The bronze statue of Ares Dionysus, a museum near Paris
Western civilization is most familiar with it thanks to the Cretan labyrinth from the ancient myth of Theseus, the Minotaur, and Ariadne. However, this symbol in the form of buildings, stone mazes, drawings, and reliefs can also be found in Egypt, India, Mexico, Ireland, Scandinavia, and Rome.
The oldest depiction of a labyrinth found so far is circular in shape, with one entrance and seven concentric circles leading to the center. This labyrinth is called classical, and all other types have been derived from it: square, ones with more or fewer circles, meandering, and others. The classical labyrinth should be distinguished from the newer, confusing form with multiple possible entrances and exits where one can get lost. A true labyrinth has only one entrance-exit and one center towards which the traveler goes. It is believed that the word “labyrinth” itself comes from the Greek word “labrys” – double axe, and “inthos,” which means place. The double axe is one of the fundamental symbols of Cretan culture, as and the labyrinth itself are closely connected. However, while archaeological remains of the labyrinth have not yet been found, double-headed axes are ubiquitous: carved in stone, painted on ceramics and frescoes, and made of bronze, silver, and gold, ranging in size from a few centimeters to a few meters. They have also been found in caves that were used for religious rituals in the Minoan era (the cult of the sacred bull), which speaks to their ritual significance.
The double-headed axe is a special symbol of the inner human weapon, which was also depicted as a double pair of oppositely facing horns, one upwards and the other downwards, thus together forming an axe with two blades.
In psychological terms, the labrys, like a sword, is a symbol of the strength of will with which humans harmonize themselves, mastering their lower nature in their psychological labyrinth. Contemporary thinkers such as C.G. Jung, Joseph Campbell, and Mircea Eliade have explored this symbol and found meanings related to human inner life. Life, which we conquer by journeying towards the center – the labyrinth or ourselves.
The first mention of the labyrinth is found in the ancient Cretan myth of the ancient god Ares-Dionysus from the very beginning of time. It states that nothing had yet been created or shaped on earth and there was only darkness everywhere. Ares-Dionysus descended from the heights to the earth with the task of shaping the world. For this endeavor, a weapon was sent to him from the sky – a labrys, a double-headed axe, with which he began to walk and cut through the darkness in front of him. Since there was darkness everywhere, and he couldn’t orient himself in any way, he walked in circles, like a person walking through a vast desert. But as he cut through the darkness, he created a furrow that he followed and gradually cleared the path that came to be called the labyrinth. When he reached the end of the spiral path, he discovered that he no longer had the axe he had at the beginning, as it had transformed into a blazing torch that lit up in his hands at the center of the labyrinth.
The Cretan labyrinth – Although it is assumed that this The mythical labyrinth must have been located within or near the royal palace in Knossos, Crete, its remains have not yet been found. The shape of this seven-fold labyrinth is only known from Cretan coins. Its construction is mentioned in the myth of the great ancient builder Daedalus and his son Icarus.
Egyptian Labyrinth
The ancient Egyptian labyrinth is mentioned by Herodotus and Strabo, who also visited it. Herodotus reports on a huge complex consisting of an above-ground and underground part, comprising 3000 chambers, courtyards, and galleries. The priests were only able to guide him through the above-ground section, whose walls were adorned with paintings and hieroglyphics, leaving him amazed by their size and beauty. However, he did not have access to the underground, ceremonial part of the complex.
Recent research near the pyramid in Hawara (about 90 km south of Cairo, near the entrance to the Faiyum Oasis) confirmed that beneath the sand lie granite remains of a massive structure that could represent the remains of this lost labyrinth. >Ancient European Labyrinths
The oldest known depiction of a labyrinth is considered to be the stela from Pylos, found in the remains of the Mycenaean palace, dating back to 1200 BC. The depiction of a labyrinth and warrior-hunters in the Val Camonica cave in Italy is likely much older, as well as the rock-cut labyrinths in Pontevedra, Spain. The underground complex of Hypogeum Hal Saflieni in Malta is also very interesting, built on three levels like a labyrinth and believed to be around six thousand years old.
Stone Labyrinths in Scandinavia
Numerous labyrinths are made on the ground with stacked stones throughout the ancient Germanic region. This type is called Baltic, as there are over five hundred examples found in countries around the Baltic Sea – from Russia, through Estonia to Norway, Sweden, and Finland. The most beautiful specimens are found in Gotland, Sweden, and Zaiatsk, Russia. As they were constantly renewed, it is difficult to determine their age. They likely had a ceremonial role in ancient Germanic religion.
