Onthoofding van Karel I van Engeland 1730

Bernard Picart captured the beheading of Charles I of England in this engraving. The starkest symbol is the executioner’s axe, raised high, a chilling echo of ancient sacrificial rites. Since antiquity, the axe has been associated with power, sacrifice, and even divine judgment. Consider the Labrys, the double-headed axe of Minoan Crete, a symbol of matriarchal power. In ancient Rome, the fasces, a bundle of rods with an axe, symbolized the authority of the state. In Picart's image, the axe signifies a shift in power, and the death of kings. This moment, fraught with emotional intensity, became a recurring motif in art, literature, and collective memory. The act of decapitation resonates with ancient myths and rituals. The severing of the head, a symbol of intellect and authority, is a potent image of irreversible change. This brutal act, forever etched in our collective consciousness, invites us to confront the cyclical nature of power and the enduring human fascination with violence and transformation.