A research
team from Devon is travelling to China in search of the origins and
meaning of a mysterious ancient symbol found in 17 Devon churches.
The motif depicting three hares joined at the ears has been identified
in sacred sites across the South West of England as well as the Middle
and Far East.
It's thought the symbol could be the key to ancient trading links
previously unknown about.
A good
example can be found nestling in the roof trusses at Sampford Courtney
Church on North Dartmoor.
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| Sue,
Chris and Tom are unravelling the mystery. |
For
hundreds of years it's possibly contained the secret to ancient
trading routes between the South West and the Mongol Empire.
Now art historian Sue Andrew, cameraman Chris Chapman and team leader
Dr Tom Greeves, an archaeologist, are hoping to unlock the key to
the mystery.
"As you come in through the south door, your eye is led straight
up to the centre of the roof and there are the three hares,"
said Dr Greeves.
The
team have identified the symbol in 17 churches across Devon, one
at Cothele in Cornwall and one in Dorset.
What's intriguing is that the motif is also apparent in some of
the earliest and most sacred sites around the world.
It can be found in the cave of a thousand Buddhas in Mogao China
dated at around the 6th Century AD.
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| A
ceramic fragment from 12th Century Egypt. |
The
hares can also be seen on the skirt of the Maitreya statue in Ladakh
from around 1200 AD, on a brass tray from 12th Century Iran and
on a ceramic fragment from Egypt at around the same time.
"The
questions are wonderful about how such a symbol could have travelled
over so many cultures and over so many thousands of miles and through
all these religions.
"Yet in Devon we have this wonderful cluster and in China we
have a similar cluster. Where they have 16 caves with the same symbol,
here in Devon we've got our 17 churches.
Marking
the culmination of 15 years of research, the team are travelling
from Devon to Dunhuang in China to try and unravel the mystery.
"We are speaking at a conference in Dunhuang where these early
images can be found," explained Sue Andrew.
"The conference will be attended by 100 delegates mainly Buddhist
scholars and Chinese speaking people.
"We are very much hoping to find out what they think of the
three hares and how they view the motif."
If
things go well for them they say this mission could fill in vital
blanks in history - solving the riddle of the hares that has transcended
many religions separated by 5,000 miles and almost 1,000 years.
First
published: 12th August 2004
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