Shakira drops necklace resembling Nazi symbol from merch site
Earlier this week, we reported how Shakira's merchandise for her El Dorado World Tour seemed to feature Nazi-like imagery on a particular necklace. The necklace was first recognized by the German publication Bento, which pointed out the similarities between Shakira’s pendant's design and the Black Sun, 'Schwarze Sonne' in German, a symbol which is supposedly still in use by certain neo-Nazi occult circles.
The ancient design is also found on a sun wheel mosaic incorporated into a floor of the Wewelsburg Castle in the country's Westphalia region. The castle was the ideological stomping ground of Heinrich Himmler and the Schutzstaffel (SS), the major paramilitary organization of the Nazi party.
The symbol was allegedly adopted by the Nazis because of the significance it holds as an 'old Aryan emblem' and was meant to mimic the roundtable of Arthurian legend which spoke of the sun wheel representing one knight or officer of the inner SS. The symbol was purported to unite the three most important symbols of Nazi ideology: the sun wheel, the swastika, and the stylized victory rune.
Now, after the issue came under the radar of mainstream media, the singer has pulled the $9.95 pendant from the merch site. Shakira herself hasn’t yet commented on the controversy, but Live Nation—the events company who allegedly designed the necklace—apologized on Twitter for the similarity.
In a statement shared on Twitter, a representative for Live Nation wrote: “The necklace Live Nation designed for Shakira’s El Dorado World Tour was based on Pre-Columbian imagery."
“However, some fans have expressed concern that the design bears an unintentional resemblance to Neo-Nazi imagery. We sincerely apologize for this inadvertent similarity and have permanently pulled the item from the tour collection.”
Earlier this month, the Colombian pop sensation played her first UK show since 2010. She appeared at The O2 in London on June 11 to promote her latest album, ‘El Dorado’. The record was released in May 2017 and reached Number One on iTunes in 37 countries.
