Francis Douce

The Dance of Death (eBook, ePUB)

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

The manner in which the poets and artists of antiquity have symbolized or personified Death, has excited considerable discussion; and the various opinions of Lessing, Herder, Klotz, and other controversialists have only tended to demonstrate that the ancients adopted many different modes to accomplish this purpose. Some writers have maintained that they exclusively represented Death as a mere skeleton; whilst others have contended that this figure, so frequently to be found upon gems and sepulchral monuments, was never intended to personify the extinction of human life, but only as a simple and abstract representation. They insist that the ancients adopted a more elegant and allegorical method for this purpose; that they represented human mortality by various symbols of destruction, as birds devouring lizards and serpents, or pecking fruits and flowers; by goats browsing on vines; cocks fighting, or even by a Medusa’s or Gorgon’s head. The Romans seem to have adopted Homer’s definition of Death as the eldest brother of Sleep; and, accordingly, on several of their monumental and other sculptures we find two winged genii as the representatives of the above personages, and sometimes a genius bearing a sepulchral vase on his shoulder, and with a torch reversed in one of his hands. It is very well known that the ancients often symbolized the human soul by the figure of a butterfly, an idea that is extremely obvious and appropriate, as well as elegant.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Francis Douce
• Erscheinungstermin: 17. August 2015
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9786050406030
• Artikelnr.: 43593995

Autorenporträt

Francis Douce (1757-1834) was a distinguished English antiquary and collector, renowned for his scholarly contributions to the study of English history, particularly in the realms of art and literature. Douce received his education at Oxford and thereafter joined the British Museum as an Assistant Keeper of Manuscripts, a position that allowed him to indulge his passion for ancient texts and artifacts. He later resigned from the British Museum due to disputes with the administration and dedicated himself entirely to private scholarship. Douce is perhaps most well-known for his book, 'The Dance of Death' (1833), a comprehensive study of the medieval allegory that depicts the universality of death. The book is sprinkled with erudite commentary on various iterations of the theme across Europe and includes detailed illustrations. Douce's treatment of the subject matter combines a philological approach with a deep understanding of historical iconography, which also reflects in his noteworthy collection, later bequeathed to the Bodleian Library of Oxford and the Ashmolean Museum. His literary style, while analytical, often embraced the vernacular, making his work accessible to a wider audience interested in the intersections of death, art, and society across the medieval period. Douce's contributions have had a lasting impact on antiquarian studies, and his works are still referenced by scholars with interests in medieval art, folklore, and the cultural practice surrounding death.