摘要：In the later neoplatonism,natural science is fundamentally a theology,its origin and rationality of the basis,direction and final destination are *** concept represents the philosophical reflection of science by the Greeks,which inevitably has the limitations of the times,but it may provide a kind of enlightenment for today’s“modernity problem”and help us to understand science more deeply.

摘要：This study aims to visualize Giorgio Vasari＇s statement in discussing Jacopo Tintoretto＇s Female Concert of 1576-86, now at the Gemaldegalerie Alte Meister in Dresden （see Figure 1）. Two conceits （concetti） are considered in analyzing Tintoretto＇s female imagery： （1） a fanciful invention of musica extravaganza; and （2） a Venetian allegory of bellezza. The first part of the essay discusses the provenance of the painting and the second part presents an iconographical interpretation of the imagery. This essay also focuses on the iconography of the painting based on viewing the subject and does not postulate on its iconography based on disappeared paintings or on a speculative decorative cycle on the theme of Hercules. Relying on well-documented research on music in Venice, on Mannerist practices, and on art theories during Tintoretto＇s life, some intriguing observations are made about the painting.

摘要：This essay examines an American 19th-century sculpture, Howard Roberts＇ Hypatia, both historically and aesthetically （see Figures 1 and 2）. Problems of interpretation are found at both levels because of limited documentation. However, a speculative analysis adapting Plotinus＇ notions on the ＂delight of the intellect＂ and of ＂seeing＂ assist in considering beauty in the carved form, even if the subject is grave. What prompted this commission and who commissioned this work are questions to be considered.

摘要：Giorgio Vasari’s conception of artistic creativity is related to his theory of painting. He proposes two alternatives in a painter’s development or achievement of artistic creativity: imitation (imitazione) and invention (invenzione).Imitation is the copying of art as a method of learning, whereas invention is independent of imitation and constitutes the means for conceiving artistic ideas. Imitation serves to guide and teach the artist in composing and creating perfection. Vasari maintains that artists must study antiquity and the masters, so that they may learn how others acquired the experience of imitating nature. For Vasari, imitation draws upon three different sources: the first two are copying from nature (copia dal vero) and the third one is selecting from one’s work (imitare se stessi). He emphasizes that copying from nature is important for the artist so that he may learn to create forms that are alive as visualized in the Fine Arts.

摘要：The Pre-Raphaelite painter Edward Burne-Jones(1833-1898)conceived the subject of The Mirror of Venus between 1865 and *** painted two versions:a small version in gouache and oil and a larger version in oil on *** composing this subject Burne-Jones was inspired by the poetic and chromatic description of a lyrical stanza on“The Hill of Venus”in the long epic poem Earthly Paradise,written by his close friend and collaborator William Morris.1 This study comprises three parts:Burne-Jones’s history of the paintings,his iconographical sources,and an iconological interpretation of The Mirror of Venus.

摘要：In his Commentary on Plato＇s Phaedo, Damascius establishes a close relation between destination （lexis）, divine Justice, and life dignity （kat＇aian） of every soul. Among several meanings of destination, the most relevant one is related to the condition of the soul after death. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to consider how this neoplatonic term is conceived in Dionysius Areopagite. For that purpose, the author will analyze such term widely used in the chapter 7 of Ecclesiastic Hierarchy in which Dionysius deals with the funerary rite and in which the notes of the dionysian eschatology are found. In other words, Dionysius＇ use of this term combines a spiritual and a metaphysic perspective. The former is part of the representation of the dionysian universe in which even the angels receive the name of lexeis and are distinguished by their never ending movement around the Thearchia; the latter is present among humans as a call to imitate such angelic condition. Such imitation is not possible without the effort needed to behave in agreement with an honorable lifestyle （kat＇axian, neoplatonic expression also used by Dionysius） that opens the door to a condition or rank granted to man after death.

摘要：This essay is twofold： the first part focuses on the interpretation of the concept of Hell in Dante＇s Inferno and Italian culture as depicted in Last Judgment scenes such as Giotto＇s in the Arena Chapel of Padua; Signorelli＇s in the Orvieto Cathedral; and Michelangelo＇s in the Sistine Chapel in Rome. The second part deals with the drawing illustrations for the text of Dante＇s Divine Comedy composed by the Florentine painters Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Here the emphasis is on Dante＇s Inferno, which comments upon Neoplatonic personalities, Florentine politics, and current popular art. Comparisons with some of Botticelli＇s, Stradano＇s, and Zuccaro＇s drawing illustrations indicate the assimilation of classical artistic concepts such as Horace＇s ut pictura poesis [as is painting so is poetry] as well as Plato＇sfurorpoeticus [poetical inspiration] promoted in the writings of Marsilio Ficino, a Renaissance Neoplatonic philosopher.

摘要：This essay discusses the manifold depictions of Saint Michael The Archangel in Italian Renaissance art,in particular in Giorgio Vasari’s *** starts with a brief explanation of who Michael The Archangel is,explores his visual iconography in pagan,Judeo-Christian,and Byzantine imagery,and examines the impact of Renaissance neoplatonism on the interpretation of Saint Michael and his symbolic *** Renaissance Neoplatonic philosopher Marsilio Ficino explained the significance of the Platonic celestial ladder as a spiritual vehicle for the human soul to achieve divine *** step of this ladder is the Angelic *** is here that the sparkling light of the realm of the Angelic Mind reveals the splendor and beauty of God’s *** is the realm where Michael,a Seraphim and a messenger of God,resides,delivering God’s messages of grace and love to humanity throughout the *** Vasari(1511-1574)visualized these divine messages metaphorically in frescos on two major *** first is in the small cupola of the Pope Pius V Chapel in the Vatican,once called Saint Michael’s Chapel,where between 1560 and 1566 Vasari and his assistants painted al fresco the Saint Michael and the Devils,a depiction of Michael the Archangel combatting vices personified as demons who want to prevent human beings from obtaining the divine grace that will allow their souls to ascend toward heaven(Figure 1).Between 1570 and 1574,Vasari continued his metaphorical visualization of God’s divine message in a large vault,the octagonal cupola of Santa Maria del Fiore,the Dome of the Cathedral of Florence,the major focus in this essay(Figure 2).He and his assistants painted al fresco the Last Judgment,portraying Saint Michael The Archangel residing in a heavenly realm-the divine reign of God,where he mediates and witnesses God’s divine judgment on humankind(Figure 13).Here,celestial trumpeters loudly announce the separation of good and bad souls of the terrestrial realm,*** bad s