Weigh Anchor..
Weigh anchor..
When I first saw this huge anchor on the Isle of Raasay I assumed it was from some sort of German battleship as German POWs where used to work the iron mine during the first World war..
But not so..
After much digging around on the "wide eyed web" I came up with this story..
Alongside of the harbour, there lies a huge anchor. On inspecting this it raised a few questions as there is what would appear to be a Swastika on the left palm, however, as the Swastika as a German symbol is post WW1 it obviously did not relate to the German prisoners working at the mine. The problem was solved by some Google sleuthing, and it goes something like this: The anchor was made in Sunderland and was laid just off the pier around 1900 to keep the iron ore boats off the pier whilst loading. As the hopper on the pier did not move the boats were moved under it using the anchors. The "swastika", or in geometric terms an irregular icosagon or 20-sided polygon, has been around as a symbol for thousands of years, particularly as a Hindu symbol in the holy texts, to mean luck, Brahma or samsara (rebirth).
W L Byers of Sunderland, the manufactures of the anchor often used the swastika as a symbol on their anchors, the Royal Museum at Greenwich actually sells a print of one of Byers anchors with the said swastika shown on the palms of the anchor.
(Info from JM Herbert.co.uk )
Weigh Anchor..
Weigh anchor..
When I first saw this huge anchor on the Isle of Raasay I assumed it was from some sort of German battleship as German POWs where used to work the iron mine during the first World war..
But not so..
After much digging around on the "wide eyed web" I came up with this story..
Alongside of the harbour, there lies a huge anchor. On inspecting this it raised a few questions as there is what would appear to be a Swastika on the left palm, however, as the Swastika as a German symbol is post WW1 it obviously did not relate to the German prisoners working at the mine. The problem was solved by some Google sleuthing, and it goes something like this: The anchor was made in Sunderland and was laid just off the pier around 1900 to keep the iron ore boats off the pier whilst loading. As the hopper on the pier did not move the boats were moved under it using the anchors. The "swastika", or in geometric terms an irregular icosagon or 20-sided polygon, has been around as a symbol for thousands of years, particularly as a Hindu symbol in the holy texts, to mean luck, Brahma or samsara (rebirth).
W L Byers of Sunderland, the manufactures of the anchor often used the swastika as a symbol on their anchors, the Royal Museum at Greenwich actually sells a print of one of Byers anchors with the said swastika shown on the palms of the anchor.
(Info from JM Herbert.co.uk )