The

Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

A letter to Julianna Lees with regard to her study

on the “triple-dot” pattern, called the “Cintamani.”
(http://www.flickr.com/groups/1530622@N23/pool/)
by Mel Copeland

I think the triple-dot motif coexists with

the cross, swastika, labyrinth and various
sun symbols and combinations where they
are placed within a circular or square
border. Such patterns seem to date from
the formative, Neolithic days of man’s
perception of, and identity with, gods and
heaven(s), i.e., there are seven heavens in
Jewish tradition. In this sense, then, I think
Fig. 1 and 2 Bowls from Baghouz, Syria, Samarra culture,
it is worthwhile to associate the symbols as
~5500 B.C.
a continuity of thought. Religious thought,
for instance, has always been conservative, holding onto the precepts of the past. The Catholic
Church has held onto the use of the Latin language in its liturgy, though the people of their
parishes had no knowledge of the language. From another perspective archeologists have found
flower pollen associated with Neanderthal burials, suggesting they threw flowers on the grave;
we still do it today, probably with the same meaning.
The swastika has been found around the world and some of its earliest versions include
branches, where the design grew from a symbol of trees to a geometric form, of simple bars with
buds on them, as seen in the ceremonial bowls from tell Baghouz, Syria (Samarra culture 5500-
4800 B.C.). The theme of the swastika can be seen as the Tree of Life,
from which all creation emerged, from whose base came ever-flowing
waters that have been compared to the
amniotic fluid flowing from early “Venus”
statues, such as the Venus of Lespugue,
Aurignacian Period, carved on ivory (40,000 -
25,000 B.C.). Clyde E. Keeler did a study on this,
called “Apples of Immortality from the Cuna Tree
of Life,” Exposition Press, NY, 1961. I have used
images from his book at:
http://www.maravot.com/Phrygian3.html.
Essentially behind the various legends of the
creation scattered around the world, God decided
to create man and the animals and either took a
tree and spun it, from which all life spun out or, as
Fig. 3 Idol from Phrygian in some American Indian tales, the Great Spirit
altar Midas City, Turkey, took a raven or some other bird and spun it
showing swastika- around, from which all life began. The images
labyrinth design. from Syria show various forms of this creation
theme, using fish, trees and birds. More images of
Samarra pottery are here: https://www.google.com/#q=Samarra+pottery. Fig. 4 Venus of
Fig. 1 Samarra ware shows buds growing at the end of the bars of the Lespugue

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art
swastika that seemed to have grown into the triple-dot pattern. We
can see in your site various uses of the pattern, usually on robes of
gods and rulers and then in Christian panels the dots represent the
stars in the sky. In some of your images you can see that at the end
of a floral design — such as a curvilinear leaf — the three dots are
placed, as in the Campanian kylix, Fig. 4, representing what would
logically be considered floral buds. Hence, I would conclude that the
buds are another symbol of the Tree of Life. In a Mycenaean seal
there is a design featuring the earth mother seated on a throne before
a palm tree, at the base of which is a flowing stream that emerges
from the feet of the earth mother. On either side of her throne are Fig. 5 Offerings to the
lions. She appears to be an early version of the Phrygian Cybele. Earthmother at the Tree of Life.
Note sun, moon and river of
heaven, double-headed axe of
the Sun god. A child is taking
fruit from the Tree of Life.
Golden ring from Mycenae,
after Sir Arthur Evans – Image
from Keeler.

Featured with the Tree of Life is

the labyrinth, and the labyrinth, of
course, graces the fronts of tombs
and often marks the point where
Fig. 6 Etruscan vase showing Heracles destroying the Hydra. the sun strikes an inner chamber
Fig 7 Campanian kylix
on the sun’s solstice, such as
December 21, when the sun begins
turning back from its trek into
winter and begins to head back towards Spring and the (re)birth of vegetation, breeding of livestock, etc.
Another symbol, the cross, seems to mark the four points of the compass, or perhaps man with arms
outstretched. In any event we can see the cross enclosed within a
box and in each quadrant of the box is often placed a dot and in a
few cases we see the triple-dot. (See Indus Valley seal below, Fig.
13).
Out of the spiral (labyrinth) grows plants! This can be seen on a
vase showing Heracles destroying the Hydra (Fig. 6) and also on
the Campanian kylix (Fig. 7), Metropolitan Museum, NY, (MET
41.162.241) –see also on the “Cintamani” flickr page
(http://www.flickr.com/photos/27305838@N04/4999709320/in/po
ol-1530622@N23/).
The Etruscans, of course, were obsessed with a pleasurable
experience in the afterlife, but crossing into their paradise was
besought with monsters and terrors of all kinds. Worst
Fig. 7 Etruscan statue, Apollo of Veii
Fig. 8 Etruscan tombstone from Vetulonia.

