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The Lost Language of Symbolism
There's always a story behind the story, but the keenest observers have to break through the surface to reach it. This remarkable book reveals the hidden meaning behind familiar images and words, from the origins of Santa Claus and the meaning of Cinderella's name to the metaphoric significance of the unicorn and the fleur-de-lys.
A prominent authority on symbols, author Harold Bayley spent years gathering and compiling the contents of this volume. Mythology, folklore, religious texts, and fairy tales from around the world constitute his primary sources. Bayley also draws upon the secret traditions of ancient cultures and medieval mystical sects to deconstruct the symbols embedded in watermarks and printers' emblems. Most of these images have lost their earliest significance and now serve strictly commercial purposes; Bayley explains their original meanings, and he cross-references similarities between symbols and stories across the globe to illuminate their evolving cultural significance. More than 1,400 illustrations enhance this classic work, which features an index for ease of reference.
A prominent authority on symbols, author Harold Bayley spent years gathering and compiling the contents of this volume. Mythology, folklore, religious texts, and fairy tales from around the world constitute his primary sources. Bayley also draws upon the secret traditions of ancient cultures and medieval mystical sects to deconstruct the symbols embedded in watermarks and printers' emblems. Most of these images have lost their earliest significance and now serve strictly commercial purposes; Bayley explains their original meanings, and he cross-references similarities between symbols and stories across the globe to illuminate their evolving cultural significance. More than 1,400 illustrations enhance this classic work, which features an index for ease of reference.
784 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1974
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 9, 2019
“…pyr, the Greek for fire. The word pyre, meaning with us a funeral fire, is the base of pyramid (Greek pyramis) and the pyramid or cone was apparently at one time a universal symbol of the Primal Fire. The Brahmins express SIVA, the God of fire, by a pyramid; and in the Buddihst Temples of Japan the Five Elements- Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth-are denoted respectively by a Ball, Crescent, Pyramid, Sphere, and Cube…..Plato assumed the Pyramid to be first of all forms, and Plutarch mantains that “the only first form is the Pyramid.”..
One must postulate a root fu, meaning fire, to account for such word as feu, fuoco, fuego, fuse, fuzee, feuer, fever, fire, etc,,, The fabulous Phoenix, said to have been born of fire, resolves into fo en ix , the Fire, the One Great Fire….
The Chinese call the yellow Phoenix a To Fu (resplendent fire?) and say that whenever the world is peaceful the note of the To Fu “ will be heard like the tolling of a bell”
One must postulate a root fu, meaning fire, to account for such word as feu, fuoco, fuego, fuse, fuzee, feuer, fever, fire, etc,,, The fabulous Phoenix, said to have been born of fire, resolves into fo en ix , the Fire, the One Great Fire….
The Chinese call the yellow Phoenix a To Fu (resplendent fire?) and say that whenever the world is peaceful the note of the To Fu “ will be heard like the tolling of a bell”
January 29, 2016
Some content is pure BS, but there is some gold.
A deeper read yielded more than expected.
A definite must-read for students of etymology.
A deeper read yielded more than expected.
A definite must-read for students of etymology.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews