> Hmm, why is it not possible that interlace in manuscripts evolved
> from the earlier vegetal and geometric and zoomorphic intertwinings that
> characterize pre-Christian Celtic objects? There's plenty of evidence that
> Germanic tribes adopted other aspects of Celtic culture and torcs have been
> found in Denmark. Why is it not possible that the Germanic tribes learned
> such imagery from the Celts?
I suppose it is possible, but the examples of interlace from
continental Germanic sources are far earlier than in the British
Isles. I agree with you that there was a tradition of spirals and
other decorative motifs that were highly consonant with interlace in
earlier Celtic traditions. I believe, in fact, that that is a
significant reason why interlace became so easily incorporated into
the tradition. This is such an elusive topic that an open mind on
the subject is very healthy, but for the present, I tend to side with
the development from antique sources into Germanic traditions (cf.
Sutton Hoo) and from there into the Hiberno-Saxon traditions, and I
use the term Hiberno-Saxon, because I really have no idea, by the 7th
century or so, what Celtic ethnic identity might have meant, either
in Ireland or western Britain or Scotland. It is a perplexing
period.
Cheers,
Jim Bugslag
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