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Butterfly Symbolism
Posted by ErnieB | Added on : June 30, 2010 1:07pm | Last edited: June 30, 2010 1:09pm | Viewed 3263 times | 0 Comments
The butterfly is a multicultural symbol of the beauty of Nature, appearing in numerous examples of nature scenes of many artistic styles. Butterflies are included as elements of these scenes because they most effectively represent all positive characteristics of Nature.
Butterflies are "Nature's canvases with the gift of flight." Even in death, their mounted beauty can remain intact for centuries. Nature's genetic paintbrushes have "painted" hundreds of thousands bilaterally-symmetrical butterfly works of art. When one considers that both the topsides and the undersides of these specimens are "painted" with equal skill, and that smaller, isolated sections of these masterpieces can be viewed apart from the total specimen, one becomes aware of the virtually unlimited number of artworks in this "traveling" art show of the air.
To some artists, the butterfly only symbolizes beauty: the beauty of symmetry, pattern, color, shape. These artists don't require their representations of these creatures to be interpreted. They copy these insects, some as faithfully as the Photo-realists would copy a still life, a figure, a panorama, and only ask the viewer to observe their beauty.
The butterfly symbolizes that which is beautiful and positive because of the widespread and usually valid opinion that they are, indeed, quite colorful and beautiful. Other symbolism associated with butterflies (like femininity, spring) also contribute to people's high regard for butterflies
When an illustration or painting desires to convey a fairy-tale or heavenly/ethereal quality, artists usually include a few butterflies to augment the overall feeling. Winslow Homer liberally sprinkled butterflies in his illustration "Saint Valentine's Day." Fairies are often pictured with insect wings which are usually those of butterflies. Greek and Roman mythology illustrates this in describing the horae; spirits who personified the seasons.
Throughout history, butterfly imagery has been used more frequently in "decorative objects" than most other living organisms. Butterflies are found in similar frequency with imagery of trees, flowers, mushrooms, and owls. Indian decorations have utilized butterfly imagery for centuries.
Items adorned with butterflies are often considered decorative or ornamental. Butterflies don't always have to carry the specific symbolism of nature or beauty. In fact their frequency in non-symbolic decorative usage has caused them to symbolize decoration itself. "Today, an artist will put a butterfly or flower in an illustration just for a filler, a decorative dot of color."
Ancient Mexicans considered the butterfly important enough to dedicate an entire palace to it at
Historians do not agree on who the founders of
The butterfly represents flame in the symbolism of this culture. Often pictured with the signs for water, it becomes clear that the "vision of Earth as a paradise is based on the dynamic harmony between water and fire." The same concept is exemplified by an image of Tlaloc, god of rain, pictured on a vase bearing a butterfly motif. It is interesting to note that the butterfly is used as symbolic representatives of both the fire and rain god.
Finding no information as to why butterflies symbolize flames indians might have observed the many butterflies whose wings are red, orange, yellow, or combinations of all three colors. A cloud or "cumulep" of fire-colored butterflies taking off from a mud puddle after drinking, could easily be interpreted as being flame-like.
Mexican Indians might also have witnessed a "magna-cumulep" of millions of orange, monarch butterflies migrating to their over-wintering grounds in the mountains near
The Zuni Indians feel that the early appearance of butterflies indicates fair weather. Other peoples "say that if the first butterfly is ... yellow [it will be] sunny weather."
In western
Many of the Indian tribes of
Associating butterflies with summer is directly related to their abundance during that season. Although adult butterflies are present in each season, they proliferate and are most visible during the summer months.
The Zuni Indians also feel "when the white butterfly comes, comes also the summer."
"Some say that if the first butterfly is ... dark [it will be] a season of thunderstorms. This belief appears in Funk and Wagnalls' Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology and Legend. No mention is made of the origin of this belief. The probable reason for this superstition associates the dark color of the butterfly wings with the dark color of thunderstorm clouds
"In south
In the book, Insect Fact and Folklore, by Lucy Clausen, it is stated that "a butterfly in the house is a wedding sign." The book does not reveal where or why this symbol is prevalent, simply stating it exists. Also, in the Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology and Legend, published by Funk and Wagnalls, it mentions that in
The first butterfly seen in a season carries some significance in many countries. In
The Haida Indians of the
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