Published in 1988
576 pages
Barbara Walker studied journalism at the University of Pennsylvania and then took a reporting job at the Washington Star in DC. During her work as a reporter, she became increasingly interested in feminism and women’s issues. Her writing career has been split between knitting instruction books, produced in the late 1960s through the mid-80s; and women’s studies and mythology books, produced from the 1980s through the early 21st C.
What is this book about?
This fascinating guide to the history and mythology of woman-related symbols features:
- Unique organization by shape of symbol or type of sacred object
- 21 different sections including Round and Oval Motifs, Sacred Objects, Secular-Sacred Objects, Rituals, Deities’ Signs, Supernaturals, Body Parts, Nature, Birds, Plants, Minerals, Stones and Shells, and more
- Introductory essays for each section
- 753 entries and 636 illustrations
Alphabetical index for easy reference:
- Three-Rayed Sun – The sun suspended in heaven by three powers, perhaps the Triple Goddess who gave birth to it (see Three-Way Motifs).
- Corn Dolly – An embodiment of the harvest to be set in the center of the harvest dance, or fed to the cattle to `make them thrive year round’ (see Secular-Sacred Objects).
- Tongue – In Asia, the extended tongue was a sign of life-force as the tongue between the lips imitated the sacred lingam-yoni: male within female genital. Sticking out the tongue is still a polite sign of greeting in northern India and Tibet (see Body Parts).
- Cosmic Egg – In ancient times the primeval universe-or the Great Mother-took the form of an egg. It carried all numbers and letters within an ellipse, to show that everything is contained within one form at the beginning (see Round and Oval Motifs).
