Labyrinth - wikipedia Labyrinth For other uses, see Labyrinth ( disambiguation ). This article contains special characters. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols. Silver coin from Knossos representing the Labyrinth, 400 BC. In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth ( Greek : Λαβύρινθος labyrinthos ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the hero Theseus. Daedalus had so cunningly made the Labyrinth that he could barely escape it after he built it. Although early Cretan coins occasionally exhibit branching ( multicursal ) patterns, the single - path ( unicursal ) seven - course `` Classical '' design without branching or dead ends became associated with the Labyrinth on coins as early as 430 BC, and similar non-branching patterns became widely used as visual representations of the Labyrinth -- even though both logic and literary descriptions make it clear that the Minotaur was trapped in a complex branching maze. Even as the designs became more elaborate, visual depictions of the mythological Labyrinth from Roman times until the Renaissance are almost invariably unicursal. Branching mazes were reintroduced only when garden mazes became popular during the Renaissance. In English, the term labyrinth is generally synonymous with maze. As a result of the long history of unicursal representation of the mythological Labyrinth, however, many contemporary scholars and enthusiasts observe a distinction between the two. In this specialized usage maze refers to a complex branching multicursal puzzle with choices of path and direction, while a unicursal labyrinth has only a single path to the center. A labyrinth in this sense has an unambiguous route to the center and back and presents no navigational challenge. Unicursal labyrinths appeared as designs on pottery or basketry, as body art, and in etchings on walls of caves or churches. The Romans created many primarily decorative unicursal designs on walls and floors in tile or mosaic. Many labyrinths set in floors or on the ground are large enough that the path can be walked. Unicursal patterns have been used historically both in group ritual and for private meditation, and are increasingly found for therapeutic use in hospitals and hospices. Contents 1 Ancient labyrinths 1.1 Cretan labyrinth 1.2 Herodotus ' Egyptian labyrinth 1.3 Pliny 's Lemnian labyrinth 1.4 Pliny 's Italian labyrinth 1.5 Ancient labyrinths outside Europe 2 Labyrinth as pattern 3 Medieval labyrinths and turf mazes 4 Modern labyrinths 4.1 Cultural meanings 4.2 Christian use 5 Gallery 6 See also 7 Notes 8 References 9 External links Ancient labyrinths This section possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( November 2012 ) Labyrinth is a word of pre-Greek, Minoan origin, which the Greeks associated with the palace of Knossos in Crete. It is also widely associated with the Lydian word labrys ( `` double - edged axe '' ), and since the double axe motif appears in the ruins at Knossos, it has been suggested that the original labyrinth was the royal Minoan palace in Crete. This designation may not have been limited to Knossos, because the same symbols were discovered in other palaces in Crete. Labrys was a cult - word that was probably introduced from Anatolia, where such symbols have been found in Çatal Höyük from the Neolithic age. In Labraunda of Caria the double - axe accompanies the storm - god Zeus Labraundos ( Ζεὺς Λαβρανδεύς ). It also accompanies the Hurrian god of sky and storm Teshub ( his Hittite and Luwian name was Tarhun ). Labrys, however, comes from Lydian, not Minoan, and the association of labyrinth with labrys remains speculative. The Linear B ( Mycenaean ) inscription 𐀅𐁆𐀪𐀵𐀍 𐄀 𐀡𐀴𐀛𐀊 on tablet ΚΝ Gg 702 is interpreted as da - pu - ri - to - jo, po - ti - ni - ja ( labyrinthoio potnia, `` Mistress of the labyrinth ). The word daburinthos ( labyrinthos ) may show the same equivocation between initial d - and l - as is found in the variation of the early Hittite royal name Tabarna / Labarna ( where written t - may represent phonetic d - ). The original Minoan word, which is attested in Linear A tablets, appears to refer to labyrinthine underground grottoes, such as seen at Gortyn. Pliny the Elder 's four examples of labyrinths are all complex underground structures, and this appears to have been the standard Classical understanding of the word. By the 4th century BC, the Greeks