The earliest claimed "swastika" is from a carved mammoth tusk found in Mezine (Mezin),* Ukraine, dating back to approximately 15,000 BC.[7] Photographs of the artifact show a repeating diagonal meander pattern which in no way resembles a swastika.
So many websites and articles claim that the Mezine carvings contain the earliest example of a swastika. The people repeating this claim seem to have never bothered to actually look at the carvings themselves.
* Although it seems the proper archaeological name is "Mezin," I will use the spelling "Mezine," since this seems to be most common on the internet.
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On the internet, it seems the claim that the Mezine carving contained a swastika was popularized in part by John J. White (he is cited on the Wikipedia article on Mezine).[1][2] White was a pseudo-archaeologist who developed the New-Age-inspired concepts of "Earth Mother Culture" and "Earth Mother Sacred Language". His goal was to demonstrate that the swastika and many other common ancient symbols were somehow symbols of his global "Earth Mother" fertility cult.
White's claim (and citations) regarding the supposed swastika-like appearance of the Mezine carving is merely repeating what Joseph Campbell says in the book The Flight of the Wild Gander.[2][3][4]
Campbell cites Dr. Franz Hancar[6] for this idea, who in turn cites archaeologist Vasily A. Gorodtsov (Gorodcov) as the first to promote the idea this pattern was a "swastika".
The footnote reads (Campbell 1969a, pg. 147-148; Campbell 1969b, pg. 117):
"One of six figures of birds carved of mammoth ivory, unearthed near the village of Mezin, on the right bank on the river Desna, about halfway between Briansk and Kiev. As described by Dr. Fran Hančar [sic] ("Zum Problem der Venusstatuetten im eurasiatischen Jungpaläolithikum," Prähistorische Zeitschrift, XXX-XXXI Band, 1939-1940, 1/2 Heft, pp. 85-156): "A wedge-shaped projection suggests the head. The back runs on without interruption through the long tail, while the breast and belly swell out in an exaggerated bulge, cutting back sharply to the tail. The long tails spread a little toward the tip. An elaborate geometric pattern covering the flat surfaces removes the bird-likeness still further from its natural model. On the various separate areas of these curious bodies we find bands of angular and zigzag forms in lively variation, parallel hatchings, triangles, and meanders. And especially worthy of remark is the appearance, first noted by the Russian V. A. Gorodcov, of a superbly rendered swastika on the lower surface of one of the little birds, composed of meander motifs joined together. . . .
"In this little bird-figurine from Mezin," Dr. Hančar continues, "we have the earliest known example of a swastika; and of the greatest interest is the fact that it should have appeared in association with the figure of a bird: a fact suggesting, in Gorodcov's view, a genetic connection between the symbol and its prototype, recalling the explanation developed by Karl von den Steinen ("Prähistorische Zeichen und Ornamente," in Festschrift für Adolph Bastian zu seinem 70. Geburtstag [Berlin: D. Reimer, 1896], pp. 247-88) and A. A. Bobrinskoi, of the swastika as a stylized picture of a bird in flight--in particular, of the stork, the killer of serpents--and thereby the victorious symbol of the Good, of Spring, and of Light."[3][4]
We may speculate that Gorodtsov, writing at the height of the European fascination with the swastika in the late 1800s and early 1900s, was influenced by this when he declared that four adjacent meander symbols, which looked nothing like the typical hooked-cross, was a "swastika". We may further speculate that Hancar, an Austrian writing in a German-language journal in the 1940s, also had a compelling interest to play up the swastika claim.
Unfortunately, the claim of the Mezine carvings being "swastikas" has spread through countless websites and even continues among academic circles. This claim is enticing, I suppose, because it makes the symbol extremely old, and because Paleolithic mammoth hunters are appealing in present-day pop culture. A simple examination of geometry, however, shows the claim doesn't have any compelling factual basis.
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The following images are from different versions of The Flight of the Wild Gander. In the 3rd version of the figure, it includes only a low resolution photo of the artifact and a tracing of the area Campbell claims to contain the "swastika". Upon superficial inspection, the circled part can be argued to have some resemblance to a swastika. However, comparing the circled tracing to the photograph reveals it has been exaggerated. In addition, close inspection reveals it does not have the rotational symmetry of a swastika.
