The Curious History of Mazes: 4,000 Years of Fascinating Twists and Turns

By Julie E. Bounford

Thread your way through this history of mazes from the ancient world to today and solve over one hundred mazes along the way.

From prehistoric times, mazes and labyrinths worldwide have served as different symbolic, ritualistic, and practical purposes. Taken as a powerful metaphor for life’s journey, they can be used as tools for meditation and learning at any level, even when completed for recreation. Maze images can be enjoyed as motifs themselves, but also in their material forms—a meditation, puzzle, dance, walk, ritual, pilgrimage, or simply a day out.

Drawing upon a wealth of historical and classical literature; accounts written by explorers, archaeologists, and historians; and the output of modern and contemporary world-renowned experts and enthusiasts, social historian Dr. Julie Bounford explores the evolution of mazes through time and across continents, presenting their history in a fun and engaging format while challenging readers to solve over one hundred mazes—many created exclusively for this book by illustrator and artist Trevor Bounford. Learn about:

• The earliest recorded examples, legends, and mazes in the ancient world
• Mazes used as sacred rituals and symbols that take us beyond the natural world
• Turf, stone, hedge, and garden mazes, and sites of communal rustic revels
• The modern revival, with mazes taken to forms never previously imagined

Explore how mazes can improve your mental dexterity and create mindfulness, and use the gazetteer to locate historical, replica, and interesting mazes that exist around the world today.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Oct 2, 2018
• ISBN: 9780760363027

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

"All Mathematics would suggest

A steady straight line as the best,

But left and right alternately

Is consonant with History."

—from The Labyrinth by W.H. Auden

The curious history of mazes does not run in a steady straight line, but, instead, begins with the labyrinth: a simple motif that is no doubt familiar to us all. With its true origins still shrouded in mystery, the chronicle of the labyrinth, and more recently of the maze, spans the past four thousand years, taking many twists and turns. This book introduces archetypes that have emerged over the centuries, serving different symbolic, ritualistic, and practical purposes worldwide. As such, the labyrinth is embedded in our psyche as a powerful symbol of the human experience, and in this book we examine form, function, fulfillment, and fun. There are many intriguing aspects to this marvelous history. Not least that the very word maze , which is so often used interchangeably with labyrinth , is not as old as its companion—although both have multiple derivations.

The Roman poet Virgil, in 29–19 BCE, brings them together in The Aeneid and describes the labyrinth as having, a path woven with blind walks. It is a bewildering work of craft with a thousand ways where the tokens of the course were confused by the indiscoverable and irretraceable maze. A seminal work of Western literature, this poem is imbued with labyrinthine leitmotif in its narrative structure, imagery, and ideas. It brings together themes such as ambiguity, confusion, uncertain choices, and the search for a clear path. Much later, in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (1387–1400 CE) we find examples of early English usage that also combine these themes. People are in a state of masednesse. That is, they are puzzled or bewildered: Ye mase, ye masen goode sire, quod she, This thank have I for I have made to you. (The Merchant’s Tale).

With this curious history I do not aim to mase, but I do invite you to explore the evolution of labyrinths and mazes through time and across continents. There are some surprises along the way as we reinterpret historical artifacts such as Arthur Bernard Deacon’s 1926 labyrinthine illustration of a turtle sand drawing from the island of Malekula in the New Hebrides. You are also invited to solve many puzzles included throughout the following pages, in which some famous mazes are reproduced, so there is no need to travel to Chartres in France or Hampton Court Palace in England. They are here in this book, drawn by illustrator Trevor Bounford, for you to contemplate, trace, and solve at your leisure, time and time again if you like, along with other well-known examples. I also present a collection of new puzzle mazes created exclusively for this book. The levels of difficulty vary and suit a wide range of abilities. You are invited to tackle one and all, and in doing so you may wish to consider the advice of English maze master, Greg Bright, who writes in his groundbreaking 1973 Maze Book:

I suggest the best way to follow the paths is with the aid of a match-stick. The reader will probably get the most out of a maze by treating his journey as if he were walking it, refraining from jumping back to the start and from one point to another, and from trying with his eyes to work the route back from the end. A method that prevents accidentally crossing lines is to place tracing paper over the maze and mark in your journey. An experiment one can try is to make a small hole in the center of a large sheet of paper, place the paper over the maze and follow the route using this restricted view. This method makes exploring the maze closer to actually walking it.

Mazes are for those who want to tune in to their innate sense of curiosity. Meditate, learn, and reconnect with your sense of fun.

Explore the Curious History of Mazes

Start to build your knowledge of an extraordinary global phenomenon. This curious history draws upon a wealth of historical and classical literature; accounts written by explorers, archaeologists, historians; and the output of modern and contemporary world-renowned experts and enthusiasts including (and especially) Jeff and Kimberly Saward, Michael Ayrton, Greg Bright, Janet Bord, Hermann Kern, Robert Ferré, the Reverend Dr. Lauren Artress, Sig Lonegren, Jill Purce, Adrian Fisher, Randoll Coate, Geoffrey Ashe, Jim Buchanan, Giovanni Mariotti, and Francesca Tatarella.

The Sawards, cofounders of Labyrinthos (an online Labyrinth Resource Center, photo library, and archive), justifiably claim that labyrinth literature has long been riddled with error, exaggeration, and romantic speculation. This book introduces a complex history, citing thoughts and theories while echoing some of the prevailing mysteries.

Give Yourself the Time and Space that You Deserve

Allow time to explore the beauty and benefits of labyrinths and mazes as instruments of self-discovery, transformation, and fulfillment. Taken as a powerful metaphor for life’s journey, labyrinths and mazes can be used today as tools for meditation and learning at any level, even when completed as a recreational pastime.

