Quipus and Witches' Knots

The Role of the Knot in Primitive and Ancient Culture, with a Translation and Analysis of "Oribasius de Laqueis
Erscheinungsjahr 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7006-3146-9
Verlag: University Press of Kansas

Buch, Englisch, 168 Seiten, Paperback, Format (B × H): 152 mm x 229 mm

This essay in cultural anthropology provides a comprehensive view of the way primitive people in all parts of the world once utilized knots; mnemonic knots—to record dates, numbers, and cultural traditions; magic knots—to cure diseases, bewitch enemies, and control the forces of nature; and practical knots—to tie things and hold things together.

In his discussion of mnemonic knots, the author analyzes the Peruvian quipus (or knot-calendars and knot-records) and suggests that the Inca astronomer-priests, known to have been accurate observers of the movements of the planets, may also have been able to predict the dates of lunar eclipses; and he shows how it is possible to manipulate the Ina abacus in accordance with the decimal system.

His treatment of magic knots includes instances from Babylonian times to the present, with curious examples of the supernatural power attributed to the Hercules knot (i.e., the square knot) in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. His analysis of a little-known treatise on surgeons’ slings and nooses, written by the Green physician Heraklas, is the first detailed account of the specific practical knots used by the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Quipus and Witches’ Knots, which is abundantly illustrated, often surprises the reader with the unexpected ways in which the once universal dependence of men on knots has left its mark on the language, customs, and thought of modern peoples.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Volkskunde Minderheiten, Interkulturelle & Multikulturelle Fragen
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Alte Geschichte & Archäologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Kunst Kunstformen, Kunsthandwerk Textilkunst
• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Ethnologie Kultur- und Sozialethnologie: Allgemeines
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Soziologie von Migranten und Minderheiten

Inhaltsverzeichnis

- Acknowledgments
- Chapter One: Mnemonic Knots
- 1. Knot-Calendars
- 2. Lee Boo and His "Line"
- 3. Polynesian Knot-Records
- 4. Miscellaneous Knot-Records
- 5. Phylacteries and Fringes
- 6. Abacus, Rosary, and Log Line
- 7. The Peruvian Quipu (Locke's Analysis)
- 8. The Peruvian Quipus (Nordenskiöld's Hypothesis)
- 9. Quipu 14-3866 (An Inca Astronomer's Notebook)
- 11. Statistical and Cultural Quipus
- Chapter Two: Magic Knots
- 1. Homeopathic and Contagious Magic
- 2. Wind and Rain
- 3. Sickness and Disease
- 4. Miscellaneous Cures
- 5. Knot Amulets
- 6. The Hercules Knot
- 7. the Slip Knot
- 8. Miscellaneous Amulets
- 9. Maleficium
- 10. Love Knots
- 11. Religious Knots
- Chapter Three: Practical Knots
- 1. The Age of String
- 2. The Oldest Knots
- 3. A Physician Names Haraklas
- 4. Proprietary Exclusiveness
- 5. The End of an Era
- Notes
- Appendices: Oribasius De Laqueis
- Index