  Kauffman knot polynomial invariants are discovered in classical abelian
Chern-Simons field theory. A topological invariant $t^{I\left( \mathcal{L}
\right) }$ is constructed for a link $\mathcal{L}$, where $I$ is the abelian
Chern-Simons action and $t$ a formal constant. For oriented knotted vortex
lines, $t^{I}$ satisfies the skein relations of the Kauffman R-polynomial; for
un-oriented knotted lines, $t^{I}$ satisfies the skein relations of the
Kauffman bracket polynomial. As an example the bracket polynomials of trefoil
knots are computed, and the Jones polynomial is constructed from the bracket
polynomial.
