Axial Commons Image Treasury

Vanitas and Memento Mori

128 images

Painting of a woman in a red gown gazing into a crystal ball beside a skull and open book, with an arched window and trees behind.The Crystal BallPainting of an old man in a skullcap seated by a bright window beside a spiral staircase, with a figure tending a fire in the shadowy lower right corner.Philosopher in MeditationPainting of skulls, a jawbone, an hourglass, books and a candle on a dark table, with pink flowers at the lower right.Vanitas Still Life with Skulls, Hourglass and BooksPainted panel of the Virgin and Child enthroned under a green canopy, with three male saints and a kneeling white-robed monk before a Gothic window.Enthroned Madonna with Saints Jerome and John the Baptist and a Kneeling Carthusian MonkPainted portrait of a man with a dark moustache and grey skullcap, head turned left, wearing a grey jacket, against a pale textured background.Portrait of Etienne-Lucien MartinDark still life painting of a skull on sheet music beside a violin, open book, quill in inkwell, and hourglass.Vanitas Still Life with Skull, Violin and MusicOil portrait of a bearded man in a black fur-trimmed cloak and white lace ruff, hand on chest, with an open book beside him.Portrait of Johannes WtenbogaertVanitas still life with a gold crown, gilded goblet, pearl strands, open books and globes on a draped table in dim light.Vanitas still lifeEtching of a woman reaching over a fire beside monstrous creatures and a skull at night, with a Latin inscription below.Witch at a fire surrounded by monsters, etching by Jan van de Velde II, 1626Painting of a skull and upper skeleton with a lit cigarette between its teeth, set against a dark background.Skull of a Skeleton with Burning CigaretteElderly bearded man in red robe at a desk with a skull, open book, scroll, and red hat, with a crucifix at left.Saint Jerome in His StudyPainted skull in three-quarter profile on a yellow and green brushstroked background.Skull, 1887 painting by Vincent van GoghOlder man in black robe and white collar, wearing a dark skullcap, holding a sheet of paper and quill against a dark background.Lieven Willemsz van Coppenol, Rembrandt, 1658Coloured aquatint of a skeleton with a torch leading fashionably dressed people through a vaulted crypt lined with skulls.The Dance of Death: The Vision of Skulls, Coloured Aquatint, 1816Engraving of a skeleton dressed as a fashionable woman with a feathered hat and long gown, holding a sprig, with angels above and a town below.Skeleton as a Fashionably Dressed Woman, Memento Mori EngravingPainting of the crucifixion: Christ on a cross between the Virgin in pink and violet at left and Saint John in red and green at right, with a skull below.The Crucifixion with the Virgin and Saint JohnEngraving of a woman in a flowered headdress beside a curly-haired companion, with a winged helmet crest and a skull on a shield in the foreground.Coat of Arms of Vanitas, Albrecht Dürer engraving, 1503Painted bust portrait of an old bearded man in a dark skullcap, head turned left, looking down against a dim gray background.Head of an Old Man in a CapPainting of a melancholic woman leaning on a desk beside a skull, with a globe, armillary sphere, and dog's head nearby in a dim room.Melancholia by Domenico Fetti, c. 1615Painting of a sleeping woman in red with a skull in her lap, an old woman holding a gold dish of jewels at left, and a winged angel at right.The Temptation of the MagdalenePainting of a nude hero with a bow facing a many-headed serpent on a rock column, with a sunset over the sea and a reclining nude figure in the foreground.Hercules and the Lernaean HydraPainting of a young man in a brown hooded monk's habit, looking downward, face softly lit against a dark background.Titus as a MonkGold-ground panel painting of the crucifixion: Christ on a cross at center, grieving figures in red and blue robes, and helmeted soldiers at the sides.The Crucifixion, tempera on wood with gold groundOil portrait of a bearded elderly man in black gown, white ruff and skullcap, seated in a wooden chair beside an open book on a table.Reverend Johannes ElisonPanel painting of an enthroned older woman reading, with a younger woman and child, surrounded by a friar, kneeling donors, nuns and angels.Saint Anne with the Virgin and Christ Child, with founders and saintsStill life with a skull, lit candle, stacked books, handwritten music sheets, quill and inkwell on a dark table against an ochre wall.Vanitas Still Life with BooksWoodcut of a skeleton holding an hourglass beside a seated elderly man in a fur-trimmed