Raven, Rook & Crow Motifs
Prophet, or bad omen? Raven and crow motifs carry ancient symbolism—in different cultures and at different times associated with evil but also rebirth, darkness and (in Chinese mythology) the sun, spiritual strength and yet death.
Given their continued association with witchcraft and the darkness of Poe, it’s surprising to see the black birds depicted as decorative motifs. (For the record: Crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, and magpies are of the Corvid family; blackbirds are thrushes.)
Then again, the raven (a larger relative of the crow) symbolizes gratitude and affection, wisdom, longevity, and fertility. The crow is a symbol of Christian solitude. Maybe most compelling, these birds in alchemy represent change. Intelligent and mysterious, they are blessed with keen sight.
Ravens and rooks show up often as a decorative motif in works of the Arts & Crafts movement and its revival.
See them silhouetted or socializing in block prints, sculpted into tile and pottery, repeated in wallpaper designs, and depicted in the era’s metalwork and art glass.
Patricia Poore is Editor-in-chief of Old House Journal and Arts & Crafts Homes, as well as editorial director at Active Interest Media’s Home Group, overseeing New Old House, Traditional Building, and special-interest publications.
Poore joined Old House Journal when it was a Brooklyn-brownstoner newsletter in the late 1970s. She became owner and publisher and, except for the years 2002–2013, has been its editor. Poore founded the magazines Old-House Interiors (1995–2013) and Early Homes (2004–2017); their content is now available online and folded into Old-House Journal’s wider coverage. Poore also created GARBAGE magazine (1989–1994), the first unaffiliated environmental consumer magazine.
Poore has participated, hands-on, in several restorations, including her own homes: a 1911 brownstone in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and a 1904 Tudor–Shingle Style house in Gloucester, Massachusetts, where she brought up her boys and their wonderful dogs.