White uses this version in his article,[5] which I presume is from some version of The Flight of the Wild Gander:
This is the figure in the 1990 printing of The Flight of the Wild Gander:[3]
And this is the one from the 2002 printing, showing only a photograph and tracing of the particular artifact of interest:[4]
Upon close inspection of the tracing, we notice that three of the four meanders are aligned in the same direction! The most notable geometric property of the swastika is that it has 90 degree rotational symmetry. In other words, if the artist of the Mezine carving was intentionally trying to construct a swastika, all four meanders would be pointing in different directions.
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Examining tracings by other scientists, it is more apparent that Campbell's image above embellished the meanders to make them appear more connected and swastika-like than they were in reality.
This so-called "swastika" appears on a space-constrained area of the object (on the underside of the bird). The four-fold repetition of the pattern is only due to this space constraint, rather than an intentional attempt at making a swastika.
The clearer drawing printed in Soffer et al. (2000) confirms that the meanders are separate and provides a comparison with other artifacts found at the site. The bird with the so-called swastika is on the top right. We can see that the geometric pattern actually continues onto the side of the bird! The so-called swastika is only part of a larger pattern. It is indeed the space constraint which gives the superficial four-fold resemblance to a swastika.
On the bottom right we can see a different bird with more space showing continuous meander patterns. In this carving, the pattern is neater. Clearly demonstrating that it is not a swastika, the meanders are connected in a linear or band-like fashion, rather than four connected lobes, which we would expect if the artist was intentionally trying to construct a swastika.
Examining higher definition photos of the original carving makes the patterns even less apparent than the tracings:
Overlaying the low resolution photo from the Campbell book with the higher resolution photo above confirms this is the same artifact. Campbell's "swastika" tracing makes it appear as if the four quadrants are connected (as they would be in a swastika), but on the actual carving the meander patterns appear to have a space separating them! (Similar to how the meanders are connected in separate lines or bands, as I showed on the tracing of the Soffer figure above).
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Examining other artifacts from the site, there are no additional "swastikas," which should strike us as suspicious considering the ubiquity of the meander and zig-zag patterns found on the artifacts. If the "swastika" was intentional symbol, why do we not see more of them?
More of the same geometric meander patterns. The meanders are spaced irregularly, rather than having consistent four-fold alignment, which we would expect if the artist was intentionally trying to construct a swastika. On the left side of the first image, where there is only one visible column of shapes, the comparison with single-banded Greek meanders is striking.
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It has even been suggested the patterns are merely mimicking a natural pattern visible on the ivory:
"In 1965 a palaeontologist called Valentina Bibikova discovered that the swastika meander pattern on the bird is very similar to the naturally occurring pattern visible on a cross-section of ivory. Could it be that the Palaeolithic makers of the figurine were simply reflecting what they saw in nature..."[8][10]
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So, since the Mezine carving is not an actual swastika, what is the oldest example of a swastika?
Campbell cites the Samarra culture (c. 5500-4800 BC) of Mesopotamia as having the earliest examples of swastikas (Campbell 1969a, pg. 146; Campbell 1969b, pg. 116). After conducting a detailed search for ancient swastikas, it indeed appears that the Samarra culture swastika is the oldest swastika which is reputably dated. Note that these swastikas are the simple hooked-cross shape of a true swastika, rather than an over-embellished meander spiral like the Mezine symbols.
According to Wikipedia,[12] this bowl was excavated by archaeologist Ernst Herzfeld during 1911-1914 and described in his 1930 publication.[13] The Wikipedia article also mentions an article by Stanley Freed,[14] which notes the bowl was originally cracked down the center and therefore the swastika is a partial reconstruction. Since the works by Herzfeld and Freed are behind paywalls, I am unable to see their discussion on the piece. However, looking at this high resolution image of the bowl (above), it appears the edges of the swastika were not cracked, allowing for the archaeologists to ascertain what the symbol was, and therefore the reconstruction is not a fabrication.