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art
of all, perhaps, was Charon, the
ferryman of Hades, who was painted in
their tombs, sometimes chasing them
with a hammer. Charon used the
hammer to hit the soul on the head, to
make sure it was dead. In their tombs
are images of heroes, such as Theseus,
who went down to the underworld to
rescue his friend but only got stuck
himself on the seat of forgetfulness
Fig. 9 Archaic vase from Athens that
before Hades. In an Etruscan tomb
shows the Tree of Life guarded by
mural we see Theseus being tormented
monsters. The vase has four
swastikas – from Keeler
by an evil demon called Tuchulcha with
snakes coming out of his head and
hands. Some scenes, such as that of Fig. 10 Swastika on
Theseus (Etr. THESE > ΘESE), show the spearhead, Torello Museum.
soul of the tomb fleeing from the demons.
In this sense they faced the realities of the underworld, that before
pleasure and happiness one must cross before the demons of Hades.
Theseus was rescued by Heracles when he descended into Hades to
capture the three-headed guard dog of Hades.
Another example of the Tree of Life is found between the feet of
the Apollo of Veii (Fig 7). Between his legs are two vertical double
spirals and between them is a tree. Compare this to the Vetulonia
Warrior stele that has a spear with rays between his legs (Fig
8). The spear with rays may be a symbol of the god Mars.
Back to the triple-dot. Ian Harling’s work, “The Ram and the Bull — forgotten Belief Signs
of the Vinča and Cucuteni,” takes us back into the Chalcolithic with his study of the Vinča signs.
Figure 123 of his work shows among the British signs the triple-dot sign and another sign or
character of three labyrinths arranged in a triple-dot pattern. His work is at:
https://www.academia.edu/5363413/The_Ram_and_the_Bull_a_Forgotten_Belief_Signs_of_the
_ Vinča _and_Cucuteni. In that work is the bronze spear from Brandeburg which has at the ends
of the bars on the swastika the triple-dots (buds). It also has other marks, one of which appears to
be a stroke with rays of the sun above it (spear, symbol of Mars?) and another stroke with the
triple-dot pattern above it.
Another spearhead in the Torello, Italy museum (Fig. 10) contains a similar image with an
inscription in runes. Another image from Ian Harling is a chariot from Serbia dating ~1500 B.C.
whose driver has on his breastplate three spirals in the form of the triple-dot pattern. (Harling,
Fig.99).

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

In another pattern on some golden disks

found by Heinrich Schliemann at Troy we
have three swastikas arranged in the triple-
dot pattern, together with the triple-dots,
which Keeler suggests are symbols of
placentas (but more likely sun disks?). Of
interest also is the merger of a sun symbol
with a swastika. The sun, of course, begets
life.
In another image from Keeler we have
what appears to be the key to the cross
design. From the Cave of Nativity, Petrified
Fig. 11 Swastikas and triple-dot patterns on Forest National Monument, is a creation
golden disks from Troy – from Keeler.
Fig 12 Creation scene from Cave of Nativity.

scene showing what Keeler suggests is the

spinning Tree of Life viewed from top down. It
appears to be so! This leads to another ancient
design of the cross within a boundary, either a
disk or square. In the Indus Valley seals we have

a design (also on the Phrygian Midas City

monuments (See
http://www.marav
ot.com/Phrygian.h
tml) with the
cross within a square
Fig. 13 Indus Valley seals showing a seated god with
two faces that resembles the Celtic god Cernunnos
and the cross and cup marks within a box.
Fig 14 Image of Cernunnos on the Gundestop Bowl.

