The Working Tools Magazine “Light” Version - Hawthorne-Fortitude ...

“The Symbologist”
By Michelle Snyder, OES
“An Ancient Star”
For our ancestors, knowledge of the heavens was a decisive factor in survival, and for millennia they recorded
astronomical patterns. Ca. 12,500 BC, lunar calendrics, and stellar and solar 24 hour clocking are evident in inscribed
notations which evolved with mankind. Sometimes engravings or paintings were made to record these patterns. One
particularly stunning example is the hexagram, now also called Solomon’ s Seal, Magen David, or
Star of David. The hexagram is one of the oldest and most universal symbols.
Hexagons are six-sided shapes. Evident on the crust of the earth, in the formation of rocks, dried
corn, and snowflakes, they are formed by pressure from without. This is the basis of the “hex”:
subjects of the “hex” find themselves surrounded by pressure. Hexagrams of overlapping triangles
were used in the days of Solomon to contain evil spirits, trapped by the surrounding pressure.
A hexagram is a six pointed star composed of two overlapped triangles. The beginnings of the
hexagram are seen as far back as 77,000 years, with an upward pointing triangle symbolizing winter solstice sunrise
and sunset. (see below) By 14,500 BC, summer and winter solstice sunrise and sunset are represented with overlapping
triangles.
Duncan-Enzmann photo of solstice symbol, Altamira Cave, 16,500 BC
The Magen David is commonly associated with Judaism today, but it is actually a relatively new symbol of the
Jewish faith. Although it appears occasionally in their early artwork, it has never been exclusively Jewish. The
evolution of this familiar symbol can be observed with the following series (Duncan-Enzmann):
Blombos Denekamp Solutrean Altamira Altamira Altamira Current
77,000 BC 31,000 BC 20,000 BC 16,500 BC 16,500 BC 16,500 BC
With the simple diagram below, it is easy to depict the movement of the sun from winter solstice, through the spring
equinox, to summer solstice, and back to autumnal equinox. Even small children are able to understand and remember;
our ancestors taught the very young how to tell time and season astronomically:
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