Elements of the Dutch landscape - 4
Many years ago I became aware of the
angry flaming sun while walking in Maastricht. This one was not so
angry, more
pensive and melancholic. Last year I saw that the sun was still there. It's even on
google street view. Notice how one of the sun faces has been blurred (modern technology meets ancient symbol).
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| Maastricht |
Once I was sensitized I now see the symbol everywhere. On each of our walks I see it at least once. Why is such an ancient symbol so popular in the modern suburbs? Is it an
archetype that cannot be suppressed?
I looked at a few websites for the symbolism and it's exactly as one would expect:
- The sun stands for: truth, light, fertility, vitality, passion, healing, (male) vigor, agressiveness, power, force and leadership, dignity, courage, creativity, knowledge, self hood, life-source, re-birth, reincarnation, immortality.
- The sun face protects from evil powers and influences.
- The combination of the sun and the moon stands for the sexual and spiritual union of a male and a female.
Still I wonder if the people who hang these on their garden sheds and near their doorbells realize this consciously. My private pet theory is:
- Our modern culture has banished all elements it considers irrational or primitive, especially: magic, superstition, religion and symbolism.
- Our modern architecture has banished all ornamental elements and details. It is functional and bland.
- But somehow we cannot live without irrationality and ornamentation. So the banished elements crop up in unexpected places.
Modern garden-variety examples (literally):
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| Utrecht |
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| Zwolle |
Sources:
A Myth
ReplyDeletebarred
captured
boxed
Withinin
A monoculture
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