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Benedict Arnold

Do You Have A Favourite Epitaph You Would Like to Post?

I am just finishing a book Didge suggested, on the archaeological excavations of the sunken city on the volcanic island of Thera, in the Mediterranean Sea, prolly the origin of the ATLANTIS legends.

Each chapter begins with a few epigrams, and one of those is this epitaph from the crypt of two astronomers, apparently buried together:

“We have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.”

* * *

And then just for good measure, that chapter also has the original version of the famous quote from Carl Sagan, Carnegie Hall, 1984:

“All the heavy elements that make up the rocks under our feet, the carbon and iron that pulse through our veins – all of these things were created by suns that had reached the ends of their lives and erupted into supernovae.
“We are all dust of the stars.”

* * *
Oh, and the book is UNEARTHING ATLANTIS, by Charles Pellegrini.

Posted - March 24, 2017
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Responses


  • Does not sound very interesting...maybe quite daring for its day?
    I did read the summary of de Maupassant's BUTTERBALL, seems to be a candidate for his finest, and it involved a prostitute but much more penetrating human examination of motives and compromises.
      March 25, 2017 1:37 PM MDT
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  • 47
    I'm afraid I don't know much by the way of any biographies of Guy de Maupassant. I learned of him only by his relatively brief mention in a book I read long ago, which described his slow mental deterioration, which many believe was the inspiration for his Horla cycle stories. The book described his Horla works as being informed by madness, and seeing them described as such, I was compelled to read them. They are strange stories, but who can really say how much his madness might have actually contributed to them? At any rate, I was also curious about the details of the nature of his madness, but I could find nothing, apart from a mention of it likely being syphilis-related. I read somewhere- I have forgotten exactly where, but it was online- that he suffered from hallucinations of his brain decaying in his skull, and was driven mad by the buzzing of flies attracted to his rotting brain. They provided no source, however, and I have since searched and found no other mention of this brain-rot hallucination. So much of the work about his life is in French, which I sadly cannot read without google translate, and even then it is time-consuming and inaccurate work.
      April 7, 2017 10:48 PM MDT
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  • 47
    update:

    I found the place where I read about the brain-rot. 

    https://theinspiredmadman.wordpress.com/2013/05/29/guy-de-maupassant-and-jolly-neurosyphilis/
      April 7, 2017 11:18 PM MDT
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  • Dear HVVENEZIA,
    I found that to be a marvelous link...not only a brief biography, but in turn links to Guy de Maupassant's complete works on Project Gutenberg!
    And I found another biography there...have bookmarked the whole thing, ty, lovely.
      April 8, 2017 12:47 AM MDT
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  • 7280
    Sort of------

    CS Lewis was an a atheist who became a Christian.---

    In one of his books, he quoted one epitaph which stated "All dressed up with no where to go."---

    Lewis suggested appending this comment, "I bet he wishes that were so."
      March 25, 2017 12:15 PM MDT
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  • Oh Tom...thank you...very poignant very dear, quite sad...says much in just a few words.
      March 25, 2017 12:27 PM MDT
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  • 7683
    Epitaphs are stuff that makes one teary ....as always luv your question Virginia...so sentimental and touching....I like to see death queerly....we are born with our expiry date written ....why not die smiling;))
      April 4, 2017 11:18 PM MDT
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  • Oh Veena.K,
    That one is SO dear...going out with smiles is excellent idea!
      April 5, 2017 12:37 AM MDT
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