Der Venuswagen, Vol. VI - Heinrich Lautensack: Erotische Votiftafeln

 

Willi Jaeckel

  1888 - 1944 (biography)

1919  

seven lithographs, typeset text 

book: 12 x 10-15/16 x 1/4"; images: various 

ink signed by Jaeckel on the colophon 

258 (of 740) 

typeset text throughout 

 

antique-white laid 

published 

Alfred Richard Meyer and Wolfgang Gurlitt at the Fritz Gurlitt Verlag, Berlin 

25060 

$400.00 

Loosely translating to "erotic votive tablets," the title references votive offerings, also known as votive deposits, which are religious or spiritual icons created in various media to thank a deity for an answered prayer or wish. Versions of these "votives" are found in nearly every religion, and are found in the form of carved stone, pressed tin, clay figures, small paintings, and more. Outside of Christianity, these were usually made without the intent of the icon's discovery, meant only for the eyes of the deity. In Christianity, especially Catholicism, the votive is often on display within a place of worship, particularly in the form of jeweled "crowns" and even entire churches.

In the case of this book, a compilation of poems by Heinrich Lautensack (German: 1881-1919) relating to sexuality, religion, and the human condition are the votives, accompanied by images drawn by Willi Jaeckel in his classic German Expressionist style. Unfortunately, it was published just months after Lautensack died in a mental hospital, having experienced a breakdown one year earlier upon the death of his mentor, the writer Frank Wedekind.

Lautensack had frequently worked with the Venuswagen publisher Alfred Meyer, including the publication of a bimonthly literary magazine, Die Bücherei Maiandros.