Ornaments are akin to ancient writings and, like them, can tell a lot about the worldview of a person from distant eras. For a long time, people remembered the purpose of ornaments. Back in the 20-30s of the 20th century, residents of some northern Russian villages demonstrated their knowledge of the meaning of the depicted pattern in front of the oldest craftswoman of the village in special readings: young girls brought finished works to gatherings and talked about them in front of the whole world. In some places in the outback you can still hear the ancient names of patterns: crowberry, Perun, although the masters are most often unable to explain their meaning. 
To this day, there are people who know how to decorate and want to wear traditional Russian clothes. Long winter evenings Slavic girls and women, with a torch, embroidered and wove patterns - one more intricate than the other, decorating their tunics with them, so that later, at the holiday, they could flaunt themselves in front of the community. Was it only beauty that they felt? Was it only the desire for creative self-expression that guided them? Or was there and continues to exist today in ancient symbols something very important - unknown to us today?
This book is the result of the author’s desire to raise questions related to the meaning of folk textile patterns and the peculiarities of their effect on the wearer of the clothes decorated with them or the person looking at the patterns. It uses information from many, sometimes unconventional, sources: history, ethnography, mythology, bioenergy, modern alternative medicine, etc. Russian folk culture has always been so comprehensive and multifaceted that it is only necessary to study it comprehensively, having experienced the way of thinking of our ancestors.
I really want the ancient art of ornament to be preserved and not to disappear, so that the skills, traditions and beauty of folk culture continue to live, delight and benefit people. After all, this beauty has incredible kind energy (one would like to say - soul), capable of helping people. I believe that the topics raised in the book will be of interest to new researchers, and then such an amazing phenomenon as Russian folk textile ornaments can really be understood from different angles. In the meantime, the ancient image-writings continue to wait for their full reading.
Second book, which allows us not only to understand the place of folk textile ornaments in our culture, but to confirm the author’s assumptions about the mechanisms of the energy-informational influence of the ornament on a person. Folk ornament is part of the incredible ancient system spiritual knowledge that allows a person to harmoniously build his relationships with the outside world. Its strict forms contain the story of the development of our Universe, ready-made biotechnologies, and specific recipes for the survival of the race and man. 
The book includes sections on the loom and the typology of patterns weaving forms, how the pattern appeared, the work of amulets treated with structured water, spiritual patterns, the signs of the clan and tribe, and the energy of cutting clothes.
A classification of types of Russian folk textile geometric patterns is given. The cuts of men's and women's shirts are given, as well as patterns for the arrangement of patterns on women's and men's clothing. A separate part make up colorful drawings of patterns and their explanation.
This book is an attempt to collect and systematize the principles of using symbols of folk textile patterns for practical application. It will be useful to everyone who wants to revive ancient knowledge and beauty.
Ornament of all times and styles
The unique work of N.F. Lorentz, will certainly expand and enrich our ideas about the rules of organizing space, about the style of a noble and harmonious life. 
The author competently accompanies the reader into the history of ornament and decor, showing the diversity of this special type art, introduces its external side and deep symbolism, initiates into the practical secrets of carvings, frescoes, stained glass, enamel, carpets and mosaics.
As Peter clarified in the comments (see below), Lorenz's book and Rakinje's book on ornaments are one and the same(Lorenz took almost everything from Rakinier, slightly modifying the text and drawings in it).
This book clearly shows what means and techniques bring an organized and creatively transformed space closer to celebration exquisite taste- V different times and in various parts of the world. Rich decoration This publication appeals to aesthetic feelings and stimulates the reader's creative imagination.
Folk ornament of weaving and embroidery - ancient writings. But at the same time, this is an unusual sign system for transmitting information with a rigidly fixed meaning of each element, since the components of an ornament are always a mythological image and a whole complex of ideas associated with this image. Having arisen at the origins of time, in the depths of proto-culture, where thinking was not yet differentiated, ornamental symbols are in principle the same among all peoples of the world, differing only in the type of graphics or minor details. Thus, there is a known case when a Mexican weaver recognized an ornament from the Arkhangelsk province of Russia as her national pattern. The ornamental elements will have different names(and sometimes it makes sense!) different nations, but everywhere they will denote a close mythological complex of ideas, a similar archetype, the assessment and comprehension of which can be polar opposite. Therefore, an ornamental composition cannot be read as a simple set of certain signs: when deciphering it, the meaning of each symbol must be chosen from a number of options depending on all the elements used in it, as well as the color and location, purpose of the ornament, clarifying certain shades of the described images .
The images of archetypes underlying ornamental compositions are associated with the image of two main schemes of the cosmogonic process, known to ancient mythology.
Scheme 1
At a time when Heaven and Earth were not yet separated from each other, in the center of the World Ocean rose the World Mountain - Alatyr - the stone of Russian folk conspiracies and fairy tales - on the top of which there was a deep well full of water and leading into the bowels of the mountain - the other world - where in the underground palace - cave - Labyrinth lived the God of the Earth - the Underworld - the Thunder Bear:
Most of the time the Bear slept in darkness and cold, vigilantly guarding his treasure - fire, in the form of a cauldron full of molten gold or precious stone. Once a year, the Goddess of the Sky, the Horned Deer, descended into the Labyrinth, bypassing the water whirlpool-tunnel: 
, dipped her horns in gold and returned back to Heaven. The Heat and Light emanating from the horns melted the snow and ice; the water penetrated into the Labyrinth and woke up the sleeping Thunderer: .
When he woke up, he took off his bear skin 
, turning into a bird, and rushed in pursuit of the kidnapper.
Having overtaken the fugitive, the God of the Earth entered into marriage with her, causing a thunderstorm and pouring streams of life-giving waters onto the Earth:
.
Mighty wings raised fiery whirlwinds, carrying the seeds of life in different directions: .
(Later the whirlwind transformed into an independent deity of the wind - Stribog 
.)