also associated the Labyrinth with the familiar `` Greek key '' patterns of endlessly running meanders. Coins from Knossos were struck with the labyrinth symbol in the 5th through 3rd centuries BC. The predominant labyrinth form during this period is the simple seven - circuit style known as the classical labyrinth, and over time the term labyrinth came to be applied to any unicursal maze, which were typically rendered as circular or rectangular patterns. Cretan labyrinth When the Bronze Age site at Knossos was excavated by explorer Arthur Evans, the complexity of the architecture prompted him to suggest that the palace had been the Labyrinth of Daedalus. Evans found various bull motifs, including an image of a man leaping over the horns of a bull, as well as depictions of a labrys carved into the walls. On the strength of a passage in the Iliad, it has been suggested that the palace was the site of a dancing - ground made for Ariadne by the craftsman Daedalus, where young men and women, of the age of those sent to Crete as prey for the Minotaur, would dance together. By extension, in popular legend the palace is associated with the myth of the Minotaur. In the 2000s, archaeologists explored other potential sites of the labyrinth. Oxford University geographer Nicholas Howarth believes that ' Evans 's hypothesis that the palace of Knossos is also the Labyrinth must be treated sceptically. ' Howarth and his team conducted a search of an underground complex known as the Skotino cave but concluded that it was formed naturally. Another contender is a series of underground tunnels at Gortyn, accessed by a narrow crack but expanding into interlinking caverns. Unlike the Skotino cave, these caverns have smooth walls and columns, and appear to have been at least partially man - made. This site corresponds to an unusual labyrinth symbol on a 16th - century map of Crete contained in a book of maps in the library of Christ Church, Oxford. A map of the caves themselves was produced by the French in 1821. The site was also used by German soldiers to store ammunition during the Second World War. Howarth 's investigation was shown on a documentary produced for the National Geographic Channel. Herodotus ' Egyptian labyrinth More generally, labyrinth might be applied to any extremely complicated maze - like structure. Herodotus, in Book II of his Histories, describes as a `` labyrinth '' a building complex in Egypt, `` near the place called the City of Crocodiles, '' that he considered to surpass the pyramids : It has twelve covered courts -- six in a row facing north, six south -- the gates of the one range exactly fronting the gates of the other. Inside, the building is of two storeys and contains three thousand rooms, of which half are underground, and the other half directly above them. I was taken through the rooms in the upper storey, so what I shall say of them is from my own observation, but the underground ones I can speak of only from report, because the Egyptians in charge refused to let me see them, as they contain the tombs of the kings who built the labyrinth, and also the tombs of the sacred crocodiles. The upper rooms, on the contrary, I did actually see, and it is hard to believe that they are the work of men ; the baffling and intricate passages from room to room and from court to court were an endless wonder to me, as we passed from a courtyard into rooms, from rooms into galleries, from galleries into more rooms and thence into yet more courtyards. The roof of every chamber, courtyard, and gallery is, like the walls, of stone. The walls are covered with carved figures, and each court is exquisitely built of white marble and surrounded by a colonnade. During the 19th century, the remains of this structure were discovered by Flinders Petrie at the foot of the pyramid of Amenemhat III at Hawara in the Faiyum Oasis. The Classical accounts of various authors ( Herodotus, Strabo, Pliny the Elder, among others ) are not entirely consistent, perhaps due to degradation of the structure during Classical times. In origin, the structure was likely a collection of funerary temples such as are commonly found near Egyptian pyramids. In 1898, the Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities described the structure as `` the largest of all the temples of Egypt, the so - called Labyrinth, of which, however, only the foundation stones have been preserved. '' Herodotus ' description of the Egyptian Labyrinth inspired some central scenes in Bolesław Prus ' 1895 historical novel, Pharaoh. Pliny 's Lemnian labyrinth Pliny the Elder 's Natural History ( 36.90 ) lists the legendary Smilis, reputed to be a contemporary of Daedalus, together with the historical mid-sixth - century BC architects and sculptors Rhoikos and Theodoros as two of the makers of the Lemnian labyrinth, which Andrew Stewart regards as `` evidently a misunderstanding of the Samian temple 's location en limnais ( ' in the marsh ' ). '' Pliny 's Italian labyrinth According to Pliny, the tomb of the great Etruscan general Lars Porsena contained an underground maze. Pliny 's description of the exposed portion of the tomb is intractable ; Pliny, it seems clear, had not observed this structure himself, but is quoting the historian and Roman antiquarian Varro. Ancient labyrinths outside Europe Carving showing the warrior Abhimanyu entering the chakravyuha -- Hoysaleswara temple, Halebidu, India A design essentially identical to the 7 - course `` classical '' pattern appeared in Native American culture, the Tohono O'odham people labyrinth which features I'itoi, the `` Man in the Maze. '' The Tonoho O'odham pattern has two distinct differences from the classical : it is radial in design, and the entrance is at the top, where traditional labyrinths have the entrance at the bottom ( see below ). The earliest appearances can not be dated securely ; the oldest is commonly dated to the 17th century. A prehistoric petroglyph on a riverbank in Goa shows the same pattern and has been dated to circa 2500 BC. Other examples have been found among cave art in northern India and on a dolmen shrine in the Nilgiri Mountains, but are difficult to date accurately. Early labyrinths in India typically follow the Classical pattern or a local variant of it ; some have been described as plans of forts or cities. Labyrinths appear in Indian manuscripts and Tantric texts from the 17th century onward. They are often called `` Chakravyuha '' in reference to an impregnable battle formation described in the ancient Mahabharata epic. Lanka, the capital city of mythic Rāvana, is described as a labyrinth in the 1910 translation of Al - Beruni 's India ( c. 1030 AD ) p. 306 ( with a diagram on the following page ). By the White Sea, notably on the Solovetsky Islands, there have been preserved more than 30 stone labyrinths. The most remarkable monument is the Stone labyrinths of Bolshoi Zayatsky Island - a group of 13 -- 14 stone labyrinths on 0.4 km area of one small island. These labyrinths are thought to be 2,000 -- 3,000 years old. Labyrinth as pattern In antiquity, the less complicated labyrinth pattern familiar from medieval examples was already developed. In Roman floor mosaics, the simple classical labyrinth is framed in the meander border pattern, squared off as the medium requires, but still recognisable. Often an image of the Minotaur appears in the center of these mosaic labyrinths. Roman meander patterns gradually developed in complexity towards the fourfold shape that is now familiarly known as the medieval form. The labyrinth retains its connection with death and a triumphant return : at Hadrumentum in North Africa ( now Sousse ), a Roman family tomb has a fourfold labyrinth mosaic floor with a dying minotaur in the center and a mosaic inscription : HICINCLUSUS. VITAMPERDIT `` Enclosed here, he loses life '' ( Kern 169 ; Kerényi fig. 31 ). Earliest recovered labyrinth, incised on a clay tablet from Pylos Minotaur in Labyrinth -- a Roman mosaic at Conímbriga, Portugal Sketch by Villard de Honnecourt ( c. 1230 ) Wall maze in Lucca Cathedral, Italy ( probably medieval ) Illustration of Jericho in a Farhi Bible ( 14th century ) Basilica of Saint - Quentin, Aisne, France Cathedral of Amiens, France Stone labyrinth on Blå Jungfrun ( Blue Virgin ) island, Sweden Small turf maze near Dalby, North Yorkshire, UK Turf maze at Wing in Rutland, UK Play media Cretan labyrinth made with 2,500 burning tealights in the Centre for Christian Meditation and Spirituality of the Diocese of Limburg at the Holy Cross Church in Frankfurt am Main - Bornheim Portrait of a man with labyrinth design on his chest, by Bartolomeo Veneto, Italy, early 16th century Minotaur at center of labyrinth, on a 16th - century gem Labyrinth at St. Lambertus, Mingolsheim, Germany, following the Roman paradigm Hemet