Symbolism Gallery

Charles Darwin, British naturalist

Charles Darwin (1809-1882), British naturalist. Darwin had briefly studied medicine and then trained in the clergy, but his interest was in natural history. In 1831 he set sail as naturalist on HMS Beagle (left), which was to provide the fieldwork for his famous book. His theory of evolution was published as On the Origin of Species By Means of Natural Selection (1859). It caused a storm of controversy with Christian orthodoxy, as it contradicted the widely accepted belief that different animal and plant species were created by a divine creator (God)

© SMETEK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Alchemy

Alchemy. Historical artwork by the German artist Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) titled Melencolia I. It represents one of the four temperaments or humours, and it is thought that its title (ending in I) implies that Durer intended to draw the other three. Many of the artifacts seen, such as the mathematical "magic" square (upper right), balance (upper centre) and geometric shapes (far & lower left) are associated with alchemy. Alchemy was the pseudo-scientific predecessor to chemistry, which among other ideas is best known for its practitioners hunt for the Philosopher's Stone, which would impart eternal life and the ability to turn base metals into gold

© SHEILA TERRY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Music sheet cover for Queen of the May Quadrille

Music sheet cover for the Queen of the May Quadrille, composed by the French conductor Louis Antoine Jullien (1812-1860), and dedicated to Mrs Robert Arkwright (the actress Frances Crawford Kemble). An allegorical female figure is depicted to represent the month of May, wearing a pink chiffon dress and with bare feet. She is wearing pink roses in her hair, and holds up a garland of roses with which to crown the lucky girl chosen to be Queen of the May

© Mary Evans Picture Library 2015 - https://copyrighthub.org/s0/hub1/creation/maryevans/MaryEvansPictureID/10412851