Practice of representing things by symbols

concept

Four female torsos joined at the waist with garden features as heads; symbolising the four seasons in a garden. Etching by T. B., c. 1797.

A crowned woman in red holding a rose-topped caduceus; she is suspended in a circle of water; a cherub blows wind from above; representing a stage in the process of alchemy. Coloured etching, ca. 18th century.

World War One: a German soldier crouches in fear between two saintly mediaeval sculptures; behind Notre Dame is burning. Halftone after a pen drawing by L. Raemaekers.

A prince, clad in gold, succeeds the King; representing a stage in the alchemical process. Watercolour painting by E.A. Ibbs.

Demonology and devil-lore / Moncure D. Conway.

A queen in red is presented with dishes of blood on a hill; below, a man in a white robe gesticulates to the heavens; while another man stands next to alchemical apparatus, facing a man who is lying sick in bed; representing a stage in the process of alchemy. Coloured etching, ca. 18th century.

Two peasants hold a red robe; cherubs blow wind and Mercury rests on water below; representing a stage in the process of alchemy. Coloured etching, ca. 18th century.

A human body is consumed by a furnace; a woman holds a small red limbless effigy bearing a crown; a man holds a sheaf, and another a stick; below, by another furnace, a green and red dragon face each other, poised for combat; representing a stage in the process of alchemy. Coloured etching, ca. 18th century.

A red-faced king stands in a red robe, flanked by a queen and the deity Mercury in green clothes; representing a stage in the process of alchemy. Coloured etching, ca. 18th century.

Three doves with a dovecote and church in the distance, all surrounded by bay tree branches entwined in an ornate border. Engraving by H. Terasson after F. Barlow.

Miti, emblemi, spie : morfologia e storia / Carlo Ginzburg.

Die heilige Urschrift der menschheit : symbolgeschichtliche unter suchungen diesseits und jenseits des Nordatlantik / [Herman Wirth Roeper Bosch].

Hair : its power and meaning in Asian cultures / edited by Alf Hiltebeitel and Barbara D. Miller ; foreword by Gananath Obeyesekere.

Antropología del cerebro : la conciencia y los sistemas simbólicos / Roger Bartra.

Mystical transformations : the imagery of liquids in the work of Mechthild von Magdeburg / James C. Franklin.

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Symbolism

Images from the collections

Images referencing Symbolism

Works from the collections

Miti, emblemi, spie : morfologia e storia / Carlo Ginzburg.

Die heilige Urschrift der menschheit : symbolgeschichtliche unter suchungen diesseits und jenseits des Nordatlantik / [Herman Wirth Roeper Bosch].

Hair : its power and meaning in Asian cultures / edited by Alf Hiltebeitel and Barbara D. Miller ; foreword by Gananath Obeyesekere.

Antropología del cerebro : la conciencia y los sistemas simbólicos / Roger Bartra.

Mystical transformations : the imagery of liquids in the work of Mechthild von Magdeburg / James C. Franklin.

Symbolism

Images from the collections

Images referencing Symbolism

Works from the collections

Miti, emblemi, spie : morfologia e storia / Carlo Ginzburg.

Die heilige Urschrift der menschheit : symbolgeschichtliche unter suchungen diesseits und jenseits des Nordatlantik / [Herman Wirth Roeper Bosch].

Hair : its power and meaning in Asian cultures / edited by Alf Hiltebeitel and Barbara D. Miller ; foreword by Gananath Obeyesekere.

Antropología del cerebro : la conciencia y los sistemas simbólicos / Roger Bartra.

Mystical transformations : the imagery of liquids in the work of Mechthild von Magdeburg / James C. Franklin.

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