Wifman
Etymology anyone? Before a woman was called a woman…she was called
a wife-man…or…in Old English…a Wifman…which evolved into
today’s Woman. Which brings us…quite logically I might add…to Asia
Minor. For those of you interested as to how I come to this transition
logically…don’t even ask. I myself do not know or even pretend to
understand the arcane forces which drive my mind. Suffice it to
say–in another leap of logic which defies the imagination–that
today’s Tidbits is about a gold and silver statuette. Remember the
Tidbits credo…if it has gold in it…if it has silver in it…it’s
jewelry.
And so we go back to circa 2300 B.C…to a place call Anatolia… the
name then given to Asia Minor. And now…zip zip…we’re in Ankara,
Turkey…where our female figure–our wifman if you will --was found.
Hittites inhabited this land…which was not too far from the famed
biblical city of Ur–home of the patriarch Abraham.
North of Bogazkale…on the road to Corum…is Alacah�y�k…the center
of Hittite culture…a place flourishing in trade. Get yer jewelry.
Gold bracelets. Amulets to ward off evil. We have gold creations. We
have lapis lazuli. We have carnelian and silver and copper and shell.
A jewelry box for you sir…in which to hold your pretty wife’s
trinkets? What’s that? She’s not your wife? Heh heh. My mistake sir.
Perhaps this bracelet then sir…for the pretty lady with the pretty
charms.
Folks. The gold and silver and jewelry that was unearthed in what is
now referred to a the Royal Tombs of Alaca H�y�k are said to outdo
even the treasures of Priam in Troy. A portion of the kingly
tombs–and I give you here an exact quote–“A portion is nothing but
profane jewelry.” Of course…we come here to the crossroads of
clarity…or lack thereof. Do they mean the jewelry was irreligious
and therefor profane…or do they mean the quantity of jewelry was so
vast as to be considered profane? I analyze…I view the images at my
disposal…I ponder and think…I extrapolate…I infer…I deduce
and deduct…I gather and draw and judge…and I come to this
conclusion: Who knows? Probably both.
The Hittites plied an active trade with Assyria, six hundred miles
away. They traded grain for gold and sliver and precious stones which
they evidently gave to their master craftsmen to mold into fine
ornaments to be worn on wrist and arm and ear and neck. Perhaps
Tylerus Adamus was existent back then. Who know? Perhaps Benjaminus
Markaminus-- an ancient ancestor of mine–was alive and running the
place back then too. It is no great stretch of the imagination to
assume that he was writing a weekly column for the royal court
entitled: Tidbitsitus. All things are possible when they exist in the
imagination…don’t you think? And so…
For those of you who are new to this thing called Tidbits…may I
direct you to my home page at www.tyler-adam.com where you will
scroll down the table menu till you get to the box that says
Tidbits…and inside the box where it says Tidbit Graphics…click on
the link that says: Wifman…where you will see the graphic of our
statuette.
And there ya have it. That’s it for this week folks. Catch you all next
week. Benjamin Mark
TYLER-ADAM CORP.–Jewelry Manufacturers
Tel: 1-800-20-TYLER
E-Mail to: webmaster@tyler-adam.com