Overview of the Symbolic

Jachin and Boaz Pillars

jwr47

Symbolism in the Magdeburg cathedral

Having investigated the color symbolism in the Mainz cathedral (911AD) and Wrzburg cathedral
(initiated 787AD) I visited the ancient Magdeburg cathedral, which officially is called the
Cathedral of Saints Catherine and Maurice. The church had been initiated 937AD and extended to
a cathedral from 1209 1520.
Fron tht 10th century the Wrzburg cathedral had been equipped with two pillars labeled Iachin
and Boaz, in which Iachin clearly carries some traces of red paint. These pillars are not located at
their original positions.
The main entrance of the Mainz cathedral is equipped with a pair of pillars, in which the right pillar
is red and the left pillar is dark gray / blueish black1.
At the end of 2015 I investigated the Magdeburg cathedral for color symbolism in the pillar pairs
and found some interesting combinations.

Red and blue pillars at the main entrance hall

Immediately behind the closed fence (dated 1498 AD) of the main entrance hall there is a red
column at the right side.

1: fence (dated 1498 AD) of the main entrance hall of the Magdeburg cathedral

1 In this report all orientations labeled right and left refer to the position as viewed while entering the building by
the main gate and walking to the altar.

I photographed the columns from outside the fence. In this section the original decorations at the
walls and ceiling seem to be unaltered.

2: Blue Pillar (left)

3: Red Pillar (right)

Pillars behind the rood screen of the Magdeburg cathedral

Immediately behind the rood screen of the Magdeburg cathedral another pair of pillars seemed to be
colored red & blue.
The red pillar is found on the right side behind the rood screen near the statue of Saint Maurice (ca.
1250 AD), whereas the blue pillar is located at he left side behind the rood screen near the statue of
Saint Catherine (ca. 1250 AD). Saint Maurice and Saint Catherine have been positioned in opposite
positions.
The pillars are located next to the grave of Emperor Otto I the Great (912 973), whose tomb has
been included at the bottom of the photographs.

4: Blue pillar (left)

5: red pillar (right)

St. Maurice (red) and St. Catherine (blue/red) at the Magdeburg cathedral
The following pair of photographs depict St. Maurice (dressed in red) respectively St. Catherine
(dressed in a blue dress and red robe) In the far background their corresponding pillars (red
respectively blue) are shown as well.

6: St. Maurice (red robe)

7: St. Catherine (blue dress and red robe)

Overview of color and pillar symbolism

I compared these symbolic objects with my identified equivalents in the Mainz cathedral (911AD)
and Wrzburg cathedral.
The rood screen separated the holy area from the ordinary (illiterate) people, who might have a
remote sight through the grid in the entrance door to the rood screen.
Cathedral

Location

Left

Right

Magdeburg cathedral

main entrance hall

Blue pillar

Red pillar

Magdeburg cathedral

behind the rood screen

Blue pillar

Red pillar

Magdeburg cathedral

behind the rood screen

St. Catherine
(dressed in blue & red)

St. Maurice
(dressed in red)

Mainz cathedral

main entrance pillars

Slate gray pillar

(blueish black)

Red pillar

Wrzburg cathedral

Between 1230 and 1644

the pillars labeled Booz
and Jachin2 had been
located at the main
entrance of the Wrzburg
Kilian-cathedral.

Boaz pillar

Iachim (red pillar)

At last the pillar labeled Iachim carries traces

of red paint.
According to 1 Kings 7:21 KJV the Jachin
pillar had been the right-sided and Boaz the
left-sided pillar.

Table 1 Overview of color and pillar symbolism

Summary
In the second half of the Middle Age entrances for cathedrals may have been designed according to
the descriptions of Solomon's Temple. Between 1230 and 1644 the Wrzburg Kilian cathedral has
been equipped with pillars labeled Booz and Jachin. The Jachin pillar still shows red paint patterns.
According to 1 Kings 7:21 KJV the Jachin pillar had been the right-sided and Boaz the left-sided
pillar. The Mainz cathedral's main entrance uses a red, right-sided pillar and a blueish dark, leftsided pillar, which may represent Jachin respectively Boaz.
At the right side the Magdeburg cathedral is equipped with red pillars at the main entrance hall and
behind the rood screen. At the right side (etymologically: the correct side) also a sculpture of the
male saint St. Maurice (in a red coat) is located.
At the left side the Magdeburg cathedral is equipped with blue pillars at the main entrance hall and
behind the rood screen. At the left side (etymologically: the incorrect side) also a sculpture of the
female saint St. Catherine (in a blue dress and red coat) is located.
The capitels may symbolize lily works.
The red pillars therefore may symbolize the male (right-sided, correct?) Jachin-pillars, whereas the
blue pillars may symbolize the female (left-sided, incorrect?) Boaz-pillars.

