UDK 003.26:76:929 Dürer A. THE POLYHEDRON ON DUERER'S "MELENCOLIA I" Tine Kurent The polyhedron with triangular and pentagonal faces on the Duerer's "MELENCOLIA I" engraving is said to be a cube with two opposite corners cut off.1 A cube has 6 faces, 12 sides and 8 corners. A cube with two truncated tips has 8 faces, 18 sides and 12 corners. In the above numbers, the prime factors 2 and 3 are implied. The numbers 2 and 3 are symbols for human beings, male and female.2 The solid is a symbol for humanity. Men and women can be affected with melancholy. If, however, one more corner of the crystal is cut off on its hidden side, the resulting solid has 9 faces, 21 sides and 14 corners. In numbers 9, 21 and 14, the prime numbers 2, 3 and 7 are implied. Hence the numbers 237, 273, 327, 372, 723, 732. Their sum is equal to 2664. The number 237 is one of the important gematrical cyphers.3 The essential ideas of the "MELENCOLIA I" are hidden in the number 237 and in its gematrical equivalents: 1. Number 2446 is 4-times larger than the number of the beast4 666. It is also 3-times larger than the number 888, equal to the most holy name of Jesus in the Greek gematria:5 IH20Y2 = 10+8+200+70+400+200 = 888. 2. The Greek name of the print, MEAETXOAIA, is equal to 790.6 Number 79 is the prime factor of the number 237: MEAATXOAIA = 40+5+30+1+3+600+70+30+10+1 = 790. 1 The Complete Engravings, Etchings and Drypoints of Albrecht Duerer, Edited by Walter L. Strauss, Dover Publications Inc., New York, 1973. 2 cf. Rabelais, Le Tiers Livre, III. 3 Kurent, T., Plečnik in genius loci .-Zbornik ljubljanske Sole za arhitekturo, 1982. idem, Grobovi Plečnikov: gematrična sporočila.-Nova revija, 75-76, 1988. idem, Molitve za umrle v Plečnikovih nosilih za krste na Žal ah.-Tre/ji dan, november 1989, skupaj s Tatjano Cirnski. idem, Mačkov Rotovž, Plečnikovo pismo .-Katedra, april 1991. idem, Sporočilo Duererjevega bakroreza MELENCOLIA I .-Katedra, februar 1992. idem, The Slovene insurance House. Plečnik's Symbols, Triglav, Ljubljana, 1990. idem, Plečnikova plošča:"Vzajemna zavarovalnica 1900",-ZLŠA, 1990. idem, Vzajemna zavarovalnica=237.-ZLŠ/l, 1990. idem, Plečnikova vrata v direktorsko krilo Vzajemne.-ZLŠA, 1990. idem, Število 237 v Gallusovi gematrični kompoziciji "VI. Gallus amat Venerem.Cur?".-/?a.sf, april 1993. 4 Revelation 13, 18. 5 Doelger, F., Das Octogon und die Symbolik der Achtzahl.-Antike und Christentum, Band IV, Heft 3, Aschendorffsche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Muenster in Westfalen, 1934. 6 Kurent, T., Die Gematrie von Duerers "MELENCOLIA V'.-Acta neophilologica, 1992. 3 3. Aristotle's wondernment, why all the people, excelling in philosophy or in politics or in poetry or in arts, are melancholical, is equal in the Greek gematria to 9401 or to 119x79.7 (See illustration) In the Latin gematria, the name of ARISTOTEL equals 119. ARISTOTEL = 1 + 18+9+19+20+15+20+5+12 = 119. 4. The name of AGRIPPA VON NETTESHEIM is gematrically equal to 237. AGRIPPA VON NETTESHEIM = (1+7+18+9+16+16+1) + (22+15+14) + (14+5+20+20+5+19+8+5+9+13) = 237. 5. The Melancholy is personified with the black angel. The Hebrew angel Rahal8 is worth 237: = 30+1 +5+1 +200 = 237 6. A contrast to the black angel is the Virgin Mary. VIRGO DEI GENITRIX MARIA = (22+9+18+7+15) + (4+5+9) + (7+5+14+9+20+18+9+24) + (13+1 + 18+9+1) = 237. 7. A prayer, part of Psalm 137, is equal to 237: IN CONSPECTU ANGELORUM PSALLAM TIBI, ADORABO AD TEMPLUM SANCTUM TUUM, ET CONFITEBOR NOMINI TUO = (9+14) + (3+15+14+19+16+5+3+20+21) + (1 + 14+7+5+12+15+18+21 + 13) + (16+19+1+12+12+1+13) + (20+9+2+9) + (1+4+15+18+1+2+15) + (1+4) + (20+5+13+16+12+21 + 13) + (19+1 + 14+3+20+21 + 13) + (20+21+21 + 13) + (5+20) + (3+15+14+6+9+20+5+2+15+18) + (14+15+13+9+14+9) + (20+21+15) = 948 = 4 x 237 The last sentence, CONFITEBOR NOMINI TUO, equals 237. Illustrations oooooooo oooooo oooo oo o ooo ooooo oooooo Even numbers are forming the female triangle. Odd numbers are forming the male triangle. The number 5, as the sum of numbers 2 and 3, is symbol of TAMOS. 7 Aristotle, Problemata 30,1. See also: Kurent, T., The Melancoly according to Aristole in the Magic square on the Duerer's "MELENCOLIA I".-Acta neophilologica, 1993. 8 Crowley, A., Sepher Sephiroth, Edited by Israel Regardie, Samuel Weiser, Inc., York Beach, Maine, 1973. 4 The polyhedron on Duerer's Melancholy with its three corners cut off is gematrically equal to the number 237. Since one of the truncated corners is hidden, the gematrical messages, hidden in the number 237, are well conceiled. 5 A IOC tL 7C0CVT EQ QCSQl 7TSplTTol yeyovaaiv ¿cvSpeg, 7) xoctoc 9iXoaocpiav, 7toXitlkt]v, 7] 7tQL7]aiv,. 77 xe^vac;, cpocivovTai [¿eXay^oAixol ovteq . . . A 4 r 3 4> 500 n 80 M 40 I 10 E 5 I 10 o 70 E 5 A 1 r 3 A 30 i 10 A 30 T 300 o 70 O 70 H 8 A 1 I 10 N 50 2 200 2 200 r 3 n 80 A 1 O 70 I 10 X 600 A 1 2 200 4» 500 N 50 o 70 N 50 I 10 I 10 H 8 A 30 T 300 N 50 A 1 T 300 I 10 E 5 A 1 N 50 E 5 K 20 2 200 N 50 H 8 X 600 O 70 O 70 A 4 n 80 N 50 I 10 2 200 P 100 o 70 A 1 O 70 O 70 E 5 A 30 2 200 N 50 I 10 2 200 I 10 500 T 300 n 80 H 8 T 300 A 1 E 5 E 5 K 20 I 10 I 10 2 200 p 100 A 1 K 20 N 50 i 10 T 300 H 8 O 70 9401 T 300 A 1 N 50 N 50 T 300 H 8 T 300 0 70 A 1 I 10 I 10 Aristotle's sentence on melancholy (Problemata 30,1).