Labyrinths on the Floor rge, složene labirinte u katedralama diljem Velike Britanije.
Labirinti pronađeni na području Irske, koji su povezani s keltskim korijenima, imaju posebnu važnost. Najstariji među njima je Hollywoodski kamen, koji ima urezan klasični labirint s sedam krugova.
Još jedno zanimljivo mjesto je mistično brdo Tor, koje se nalazi blizu Glastonburyja. Na tom brdu urezana je stepeničasta spirala, koja prolazi do vrha brda i predstavlja trodimenzionalnu varijantu labirinta.
U Rock Valleyu u Cornwallu nalazi se labirint urezan u stijenu, a sličan je i labirint u Achnabrecku u Škotskoj te Knowthu u Irskoj. Sve ove lokacije su poznate po svojim prelijepim labirintima.
Također, neke francuske gotičke katedrale imaju labirinte prikazane na svojim podovima. Najpoznatiji među njima je labirint iz katedrale u Chartresu, koji potječe iz 13. stoljeća. Taj labirint, koji ima jedanaest koncentričnih krugova, nazivan je i “put u Jeruzalem”. Vjernici su ga koristili kao simbolički putovanje prema svojim duhovnim težnjama.
Srednjovjekovni graditelji su stvarali kompleksne labirinte poput ovih u katedralama, čime su stvarali zanimljive i intrigantne prostorne dizajne. There were between six and fifteen circles, and many of them were also square-shaped. Beautiful examples can be found in Amiens and in the St. Bertina abbey in St. Omer. During the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, artists sought to develop new forms of labyrinths, making them more complex and aesthetically refined.
In numerous English, Danish, and German churches, the motif of the labyrinth is often present on walls, ceilings, floors, doors, and more.
Indian labyrinths are considered very ancient, with the oldest being the labyrinth carved into the stone bank of the Pansaimol River in the Indian state of Goa. In Indian tradition, they are called chakravyuhu, named after the legendary circular military formation used by the hero Drona in the battle of Kurukshetra, described in the epic Mahabharata. The tradition also mentions the demon Ravana’s palace from the epic Ramayana, which was in the form of a labyrinth and located in Sri Lanka.
Roman labyrinths: The Romans most commonly used this symbol for decoration.
American labyrinths
American Indians
The Hopi tribe in particular used this symbol for ceremonial purposes. Even today, this symbol is a common motif in the folklore and handicrafts (woven baskets) of tribes in southern, central, and northern Arizona, as well as in New Mexico and northern Mexican regions.
Nazca
The mysterious geoglyphs of the Nazca Desert in Peru include a huge depiction of a monkey whose tail is shown as a spiral labyrinth. There is also a depiction of a solitary spiral. It is believed that spiral and labyrinth symbols are directly connected, as both lead to the center of their structure and symbolically towards the center of the individual who approaches them.
Recent research by Dr. Nicholas Saunders has also discovered a depiction of a giant labyrinth in that desert area, which can only be followed on foot because From the air, it is not visible due to wear and tear.
Mexico
Several years ago in Mexico, in Yucatan near the village of Tahtzibichen, a complex of interconnected caves in the shape of a maze was found. These caves contain multiple stone temples and pyramids. Some of the caves in this maze are located underwater. Archaeologists believe that the temples and pyramids were built underwater and that the entire complex represents a kind of Mayan gateway to another world.
Chavín
Chavín is a very ancient ceremonial center of an unknown culture in South America. It is located at an altitude of about 3200 meters, behind the mountain ranges of the Cordilleras. Today, only a series of ruined remnants of pyramids and buildings on the slopes, called Fortresses, remains here.
The most notable feature of Chavín is the underground passageways that form a true maze. The purpose of these passages has not yet been discovered, nor is it known where they begin and end. They likely had some initiatory, symbolic meaning connected to the ancient religion of the Chavín people. These passageways are perfectly and Elevated, covered with large stone slabs of a type of gray granite, and supported by small support arches made of the same material. Geological research within a radius of 50 kilometers from Chavína has not found a place where this stone could originate from. This tells us about a high level of technical development and truly extraordinary human skill.
Within its labyrinth lies the so-called Lanzón stela, which is also unclear how it was placed there. It is a monolith, or rather a monolithic statue of a deity, standing at 4.53 meters high, named the Great Knife or the Great Spear Idol, as it takes on the shape of a true, upright knife. Most likely, it is in line with ancient religious beliefs found among all peoples, according to which there are not only sources of natural water, but also sources of energy, or rather magnetic or telluric forces at certain points of the Earth’s crust.