Andrzej Kowalski

In the culture of the ancient Germans, women were of high rank. This was especially true of the prophets. Some of them, for example Veleda, Völva, Valuvurg, were named after the Indo-Eu ropean root _ *h 2 wel _ -. It meant active vision, giving knowledge about the future. This root lies in the names of poets, deities of death and the land of the dead. Necromancers were also active among the Germans. They were called _ haliurunnae _ among the Gothic tribes. Their Proto-Germanic term _ *haljarūnō _ is applied to knowledge of the secrets associated with graves and of the goddess Hel. The article presents the hypothesis that these female necromancers dealt with the magic of graves and bodies of the dead. Their divination and magic had a “material” aspect. According to Jordanes, these witches were persecuted. The practices associated with the goddess Hel were dark and carried out in secret. Perhaps a vestige of the actions of these witches are tombs which have been destroyed, violated and disturbed. We know them from the area of cultures which have been identified with the Goths, of which Jordanes wrote. At the time, the prophetesses, such as Veleda, were acting officially. Their divination was more ‘spiritual’. Therefore, they were accepted and were found in the company of the Germanic chiefs.

Author: Kowalski Andrzej P. Title: CULTURAL ARCHAEOLOGY AND PREHISTORY OF THE CONTINENT OF ART (Kulturoznawcza archeologia i prehistoria Kontynentu sztuki) Source: Filo-Sofija year: 2011, vol:.12, number: 2011/1, pages: 291-310 Keywords: JERZY KMITA, CULTURAL ARCHAEOLOGY, THE CONTINENT OF ART, SHAMANISTIC ORIGINS OF ART Discipline: PHILOSOPHY Language: POLISH Document type: ARTICLE Publication order reference (Primary author’s office address): E-mail: www:The paper presents an attempt at application of Jerzy Kmita’s achievements in philosophy of art, aesthetics, axiology, and history of culture to the research on genesis of art. The problem of cultural genealogy of art shall be addressed in following contexts: 1. The context of the so-called ‘end of art in postmodern culture’ which manifests itself in the thesis concerning elimination of “grand narrations”, myths, and ideologies. According to J. Kmita, the art takes recourse to idea-meanings which are not ascribed to a handicraft. The meanings of superior axiological level express themselves in the art only. 2. The context of Bild-Anthropologie developed by H. Belting. Works of art are regarded here as images, especially—images of a cultural type. The accent lies here on genealogy of iconoclasm and theological discourse which uses Greek philosophical terminology. Ontology of “image as a presence” is analyzed with regard to magical realism and symbolism. Primordial and prehistoric images do not operate with signs of objects but instead they constitute objects themselves. 3. The context of structural anthropology where the art is interpreted within the horizon of mytho-logics and metaphoric-metonymical transformations. Kmita’s adjustment shows that metaphorical and metonymical meanings are indistinguishable. The art—which was ascribed a classificatory meaning—provided also socio-morphic categories. Totemic signs were more appreciated than totems themselves. It shows that the art transcends the reality which itself becomes a subject of the image. 4. The context of shamanistic origins of art. This conception universalizes results of neuropsychological research. Trance-practices are considered here as the origin of cave painting which presents a scheme of shamanistic visions. However, in folk cultures not all imaginary objects originate from trance-experience and the acceptance of their reality does not presuppose sensory deprivations (which is one of ethnological arguments showing limits of such interpretation)