Why does the heart symbol look like this if the human heart actually looks like this?
And why do we believe that the heart is the epicenter of love?
Whether they’re filled with chocolate and love notes, punctuating your text messages,
or popping out of cartoon characters’ bulging eyes, hearts are pretty much everywhere…
Or they will be until all of the half priced candy sales on February 15th.
But considering the heart symbol looks almost nothing like an actual heart and we’ve known
what the heart looks like anatomically since around the time of Aristotle, we thought this
would be the prime time to ask:
When did the heart symbol emerge?
And what are some theories surrounding its unusual shape?
Well according to Evan Andrews at the history channel, there are lots of origin stories
of this funny little shape that’s a poor man's imitation of its anatomical cousin.
For example, the heart shape is rumored to be modelled off of other less...loving anatomy.
Namely the shape of breasts and buttocks.
But I guess it sounds more romantic to say, “You’ll always be in my heart” rather
than belting out the lyrics to "My butt will go on..."
Other theories about the heart pictogram say that it’s not modelled after human body
parts at all, but actually draws its inspiration from nature.
The heart shape is thought to be a depiction of the shape of ivy leaves which are also
connected to symbols of fidelity.
Others theorize the heart shape is connected to Silphium.
Silphium (or silphion) is a type of big fennel plant that hails from the ancient North African
city of Cyrene located in modern day Libya.
And though you’ve probably never heard of it, silphium used to be considered as valuable
as gold.
It had many uses that ranged from being a medicinal plant, being eaten raw or prepared
as a high cuisine condiment, or as a crucial herb in the bedroom with applications as a
speculated aphrodisiac… and also as a potential early method of contraception.
You know, for the lustier sides of love.
But don’t rush off to use this for everything from wooing your love interest to curing dog
bites, since this plant may very well be extinct and, as a result, none of these uses are exactly
verifiable today.
But it’s silphium seeds and their peculiar shape that brings us back to our old friend the
heart symbol.
When Cyrene was under Greek and later Roman control, silphium was in great demand.
Greeks printed pictures of the seeds on their money and Julius Caesar is even rumored to
have stored a secret stash of silphium in his treasury (approximately 1,500lbs).
Plus since songs and verse waxing poetic about silphium existed when it was in its heyday
and before it vanished, although the jury is still out on that one, there are theories
that the shape of its seeds are where we actually draw the inspiration for the iconic heart.
But some scholars aren’t entirely convinced that the heart shaped symbol is such a giant
departure from the actual anatomical heart, So that leads us to our next question:
Is the heart symbol actually that different from the human heart?
In his book Christ to Coke: How Image Becomes Icon, art historian Martin Kemp notes that
saying the heart symbol is a huge departure from an anatomical heart really depends on
how you look at it...and which kind of heart you’re looking at.
Kemp notes:
"First, what a heart looks like depends on what kind of heart is being studied, human
or animal, and what we count as the main body of the heart.
Let us say we cut out a pig’s heart, severing the aorta, pulmonary artery, and vena cava.
We then cut away the untidy bits at the top that seem not to belong to the main muscle-y
mass of the heart (though leaving the two auricles in place), and we end up with something
that can, in its untidy, fleshy, and rather asymmetrical way, be reconciled without too
much special pleading with the heart-shape."
So if we hack into a heart with all the tender loving care of a high school science dissection
(or a serial killer) then it’s a bit easier to imagine how this big muscular lump in our
chest can also somewhat resemble the heart shape.
Maybe...but don’t try this at home.
Also Kemp argues that some mixed up anatomical assumptions by ancient philosophers, may have
contributed to the familiar bumps on top of the heart symbol.
He notes that Aristotle and Alexandrian philosopher and anatomist Galen described the heart as
having a fovea (or a small depression) between the heart’s 2 main chambers.
And this little dip influenced some of the earliest attempts at drawing human hearts.
And Galen had a lot to say about the functions of the heart, which he said kept the body
warm, and operated like a muscular furnace, because “...no other instrument performs
such continuous hard work as the heart.”
But he still thought that the heart was still more of a back up singer, with the liver playing
the lead role in the functions of the body.
Aristotle on the other hand thought that the heart is “The very starting-point of the
vessels, and the actual seat of the force by which the blood is first fabricated.”
And even though that's not true, today we now know how vital hearts are to keeping your
bodies healthy and...well alive.
So either way you slice it outside of love related metaphors, the heart is an incredibly
vital organ.
And considering the number of love songs, artworks, memes, poems, and literature that
give hearts a shout out, it might be safe to say the heart is the hardest working organ
in show business.
So how does it all add up?
While the heart symbol may trace back to ivy leaves representing fidelity or a fennel plant
panacea, it could also have drawn some inspiration from its anatomical doppelganger.
Kemp also argues that increased knowledge about the actual shape of the human heart
through medical exploration and scientific drawings into the 1600s, could have had an
influence of the iconic heart symbol today.
But why do we associate the heart with love?
Well the heart and the idea of the heart as the central part of human emotions, feelings,
ethics, personality, and love have also been used metaphorically throughout history and
across cultures.
Hearts can have meanings that encompass sincerity or something that is vital and essential.
Which makes a lot of sense, since if those tickers stop ticking you probably have a lot
bigger problems on your hands than whether or not you have a date for February 14th.
So it’s easy to see how the logical arc of the heart being something that is vital
led to it being wed to ideas of love.
So what do you think?
What are some alternate meanings of both the heart as a metaphor and the heart symbol?
Add your findings below, remember all you need is love, and we'll see you next week!
Thank you for all of your questions and comments last week on the story of Rosa Parks!
And a special shout out to our viewers Grace Gordon and Dawn Duranleau on Facebook and
Madam BFG, EAE, and Michael Vipperman on YouTube for your suggestions for new episode topics
and ideas!
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