Download PDF - Carl Zeiss

The Magazine from Carl Zeiss
Innovation
Sombrero galaxy (Messier 104)
Spiral galaxy in the Virgo cluster of galaxies
located some 28 million light years from the earth.
The picture combines data from the Hubble
and Spitzer space telescopes. R. Kennicutt (Steward
Observatory) et al., SSC, JPL, Caltech, NASA
Carl Spitzweg, the Astrologist, 1860/64
The astrologist himself looks as if he came from
a different planet. Totally emaciated by his studies,
he has turned into an almost androgynous figure.
Gaunt and bony, he has donned the owl-like
appearance of a creature of the night, constantly
seeking the darkness of the room at the top of the
tower, reachable only by climbing many steps.
Spitzweg caricaturized the scholar with a goatee
and special, eye-magnifying lenses. His blue cap,
ankle-length garment and conspicuously radiant
sleeves round off his unworldly, Merlin-like
appearance.
However, it is not the scientist who is standing in
the limelight, but a gentleman in the typical noble
attire of the 17 th century. In order to peer into
the wisdom of the heavens, he has kneeled in front
of the wooden telescope, doffed his hat and pointed
his sword to the rear. With his mouth wide open,
he is endeavoring to unravel the mysteries before
him, while the expert rubs his hands gleefully in
the background.
Georg Schäfer Museum, Schweinfurt, Germany
www.museumgeorgschaefer.de