The warrior, in front of and profile

by | Oct 25, 2018 | Senza categoria | 3 comments

naquane r50

On the rock nr. 50 of the National Park of Naquane (Capodiponte, CCSP relief) two warriors armed with short sword and small shield, adorned with ritual skirt and fringed helmet, dance around (or fight in front of) to another warrior who has his arms up and he is holding a long battle sword and a round shield in his hands  assuming an attitude of jubilation. In Iron Age rock art (VII-IV / III century BC) there are thousands pairs of warriors facing each other in a duel, but only in a limited number of cases between the two warriors, or near them, is represented a further element (anthropomorph, aquatic bird, cup ring or something else) that indicates in figurative terms the cosmological relationship existing between the image and the support that hosts it. The rhythmical and bloodless behavior of the warriors confirms that there is no battle going on, so much so that in the entire Camunian repertoire only a very small number of warriors is reached by sword shots. The rock scene 50 offers interesting hints to ponder. In the first place we find here the confirmation of a general rule: in each phase of the Iron Age the warriors facing each other are without exception portraits in profile. On the contrary, the central character is raised (as if suspended in the air) with respect to the support surface of the dancers and every body detail (head, arms, torso, lower limbs) expresses a frontal view, which inserts this figure into a category of super-human beings. Following an intuition by Silvio Ferri (Ferri, 1972), a few years ago I presented a hypothesis (G. Ragazzi, 1994), according to which the warrior at the center of the scene is the hero killed in the battle attending the funeral ritual held in his honor. We are facing what Berard calls the scene of “Anodos”, the ascent from the inferior world through a “chthonic passage” (C. Bèrard, Anodoi, Essai sur l’imagerie des passages chthoniens, 1974) which links the “below “and the” above “.

cureti

Sword dance of the Curetes, (Campanian terracotta found in Cerveteri, II-I century BC, British Museum, London). As also in the Camunian representations the shield is almost always opposed to another shield, their beat and the consequent noise could have had the same function of scaring and keeping the spirits away from the cultivated fields.

La Danza delle Origini

Versione cartacea

di Gaudenzio Ragazzi

15.00

C’era una volta il Torchio

Versione digitale

di Gaudenzio Ragazzi

8.60

L’ Albero del Tempo

Versione digitale

di Gaudenzio Ragazzi

4.90

3 Comments

  1. lisbethbredholtl

    Ciao Gaudenzio come stai? spero bene. ““ My italian is somewhat rusty, so I will continue in english. First: Thanks for regular inputs on the dance! How do you manage to write so much? Second: I am organizing a trip to Valcamonica in June 2019 with a danish folk high school. We will arrive in Milano and then go to first Bergamo, then Lovere and then Valcamonica. On the way to Capo di Ponte I would like to visit the churches in Esine and Pisogne. I remember that you are from Esine and knowledgeable on the paintings there. Would you be our guide? And if yes, how much do you charge? It will be on Friday 31 May or Saturday 1 June. I think of leaving the hotel in the morning and then see Pisogne, Esine, Bienno, and Cedegolo before reaching Capo di Ponte. So, depending on how much time you have, it would be great if you would show Esine. Perhaps you also have ideas to something else? I hope this finds you well! Saluti, Lisbeth

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    Reply
    • Gaudenzio Ragazzi

      Ciao Lisbeth è un piacere sentirti.
      E sarà anche molto bello incontrarti dopo tanto tempo.
      Sono disponibile ad accompagnare il tuo gruppo a Esine. Il prezzo è un bel libro su archeologia di Danimarca. Fammi sapere la data. Se hai bisogno di guide per Pisogne e Bienno io conosco qualcuno. Molto bello è anche Cerveno.
      A presto, Gaudenzio

      Reply

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