Church consecration marks and apotropaic symbols in houses
- dc0836
- Oct 7
- 2 min read
The idea of consecration crosses on buildings was originally to purify pagan temples during the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity. The process of consecration meant making an indelible mark on the building so that it may never be converted to common or profane uses. This would explain why so many of the crosses that are still in existence today, even though painted are etched into the stone even as can be seen in the image on curved surfaces.
What has struck me is the similarity to daisy wheel apotropaic marks. It would make perfect sense for one to see a symbol of holy protection in a church and therefore replicate it in your own home. Do we not do that with the symbol of the crucifixion cross today? My wife and daughter both have St Christopher necklaces.
One thing the consecration marks I have found seem to have in common is the double surrounding circle which doesn’t seem to appear on apotropaic daisy wheels (although one I found in a neighbour’s house has the remnants of an out circle see attached image) I would be interested to see images of any that you find that have double circles.
In revelations 19:12 Jesus Christs eyes are described as a flame of fire to convey that nothing is hidden from his sight. Fire refines and purifies, it burns away coverings revealing what is underneath symbolising Gods’ ability to see into the depths of every human soul. Perhaps the taper marks we find in houses are evidence that the occupiers’ souls have been seen by God and therefore evil spirits upon seeing the burn marks are discouraged from entering?
Until we find primary evidence of why these marks were created, we are in a loop of speculation with the best theories based on the balance of probabilities.
What do you think?
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