176 TREES IN NATURE, MYTH & ART 



of the divine ' Stablisher ' inherent in the ma- 

 terial." 



A remarkable example of such a columnar 

 idol is the famous Gate of the Lions at Mycenae, 

 so called because on a triangular slab of stone 

 over the gateway lintel is carved a column with 

 a lion at each side of it. The column has a 

 capital, and showing above it are imitations in 

 stone of the ends of tree-stems used as a roof 

 Mr. Evans says, *'the divinity here is *the 

 pillar of Mycenae ' even as Hector is described 

 by Pindar as 'the pillar of Troy'". Gems 

 discovered at Mycenae and elsewhere have 

 carved on them representations of both pillars 

 and trees with animal supporters. What has 

 been said in an earlier chapter about imitative 

 magic, in which resemblance between things 

 was believed to be sufficient for the production 

 of identical results, will readily enable us to 

 understand that the stone pillar was but a 

 substitute for the tree-trunk. We have already 

 seen that the sacred tree and the sacred pillar 

 are widely found in close association. And 

 the architectural column, and not merely the 

 free-standing tree-trunk or stone pillar, has 

 been worshipped as having the spirit dwelling 



