Marija Gimbutas had interpreted the "butterfly like the soul that transmigrates" toward the generating-constellation (Gimbutas M., 1990) and "holds that the butterfly is the embodiment of the principle of Transformation" (Streep P., 1994). The same meaning is recognized in the "Jahrbuch der Gesellschaft fur vergleichende Felsbildforschung -1985/1986" in which we may read: "Gegeneinander gestellte dreiecke konnen auch fur die wiedergeburt, hier an der sonnwendlinie fur auf und untergang des jahres empfunden werden" (Fig. 1 - two opposite triangles may also be known as rebirth sign, here for the alignments of the sun at the solstitial sunrise and sunset).
In the Grecian language the word Psyché means the human soul and in the Grecian Dionysian myth Psyché is represented as a girl with butterfly wings, which loves Love, symbolized by the Sun! The syncretism present in the Grecian language is proof of a more ancient tradition.
In Mexico they use to design a red butterfly on the back of the dead (Eve Ewing, personal communication in La Laguna, 1999) and in the Sonora Desert it is like "guardian angel". The symbol of the butterfly is also presente in Chile, in the Mapuché people (Fig. 2 - Carlos Gonzalez Vargas, 1999). In South Italy the little white butterflies are considered the souls leaving Purgatory (Romeo Frigiola, personal communication, 1998).
For the Celtic people of Ireland and France the human souls were embodied in the butterflies (Cattabiani A., 1998).
It's interesting to notice like the symbols of the butterfly and the M of Cassiopea are also present in the most ancient runic alphabet, found on runes with literary function, known like Elder Futhark; the "M" of Cassiopea is represented by the rune Ehwaz (Fig. 3 - function of metaphysical transport and power) and the butterfly is represented by the rune Dagaz (Fig. 4 - the day, the light that returns after the darkness, here the rebirth) (http://www.tarahill.com).