this post was submitted on 13 Jul 2023
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Antique Memes Roadshow

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Giving you the backstory and appraisals of vintage memes!

Submissions should be vintage memes or commentary about vintage memes. Commenters are advised to appraise the internet value and provenance meme antiquities.

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[–] FlyingSquid 20 points 2 years ago

When you say antique, you mean it!

[–] betterdeadthanreddit 6 points 2 years ago

"Wagner loves the cock" has similar origins in military graffiti but I'm not sure a text-only meme merits its own post. Should definitely make a comeback given the events of recent years though.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 years ago

One of the OG memes!

[–] An_Zombie 6 points 2 years ago

All hail the father of memes

[–] Nobody 4 points 2 years ago

OG Triple OG

[–] SpaceNoodle 3 points 2 years ago

You say my earlier comment, didn't you.

[–] MrKilroy 3 points 2 years ago
[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago (1 children)

That we know of, anyway. Do you think literacy is required to spread a meme? If not, who knows what the legionaries had going.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

There is graffiti in Pompeii that definitely suggests a memetic type of replication. Hell, one could argue that putting your handprint on a stone wall is a meme.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Which graffiti is that? Did they find more bread making references?

Most of it was people's names and crude comments IIRC. The more things change the more they stay the same

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Quite a few of these seem like the sort of things people have been writing on walls throughout history.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

IMO to be a meme it has to have learned symbolism. Kilroy was the guy always in front of you in the strange new lands you visited, Drake indicates which thing is preferable to the other. Neither are intrinsic. Maybe it has to be somewhat humorous or ironic too, because I don't think a crucifix or the Latin letter "A" qualifies.

The hand print example could work if it was actually a rude gesture in the original culture, the intent was to troll all future generations and they were added to gradually over time.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

I worked with a guy a long time ago who would write this on things around the office.

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