This 17th-century design would make a perfect tattoo, except the meaning would say something pitiable about the wearer. It is a rose with the Latin word “CAUTE” beneath. The rose meant secrecy, and _caute_ means “cautiously.” The person who used this sign, Baruch de Spinoza (1632-1677), did so because he had to constantly keep his […]
The Sign and Writings of Baruch de Spinoza Read More »
The bodhisattvas in the Mahayana tradition of Buddhism are those who believe that until everyone is free, no one is free. Although enlightened, they willfully choose to forgo nirvana, and instead allow themselves to be reincarnated into this mortal coil. They do this of course, because beings of such great compassion would only want nirvana
Bodhisattva Guanyin Read More »
If anyone wanted to bequeath me a copy of _De Humani Corporis Fabrica_, from which this illustration comes, I would be much obliged.Haha, not happening. This book from 1543 is one of the most important ever printed and not available to the likes of me and this here Instagram posse. It perfectly captures a moment
“De Humani Corporis Fabrica” Read More »
The dates of the objects in this composite image are far removed from the origin of their subjects: in the background is the Edwin Smith Papyrus, dating from the 17th-century BCE, but ultimately stemming from about 2500 BCE. In the foreground is a Greek Hellenistic statue of Imhotep, the Ancient Egyptian polymath whom many suspect
The Smith Papyrus and Medical Treatments Read More »
This haunting painting by John Singer Sargent (‘Gassed,’ 1919) shows the horrific consequences of Mustard Gas that nations used against enemy soldiers in the First World War. The hazy yellow skies permeate the atmosphere, as the wounded men make their way across the canvas, many blinded by the hydrochloric acid that survivors attested smelt of
The Unexpected Effect of Mustard Gas Read More »
This post is about the juxtaposition of holiness and horror. The statue you see here is “the Vision of Constantine,” sculpted by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (d. 1680), one of history’s most talented artists. Bernini is famous for his beautiful marble renderings of the human form, and most of his beloved works were of well known
“The Visions of Constantine” – Holiness and Horror Read More »
There are two common denominators of the three scientists featured in this image. First, Anthony Fauci, Harold Varmus, and J. Michael Bishop spent decades of their lives devoted to searching for elusive causes and treatment of disease. Fauci worked on HIV among other illnesses, and Varmus and Bishop on cancer (the pair won the Nobel
The Humanities and Scientific Advancements Read More »
It might make us uncomfortable to think about death, but it gives us a space to connect with each other across the eons. Once we reach a certain age, the end of our lives is something every person considers. And that is exactly what the subject of this sculpture is doing.We all know about the
Ancient Egyptians Obsession With Death Read More »
This week’s posts examine attitudes towards death in ancient and Medieval cultures. This engraving of “King Solomon in Old Age,” reflects the most famous Jewish monarch of Israel as wizened but not cheerful. The portrait is entirely in line with the musings of the author of the Biblical book _Ecclesiastes_, who, unlike any other Biblical
Ecclesiastes and its Attitude Towards Death Read More »
This Japanese sliding-door panel from about 1606 shows the allegedly immortal Liezi riding the winds. Although based on mythological stories, the flying figure also evokes a state of dreaming, since humans have recorded flying dreams across many civilizations. The Daoist text named after Liezi gives insight to a particular type of dream interpretation. In this
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This is, most sadly, not a photo of my summer vacation — one can dream, though. And back in the Ancient Greek times, dreaming is exactly why people went to this place in Pergamon, which was a particular type of healing temple called an _asclepeion_.Named after the Greek god of medicine, asclepeions were visited by
The Ancient Greek Healing Temple – Asclepeion Read More »
Ancient Roman dreams weren’t just unlike our own because of the differences in physical environment, although that of course mattered. We probably don’t dream about breakfast foods made with fish oil, walking around in tunics, or bathing publicly in enormous baths (not usually, anyway). And cell phones, indoor lighting, and skyscrapers could never have been
Ancient Roman Dreams Read More »
Dust bunnies on the ceiling out of control? No, this is an illustration of a Medieval dream, and it’s giving this character from a poem by Chaucer some anxiety. The interpretation of dreams could indeed be a cause for worry in these centuries.The Christian monks and bishops who wrote about dreams during the Middle Ages
I extend this woman a formal invitation to my imaginary dinner party of Fascinating People I Want to Talk to. Here is Susanne Langer, and she is one of the most famous women philosophers in modern American history.I know: it’s a small club. But that shouldn’t detract from Langer’s accomplishments. Born in New York to
Susanne Langer – Art in Human Cognition Read More »
Let’s embrace our 14-year-old selves and discuss the funniest toilet humor in Ancient history. Appropriately, it’s found in a bar — in a tavern room from the late first/mid-second century Roman port city called Ostia Antica. The entire space is taken up with jokes about shi*ting – patrons could order wine while reading the walls.Known
Ancient Roman “Room of the Seven Sages” Read More »
The Hebrew Bible or Christian Old Testament was averse to using vulgarity. This applied to basic human anatomy: instead of having the word penis, for instance, it might record “member,” “side,” or “flesh.” Women’s labia could be referred to as “hand.” Why?, you may ask? It had to do with the high-falutin’ genre of the
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Shield your eyes, my dainty ones, if you find this image overly shocking. But know that Medieval Europeans would not have found it so. You are looking at a row of phalluses carrying a crowned vulva on a bier. And this object is a type of pilgrimage badge — someone might have worn it to
Pious Phalluses and Holy Vulvas Read More »
Finishing up this week’s theme of swearing in history, I turn now to the Victorian Age. In the 18th and 19th centuries, British and American elites became increasingly self-vigilant about avoiding words that might make them think about, you know, sex. And this took a lot of energy, so they ended up thinking about it
Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure Read More »
Conspiracy theories abounded in Ancient Rome: court intrigues were constantly at play among the Senatorial aristocracy, since favoritism and personal alliances rather than a democratically based bureaucracy brought power. And thus we come to the sad end of Stilicho, the barbarian leader who served Rome in the waning days of the Western Empire.Stilicho was half-Vandal,
Conspiracy Theories of Ancient Rome – Stilicho Read More »
Here is a picture of two of the most famous hands in art history, and they go along with a not-very-famous but super important story about how human hands evolved.“Nature does not invent very often completely from scratch,” writes evolutionary biologist Sean B. Carroll, “rather, it remodels its existing structures with took kit genes that
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