PAIRS 17 - ISLAMIC CELTS?

The origin of Gothic, the pointed arch, has always been located somewhere vague and uncertain ‘in the east.’ The crusaders are sometimes mentioned as the link to this idea, an invention that transformed the ‘dark’ Romanesque era into the brilliant light and lightness of Gothic architecture.

In parallel with this change is the development of the decoration of these buildings. The Romanesque buildings had a naively personal naturalism in their decorative embellishments that became more rigorously geometrical and diagrammatic in the Gothic era.

Lying behind these histories and somewhat disconnected from the architectural histories are the exploits of the Vikings. These Norsemen appear to have their own astonishing stories of raiding, rampage and rape, but they did settle in various parts of the world that they explored, like Dublin and York, and maintained a vigorous lifestyle and trade in these places. Stories tell that the longships reached America, but this is not as certain as their eastern travels. The Vikings sailed to Constantinople, now Istanbul. What might this connection with the fringe of the Islamic world have brought to the west?

The idea arose by pure accident. We had picked up a pretty coaster at a charity shop, one with a classic Islamic pattern on it. One assumes that it was a souvenir brought back to the UK by a traveller who had lost the enthusiasm for this purchase once home again. Little items like this are good to have around as reminders – ‘to put in mind again’ as the traditional world described it, with its awareness of things more subtle than getting and spending.

Weeks later, we were looking for an odd item, without knowing what. The proposition was that a small, decorative keystone-type form might be the solution to hiding some electrical wiring that was at the base of the switchboard in the centre of the doorway. When fumbling nonchalantly through things in another charity shop, a wooden candle base was found. Might it be of some use? For a pound it was worth trying.

The base was really for a tea light. It was a wedge shape with some lovely Celtic poker work on it. Maybe it could fit if inverted? It was purchased; it could always be a tea light again if it did not work, for it was indeed a very nice bit of decorative embellishment, done locally in Shetland.

The base was taken home and tried in its likely position. It looked fine, but would need some work on it to allow it to be fixed. Some wood had to be cut out at the rear to allow for the thickness of the wires. The piece was marked up and placed on the table.

Days later they were seen together for the first time: the coaster and the wedge. The Islamic decoration was remarkably similar to the Celtic poker work on the wooden base. Might there have been a link between the decoration of the Islamic world and that of the Celts? The parallels were remarkable. The Vikings had been there: why not - KNOTS?

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