Maze Stone, a prehistoric petroglyph near Hemet, California Third century Roman mosaic labyrinth, Caerleon on Usk, Wales. Medieval labyrinths and turf mazes Chartres Cathedral, about 1750, Jean Baptiste Rigaud When the early humanist Benzo d'Alessandria visited Verona before 1310, he noted the `` Laberinthum which is now called the Arena '' ; perhaps he was seeing the cubiculi beneath the arena 's missing floor. The full flowering of the medieval labyrinth came about from the twelfth through fourteenth centuries with the grand pavement labyrinths of the gothic cathedrals, notably Chartres, Reims and Amiens in northern France. These labyrinths may have originated as symbolic allusion to the Holy City ; and some modern thinkers have theorized that prayers and devotions may have accompanied the perambulation of their intricate paths. Although some books ( in particular guidebooks ) suggest that the mazes on cathedral floors served as substitutes for pilgrimage paths, the earliest attested use of the phrase `` chemin de Jerusalem '' ( path to Jerusalem ) dates to the late 18th century when it was used to describe mazes at Reims and Saint - Omer. The accompanying ritual, supposedly involving pilgrims following the maze on their knees while praying, may have been practiced at Chartres during the 17th century. However, no contemporary evidence supports the idea that labyrinths had such a purpose for early Christians. The cathedral labyrinths are thought to be the inspiration for the many turf mazes in the UK, such as survive at Wing, Hilton, Alkborough, and Saffron Walden. Over the same general period, some 500 or more non-ecclesiastical labyrinths were constructed in Scandinavia. These labyrinths, generally in coastal areas, are marked out with stones, most often in the simple 7 - or 11 - course classical forms. They often have names which translate as `` Troy Town. '' They are thought to have been constructed by fishing communities : trapping malevolent trolls or winds in the labyrinth 's coils might ensure a safe fishing expedition. There are also stone labyrinths on the Isles of Scilly, although none is known to date from before the nineteenth century. There are examples of labyrinths in many disparate cultures. The symbol has appeared in various forms and media ( petroglyphs, classic - form, medieval - form, pavement, turf, and basketry ) at some time throughout most parts of the world, from Native North and South America to Australia, Java, India, and Nepal. Modern labyrinths This section possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( November 2012 ) Labyrinth on floor of Grace Cathedral, San Francisco. In recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in labyrinths and a revival in labyrinth building, of both unicursal and multicursal patterns. In modern imagery, the labyrinth of Daedalus is often represented by a multicursal maze, in which one may become lost. The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges was entranced with the idea of the labyrinth, and used it extensively in his short stories ( such as `` The House of Asterion '' in The Aleph ). His use of it has inspired other authors ( e.g. Umberto Eco 's The Name of the Rose, Mark Z. Danielewski 's House of Leaves ). Additionally, Roger Zelazny 's fantasy series, The Chronicles of Amber, features a labyrinth, called `` the Pattern, '' which grants those who walk it the power to move between parallel worlds. The avant - garde multi-screen film, In the Labyrinth, presents a search for meaning in a symbolic modern labyrinth. In Rick Riordan 's series Percy Jackson & the Olympians, the events of the fourth novel The Battle of the Labyrinth predominantly take place within the labyrinth of Daedalus, which has followed the heart of the West to settle beneath the United States. Australian author Sara Douglass incorporated some labyrinthine ideas in her series The Troy Game, in which the Labyrinth on Crete is one of several in the ancient world, created with the cities as a source of magical power. Lawrence Durrell 's The Dark Labyrinth depicts travelers trapped underground in Crete. A magical labyrinth, based on the original myth, appears in the third episode of The Librarians ( `` And The Horns of a Dilemma '' ). The labyrinth is also treated in contemporary fine arts. Examples include Piet Mondrian 's Dam and Ocean ( 1915 ), Joan Miró 's Labyrinth ( 1923 ), Pablo Picasso 