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

boundary, plus four dots. In British tombs there are “cup marks” that
seem to follow the same idea. Coupled with the design of the cross and
“cup marks” is an image of a god who has horns on his head (Fig. 13).
The god appears to be like Janus, a god of directions.
(Wikipedia.org: “of beginnings and transitions, thence also of gates,
doors, passages, endings and time. He is usually depicted as having two
faces, since he looks to the future and to the past.”) He resembles the
Celtic god Cernunnos seen on the Gundestop cauldron (Fig. 14) that is
also horned and seated in a yoga position.
Finally, we can see again from Troy an
example of the earth mother with a swastika on
her vulva. On a Villanovan, early Etruscan urn
~1,000 B.C., we have swastikas on the roof,
together with a symbol composed of a sun
rising between two horns upon three columns
(seen on many Villanovan urns). On the
Fig 16. The pubic triangle
door of the urn are stylized swastikas
represented a garden with
merged with triple-dot patterns. the Tree of Life represented
The Etruscans had early developed the as a turning swastika – From
Fig. 15 Villanovan Hut Urn, ~
application of the triple-dot motif, and Keeler after Schliemann
1000 -800 B.C.
while it appears on the dress of gods and
goddesses in Etruscan mirrors, dating the
mirrors is problematic. There is an
interesting mirror from the multi-volume
Speculorum Etruscorum – Etruscan
Phrases #1690 (From France 1, Fascicle
III, L'erma di Bretschneiden, Paris Musée
du Louvre). It once again repeats the
triple-dot pattern with vegetation, and this
mirror is more Latin than Etruscan,
because it contains the name “Venus.” In
this scene we have on the border a plant
leaf which has above it the triple-dot
pattern and on the bottom of the mirror the
plant motif with Cintomani is again
repeated. In the scene is Venus (Etr.
Turan, Gr. Aphrodite) who appears to be
weeping seated next to god, “Diovem”
(Latin Jupiter, Etruscan Tinia, Gr. Zeus)
and facing them is Proserpina (Etr.
Phersipnei, Gr. Persephone). The name
“Proserpina is pointing to a chest and
holding in her hand a branch and Diovem
is apparently lecturing her. (Latin god -
deus, Nom., dei, Gen.). The staff
Fig. 17 Etruscan mirror with Venus, Diovem and Prosipnai.
(branch) held in the hand of Diovem is
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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

like that featured in images

of Tinia. If DI OVEM is a
phrase we may have “[by]
god, I may speak” (dei,
Gen. obeam, Conj. 1st
Pers. Single); in which case
we may have an unusual
Etruscan document using
the Latin name of Venus,
Etr. Turan, Gr. Aphrodite
and Proserpina, Etr.
Phersipnei, Gr.
Persephone.

Another Etruscan
mirror (Etruscan Phrases #
1726, also Script CD –
From Deutsche
Demokratische Republic
Faszikel 1, Berlin,
Staatliche Museen,
Akademie Verlag Berlin)
shows Semele, (Etr. Semle,
Gr. Semele), mother of
Dionysus, embracing
Dionysus (L. Bacchus, Etr.
Flufluns or Blubluns
[8LV8LVNS]) with Apollo
(Etr. APVLV, sometimes
written, APLV) in
attendance. Dionysus is
usually portrayed holding a
fennel staff, tipped with a
Fig. 18 Etruscan mirror: Semele embracing her son, the god pine-cone, known as a
Dionysus, who had rescued her from Hades. thyrsus. Hera was jealous of
Semele and knowing that
anyone looking upon the image of Zeus would die, suggested that he appear to Semele in his real
form. He went to her, conceived Dionysus, and she died from the incident. The fetus of
Dionysus was rescued before her death and sewn into the thigh of Zeus, from which he was born
and thus known as the “twice born.” When he became an adult Dionysus rescued his mother
from Hades and she became a goddess on Mount Olympus with the new name Thyone, presiding
over the frenzy inspired by her son Dionysus. Thus, in this mirror the triple-dot motif appears to
go along with the regeneration of life, i.e., Dionysus. The border of the mirror has the triple-dot
floral motif and Apolo (Apollo) is holding a branch.

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

Fig. 19 (Left) : Etruscan Phrases mirror #1747 of two dancers. The triple-dot motif is on the male dancers’
clothing but not on that of the female.