robe who looks downward, with a bare tree behind.Elderly Man Confronted by a Skeleton with an HourglassPainting of a vanitas still life: a marble youth statue, skull, glass, violin, lute, sketchbook and armor on a dark draped table and floor.Vanitas Still Life with the SpinarioDark still life painting of a skull, violin, books, globe, candlestick and open book on a ledge.Vanitas Still LifeStill life painting of a plumed helmet, armour, a blue sash, open books, a bugle and a crozier on a stone ledge, with an arch and sky at left.Vanitas Still Life with Armour, Helmet and BooksHand-coloured caricature of a lecturer in a green coat holding a skull, surrounded by five men, with shelves of skulls and busts behind.Franz Joseph Gall Lecturing on Phrenology, Rowlandson 1808Black and white print of a bald caricatured lecturer holding a skull, surrounded by men and shelves of skulls and busts.Phrenology lecture among skulls and model heads, after RowlandsonElderly bearded man in a dark gown and skullcap seated in a wooden chair, one hand on his chest, against a dark brown background.Portrait of Eleazar SwalmiusWoodcut of skeletal Death on a horse riding over fallen people in a city street, with fleeing townspeople and German verse below.New Dance of Death: Death on horseback among fallen figuresWood engraving of a skeleton in a tailcoat bowing to a seated skeleton woman in a ruffled gown, titled The Arsenic Waltz, from Punch 1862.The Arsenic Waltz, Punch cartoon, 1862Bald old man in grey robe kneels in prayer before a table with books and candlesticks, beneath a red curtain.St. Jerome kneeling in prayer, 1676Mezzotint of a bald, bespectacled man in a fur-collared robe touching a skull with one finger against a dark background.The Phrenologist, mezzotint after T.H. Illidge, 1833Painting of a central nude wounded figure flanked by two bearded older men in a rocky landscape, with a skull on the ground at right.The Meditation on the PassionDaniel praying with hands clasped, surrounded by lions in a dark cave, with bones and a skull on the ground.Daniel among lions in a cave, after RubensWoman in white satin dress in a stone window niche with a skull on a book, roses, a potted plant and a red patterned carpet.Allegory of TransienceSepia print of a street revolt: a tall man in a long coat points forward, a flag waves, figures lie on the ground, and German verse captions run along the bottom.Revolution Street Scene with Fallen Figures, 1848Coloured caricature of a phrenology lecture: a man in a dark coat points at a bust while listeners sit before a table of plaster heads and skulls.Calves' Heads and Brains, or a Phrenological Lecture (1826 caricature)Dark vanitas still life: a skull, a flower vase, oranges, a pocket watch and a letter on a marble ledge, with a sunflower at right.Vanitas still life with flowers, skull and sunflowerEtching of two men playing cards at a table as a skeleton and a horned winged devil loom behind them, with Latin text below.Dance of Death: Gamblers Playing Cards with SkeletonPainting of a robed hermit seated on rocks beside a windswept tree, with a distant shoreline and stormy clouds under a glowing sky.Landscape with Saint Bruno in a Stormy DuskWatercolour of a barber-surgeon in a red hat working on a seated patient's head in a room lined with jars and bottles.Barber-surgeon removing stones from a patient's head, symbolising follyDark vanitas still life with a skull, veiled globe, violin, music sheet on lace, candle, and white and red flowers on a table.Vanitas still life with skull, violin and globePainting of a skull in greens and grays with a loose yellow brushstroke halo against a pale background.Skull, painting after Vincent van Gogh, 1887Brown chiaroscuro woodcut of an arched architectural frame with a central wheel of fortune, skeletons at each side, and seated figures and a skull at the top.Triumph of Death with Three Fates and a Wheel of FortuneEngraving of a bearded conjurer with a wand over an open book, beside a brazier, with horned demons in smoke and a kneeling man at lower left.Barclay's Dictionary, Word ConjurerHand-coloured etching of a woman, half dressed in blue gown and half skeleton, beside an inscribed obelisk, with a skull and bone at her feet.Life and Death Contrasted, or An Essay on WomanEngraving of a large skull wreathed in flowers between two candles, with an hourglass and sundial, and a reclining skeleton below.Skull, skeleton, candles and symbols of mortalityPainting of a musical company: a young woman reading at a table, a turbaned man playing a viol, a young man with a harp, and an older woman in