Melancholia I

Allusions and imagery used by Dürer in Melancholia I:

• The numbers in the top right form a magic square, with the two middle cells of the bottom row giving the date of the engraving: 1514.
• the significance of the truncated polyhedron[?] has been the subject of numerous articles
• The despondent winged figure of genius
• The tools of geometry and architecture surround her, unused
• The purse and keys
• The comet and rainbow in the sky
• etc.

this is a stub article that will eventually talk about all the layers of allegory in this complex picture

External links

• A larger version of Melancholia I (http://www.princeton.edu/~his291/Durer_Melancolia)
• A discussion of Dürer's studies of polyhedra (http://www.georgehart.com/virtual-polyhedra/durer)
• Article on the use of symbolism in Melancholia I (http://www.wfu.edu/Academic-departments/Art/pc/pc-durer-Melancolia)
• Another set of interpretations of imagery in Melancholia I (http://www.museum.cornell.edu/HFJ/handbook/hb107)
• And another... (http://www.kfki.hu/~arthp/html/d/durer/2/13/4/079)