Constantine P Cavafy's, The City - Illuminated Manuscript - Handmade, One of a Kind, Wall Art - 60x100cm (23.6'' x 39.4'')
Item Code: B9-4
Days to Ship: Out of Stock
Specifications
Color: | Red, Gold, Beige |
Material: | Parchment Type Paper, Acrylic Ink |
Dimensions: | Height: 23.6'' (60cm) Width: 39.4'' (100cm) Shipping Weight: 2.2lbs (1.0kg) |
2,500.00€ VAT included |
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This entirely handmade one of a kind illuminated manuscript contains the well known Constantine P. Cavafy’s ‘The City’ from his collected poems 1896-1933.
This illuminated manuscript is handwritten in Greek minuscule perlschrift (based on the style in the late Byzantine era), with hand drawings on high quality paper (emulating parchment paper) using a dip pen (metal nib) and acrylic ink.
It bears the original signature of the artist, date and place created, as well as a small gold colored Capricorn stamp seal.
- Unique Manuscript (Single Piece Available)
- Definitely a Collectors Item
- Perfect Wall Art Masterpiece
- 100% Handmade Modern Manuscript
- Made in Greece - Ships from Greece
- Comes with Authenticity Certificate by the Artist
- Stamped and Dated by the Artist Manuscript
- Exclusive Item
- Luxurious Gift or Wall Decor
This illuminated manuscript was not copied nor has the artist conveyed the style from the original manuscripts.
Width: 39.4' (100cm)
Shipping Weight: 2.2lbs (1.0kg)
The Original Greek text:
Κ.Π. Καβάφης Ἡ πόλις
‘ Εἶπες ˚ «Θὰ πάγω σ' ἄλλη γῆ, θὰ πάγω σ' ἄλλη θάλασσα.
Μιὰ πόλις ἄλλη θὰ βρεθεῖ καλλίτερη ἀπ' αὐτή.
Κάθε προσπάθειά μου μιὰ καταδίκη εἶναι γραφτῆ ˚
κ' εἲν' ἡ καρδιά μου -σὰν νεκρός- θαμένη.
Ὁ νοῦς μου ὡς πότε μὲς στὸν μαρασμὸν αὐτὸν θὰ μένει.
Ὅπου τὸ μάτι μου γυρίσω, ὅπου κι ἂν δῶ
ἐρείπια μαῦρα τῆς ζωῆς μου βλέπω ἐδῶ,
ποῦ τόσα χρόνια πέρασα καὶ ρήμαξα καὶ χάλασα.»
Καινούργιους τόπους δὲν θὰ βρεῖς, δὲν θάβρεις ἄλλες θάλασσες.
Ἡ πόλις θὰ σὲ ἀκολουθεῖ. Στοὺς δρόμους θὰ γυρνᾷς
τοὺς ἴδιους. Καὶ στὲς γειτονιὲς τὲς ἴδιες θὰ γερνᾷς ˚
καὶ μὲς στὰ ἴδια σπίτια αὐτὰ θ' ἀσπρίζεις.
Πάντα στὴν πόλι αὐτὴ θὰ φθάνεις. Γιὰ τὰ ἀλλοῦ -μὴ ἐλπίζεις-
δὲν ἔχει πλοῖο γιὰ σέ, δὲν ἔχει ὁδό.
Ἔτσι ποῦ τὴ ζωή σου ρήμαξες ἐδῶ
στὴν κώχη τούτη τὴν μικρή, σ' ὅλην τὴν γῆ τὴν χάλασες. ‘
The English text translation:
C. P. Cavafy The City
’ You said: “I’ll go to another country, go to another shore,
find another city better than this one.
Whatever I try to do is fated to turn out wrong
and my heart lies buried as though it were something dead.
How long can I let my mind moulder in this place?
Wherever I turn, wherever I happen to look,
I see the black ruins of my life, here,
where I’ve spent so many years, wasted them, destroyed them totally.”
You won’t find a new country, won’t find another shore.
This city will always pursue you. You will walk
the same streets, grow old in the same neighborhoods,
will turn gray in these same houses.
You will always end up in this city. Don’t hope for things elsewhere:
there is no ship for you, there is no road.
As you’ve wasted your life here, in this small corner,
you’ve destroyed it everywhere else in the world. ‘
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During this time the main characteristics of this Greek script, that is still being used today, were established.
Although this style of writing was usually imposed by the copying process (due to lack of time and space, writing tools, the lectern, influence by Latin script, etc…), it seemed to offer a special rhythm to each word, a rhythm which remarkable related to the meaning of the word. Writing this way, the scribe was able to save both time (some words were written without even picking up the pen) and space.
Additionally, there was great pressure to complete and deliver a manuscript as the number of texts to be transcribed was very high, paper was scarce and parchment was very expensive material.
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