Quipus and Witches’ Knots. The role of the knot in primitive and ancient cultures. With a Translation and Analysis of “Oribasius De Laqueis”

Quipus and Witches’ Knots Quipus and Witches’ Knots Acknowledgments Contents Chapter One: Mnemonic Knots 1. KNOT-CALENDARS 2. LEE BOO AND HIS “LINE” 3. POLYNESIAN KNOT-RECORDS 4. MISCELLANEOUS KNOT-RECORDS 5. PHYLACTERIES AND FRINGES 6. ABACUS, ROSARY, AND LOG LINE 7. THE PERUVIAN QUIPU (LOCKE’S ANALYSIS) 8. THE PERUVIAN QUIPU (NORDENSKIÖLD’S HYPOTHESIS) 9. QUIPU 14–3866 (AN INCA ASTRONOMER’S NOTEBOOK) 10. THE INCA ABACUS 11. STATISTICAL AND CULTURAL QUIPUS Chapter Two: Magic Knots 1. HOMEOPATHIC AND CONTAGIOUS MAGIC 2. WIND AND RAIN 3. SICKNESS AND DISEASE 4. MISCELLANEOUS CURES 5. KNOT AMULETS 6. THE HERCULES KNOT CHAPTER TWO: MAGIC KNOTS THE HERCULES KNOT THE HERCULES KNOT THE HERCULES KNOT CONVENTIONALIZED KNOTS CONVENTIONALIZED KNOTS SACRAL KNOTS 7. THE SLIP KNOT 8. MISCELLANEOUS AMULETS 9. MALEFICIUM 10.LOVE KNOTS 11. RELIGIOUS KNOTS Chapter Three: Practical Knots 1. THE AGE OF STRING 2. THE OLDEST KNOTS 3. A PHYSICIAN NAMED HERAKLAS 4. PROPRIETARY EXCLUSIVENESS 5. THE END OF AN ERA Notes CHAPTER I CHAPTER II CHAPTER III Appendices: Oribasius De Laqueis APPENDIX A MANUSCRIPTS, EDITIONS, AND ILLUSTRATIONS APPENDIX B ORIBASIUS BOOK XLVII CHAPTERS 1–8 CHAPTER I: THE ERTOS BROKHOS CHAPTER II: THE NAUTIKOS BROKHOS CHAPTER III: THE CHIESTOS BROKHOS CHAPTER IV: THE SAND ALIOS OR BOUKOLIKOS BROKHOS CHAPTER V: THE DRAKON BROKHOS CHAPTER VI: THE HAPLOUN HAMM A BROKHOS CHAPTER VII: THE LYKOS BROKHOS CHAPTER VIII: THE HERAKLEO TIKON HAMMA CHAPTER X: THE DIPLOUS KARKHESIOS (1) CHAPTER XI: THE DIPLOUS KARKHESIOS (2) CHAPTER XII: THE DIPLOUS KARKHESIOS (3) CHAPTER XIII: THE FOUR-LOOP PLINTHIOS CHAPTER XIV: THE EPANKYLOTOS BROKHOS CHAPTER XV: THE OTA BROKHOS CHAPTER XVI: THE DIANKYLOS BROKHOS CHAPTER XVII: THE ANKHON BROKHOS CHAPTER XVIII: THE HYPERBATOS BROKHOS APPENDIX C APPENDIX D APPENDIX E APPENDIX F Index This essay in cultural anthropology provides a comprehensive view of the way primitive people in all parts of the world once utilized knots; mnemonic knots—to record dates, numbers, and cultural traditions; magic knots—to cure diseases, bewitch enemies, and control the forces of nature; and practical knots—to tie things and hold things together. In his discussion of mnemonic knots, the author analyzes the Peruvian quipus (or knot-calendars and knot-records) and suggests that the Inca astronomer-priests, known to have been accurate observers of the movements of the planets, may also have been able to predict the dates of lunar eclipses; and he shows how it is possible to manipulate the Ina abacus in accordance with the decimal system. His treatment of magic knots includes instances from Babylonian times to the present, with curious examples of the supernatural power attributed to the Hercules knot (i.e., the square knot) in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. His analysis of a little-known treatise on surgeons' slings and nooses, written by the Green physician Heraklas, is the first detailed account of the specific practical knots used by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Quipus and Witches' Knots , which is abundantly illustrated, often surprises the reader with the unexpected ways in which the once universal dependence of men on knots has left its mark on the language, customs, and thought of modern peoples. Open access edition funded by the National Endowment for Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Humanities Open Book Program. The Role of the Knot in Primitive and Ancient Cultures. With a Translation and Analysis of “Oribasius De Laqueis” This essay in cultural anthropology provides a comprehensive view of the way primitive people in all parts of the world once utilized knots; mnemonic knots—to record dates, numbers, and cultural traditions; magic knots—to cure diseases, bewitch enemies, and control the forces of nature; and practical knots—to tie things and hold things together. In his discussion of mnemonic knots, the author analyzes the Peruvian quipus (or knot-calendars and knot-records) and suggests that the Inca astronomer-priests, known to have been accurate observers of the movements of the planets, may also have been able to predict the dates of lunar eclipses; and he shows how it is possible to manipulate the Ina abacus in accordance with the decimal system. His treatment of magic knots includes instances from Babylonian times to the present, with curious examples of the supernatural power attributed to the Hercules knot (i.e., the square knot) in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. His analysis of a little-known treatise on surgeons’ slings and nooses, written by the Green physician Heraklas, is the first detailed account of the specific practical knots used by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Quipus and Witches’ Knots, which is abundantly illustrated, often surprises the reader with the unexpected ways in which the once universal dependence of men on knots has left its mark on the language, customs, and thought of modern civilized peoples. A work of cultural anthropology that provides a comprehensive view of the way primitive people in all parts of the world once utilized knots; mnemonic knots to record dates, numbers, and cultural traditions; magic knots to cure diseases, bewitch enemies, and control the forces of nature; and practical knots to tie things and hold things together.