's Minotauromachia ( 1935 ), M.C. Escher 's Relativity ( 1953 ), Friedensreich Hundertwasser 's Labyrinth ( 1957 ), Jean Dubuffet 's Logological Cabinet ( 1970 ), Richard Long 's Connemara sculpture ( 1971 ), Joe Tilson 's Earth Maze ( 1975 ), Richard Fleischner 's Chain Link Maze ( 1978 ), István Orosz 's Atlantis Anamorphosis ( 2000 ), Dmitry Rakov 's Labyrinth ( 2003 ), and drawings by contemporary American artist Mo Morales employing what the artist calls `` Labyrinthine projection. '' The Italian painter Davide Tonato has dedicated many of his artistic works to the labyrinth theme. Mark Wallinger has created a set of 270 enamel plaques of unicursal labyrinth designs, one for every tube station in the London Underground, to mark the 150th anniversary of the Underground. The plaques were installed over a 16 - month period in 2013 and 2014, and each is numbered according to its position in the route taken by the contestants in the 2009 Guinness World Record Tube Challenge. Labyrinths and mazes have been embraced by the video game industry, and countless video games include such a feature. Cultural meanings Prehistoric labyrinths may have served as traps for malevolent spirits or as paths for ritual dances. Many Roman and Christian labyrinths appear at the entrances of buildings, suggesting that they may have served a similar apotropaic purpose. In their cross-cultural study of signs and symbols, Patterns that Connect, Carl Schuster and Edmund Carpenter present various forms of the labyrinth and suggest various possible meanings, including not only a sacred path to the home of a sacred ancestor, but also, perhaps, a representation of the ancestor him / herself :. ``... many ( New World ) Indians who make the labyrinth regard it as a sacred symbol, a beneficial ancestor, a deity. In this they may be preserving its original meaning : the ultimate ancestor, here evoked by two continuous lines joining its twelve primary joints. '' Schuster also observes the common theme of the labyrinth being a refuge for a trickster ; in India, the demon Ravana has dominion over labyrinths, the trickster Djonaha lives in a labyrinth according to Sumatran Bataks, and Europeans say it is the home of a rogue. One can think of labyrinths as symbolic of pilgrimage ; people can walk the path, ascending toward salvation or enlightenment. Author Ben Radford conducted an investigation into some of the claims of spiritual and healing effects of labyrinths, reporting on his findings in his book Mysterious New Mexico. Many labyrinths have been constructed recently in churches, hospitals, and parks. These are often used for contemplation ; walking among the turnings, one loses track of direction and of the outside world, and thus quiets the mind. The Labyrinth Society provides a locator for modern labyrinths all over the world. In addition, the labyrinth can serve as a metaphor for situations that are difficult to be extricated from, as an image that suggests getting lost in a subterranean dungeon - like world. Octavio Paz titled his book on Mexican identity The Labyrinth of Solitude, describing the Mexican condition as orphaned and lost. Christian use Walking the labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral Labyrinths have on various occasions been used in Christian tradition as a part of worship. The earliest known example is from a fourth - century pavement at the Basilica of St Reparatus, at Orleansville, Algeria, with the words `` Sancta Eclesia '' ( sic ) at the center, though it is unclear how it might have been used in worship. In medieval times, labyrinths began to appear on church walls and floors around 1000 C.E.. The most famous medieval labyrinth, with great influence on later practice, was created in Chartres Cathedral. The purpose of the labyrinths is not clear, though there are surviving descriptions of French clerics performing a ritual Easter dance along the path on Easter Sunday. Some books ( guidebooks in particular ) suggest that mazes on cathedral floors originated in the medieval period as alternatives to pilgrimage to the Holy Land, but the earliest attested use of the phrase `` chemin de Jerusalem '' ( path to Jerusalem ) dates to the late 18th century when it was used to describe mazes at Reims and Saint - Omer. The accompanying ritual, depicted in Romantic illustrations as involving pilgrims following the maze on their knees while praying, may