René Descartes 1596-1650 AD FRans Hals Portrait Oil Canvas Painting
Price:
1900.00 €
Product details
| Product number: | 952 |
| Artist: | Franz Hals |
| Material: | Oil |
Product description
Oil painting portrait of René Descartes signed illegibly, dimensions 45 x 61 cm (without frame)(n. Frans Hals) DEScartes was a French philosopher who is considered the founder of modern philosophy and a pioneer of the "Enlightenment". He urged people in his writings to stop believing what others taught as the "truth." Rather, you should get to the bottom of the question of truth by taking your own thinking as a starting point. Descartes is assigned to the philosophical school of “rationalism” - “ratio” is Latin and means “reason”.
The philosopher's life began in 1596 and ended in 1650. He lived in France, the Netherlands and, towards the end of his life, in Sweden. Descartes' Latin saying "Cogito ergo sum!" is famous. (in German "I think, therefore I am!"). But what exactly is behind this sentence? And who was this man who, when writing down his thoughts, always had to make sure that he did not contradict too much with the teachings of the then very powerful Catholic Church.
Expressing certain ideas could have serious consequences. The famous scientist Galileo Galilei - a contemporary of Descartes - was put on trial because he claimed that the earth revolved around the sun. Galileo retracted his theory because his life was more important to him than the supposed truth.
Another, Giordano Bruno, was even burned at the stake in 1600 because he argued that there could be "an infinite number of worlds" (inhabited Earth-like planets) in the universe. Throughout his life, Descartes tried to find a middle way between official church teaching and his personal philosophy. Nevertheless, he made many enemies through his theories. In 1663, the Vatican even placed Descartes' writings on the index of banned books ("Index librorum prohibitorum").
Descartes was born on March 31, 1596 in the small town of La Haye in the Touraine region of central France - today this place has been renamed in his honor and is now called "La Haye-Descartes"). René was the third son of the respected and wealthy lawyer Joachim Descartes; his mother was called Jeanne Brochard. However, René and his two brothers were raised by his grandmother because his biological mother died when the boy was just two years old. The father had to repeatedly go to Brittany (a region in the northwest) for long periods of time because of his job as a lawyer and political advisor, which meant he could hardly take adequate care of his children.
At the age of eight, René was sent to a school run by the Catholic Jesuit order - alongside theology, philosophy also plays a particularly important role in Jesuit education. The school was called "Collège Royal Henri-le-Grand" and was located in La-Flèche, a town in the French province of Anjou. Descartes learned Greek and Latin here, and was also taught mathematics, astronomy, music and architecture. The texts of the Greek master philosopher Aristotle, which were read in the original, were particularly important. In addition, there were Jesuit commentaries on the original texts - so it was clear how they were to be interpreted. Descartes acquired his basic philosophical knowledge as a child.
The philosopher's life began in 1596 and ended in 1650. He lived in France, the Netherlands and, towards the end of his life, in Sweden. Descartes' Latin saying "Cogito ergo sum!" is famous. (in German "I think, therefore I am!"). But what exactly is behind this sentence? And who was this man who, when writing down his thoughts, always had to make sure that he did not contradict too much with the teachings of the then very powerful Catholic Church.
Expressing certain ideas could have serious consequences. The famous scientist Galileo Galilei - a contemporary of Descartes - was put on trial because he claimed that the earth revolved around the sun. Galileo retracted his theory because his life was more important to him than the supposed truth.
Another, Giordano Bruno, was even burned at the stake in 1600 because he argued that there could be "an infinite number of worlds" (inhabited Earth-like planets) in the universe. Throughout his life, Descartes tried to find a middle way between official church teaching and his personal philosophy. Nevertheless, he made many enemies through his theories. In 1663, the Vatican even placed Descartes' writings on the index of banned books ("Index librorum prohibitorum").
Descartes was born on March 31, 1596 in the small town of La Haye in the Touraine region of central France - today this place has been renamed in his honor and is now called "La Haye-Descartes"). René was the third son of the respected and wealthy lawyer Joachim Descartes; his mother was called Jeanne Brochard. However, René and his two brothers were raised by his grandmother because his biological mother died when the boy was just two years old. The father had to repeatedly go to Brittany (a region in the northwest) for long periods of time because of his job as a lawyer and political advisor, which meant he could hardly take adequate care of his children.
At the age of eight, René was sent to a school run by the Catholic Jesuit order - alongside theology, philosophy also plays a particularly important role in Jesuit education. The school was called "Collège Royal Henri-le-Grand" and was located in La-Flèche, a town in the French province of Anjou. Descartes learned Greek and Latin here, and was also taught mathematics, astronomy, music and architecture. The texts of the Greek master philosopher Aristotle, which were read in the original, were particularly important. In addition, there were Jesuit commentaries on the original texts - so it was clear how they were to be interpreted. Descartes acquired his basic philosophical knowledge as a child.