Keyword

Alpak ID

Date

Findspot

Material

Category

Language

Archive/Collection

ALpak ID:

AL2

Description:

This medical woodcut bridges natural and supernatural explanations for epidemic disease. The demon figure sprays pestilential vapors from its mouth, visualizing miasma theory while maintaining moral causation for illness. The anatomical detail in the human victims reflects Renaissance medical illustration’s increasing precision, while the demon remains stylized, otherworldly. This visual distinction separates observable effects from invisible causes. Positioning is significant: the demon hovers above, acting upon bodies below. This spatial hierarchy reinforces period understanding of disease as descending influence, whether understood as bad air, divine punishment, or demonic attack.

Archive/Collection:

Louvre

Date:

4th Century CE

Findspot:

Alexandria

Current Location:

Department of Egyptian Antiquities, E 27104

Provenance:

Acquired in Cairo, 1938.

Category:

Amulet

Material:

Stone

Language:

Latin

Script:

Coptic Uncial

Bibliography:

Meyer, M. & Smith, R. (1994), Ancient Christian Magic: Coptic Texts of Ritual Power, pp. 112–115.

Scroll to Top