shadow behind them.Musical CompanyWood engraving of a man reclining in a carved chair, facing a standing skeleton beside a table with books and a lantern in a paneled room.A Silent Colloquy: Man Reclining Before a SkeletonEtching of a nude man suspended horizontally beside a standing nude woman, with a huge horned goat, two cats, a skull and a pot below.Goya, Ensayos (Caprichos plate 66): nude figures, goat and catsColored woodcut of a seated rich man in a fur-trimmed robe, with a skeleton Death in a niche, a clock, hourglass, coffin and skull.The Rich Man and DeathPainting of a bald, bearded old man reading at a stone table in a rocky arch, with a skull, a lion at lower right, and a distant landscape.Saint Jerome in the WildernessEngraving of a melancholic figure in draped robes leaning on a skull beside an armillary sphere, with an open book and a dog in the foreground.La Melancolie: Melancholy Scholar with Skull and Armillary SphereHand-colored 1816 aquatint of an apothecary shop with jars, a crowd at left, a skeleton at right, and a seated man in a hat.The Dance of Death: The Apothecary, after Rowlandson (1816)Painted fantasy landscape with a carved stone monument topped by a reclining statue, a cardinal in red and crowds of figures in the foreground.Fantasy Landscape with Saint Charles BorromeoEtching of a huge horned goat behind a nude man kicking one leg up while a nude woman holds his head, with two cats, a skull and a pot below.Goya, Caprichos plate 65: Ensayos (Trials)Black-and-white engraving of a sorrowful elderly man seated beside a skull and hourglass, with a German inscription beneath.Elderly Man with Skull and Hourglass, Engraving, 1770Dark still life painting of a skull, hourglass, metal lantern and open handwritten book on a ledge, with a red drape at right.Vanitas still life with skull, hourglass and lanternTriptych painting: Crucifixion scene at center with Mary and saints, side panels show standing saints and kneeling men against a landscape.The Crucifixion with Saints and a DonorDrawing of a standing nude man with folded arms beside a reclining winged figure among skulls, with a framed verse above in calligraphic script.The Last Man, illustration for Rubaiyat of Omar KhayyamDrawing of a songbird perched on a skull, surrounded by swirling grey bands, scattered petals, and a banner reading Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.Omar's Emblem, Illustration for Rubáiyát of Omar KhayyámBlack and cream woodcut of a bare-chested man with raised arms beside a large feathered bird, with swirling lines and skulls below.Icarus, woodcut with bird and skullsBrown and orange woodcut of a nude figure under a huge dark bird wing, with tangled lines and skulls below.Woodcut of a nude figure beneath a large bird wingEngraving of a nude woman standing on a skull, holding a mirror, with trees and a castle in the background.Memento Mori, engraving by Master MZEtching of a reclining soldier, a bearded magician, and a woman with a flowered wreath around a burning skull beside a stone pillar.A Magician, A Soldier, and Three Figures Watching a Burning SkullPainting of a bearded young man in a dark skullcap and brown cloak, set against a shadowy brown background.Portrait of a Young Man with Beard and SkullcapEngraving of a skull on a stone ledge with bones, a reclining skeleton below, and Latin and Greek inscriptions framing the scene.Vanitas: Skull, Skeleton and Vanitas Inscriptions in an EngravingKneeling friar in a brown habit with bare feet reads an open book beside a skull in a dark, rocky cave lit by a single warm light.Saint Francis of Assisi PrayingEngraving of a reclining nude woman on a draped bed, with a mirror, a table of objects, standing figures, and Latin text above and below.Vanitas: Allegory of Worldly Vanity with Reclining Nude and FiguresStill life painting of open books, a brass candlestick, two globes, a trumpet and a hat on a draped table, with a striped curtain behind.Vanitas Still Life with Flag, Candlestick, Books, Globes and HourglassPainted portrait of an elderly white-bearded man in a black skullcap and dark fur-collared robe with a gold chain, against a dark olive background.Bust of an Old ManPanoramic painting of skeletons and living figures in dark clothing dancing in a line along a hilltop under a pale evening sky.The Dance of DeathEtching of skeletons and two men playing cards at a table, framed by columns with two philosophers, with Latin text below.Dodendans (Dance of Death) by Wenceslaus HollarEngraving of musicians under a vine trellis, including a seated figure with a donkey, a keyboard instrument, a