What is the head of death?

The head of winged death is a motive that commonly occurs on tombstones, especially those who come around the 17th and 18th centuries. This motif also appears in some works of art, either as a central element or as an accent. The importance of the head of winged death is variable, depending on the context, but it is safe to assume that it should be memento mori , reminiscent of the viewer of the inevitability of death. In some cases, the skull may support the crossed bones. More sophisticated versions contain skulls with other details or heads with multiple masses. In some cases, the head may be mounted on a pile of bones or bag that clearly contains human remains. The wings can be large or small, decorated with fine details or very simple, all depending on the taste of the creator.

In some people, the head of winged death is simply a reminder of the speed at which death can approach, with the added message that time is flying. Can also represent the idea of ​​a flight of the soul, especiallyWhen it is carved into the tombstone, with wings indicating the passage to the sky. Others consider the head of winged death as a visual representation of the death of the body accompanied by the regeneration of the spirit, suggesting that the soul lives even after the body is gone.

Such motifs are very common in the Puritan tombs, because the Puritans did not like visual representations of religious themes such as crosses, angels and saints. It wasn't until the 19th century that people simply had a desire for ghostly in the grave decoration, which explains why one sees the giant angels of death who is approaching Graves in older cemeteries. The head of the winged death would serve as a simple and eloquent reminder of the presence.

In works of art, such as images, the head of winged death can be integrated into a larger allegorical story that develops on canvas. Some artists also included fresh bers or parodies on this subject, such as the heads of animals of death or whole winged skeletons. Although these topics can be for a modern viewerYou seem a bit dark and intense, death was a good and accepted theme in art and, besides being used to representing literal death, death also symbolized time, regeneration and many other topics.