(via counteract)

erikkwakkel:

Medieval animals made out of words

This is a special book from the early Middle Ages (France, 9th century). Not only does it contain a high volume of very attractive images, but these images are also not what you would expect: they are drawn, as it were, with words. They illustrate Cicero’s Aratea, a work of astronomy. Each animal represents a constellation and the written words in them are taken from an explanatory text by Hyginus (his Astronomica). His words are crucial for these images because the drawings would not exist without them. It is not often in medieval books that image and text have such a symbiotic relationship, each depending on the other for its very existence.

Pics (BL): London, British Library, Harley 647 (France, 9th century). The manuscript is available fully digitized here. More about illustrated Aratea manuscripts here. English extracts from Hyginus’ texts are found here (including the swan).

maerenundlobebaeren:

Rechte Minne (~1170/90, Heinrich von Veldeke)

In den tîden van den jâre,
dat dî dage werden lanc
énde dat wéder weder clâre,
sô ernouwen openbâre
mérelâre heren sanc,
dî uns brengen lîve mâre.
gode mach hers weten danc
dê hévet rehte minne
sunder rouwe ende âne wanc.

In des Jahres frühen Zeiten,
wenn die Tage werden lang,
leuchtend sich die Himmel weiten,
da erneuern sichtbar,
die Amseln ihren Lobgesang,
die uns liebe Lust bereiten.
Dann mag Gott auch wissen Dank,
wer trägt rechte Minne
ohne Reu und Wank.

(via fy-german-literature)

— Ray Bradbury

(via philosophicalmeandering)

Derzeit ist es schick, irgendwelche “Post-Ismen” zu verkünden. Die Leute glauben, es sei raffiniert, kulturelle Errungenschaften und Werte kleinzureden, in dem man sie “Post” macht. Dieses Poster gibt einen Hinweis darauf, wohin diese angeblich abgeklärte Cleverness führt.

There is this obsession with “Post-isms” these days. People seem to think it is smart to make every cultural accomplishment and value small by declaring them “post”. This poster gives an idea where this pretended detached cleverness will lead.

Ancient Celtic bust of Marcus Aurelius, dates to about 180 AD, from Avenches, Switzerland.

Through his portraits, the emperor is constantly in attendance over his vast empire. The hair is combed back from the forehead, representing a typical Celtic hairstyle and reveals the Gallo-Roman origin of the artist. Hammered from a single sheet of gold, the bust is a masterpiece of craftsmanship.

Courtesy & currently located at the Historical Museum of Bern. Photo taken by Xuan Che

(via ancientart)

America in Footnotes

Perfect.

(via kateoplis)

(via riddikulus)

Baoen Sutra Paradise, color on silk, 160.8 x 121.6 cm. Tang Dynasty, ca. 850.

The image was discovered at the Mogao Caves near Dun Huang in the “1000 Buddha cave”. Shakyamuni is seated in the center of the image. The left and right sides show seen of Prince Siddhartha as described in the Baoen Sutra.

Courtesy & currently located at the British Museum, London. Scan via the Wiki Commons.

(via ancientart)

The video is from a private film footage, captured by ‘Prof. Dr. Arthur Stoll’. It shows the writer with wife Ninon, son Bruno, and friends in front of his home, Casa Rossa in Montagnola, pruning roses, at his desk, and playing bocce in a “grotto.”

This short version of the film contains Herman Hesse’s daily moments for ten unique seconds.

Enjoy!

(via fy-german-literature)

“But the mind of man is always fertile, ever creating and discarding, like the earth. There is always new life under old decay. Last year’s dead leaves hide not merely the seeds, but the full-fledged green plants of this year’s spring, ready to bloom almost as soon as they are uncovered.” 

from Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key

john lennon and yoko ono.

(via purple-and-yellow-tulips)