The deer shed her golden horns, which were returned to the winner as a guarantee of the marriage, and hid in the underground palace.
Deprived of heat and light, the Earth was covered with snow and ice. The giant bird fell asleep, gradually growing overgrown with wool and fur, and again turned into a Bear.
It is easy to see that this diagram describes the alternation of polar day and night in the northern latitudes of the Earth with the absence of solar eclipses characteristic of this region. The penetration of the bearers of the myth into the middle and southern latitudes, their encounter with the phenomenon of a solar eclipse and contact with the inhabitants of the southern regions develops the myth...
One day, when the Deer with fiery horns had already risen into the Sky, and the Bear had not yet woken up, a Dragon (Lion, Leopard, Cat, Boar...) crawled out of the depths of the Abyss (Pekel World), attacked the defenseless Deer, and, tearing her apart pieces, took possession of the Golden Horns. Not knowing how to handle fire, the Beast caused a world flood, and then almost caused a world fire, but the awakened Thunderer in a fierce struggle defeated his opponent, chained him as an eternal guard at the entrance to the palace 
and returned the fire.
The Thunderer watered the remains of the Deer with dead and living water, causing the Horns to grow into the World Tree 
, separating Heaven from Earth. On the branches of this tree, the Fleece and Horns of the Deer rose into the sky, turning into the Sun, Moon and Stars. The Thunderer could now ascend to Heaven and descend to Earth along the trunk and branches of the Tree, connecting the worlds in the image of the Moon: 
.
To prevent the misfortune from happening again, he placed guards on the four sides of the world to protect the Tree from the penetration of creatures from the Abyss.
Scheme 2:
At the beginning of time, the Great Virgin Goddess
fell into the waters of the primordial ocean and found salvation on the back of a giant Snake (Lizard, Turtle, etc.):
Having become pregnant, she became the mother of two twin sons, one of whom was very stubborn (angry, cruel, etc.), and the other fair (kind, warm-hearted, etc.). When the time of birth approached, the stubborn child, despite the warnings of his brother, made his own exit from the mother's body, killing her, while the second child was born in the prescribed manner. The soul of the Goddess ascended to Heaven along the branches of the World Tree that grew from her body, but since with her death evil entered the world, the inhabitants of the Heavenly World surrounded the “affected” area of space with guards so that death and evil could not penetrate into other worlds.
Born twin brothers 
began to create their own world, and one of them constantly interfered with the other - spoiling or destroying what had been created.
A variant of the same myth is the legend about twins - a brother and sister, who, out of ignorance of their relationship, entered into a love affair. Upon learning of the incest, one of them dies (or a brother kills his sister), as a result of which the world is desecrated.
The same type includes myths about the struggle between the Virgin-Sun and the Serpent, or myths about the furious Fire-Virgin-Sun, rushing across the sky in a chariot drawn by two charioteers 
.
***
No matter how this world arose, traditional thinking ordered the people living in it to behave in the image and likeness of the ancestors-Gods who created it: things, clothes, housing were made according to a once and for all established model, weddings were played, significant events and dates were formalized. In ornamental compositions this was reflected by the use of identical symbols with different meanings depending on their location on clothing. For example, the same sign "Orepei":
in the shoulder area a woman’s costume will be read as a world mountain or Alatyr-stone with a Deity sitting on it: 
;
in the elbow area as "ancestor" ;
on the hem- as an entrance to the other world 
, or also "ancestor".
A characteristic auxiliary pattern allows one to highlight the images of the Gods - the image of chariots, in which, according to the ideas of the ancients, the Deities moved in space. These chariots were driven by animal charioteers, characteristic of each Deity - snakes, birds, horses, deer, animals...
With the identification of new Divine hypostases, shades appear in the reading of certain elements of the ornament, and their graphic changes. Thus, the selection from the Archetype of the World Deity of images that personify its individual qualities - the wind (Stribog), Thunder (Perun), the Water King (Vodishche), the Lord of the Other World - Svarga (Svarog), the Deity of the Earth, Fertility (Veles), the Guardian of Grain, Harvest, Grain Reserves, Fruit-bearing power of Grain (Yari), fruit-bearing fire (Pereplut, Yarilo, Semargl) - leads to the emergence of symbols, which are based on one graphic image, just like themselves mythological characters retain general properties or attributes - the ability to control waters, cause a whirlwind, rain, etc., forge, command lightning:
With the change of leaders social roles in society - with the emergence and development of the patriarchal structure - cultural heroes change their gender and the “gender” interpretation of symbols similarly changes:
But the meaning of the combined symbol - the eight-pointed cross
remains the same: the union of the feminine and masculine principles, the monad, the fertilized egg, life and death - fate. It is no coincidence that with the adoption of Christianity it received the popular name “Star of the Virgin Mary”. The interpretation stands out somewhat due to the variant of this symbol - . A number of ethnographers note the presence in the languages of peoples North Caucasus and Ancient Scythia traces of the ancient idea of the Universe as a five-fold structure: in addition to the familiar concepts of the three-dimensional level - Heaven, Middle World, Earth (or Underworld) - it included Inferno and Side (Lateral space). At the same time, the most ancient cosmogonic models usually characterize the Universe as feminine. The five-row space of the Universe - the Great Mother, stretching to the four cardinal directions and generating Life - is approximately how one can clarify the reading of this symbol.
How does symbolism “work”? Let's start with the fact that any graphic image has a weak torsion field that bends the surrounding space:
Energy (leptonic) models (damage, evil eye, etc.), falling into the zone of curved space, are either repelled or become fixed in the image zone, or self-destruct as a result of uneven curvature. A uniform grid of graphic images on the surface of clothing or household items, created by patterned weaving or embroidery, provides its energetic effect. At the same time, the most uniform grid (and, therefore, a stronger effect) is given by an ornament of a geometric and geometrized type, in which the thickness of all lines is the same (Reference: the famous Mezen knitted patterns were always typed according to the following principle - at the beginning of the pattern there was a row of alternating 3 loops of the colors used - the ornamental grid was initially uniform). Another important principle of the energy work of the ornamental network is the principle of changing polarity in the ornamental line and in the composition as a whole.
