HELP ! Jewish? Star Symbol in a RENAISSANCE REVIVAL Piece. Meanings?

Discussion in 'Antique Discussion' started by bluemoon, Nov 28, 2015.

  1. bluemoon

    bluemoon Member

    This late 1800's renaissance revival piece features the six-pointed star.
    Is that a common symbol in antiques and what does it mean in this case?

    2015-11-29 00.29.17.jpg
     
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  2. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    I highly doubt it has anything to do here with Jewish religious anything...
     
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  3. say_it_slowly

    say_it_slowly The worst prison is a closed heart

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  4. bluemoon

    bluemoon Member

    The item... (2 of the same ones)

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
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  5. Messilane

    Messilane Well-Known Member

    Not every five pointed star is a star of David.

    Sometime a cigar is just a cigar. :)
     
  6. Bakersgma

    Bakersgma Well-Known Member


    A five pointed star is never a Star of David. ;)
     
  7. Messilane

    Messilane Well-Known Member

    True, but you know what I meant. :p
     
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  8. silverthwait

    silverthwait Well-Known Member

    LOL! And I consistently refer to "stop sign yellow."

    Only been corrected twice!?!
     
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  9. KingofThings

    KingofThings 'Illiteracy is a terrible thing to waist' - MHH

    But we know your mean traffic signal yellow. :)
     
  10. KingofThings

    KingofThings 'Illiteracy is a terrible thing to waist' - MHH

    Welcome!
     
  11. all_fakes

    all_fakes Well-Known Member

    The star symbol was often associated with the Ottoman Empire, as in "star and crescent" and in past centuries the number of points was variable; there are examples with six, some with eight or seven points, though it is now stable at five.
    Yours may have that connection, or perhaps is purely decorative.
     
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  12. bluemoon

    bluemoon Member

    Where do you see a crescent?

    :meh:

    These sconces really don't give me any peace of mind because I just want to know something about them. The style, country of origin.
     
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  13. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    Where does it say he SEES a crescent..?
     
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  14. bluemoon

    bluemoon Member

    I mean if it's not there, then it's not the same thing.

    I'm just trying to analyse what's there, not 'what could also be there but isn't'.
     
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  15. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    It was just his opinion....& a possible suggestion.
     
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  16. all_fakes

    all_fakes Well-Known Member

    To paraphrase myself: I was not saying I saw a crescent. I was saying that the six-pointed star has become a Jewish symbol only in relatively recent times; long before that, the star, whether with 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 points, was a symbol of Turkish or Ottoman origin (and of course the star has also been used as a symbol in a great many other cultures).
    You can find differing versions of historical matters, but most of the articles I've found indicate that the strong association which we have today between Judaism and the six-pointed star began in the late 19th century and "The symbol became representative of the worldwide Zionist community, and later the broader Jewish community, after it was chosen as the central symbol on a flag at the First Zionist Conference in 1897." (Wikipedia)

    The star symbol was joined with a crescent to become a symbol of the Ottoman Empire around 1750, but the number of points on that star did not become fixed until much later. Both before and after that date the star by itself was used as a Turkish or Ottoman symbol.

    With that as background, I concluded 1) that the six-pointed star on your item likely had no Judaic connection 2) that it might have had an Ottoman Empire connection, but that 3) it was most likely purely decorative.
    The original question asked was "Is that a common symbol in antiques and what does it mean in this case?" and my answer would be that yes, it is a common symbol in antiques, and it doesn't necessarily mean anything in this case.
    I see things that remind me of Norse, Irish, and French influences, but I don't see anything that points to a particular style or country of origin.
    Perhaps others can shed more light, and I'm sorry if my historical digression seemed intrusive.
     
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  17. bluemoon

    bluemoon Member

    No need to feel sorry. I purely wanted you to elaborate, which you did.
     
    all_fakes likes this.
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