Melancholia I

Albrecht Dürer's engraving Melancholia I (originally known by Dürer as Melencolia I) is an allegorical depiction of the symptoms of melancholy, now better known as depression. Allusions and imagery used by Dürer in Melancholia I include:
* The numbers in the grid at top right form a 4 × 4 magic square, with the two middle cells of the bottom row giving the date of the engraving: 1514.
* The significance of the truncated cube has been the subject of numerous articles
* The hourglass shows time running out
* The despondent winged figure of genius
* The tools of geometry and architecture surround him, unused
* The purse and keys
* The comet and rainbow in the sky

External links

* An alchemist's interpretation of Melancholia
* A larger version of Melancholia I
* An even larger version (2 megs)
* A discussion of Dürer's studies of polyhedra
* Article on the use of symbolism in Melancholia I
* Another set of interpretations of imagery in Melancholia I
* And another...
*D. Finkelstein's exegesis
* "Dürer's Melancholia": a sonnet by Edward Dowden
* "Melancholia I" (Giraffe Cartoon)