Color also contributes. For example, on the territory of our Ryazan region, the leading element, from which the pattern received its name, was always made white, and the background field was filled with color, mainly shades of red; the white color of the ornament passed the influence of surrounding energies to the owner or “reflected” the negative, as if “refracted” through the prism of the form and meaning of the symbol, dispersing everything else; and the background field is energy of a certain frequency...
And, of course, the magical meaning of the symbol...
In women's and men's costumes, zones corresponding to Heaven, the Middle World and Earth can be distinguished. Depending on the location in a specific area, the magical effect of the applied image changes.
Female
Male
In addition, the places where the densest ornamental mesh is applied coincide with the locations of the largest nerve plexuses of the human body, corresponding to the main energy centers or chakras. The zone of the heart center is intensively protected - literally “on four sides.” There is one more subtlety - in a woman’s suit, the pattern located on the front always primarily protects its owner and her expected child, but in a man’s suit it primarily actively influences those around her (the same woman, for example), and The protective pattern itself comes from the back - this explains the presence of “female” symbols on the chest embroidery of men’s shirts, especially festive and wedding ones.
Where did the symbols come from? Why are they almost the same for all nations? Symbols are information. The most ancient of them have a geometric or geometrized shape. Let us assume that it is based on information about some universal processes.
There is an interesting scheme of ideas about the structure of the Universe among the ancient Slavs-Russians, published by A. Ivanitsky in the essay “The Ways of the Great Russian” (almanac “Slavs”) and given in abbreviations by M. Shatunov (“Russian Health”, M., 1998, p. 159). Let's continue this diagram, completing it in accordance with the movement of the Solar ecliptic across the sky from the position of an earthly observer relative to the change of seasons (Fig. 1). Let us obtain an egg-shaped matrix (in accordance with Russian traditions, I will call it “Roda’s egg”) and look at this egg from the end side (Fig. 2). Comparing both projections with the drawings of Leonardo da Vinci and the spirals of the “golden ratio” of Drunvalo Melchizedek (D. Melchizedek. " Ancient mystery flower of life", vol. 1, pp. 229-230, "Sofia", 2001), we will see that Egg explains their origin. Now let's connect all three pictures. The result is a matrix in which it is easy to see all the elements of Russian known to us ( and not only) ornaments, also divided according to their belonging to the Worlds of Pravi (frontal projection), Navi (lateral projection) and Reveal (geometrized shape of the “golden section” spirals).
 Mara Minina |
IN modern world ornament is a pattern that decorates household items without carrying any meaning. For us, rhombuses on a carpet are just rhombuses, and circles are just circles. But there were times when people knew how to read patterns, encrypted in them their ideas about life, about other world, about eternal truths.
We can say that a decorative design is the result of a found relationship between the perception of nature and the decorative reflection of reality. Over the many years of the existence of decorative art, various types of patterns have developed: geometric, floral, complex, etc., from simple joints to complex intricacies.
The ornament can consist of objective and non-objective motifs, it can include human forms, the animal world and mythological creatures; naturalistic elements are intertwined and articulated in the ornament with stylized and geometric patterns. At certain stages of artistic evolution, the line between ornamental and subject painting “blurs”. This can be observed in the art of Egypt (Amaranian period), the art of Crete, ancient Roman art, late Gothic, and Art Nouveau.
First, geometric patterns arose, this was at the dawn of human culture. What could be simpler than straight lines or wavy lines, circles, cells, crosses? It is these motifs that decorate the walls of clay vessels. primitive people, ancient products made of stone, metal, wood and bone. For ancient man, they were conventional signs with the help of which he could express his concept of the world. A straight horizontal line meant earth, a wavy line meant water, a cross meant fire, a rhombus, circle or square meant the sun.
According to ancient belief, the symbols in the patterns carried spiritual power, capable of conjuring any evil and injustice of the elemental forces of nature. These symbolic signs, which came to us from ancient ritual holidays, have magical symbolism. For example, in the Filimonov toy (Russia) we see symbols of the sun, earth, water, and fertility. The masters passed all the images and symbols through their perception of the world and showed their perception of the world in the painting. Ancient symbols are also found in the Dymkovo and Kargopol toys. But they are different in ornamentation everywhere. In every craft we notice symbols of the sun, water, etc. The ancient symbolism of peasant religion runs through them as a thin thread.
And the ornament is in Russian folk costume. The main motives of which were solar signs - circles, crosses; images of a female figure - a symbol of fertility, a mother - raw earth; wavy rhythmic lines – signs of water; horizontal straight lines indicating the ground; images of a tree are the personification of ever-living nature. Embroidery on peasant clothes not only decorated them and delighted those around them with the beauty of the patterns, but was also supposed to protect the one who wore these clothes from harm, from an evil person. If a woman embroidered a Christmas tree, it means she wished the person a prosperous and happy life, because a spruce is a tree of life and goodness. A child was born to a peasant woman. And she will decorate his first simple shirt with embroidery in the form of a straight line in a bright, joyful color. This is a straight and bright road that a child should follow. Let this road be happy and joyful for him.
The image of the sun occupies one of the main places in decorative and applied arts. The sun in the form of round rosettes, rhombuses, can be found in different types folk art.
A straight equal-pointed cross was also an image of the sun in folk symbolism. The rhombus was revered as a symbol of fertility and was often combined with the sun sign inscribed in it.
The tree of Life
In addition to the geometric one, in the ornaments of Ancient Rus', one can often find various ancient pagan themes. For example, the female figure personified the goddess of the earth and fertility. In pagan art, the tree of life embodied the power of living nature; it depicted the divine tree, on which the growth of herbs, cereals, trees and the “growth” of man himself depended. Very often you can find plots of magical calendar rituals that are associated with the main stages of agricultural work.
