thesweetcheat
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 20:28
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Moth wrote:
Excellent, top man Moth! Cute penguins or what?
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The Eternal
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 21:25
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Hi hob,
I reckon you've got some sort of point there. Rock art may be some form of communication, but what message it delivers has yet to be deciphered. Maybe demarcation of territory, or a sign of welcome. Perhaps a signpost? Maybe a belief statement, or a remembrance of the dead. Who knows, but it makes for interesting thought.
Regards, as always,
TE.
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Hob
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 21:59
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Eyup dude, good to see you're still about these parts :)
I think the multi-semic aspect is becoming accepted these days, like Kozmik Ken said elsewhere in this thread, so all those are possibilities. It just makes it all more complex and mysterious.
The old Langdale Boulders are a brilliant example of how a single rock art site can seem to defy the conventions of the majority, yet even though stylistically it looks so different, the meanings may have been identical to other motifs, even though other panels of visually and locationally similar motifs may have had totally different meanings from each other. If that makes any sense?
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Hob
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:02
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That's getting too deep. Maybe it could be countered again by asking: 'Rocks. What are they all about?' Personally, I'm sure they know, but like the CnRs carved upon some of them, they ain't telling us monkey folk...
:-D
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Hob
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:14
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You know, the pregnancy idea is one I've only heard once before, and that was in relation to some carvings at Buttony in Nbland, where it was suggested that they looked distinctly as if the carver was female. The idea was even put forward that the rings represented the number of finger widths needed to describe vulvic dilation, and that this explained why there are hardly ever more than 8 rings.
It got linked in with placement in the landscape by charting the multiple ringed motifs with caves or rockshelters that would have made suitably safe places to give birth, free from depredations of wolves etc. It was also pointed out that this may not have been anything to do with human birthing, and could have formed a part of the initial stages and passing on of oral lore regarding animal midwifery in the early days of domestication of animals, hence the frequent occurrence in areas of transhumanant activity.
All quite compelling in one way, but whilst it sort of works for some areas of Nbland, it falls flat on it's face when applied to Yorkshire, Cumbria, Kilmartin or even southern Northumberland.
But it should be added to the list :) As far as I know, no-one has compiled a definitive update of Morris' original 100. If anyone here on TMA (or anywhere else for that matter, including universities and Stan Beckensall's house) would know, it'd be RockArtUK. He might pop up here at some point.
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Hob
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:17
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You'll have to do Australia too, they have things that are almost exactly like the things in Northumberland, but some in the Kimberly region allegedly carbon dated to a utterly crazy sounding 13,000 yrs BCE. Synchro-morphism across time and space and meaning. Nice. There should be more of that sort of thing.
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Hob
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:19
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Jane wrote: Nazca
I am trying soooooo hard not to chew my liver in envy. But I might have to indulge in a nibble...
You make sure you take the paints :)
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The Eternal
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:23
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Whay-aye Mr. Hob, Sir,
Great to hear from you. Your reply makes perfect sense to me.
Lamgdale and Copt Howe are indeed different, in that there are so many designs represented there, and large cup marks, if you include, and accept, the big slab opposite Copt Howe, and down the road a little.
T'only thing is cup marks. Why so widespread? A common meaning? Or, like Jane suggested, general use.
All the best, matey boy,
TE.
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Hob
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:25
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You know, I've still not been to Ilkley. I am missing out I know. Seeing those images you put on Flickr I really do get a sense of how much oompf those moors have.
I think you're spot on with the multi-layered meaning thing. The general idea seems to have caught on in academic RA circles too. Anything so abstracted can easily contain at least a few possible interpretations. it could even be that they have a capacity similar to the Rorschach images, in that the meaning is partly something that is determined by the viewer. Perhaps part of the function was to allow the viewer to suggest their interpretation, so that interpretation could be used to assess the viewer's state of mind, like a prehistoric Rorschach. Sort of 'Is the cup half full, or is the cup half empty?' And with that bad pun, I reach for my coat...
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Moth
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Re: Rock art. so what's that all about then. ?
Jul 20, 2010, 22:30
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Trubble is, J's already spent a long time in Oz & been to a comparatively lot of it....
love
Moth
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