2017-07-15 Sat

Once in a while in your childhood, you must have definitely played maze! The objective of the game was to find the way out from one end to another. "Maze" is also known as the labyrinth.

But wait, what if we tell you that we see labyrinth on coins too. Yes...According to Greek mythology, the Labyrinth was an elaborate structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur (A mythical creature having a head of a bull and body of a man) and it was eventually killed by the hero Theseus.

Ancient Greeks always had something different to put on their coins.

Knossos issued a coin depicting this legendary story by portraying a Minotaur on obverse and labyrinth on the reverse.

The Labyrinth is also seen on the various ancient sites of Greece and Rome. They popularly appear on pottery, baskets, walls of the churches, etc. A labyrinth signifies wholeness. It combines the imagery of a circle and a spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. It represents a journey to our own ccentreand back again out into the world.

So, next time you play maze, remember that it is something which is very ancient and not any new concept!
Explore more Greek coins click here.