The most diverse symbolism is characteristic of images flora, which included flowers, trees, herbs.
In Egyptian ornaments, the decoration often used a lotus flower or lotus petals - an attribute of the goddess Isis, a symbol of the divine productive power of nature, regenerating life, high moral purity, chastity, mental and physical health, and in the funeral cult it was considered a magical means of reviving the dead. This flower was personified with the sun, and its petals with the sun's rays. The lotus motif became widespread in the ornamental forms of the Ancient East (China, Japan, India, etc.).
The Egyptians also used the image of aloe in their ornaments - this drought-resistant plant symbolized life in the other world. Of the trees, the date and coconut palms, sycamore, acacia, tamarisk, blackthorn, persea (Osiris tree), mulberry tree were especially revered - they embodied the life-affirming principle, the idea of the ever-fruitful Tree of Life..
The laurel in Ancient Greece was dedicated to the god Apollo and served as a symbol of cleansing from sins, since the sacred laurel branch was fanned by the person to be cleansed. Laurel wreaths were awarded to winners in musical and gymnastic competitions in Delphi, the main center of the cult of Apollo. The laurel served as a symbol of glory.
Hops is a cultivated plant, scenic view which contributed to the widespread use of plant forms in ornamentation. The image of hops combined with ears was used as decoration on household items.
Grapevine - clusters and branches were especially revered in antiquity and the Middle Ages. In ancient Greek mythology, this is an attribute of the god Bacchus, among Christians - in combination with ears of corn (bread and wine, meaning the sacrament of communion) - a symbol of the suffering of Christ. 
Ivy is an evergreen climbing shrub, sometimes a tree; like the vine was dedicated to Bacchus. Its leaves have a variety of shapes, most often heart-shaped or with pointed lobes. They were often used in ancient art to decorate vases and wine vessels.
Oak is the king of forests, a symbol of strength and power. Oak leaves were widespread in Roman ornamentation. Their images are often found on friezes and capitals, church utensils and other types of Gothic applied art, as well as in the works of masters Italian Renaissance. Currently, images of oak leaves along with laurel can be found on medals and coins.
Oak is a symbol of power, endurance, longevity and nobility, as well as glory.
IN ancient China pine symbolizes immortality and longevity. a truly noble personality. The image of the pine tree echoes the image of the cypress, which was endowed in Chinese beliefs with special protective and healing properties, including protection from the dead. Among flowering trees, the wild plum occupies an important place - meihua - this tree is a symbol of the New Year, spring and the birth of everything new. Among flowers, the central place is given to the peony. The peony is associated with female beauty and family happiness. The orchid and chrysanthemum are associated with the divine world and ritual ceremonies. The most common symbol among vegetables is the gourd pumpkin, which has become a symbol of immortality and longevity.
Painted gourd, vessel and talisman (China, 19th century)
“Happy fruits”: pomegranate, tangerine, orange - symbols of longevity and a successful career.
Sakura motifs are often found in Japanese arts and crafts. It is a symbol of beauty, youth, tenderness, and the inevitable variability of the transitory world.
Flowers are widely used in ornamental motifs of all times and styles. They serve as decoration for fabrics, wallpaper, dishes and other types of decorative art.
The rose has polar symbolism: it is heavenly perfection and earthly passion, time and eternity, life and death, fertility and virginity. It is also a symbol of the heart, the center of the universe, the cosmic wheel, divine, romantic and sensual love. The rose is completeness, the mystery of life, its focus, the unknown, beauty, grace, happiness, but also voluptuousness, passion, and in combination with wine - sensuality and seduction. A rosebud is a symbol of virginity; withered rose - transience of life, death, sorrow; its thorns are pain, blood and martyrdom.
Heraldic roses: 1 – Lancaster; 2 – York; 3 – Tudor; 4 – England (badge); 5 – German rose Rosenow; 6 – Russian stamp.
The heraldic medieval rose has five or ten petals, which connects it with the Pythagorean pentad and decanate. A rose with red petals and white stamens is the emblem of England, the most famous breastplate of English kings. After the "War of the Scarlet and White Roses", so named after badges families fighting for the English crown, the scarlet rose of Lancaster and the white rose of York were united in the form of the "Tudor Rose". The bright crimson rose is the unofficial emblem of Bulgaria. The famous tea rose is the emblem of Beijing. Nine white roses are in the coat of arms of Finland.
In ancient ornaments, along with plants, various animals are often depicted: birds, horses, deer, wolves, unicorns, lions. They form a horizontal structure of the tree of life: at the top are birds; at the level of the trunk - people, animals, and also bees; under the roots - snakes, frogs, mice, fish, beavers, otters.
Animals can be seen on embroidered towels and aprons ,
on a painted chest X, on carved and painted spinning wheels; on the walls of ancient Russian cathedrals and in the decorations of huts ,
in the ornaments of initial letters. Ancient images of a horse and a bird have been preserved in folk toys and in dishes. Pommels for horse whips and combat bows were carved in the shape of animal or bird heads. Stylized animals and birds decorated hair combs, utensils and dishes. In ancient times, many natural phenomena were personified in the images of animals and everyone looked at these phenomena from the point of view that was closer to him, depending on his lifestyle and occupation: the point of view of the shepherd differed from the views of the hunter, and both of them - from the warrior. People transferred their knowledge about earthly animals to atmospheric phenomena.
A bird in folk arts and crafts could represent wind, cloud, lightning, thunderstorm, storm and sunlight. Ladles and salt shakers were carved in the shape of birds; embroidered birds decorated women’s clothing. .
The image of a bird has widely entered the folklore of almost all peoples of the world.
