You can see this image at the very beginning of the opening credits of the series Rome. I know it from a book I had on Greek and Roman myths. I always loved it, it is deliciously sinister. The funny thing is that it was not supposed to be sinister: it was just telling people to enjoy life fully, whatever they decided to do, because life is short. You can see the lance of the soldier and the staff of the traveller and below the skull the wheel of fortune.
2 comments:
I wonder why the skull has an 'ear'? The artist must have had real skulls to observe.
Maybe it's a rotting corpse withthe skin (and ears) still stuck to the skull. Maybe it's artistic licence and/or it has some significance.
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