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

184쪽

Lur non tossis peccatu meu: r quare non aufers iniquitate mea Ecce nunc in pubuere boimio: r si mane me quesieris no sino lsi W.D. Credo φ rede pio: meus Siusti et ii nouissimo die de tetra furrecturus fusEt in carne mea 'iubebo deu γη samatore mea. M. Que Bisurus su egoipsterno usi' e oculi mei q*ectuti sut Sti carne. t. v. det clath med Si te mee : birnitia

t quati' amaritudine aie mee.dica deo. stoli me conde nate.Indica miret:cur me ita I iudices. launquid eonii tibi uidetur si casistinieris 3 opppimas me opus manuit tuarum: r consiliit iploiu adiuueget: Nunquid oculi carnei tibi sunt:aut sicutSibet gomo r tu Sidebis I unquib ficut dies hominis dies tui 3 anni tui sicut fumana sunt tem pora Ut queras iniquitate mea et peccasitur' meri scruteris.Et scias q: mssis ipiti fecerum cst sit nemo qui de manu tua post fit eruere. Qui sa3arum resuscita' amonumeto fetida Tu eis dite bona requies socii inbusgentie.9. Qui Seturus es iudicare Silios φ mo:tuos ' secussi per igne

185쪽

THE DANCE OF DE ATH

-φΗERE can he no doubi that the treaiment os this series os devices reached iis culminating potnt of excellence under thel encit os Holbein. He enriched the subject with a prosusionos imagery, and heightened the sardonio humour with suchartistic touches suggeSted by his proli fic fancy, that the subject was atonce carried out Os the region of the crude grotesque treaiment of the earlier phases of mediaevat ari into a position which placed it upon an equality with the highest class of art of the ago. From this hio positionit gradually declined, though such was the hold which the subjeci hadtaken upon the popular mind of ali Christianised countries, that ever and anon, at conSiderable intervalS, Some laesh artist infused a fiasti os newgenius into the subjeci, whicli in the main was clwindling clown to weaherand weaker copies illi Stight variations in of the devices of Holbein, those of Basle, or those of the oldest French Danses Μac res. It has heenshown in the Introduction, that the Holbein treaiment of this subject was in many respecis distinci stom either the UTodten Tant2V of the Germans, or the UDanse Macabre V of the French; dissering Dom both in thenumber and Selection of the Subjecis, and in the introduction of theseatures of the Creation and Temptation at the bininning, and of the Last Jud ent at the end ; as also by the titie, whicli, whether in the Latin or French versioris, continued to be os the fame impori in ad the subsequenteditions sor a considerable Period. The Dances of Dea h which continued to appear aster the time os Holbein may be separated into fix distinct divisions. In the fimi divisionare those Munded on the oldest German printed editions of the VI odien Tanta, V of whicli the Strasburg copy os I 48o ' is the oldest known example, and of whicli the subsequent Lubeck editions are perhaps theclosest of the later imitations. In the seconii division are the long series os gradually deteriorating copies of the ' Dan se Macabre, V or Frenchversion, which were issued stom time to time in Paris, Troyes, and Lyons. In the third division, whicli is the most numerous, may be Classed ali the moreor tess close copies of Holbein's devices, which were publiShed in various parisos Germany and other countries. The fourth division comprises the repro-

186쪽

ductions in print os the celebrated series os paintings at the cemetery of thel ominicans at Basle, occasionalty mixed with additions Dom other series. The fifth division comprises the various modifications, or modemirations, os one or Other os these series ; and the fixth, which is the least numerous, consisis os Works exhibiting an enti rely original treaiment os the Dances os Death, or closely analogous subjecis, With the fame or a similar titte. some w of which are os strihine merit, hut most os them mere vapid and value-less efforis to ards a modem treaiment os the creat pictorial epic os themiddie ages. In order to convey a generat idea os the character and relative artistic value os the vast number of editions and variations os the subjectcomprised in the ahove-named fix divisions, I have given the sollowingst hi account sin irregular orderi, os some of the more remarkable os those whicli I have had an opportunity os examining. One of the best os the spurious editions, or piracies, of the Hol in series, of whicli the Lyonese publishem complained, appeared at Cologne in I 55s in which the portrait of Francis Ι. was excitanged for that os Η nry II., thethen reigning kingos France : and a Spanish alphabet os large initiat letters,

containing the UDance os Death, V appeared in I 56Ο, also munde' on the levices of Holbein. Μ. Vallardi, in his Work on the fresco at Clusone. gives a sacsimile stom a late German ΜS. Dance os Death V evidently executed at Basle, as it contains a view of that city, but in whicli the subjectos Death and the Child represented in the sacsimile Dom that Μ S., Istrealed differently hom the subject in the Hothein series, or that in thepaintings os the Dominican cemetery : the ΜS. appeam to have been executed as late as I 56o. In I 59o an imitation of Hothein's cuts appeare iin a pretiy litile volume publislied in Venice, the subjecis heine adoraeclWith appropriate fide ornaments : and about I 65o appeared a Germanedition Engraved on copper, With hordem composed os sprigs of flowers, which was the foremtiner os many other editions os similar character. In I 649 the engraver Μerian published at Franksori his copies os the seriespainted on the wali of the cemetery os the Dominicans at Basle, Which had Just been repaired. The series, as reproduced by Μerian, commences