The horse also personified all natural phenomena associated with rapid movement - wind, storm, clouds. He was often depicted as fire-breathing, with a clear sun or a moon on his forehead, and with a golden mane. A wooden horse, made for children's fun, was often completely decorated with solar signs or flowers. .
It was believed that this protected the child from evil forces. Images of horses can often be seen on household items (bucket handles, spinning wheels ,
spindles), on clothes .
In the northern regions, natural phenomena associated with horses were also attributed by ancient people to deer .
Deer were often depicted near the tree of life on an embroidered towel; sometimes they were placed instead of a ridge on the roof of a hut. The sacred role of the horse and deer in Scythian art is often associated with the hope of the successful ascension of the soul to another world.
The lion in the mythology of many peoples was a symbol of the sun and fire, and at different times among different peoples it personified higher powers, power, power and greatness, generosity, nobility, and intelligence. The image of a lion has existed in decorative and applied arts since ancient times.
For many centuries, the lion remained one of the favorite figures in Russian symbolism. In ancient Russian images associated with grand-ducal power, the image of a lion, depending on what surrounded it, had two meanings: power bestowed by God and the defeated power of evil.
Folk craftsmen often carved lions on the front board of the hut or painted on chests surrounded by floral ornament, the craftswomen embroidered them.
Feminine. The Great Mother, in her terrible form as the weaver of fate, is sometimes depicted as a spider. All lunar goddesses are spinners and weavers of fate. The web that the spider weaves, weaves from the center in a spiral, is a symbol of the creative forces of the Universe, a symbol of the universe. The spider in the center of the web symbolizes the center of the world; The sun is surrounded by rays; The moon, representing the cycles of life and death, weaving the web of time. The spider is often associated with luck, wealth or rain. Killing a spider is a bad omen.
Spider depicted on an American Indian amulet
Thanks to the stability of religious canons, the meaning of symbols in the ornamentation of Egypt and the art of the countries of the Ancient East remained unchanged for many millennia. Therefore, for ethnographers and archaeologists, ancient ornaments are signs with which one can “read” a kind of magical texts.
Ethnocultural contacts, trade, military campaigns, religious missions, ambassadorial gifts and visiting artists contributed to the movement of works of art from one country to another, which led to the spread of artistic ideas and styles.
Often subsequent generations of artists use previous art and create their own variations on it. Such a striking example is the swastika element, one of the earliest symbols, which is found in the ornaments of almost all peoples of Europe, Asia, America, etc. The oldest images of the swastika are found already in the culture of the Tripoli tribes of the 5th-4th millennium BC. e. In the ancients and medieval cultures swastika - solar symbol, a lucky sign associated with ideas about fertility, generosity, well-being, movement and power of the sun.
Kolovrat or Solstice is one of the oldest ancient Russian symbols, personifying the Sun and the solar gods Svarog, Dazhdbog and Yarila. The name of the symbol comes from the word “kolo” - sun.
The symbol itself looks like a circle with curved rays, which is why many associate it with the fascist swastika. Although this is fundamentally not true: the fascists really used this solar symbol, but not vice versa. 
In 1852, the French scientist Eugene Bournouf first gave the four-pointed cross with curved ends the Sanskrit name “swastika,” which roughly means “bringer of good.” Buddhism made the swastika its symbol, giving it the mystical meaning of the eternal rotation of the world.
There is virtually no modern symbolism in the ornaments of modern times, despite the fact that it exists in abundance in the surrounding reality. As an exception, there may be the work of modernist artists. IN late XIX- early 20th century these artists tried to create their own symbolism and reproduce it in their work.
Ornament in their works no longer played a supporting role, but became an integral part of the image, organically woven into the outline of the plot.
At the same time, A. Bely, a theorist of Russian symbolism, wrote: “The symbolist artist, saturating the image with experience, transforms it into his work; such a transformed (modified) image is a symbol.” And further A. Bely records the main slogans of symbolism in art: “1. a symbol always reflects reality; 2. a symbol is an image modified by experience; 3. the form of an artistic image is inseparable from the content.”
At these three points famous poet and the prose accurately formulated the main provisions of the creation symbolic work, which can be used in any form of art, including ornamental.
Russian culture originated many centuries ago. Even in pagan times, Russians decorated themselves and their living space (house, yard, household items) with original patterns. If a pattern repeats and alternates individual details, it is called an ornament.
Folk ornament necessarily uses traditional motifs. Each nation has its own. Russian ornaments are no exception. When we hear this phrase, embroidered shirts and towels immediately appear in our imagination. They feature horses, ducks, roosters and geometric shapes.
Traditional Russian ornament
Excursion into history
The primary unit of society is the family. And it is to families that we owe the first folk patterns. In ancient times, animals and plants had totemic significance. Each family believed that it had one patron or another. For generations, family members used objects with symbols of their family, considering them protection and help.
Gradually, the family drawing went beyond the family and became the property of relatives. Several genera exchanged their patterns. Thus, the entire tribe was already using symbols that originally belonged to certain families.
Over time, there were more patterns, and the circle of their users expanded. This is how Russian folk ornaments appeared in Russia.
Even in the exterior of the houses, symbolism could be traced It can be seen that different areas used different colors for handicrafts. There is a simple explanation for this. In the old days, only natural dyes were used. They were produced in a handicraft way. So, the availability of raw materials for paints often determined the entire palette of works.
Different regions had their own favorite “decorations”. It is no coincidence that “paisley” is one of the motifs for ornaments in the eastern regions. The homeland of the “Indian cucumber” is Persia in the east.
Meaning and significance
A creative fusion of nature and religion. This is how we can briefly describe national, including Russian, ornaments. In other words, an ornament is a symbolic description of the world.
Elements of ornament were not only decoration. They carried a semantic and ritual load. They can not only be viewed, but also read. Very often these are conspiracies and amulets.