kneeling singer and a horn player. Latin caption below.Emblem of Midas and musicians, engraving, 1596Grey lithograph of a human skull seen from the front, with printed labels above and below naming two different skulls.Frontal view of a skull, lithograph with labelsEngraved rococo vignette: a seated woman beside a beehive, with a skull, lute, sickle and horn in the foreground and trees behind.Vignette with Allegory of Abundance and TransienceEngraving of three skulls marked with numbered oval zones for phrenology, two side views above and a top view below, on aged paper.Three Views of a Skull Mapped for Gall's Phrenology, 1806Oval painting of a haloed figure riding a black dog, holding a club and a red bowl, against a blue sky over green grass.Bhairava Riding a Dog with Club and Skull-BowlEngraved vanitas allegory: nude figures with a skull, a raised bird and floating bubbles in a garden setting, signed J. de Groot, 1745.Allegory of Transience (Vanitas) by Johannes de GrootSepia print of a horseman with a long pole riding across open land toward a distant city, with German verse printed below.Horseman with Pole Riding Toward a City, 1848Engraving of skeletal Death pulling robed figures and a crowd past a fallen beam, with a horse at right and verse text below.New Dance of Death, Death Leading Figures Among CrowdsBrown print of men tumbling amid flags beside a barrel of loaves, with a skull-faced figure gripping a pole at right and German verse below.Nieuwe Dodendans: revolt scene with skull-faced figureFour engraved views of monkey skulls on cream paper: two intact in profile above, two cut in vertical section below, showing teeth and braincase.Capuchin monkey skulls with vertical sections, lithographBlack-and-white line print of skeletons crowding around a table with a seated man and a candle, under a plank ceiling.Dance of Death (Dodendans), Matthew XVIEngraved vanitas scene: a boy seated at a marble ledge beside a bowl, with flowers, fruit, a draped curtain and a cherub medallion, and a Latin inscription below.Humana cuncta Fumus, Umbra, Vanitas: boy with bubble and vanitas still lifeHand-coloured engraving of a man's profile head and three brown-toned skulls, titled Physiognomy, Plate II.Physiognomy, Plate II: profile head and three skullsBlack-and-white print of a crowded street with a robed man holding scales over a table, a cloaked figure and child at right, and a banner above.New Dance of Death: Revolution of 1848Coloured print of a wigged man feeling a seated woman's head; three men wait at right, skulls and plaster heads on shelves.The Phrenologist: caricature of head examination, 1825Brown etching of a skeleton with a scythe and a horned devil flanking a coat of arms with scenes of ships and soldiers.Skeleton and devil flanking a coat of arms, 1807 etchingPainting of a barber-surgeon in a red cap working on a seated patient in a red chair, with jars on shelves behind.Barber-surgeon attending a seated patient in a red chairStill life painting with a skull, hourglass, stacked books and a letter on a dark draped table against a brown wall.Vanitas Still Life with Skull, Hourglass and BooksBlack-and-white caricature of a phrenology lecture: a bald lecturer points at a chart before a crowded audience, with plaster heads and skulls on shelves and tables.Calves' Heads and Brains, or a Phrenological LectureCrowded Mannerist painting of two embracing women in a classical piazza, with a nude old man and lion at left, a seated nude beggar at right, and a skull on the floor.Visitation: Mary and Elizabeth with Saints Joseph and JeromeOil painting of an anxious man in a red chair holding a skull beside a green-draped table, with books and skulls scattered on the floor.Anxious Man Comparing His Head to a Skull, Phrenology SceneEngraved phrenology chart with skull and brain diagrams, head outlines, three male portraits, and a dense printed index in columns.Phrenological diagrams of the skull and brain with three portraits, 1818Engraved vanitas print: a man and woman seated with a skull, hourglass and scattered objects, framed by ornate scrollwork and a banner.Vanitas: Two Figures with a Skull, Hourglass and Vanitas SymbolsPainting of a green wrathful figure with orange hair and bared fangs standing on grey swirling clouds against a pink cloud background.Green wrathful deity with flaming hair on clouds, Tibetan gouachePainting of an bearded elderly man with a halo kneeling in a dark desert, reading an open book on a stone ledge, with a red cardinal's hat nearby.Saint Jerome Kneeling in Penitence in the DesertBlack and white lithograph of a man holding