For millennia, and among almost every culture, flowers and trees have been adopted as symbols, type and emblems of human groups and affiliations. The “War of the Roses” the red and white roses which were the badges of Lancastrian and York rivals to the English throne.
However, this symbolism of flowers dates back to periods far older than the times of the War of the Roses. The ancient civilisations had each its own emblematic flower. The special power of the Hindu, for instance, has always been the marigold. The Chinese display as their national flower the gorgeous chrysanthemum.
The Assyrian proudly displayed the water lily. Egyptian delighted most of all in the heliotrope; though the papyrus leaf, used by the ancient Egyptians in place of paper, may also be regarded in a high sense as the symbolic plant of the Nile.
The Greeks and Romans were in the habit of distributing the flowers in their luxurious gardens among their gods and demi-gods; just as in yet remoter times the sweet basil and moon-flower were sacred to Asiatic deities.
In the Roman custom, to Juno was devoted the lily, to Venus the myrtle and the rose, to Minerva, the olive and the violet; Diana had the dittany, Ceres the poppy, Mars the ash, Bacchus the grape leaf, Hercules the poplar, and Jupiter naturally the monarch of trees, the oak.
So we may infer that among the Roman, the lily and the oak were the emblems of power; the myrtle and the rose, of love; the olive and the violet of learning; the ash of war and the grape leaf of festivity.
Even the days of the week, as we use them now, are named from deities who each had its own special flower; the Sun (Sunday), the sunflower: the Moon (Monday), the daisy; Tuesday (the god’s Tui’s day), the violet; Wednesday (the god Woden’s day), the burdock; Friday (the goddess Frea’s day), the orchis; and Saturday (Saturn’s day), the horsetail.
We find also that in our time, the sacred days in the calendar of the English church have all their flower or plant emblems; the principal of which are, the holly for Christmas, the palm for Palm for Sunday, and the amaranth for All Saints day.
Monarchs and nations have often had their symbolic flowers. The thistle is the emblem of Scotland and the Shamrock of Ireland. The fleur-de-Lys is the badge of the royal house of France, and the amaranth of that of Sweden. The rose bloom forever on the royal coat of arms of England. Finally as a proud Aussie the golden wattle is our national flower.
More about Design
-
Neon Lighting – Dictionary – Design Term
Neon Lighting. Semiflexible, hollow tubes of clear acrylic with small bulbs inside that can be connected to light up all at once or sequentially to produce a “chasing” effect. It’s also known as disco lighting, and it’s given homeowners new illumination alternatives. Lights designers consider neon lighting to be an art form.Read More →
-
Minimalism – Less is More
Minimalism is an art historical and critical term. The purest forms of minimalism include cubes and spheres, plain, unadorned surfaces, and solid colours. Adolf Loos’ famous quote, “Ornament is a Crime,” has become catchphrases for the minimalist design movement.Read More →
-
Affichiste French for Poster Designer
Affichiste. Name (literally ‘poster designer’) taken by the French artists and photographers Raymond Hains (1926-) and Jacques de la Villeglé (1926-), who met in 1949 and created a technique to create collages from pieces of torn-down posters during the early 1950s. These works, which they displayed for the first time in 1957, were called affiches…
-
Lithography Don’t Show the Trick, Show the MAGIC
A method of printing from a design drawn directly on a slab of stone or other suitable material. The design is not raised in relief as in woodcut or incised as in line engraving, but drawn on a smooth printing surface. Initially, this surface was provided with a slab of unique limestone, but metal (usually…
-
What is Wrought Iron?
The term “wrought iron” refers to the material rather than the products made of iron. Modern mild steel has supplanted wrought iron, a forgeable ferrous material used up until about the middle of the twentieth century. Because of the extensive forming required during its production—under power hammers and through rollers—it was originally referred to as…
-
Brandewijnskom – brandy bowls for birth ceremonies
Brandewijnskom. Brandy bowls were made in Holland and Friesland in the 17th and 18th centuries.Read More →
-
Jugendstil: An Exploration of an Artistic Style
Jugendstil, an artistic style that originated around the mid-1890s in Germany and persisted throughout the first decade of the 20th century. READ MORRead More →
-
Guilloche two banded decorative motif
-
Garniture – Decorative set of Porcelain
Usually on a fireplace mantel. Garnitures were put on furniture and ledges or niches around a room’s walls, notably over doors or fireplaces.Read More →
-
Acroter – a pedestal for a statue
Acroter is a plinth or pedestal for a statue or other ornament, placed at the apex or lower corners of a pediment. Read More →
-
Mission Furniture – Design Dictionary Term
The term mission furniture was first popularized by Joseph P. McHugh of New York, a furniture manufacturer and retailer. The word mission references the Spanish missions throughout colonial California. The style became increasingly popular following the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo.Read More →
-
Ablution basin – Dictionary of Silverware
Ablution basin. A type of basin for holding water intended: (1) in ecclesiastical usage, for rinsing the hands or some object of church plate, such as a chalice; or (2) in secular usage, for rinsing the fingers at the dinner table (sometimes called a rose-water basin). Its founder donated two ecclesiastical ablution basins in 1515-16…
-
Why Is Shagreen Fish Skin Used on Furniture? – Design Term
Shagreen is fish skin used as a veneer to cover furniture and accessories. Also known as galuchat and sharkskin, shagreen is the skinRead More →
-
Adhocism – an idea of improvisation
-
Anthropometrics, a systematic study of human measurement
Anthropometrics is a systematic study of human measurement that was increasingly used by designers dealing with design issues involving human movement in the decades following WWII. Their implementation of a more analytical and methodical approach to design problems had a lot in common with the techniques studied at the Hochschule für Gestaltung in Ulm from…
-
What is a Monogram?
A monogram is a single symbol made up of one or more letters. Every aspect of an individual’s taste and fancy can be accommodated with a monogram. Monograms differ significantly, and there are of a great variety of design. There are so many different types and combinations of the same letters that no two persons…
-
Achilles Shield – Dictionary of Silverware
A silver-gilt convex shield with a sizable central medallion depicting the shield of encrusted iron made by the god Hephaestus for Achilles at Troy, as it is described by Homer in Book 18 of the Iliad. The medallion, which depicts in high relief a figure of the Sun (Apollo) standing in a quadriga (a chariot…
-
Taylorism Search for Industrial Efficiency or Robotism?
His 1911 book Principles of Scientific Management outlined these concepts, and they have influenced various aspects of design, including labour-saving kitchens and more ergonomic household equipment. These included the writings of fellow American Christine Frederick, who published Scientific Management in the Home in 1915, and Lillian Gilbreth’s assessments of domestic efficiency for the Brooklyn Gas…
-
Murrine ancient glass technique – design dictionary
When a glass cane is cut into thin cross-sections, coloured patterns or images created in the cane are revealed as murrine. One well-known design is the flower or star shape, which is known as millefiori when used in large quantities.Read More →
-
Dada Art Movement – Making Mischief
As a designer, I am passionate about the history of art and their influence on ‘visual design.’ In art history, Dada is the artistic movement that preceded Surrealism, it began in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1916 by a group of mostly painters and painters. Dada artworks challenged the preconceived notions of what art meant. Many Dadaists felt…
If you enjoyed this post you may also enjoy reading;
Laura Ashley the story of british fabric and fashion designer – Encyclopedia of Design
Born in Merthyr Tydfil, Laura Ashley was a British fashion and fabric designer. The wholesome approach of Ashley to fabric design embodied the old-fashioned ideals of family , home and an unhurried environment where at bedtime someone always comes to tuck you in.