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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010052950 | NX450.5 G62 2002 | Open Access Book | Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
During the Renaissance, a transformation occurred in Western culture, fuelled in large part by the rediscovery of the mythological, pagan imagination. This highly illustrated work provides perspectives on this phenomenon, demonstrating how the pagan revival permeated Renassaance life and culture.
Author Notes
Joscelyn Godwin is Professor of Music at Colgate University.
Reviews 1
Choice Review
Godwin (music, Colgate) here adds to his list of works on esoteric and mystical intellectual traditions. Some readers may be familiar with his 1999 translation of Francesco Colonna's Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, printed by Aldus Manutius in 1499, a treatment of which forms the second chapter of the present volume. Godwin theorizes that a fascination with the rediscovered remains of pagan antiquity coexisted uneasily in 15th-century Italy with the prevailing late-medieval Catholic culture. The fascination with these remains, which were architectural, pictorial, and philosophical (in the form of Neoplatonism) and mythico-theological (interpreted theosophically), greatly influenced the art and architecture of late-medieval Catholic culture (including the symbolism of formal gardens, such as those of the Villa d'Este). Esoteric in its inspirations in the Italian peninsula, it became more esoteric as it spread north of the Alps to Hapsburg Austria in the 16th century, finally losing itself in the 17th century in the mostly external arrangements of Louis XIV's Versailles. Godwin provides an arresting glimpse into a preindustrial, but not necessarily Christian, way of viewing and structuring the world. This book, which includes extensive footnotes and a substantial bibliography, is worthwhile for advanced students of all branches of Renaissance studies. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students through faculty. C. J. Zabrowski Gettysburg College
Table of Contents
| Chapter 1 Seduction by the Gods | p. 1 |
| Chapter 2 The Strife of Love in a Dream | p. 21 |
| Chapter 3 Re-ordering the World | p. 39 |
| Chapter 4 The Enchantment of Public Spaces | p. 63 |
| Chapter 5 Private Microcosms | p. 85 |
| Chapter 6 Marvels of Art and Nature | p. 107 |
| Chapter 7 Grotesqueries | p. 127 |
| Chapter 8 Garden Magic | p. 153 |
| Chapter 9 Joyous Festivals | p. 181 |
| Chapter 10 The Birth of Opera | p. 203 |
| Chapter 11 Versailles and After | p. 231 |
| Selective Genealogies (Habsburg, Este, Gonzaga, Medici) | p. 263 |
| Notes | p. 267 |
| Bibliography | p. 275 |
| Sources of Illustrations | p. 283 |
| Index | p. 285 |
