Is Dirt Somehow Connected to the Black Lodge?

Certain characters in Twin Peaks have a thick coating of dirt or soot on their skin. Dirt is tied to at least two of BOB's victims as dirt mounds are created during or after the deaths of Teresa Banks and Laura Palmer. Soot has a connection with fire and easily conjures images of the Woodsmen from The Return.

This post will list matters that seem to connect in my mind, though I do not understand their meaning. It is far from complete as I am working from memory. Any references or images overlooked will be added in the future.

In the European Pilot and episode two (1.002, Zen or The Skill to Catch a Killer), dirt or soot seems to be visible on the floor of the Black Lodge. Its appearance reminds one of the way in which debris is spread or streaked when a floor is mopped.  

A close shot from the blu-ray. (Below.)

The dirt appears in larges spots during the end credits for episode two. (Below.) 

In the European pilot, Agent Cooper and Sheriff Truman confront BOB in the basement boiler room of the hospital, a place BOB refers to as his "killer's lair." The floor of the basement seems to be coated with dirt. 

BOB's hands are also coated with dirt when he collapses from having been shot. (Above.)

When Laura Palmer's body is discovered, her face is dusted with a small amount of dirt. As written elsewhere on this blog, I believe the gold particles may be vermiculite, which is found in potting soil. The dirt mound in the train car appears to largely consist of potting soil. 

In episode 8 (2.001, May The Giant Be With You), we see the same with Laura's face and body. She is caked with dirt as she is revealed in Ronette's memories. 

When Josie reappears after a long absence in episode 17 (2.010, Dispute Between Brothers), her face, neck, and chest are coated with dirt. Note that she also has a wound to her forehead.

Maddy's face is also marred by dirt. 

Fire Walk With Me

In Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, a woman with a dirty face looks in the open door of Teresa Banks' trailer. Carl Rodd's reaction to seeing her causes one to wonder if she may be linked to the supernatural. 

Teresa Banks' face and body are coated with dirt or soot when she is examined by Agent Stanley.

Pamela Gidley appears to have more dirt on her body in the behind-the-scenes image above than in the actual film. Notice the bag in David Lynch's hands. Jon Huck said the following in the feature Moving Through Time: Fire Walk With Me Memories: "She's supposed to have been dead for a really long time and left out in the wilderness. And the makeup artist worked on her for a couple of hours, and David wasn't satisfied. He thought she looked too clean and too put together."

When Agent Cooper investigates the Fat Trout Trailer Park, he finds Agent Desmond's abandoned vehicle near the Chalfont trailer. Though its dust may be from time, the message upon its window suggests ties to The Man From Another Place. 

The Dirt Mounds

BOB's candle encircled dirt mound in the European Pilot. (Above.)

The dirt mound in the train car. 

The dirt mound beneath the Chalfont trailer. 

The Return

The woodsmen who appear to revive Mr. C seem to move handfuls of dirt before they and Mr. C come entirely into focus. Their movements remind one of the act of constructing a dirt mound. When Mr. C and the woodsmen fully materialize, we can see that they are spreading blood from Mr. C's wound onto his face. Mr. C is afterward cloaked in dirt. 

The woodsmen as a whole seem to be covered a dark substance. It is more than likely soot.

Bobby, Hawk, Truman and Andy put soil in their pockets, following Garland Briggs' instructions. 

Miscellaneous 

• In The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer, Laura describes a bearded man who appears in a dream. The man frightens her a great deal, singing in her mother's voice, and apparently controlling the wind. She writes, "The tips of his thumbs were black like coal and he wiggled them around in circles as he got closer to me."
  
  
• Laura also writes, "I do not doubt that BOB is aware of my every movement. That this horror who calls himself a man sits up high when the sun shines or perhaps curls up below."
  
  
• Leland/BOB mentions dirt under Laura's fingernail in Fire Walk with Me.
  
  
• In The Return, Dr. Jacoby/Dr. Amp depicts himself in mud in his shovel commercial. 
  
  
• In The Secret History of Twin Peaks, Frost seems to suggest that the ancient Lemurians and the spirits of the Black Lodge may be one and the same. The Lemurians were said to live in vast underground cities accessible by caves - which instantly causes one to think of Owl Cave.
  
  Owl Cave already has ties to the supernatural with its depictions of the symbol later seen in Fire Walk With Me. Also, the tattoos Margaret Lanterman and Garland Briggs received after their abductions led Agent Cooper to Owl Cave.
  
  
• The Log Lady introduction to episode 20 has her say, "I had a dog. The dog was large. It ate my garden, all the plants, and much earth. The dog ate so much earth, it died. Its body went back to the earth. I have a memory of this dog. The memory is all that I have left of my dog. He was black and white."

In the end, the woodsmen, the mounds, and the dirt on the skin of characters may not be connected, though there is perhaps enough to suggest it may be of consequence.