Illustration XV c. 16th century

Curator: This is Illustration XV, an anonymous artwork currently held at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: The first thing that strikes me is its unsettling, almost feverish quality. It's sparse but loaded with what feels like encoded meaning. Curator: Absolutely. The temple, the figures, even the serpent coiling around the banner—they all point to a deeper symbolic language. Notice how the central figures seem to be ushering us toward the idol. Editor: Which is incredibly problematic, isn't it? The idol on the pillar holds a flag. What are we meant to believe? I think this piece might be critiquing power structures of the time. The idol is the authority. Curator: Perhaps. Or is it simply presenting a worldview? These images might be reflections of archetypal figures, not necessarily endorsements or criticisms. The serpent is a symbol of both chaos and transformation. Editor: But who is being transformed, and to what end? If this piece has no date, there is no way to know the circumstances in which it was made and for whom. Curator: It reminds me how art can hold so much and give so little away. Editor: Yes, context is everything. The past feels very present in its visual ambiguities.