Dürer’s Enigma
According to Panofsky’s widely-accepted theory, the subject of Albrecht Dürer’s engraving Melencolia § I (1514) was intended as a feminine personification of the liberal art Geometry and the temperament Melancholy. However, we argue that this synthesized personification is a façade. The formulaic ve...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
2018
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| In: |
Aries
Year: 2018, Volume: 18, Issue: 2, Pages: 217-257 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Dürer, Albrecht 1471-1528, Melancholy
/ Christian Kabbalah
/ Henoch Biblical character
/ Pico della Mirandola, Giovanni 1463-1494
/ Reuchlin, Johannes 1455-1522
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| IxTheo Classification: | AG Religious life; material religion AZ New religious movements |
| Further subjects: | B
Albrecht Dürer
Renaissance art
Melencolia § I
Christian Kabbalah
Pico della Mirandola
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | According to Panofsky’s widely-accepted theory, the subject of Albrecht Dürer’s engraving Melencolia § I (1514) was intended as a feminine personification of the liberal art Geometry and the temperament Melancholy. However, we argue that this synthesized personification is a façade. The formulaic veneer was meant to camouflage a layer of meaning that was only accessible to those who were familiar with the writings of the Christian Kabbalists Giovanni Pico della Mirandola and Johannes Reuchlin. The symbolism of Melencolia § I, like that of its counterpart engraving Saint Jerome in his Study (1514), was influenced by Dürer’s interest in Christian Hebraism. Our research findings show that this image can best be understood as a visual interpretation of Pico’s Humanist manifesto Oratio (1486). Viewed from this perspective the main character of Dürer’s Melencolia § I transcends the bounds of the personification of Melancholy perceived by Panofsky, and transforms into an important figure in Pico’s Oratio, the high angel of Jewish mysticism, Metatron. |
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| ISSN: | 1570-0593 |
| Contains: | In: Aries
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15700593-01802003 |