187쪽

In I779 a PDance of Death, V with original devices, was published at Linta by Μ. Renta The plates heing large compositioias, Somewhat in the Boucher style, but with stronger essects of light and shade ; the work being, however, Without any real artistic merit. Far disserent are the esaims of a work of similar plan whicli appeared in I 784, and whicli is a reatly clever attempt to treat the subject in a strictly original manner, and in accordance with the spirit of the age, while yet preserving the main impori os the more ancient forms of the establishedversions. This new set os designs was by Schellenberg, who described them in Hol in's manner, V and the work was published by Ηeinricli, Stelner, & Co. The style of the artistic treaiment is somewhat of the Greuse or Watteau school, which goes weli With the nature of the conceptions and the costume and mannem os the period. In the fidit plate, Deain is seen as a kind of grim fisheman casting his net over a piar os lovem. In plate 2, a Sheleton courtier, in the fuit couri costume of the

188쪽

lapsing hand of the miser. I sen we have Death as the recrutting ser-geant ; and Death, in another device, tumbling a great metal-hound bookon the head os a student, who is reaching it hom the sheis. All this is original, CleVerly executed, and in the spirit os the age. Bewick's series of copies of the Holbein series appeared in I 789 under the titie of Emhiems os Μortali ty. '' It is a Performance quite un-worthy of the reputation os Bewich. and I should imagine it to have been the work of prentice han is in his employ, as it cloes not exhibit one single stroke os genius in the treaiment Dom heginning to end. The fimi piece isthe Triumph of Death, forming a kind of procession, which, aster the time

of Η olbein, Soon hecame a more or less conspicuous seature in the series.

Μr. Bragis copy has the autograph of Bewick on the sy-leas Deucharysmoderniged version os Hothein's series was publighed in London in I 3, and is wretcheclly poor, though it met with considerable Success at thetime. Α volume entilled Deatli's Doings, ' by Dagly, with verses hyseverat contributors, appeared in I 829. This, alSo, is a Poor Production, and yet the cricket scene, with Death as the bo ter, against whose ballwe know that the young balter Will not be able to protect his wichet, is striking in conception, though So Poor in execution. It may be stated here that many recent coples and lamimiles of the Hothein and other series have been recently published ; among which theone reproducing the Lubeck series is extreme ly interesting ; and at Basle severat editions have been issued os coloured copies os the paintings sormerly at the Dominicans' cemetery. of the alphabet, containing Ηolbein's Dance os Death, V sacsimiles have been published at Μunicii, Drefclen, and other placeS. Among the more recent attempis at an original triniment of the Dance of Death, M some exhibit artistic merit os the highest hincl, moreespecialty the grandiy effective designs of Rethel, whose Serim os scenes, Munded on the civit convulsions of I 848, and his famous companion devices, ' Death the FriendV and Death the Enemy,' are in somerespecis sully equat to the most finely treated of the Hothein devices. Arecent examPle, toO, almoSi as Strihing, appeared in The Tomahawk, V onthe a sui os April of the present year, soon after the laial accident at the

189쪽

with a mingling of sardonic humour and tragic eamesiness, rivallim menthe powers of Holbein or Rethel. In this bries oviline of the direction tinen in the artistic treaiment os ine Dance of Death V after the time os Hothein, I have not attempted togive a list of ali the various editions os disserent hincls that have issued stomthe press during more than three centuries and a quarter that have elapsed Since the appearance, at LYons, of Holbein's famous series os devices in I 538. Those who would seeli a complete list os ali the known editions belonging to that long period, and also to the last twenty years os the fifteenth century, I reser to Brunei and the other well-known bibliographical dictionaries, hut more especialty to Florillo, Who, in his Geschichte der gelchenden Κύnste, &c., gives a delailed Iist os morethan fixty distinct editions ; and also to the works os Massmann and Kesineri Μassmannys UAtlas gu dem Werke die Baeter Todientfiniet V Leipetic, I 847 is most valvabie as a book of reserenoe sor ait the editions os the Baslegeries, and his V Literatur der Todientstntκ' contains a list embracingeditions of the Dance of Death V os ali classes; German, French, &c.M. Kestner, in the ' Danses des Moris V s Paris, I 832ὶ, gives a stili more extensive list, classi fied in a well- constructed tabular form ; and this elaborate work may be consulted with advantage hy ail Who are interested in the origin and successive phases os artistic treaiment of the great pictorial epic of the middie ages.