Longing for what we have lost 4
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Winckelmann and the beauty of male friendship
Winckelmann felt himself a kindred spirit to the ancient Greeks, particularly as regards friendship. According to Pater:
That his affinity with Hellenism was not merely intellectual, that the subtler threads of temperament were inwoven in it, is proved by his romantic, fervid friendships with young men.[1]
Winckelmann found his intimate, emotional connections with other men, which elevated their friendships into a territory beyond mere acquaintance, mirrored in those of the ancient Greeks he studied. One token of such a friendship comes in the form of a portrait by Anton von Maron, which was commissioned for Winckelmann’s close friend and correspondent, Wilhelm Muzell-Stosch.
4.1. Beauty realised
4.2. Androgynous beauty
[1] Pater 1873, 161
→ 4.1. Beauty realised