have been practiced at Chartres during the 17th century. The use of labyrinths has recently been revived in some contexts of Christian worship. Many churches in Europe and North America have constructed permanent, typically unicursal, labyrinths, or employ temporary ones ( e.g., painted on canvas or outlined with candles ). For example, a labyrinth was set up on the floor of St Paul 's Cathedral for a week in March 2000. Some conservative Christians disapprove of labyrinths, considering them pagan practices or `` new age '' fads. Gallery Classical labyrinth. Labyrinth at Meis, Galicia, possibly from the Atlantic Bronze Age Roman mosaic picturing Theseus and the Minotaur. Rhaetia, Switzerland. Triple spiral labyrinth Medieval labyrinth. Chakravyuha, a threefold seed pattern with a spiral at the center, one of the troop formations employed at the battle of Kurukshetra, as recounted in the Mahabharata. Labyrinth among rock drawings in Valcamonica, Italy See also Caerdroia Celtic maze Hedge maze Julian 's Bower Mizmaze Stone labyrinths of Bolshoi Zayatsky Island Troy Town Turf maze Notes Jump up ^ Doob 1992, p. 36 Jump up ^ Kern, Through the Labyrinth, 2000, item 43, p. 53. Jump up ^ Kern, Through the Labyrinth, 2000, item 50, p. 54. Jump up ^ Penelope Reed Doob, The Idea of the Labyrinth, pp. 40 -- 41. Jump up ^ Kern, Through the Labyrinth, p. 23. Jump up ^ The usage restricting maze to patterns that involve choices of path is mentioned by Matthews ( p. 2 -- 3 ) as early as 1922, though he does not find the distinction useful and does not follow it himself. Jump up ^ Jeff Saward. `` Mazes or Labyrinths ? '' ( PDF ). Labyrinthos. Retrieved 28 Dec 2017. Jump up ^ `` About Labyrinths ''. The Labyrinth Society. Retrieved 18 Sep 2015. Jump up ^ ( Λυδοὶ γάρ ' λάβρυν ' τὸν πέλεκυν ὀνομάζουσι ). Plutarch, Greek Questions, 45 2.302 a. ^ Jump up to : F. Schachermeyer ( 1990 ), Die Minoische Kultur des alten Kreta, pp. 161, 237, 238 Jump up ^ Rouse, W.H.D. ( 1901 ). `` The Double Axe and the Labyrinth ''. Journal of Hellenic Studies. 21 : 268 -- 274. Rouse criticised the association, noting the reappearance of the same inscribed symbols at the newly discovered palace at Phaistos ( p. 273 ). Jump up ^ F. Schachermeyer ( 1964 ) Die Minoische Kultur des alten Kreta. W. Kohlhammer Stuttgart p. 161, Abb. 85 Jump up ^ `` It seems natural to interpret names of Carian sanctuaries like Labranda in the most literal sense as the place of the sacred labrys, which was the Lydian ( or Carian ) name for the Greek πέλεκυς ( pelekys ), or double - edged axe. '' And, p. 109, `` On Carian coins, indeed of quite late date, the labrys, set up on its long pillar - like handle, with two dependent fillets, has much the appearance of a cult image. '' : A.J. Evans, `` Mycenaean tree and pillar cult and its Mediterranean relations, '' Journal of Hellenic Studies XXI, pp 108, 109. Jump up ^ Tarhun Jump up ^ Beekes, Robert S.P. ( 2010 ). Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Leiden, Boston : Brill Academic Publishers. Jump up ^ Raymoure, K.A. `` da - pu2 - ri - to - jo ''. Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B. Deaditerranean. Jump up ^ `` KN 702 Gg ( 1 ) ( 103 ) ''. DĀMOS Database of Mycenaean at Oslo. University of Oslo. Jump up ^ Sarullo, Giulia ( 2008 ). `` The Cretan Labyrinth : Palace or Cave ? ''. Caerdroia. 37 : 31 -- 40. Jump up ^ Kern, Hermann ( 2000 ). `` Chapter III : Ancient `` Labyrinths '' ``. Through the Labyrinth. Munich, New York, London : Prestel. pp. 57 -- 65. ISBN 3791321447. Jump up ^ Kern, Hermann ( 2000 ). `` Chapter II : The Cretan Labyrinth ''. Through the Labyrinth. Munich, New York, London : Prestel. pp. 41 -- 55. ISBN 3791321447. See also Figure 3, p. 34. Jump up ^ Homer. `` Iliad ''. Perseus Digital Library. Tufts University. xviii. 590 - 3. Jump up ^ Miller, Paul Allen ( July 1995 ). `` The Minotaur Within : Fire, the Labyrinth, and Strategies of Containment in Aeneid 5 and 6 ''. Classical Philology. 