Fig 20 (Right): Etruscan Phrases mirror # 1744 of Apollo (Etr. APVLV) being serenaded by his sister, the
virgin huntress, Artemis (Etr. ARTVMIS). The serenade is puzzling. The triple-dot motif is on the gown of
Artemis but not on Apollo’s clothing. From Speculorum Etruscum, Bundesrepublik Deutschland,
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, 1995, Himmer Verlag, Munchen

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

Left (Fig. 21): Etruscan Phrases

mirror #1748, Dionysus dancing,
wearing his signature leopard skin.
Right Etruscan Phrases mirror # 1742
(From Speculorum Etruscum,
Bundesrepublik Deutschland,
Staatliche museen zu Berlin, 1995,
Himmer Verlag, Munchen)
One of the earliest stories of
Dionysus involves the abduction of
Dionysus by Tyrrhenian sailors. This
also is an event some believe was
caused by jealous Hera. As he was a
small boy, he asked the Tyrrhenian
sailors to take him to the island of
Naxos, where his nurses were waiting
for him. They agreed and took him
aboard, for they believed him to be the
son of some wealthy family who would
pay them well. Greed overcame them
and they steered the ship off course,
planning to hold the lad for ransom.
Some add that he was so handsome that
they also tried to rape him. The
helmsman, Acoetes, did his best to save
the passenger, for he sensed that he was
more than an ordinary mortal, but the

Fig. 21 (Left) Etruscan mirror showing Dionysus

dancing, wearing a leopard skin (one of his symbols).
Fig 22 (Right) Etruscan mirror with two dancers
wearing dresses with the triple-dot motif. Note the
floral buds around the mirror, one of which appears
to be the thyrsus of Dionysus, a symbol of prosperity,
fertility, hedonism, and pleasure

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

other sailors threatened or manhandled him for interfering.

Suddenly, in spite of a stiff breeze in its sails, the ship stood still. A sound of flutes was
heard. Ivy and grapevines twined themselves about the oars and masts, or the oars turned into
snakes. The astonishment of the sailors turned to terror as wild beasts — panthers, lions and
bears — appeared on the deck. Some say that the captain was eaten by a lion, others that he
ordered Acoetes to turn back to the proper course, but it was too late. In a frenzy of fear the
sailors leaped into the sea, where they were changed into dolphins. Acoetes would have
followed, but Dionysus restrained him, assuring him that he had won his favor by his attempts to
save him. As for the dolphins, having once been human themselves, they ever afterward
remained friendly to human beings. Dionysus placed one of them among the stars to
commemorate his triumph and, no doubt, as a warning to pirates. (Story from the Meridian
Handbook of Classical Mythology, Edward Tripp, 1970)
Mirrors that are bordered with vines with the triple-dot motif seem to go along with the
bacchanalian rites. We can conclude, therefore, that the Cintamani or triple-dot-motif is an
abstract symbol of rebirth, which, together with the swastika (Tree of Life) and the labyrinth
lead to immortality and union with
gods and heavens and in the case of the
rites of Dionysus reflects the heart of
its mystery, of rebirth. Other mirrors
including these are on Etruscan Phrases
http://www.maravot.com/Etruscan_Phr
ases_a.html and including the triple-dot
series at
http://www.maravot.com/Translation_
ShortScripts_k.html).
Script DM (Divine_Mirror.html)
This mirror (Left, Fig 23) from
Vetulonia, Italy circa 600 B.C., tells the
story of Helen of Troy. The robes of
Turan, Tinia, Thalna, Paris, Helen and
Agamemnon have the triple-dot motif.
The mirror is unusual since it contains
Heracles (Etr. Hercle, L. Hercules) in
the story, and his relevance to the
Etruscan version of the story is a
mystery. From left to right in the top
panel is Aphrodite (Etr. Turan), next to
her is Heracles (Etr. Hercle) who is
holding a cherub with the caption EPE
VR (Epe Or) over his head. They are
facing Zeus (Etr. Tinia) and next to him
is his consort Thalna (Thalna, the
Etruscan goddess, representing
Fig. 23 Etruscan mirror from Vetulonia, circa. 600 B.C. that tells
Nemesis (Gr. “ revenge”) mother of
the entire story of Helen of Troy (From Etruscan Phrases)
Helen; re: Etruscan word, thalio,
meaning “revenge, retaliation”; (L.