Another Samarra ceramic with swastika on the right (Campbell. 1969a, pg. 94). Campbell lists his source for this figure as Braidwood et al. (1944).[16] Due to a paywall on the article, I have not been able to find more details regarding its discovery or museum/collection where it is currently kept.
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In the following millennia, the swastika became a common symbol throughout the world, frequently being found in association with agricultural societies. Finally, once and for all, we can debunk the Mezine claims and observe its origin and spread occurred during the Neolithic and Bronze Age, rather than the Paleolithic.
Annotated References:
[1] Wikipedia. Mezine. Last edited April 20, 2020. Retrieved August 2020.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mezine
The first reference to the artifacts containing a "swastika" was on January 8, 2012. John J. White and Joseph Campbell were cited for this claim.
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mezine&oldid=470333731
[2] John J. White. (c. 2006). Ice Age Swastika From Mezin in Ukraine: Interpretation of a Basic Symbol of Mankind. Midwestern Epigraphic Society. Page archived on January 17, 2012.
https://web.archive.org/web/20120117121947/http://www.midwesternepigraphic.org/swastika01.html
There are two versions of The Flight of the Wild Gander, by Joseph Campbell, that I found freely available online. John White cites the HarperPerennial edition (Campbell 1969a). Figure 11 (the Mezine carving) of the HarperPerennial edition has an additional 2 objects compared to the New World Library version (Campbell 1969b). The New World Library version contains only a low resolution photograph and the line drawing highlighting the alleged swastika. The contrast in the New World Library version is heightened, giving an even greater impression that the four meanders are connected into a single symbol. The figure White uses in his article does not seem to be from either of the particular editions listed below.
Both editions contain a typo on the page with the figure--"Dr. Fran Hančar"--although his name is correctly spelled Franz Hančar in the citations (Campbell 1969a pg. viii; Campbell 1969b pg. 196). Both editions appear to have various typos in the numbering and labeling of figures, e.g. the New World Library edition lists the Mezine image as Figure 11 in the text, but Figure 12 in the List of Illustrations (pg. 193, 196); the HarperPerennial edition switches the labels of Figure 1 and 2 (pg. 94).
[3] Joseph Campbell. (1969a). The Flight of the Wild Gander: Explorations in the Mythological Dimension. (1990, first printing). New York, NY: HarperPerennial.
https://archive.org/details/flightofwildgand00camp
[4] Joseph Campbell. (1969b). The Flight of the Wild Gander: Explorations in the Mythological Dimension. Selected Essays 1944-1968. (2002, first printing). Novato, CA: New World Library.
https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Flight_of_the_Wild_Gander.html?id=oq-xLPfgvJ4C
[5] John J. White. (c. 2006). Ice Age Swastika From Mezin in Ukraine: Interpretation of a Basic Symbol of Mankind. Figure 2. Midwestern Epigraphic Society. Page archived on June 12, 2007.
https://web.archive.org/web/20070612190549/http://www.midwesternepigraphic.org/swastika04.html
[6] Franz Hančar. (1940). Zum Problem der Venusstatuetten im eurasiatischen Jungpaläolithikum [The Problem of the Venus-statuettes in the Eurasian Paleolithic]. Praehistorische Zeitschrift, volume 30-31: issue 1-2, page 85-156.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/prhz.1940.30-31.1-2.85
https://www.degruyter.com/view/journals/prhz/30-31/1-2/article-p85.xml
[7] Olga Soffer, James M. Adovasio, and David C. Hyland. The "Venus" Figurines: Textiles, Basketry, Gender, and Statues in the Upper Paleolithic. (2000). Current Anthropology, 41(4): 511-537.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235979951_The_Venus_Figurines_Textiles_Basketry_Gender_and_Status_in_the_Upper_Paleolithic
Figure is cited as being reprinted from Soffer (1997), figure 7:
Olga Soffer. (1997)."The mutability of Upper Paleolithic art in Central and Eastern Europe: Patterning and significance," in Beyond art: Pleistocene image and symbol. Edited by M. Conkey, O. Soffer, D. Stratmann, and N. Jablonski, pp. 239–62. San Francisco: California Academy of Sciences/University of California Press.
