From the photo slide show to this article, click on “Go to slideshow” and click on to photo # 7.
Apparently, Samson and the lion was a popular motif for paintings in the 1600s and 1700s, inspired by an well known illustrated Bible edition from 1589.
https://marcus.uib.no/exhibition/ref-07
Translated:
“The Bible had 1522 pages and was illustrated throughout with a total of 119 woodcuts copied from the famous artist and engraver Virgil Solis. Although the Bible was primarily a church artefact, the woodcuts in it became a welcome inspiration for local artists. Bible motifs can therefore be found in a number of forms of Norwegian folk art such as paintings, tapestries, woodcuts and more.”
Samson – in the illustration from the Grind.no article – was supposed to be a metaphor for Jesus. The motif was also intended to symbolise protection of the house/home.
The painting shown in Grind.no article, was from 1786. It’s not 100% identical to the painting on the matchbox, but the placement of both figures is very similar, so possibly are both based on the well known Bible illustrations from 1589.
The paintings described in the article were made by travelling art painters, who worked on decorating churches as well as painting in private houses, including on objects like doors, furniture, chests and boxes etc. This developed into the “rosemaling” tradition.
The matchbox shown, seems to refer to this tradition from the 1600-1700s. The flowers etc around the main motif, were also typical for rosemaling.
From the article:
“One of the most prized Renaissance motifs is the flower vase with roses, lilies and tulips. The roses are the lilies are the Middle Ages’ central motifs in the symbolic traditions of the Christian church, linked to the tales relating to the Virgin Mary.
The inscription which follows tells us that the flower vases are bearers of a symbolic value which lies deeper than pure aesthetics:
“Let thy heart be like a pot, full of the spiritual life’s blossoms”, a so-called homiletic motif (homiletic being in the style of a sermon).
The flower vase can be portrayed together with a motif like Samson and the lion – a pre-figuration motif – or the deer, an ancient baptism symbol: “As the deer thirsts after running water, so thirsts my soul after the Holy Spirit” ( from the “Psalms” ). That such tales can have been alive in the popular mind during the first century after the reformation is probable; but when the symbolic content was lost in the tradition is, however, unclear.”
Samson rips asunder the lion
“Sons of Samson’s Lions” – reference to the power of the pmatches
Refers to the biblical story of Samson and reads as follows; in Swedish:
“Samson conquers/defeats the lion.”
Samson sönder slider löven. In modern swedish; “Samson sliter lejonet sönder” or maybe “Samson söndersliter lejonet”.
I don’t know arcaic swedish well. To me it appeares to be a mixture of old swedish and norwegian heavily influenced by danish.
Anyway the words translates to: “Samson is tearing the lion apart”
Judges 14:5-6.
Samson synder, sier løven
Samson Rips the lion apart
I wondered on seeing this if sönder might be cognate with the German verb zünden – to ignite, which could make the whole thing a play on words. Maybe it was, but that word has been lost in modern Norwegian/Swedish?
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Bible quote, Samson beats/defeats the lion.
It doesn’t read like any Norwegian I have ever seen. The words:
Samson
Sønder – something like «to pieces» as in breaking something
Seider – possibly «victory» but this way of typing it is weird to me
Løven-the lion
This seems to me like a quote from a old bible or possibly a quote that is separated from native Norwegian speakers by a generation or three.
From an article, “Vernacular arts and crafts”
https://www.grind.no/en/livelihood-and-craftsmanship/vernacular-arts-and-crafts
From the photo slide show to this article, click on “Go to slideshow” and click on to photo # 7.
Apparently, Samson and the lion was a popular motif for paintings in the 1600s and 1700s, inspired by an well known illustrated Bible edition from 1589.
https://marcus.uib.no/exhibition/ref-07
Translated:
“The Bible had 1522 pages and was illustrated throughout with a total of 119 woodcuts copied from the famous artist and engraver Virgil Solis. Although the Bible was primarily a church artefact, the woodcuts in it became a welcome inspiration for local artists. Bible motifs can therefore be found in a number of forms of Norwegian folk art such as paintings, tapestries, woodcuts and more.”
Samson – in the illustration from the Grind.no article – was supposed to be a metaphor for Jesus. The motif was also intended to symbolise protection of the house/home.
The painting shown in Grind.no article, was from 1786. It’s not 100% identical to the painting on the matchbox, but the placement of both figures is very similar, so possibly are both based on the well known Bible illustrations from 1589.
The paintings described in the article were made by travelling art painters, who worked on decorating churches as well as painting in private houses, including on objects like doors, furniture, chests and boxes etc. This developed into the “rosemaling” tradition.
The matchbox shown, seems to refer to this tradition from the 1600-1700s. The flowers etc around the main motif, were also typical for rosemaling.
From the article:
“One of the most prized Renaissance motifs is the flower vase with roses, lilies and tulips. The roses are the lilies are the Middle Ages’ central motifs in the symbolic traditions of the Christian church, linked to the tales relating to the Virgin Mary.
The inscription which follows tells us that the flower vases are bearers of a symbolic value which lies deeper than pure aesthetics:
“Let thy heart be like a pot, full of the spiritual life’s blossoms”, a so-called homiletic motif (homiletic being in the style of a sermon).
The flower vase can be portrayed together with a motif like Samson and the lion – a pre-figuration motif – or the deer, an ancient baptism symbol: “As the deer thirsts after running water, so thirsts my soul after the Holy Spirit” ( from the “Psalms” ). That such tales can have been alive in the popular mind during the first century after the reformation is probable; but when the symbolic content was lost in the tradition is, however, unclear.”
Samson rips asunder the lion
“Sons of Samson’s Lions” – reference to the power of the pmatches
Refers to the biblical story of Samson and reads as follows; in Swedish:
“Samson conquers/defeats the lion.”
Samson sönder slider löven. In modern swedish; “Samson sliter lejonet sönder” or maybe “Samson söndersliter lejonet”.
I don’t know arcaic swedish well. To me it appeares to be a mixture of old swedish and norwegian heavily influenced by danish.
Anyway the words translates to: “Samson is tearing the lion apart”
Judges 14:5-6.
Samson synder, sier løven
Samson Rips the lion apart
I wondered on seeing this if sönder might be cognate with the German verb zünden – to ignite, which could make the whole thing a play on words. Maybe it was, but that word has been lost in modern Norwegian/Swedish?