Take a Journey

Journey not to escape but rather move toward a deeper understanding of the challenges that you face, be they small or large. This is not about running away. Labyrinths and mazes emulate life, and as with life, the road is never straight. At your own pace, use each twist and turn to pause and reflect on where you are and where you may be heading. Sometimes it is necessary to choose a different path, and the ultimate destination may, or may not be, the same as when you started. Perhaps your intentions are true, but you need to reconsider how to approach them.

Reconnect with Your Authentic Self

Gain a greater sense of self-awareness as you move toward the goal. Use the side-to-side motion of the labyrinth to ease yourself, back and forth, into a realignment of your perspective. Seek fresh insight into a particular challenge, make a decision or choice, let go of an issue or person, heal emotional wounds, or set new goals. To tackle all these and more, you need to reconnect with your authentic self and be true to your core values.

Have Fun

A brainteaser or simple mental stimulus may be all that you are looking for to relax. Getting lost or disorientated and then finding your way can be great fun. It does not always have to be a journey to self-awareness, although it is surprising what you learn about yourself along the way. Use this book as an introduction to the wonderful world and history of labyrinths and mazes, and as a tool for discovery and play.

The book begins in chapter one by focusing on the origins and definitions of mazes and labyrinths. We will see that throughout their legends and long history mazes and labyrinths refuse to conform to any rudimentary definition. Chapter two focuses on the classical maze and examines Roman and Greek artifacts. In chapter three we consider the spiritual perspectives in which labyrinths have been given a metaphysical or sacred status in different cultures that takes us beyond the natural world. In chapter four we see the expansion of the Christian interpretation, and in chapter five we learn about folklore and communal traditions of the rustic maze.

In chapter six we see how mazes have become a status symbol on the one hand, and a popularized pastime on the other. And in chapter seven we witness the explosion of interest in a modern revival, which takes the design and construction of mazes to levels never previously imagined. The essence of what it is like to encounter labyrinths and mazes is examined in chapter eight before we close our curious history in chapter nine by noting a selection of interesting and curious examples from one or two modern cultural cannons.

A gazetteer in chapter ten provides information on where to find a selection of labyrinths and mazes around the world today. Illustrations of some existing mazes are included in the book, and as you might like to visit and explore these yourself, I have resisted showing their solutions. However, solutions to the puzzles specially created for this book–and to three selected historical mazes–can be found following the gazetteer.

CHAPTER 1:

ORIGINS AND DEFINITIONS

The earliest recorded labyrinths: legends, patterns, purposes, and symbols

"Thou mayst not wander in that labyrinth:

There Minotaurs and ugly treasons lurk."

—from Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 1597

If this is a curious history of mazes, why are we starting with labyrinths? Some may argue it is because there is little or no distinction between them. Are we not talking about the same thing? Certainly, in recent years the terms have become almost synonymous. Others, however, may insist that we at least acknowledge their fundamental differences. They will declare that a maze is a puzzle, and a labyrinth is not. When you thread a labyrinth, which is unicursal, the one path may twist, turn, and double back, but that path will generally not be concealed and will normally lead to a center. When you explore a maze, which is multicursal and often enclosed by a boundary, the numerous paths, some with obscured dead ends, will lead to confusion, as you have to choose which way to turn in your quest to reach the center or the exit.

While this may seem obvious, and while the many examples you will encounter in this book share similar essential characteristics, I aim to demonstrate that through their curious and long history, mazes and labyrinths refuse to conform to any rudimentary definition. Over time and distance, they have served many and varied symbolic and practical functions, several of which I share. English expert and maze maestro, Adrian Fisher, declares that the location of a maze often reveals a great deal about its origin and purpose. For example, a decorative maze, cut in a rock or a church pillar, or laid out in mosaic, should be followed by the eye or traced with the finger. A maze laid out on common land, such as a public park or on the coast, is accessible to the whole community. A formal pavement or knot garden maze at a stately home or palace is better appreciated when observed from the property’s upper windows.

I do not claim to have written a definitive account of mazes and their history in this overview, for that is all it can be, and others such as Jeff Saward, the world’s authority, have already done so. I do, however, set out the distinctive characteristics of selected archetypes within their historical context, so that you may learn a little about them and judge for yourself what they mean to you. Your own experience of encountering these will depend upon a number of things, including your motive and mood at the time. Do you want to be informed? Do you want to have fun? Do you want to meditate? As we know, the purpose of meditation is not to switch off or empty the mind, but rather to focus. Moving around a labyrinth can help you do that. Whatever you are seeking to do, engaging with labyrinths and mazes will stimulate concentration and ultimately lead to a solution of some kind—this is their greatest shared characteristic!

Let us consider the earliest labyrinths. The labyrinth design occurs world wide during prehistoric times with subtle variations, when travel between the continents would have been virtually nonexistent, which simply adds to the mystery of its origins. It suggests that humans as a race have always been intrigued by the pattern, which emerged as an expression of a preoccupation with spirals, circuitous routes, and their associated rituals. Knowledge of the original purpose of these rituals in specific cultures has not always traveled as effectively over time as the design itself, and from today’s perspective, we can only surmise the true meaning in some cases. Labyrinths do, of course, occur in nature and must surely have inspired humans to create labyrinthine symbols. The Greek word for the Nautilus shell, for example, is laburinthoi. There is a significant body of literature on the history and meaning of labyrinths and, unsurprisingly, the research goes on while the modern revival in all things labyrinthine continues unabated—no conclusions are finite.

The earliest recorded labyrinths created by humans are found in petroglyphs, ancient rock carvings, as well as enigmatic labyrinthine Neolithic and early Bronze Age monuments in stone and rock. For example, cup and ring carvings that appear labyrinthine in form are found in the north of England and in Scotland. Elementary labyrinths like these markings are also