[8] Mukti Jain Campion. (October 23, 2014). How the world loved the swastika - until Hitler stole it. BBC. Page archived August 10, 2015.
https://web.archive.org/web/20150810191626/http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29644591
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29644591
[9] BBC. (c. October, 2014). 10 different uses of the swastika. None of them Nazi. Page archived on October 28, 2014.
https://web.archive.org/web/20141028170720/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4yxxgY681Y097kTTq0hVbVj/10-different-uses-of-the-swastika-none-of-them-nazi
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4yxxgY681Y097kTTq0hVbVj/10-different-uses-of-the-swastika-none-of-them-nazi
Image is from The National Museum of the History of Ukraine in Kiev. Provided to BBC by Culture Wise Productions.
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/1600xn/p02962jx.jpg
This appears to be the 1965 Bibikova article cited by Campion in the BBC article, although I cannot find a link to the full paper online.
[10] Valentyna Bibikova. (1965). О происхождении мезинского палеолитического орнамента [On the origin of Mezin Paleolithic ornament]. Sovetskaya arkheologiya/Sovetskaja arheologija [Soviet archaeology], number 1, page 3-8.
[11] Don Hitchcock. (c. 2004; last updated November 12, 2018). Mezin - Wolf Camp. Don's Maps: Resources for the study of Palaeolithic / Paleolithic European, Russian and Australian Archaeology / Archeology. Retrieved August 2020.
https://donsmaps.com/wolfcamp.html
I found both images of the Mezine bracelet on the website Don's Maps. According to Don, the first image (with the red background) was originally from the website of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine, Kiev.
Regarding the second image, the website Don originally found it on lists it as being from the book "Mezin" by Ivan G. Shovkoplyas or The Language of the Goddess, by Marija Gimbutas (1989). I cannot find such a book by Shovkoplyas anywhere, but he was one of the archaeologists to work at Mezin, so it is perhaps from one of his publications.
For a source mentioning Shovkoplyas as an archaeologist at Mezin, see:
John F. Hoffecker. (2002). Desolate landscapes: Ice-Age settlement in Eastern Europe. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press. Page 206.
https://books.google.com/books?id=nXuqgInMOXIC
[12] Einsamer Schütze. June 28, 2011. Photo of Samarra bowl in the Vorderasiatisches Museum section of the Pergamon Museum. Wikimedia Commons.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vorderasiatisches_Museum_Berlin_097.jpg
[13] Ernst Herzfeld. (1930). Die vorgeschichtlichen Töpfereien von Samarra. Die Ausgrabungen von Samarra, 5. Berlin: Reimer.
[14] Stanley A. Freed. (1981). Research Pitfalls as a Result of the Restoration of Museum Specimens. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, The Research Potential of Anthropological Museum Collections, 376: 229–245.
https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1981.tb28170.x
[15] Image found in a presentation titled "the pre-history of wadi al-Sirhan Azraq al-Qurayyat Wadi al-Sirhan wadi flow Dumat al-Jandal Asfan." on the website slideplayer.it, published by user Lazzaro Martina. (c. 2014). Slide 40. A source for the publication where the image was taken is not provided.
https://slideplayer.it/slide/195069/
https://slideplayer.it/slide/195069/1/images/40/Vasellame+ceramico+della+cultura+di+Samarra.+VI+millennio+a.C..jpg
[16] Robert J. Braidwood, Linda S. Braidwood, Edna Tulane, and Ann L. Perkins. (1944). New Chalcolithic Material of Samarran Type and Its Implications: A Report on Chalcolithic Material of the Samarran Type Found at Baghouz on the Euphrates, and a Reconsideration of the Samarran Material in General (Especially the Painted Pottery) in the Light of This New Material. Journal of Near Eastern Studies, 3(1): 44-72.
https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/toc/jnes/1944/3/1
https://www.jstor.org/stable/542402?seq=1