Hans Holbein's celebrated Dance of death : illustrated by a series of photo-lithographic facsimiles from the copy of the first edition now in the British Museum : accompanied by explanatory descriptions and a consise history of the origin and subsequ

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NT MALE

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EXPLANATORY DESCRIPTIONS

A Concise Histo of the Origin and Subsequent De Dpmcnt of the Subera

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PRE FACE.

bein's celebrated μ Dance os Death, althoughthe work os very clever imitative artisis, arenecessarily wanting in that eXtreme accuracy Whicli, in the reproduction os well-known works of ari, is sodestrabie. In ali copies by hand,' the touch and manner os Holbein and his engraver unavoidably lose much os the peculiar fascination and quaintness be- onging to the originals ; and it was that convictionwhicli induced me to attempt a series os positive sacsimiles by one os the unerring processes of whichphotography is the basis. It also seemed to me that the devices would lose much by being separated frona the teXis and Verses whicli, in the original volume, serve as a partial frame-work and running Commenta , sorming an almOSt necessata part of the device iiseis. I have, there re, reproduced the entire page belonging to each device. Opposite to each sacsimile u ill be Mund translations of the Latin texis and old French verses, aCCOmpanted

by a bries description os the device ; not omitting thoseless prominent delatis by whicli the artist has osten

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contrived to impari additional potiat, and pungency os satire, to the Composition. In the Introduction, devoted to an inqui into the probabie origin os the Dance of Death, and also in my Concluding remarks on iis treaiment subsequent tothe time of Holbein, I have not attempted to enter. upon any os those strictly technical details whicli be- long to the subject when studied stom a speciallyBibliographical potnt os vie , hut have rather Aought,as briefly as possitile, to trace suci, an oviline os the subjeci as I deemed calculated to interest the general