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

talio-onis, retaliation). This, of course, is what the story of Helen of Troy involves. She was
abducted by a prince of Troy, Paris, also known as Alexander (Etr. Elchintre) who is in the
middle panel being crowned by a goddess named Mean, whose name stems from the ancient
name of the Lydians recorded by Herodotus, who called themselves “Maeonians.” In the Greek
version of the story it was Aphrodite (Etr. Turan) who awarded Alexander with the hand of
Helen. Next to Alexander is Queen Helen (Etr. Elinai), of Sparta who is shaking hands with
Agamemnon (Etr. Achmemnvn) and between them is Agamemnon’s brother Menelaus (Etr.
Menle) who is being betrothed to Helen. On the left side of the panel is an astonished Aesacus,
(Etr. Aecai) who is the son of the king of Troy, Priam, by his first wife, Arisbe. Aesacus learned
the art of prophesy from Merops and had the reputation of prophesying that Troy would be
destroyed by a firebrand, caused by his brother, Paris (Alexander).
On the other side of the panel, escaping from the scene as it were, is Lasa Thimrae, who is
probably Cassandra, the sister of Aesacus. She had slept overnight in the temple of Apollo on
the Thimbraen plane, where the river Thymbrius flowed into its course to the Scamander.
Sleeping in the Thybraean temple she gained the art of prophesy. But there was a problem with
her oracles, for it was determined by the gods that her prophesies would not be believed. She
also prophesied the destruction of Troy. Thus, in this panel both Aesacus and Cassandra are
alarmed at the agreement between Helen and Agamemnon, since they knew that Helen had been
promised to Paris, though betrothed to Menelaus. Such an agreement meant war. The bargain of
marriage is usually described between Agamemnon and King Tyndareus, Helen’s father, and this
scene puts an unusual slant on the proceedings, showing that Helen agreed to marry Menelaus.
Mean, incidentally, has a deer beside her and the deer is the sign of the virgin huntress
goddess Artemis. Artemis was not part of the Greek story that awarded Paris the hand of Helen.
Paris was awarded Helen’s hand, though she was already married to Menelaus, through an event
that is called “The Judgment of Paris,” where Hera, Athena and Aphrodite contested who
deserved most the golden apple thrown into the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. It seems that all
the gods were invited to the wedding except Eris, the goddess of discord. Infuriated that she was
not invited she threw the golden apple into the wedding which had inscribed on it, “for the
fairest.” To determine who was the fairest of the gods Hera, Athena and Aphrodite decided to
call Paris, the fairest man then living, to judge the matter. They each bribed Paris but Aphrodite
won the judgment by telling Paris that he would be awarded the hand of the fairest woman then
living, who happened to be Helen of Sparta.
As one may note there is beside the goddess Thalna a goose, which is the symbol of Nemesis.
Zeus wanted to seduce her and she fled from him, changing forms and in the form of a goose
landed on an island where Zeus, who had changed into a swan, caught up with her and violated
her. The result was an egg that was found by a shepherd (an Etruscan mirror says it was the
brothers of Helen, the Dioscuri, that found the egg), and the egg was presented to King
Tyndareus of Sparta. He and his wife, Leda, raised the child that emerged from the egg and the
child was very beautiful, so much so that several men attempted to abduct her. (All mirrors
described herein can be seen at “Etruscan Phrases.”)
As a child Theseus and his friend, Peirithous, attempted to abduct her, but she was rescued by
her brothers. Peirithous later ended up in Hades (he tried to abduct Persephone) and Theseus
attempted to rescue him, but failed, being frozen before Hades himself, until Heracles descended
there and rescued him, leaving Peirithous to sit on the eternal seat of forgetfulness.
Paris had not intended to abduct Helen, since he was visiting her and her husband, Menelaus,
in Sparta. But Menelaus was called to Crete to attend his grandfather’s funeral and during the

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

time that he was away apparently Aphrodite fulfilled her part of the bargain to Paris by either
giving Helen a potion, causing her to fall desperately in love with Paris, or she sent her son, Eros,
to produce the love affair. In any event, the two lovers decided to run off to Troy, carrying the
treasures of Sparta with them, and this caused a thousand Mycenaean ships to follow to restore
the abducted woman to her husband and Sparta. King Agamemnon of Mycenae led the war
which lasted ten years, according to the Iliad. As one can see, the entire story of Helen of Troy
and more can be told from Script DM which we call “the Divine Mirror.”