Each character has a specific meaning:
- Alatyr is perhaps the most important of the Russian and Slavic signs. This is a symbol of the infinite universe, the dual unity of the world and its balance. The source of life, consisting of male and female principles. The eight-pointed Alatyr Star and the Alatyr Stone were often used in patterns. They were expected to help in various life situations.
Holy Alatyr - Another symbol that was very revered and often used in patterns is the World Tree of Life (or Tree of Kingship). It was believed that it grows on Alatyr Stone and the gods rest under its crown. So people tried to protect themselves and their family under the branches of the Tree of Life and with the help of the celestials.
One of the options for depicting the Tree of Reign - Various swastikas are also a popular motif in Russian and Slavic needlework. Of the swastikas, you can find Kolovrat more often than others. An ancient symbol of the sun, happiness and goodness.
Variants of the image of the sun symbol among the Slavs - Orepei or Arepei is a diamond shape with combs on the sides. His other names: Comb Diamond, Oak, Well, Burdock. It was considered a symbol of happiness, wealth, and self-confidence. When located on different parts clothes had different interpretations.
Orepei symbol - Animals and plants that surrounded people and were deified by them are a constant theme in the patterns.
Slavic symbolism is very diverse Of particular importance was the number of alternations of elements in the ornament. Each number carried an additional semantic load.
Beauty and protection
The aesthetic significance of the ornaments was combined with the totemic one. Magi and shamans applied symbols to ritual clothing and utensils. Ordinary people also put special meaning into traditional drawings. They tried to protect themselves with embroidery as a talisman, applying it to certain parts of clothing (to protect the body). Table linen, household items, furniture, and parts of buildings were also decorated with appropriate patterns (to protect the family and home).
The simplicity and beauty of ancient ornaments make them popular today.
Amulet dolls were decorated with traditional ornaments Trades and crafts
Gradually, with the development of civilization, ancient patterns were transformed, some became identification marks of individual folk crafts. They developed independent crafts. Usually crafts have a name corresponding to the area where they are produced.
The most popular are:
- Porcelain and ceramics "Gzhel". Her style is a characteristic drawing of blue paint on white background. Named after the settlement of Gzhel, Moscow region, where the production is located.
Gzhel painting is an ancient craft - “Zhostovo painting” can be recognized by flower bouquets on a black (less often green, blue, red) metal tray coated with varnish. The fishing center is located in Zhostovo (Moscow region). This craft began in Nizhny Tagil, where the production of Nizhny Tagil trays still exists.
Luxurious Zhostovo painting - "Khokhloma" is a decorative painting on wood. It is characterized by black, red and sometimes green patterns on a golden background. Her homeland and place of registration is Nizhny Novgorod region.
Khokhloma is still popular today - The settlement of Dymkovo is the birthplace of Dymkovskaya, and the city of Kargopol is, accordingly, Kargopolskaya, the village of Filimonovo is Filimonovskaya, Stary Oskol is the birthplace of Starooskolskaya clay toys. They all have a characteristic pattern and color.
Stary Oskol clay toys - Pavlovo Posad wool shawls business card Pavlovsky Posad. They are characterized by a voluminous printed floral pattern. Red and black are their traditional colors.
The traditional Pavloposad scarf is a truly luxurious accessory The continuation may be very long: Fedoskino and Palekh miniatures, Gorodets painting, Orenburg down scarf, Vologda, Yelets, Mtsensk lace. And so on. It is very difficult to list everything.
Drawing in folk style
Today, many people wear clothes and use things in folklore style. Many craftswomen want to create something unique themselves. They can take the finished product as a basis or create their own sketch.
To successfully complete this idea, you first need to:
- Decide whether it will be a separate pattern or an ornament.
- Break down the drawing into simple details.
- Take graph paper, make a marking, marking each fragment and its middle.
- We draw the first simplest detail in the center.
- Gradually, step by step, we add the following fragments.
And now the unique pattern is ready.
Anyone can draw a pattern like this. About Russian embroidery
The patterns, techniques, and colors of Russian embroidery are very diverse. The art of embroidery has a long history. It is closely related to the way of life, customs and rituals.
Color is an important component of needlework.
People endowed it with sacred properties:
- Red is the color of life, fire and sun. Of course it was often used in embroidery. After all, it is also beauty. As a talisman, it was designed to protect life.
- White is the color of pure snow. Symbol of freedom and purity. He was considered a protector against dark forces.
- Blue color of water and clear sky. Symbolized courage and strength.
- Black in the ornament meant earth. Zigzag and wave, respectively, an unplowed and plowed field.
- Green is grass, forest and their help to man.
Traditional Russian embroidery The thread was also endowed with certain qualities:
- Linen is a symbol of masculinity.
- Wool is protection, patronage.
In combination with patterns, special-purpose products were created.
For example:
- Roosters and red horses were supposed to protect the baby.
- To successfully complete the work, they embroidered with green and blue linen.
- They embroidered with wool against illnesses and against bad influences.
- Women's clothes were often embroidered in black to protect motherhood.
- The men were protected by a green and blue pattern.
Of course, a special set of symbols and designs was developed for each occasion and person.
This embroidery will look elegant on any fabric. Folk costume
Folk costume embodies and reflects traditions. For centuries, craftswomen have transformed plain fabric into a unique work of art. WITH early age girls learned the secrets of needlework. By the age of fifteen, they had to prepare themselves everyday and festive clothes and a set of towels, tablecloths and valances for several years.
The cut of the suit itself is simple, rectangular. Linen or wool fabric of various qualities. Women pulled the fabric (removed some of the threads) and received new fabric. Hemstitching and other embroideries were done on it.
Russian folk costume is diverse Of course, clothing varied in characteristic patterns depending on the area. It can be divided into two groups:
- Central Russian. Differs in multicolor. Among the techniques, counted satin stitch, cross stitch, braids, and hemstitch stitches are often used. In the southern regions, lace, ribbons or strips of fabric are also used to decorate clothes. The design is often geometric. Orepei was especially loved in different versions.