2 Jachin is explained in Gen 46,10; Boas in Ruth 2-4

Appendix 1 - The Colors at the Main Gate of the Mainz Cathedral

Documentation: The Colors at the Main Gate of the Mainz Cathedral
In the Mainz cathedral's main entrance the left pillar is blue and the right pillar is red:

8: Color Symbolism at the Mainz Cathedral

The Corinthian Capitals of the Mainz cathedral's entrance pillars

Both Corinthian capitals and the decorations of both socket bases are slightly different. Compared
to the difference between both the Wrzburg pillars titled Iachim respectively Booz the pillars of
the Mainz cathedral's main entrance are rather negligible. However the mason may easily have
chosen to produce symmetrical pillars with symmetrical designed capitals and sockets.
Symmetry however seemed to have been unwanted. And therefore color symmetry may have been
equally unwanted from the beginning as well.

10: Left-sided pillar (black)

12: Left-sided pillar (black)

9: Right-sided pillar (red)

11: Right-sided pillar (red)

In a photograph the left pillar may look relatively blue, but my inspection reveals the slate stone is
really black. In fact slate is defined as a dark bluish gray color3. Slate gray is a gray color with a
slight azure tinge that is a representation of the average color of the material slate. As a tertiary
color, slate is an equal mix of purple and green pigments4.

3 Slate-color - definition of Slate-color by The Free Dictionary

4 Slate gray

Appendix 2 - The pillars Booz and Jachim in Wrzburg 5

Between 1230 and 1644 the pillars labeled Booz and Jachin6 had been located at the
main entrance of the Wrzburg Kilian-cathedral. The prototype pillars for Booz and
Jachim had been based on the equivalent entrance pillars at the Jerusalem Temple which
had been designed by the Freemasons' Father Hiram of Tyre.
Both Wrzburg pillars had been labeled at the top of the capitels (Booz respectively Iachim) 7.
Traces of red paint may even be identified in my photographs. Other colors may not be identified by
simply observing, but at my last inspection I found blue or dark traces at other sculptures 8. Of
course I had not been enabled to do some professional analysis for chemical or physical
investigations of the pillars' coloring.

13: The Booz and Jachim pillars at the Wrzburg Cathedral (1230)
The 8-segmented Iachim-pillar had been equipped with a complex knot, whereas the 4-segmented
Boaz-pillar has been decorated with two simpler knots.

15: Booz and Iachim

14: Iachim pillar (1230)

a

5
6
7
8

Symbolism in the Wrzburg Episcopal Residence

Jachin is explained in Gen 46,10; Boas in Ruth 2-4
Jachin und Boas Bibelwissenschaft.de
Symbolism in the Wrzburg Episcopal Residence

Source for the red, right-sided J- and the blue, left-sided B-pillar
According to 1 Kings 7:21 KJV the pillar Jachin was the right pillar and the left pillar was Boaz.
And the capitels were lily work:
21 And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and
called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof
Boaz.
22 And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was the work of the pillars finished.
In Hermetic papers Jachin usually is depicted in red and Boaz in violet blue 9. This may be seen in
Apokalyptic Seal 10, in which the red J-pillar arises from the sea and the violet blue B-pillar arises
from a rock. A
s suggested in the painting these colors red and blue are the rainbow's border colors.

16: Apokalyptic Seal , painted by Clara Rettich (Stuttgart 1911)

9 Jachin Male and Boaz Female Pillars 2 and The Hermetic Codex
10 Red & Blue in Solomon's Temple and Blue and Red Symbolism in Freemasonary

Table of Contents
Symbolism in the Magdeburg cathedral.........................................................................................1
Red and blue pillars at the main entrance hall............................................................................1
Pillars behind the rood screen of the Magdeburg cathedral........................................................3
St. Maurice (red) and St. Catherine (blue/red) at the Magdeburg cathedral..............................4
Overview of color and pillar symbolism.....................................................................................5
Summary.....................................................................................................................................5
Appendix 1 - The Colors at the Main Gate of the Mainz Cathedral................................................6
The Corinthian Capitals of the Mainz cathedral's entrance pillars.............................................7
Appendix 2 - The pillars Booz and Jachim in Wrzburg................................................................8
Source for the red, right-sided J- and the blue, left-sided B-pillar..............................................9