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

Spirals growing into crosses and labyrinths

The spiral – sometimes seen as a coiled line, coiled plant or coiled limbs of an octopus, sea snail,
etc. – is a common theme in Bronze Era pottery, in Thera
particularly and
Crete. From a cave
sanctuary in
Kameras, Crete,
dating circa. 1,900-
1,700 B.C. is a vase
(Fig. 24) that has an
unusual geometric
design using what
appear to be birds
and floral motifs
based upon a cross within a circle and triple-dot motifs.
Spirals appear in palace-style pottery whose floral-like
spirals enclose the triple-
dot motif. Some spirals
are modelled on birds and
sea life. The spiral is
common among Celtic
designs, such as the
recumbent stone at the
entrance of the tumulus of
Newgrange, dating from 3,200 B.C. (Fig. 26) This design can be
Fig 24 Kamaras-style vase, Crete compared to a Terramare bronze comb dating (1650-1170 B.C.)
Fig 25 Palace-style vase, Crete
in the Po Valley, near Bologna, Italy. Next follows two images
Fig. 30 Kameras-style vase from
of the Meigle Stone, Scotland, believed to date from the 8th – 9th
Crete with spiral motif of bird
Century A.D.
A
plumes.
controversial
stone, called the Craig Narget stone (Fig. 29), of
Wigtownshire, Scotland has sun crosses and the
triple-dot motif. Our image is from L. A.
Waddell's book, "The Phoenician origin of

Fig. 26 Recumbent entrance stone,

Newgrange, Ireland (3,200 B.C.) Image from
www.ballybegvillage.com/old_newgrange_ph
otos.html.

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

Britons, Scots and Anglo-

Saxons," 1925 (second
ed.), published in the
Proceedings of the Society
of Antiquaries of
Scotland. (see
www.scholarly-
societies.org). A copy of
the book is available
online
(http://jrbooksonline.com/
pob/pob_ch01.html).

Compare the stylized

Fig. 28 Meigle Stone, Scotland. (8th-10th century A.D.) (From Mad Dog Harry’s
spiral motif (a bird?) of
page: http://dundee3js.freeforums.org/the-ancient-carved-stones-t88.html)
the Kameras-style, Crete,
(Fig. 30) with a carved Celtic stone (Fig. 31) that has not only the spirals but the triple-dot motif.

A floral double spiral design is next

seen on a Phrygian vase, Fig. 32, from
Gordion (~900 B.C.). Also from Gordion is
a pottery fragment containing a simple
cross design, such as the cross with dots
enclosed in a circle. The cross within a
circle and
square is
associated
with
swastikas,
labyrinths,
etc. on pottery
Fig 27 Terramare bronze comb
and the sign is
used in syllabic
scripts, such as Linear B syllabary and similar characters were
used by the Vinča Culture (5500-4500 B.C.). It can also be seen in
the Indus Valley seals (Fig. 13). This design is the form from
which a labyrinth is drawn. By
simply connecting the dots and
bars with arcs one produces a
labyrinth, as seen in the template
(Fig. 34).
Using the same model one
may make a swastika, and in this
Fig. 29 The Craig Narget stone, Scotland sense the spiral, labyrinth and
Fig. 31 (Right) Celtic stone with spirals
cross symbols are related.
and triple-dot motif
The cross within a circle also

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 The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

forms the basic design of a labyrinth. And connected with all of

them is the triple-dot motif which probably represents buds, as seen
on the swastika design in Fig. 1 and
the Campanian kylix (Fig. 7)
discussed above.
In drawing a labyrinth one
basically connects the dots and bars
following the design in the template
(several available on the internet) as
in Fig. 34.
We conclude that the swastika is a
symbol of
Fig. 32 Phrygian vase from Gordion The Tree of Life, wherefrom all life
Fig. 33 Phrygian design with cross and four dots within a circle. forms sprang or were flung by the Great
Spirit. The buds of the Tree of Life
(represented by the triple-dot motif) are seen on swastikas, on pottery
and swords, and these appear to represent the promise of resurrection.
The triple-dot buds are associated in Etruscan mirrors with Dionysus
and his rites, and since Dionysus is regarded as the “twice born” it would
be suitable to associate his vines and buds with creation and rebirth.
Such designs are also common on Hindu and Buddhist objects, such as
Buddha’s foot.

Launched 2.06.2014
Updated 2.08.2014; 2.14.2014

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Copeland. All rights reserved.

Fig. 34 Template for a labyrinth

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The Triple-dot Pattern and the Swastika in Ancient Art

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