[gothic-l] Re: Whirlstones

[Ingemar Nordgren]

Dear Carlos,

You wrote to Håkan:

 > The kingdom of Leon adjacent to northern Portugal has many common
cultural> links. The only other recognized language in Portugal is
Mirandes (an> Asturian-Lionese>  language), for exemple. It is spoken
around Miranda do Douro.
 >
 > Regarding the whirls it is a frequent piece seen in medieval stones
and> later ones.> I've seen them as far as in S. Miguel Island, Azores,
last year.> Also remember to see post-roman (Vth century if I remember
well )>  tombstones with the very same motive in "Museu do Abade de
Baçal", in> Bragança.

I happen to have specially examined just similar stones and motives in
Spain and Portugal in cooperation with the university of Léon. As  far
as I have learnt they are from pre-Arian time and connected with an
Ibero-Celtic tradition and have no special Visigothic bearing.That they
should be middle-age did never appear. I had indeed hoped them to be
Gothic but was wrong. I tried to find a connection between the Gothic
stones and the Gotlandic with the same motif world but I have reached
the same conclusion as among else Cumont.The Arian Visigotic tombs are
more inspired by Roman style, but do indeed contain the moon and sun
symbols but not whirls. Hence the Gotlandic stones are rather connected
with Ibero-Celtic or Celtic contacts. This so more as the Gotlandic
stones are from the 4-5th cc and the Goths  were just established in
Spain in the 5th c. and so the influences should have taken some time.
You find a lot of stones in e.g. Santos, Francesco Diego: Inscripciones
romanas de la provincia de Léon, Léon 1986. Both Léon and Astorgas have
exellent lapidariae showing such stones. In Narbonne, however there were
more genuine Roman types in the old ex-church I visited. In Braga and
Coimbra are examples as in Toledo and Merida, but in Merida there is,
apart from the Roman museum, also an exellent Visigothic lapidarium with
  exquisite Gothic art but not such stones. Also Tarragona is worth a
visit, indeed.

I am glad you are on the list and look forward to much good information
about Visigothic Iberian peninsula.

Best Greetings
Ingemar


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