Early Visual Cultures and Panofsky’s Perspektive als ‘symbolische Form’

This paper investigates the historical dimension of perspectival representations. It aims to provide a heterogeneous though comparative picture of culturally unrelated visual con- ceptualizations of pictorial spaces, written with a view toward explaining how the multiple modes of perspective were introduced in antiquity. Point of departure for this critical approach is Erwin Panofsky’s essay Die Perspektive als ‘symbolische Form’ , published in 1927. His essay analyses the pictorial visualization of space and spatiality in different historical contexts, examining their cultural codification in terms of the heuristic category of ‘sym- bolic form’. However, ‘perspective’, which is commonly understood as synonymous with ‘linear perspective’, deserves a new discussion in the context of diverse visual cultures: A ‘naturalisation’ of the gaze as it is suggested by pictorial spaces which function mimetically is primarily associated with the early modern period in Western art. Instead of merely re- reading Panofsky’s canonical text, this paper presents an interdisciplinary re-viewing of a selection of the pictorial examples chosen by Panofsky, commenting upon their perspec- tive(s) from different vantage points

Foreældreopgør og kønsidentitet

En analyse af Karen Blixens ungdomsfortælling Pløjere

Osteitis in the dens of axis caused by Treponema pallidum

BACKGROUND: Syphilis has been referred to as “the great imitator” due to its ability to imitate other diseases. Untreated syphilis becomes a systemic infection that can involve almost every organ systems. Treponema pallidum has a high affinity for bone tissue, but osteitis has mainly been described in late stages of the disease. Vertebral involvement is rare, and this is to our knowledge the first case describing syphilitic spondylitis in early acquired syphilis. CASE PRESENTATION: We here describe destructive osteitis in the vertebral column as the initial manifestation of early acquired syphilis in a 24-year-old caucasian homosexual male with HIV infection. The diagnosis was reached by universal bacterial PCR and DNA sequencing of the DNA product. It was confirmed by PCR specific for Treponema pallidum, immunohistochemistry and detection of increasing antibody titer. CONCLUSIONS: As syphilis has re-emerged in Western countries and remains a worldwide common disease it is important to have in mind as a causative agent of skeletal symptoms, especially among HIV-infected individuals or men who have sex with men (MSM)