90 ( 3 ) : 225 -- 240. Jump up ^ `` Furthermore he wrought a green, like that which Daedalus once made in Cnossus for lovely Ariadne. Hereon there danced youths and maidens whom all would woo, with their hands on one another 's wrists. The maidens wore robes of light linen, and the youths well woven shirts that were slightly oiled. There was a bard also to sing to them and play his lyre, while two tumblers went about performing in the midst of them when the man struck up with his tune. '' The Iliad : Transl, by Samuel Butler : ( 1 ) ^ Jump up to : Steve Connor ( 16 October 2009 ). `` Has the original Labyrinth been found ? ''. The Independent. Jump up ^ National Geographic Channel : The Holy Grail ( and the Minotaur ) Archived 1 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ Herodotus, The Histories, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt, Book II, pp. 160 -- 61. Jump up ^ Matthews, p. 13. Jump up ^ Kern 2000, p. 59. Jump up ^ Kern 2000, p. 59. Jump up ^ Peck, Harry Thurston ( chief editor ). `` Hieratic Papyrus. ( Twentieth Dynasty. ) '' in the Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, published 1898, page 29. Jump up ^ Andrew Stewart, One Hundred Greek Sculptors : Their Careers and Extant Works, `` Smilis. '' Jump up ^ Saward, Jeff ( 2003 ). Labyrinths and Mazes. Gaia. p. 70. ISBN 1579905390. Jump up ^ `` Festival on Labyrinth and Symmetry ''. 9th ISIS Congress. 9 September 2013. Jump up ^ Saward, Labyrinths and Mazes, p. 60 -- 61. Jump up ^ Al - Beruni, India, ( c. 1030 AD ), Edward C. Sachau ( translator ), Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co, London, 1910 Online version from Columbia University Libraries ( Retrieved 5 December 2009 ) Jump up ^ `` quod nunc Harena dicitur '' : Roberto Weiss, The Renaissance Discovery of Classical Antiquity 1969 : 25. Jump up ^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. ( 1913 ). `` Labyrinth ''. Catholic Encyclopedia. New York : Robert Appleton Company. ^ Jump up to : Wright, Craig M. ( 2001 ). The maze and the warrior : symbols in architecture, theology, and music. Harvard University Press. p. 210. ISBN 978 - 0 - 674 - 00503 - 7. Jump up ^ Russell, W.M.S. ; Claire Russell ( 1991 ). `` English Turf Mazes, Troy, and the Labyrinth ''. Folklore. Taylor and Francis. 102 ( 1 ) : 77 -- 88. doi : 10.1080 / 0015587x. 1991.9715807. JSTOR 1260358. Jump up ^ Saward, Jeff ( 2003 ). `` Chapter 6 : The Modern Revival ''. Labyrinths and Mazes. Gaia. pp. 179 -- 208. ISBN 1579905390. Jump up ^ Davide Tonato, Labyrinth of Transformations ( edited by Renzo Margonari ), Grafiche Aurora, Verona 1988 Jump up ^ Brown, Mark ( 7 February 2013 ). `` Tube celebrates 150th birthday with labyrinth art project ''. The Guardian. Retrieved 9 February 2013. Jump up ^ Wallinger, Mark ( 2014 ). Labyrinth : A Journey Through London 's Underground. Art Books. ISBN 9781908970169. Retrieved 7 January 2017. Jump up ^ Ruth Mellinkoff, Averting Demons, 2004, Vol. 2, p. 164. ^ Jump up to : Schuster, Carl, & Edmund Carpenter ( 1996 ). Patterns that Connect : Social Symbolism in Ancient & Tribal Art. Harry N. Abrams. p. 307. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8109 - 6326 - 9. Jump up ^ Radford, Ben ( 2014 ). `` Chapter 10 Labyrinths : Sacred Symbols in the Sand ''. Mysterious New Mexico. Albuquerque, NM : University of New Mexico Press. pp. 207 -- 224. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8263 - 5450 - 1. Jump up ^ Labyrinth.Society.org ^ Jump up to : Kern, Hermann ( 2000 ). `` VIII. Church Labyrinths ''. Through the Labyrinth : Designs and Meaning Over 5,000 Years. Prestel. ISBN 978 - 3 - 7913 - 2144 - 8. Jump up ^ Ian Tarrant and Sally Dakin, Labyrinths and Prayer Stations, p 6. Jump up ^ Mark Tooley ( September 2000 ). `` Maze Craze ''. Touchstone Magazine. The Fellowship of St. James. Retrieved December 29, 2016. References Hermann Kern, Through the Labyrinth, ed. Robert Ferré and Jeff Saward, Prestel, 2000, ISBN 3 - 7913 - 2144 - 7. ( This is an English translation of Kern 's original German monograph Labyrinthe published by Prestel in 1982. ) Lauren Artress, Walking a Sacred Path : Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a Spiritual Practice, Penguin Books, 1995, ISBN 1 - 57322 - 007 - 8. Lauren Artress, The Sacred Path Companion : A Guide to Walking the Labyrinth to Heal and Transform, Penguin Books, 2006, ISBN 1 - 59448 - 182 - 2. Doob, Penelope Reed ( 1992 ). The Idea of the Labyrinth : from Classical Antiquity through the Middle Ages. Ithaca : Cornell University Press. ISBN 0 - 80142 - 393 - 7. Herodotus, The Histories, Newly translated and with an introduction by Aubrey de Sélincourt, Harmondsworth, England, Penguin Books, 1965. Karl Kerenyi, Dionysos : Archetypal Image of Indestructible Life, Princeton University Press, 1976. Helmut Jaskolski, The Labyrinth : Symbol of Fear, Rebirth