Symbols

I'm ashamed to admit it, but I worked just around the corner from this door for 7 years and it was only after I quit that job that I noticed this door!! OK, to be fair to myself, I wasn't as 'into' doors at that time AND that street is really narrow so those many times that I walked by it, I had my head tucked down or was watching for traffic. What is important is that I did finally see it!! This is some kind of a side door to what is now a bank, though I think it was always a bank OR it was an insurance company. Either way, the building this door is on is located on a corner, therefore it is on two streets...this narrow street and a larger street. On the larger street side, this building is an absolute beauty!!! I looked at this building A LOT because it is just so incredible...perhaps for this reason I never noticed this door, but considering that the main side of this building is so beautiful, it isn't at all surprising that this door is.

There are many elements in the frame which carry a great deal of symbolism. Unfortunately, I do not know who's head is depicted at the top center of the arch...surely he was someone important (and maybe will always be), but I don't know who he is. On the other hand, the two babies very likely symbolise innocence and natural simplicity (according to a dictionary of symbols), while the vases symbolise not only the elexir of life but, because they are open at the top, openness to celestial influences. The eagle (or, in this case, eagles) is an often-used and very strong symbol which is often shown in the presence of gods or great men/heros.

In the wrought-iron work, there is a lion with a double tail - this is a famous and long-used Czech symbol that originated in the 13th century when the country had two kings and consisted of two parts - Czechia and Moravia - to symbolise this dual and combined sovereignty, the lion's tail was split into two. Today the symbol of the lion with the split tail is used in a multitude of places and ways, including on the country's coins and paper money.

Now, as for my personal analysis of this door! The door itself, though cold and uninviting, is still pretty with it's delicate decorations consisting of flowers, bands, and a delicate repeating border. I find the diamond-shaped sneak-a-peek window charming and the discrete mail slot endearing! I like the eagles in the arch and appreciate how they are not mirrors of each other, but unique in both the positioning of their wings and their feet. The wrought-iron work is admirable, but I don't think I will ever understand the practice of putting the strange dwarf-like faces in the designs...what could that mean?