a skull and touching a seated girl's head as a woman in a bonnet looks on, with busts and skulls on shelves.Phrenologist Examining a Girl's Skull While Her Mother WatchesFramed drawing with a black clock dial at centre, a skeleton holding a lamp in an oval at top, and four grey classical medallions at the corners.Clock dial with a skeleton holding an oil lamp, drawing by Caleb Elwin, 1800Engraving of a turbaned bearded man seated between two globes, with robed figures, a child, a shelf of instruments, and inscriptions above.Lottery draw from two globes with seated men, engravingBlack-and-white aquatint of an apothecary shop with bottles on shelves, a patient, a pharmacist, and a skeleton in the right foreground.The Dance of Death: The Apothecary (Rowlandson, 1816)Hand-coloured engraving showing a skull, jawbone, red head muscle diagrams, and a white and pink hellebore plant with leaves and roots.Skull, jawbone, head muscles and hellebore plant, engravingHand-coloured 1871 caricature etching of a horned red demon holding a banner of slogans, standing amid smoke and flames, with a caption below.Horned demon with banner: Cruikshank caricature of the Paris Commune, 1871Lithograph of a human skull seen from the front, centered on pale paper, with a printed French caption text block below.Skull of a Public Woman, Lithograph, c. 1835Black-and-white etching of a reclining skeleton on a stone ledge, with snakes winding over it and rats nearby, under a Latin banner.A Check to Pride and Vanity: skeleton with snakes and rats, 1821 etchingEngraved anatomical plate of skull views and vertebrae with lettered reference marks, labelled Tab. XLIX, on yellowed paper.Human skull and vertebrae, engraved plate Tab. XLIXEtched sheet with four oval panels of saints: an armored archangel over a dragon, a kneeling man before a cross, and an angel guiding a figure.Saints Michael, Jerome, Wenceslaus and a Guardian Angel, etchingColored caricature print: stout men brawling indoors before green drapes, a maid raising a pan, and a skeleton leaning over an seated old woman at right.The dance of death: the chamber war, Rowlandson aquatint, 1816Young woman blowing a bubble beside a skull, violin and open book on a green-draped table, in a vanitas still life.Bubble-blowing Girl with a Vanitas Still LifeGouache painting of a skull and crossbones in a cloud, a streaking comet, lightning, and a stormy sky over dark hills.Portents of Death and Destruction, Gouache, ca. 1910Oval portrait miniature of a woman in a white bonnet and white shawl, set in a gold frame on a gray background.Mary (Polly) Lawton Bringhurst, portrait miniatureEngraving of a seated woman in a feathered headdress beside a table with a ewer, smoke and flame behind her, framed by ornamental calligraphic lettering.Vanitas Vanitatum et Omnia Vanitas, engraving by Jan SaenredamInk and wash drawing of a crowd of figures in a bacchanal, with three skeletons in draped cloaks looming at upper right over the tangle of bodies.Triumph of Death: Three Skeletons Invading a BacchanalMonochrome vanitas engraving: a seated nude woman, a figure holding up a parrot, a child with fruit, and a skull among bubbles.Allegory of Transience (Vanitas)Two grey drawings of human skulls on a grey mount: a side view at top and a frontal view below labelled as the skull of the painter Raphael.Skull of the painter Raphael, frontal viewEngraved plate titled Physiognomy with an older man's profile, several skulls in side view, a small ape skull, and a gridded frontal face.Physiognomy plate: older man's profile, skulls and a gridded face, 1824Long-haired man in dark coat drawing with a pen on a golden globe, with a book and a crescent moon behind him.Self-PortraitSepia anatomical diagram of a female brain cut vertically in side view, with numbered labels and a cerebellum at the lower rear.Vertical section of a female brain, Plate XIVGrid of sixteen black-and-white photos of a mustached man in a suit, head fitted with a white measuring band, shown from multiple angles.Bernard Hollander demonstrating cranial measurement with a head band, c. 1902Black-and-white portrait of a mustached man in a suit with a metal craniometer arched over his head, demonstrating cranial measurement.Bernard Hollander measuring his own head with a craniometer, c. 1902Pencil sketch of a bearded elderly man in a long dark coat and cap, holding a walking stick, standing against a pale background.Elderly Man in Long Coat and Skull Cap with Walking StickEtching of a skeleton pulling a monk backward by his cowl while a dog and a column stand nearby.The Monk, from "Dance of Death"