What is it about?
We introduce this volume by asking how the Chambery theatre role, discovered recently by Georges Fréchet, changes our understanding of the Danse Macabre across medieval Europe. The second part of the Introduction presents the common understanding of the tradition's first dated appearance : the Parisian Danse Macabre that was painted in the cemetery of the Saints-Innocents in Paris in 1424-25. This volume focuses on literary texts but it includes studies of illustrations as well as, in chapter 9, a complete word-and-image work. It complements another volume - to be published soon - that will focus on the visual tradition.
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Photo by Ksenia Yakovleva on Unsplash
Why is it important?
This volume presents and explores poetic texts in several languages : French, Upper German, Castilian (including a copy in Hebrew script), Occitan and Dutch. There is also a study of English poems and plays. We seek to do more than trace an unbroken chain across Europe. Rather, we emphasise the differences between the different versions, how they reflect the culture and experiences of those who wrote, read, performed and preserved them, in late-medieval cities as well as in aristocratic courts.
Perspectives
A lot has been published about this fascinating artistic and literary tradition. We hope to open up new questions and to lead readers to create new enquiries. Yes, this theme is common, but how different were its different versions from each other? If we look for differences rather than similarities, do we make new discoveries?
Professor Dr Catherine Leglu
University of Luxembourg
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This page is a summary of: Introduction, October 2025, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004743052_002.
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