Author:

Abstract:

My lecture revisits the iconography of the death of John the Baptist. The gospels demonstrate an intense temporal plot and a complex spatial structure. The head of the prophet is demanded, the head is decapitated, the head is posed on a platter, and the head is handed over on the platter. One character will be central to this: a dancing girl. During this swift sequence of actions, the gospels suggests convoluted situations both indoors and outdoors: hasty, speedy: cum festinatione. This evening I want to observe how Renaissance artists translated this narrative labyrinth with consideration of the visual clarity of the story, the emotional expression of the dramatis personae, and the exemplifying message of The Baptist’s martyrdom. By integrating the hermeneutics of exegesis and semiotics, of anthropology and iconology, my exposé in four acts aims to pay tribute to the versatility of the Humanities and the resilience of the Bildwissenschaft, both celebrated so generously by the Dahlem Humanities Center here in Berlin.