Icons of the Matrix: female symbolism in ancient culture
Abstract:
Beyond "essentialism": recurring patterns of female symbolism in ritual culture and modern theoretical preoccupations with 'fertility idols." The female figurines, central icons of the paleolithic and neolithic. Vulva petroglyphs on a global scale. Megalithic women, cupules, and rock dust. Symbolic patterns of the ceramic figurines and what they might tell us about ceremonial paintup, dress, and practices. Breastpots and female effigy vessels, and some striking similarities between urns widely separated in time and place. A 2014 updated version of the 2005 article by Max Dashu