1. Concepts of Time in Classical Philosophy

Abstract

Visual representations of a cosmic time dimension evolved in classical antiquity, if not before, from concepts of temporality proliferated by popular lore, religious and eschatological beliefs, astronomical-astrological theories, and philosophical speculation. Although philosophical concepts as such are beyond the realm of the author's study, a concise summary of some early conceptions help to demonstrate the relationship between ideas and images, all of which would have significant traces in the Renaissance. This chapter presents a cosmic theory with temporal contexts that would find expression in the multiple depictions of astrological phenomena, stellar motions and the adoption of horoscopes in both religious and secular art of the Renaissance. The concept of circular motion as an image of divine intelligence, or its manifestation in cyclic time, also found expression in the divine attributes of the wheel, the sphere or other round images, either held by the deity or encompassing him.Keywords: astrological phenomena; cosmic theory; horoscopes; philosophical concepts; religious art; Renaissance iconography; stellar motions; temporality