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| Holbein's dance of death, the miser. |
Two Deaths are stealing the money (rather than the life) from the miser. Once again Holbein has looked at the dance of death in his own town. In Basel's dance of death (to the left) the miser is sitting behind a table full of coins - as opposed to everbody else who's dancing around.
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| Gross-Basel, the miser. |
The same motive and same bible quote was used in Holbein's dance of death (picture to the right). The windows are barred - but that doesn't stop this thief!
The accompanying text for this letter goes: »Du narr / in diser nact / werden sy dyn seel von dir vorderen / und die Ding die du hast überkomen / weß werden die syn«.
This is from Luke 12,20, which in Luther's version sounds: »Du Narr! Diese Nacht wird man deine Seele von dir fordern; und wem wird dann gehören, was du angehäuft hast? «. In English: »But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?«
Dansk 
Lübeck's dance of death
Holbein
Alphabet
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