- Northern. Its characteristic techniques are satin stitch (colored and white), cross stitch, painting, white stitching and cutouts. Artistic motifs were used more often than geometric ones. The compositions were performed mainly in one color.
Russian embroidery is unique. It is distinguished by stylized images of animals and plants, as well as a wide variety of geometric patterns.
Keeping traditions
Exploring national traditions and handicraft techniques using preserved products, modern craftsmen adapt them to modern requirements. Fashionable original things are created on their basis. These are clothes, shoes, underwear.
One of the recognized fashion designers who includes folk motifs in each of his collections is Valentin Yudashkin. Foreign couturiers, for example Yves Saint Laurent, are also inspired by the Russian heritage.
Russian collection of Yves Saint Laurent In addition, folk crafts continue traditions and improve skills in accordance with modern requirements. You can add enthusiasts who are not indifferent to traditional creativity. They independently study, collect and create in folk style.
Russian patterns continue to bring beauty and joy to people, and also preserve historical information.
The patterns made on clothes, tablecloths, and towels by unknown craftswomen of past centuries still sparkle brightly and shimmer with rainbow colors. These symbolic images, in the opinion of our great-grandfathers, were supposed to bring good luck and prosperity to their owners, save them “from famine and pestilence,” ward off the influence of evil forces, protect the warrior from wounds on the battlefield, and promote procreation.
Up to mid-19th century For centuries, the “decorations” were not changed, so as not to violate or distort the ancient sacred meaning, they were passed on from generation to generation, carefully observing the “canons.” Ornaments are akin to ancient writings and, like them, can tell a lot about the worldview of a person in those distant eras. For a long time, people remembered the purpose of ornaments. Back in the 20-30s of the 20th century, residents of some northern Russian villages demonstrated their knowledge of the meaning of the depicted pattern in front of the oldest craftswoman of the village at special “readings”: young girls brought finished works to gatherings and talked about them in front of “the whole world.”
In some places in the outback you can still hear the ancient names of patterns: “vodyanik”, “Perun”, although the masters are most often unable to explain their meaning. And yet, ancient patterns live on. They live and delight with their beauty. They sometimes live contrary to the beliefs of society or its individual groups, contrary to the guidelines of a particular government regime. Once, while working in the archives of the Ryazan Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve, I laughed a lot when reading the correspondence of the Ryazan mayor and the Skopinsky bishop (19th century): both correspondents subtly scolded the “depraved” Russian women who, despite the great church holidays, stubbornly walked around around the city in “obscenely” embroidered “underwear” - a folk shirt with embroidery along the hem. Custom required that the embroideries be displayed, and the craftswomen depicted on them either a woman giving birth, or even “patterns of the first night.”
But it was not at all funny to remember the stories of old people heard on expeditions about how, during the years of the Great Patriotic War, and sometimes, even more recently, hundreds of folk “decorations” with the image of the swastika, one of the most beloved Slavic ornaments, were barbarically destroyed. And advanced technologies of the 21st century threaten to completely wipe out Russian folk crafts with their low productivity and primitive technologies from the face of the Earth.
And yet, despite everything, the ornament lives. To this day, there are people who know how to decorate and want to wear traditional Russian clothes. On long winter evenings, Slavic girls and women embroidered and wove patterns with a torch, one more intricate than the other, decorating their “row” with them, so that later, at the holiday, they could show off in front of the “community”. Was it only beauty that they felt? Was it only the desire for creative self-expression that guided them? Or was there and continues to exist today in ancient symbols something very important - unknown to us today?
For the first time I had to deal with the unusual properties of folk ornament in my youth, when I worked at the Ryazan Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve. It was necessary to take a photo in an ancient folk costume. In the cathedral where the filming took place, because of the cold, I had to wear a fur jacket, but... as soon as I put on embroidered linen clothes, it suddenly became warm: the thin fabric warmed me! In an incomprehensible way! Later, while expecting the birth of a child, I realized that the folk patterns that Russian women made, in addition to beauty, also gave the expectant mother peace and patience. When I painted ornaments for the planned works, my health miraculously improved, the swelling went away. Later, having mastered the craft of hand weaving, I began to notice how my mood changed in the process of making differently ornamented products.
Surprisingly, folk ornaments and “decorations” are the same all over the world: the graphics are slightly different, the colors and shades change, but the appearance, rhythm, and meaning are quite recognizable. There is a known case when a Mexican weaver recognized the zero pattern of a women's shirt from the Arkhangelsk province as her national one. What is this? Accident? Or are different folk traditions based on the same deep knowledge, sometimes inaccessible to us, because it is expressed in a language unfamiliar to us - harmony, beauty and love - and before understanding it, it is necessary to master the language itself?
This book is the result of my desire to raise questions related to the meaning of folk textile patterns and the peculiarities of their effect on the “wearer” of the clothes decorated with them or the person looking at the patterns. It uses information from many, sometimes unconventional, sources: history, ethnography, mythology, bioenergy, modern alternative medicine, etc. Maybe this is not entirely correct: is it possible to embrace the immensity? But Russian folk culture has always seemed to me so comprehensive and multifaceted that, in my opinion, it is necessary to study it only comprehensively, having experienced the very way of thinking of our ancestors.
I believe that this is best illustrated by the process of drawing folk textile patterns. At first, it took me a month to complete such a drawing while preserving all the design features (and this was with lined paper, a pencil, and correction tools). And every time the question arose: what would we do without them? On a loom? And not from the middle, where the pattern clearly unfolds, but from the edge? And instead of a drawing, in best case scenario, a diagram scratched with a nail on a piece of wood. What kind of spatial imagination, what kind of coordinated interhemispheric connections of the brain do you need to have in order to do this? A must see! But an ordinary weaver could do this...
