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November 18, 2014

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Posted in copper, egyptian, flower, greek, lotus, palmette, ring


The Palmette and Lotus in Paragon of Design by Skrocki's pieces.

 

 

Handmade palm statement necklace in copper
 
Handmade palm statement necklace in copper


Below- Sterling silver oxidized palm earrings with faceted spinel. With these earring we make the originals in brass and then roll print them onto the sterling silver sheet.
Historically based handmade silver earrings with palms
The palmette was thought to have originated in Egypt 2,500 years B.C (2) and is still heavily used today in various designs. In our own house we have it on picture frames, light fixtures and multiple other items!
Handmade lotus earrings in brass
Above: our interpretation of the lotus flower from Egypt.
Below: Lotus found at Aswan, Egypt.

There were two common lotus' often depicted in Egyptian temples and ruins. I am also including the meaning of the Greek lotus because it was popular as well in ancient decoration.
The white lotus, pictured above, where the petals are narrowed into tips  was considered a symbol of creation in Egypt and in Ancient Greece it was a symbol of innocence and modesty.
The blue lotus (often identified by the flat surface of the petals) was very frequently depicted in Egyptian art. It has been depicted in numerous stone carvings and paintings, including the walls of the famous temple of Karnak. It is frequently depicted in connection with "party scenes", dancing or in significant spiritual / magical rites such as the rite of passage into the afterlife." (3)

Please check out out store for all the other palmette or lotus inspired pieces available!! 
The palmette is found on hundreds of items from all over ancient Egypt, Greece, Turkey etc. It is more recently found in it's original form and updated motif all over the world on all types of items and architecture.  The palmette in ancient Egypt also slightly varied to show the lily or lotus. 
According to Wikipedia "The essence of the palmette is a symmetrical group of spreading "fronds" that spread out from a single base, normally widening as they go out, before ending at a rounded or fairly blunt pointed tip. There may be a central frond that is larger than the rest. The number of fronds is variable, but typically between five and about fifteen.

In the repeated border design commonly referred to as anthemion the palm fronds more closely resemble petals of the honeysuckle flower, as if designed to attract fertilizing insects. Some compare the shape to an open 'hamsa' hand – explaining the commonality and derivation of the 'palm' of the hand."(1)



The above picture shows what remains of Greek palmette leaves. Although the design was common during the 6th century the location of this ruin was not. We had traveled to Sevastopol, on the coast of the Black Sea, in Russia when we came across the excavation which included this piece. According to the information available at the site a group of Greeks  colonized this area during the 6th century.
The neat part about seeing this ruins here was that  Sevastopol was off limits to all foreigners and many of it's own people up until the mid 1990s.  We took a small ship the to area and probably over a hundred people came to take pictures and pose in front of the boat. We learned as we were leaving that there was only one other boat that carried tourists to that city since the mid 1990s.
Although the above palmette is carved with great skill, many of the other out door artifacts were more of a crude version of the ones we photographed in Greece.


Another beautiful example, of the palmette, we came across while traveling  was located in the Ephesus museum. Besides the standard palmette there is the lily or lotus version  we found throughout Egypt. 

 
Handmade palm earrings in copper
These ones are for sale on our store.
(2) E.H. Gombrich, The Sense Of Order, A study in the psychology of decorative art, PHAIDON second edition, London 1984 page 181
Six Wings by Skrocki Design   #113, 13651, St Albert Trail, Unit 4, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada   1-780-289-4283