Saturday Morning, January 9, 2021
Masks Required
You Are What You Believe
The soldier stared into the mirror. His image reflected certainty. The world was his. No question. Helmet straight. Uniform pressed. Rifle gleaming. His trimmed beard emphasized confidence. He knew who he was, and better, what was expected of him. Veneration for generations. Übermensch. Pride of his ancestors. Proud of his Second Reich. In this there was no doubt. No compromise. He dripped with self-assurance. What in the human psyche empowers such confidence? Is man really the product of an unconsciousness steeped in archetypal tradition, as proffered by Carl Jung, Swiss psychiatrist? Or is this simply Zeitgeist, the belief one is entombed within his or her times. You are what you eat. In this case, much Bratwurst.
Friedrich Nietzsch's Übermensch.
Emboldened by Frances defeat against Germany in 1870,
Germanic tribes identifed with Nietzsch.
Postcard postmarked Lüttich [German's name for Liège, Belgium], November 12, 1914.
We have uncovered a small family German postcard album from the World War I years. Germany had seized Belgium and from there, attempted to neutralize France quickly. Best laid plans.... It is an intimate family portrait, illustrating their involvement with the Red Cross. Most postcards have been mailed between 1914 and 1916.
German officers in repose, masking the horror just beyond the horizon. Verviers, Belgien, October 16, 1916.
There is no definitive answer. But there are cultural signs, shared throughout civilizations. A structure, systems, guaranteeing longevity. If the issue was purely black and white, psychiatrists' offices would be empty. Humans have forever survived within the gray, from cerebrum to surroundings. Understanding this human dilemma has always teetered between the couch and the ledge. Today, these traditions are under seige. Übermensch attacked. This image is powerful, not exclusive. Archetypes are never static, they offer many expressions.
Bicycle Corps were a major factor in World War I.
The Germans used them in Belgium extensively as the terrain was flat and forgiving. September 15, 1916.
Memories, good and bad, experienced in youth, intensify through reflection over a lifetime.
Hawaii 5.0
It is very hard to forget Mark Twain's Letters from Hawaii once you have read them. His assignment for the Sacramento Union newspaper in 1866 was to visit Hawaii and report the facts as he saw them. But Twain never saw a fact he couldn't stretch or twist, and with his wit, allow the reader a novel perspective. He claimed his assignment was for two weeks. He stayed four months. Such is the allure of these magical isles.
A just because photograph.
Here we see the 80th birthday party for David L. Brainard. David was a member of the Greely Arctic Expedition 1881 - 1884. In 1876, he was an Army Officer in the Sioux Wars of 1876. Five years later he was in the Arctic Circle. David was awarded the first honorary membership in the American Polar Society in 1936.
Attending guests include Marie Peary Stafford (Admiral Peary's daughter), and Russell J. Walrath, representing the Society. All three signed the photograph. Christmas one day a year? Not at Brown Bros.
When European Captain James Cook discovered the Sandwich Islands in 1788, two cultures collided. A year later the good Captain was, well, cooked, dying in a battle against the natives. Generations, led by the Kamehameha Dynasty, survived independence well into the nineteenth century. Today, their leadership is honored with statues erected from the Iolani Palace to Waikiki. Male and female alike.
From the same German home. Illustration from
Die Moderne Technik, published Berlin, ca. 1900.
Foldout images are mounted on academy board. Complete with ten illustrations.
These figures are selling more than pineapple popsicles. They are symbols, embodied archetypes of Hawaiian heritage. Then Twain stepped up to home plate. He reported Hawaii was actually matriarchal, a societal system in which woman hold the power. Despite the Kamehameha boys, true power rested with the women. He encouraged Europeans to take note. Under their patriarchal system, you never really knew who your father was, but here in Hawaii...
Just the Facts, Ma'am
Today, the Übermensch is on-the-run. Superman under seige. Much has been compromised. Long gone are the days of Father Knows Best now replaced with Homer Simpson. But will this undermining of a cultural structure succeed? No. Archetypes are forever. They morph, not vanish. They always have. Gender is a secondary consideration. Faith rules. Destroying this concept is much akin to picking up mercury with your fingers. There will always be dollops slipping away into the future. Who one seeks to identify with is less important than belief itself.
Two images of Ludwig Daeger.
To left, a CDV on board. To right, on tin.
Apparently, the postman does ring twice. Our apologies to Vincent.
Time sorts out winners and losers. In the end, Ulysses still had to answer to Penelope. This would be the third installment of Homer's great work, now lost to history. The Illiad, Odyssey, and Idiocy. Greek rule of three. There are no magistrates here. No courtrooms. No public opinion polls. Just time. This Saturday we will begin a journey of the mind. Our first estate in the new year is from a woman who dedicated her life to helping patients come to grips with this strange condition we call life. A Masters in English, trained at the Jungian Institute in New York, her skills in psychoanalysis were well placed. Just standing in her inner chamber, a comfortable living room where patients could relax, was calming. Tut's tomb. Her library will be divided into several auctions. A humanities major's delight. What a start to 2021.
Doors open at 8 AM. Auction starts at 9 AM. PA 1265L [bb]