And further. I really want the ancient art of ornament to be preserved and not to disappear, so that the skills, traditions and beauty of folk culture continue to live, delight and benefit people. After all, this beauty has incredible kind energy (one would like to say - soul), capable of helping people. I would like to believe that the topics raised in my story will be of interest to new researchers, and then such an amazing phenomenon as Russian folk textile ornament can really be understood from different angles. In the meantime, the ancient image-writings continue to wait for their full reading. Well, let's try to get started?
The study of folk “decorations” began in XIX century. The first descriptions of textile patterns and attempts to find the hidden meaning in them were made by famous people: members of the Imperial Archaeological Society and numerous scientific archival commissions Russian Empire. They managed to record priceless material, now - alas! -lost irretrievably: primordial popular names individual elements of the ornament, more or less not yet distorted by the disappearance of the patriarchal peasant life. In the 1920s, their work was continued by regional societies of local historians. Relatively systematized materials were published in regional publications or ended up in archives. Of the available ones, the works of the Smolensk ethnographer E.N. seemed the most interesting to me. Klet-nova, Ryazan ethnographer N.I. Lebedeva, famous archaeologist V.A. Gorodtsova (I.001) and materials from a unique study of Sapozhkovsky local historians P. and S. Stakhanov.
A lot of literature devoted to the description of folk embroidery and weaving patterns throughout the USSR was published in the 1950-1970s. A number of art albums and catalogs are published folk costume. Studying the ornaments of the peoples of Siberia, S. Ivanov developed schemes for the formation of ornamental forms depending on the type of symmetry used. The interest of historians, archaeologists, and art historians in the meaning of images is growing: special research is being undertaken by G.P. Durasov, G.S.
Maslova, B.A. Rybakov (I.002), A. Ambrose.
In the 90s of the last century, study materials reappeared local traditions. New researchers of museum collections and amateur collectors paid attention to previously overlooked details of decorations of folk clothing, which made it possible to trace the reflection of Slavic pagan culture and social and tribal information about the owner in folk costume. It became possible to study the history of an ancient and widespread symbol among the Slavs - the swastika. Numerous attempts to practically reconstruct the use and meaning of folk ornament were made by supporters of reviving paganism. A. Golan, in his major work, traced the unified mythological basis of ornamental symbols among the peoples of the world, and the works of M.F. Parmon exhaustively covered the features of the cut and shape of folk clothing.
Studies are being published that raise questions about the perception of symbols by the human consciousness, as well as the impact of the sign on our physical state - from this point of view, V.I. studies runic symbols. Loshilov. Psychologists and representatives of alternative medicine have accumulated considerable experience in assessing the impact of certain intangible factors on the human body, and our understanding of the properties of consciousness is constantly expanding. But no one has yet tried to consider folk ornament from this point of view.
Few people know that the first country in the world to spread the swastika is... Russia. This is a key ornament in embroidery and weaving of the Russian North; we are even ahead of India, where swastika amulets still decorate city houses. Agree, given the ideological context of the events of the 20th century, this is perceived, at least, as an irony of fate.
It is on our lands that polysyllabic solar motifs have been preserved, which, at times, are maternal even in relation to Indian motifs (you can read about this in the works of S.V. Zharnikova). This is dizzyingly archaic.
“feather grass” (Tula province), “horse”, “horse shank” (Ryazan province), “hare” (Pechora), “saffron milk cap” (Nizhny Novgorod province), “loach” (Tver province), “bowlegged” "(Voronezh province), etc. On the territory of the Vologda lands, the name of the swastika was even more diverse. “Kryuchya”, “kryukovets”, “hook” (Syamzhensky, Verkhovazhsky districts), “ognivo”, “ognivets”, “konegon” (horse-fire?) (Tarnogsky, Nyuksensky districts), “sver”, “cricket” ( Veliky Ustyug district), “leader”, “leader”, “zhgun”, (Kichm.-Gorodetsky, Nikolsky districts), “bright”, “shaggy bright”, “kosmach” (Totemsky region), “geese”, “chertogon” (Babushkinsky district), “mower”, “kosovik” (Sokolsky district), “crossroads”, “vratok” (Vologda, Gryazovets districts), “vranets”, “vratschun”, “vraschun” (Sheksninsky, Cherepovets districts), “ ugly" (Babaevsky district), "melnik" (Chagodoshchensky district), "krutyak" (Belozersky, Kirillovsky districts), "pylan" (Vytegorsky district). The most archaic of them, undoubtedly, is “Ognivets”. This name reflects the original meaning magic symbol swastikas: “living fire” - “fire” - “flint” - “flint”.
“The Russian name for the swastika is “kolovrat”, i.e. “solstice” (“kolo” is the ancient Russian name for the sun, “vrat” is rotation, return). Kolovrat symbolized the victory of light (sun) over darkness, life over death, reality over reality. A swastika directed in the opposite direction was called “salting.” According to one version, “Kolovrat” meant the increase in daylight or the rising spring sun, while “posolon” meant the decrease in daylight and the setting autumn sun. The existing confusion in the names is generated by a misunderstanding of the direction of the rotational movement of the Russian swastika. A “right” or “straight” swastika is often called a cross with ends bent into right side. However, in the Russian pagan tradition, the semantic meaning of the swastika is as close as possible to the ancient one (the symbol of “living fire”), and therefore its curved ends should be considered precisely as flames, which, when the cross rotates to the right, naturally deviate to the left, and when it rotates to the left - to the right. The deflection of the flames in both cases occurs under the influence of the oncoming air flow. Therefore, a “kolovrat”, or “left-sided” swastika in Russia is a cross whose ends (“tongues of flame”) are bent to the right, and vice versa, a “posolonyu”, or “right-sided” swastika is a cross with ends bent to the left ( in this case, the swastika rotates clockwise, according to the sun, hence its name - “salting”). In the Old Believer “soling” - the ritual walking around churches by the sun - one can easily discern an ancient pagan ritual. (M.V. Surov “Everything and everyone will return”)”