We are excited to introduce our new Gno.land logo, a change that reflects the true spirit of our project.
From the very beginning, the character of the "gnome" has been a source of inspiration for gno.land, representing the essence of our journey and values. In time, this character has not only inspired our project but has also become part of gno.land’s identity. The black hole of the previous logo represented finality, inevitability, the ultimate end state, and was an interesting representation of something that cannot be seen; but it also had nothing to do with gnomes. Gnomes are warm and inviting in character, are the opposite of the cold and unemotional void of black holes, where all that is known is pulled in and ceases to exist.
But why gnomes?
In Greek, gnomi means “the means of knowing; mind; intelligence; judgement”. Gnomic poetry refers to a type of poetry involving short memorable maxims of wisdom that flourished in the 6th century in Greece. Today, when we hear gnome we think of earth-dwelling figures often found in lush blue-green gardens, guarding or simply enjoying the land they are in.
Nobody knows for sure the origin of these gnomes, but the earliest known reference to it comes from Paracelsus as gnomus, a Swiss Christian theologian philosopher and alchemist of the Renaissance. He also called them pygmies in his “A book on Nymphs, Sylphs, Pygmies, and Salamanders, and on Other Spirits” published in 1566, a study on myth creatures as they relate to Christianity.
While the depiction of gnomes are varied, their general character was described by Paracelsus:
“the Pygmies (gnomes) are mountain people who keep pledges, are honest, hard working, loyal to man, and “have money, because they themselves coin it” - Paracelsus
(perhaps Paracelsus would have preferred to be identified as a gnome, since he was also an alchemist).
This character is consistent with Swiss folklore, as gnomes are said to have caused the landslide that destroyed the Swiss village of Plurs in 1618 - the villagers had become wealthy from a local gold mine created by the gnomes, who had poured liquid gold down into a vein for the benefit of humans. The villagers were corrupted by this newfound prosperity, which greatly offended the Gnomes. (Wikipedia on Gnomes).
By combining Swiss folklore and the original description by Paracelsus, we can describe gnomes in the following manner:
- At first, gnomes create timeless value for humanity.
- Humanity becomes corrupted through greed and abuses these timeless values.
- Finally, the gnomes take remedial action.
Whether the timeless value is that of an element such as gold, or that of a protocol such as crypto(currencies), gnomes are hardworking alchemists who wish the best for humanity and actively resist corruption and greed as a matter of principle. This quality of character is sorely needed in the field of cryptocurrencies and blockchain, where it is so easy to become corrupted by greed and bag-holder syndrome, resulting in stalled innovation and broken promises at best, and the loss of life savings and the death of the wellbeing of entire communities at worse (thus far).
Our field of crypto needs more gnomes to create timeless software and protocols for humanity. Such technology should be:
- intuitive (easy to use and understand)
- expressive (for societal infrastructure; finance, social, knowledge)
- finalized (completed)
- secure (unhackable)
- scalable (affordable)
These are timeless values we strive to bring to the world through gno.land. In addition, gnomes are not afraid to take a stance against greed and evil. Some say that gnomes wear the Phrygian cap, which represents Zoroaster, the “three Magi” from the east, or the revolutionary pursuit of liberty. Gnomes are also earth dwellers, masons of the rock, and the guardians of the land.
Gnomes are thus an ideal representation of the builders behind gno.land. That’s why the logo had to change. We hope you like the new logo, an iconic depiction of the gnome with cap; and hope that the gnomic spirit can help guide us to build a better honest world for all of us.
- the gnomes of gno.land