Bohemian Club
[The Bohemian Club's] symbol is an owl, which has been in use since the first year the Club started. The owl has come to symbolize the wisdom of life and companionship, that allows humans to struggle with and survive the cares and frustration of the world. The owl is found on all Bohemian materials from matchbook covers and doormats to the most elaborate Club publications. For $34.00 you can even own an owl-emblemed sports shirt. A forty foot concrete owl stands at the head of the lake in the Grove. This owl shrine was built in 1929 to serve as a ceremonial site for traditional Bohemian rituals and is used yearly for the Cremation of Care Ceremony.As one can plainly see by the above comparison, the owl statue, situated within the library at the Bohemian Club headquarters in San Francisco, is an exact replica of the one at the Acropolis - thus, there is no doubt that the "Bohos" (by duplicating a famous statue located at the chief temple dedicated to Athena) are alluding to Athena/Minerva, or the goddess of wisdom. Furthermore, the statue in the Bohemian Club has a plaque on its front base, stating: "Replica of Ancient Athenian Owl" (see the"Inside The Bohemian Club" video at approximately 07:24).
There's also the tale of Minerva and Arachne (Greek for spider). It concerns a weaving contest between Minerva - also known as the goddess of the arts, needle work and weaving - and Arachne. The latter was turned into a spider after losing the contest. "Weaving Spiders Come Not Here," the motto on the seal of the Bohemian Club, may well be alluding to the myth; the mere fact that it is accompanied by the owl, which represents Minerva, is significant and noteworthy (and too semiotically sound as to have been a mere coincidence).
Terracotta (Burney) relief, c.2000-1700 BC, thought to be Inana/Lilith.
But just because the owl is venerated by the Bohemian Club does not mean that it is only meant to symbolize Athena/Minerva. Lilith is also an apt identification: Lilith (Queen of the Demons), the great screeching owl mentioned in Isaiah 34:13-16; the night owl goddess that inhabits the ruins of Edom which subsequently became a permanent fixture of Kabbalistic demonology. Lilith is also closely related "to the Greek figure of Hecate, with her demands for human sacrifice," and the Grove participants perform a mock human sacrifice at the base of a 40-foot owl as part of the Cremation of Care ritual. In addition, the poet George Sterling, one of the most prominent "Bohos" of his time, wrote a play titled Lilith; a dramatic poem (1920), in which Lilith herself mentions the owl - demonstrating that they at least knew of such symbolism. Sterling stayed at the Bohemian Club in his own private room toward the end of his life, where he committed suicide by ingesting cyanide.
There's also the tale of Minerva and Arachne (Greek for spider). It concerns a weaving contest between Minerva - also known as the goddess of the arts, needle work and weaving - and Arachne. The latter was turned into a spider after losing the contest. "Weaving Spiders Come Not Here," the motto on the seal of the Bohemian Club, may well be alluding to the myth; the mere fact that it is accompanied by the owl, which represents Minerva, is significant and noteworthy (and too semiotically sound as to have been a mere coincidence).
Terracotta (Burney) relief, c.2000-1700 BC, thought to be Inana/Lilith.
But just because the owl is venerated by the Bohemian Club does not mean that it is only meant to symbolize Athena/Minerva. Lilith is also an apt identification: Lilith (Queen of the Demons), the great screeching owl mentioned in Isaiah 34:13-16; the night owl goddess that inhabits the ruins of Edom which subsequently became a permanent fixture of Kabbalistic demonology. Lilith is also closely related "to the Greek figure of Hecate, with her demands for human sacrifice," and the Grove participants perform a mock human sacrifice at the base of a 40-foot owl as part of the Cremation of Care ritual. In addition, the poet George Sterling, one of the most prominent "Bohos" of his time, wrote a play titled Lilith; a dramatic poem (1920), in which Lilith herself mentions the owl - demonstrating that they at least knew of such symbolism. Sterling stayed at the Bohemian Club in his own private room toward the end of his life, where he committed suicide by ingesting cyanide.
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