The Heart Shape

2/05/2008 01:03:00 PM Posted by noel

Have you ever wondered where the heart shape came from? It's so different from the shape of our own hearts and I'm sure our ancestors were not that ignorant about it. Before the invention of guns, they used to kill and slaughter in battles (bring me his head/heart!). So I'm sure they were aware of how the human heart looks like.


So what are the myths of the heart shape origin? Here are some:

1. the inverted shape of the naked female buttocks;
2. the shape formed when a naked woman folds her hands together in front of her - her breasts making the two rounded bumps on top, coming down to a V in her cleavage;
3. cow's heart;
4. turtle's heart;
5. male's prostrate gland;
6. the double humps atop a stylized heart vaguely recall a human penis head's shape;
7. seed of the silphium plant that was used as birth control;
8. female's pubic mound;
9. the silhouette of two people kissing.

The image below illustrates #9. Although the people kissing seemed to already have run out of breath.

1 comments:

  1. Anonymous said...

    thought it was because of the shape two human hearts make when put together. must have been done quite a lot through the ages. in burial-rituals. googling for it, but astonishingly (to me)I can`t find the same theory anywhere. from your list i like the headshapes best. the silphium-seed is the most common one. i hope its not the truth. boring birth of a symbol. plantseed. urgh.