and Liberation, Shambala, 1997. Adrian Fisher & Georg Gerster, The Art of the Maze, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1990. ISBN 0 - 297 - 83027 - 9. Jeff Saward, Labyrinths and Mazes, Gaia Books Ltd, 2003, ISBN 1 - 85675 - 183 - X. Jeff Saward, Magical Paths, Mitchell Beazley, 2002, ISBN 1 - 84000 - 573 - 4. W.H. Matthews, Mazes and Labyrinths : Their History and Development, Longmans, Green & Co., 1922. Includes bibliography. Dover Publications reprint, 1970, ISBN 0 - 486 - 22614 - X. Andrew Stewart, One Hundred Greek Sculptors : Their Careers and Extant Works. Henning Eichberg, `` Racing in the labyrinth ? About some inner contradictions of running. '' In : Athletics, Society & Identity. Imeros, Journal for Culture and Technology, 5 ( 2005 ) : 1. Athen : Foundation of the Hellenic World, 169 - 192. Edward Hays, The Lenten Labyrinth : Daily Reflections for the Journey of Lent, Forest of Peace Publishing, 1994. Carl Schuster and Edmund Carpenter, Patterns that Connect : Social Symbolism in Ancient & Tribal Art, Harry N. Abrams, NY, 1996. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Labyrinth. Saward, Jeff ( 2012 ). `` Labyrinthos ''. Labyrinthos.net. The Labyrinth Society Veriditas -- Spiritual labyrinth organization founded by Lauren Artress. Sunysb.edu, Through Mazes to Mathematics, Exposition by Tony Phillips Astrolog.org, Maze classification, Extensive classification of labyrinths and algorithms to solve them. Irrgartenwelt.de, Lars O. Heintel 's collection of handdrawn labyrinths and mazes Begehbare-labyrinthe.de Website ( in German ) with diagrams and photos of virtually all the public labyrinths in Germany. Mymaze.de, German website ( in German ) and Mymaze.de ( in English ) with descriptions, animations, links, and especially photos of ( mostly European ) labyrinths. Indigogroup.co.uk, British turf labyrinths by Marilyn Clark. Photos and descriptions of the surviving historical turf mazes in Britain. Gwydir.demon.co.uk, Jo Edkins 's Maze Page, an early website providing a clear overview of the territory and suggestions for further study. Gottesformel.ch, `` Die Kretische Labyrinth - Höhle '' by Thomas M. Waldmann, rev. 2009 ( in German ) ( in English ) ( in French ) ( in Greek ). Description of a labyrinthine artificial cave system near Gortyn, Crete, widely considered the original labyrinth on Crete. Spiralzoom.com an educational website about the science of pattern formation, spirals in nature, and spirals in the mythic imagination & labyrinths. Sanu.ac.rs, `` The Geometry of History, '' Tessa Morrison, University of Newcastle, Australia. An attempt to extend Phillips 's topological classification to more general unicursal labyrinths. Labyrinth of Egypt -- Archaeological site reconstruction and 3D diagrams based on the writings of Herodotus and Strabo. Report of expedition to Hawara in 2008 in search of the lost Egyptian Labyrinth of Herodotus. Video and annotation on labyrinths Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Labyrinth&oldid=827077905 '' Categories : Puzzles Mazes Rituals Garden features Locations in Greek mythology History of Crete Land art Fictional sealed locations Hidden categories : Articles containing Ancient Greek - language text Webarchive template wayback links Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference Use dmy dates from July 2012 Articles that may contain original research from November 2012 All articles that may contain original research Articles containing Mycenaean Greek - language text All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from September 2013 Articles with German - language external links Articles with French - language external links Articles with Greek - language external links Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Български Català Čeština Dansk Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto فارسی Galego 한국어 Հայերեն עברית Latina Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Occitan Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча Polski Português Qaraqalpaqsha Română Scots Sicilianu Simple English Slovenščina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் ไทย Türkçe Zazaki 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 22 February 2018, at 17 : 15. 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Question: who designed the labyrinth that houses the minotaur
Answer: the legendary artificer Daedalus