Duivel boven een groep stervenden 1847 - 1883

This etching by Johan Bernhard Wittkamp depicts a devil looming over a group of dying people. The scene is dominated by the stark contrast between the suffering mortals and the seemingly indifferent devil figure above. The devil, often associated with temptation and evil, embodies the antithesis of hope. We can trace its origins back to ancient Mesopotamian demons, creatures that haunted the shadows of the human psyche. But the symbolic weight of the devil shifts, as does our understanding of the duality of human nature. The presence of the devil underscores our most primal fears and anxieties about mortality. The artist taps into a collective unconscious filled with archetypes of death and suffering. The emotional power lies in the raw vulnerability of the dying, a potent symbol that continues to resonate across cultures and time. The image is a cyclical progression, where the devil resurfaces as a harbinger of death.