Gestaltete Vergangenheit

The many facets of Goethe's encounter with ancient art, which was so important to him, are traced for the first time in the autobiographical writings Dichtung und Wahrheit, the travel writings and the Tag- und Jahreshefte. This reveals how Goethe selected and weighted ancient works of art - some of which are identified or named in terms of their significance - in retrospect, i.e. how the experience of art became literature. This provides an up-to-date and novel approach to Goethe's view of ancient art for all those interested in Goethe and cultural studies. The author is a classical archaeologist and has worked on the description of art and the creative examination of antiquity, including Goethe.