...Welcome to the sixth Symbol Saturday
Six is a perfect fit, because it’s also the number of birds that Romulus spotted in the sky:
Mox pastores illum in Palatio, hunc in Aventino vultures exspectare viderunt.
Subito Remus vocavit: “Videte! Sex vultures! Sex vultures advolant!”
Iam victoriam suam celebravit, cum Romulus clamavit: “Duodecim, videte, duodecim vultures adsunt!”
Pastores, qui haec audiverant, hunc vicisse consenserunt, illum reliquerunt, in Palatium abierunt.
… but his brother Remus spotted twelve. What was this about?
Romulus and Remus didn’t just go out for bird spotting because the day was inviting. Instead, they went in order to decide who will be the emperor of the city they were about to found. Remus saw twelve birds, and the pastors agreed that the signs had come in his favour.
Counting birds has been a practice known in ancient times already, and to this day it is one of the popular beliefs.
Counting crows is rather popular, and easy when sticking to the nursery rhyme:
One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy, five for silver, six for gold, seven for a secret never to be told, eight for a wish, nine for a kiss, ten for a time of joyful bliss.
Birds often represent freedom, the soul, rebirth (especially if we look at the Phoenix), but every type of bird also has its own specific symbolism.
From the pigeon in Roman and Christian belief as a symbol of peace and deliverer of good news, to the caged Nightingale and her song, there’s plenty of stories providing different birds with different symbolism. Let’s look at a few examples:
Crows usually always comes in groups, sometimes accompanied by rooks and jackdaws. These birds are often seen as symbols of death and darkness, as especially crows used to stick near to battlefields to feast on the fallen. This aspect may have been one of the reasons the crow ended up being the symbol of the Morrigan. But crows also symbolise friends/family that can be trusted blindly (as the German saying goes: a crow will not peck out the eye of another crow). Like their bigger cousin the raven, crows also symbolise intelligence, magic and the unknown.
Robins seem to have become one of Britain's trademarks: If there’s winter, there’s Robins. These cute little critters with their red chests are often symbols for endurance, rebirth, and strength. They stay here during the cold winters and somehow always seem to make it through.
Eagles are especially popular birds as national symbols, since they’re considered strong and powerful. If you’ve ever seen an eagle’s claw, you may also know why— in Mongolia, eagles are being used for hunting foxes. Their claws are strong enough to crush their skulls. They also represent wisdom linked to strength: “What do I have to understand to make use of my power?”
Swans are another popular symbol. While white swans symbolise emotions, sensibility, marriage, and beauty, black swans often symbolise intuition in dreams— but they can also be an omen of death, like any other black bird. The popular ‘dying swan’ is a symbol of unrequited love.
Do you have any favourite bird? If so, what do you love about it?
