Beethoven's Bones!

[Joy]

An interesting article in the paper concerning fragments of Beethoven's skull which are now at the Ira Brillant's Centre for Beethoven's Studies Museum at the San Jose State University in California. Also includes some photographs.
http://www2.sjsu.edu/depts/beethoven...kullintro.html

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'Truth and beauty joined'

[Peter]

Quite amazing especially the 1863 reconstruction of the skull. A moving account of this comes from Gerhard Von Breuning who as a 13 year old boy had known Beethoven during his last illness. Both Schubert and Beethoven were exhumed in 1863 and Breuning draws the following comparisons between the two skulls: "It was extremely interesting to compare the compact thickness of Beethoven's and the fine, almost feminine thinness of Schubert's, and to relate them almost directly, to the character of their music.....it was also striking that the last lower left molar was found to have an excellent gold filling. This was unusual in two respects: In those days (1820s) it was exceptional to have such good fillings performed and further, it was surprising Beethoven was able to endure the operation which always requires such patience....what stormy feelings passed through my mind evoking such powerful memories, as I had possession of that head for a few days, cleaned from it bits of dirt, took plaster casts of the base of the skull, kept it by my bedside overnight, and in general proudly watched over that head from whose mouth, in years gone by, I had so often heard the living word!"

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'Man know thyself'

[Chaszz]

I Don't know about you guys. A morbid fascination with the physical remains of Beethoven... a thread about his hair, a thread about his skull...it's like a haunted house in here...

[Chaszz]

Originally posted by Chaszz:
I Don't know about you guys. A morbid fascination with the physical remains of Beethoven... a thread about his hair, a thread about his skull...it's like a haunted house in here...

The above was posted more or less jokingly... and being only an on-and-off visitor here, I should not be critical. So don't take me too seriously...

[Anthina]

Originally posted by Chaszz:
I Don't know about you guys. A morbid fascination with the physical remains of Beethoven... a thread about his hair, a thread about his skull...it's like a haunted house in here...

I was actually thinking the same ;-) I would like to stay in peace and not have my skull examinated and flown all over the world

[Joy]

Originally posted by Chaszz:
I Don't know about you guys. A morbid fascination with the physical remains of Beethoven... a thread about his hair, a thread about his skull...it's like a haunted house in here...

I guess I was feeling a little macabre at that moment.



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'Truth and beauty joined'

[Droell]

Originally posted by Peter:
Quite amazing especially the 1863 reconstruction of the skull. A moving account of this comes from Gerhard Von Breuning who as a 13 year old boy had known Beethoven during his last illness. Both Schubert and Beethoven were exhumed in 1863 and Breuning draws the following comparisons between the two skulls: "It was extremely interesting to compare the compact thickness of Beethoven's and the fine, almost feminine thinness of Schubert's, and to relate them almost directly, to the character of their music.....it was also striking that the last lower left molar was found to have an excellent gold filling. This was unusual in two respects: In those days (1820s) it was exceptional to have such good fillings performed and further, it was surprising Beethoven was able to endure the operation which always requires such patience....what stormy feelings passed through my mind evoking such powerful memories, as I had possession of that head for a few days, cleaned from it bits of dirt, took plaster casts of the base of the skull, kept it by my bedside overnight, and in general proudly watched over that head from whose mouth, in years gone by, I had so often heard the living word!"

If he cleaned bits of dirt off of it, this would imply it had been in the ground at some point, up until soon before Von Breuning got ahold of it. If so, this would contradict the story that B's head was removed from his body shortly after death & was someone's prized possession.

I agree, it's morbid, except in one respect. In the hands of someone skilled in psychometry, it could tell many interesting stories. Psychometry is a means by which it could be authenticated as actually being Ludwig Van Beethoven. Hello HaydnFan, I personally know people who are good at psychometry, and I am skilled working with them. No, we don't tell them it's Beethoven's skull. We let them work that out & tell us. The ones I know are completely unmusical anyway.

[Hofrat]

Originally posted by Chaszz:
I Don't know about you guys. A morbid fascination with the physical remains of Beethoven... a thread about his hair, a thread about his skull...it's like a haunted house in here...

Dear Chaszz;

The most morbid thing about the 1863 exhumation of Beethoven's remains and the subsequent autopsy was Anton Bruckner's insistence of being present from beginning to end!!


Hofrat

[Sorrano]

Originally posted by Hofrat:
Dear Chaszz;

The most morbid thing about the 1863 exhumation of Beethoven's remains and the subsequent autopsy was Anton Bruckner's insistence of being present from beginning to end!!


Hofrat

And if you know much about Bruckner you would realize that he had a morbid streak in him--he was fascinated by and terrified of death.