Refine
Year of publication
- 2017 (1)
Document Type
- Article (1)
Language
- German (1)
Has Fulltext
- yes (1)
Is part of the Bibliography
- no (1)
Keywords
- Das Marmorbild (1)
- Eichendorff, Joseph von (1)
- Figura serpentinata (1)
- Kunst <Motiv> (1)
- Manierismus (1)
This paper analyzes serpentine figures in Eichendorff's novella 'Das Marmorbild', which are inscribed in the body of Venus in the mannerist style. These figurae serpentinatae gradually gain dynamism, move into the foreground of attention, and then condense into repulsive snake figures which evoke associations of the cunning snake of the Garden of Eden, the serpents on the back of the Frau Welt figure, and the fearsome Echidna of Greek mythology. These allusions also characterize the art which Venus represents as something abysmal and threatening. The multiple contextualization of the snake also reveals that 'Das Marmorbild' offers a double reading: in the narrower sense, Venus can be viewed as a representation of Romantic art, while in the wider sense she personifies art in general.