Route Paris 2024: Olympic mascots

At every Olympic Games, commerce is important and leads to, among other things, the sale of Olympic mascots. Do you know the mascots of previous Olympic Games, for example, the brown bear (1980), the bald eagle (1984), the Siberian tiger (1988), Cobi (1992), and Robot (2020)? This year, Paris has chosen the Phrygian cap. What do you know about the history of this mascot and its relationship with freedom?

Phrygian cap

Later, the Phrygian cap became characteristic of the Iranians and Thracians. The Persian hero Mithras, who was also worshipped in the Roman Empire, was always depicted wearing such a cap. In early depictions, the Biblical Three Kings are often shown wearing a Phrygian cap. This may indicate that, in the artist's perception, they came from Persia. Orientals were recognized by the wearing of trousers and a cap. The ancient Greeks viewed the Phrygian cap—just like the trousers—as typical of barbarians (non-Greeks) and invariably depicted them with a Phrygian cap on their heads. The Macedonians (considered barbarians by the Greeks) adopted the cap from the Thracians and wore it during their campaigns under Alexander the Great to Bactria. In the Roman Empire, the Phrygian cap was worn by freed slaves and their descendants. This is often seen as the origin of the use of the cap as a symbol of freedom.  

The French embraced the cap

 

Liberty leads the people

Liberty Leading the People (French: La Liberté guidant le peuple) is a painting by the French painter Eugène Delacroix. It depicts Liberty as Marianne, the national symbol of France, leading the revolutionaries during the July Revolution of 1830. It is painted in oil. The canvas measures 260 by 325 centimeters.

This is one of the most famous and imitated paintings in the history of French painting. The scene depicts the well-known allegory of liberty: the woman (referencing older methods of allegory representation) with a bare torso (nudity as a sign of vulnerability — and thus courage — in contrast to the horrific events unfolding). The woman (Marianne) wears a Phrygian cap which refers to freedom. To her right, one sees a young boy, referring to youth, who fearlessly holds two pistols. Of the man to her left, who is looking doubtfully into the distance, it is sometimes said that it could be a self-portrait of Delacroix, although this is not certain. Striking features of this painting are the classical composition with a central triangle and the contemporary subject matter, whereas many Romantics often looked back to the past. This painting demonstrates that the three classes (clergy, nobility, and bourgeoisie) were in favor of the revolution, as the three estates are present alongside the woman. All estates are therefore resisting the established order. The flag the woman is holding is also not just any French flag. It was the new flag with three colors representing liberty, equality, and fraternity. The previous symbol of France was the French Lily. Marianne She is the national personification of France. She holds a place of honor in city halls and courts. She symbolizes the 'Triumph of the Republic', Liberty, and Reason, and is as such an manifestation of the goddess of liberty. Her statue stands on the Place de la Nation in Paris. Marianne often wears a Phrygian cap, the distinguishing mark of a freed slave in the Roman Republic. On French medals, the winged Gallic helmet competes with the Phrygian cap as a headdress, where images of Marianne were featured as the symbol of the French Republic. Her profile appears on the country's official coat of arms and on French euro coins and stamps. She also appeared on French coins and banknotes. As a symbol of the French Republic, she is also depicted on French chivalric orders.  

<strong> More info: </strong>

2024 Olympic Games: https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024 TeamNL: https://www.teamnl.org/ NOS and Paris 2024: https://nos.nl/parijs2024 Previous Olympic Games blogs: OS 2024: https://www.postzegelblog.nl/tag/route-paris-2024/ OS 2020: https://www.postzegelblog.nl/tag/olympische-spelen-2020/