LL-L "Folklore" 2003.04.27 (06) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 27.APR.2003 (06) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) N=Northumbrian
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From: Holger Weigelt <platt at holger-weigelt.de>
Subject: "Folklore"

> From: Pat Reynolds <pat at caerlas.demon.co.uk>
> Subject: LL-L "Folklore" 2003.04.14 (04) [E]
>
> >From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
> >Subject: Folklore
> >
> >In the (formerly) Saxon parts of Northern Germany (and perhaps also parts
of
> >the Eastern Netherlands), gables of farm houses tend to be crowned with
> >crossed horse heads, a very characteristic feature of the region.  I
> >understand that this was supposed to ward off evil spirits.  Can anyone
> >confirm this?  Also, I wonder how old this feature is.  Is it old enough
for
> >it to have influenced early Germanic architecture on the British Isles?
> >
> One possible reconstruction of Cowdery's Down Hall C12 has crossed
> ?dragon heads (borrowed from a Norwegian stave church).  As the note to
> the illustration says, this illustrates 'how little we still know about
> the roofs of excavated timber buildings' (Welch, M (1992), _Anglo-Saxon
> England, fig. 33, p. 52).
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Pat
>
> Pat Reynolds
> Research student in Archaeology, the University of York.
>
Hello !
It is right: In Saxon parts of Northern Germany (and perhaps also parts
of
the Eastern Netherlands), gables of farm houses tend to be crowned with
crossed horse heads.
Of course this is also a decorative marking but has it's origin in being
a
kind of protection against evil esp. from natural forces like storm and
lightning. The carved horse-heads are told to have been real horse
skulls in
former times which refer to the special role of horses in old religious
thoughts (and possibly they have been remains of sacrifices to be shown
to
the gods and spirits ruling nature).
In Eastern Friesland we have an other kind of gable-marking called "malj
ân"
(Malljan). In it's simpliest shape it is just a stick but often it is
artificially carved with ornaments. The name is composed from "mâl"
(bad,
mad, silly, wild, furious) and "Jân" (the name John) and can be
translated
as "furious John". This "John" seems to be derived from "Ūn", a form of
the
god's name "Wodan" which already tells us a little about the meaning of
this
sign.
Kind greetings
Holger

----------

From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Folklore

Pat, Holger, Lowlanders,

I feel that with things of this nature (and I totally agree with you on
the other scores, Pat) it behooves us to cast our net widely, going
beyond the Lowlands, if not all over Eurasia.  For example, in studying
Siberien and Central Asian shamanist folklore I have come across symbols
and ceremonies that *must* be related to those of the European maypole.
These are poles via which a shaman goes back and forth between "Earth"
and "Heaven," and these poles have similar "decorations" to those of
European maypoles, including what appear to be fertility symbols
(phallic symbolism of the pole itself and pendant rings or wreaths
symbolizing the female element and all that implies, plus a common bird
theme (nowadays a rooster in Europe).  Incidentally, at the same time,
Siberian and Central Asian shamanist ceremonies and symbolism bear
striking resemblance to those of Native Americans, for instance sweat
lodges, and feather "decorations" as symbols of the (shaman's) soul's
birdlike travel between the worlds of the living and the ancestors.  So
there appears to be an ancient connection between a large group of
cultures, between all of us.

In the case of the horse heads, perhaps one ought to retrace the
introduction of the horse to Europe to see if there is a trail of
similar symbolism.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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