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Show Was First Used As a Symbol Origin of the Star and Cretec.-.l i Turkish Flag. Very ancient are the Btar nml rrcs cent of the Turkish Hag. Thelt origin Is explained as follows: Th characters' charac-ters' of the language of Mesopotamia like the Egyptian, were originally hieroglyphic. One of the early picture words was a crescent and a star and this picture, which wbb pronounced "shlptu," was employed to express an Incantation or exorcism, or anything capable of driving tho evil spirit from the body of which It had taken possession. pos-session. Clay tablets recording the ancient exorcisms have been found In the ruins of Mesopotamia and at the beginning of such tablets appears tho sign which developed from the crescent cres-cent and the stnr. Tho symbol, there fore, may havo been not only tho word for Incantation, but a charm from which tho ell spirits were supposed to flee. In every nge In tho orient the people havo possessed similar charms. The Assyrian kings stationed winged monsters with forms half human hu-man at their gateways, to keep all ovll from entering within tho palace. Tho poorer peoplo suspended clay tablets tab-lets above the entrances of their houses, The modern oriental may purchase In the bazars blue glass beads, verses from the Koran wrapped In leather roses and other devices to serve a similar purpose. The crescent and Btar formed a symbol which the Me8opotnmlan of 0,000 years ago employed em-ployed as n charm.. |