles upon itself again, and so on until it finally comes to a stop in a blind end, having traversed all of the space within the outer walls without covering any part twice and without forming any branches or loops. (45). |
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Miller notes that this labyrinth is not a "puzzle." Nonetheless, it appears on coins, walls, and other ancient surfaces including some graffiti scratched on a pillar in Pompeii. | Miller notes that this labyrinth is not a "puzzle." Nonetheless, it appears on coins, walls, and other ancient surfaces including some graffiti scratched on a pillar in Pompeii. | ||
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So while the location or shape of this mythical maze becomes a grail quest, the labyrinth becomes the icon of the story of the maze and the two concepts become entangled. Mazes and labyrinths become places of beastial horror, puzzles that require the collusion of paramours. Mazes become elevated into the pantheon of heroic challenges, literally the stuff of legends. Without a doubt, this mythological status has fueled the search for physical mazes and labyrinths from antiquity to the present. | So while the location or shape of this mythical maze becomes a grail quest, the labyrinth becomes the icon of the story of the maze and the two concepts become entangled. Mazes and labyrinths become places of beastial horror, puzzles that require the collusion of paramours. Mazes become elevated into the pantheon of heroic challenges, literally the stuff of legends. Without a doubt, this mythological status has fueled the search for physical mazes and labyrinths from antiquity to the present. | ||
| − | Other Egyptian Labyrinths date back to 3400 BCE and a labyrinth in the tomb fo King Perabsen of the Second Dynasty. | + | Other Egyptian Labyrinths date back to 3400 BCE and a labyrinth in the tomb of King Perabsen of the Second Dynasty. |
In her book, Mazes and Labyrinths of the World, Janet Bord examines appearances of maze in other parts of the globe. For example, she mentions the “long barrows, megalyths, camps and henges of Britain and north-west Europe” as signs that these sorts of patterns, labyrinthine or mazelike, were “not in the first instance diffuse outward from an original birthplace, but developed independently in more than one area” (10). | In her book, Mazes and Labyrinths of the World, Janet Bord examines appearances of maze in other parts of the globe. For example, she mentions the “long barrows, megalyths, camps and henges of Britain and north-west Europe” as signs that these sorts of patterns, labyrinthine or mazelike, were “not in the first instance diffuse outward from an original birthplace, but developed independently in more than one area” (10). | ||
| − | The search for the antecedent to the physical mazes perhaps is the wrong path to pursue. Jeremy Douglass argues that the history of mazes should not start with the earliest mention or depiction of mazes but with the formulation of walled architecture or social spaces with intersecting passages… Furthermore cave structures, for example, the paths modeled in Adventure, offer naturally occurring mazes (more on that in a moment) | + | The search for the antecedent to the physical mazes perhaps is the wrong path to pursue. The history of mazes should not start with the earliest mention or depiction of mazes but with the formulation of walled architecture or social spaces with intersecting passages… Furthermore cave structures, for example, the paths modeled in Adventure, offer naturally occurring mazes (more on that in a moment) |
| − | Mazes and Labyrinths, however, are not associated only with their physical structures or two-dimensional forms; They can also be patterns of physical movements. In other words, pathways. Dance executions of mazes have been and continue to be performed as areas, such as Italy, Corfu, Munich, Upper Bavaria. Thre is the Geranos (Crane) dance performed by Theseus performed on Delos. | + | Mazes and Labyrinths, however, are not associated only with their physical structures or two-dimensional forms; They can also be patterns of physical movements. In other words, pathways. Dance executions of mazes have been and continue to be performed as areas, such as Italy, Corfu, Munich, Upper Bavaria. There is the Geranos (Crane) dance performed by Theseus performed on Delos. |
Another commemorates the killing of Hainuwele (divine maiden) on one of the Molucca Islands. | Another commemorates the killing of Hainuwele (divine maiden) on one of the Molucca Islands. | ||
